Describes the importance of music, movement, creative dramatics, and art in the early childhood curriculum. Discusses the relation of symbols and symbolic systems to young children's cognitive development and to the ability to communicate. Summarizes the reasons for including the arts in a comprehensive curriculum. (RJC)

Discusses two philosophical concepts regarding what constitutes proper and suitable curricula for prekindergarten children: highly structured academic curricula and child-centered curricula. Compares their methods of assessment. (PRA)

Discusses dimensions necessary to preschool teachers' interactions with children, noting that they do not add to teachers' workload but do require a shift in focus. Dimensions discussed include listening, social skills, playing, and touching. (HTH)

Discusses how an integrated-thematic preschool curriculum can be designed by meet the needs of intellectually gifted young children by providing depth, connections between the disciplines, opportunities to address content at different levels, and learning center and group activities. Describes characteristics of intellectually gifted young…

Details 40 music programs in Australia that serve children from birth to 5 years, including aims, methodologies, equipment and materials, and assessment procedures of each program. Encourages providers to critically reflect on the quality of the music education they provide and how well it builds on children's natural positive relationship with…

Reviews four comprehensive works for beginning and experienced early child care educators: (1) "Supporting Young Learners: Ideas for Preschool and Day Care Providers" (Brickman and Taylor); (2) "A Child Goes Forth: A Curriculum Guide for Preschool Children," (Taylor); (3) "Early Childhood Curriculum" (Catron and Allen); and (4) "A Practical Guide…

Responds to Lubeck's critique of developmentally appropriate practice (DAP) guidelines and their underlying premises. Maintains that guidelines are a starting point for decision making, that not all DAP classrooms look the same, and that it is important for early childhood educators to be knowledgeable regarding developmental milestones.…

Discusses reasons for increased focus on prekindergarten programs, their importance for children at risk, and components of high-quality programs. Describes the preschool curriculum, kindergarten readiness, and reasons why public schools should be involved in prekindergarten programs. (Contains 28 references.) (PKP)

An alarming number of American pre-school children lack sufficient language and literacy skills to succeed in kindergarten. The type of curriculum that is available within pre-kindergarten settings can impact children's academic readiness. This work presents results from an evaluation of two language and literacy curricula (i.e., Let's Begin with…

Since 2002, the Institute of Education Sciences (IES) has funded more than 400 research grants through the National Center for Education Research. This document lists the publications that have resulted from these projects. Publications from IES grantees include articles intended for scientific audiences, as well as articles written for general…

Using the "Education Watch" household survey database, this paper explores children's access to pre-school education in Bangladesh. Participation in pre-school education has been increasing in Bangladesh at the rate of 0.6% per year and the net enrolment rate was found to be 13.4% in 2005. Enrolment of over-aged children in pre-school…

Following a review of the model compensatory education program resulting from the Perry Preschool Project in Ypsilanti, Michigan, this paper describes a study undertaken to test the efficacy of the Perry model as implemented in a preschool program run by the San Francisco Unified School District. The Perry Preschool Project, initiated in 1962,…

Describes practices, facilities, and goals of Cuban day care programs and makes some comparisons with American day care programs. (ED)

A study to determine the effectiveness of a comprehensive health education curriculum developed for Head Start, "Hale and Hardy's Helpful Health Hints," shows that the program appears to favorably affect the health knowledge of the children in the sample, and that the picture identification instrument format is appropriate for the…

The history and effectiveness of the Preschool Program of School District 21 (Wheeling, Illinois), an innovative program for handicapped preschoolers, are described. Referrals come from a variety of sources and result in screening tests conducted by an interdisciplinary team. Individualized Education Programs for enrolled program children are…