This document consists of the three 1998 issues of The Bernard van Leer Foundations'"Early Childhood Matters." This periodical, addressed to practitioners in the field of early childhood development, evolved from an in-house publication directed to projects funded by the Bernard van Leer Foundation. Articles in the February 1998 edition…

To promote healthy child development, parents and other caregivers need a variety of supportive resources. In order to assist parents and professionals, a coalition of organizations conducted an independent, comprehensive review of the child development video market and produced a list of selected titles for professionals and parents of young…

SAFEchild is a non-profit community service agency providing parenting information, education, and support to parents, children, and the community in the prevention of child abuse and neglect. This evaluation provides information to SAFEchild on the impact of the Nurturing Program on past participants. Staff were interested in determining…

Although the value of play in child development has been questioned in the past, it is now widely accepted that high-quality play environments and time for play are essential in the educational and developmental program for young children. Each school needs a master plan for developing school playgrounds: a plan that pays special attention to site…

This exploratory study investigated whether the Brazelton Neonatal Behavioral Assessment Scale (NBAS) can predict an infant's behavior on mastery motivation tasks at 1 and 2 years of age. Subjects were 31 normal, full-term infants from white, mostly middle class families. Infants were assessed using the NBAS with Kansas Supplements (NBAS-K) at a…

This study examined whether cry acoustics enhance the prediction of developmental outcome in preterm infants, after accounting for medical and social variables. Selection criteria for 149 preterm subjects included being born at less than 35 weeks gestational age and less than 1,500 grams; for 25 term subjects, selection criteria included being…

This paper reviews research on childhood depression and its relation to developmental processes, family functioning, academic performance, and peer relationships. The methodological strengths and weaknesses of the research are examined. A section on developmental perspectives looks at early childhood, school age children, and adolescence. Support…

The relationship between interaction with the caregiver and the emergence of play activities during the one-word period was examined. In particular, investigation centered on Vygotsky's views regarding the importance of social interaction as the source of the child's knowledge of the world. To empirically examine the role of the caregiver,…

Abstracts of 13 papers given at a 1983 conference on autistic children are presented: "Autism--Is There a Neurological Basis?" (G. McKhann); "The Syndrome of Autism: A Medical Model" (E. Ritvo) (full paper); "Neuropsychological Testing of Peripheral and Central Communicative Disorders" (H. Mark); "A Psychiatrist Views the Neurological Basis of the…

In contrast to the three-stage theory of attitude development proposed by Goodman (1964), Dr. Phyllis A. Katz, director of the Institute for Research on Social Problems, suggests that eight overlapping but separable steps occur in the acquisition of racial beliefs. The major points in Katz's schema are: (1) early observation of racial cues; (2)…

Five papers are presented from a 1982 conference on "Developmental and Clinical Aspects of Young Children's Play." In the first paper ("Cognitive Characteristics of Young Children's Play,") S. Rogers summarizes J. Piaget's theories on developmental stages, discusses the relationship of practice play to learning, and then…

Presented in this document is the interview form used to generate information from parents participating in the Life Style Study, an investigation designed to discover and interpret the home conditions under which young children in the English-speaking Caribbean, especially the underprivileged, are nurtured. The interview consists of seven…

Last year the author went to Cyprus to film the aftermath of the Turkish intervention. This summer he returned to the island, and talked to teachers, politicians and families about the effect on the children of the dislocation of the educational system. (Editor/RK)

Through his work as a social reformer involved in the people's fight against the Mafia in Sicily, the author has become a widely respected international figure. In this article he has written a description of his most recent project, an experimental school for children of the peasant community in Partinico. (Editor/RK)

Discusses the role of nutrition in achieving learning competence and ameliorating behavior problems, as seen through the Anisa theory of development. (ED)