The purpose of this study was to examine the effects of gender and three modes of story reconstruction training on second-grade students' story comprehension. Thirty-six children were randomly assigned to three treatment groups: drawing, discussion, and thematic-fantasy play. On three separate occasions, students were read books and participated…

Investigated were: (1) sex differences in the ability of 20 boys and 20 girls between 8 and 9 years of age to draw a plan of their house; and (2) variables related to such differences. Subjects were tested on four Piagetian tasks (verticality, horizontality, and two Euclidean space tasks), plan drawing, and vocabulary. After children completed the…

In England, a 40-item test of a child's ability to draw the ground floor layout of his or her home was developed. Findings of initial analyses indicated that subjects' drawings improved between the ages of 6 and 12 years. In order to test the cross-cultural validity of the standardization of the test and to see if the order of concept development…

One in a series of core instructional materials for apprentices to use during the first or second years of apprentice-related subjects training, this booklet deals with sketching, drawing, and blueprint reading. The first section consists of an outline of the content and scope of the core materials as well as a self-assessment pretest. Covered in…

This report presents a methodology for examining perceptual development in the arts and describes a study based on this methodology. The purpose of the study was to chart the developmental course of perceptual skills used in the arts and to investigate whether these skills generalize across art forms and aesthetic properties or whether they are…

Children aged 6 through 9 made drawings of cubes and simple abstract designs, with or without looking at their hand. Copying errors and differences between the age groups were discussed in terms of visual realism (perspective drawing) compared with intellectual realism (structural essentials copied without a unified perspective view). (CTM)

Following a 10-day period of daily assessment on the Goodenough Draw-A-Person Test and a visual matching task, a seven and a half year-old female with cerebral palsy received eight days of half-hour instruction targeting each skill area. Continued daily assessment during instruction demonstrated substantial improvement in test scores. (JW)

Examines whether young children, aged four to nine years old, are satisfied with their own method of drawing a familiar object, or whether they would ideally like to draw in a more advanced way but are hampered by production differences from achieving this aim. (HOD)

Reports a study of 5- to 12-year-old children and adults regarding the role of perceptual motor factors in copying an equilateral four-sided "square" or "diamond" figure under five conditions. Developmental trends were found for copying both figures; the diamond was less well performed than the square at all ages tested.…

Based on a longitudinal study of three children from birth, argues that children experiment with two dimensional representation much earlier than is commonly thought. Interaction between figurative and action modes of representation is described. Suggests symbolizations based on movement and time as well as configuration. (Author/AS)

Verbal contextual information affected photography and nonphotography students' performance on semantic retention tests. For example, correct titles aided the formation and retention of accurate memories, while erroneous titles misled students into remembering meanings that had relatively little to do with what was actually pictured in the…

The importance of maintaining students' interest in art is underscored by the decline in both self-confidence and interest in art that children commonly begin to display during middle childhood. This study explored developmental differences in art motivation, investigating whether the expected decline could be explained by changes in beliefs…

The value of children's drawing and writing in science lies in its potential to assist children in making observations, remembering events, and communicating understandings. However, a neglected aspect of children's representations is that they can serve the teacher as guide to children's understandings and as a diagnostic tool. By creating their…

An innovative interweaving of student interest, school curriculum, and creative interpretation. (RK)