Because learning to read is based on the ability to sift and organize sensory input, it is important for teachers and curriculum planners to know of the sorts of language experiences which develop reception and, subsequently, reading skills. Research on the effects of visual and auditory presentation of information and on early sensory experience…

The handbook is intended to be part of a graduate course entitled "Education of Visually Handicapped Children" which is taught via computer assisted instruction to teachers in rural areas. Course topics include: education of visually handicapped children, clinical and functional identification criteria, collection of educationally relevant…

The Maternal Role Preparation project utilizes an occupational therapy approach to increasing maternal competence in first-time mothers. The four-session program covers topics concerning infants (attachment, sensory systems, developmental abilities) and mothers (the mothering role, physiological changes after childbirth, physical and psychological…

Movement is Fun is a preschool movement program developed by an occupational therapist. Based on sensory integration theory and using movement education concepts, the program's goal is to enhance normal development in 3- to 5-year-old children and provide a vehicle for early identification of developmental delays. (Author/KM)

Thirty-four children (ages 5-16) born to alcoholic mothers were assessed on measures of intelligence, reading, receptive vocabulary, memory for sentences, visual memory, and visual-motor integration. The children were found to be least deficient on intellectual measures and most deficient on memory for sentences and silent and oral readings.…

Children with developmental disabilities often have difficulty with joint attention that can affect more advanced communication skills. This study evaluated the complexity of child engagement behaviors demonstrated by twenty-five, pre-intentional children (age 9 to 25 months), who had developmental disabilities and were at risk for being…

In this article, the authors designed a study to explore what children's own drawings reveal about their viewing skills and to examine the interplay between visual and verbal literacies. Specifically, the authors wanted to determine how two communication systems--visual and verbal literacies--contribute to children's abilities to extract meaning…

This practicum was designed to remediate handwriting skills in school-aged children who displayed visual-motor deficiencies that affect mechanical skills. Practicum goals were to: (1) identify and diagnose children with handwriting delays; (2) involve school and parent interaction by involving them with pre- and post-program assessment; (3)…

Studies of the human brain suggest that cerebral dominance, the preference for either the right or the left hemisphere to direct the body's behavior, plays a causal role in distinctive learning styles and behavior patterns. The two halves of the brain are physically almost identical at birth, but childhood experiences which utilize one hemisphere…

To describe and compare the psychosensory functioning of normal children and children with specific learning disabilities, 62 learning disabled and 68 normal children were studied. Each child was given a battery of thirteen subtests on an automated psychosensory system representing various combinations of auditory and visual intra- and…

A volume in the "Dimensions in Early Learning Series" this monograph proposes suggestions for parents and teachers to supplement normal classroom procedures in the area of visual learning. Chapter I concludes that a child's development of visual skills is directly influenced by inborn tendencies, physical characteristics, and environmental…

Because some learning disorders in children may be associated with perceptual-motor dysfunction, this study tested the effects of sensorimotor treatment on learning disorders and explored the nature of neurodevelopmental disorders. In Part One, 64 neuromuscular, perceptual, and cognitive measurements made on 36 educationally handicapped children…

Reviewed in seven author contributed chapters are findings of experimental psychology relevant to the education of handicapped children in the areas of sensory processes, visual perception, memory, cognition and language development, sustained attention and impulse control, and personality and social development. Noted in an introductory chapter…

This paper presents a study using a neo-Piagetian theory to analyze the micro-structure underlying Piaget's "control of variables" scheme. Data are presented which support the conclusion that young children are capable of acquiring and utilizing this scheme before they acquire Conservation of Weight, that is, providing (1) that the…

A retrospective study compared hours spent by a schizophrenic adolescent in "time out" before and after initiation of treatment. The study evaluated the effects of sensory integrative treatment on the ability to handle anger and frustration. Results demonstrate the utility of statistical analysis versus visual comparison to validate effectiveness…