Discusses the contribution of language-based activities to training for thinking skills in a cognitively oriented curriculum. Focuses on the thinking and language dyad, which serves as the framework for a teaching model and the criterion for selection of content. (RJC)

A total of 416 elementary school children described in writing what their grandparents meant to them. Girls were more likely than boys to mention love. Younger children reported obtaining more affective provisions (e.g., attachment and nurturance) from grandparents while older children reported more cognitive provisions (e.g., guidance and pride…

Describes measurement of maternal responsiveness by means of the HOME Inventory. Shows the relation of such measurement to an array of child health, development, and behavior outcomes. (PCB)

In a study of 151 college freshmen of both sexes, cognitive complexity and learning orientation revealed gender-related qualitative differences within parallel cognitive structures. Different cognitive structures were accompanied by different learning orientations. (Author/TE)

The article suggests that Belcastro rods, which retain the basic properties of Cuisenaire rods but allow instant identification by touch, may be useful in teaching mathematical concepts to blind children. Drawings illustrate use of the rods in teaching such concepts as addition and subtraction. (Author/DB)

A literature-based cognitive developmental approach to learning and instruction in mainstreamed settings is presented. The approach considers children with learning disabilities to be ineffective and inactive learners, and focuses on addressing learning skills for all children and emphasizing mutual support and communication within the classroom.…

Ten language impaired and 10 language normal children, aged 3-5), were asked to solve verbal and nonverbal problems requiring color and size judgments. There were no group differences on the verbal tasks, but the language impaired children performed less well on the nonverbal tasks especially on problems dealing with size. (Author/DB)

The article addresses the neuroimaging, electrophysiological, and postmortem evidence concerning the neurological basis of dyslexia and concludes that inconsistent findings may be related to limitations of investigative technologies. Correlates of reading ability and disability are discussed in a developmental-neuropsychological context.…

In response to a previous paper (EC 212 858) regarding the neurodevelopmental evidence for the basis of dyslexia, this paper suggests further concerns in the areas of cognitive measurement, the relationship between cortical-functional organization and child development, and lack of operational definitions in the study of the dyslexic syndrome. (DB)

The study compared the use of language functions and language interactions in a structured setting with normal and language-disordered preschoolers. Language disordered children performed less appropriately on the average across all measures and the difference between groups was greater at younger ages. (Author/DB)

Studied the ways in which 200 children aged 2-6 years understood the concept of love. Results from interviews suggest that the youngest children think that they love different people at different times or under different conditions. Other results are discussed. (RJC)

Investigated interpersonal understanding in friendship reasoning of 97 children at ages 9, 12, and 15 years. Results support theories of the cumulative nature of the development of friendship reasoning. (RJC)

Discusses the role of instructional design in the development of learning theory. Topics discussed include the acquisition of knowledge and skills; models of teaching; the teaching and acquisition of concepts; influences on retention; and the integration of procedures, principles, and concepts for solving problems. (20 references) (LRW)

Suggests that Goad & Ingram's (1987) argument in favor of a cognitive model of phonological development failed to recognize the uniqueness of each individual's neural and vocal structures, ignored documented variability in the phonetic patterns of prelexical infants, and inexplicably assumed that inter-child variability implied the operation of…

Studies of young children's sequence of development from counting to the beginnings of formal arithmetic are reviewed. Four essential basic skills are identified: use of counting words, enumeration, the cardinality rule, and quantitative comparison. The contribution of counting to the development of arithmetical proficiency is stressed. (JDD)