Early Play Arousal,Sex-Typed Play,and Activity Level as Precursors to Later Rough-and-Tumble Play

The present study compared two ways of measuring rough-and-tumble play (R&T) and examined three precursors to this play. Early parental socializing influences (particularly from fathers), "boy" sex-typed play preferences, and activity level were all hypothesized to be associated with later R&T. Objective measures of R&T at nursery school were moderately correlated with ratings of such play by parents and teachers at first grade. Arousal during play at 45 months and extent of R&T at 18 months by fathers, but not mothers, were found to correlate significantly with ratings of R&T at first grade. "Boy" sex-typed play was also significantly associated with first grade R&T. These correlations were similar for both boys and girls. There were no correlates with nursery school R&T that were similar for both sexes. Activity levels were not consistently associated with later R&T behaviors. Implications and limitations of these findings are discussed.     

Exploring Out-of-School Play and Educational Readiness

Play researchers and theorists have cautioned that children’s early play is changing in a manner that is detrimental to their development. Meanwhile U.S. governmental pressures and increasingly higher standards for education are changing the landscape of kindergarten and early learning. This study investigates the relationship between children’s out-of-school play and their educational readiness. Parents of kindergarten students in a suburban Midwestern school district completed the Child Play Survey on time their children spent in out-of-school play. Kindergarten teachers rated students on three domains of readiness using the newly devised Illinois Kindergarten Individual Development Survey (KIDS 2015): Attention to Learning—Self-Regulation (ATL-REG); Social and Emotional Development (SED); and Language and Literacy Development (LLD). Correlational and regression analyses suggest that time in out-of-school play is not positively associated to teacher ratings of academic and behavioral performance in kindergarten. Rather, increased time in outdoor play on school days and non-school days resulted in lower scores on all three readiness domains. Time in outdoor play was correlated to free-reduced lunch eligibility, the socioeconomic measure utilized in the study. Parent education level, income level, attendance at 3-year-old preschool and daycare attendance were found to positively influence readiness measures. Implications for future research are presented.     

The young child's gender schema: environmental input, internal organization

The relation among children's ability to apply gender labels, their tendency to emit sex-typed behavior, and their parents' attitudes and reactions toward sex-typed behaviors was studied. The children were observed at home with their parents when the children were 18 months old, before any of them had passed the gender-labeling task, and at 27 months, when half had passed (early labelers) and half had not (late labelers). At 18 months, there were no differences in the children's sex-typed behavior, but parents of future early labelers gave more positive and negative responses to sex-typed toy play. By 27 months, early labelers showed more traditional sex-typed behavior than late labelers; parents of early and late labelers no longer differed in their responses. At age 4, when given an inventory of sex stereotyping, early labelers scored higher on Sex Role Discrimination; there were no differeces on Sex Role Preference scores.     

A Longitudinal Study of Popular and Rejected Children's Rough-and-Tumble Play

The intent of this study was to examine longitudinal associations between the rough-and-tumble play (R & T) of popular and rejected children and consequential measures of social affiliation (i.e., engagement in social games-with-rules) and social cognition (social problem-solving flexibility). For two years the outdoor recess behavior and social problem-solving flexibility of elementary school children was assessed. Children were also classified as sociometrically popular or rejected. Replicating earlier cross-sectional work, the R & T of popular, not rejected, children predicted both games-with-rules and social problem-solving flexibility. Results are discussed in terms of probable, but as of yet untested, play group composition factors and relations between design features of R & T and outcomes measures. Suggestions for future research are also outlined.     

Mediated Effects of Preschool Intervention

Consistent evidence that the effect of preschool intervention on cognitive achievement fades with the passage of time has resulted in a search for mediators of preschool. This study investigated factors that play a role in mediating the effects of a government funded Child–Parent Center preschool program. The school adjustment of 266 low-income, mostly Black preschool children and of 125 comparison group children were matched on neighborhood characteristics and were traced from kindergarten through the third year of school (1986–1989). Data were collected from children, parents, and teachers on entering kindergarten cognitive readiness, teacher ratings of socioemotional maturity, parental involvement at home and in school, grade retention, assignment to special education, school mobility and cognitive achievement in reading and mathematics. Results of a latent-factor structural model indicated that preschool influenced later achievement and retention indirectly rather than directly. Four major pathways through which preschool exerted its effect included (1) cognitive readiness, (2) cognitive readiness and teacher ratings of socioemotional maturity, (3) teacher ratings of socioemotional maturity, and (4) parent involvement and school mobility. Cognitive readiness, teacher ratings, and parent involvement also transmitted effects to grade retention. That preschool's influence on later outcomes is largely indirect indicates its dependency on intervening factors in exerting effects. These intervening factors appear to be critical in promoting school success of children at risk.     

School entrance age, social acceptance, and self-perceptions in kindergarten and 1st grade

Concerns about the effect of school entrance age have generally focused on academic achievement. The effect of school entrance age on the social acceptance and self-perceptions of kindergarten and 1st-grade students was examined in two studies. In Study 1, the social acceptance and competence of 476 children was assessed in kindergarten and first grade through peer nominations and ratings, teacher ratings, and report card grades. In Study 2, a subgroup of 116 students was interviewed in kindergarten and first grade to assess their perceptions of their school adjustment, loneliness at school, cognitive and physical competence, and peer and maternal acceptance. Few differences were found related to school entrance age. Teachers' ratings and peer nominations generally described initial social problems for the youngest children which were overcome by first grade. There were no differences in self-reported school adjustment, loneliness, perceptions of competence, or acceptance related to school entry age.     

Play and social skills in maltreated and non-maltreated preschoolers during peer interactions

OBJECTIVE: The goal of the study was to investigate whether maltreated children differ from nonmaltreated children with regard to their social skills and play behaviors. METHOD: The social skills and free-play behaviors of 30 3- to 5-year-old maltreated and nonmaltreated children were compared. Fifteen children with a range of maltreatment experiences drawn from a hospital-based therapeutic nursery treatment program and 15 demographically similar children drawn from a home-based Head Start program participated in the study. All children were of low socioeconomic status. Children's free-play peer interactions were videotaped during the first 3 months of attendance in either program and analyzed along social and cognitive dimensions. Teachers and therapists rated children's social skills in peer interactions. RESULTS: Maltreated children were found to have significantly poorer skill in initiating interactions with peers and maintaining self-control, as well as a greater number of problem behaviors. Significant differences were not found between groups with regard to social participation or cognitive level of play. Significant correlations of moderate strength were found between social participation in play and social skills for the sample as a whole: total social skills score was positively related to interactive play, and negatively related to solitary play. CONCLUSION: The results suggest that the experience of maltreatment has a negative impact on children's developing interpersonal skills above and beyond the influence of factors associated with low socioeconomic status and other environmental stressors.     

Mediated Effects of Preschool Intervention

Consistent evidence that the effect of preschool intervention on cognitive achievement fades with the passage of time has resulted in a search for mediators of preschool. This study investigated factors that play a role in mediating the effects of a government funded Child-Parent Center preschool program. The school adjustment of 266 low-income, mostly Black preschool children and of 125 comparison group children were matched on neighborhood characteristics and were traced from kindergarten through the third year of school (1986-1989). Data were collected from children, parents, and teachers on entering kindergarten cognitive readiness, teacher ratings of socioemotional maturity, parental involvement at home and in school, grade retention, assignment to special education, school mobility and cognitive achievement in reading and mathematics. Results of a latent-factor structural model indicated that preschool influenced later achievement and retention indirectly rather than directly. Four major pathways through which preschool exerted its effect included (1) cognitive readiness, (2) cognitive readiness and teacher ratings of socioemotional maturity, (3) teacher ratings of socioemotional maturity, and (4) parent involvement and school mobility. Cognitive readiness, teacher ratings, and parent involvement also transmitted effects to grade retention. That preschool's influence on later outcomes is largely indirect indicates its dependency on intervening factors in exerting effects. These intervening factors appear to be critical in promoting school success of children at risk.     

Attitudes of Parents Toward War Play in Young Children

A questionnaire on attitudes toward war play was given to 316 Italian parents and 84 English parents of children aged 2 to 6 years. In both cultures, boys were significantly more likely to engage in war play, either social or solitary—most commonly weapon play, but also play with combat figures and acting out a combat role. Parental attitudes, television, and peers (including older siblings), appeared as common sources of influence. Parents expressed a range of views about how to respond to war play, varying from discouraging it (more common if their children did not engage in war play), to allowing it with limits, to allowing it unconditionally. There was more of a consensus that war toys should not be allowed in school and that playgroup supervisors and teachers should try to turn war play toward more constructive ends. Analysis of a range of attitudinal scales confirmed a general dimension of restrictiveness-permissiveness with regard to war play activities, linked to attitudes about rough-and-tumble play (R & T) and pretend play in the Italian sample but not in the English sample.     

Predicting performance in the first grade with the first-grade screening test

Items of the First Grade Screening Test (FGST) were rationally grouped into four subscales: Self-Concept, Visual-Motor, Reasoning, and Vocabulary. Prefirst grade subject scores were compared with later first grade teacher ratings. Agreement ranged from 64 to 70% on the subscales. An overall screening strategy utilizing subscate scores and a total score cutoff point yielded 82.5% agreement with teacher ratings of overall school performance.     

Continuity in early childhood education: transition from pre-school to school

Entrance to Primary School seems to be one of the most difficult and important changes in early childhood education. In this study it is examined the extent to which the differences between home or nursery school and primary school may cause difficulties to children in their psychological adjustment to the first grade of schooling. It is also investigated to see if some pedagogical strategies can make smoother the child's transition to school. The research was conducted in Greece during the period 1992–1993. Subjects were 75 nursery teachers, 566 first grade primary school teachers and 566 parents with first grade children. All subjects completed a questionnaire in which they evaluated the differences between home and primary school and between nursery school and primary school, as well as some pedagogical strategies. The results are presented in the tables I-IV. It seems that the differences between the environment in which the child lives before school and the primary school environment are so different that entrance to school is problematic for the child's adjustment. Some pedagogical strategies, however, may make smoother the children's passing from pre-school to school.     

The development of sex role stereotypes in the third year: relationships to gender labeling, gender identity, sex-typed toy preference, and family characteristics

The onset and development of preschoolers' awareness of sex role stereotypes, gender labeling, gender identity, and sex-typed toy preference were explored in 26-, 31-, and 36-month-old children. Gender labeling, gender identity, sex-typed toy preferences, and awareness of adult sex role differences were observed in significantly more 26-month-old children than would have been expected by chance. Verbal gender labeling was observed in a majority of 26-month-olds, while verbal and nonverbal gender identity were observed in a majority of 31-month-olds. Nonverbal gender labeling and awareness of adult sex role differences were observed in a majority of children by 36 months. No evidence of awareness of sex differences in children's toys was found in the majority of children at any age. Awareness of sex role differences in children's toys was not related to awareness of adult sex role differences. Brighter children were more aware of adult sex role differences. Sex-typed toy preference was not related to awareness of sex role differences but was related to gender identity. Predictors of sex role development included the mothers' employment, and the father's personality traits, attitudes toward women, and sex-typed activities in the home. Implications for theories of early sex role development are discussed.     

Mother-Child Play in Italy: Regional Variation,Individual Stability,and Mutual Dyadic Influence

Objective. This longitudinal study assessed similarities and differences in exploratory, symbolic, and social play in mother-child dyads in the south and north of Italy. Design. Altogether, 89 mothers and their children were observed and recorded at home when children were 13 and 20 months of age. From videotapes, exploratory, symbolic, and social play were coded and analyzed. Results. Children did not differ in their play with mothers across region and play type, but they played less in exploratory and more in symbolic modes as they grew. At 13 months, mothers in the south did not differ from mothers in the north in engaging in exploratory or symbolic play with their children; at 20 months, mothers in the south engaged in more demonstrations of exploratory and mothers in the north more demonstrations of symbolic play. Mothers in the south and north engaged in equivalent social play at the two ages, but northern mothers verbally praised their children more at the two ages. Child play was not stable, and mothers' play only irregularly stable. In both regions at both ages, individual variation in children's exploratory and symbolic play was specifically associated with individual variation in mothers' exploratory and symbolic play, respectively, but mothers' play did not predict children's play, nor did children's play predict mothers' play. Mothers' social play was not predictive of child play, although verbal praise was associated with child play. Conclusions. These data highlight the universality of general developmental processes in play as well as specific intra-cultural variation in parenting and child development.     

Having Friends, Keeping Friends, Making Friends, and Being Liked by Peers in the Classroom: Predictors of Children''s Early School Adjustment?

The potential role that children's classroom peer relations play in their school adjustment was investigated during the first 2 months of kindergarten and the remainder of the school year. Measures of 125 children's classroom peer relationships were obtained on 3 occasions: at school entrance, after 2 months of school, and at the end of the school year. Measures of school adjustment, including children's school perceptions, anxiety, avoidance, and performance, were obtained during the second and third assessment occasions. After controlling mental age, sex, and preschool experience, measures of children's classroom peer relationships were used to forecast later school adjustment. Results indicated that children with a larger number of classroom friends during school entrance developed more favorable school perceptions by the second month, and those who maintained these relationships liked school better as the year progressed. Making new friends in the classroom was associated with gains in school performance, and early peer rejection forecasted less favorable school perceptions, higher levels of school avoidance, and lower performance levels over the school year.     

Parental sensitivity, infant affect, and affect regulation: predictors of later attachment

This longitudinal study on 94 families examined the extent to which parent sensitivity, infant affect, and affect regulation at 4 months predicted mother-infant and father-infant attachment classifications at 1 year. Parent sensitivity was rated from face-to-face interaction episodes; infant affect and regulatory behaviors were rated from mother-infant and father-infant still-face episodes at 4 months. Infants' attachment to mothers and fathers was rated from the Strange Situation at 12 and 13 months. MANOVAs indicated that 4-month parent and infant factors were associated with infant-mother but not infant-father attachment groups. Discriminant Function Analysis further indicated that two functions, "Affect Regulation" and "Maternal Sensitivity," discriminated infant-mother attachment groups; As and B1-B2s showed more affect regulation toward mothers and fathers than B3-B4s and Cs at 4 months, and mothers of both secure groups were more sensitive than mothers of Cs. Finally, the association between maternal sensitivity and infant-mother attachment was partially mediated by infant affect regulation.     

Stability and Change in Prosocial and Antisocial Behavior Across the Transition to School: Teacher and Peer Perspectives

Research Findings: The transition to school is a major developmental milestone, and behavior tendencies already evident at the point of school entry can impact upon a child's subsequent social and academic adjustment. The current study aimed to investigate stability and change in the social behavior of girls and boys across the transition from day care to 1st grade. Teacher ratings and peer nominations for prosocial and antisocial behavior were obtained for 248 children belonging to 2 cohorts: school transitioning (n = 118) and day care remaining (n = 130). Data were gathered again from all children 1 year later, following the older group's entry into school. Teacher ratings of prosocial and antisocial behavior significantly predicted teacher ratings of the same behavior at Time 2 for both cohorts. Peer reports of antisocial behavior also showed significant stability, whereas stability of peer-reported prosocial behavior varied as a function of behavior type. Practice or Policy: The results contribute to understanding of trends in early childhood social behavior that potentially influence long-term developmental trajectories. Identification of some behaviors as more stable in early childhood than others, regardless of school entry, provides useful information for both the type and timing of early interventions.     

Links between parenting styles,parent–child academic interaction,parent–school interaction,and early academic skills and social behaviors in young children of English-speaking Caribbean immigrants

This study examined the influence of parenting styles, parent–child academic involvement at home, and parent–school contact on academic skills and social behaviors among kindergarten-age children of Caribbean immigrants. Seventy immigrant mothers and fathers participated in the study. Hierarchical regression analyses revealed that fathers’ authoritarian parenting style was negatively associated with and father–school contact was positively associated with receptive skills, vocabulary, and composite scores over and above that of mothers’ contributions in these areas. Fathers’ authoritative parenting style and father–child academic interaction at home were positively related to children's social behaviors. Mothers’ authoritarian parenting style was negatively and mother–school contact was positively associated with children's social behaviors. Analyses indicated that fathers’ parenting carried the weight of influence over mothers’ parenting for facilitating both child academic skills and social behaviors. The roles of parenting styles, parent–academic activities, and parent–school contacts in early schooling are discussed.     

Play, Language, and Maternal Responsiveness: A Longitudinal Study of Deaf and Hearing Infants

Language, maternal responsiveness, and developmental play levels were investigated in 43 middle-class dyads at 9, 12, and 18 months: hearing child/hearing mother (hH), deaf child/deaf mother (dD), deaf child/hearing mother (dH). Group dH provides information about play when language is delayed and maternal responsiveness decreased. Group dD provides information on developmental effects of diminished audition. There were no 9-month group play differences. At 12 months, hH infants displayed more representational play than infants in either deaf group ( p < .001). At 18 months, hH and dD children displayed more preplanned play than dH children ( p = .01). At 12 and 18 months, language was associated only marginally with play levels. Maternal responsiveness was significantly associated with 18-month-olds' preplanned play ( p = .01).     

Caregiving Practices of Low-Income Adolescent Mothers and the Academic Competence of Their First-Grade Children

Objective. This study examines the relation between the caregiving practices of teenage mothers and the academic performances of their children in first grade. Design. The teenage mothers were involved in a family support program, and data were collected on the sample for 7 years (the prenatal period through first grade). The sample included 89 children who participated in the first-grade follow-up and who resided with their biological mothers. Children's school performance was assessed with an achievement test in the fall semester of first grade and with teachers' ratings of academic performance at the end of the spring semester. Caregiving practices were assessed by both the research team and the family advocates who worked with the young mothers during the 5-year family support program; mothers also reported on home support for academic achievement during the first-grade interview. Results. Measures of home environment, advocates' ratings of parenting, and mothers' self-report of support for achievement were positively correlated with children's achievement in first grade. Conclusions. Results from multiple regression analyses were consistent with the view that differences in parenting prior to school entry and in maternal support for achievement once the child enters school are predictive of individual differences in first-grade achievement among children born to low-income adolescent mothers.     

Cognitive and Family-Support Mediators of Preschool Effectiveness: A Confirmatory Analysis

Investigated in this study were the mediators of the effects of preschool intervention on children's school achievement in sixth grade. A confirmatory structural model developed in a previous study of third graders was tested with 360 low-income, mostly black children who were available at the 3-year follow-up. The model incorporated cognitive readiness at kindergarten entry and parent involvement in school (rated by teachers and parents) as primary mediators of preschool effectiveness. In sixth grade (age 12), preschool participation at ages 3 or 4 was significantly associated with higher reading achievement, higher math achievement, and with lower incidence of grade retention. Cognitive readiness and parent involvement in school significantly mediated the estimated effects of preschool participation on school achievement and grade retention 7 years postprogram. Teacher ratings of school adjustment, school mobility, and grade retention also contributed to the transmission of effects. This integrated model fit the data better than several alternative models, including those based on the cognitive-advantage and family-support hypotheses.