Appropriate Social Behavior: Teaching Expectations to Young Children

Young children\u27s challenging behavior can impact all aspects of the classroom environment, including relationships (peer–peer, student–teacher), learning, and safety. Positive Behavior Interventions and Supports (PBIS) is a program that focuses on supporting pro-social behaviors and preventing challenging behavior. PBIS begins with building a foundation of universal practices and creating a common language that teachers, children, and families can use to talk about behavior. The identification and defining of appropriate behavioral expectations and the systematic teaching of those behavioral expectations is paramount to preventing challenging behavior. This article describes the steps involved in identifying classroom behavioral expectations and the development of developmentally appropriate lesson plans to teach those behaviors to young children

Enhancing Language Learning Opportunities in Family Contexts for Young Learners With or At Risk for Communicative Developmental Delay: An Initial Investigation

Though the early years of life are critical for any child, this period may be especially crucial for young children who are at risk for or presently evidencing developmental delays. Bruder (2001) offered several rationales for the provision of early intervention. First, the earlier that children with such issues are identified and provided services, the greater the likelihood that the child will benefit. Early intervention services can reduce or eliminate developmental delays, moving children out of a risk category (e.g., from “Delayed” to “Typically developing”) (Glascoe, 2005). In addition to these immediate effects, early intervention can have a significant impact on the subsequent developmental status of the child (Barnett & Belfield, 2006). Second, families receive invaluable support from these early intervention services (Sandall, Hemmeter, Smith, & McLean, 2005). Indeed, the very conceptual foundation of the Individualized Family Services Plan (IFSP), the intervention plan developed and implemented for children up to age six who evidence developmental delays (as opposed to the school-age Individualized Education Program) is that it is the family as much as the young child who is need of support and services. Finally, Bruder (2010) concluded that early intervention programs offer economic advantages to schools and communities. As participants in these programs gain skills and enhance their developmental status, educational and post-school programs benefit from the decreased costs of special education and disability services support that would otherwise be required for school-aged children and adults with disabilities. The primacy of the role of the family in first identifying developmental delays and then providing support for interventions is difficult to overstate (Sandall et al., 2005). Families provide this support through collaboration with early intervention professionals by facilitating the early intervention at home, while providing supplemental opportunities for the child to practice emergent skills at home and in the community

Parent-completed developmental screening for preschool children: A study of concurrent validity and reliability

xviii, 147 p. A print copy of this title is available from the UO Libraries, under the call number: KNIGHT LB1131 .P64 2008Identifying children with developmental delays or disabilities as early as possible is a growing concern and has increased focus on the development of valid, reliable screening tools. The previous editions of the Ages and Stages Questionnaires (ASQ) have been investigated and found to be valid and reliable for screening children at risk for delay and in need of further evaluation. This study examined the psychometric properties of a newly revised third edition, including the utility of the addition of a "monitor" scoring category with preschool age children. Participants included 59 child/parent dyads ages 45-65 months with either no known risk factors ( n = 39) or one or more risk factors ( n = 20). Results from data analyses evaluating the psychometric properties were promising. Validity was investigated by examining concurrent validity using the Battelle Developmental Inventory, 2 nd Edition (BDI-2). Classifications (i.e., "typically developing" or "identified") of child's performance based on the domain scores of the ASQ were compared to the classifications of the child's performance based on total developmental quotient scores of the BDI-2. Percentage of agreement between classifications (91%) was computed. Based on BDI-2 and ASQ agreement, specificity was 91%, sensitivity 100%, and positive predictive value 20%. Reliability was examined with test-retest, inter-observer, and internal consistency. Intraclass correlations (ICC) and percent agreement were used to calculate test-retest and inter-observer reliability. ICC for test-retest ranged from .29 to a .88 when comparing individual domain scores from time one to time two. Percent agreement was calculated by comparing classifications at time one to classifications at time two, with 96% agreement. ICC for inter-observer reliability ranged from .22 to 1.00, with a percent agreement of 100%. Internal consistency means were calculated at: communication .66, gross motor.70, fine motor.52, problem solving .35, and personal-social .61. Results from the analyses addressing the utility of a "monitor" scoring category and using learning activities suggested that (a) parents and teachers found the activities easy to understand and use, and (b) the learning activities would be effective with a child scoring in this category.Adviser: Jane K. Squire