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Article
Why Do the Children (Pretend) Play?
Available from: Cell Press (Elsevier)
Publication: Trends in Cognitive Sciences, vol. 21, no. 11
Date: Nov 2017
Pages: 826-834
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Abstract/Notes: The study of play in both animals and humans is flourishing. The purpose of human pretend play is not known. By analogy to play fighting in animals, evidence is presented suggesting that pretend play might improve sensitivity to social signals and emotion regulation in humans. Pretend play appears to be an evolved behavior because it is universal and appears on a set schedule. However, no specific functions have been determined for pretend play and empirical tests for its functions in humans are elusive. Yet animal play fighting can serve as an analog, as both activities involve as-if, metacommunicative signaling and symbolism. In the rat and some other animals, adaptive functions of play fighting include assisting social behavior and emotion regulation. Research is presented suggesting that pretend play might serve similar functions for humans.
Language: English
DOI: 10.1016/j.tics.2017.08.001
ISSN: 1364-6613, 1879-307X
Book Section
Beyond Day Care: Full-Day Montessori for Migrant and Other Language-Minority Children
Available from: Books to Borrow @ Internet Archive
Book Title: Montessori in Contemporary American Culture
Pages: 215-228
Americas, Displaced communities, Montessori method of education, North America, Refugees, United States of America
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Language: English
Published: Portsmouth, New Hampshire: Heinemann, 1992
ISBN: 0-435-08709-6 978-0-435-08709-8
Book Section
Mabel's Grandchildren and the Montessori System
Available from: Books to Borrow @ Internet Archive
Book Title: Mabel Bell: Alexander's Silent Partner
Pages: 178-186
Alexander Graham Bell - Biographic sources, Americas, Canada, Mabel Bell - Biographic sources, Montessori method of education, Montessori schools, North America
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Language: English
Published: New York: Methuen, 1984
ISBN: 978-0-458-98090-1
Doctoral Dissertation
Where Have All the Children Gone? A Case Study of Three American Preschools
Available from: ProQuest - Dissertations and Theses
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Abstract/Notes: In sociological investigation, Weber (1968) believes that concrete historical events can be interpreted in terms of social action. These patterns of action differ from historical accounts, which explore the importance of causal explanation of individual events. Entwistle and Alexander (1993) contend that sociologists of education have paid little attention to patterns of class interaction and inequality in preschools. Adding to Hartley's (1993) work on nursery schools in Scotland, and using an organizational model with a sociohistorical standpoint, this ethnographic case study helps to bridge that gap by concentrating on the historical and ecological contexts of (1) a Laboratory school; (2) a Montessori school; and, (3) a Head Start center. The central problem of the study seeks an answer to the question "If inequalities in preschools exist, what do they look like?" This study assumes that historically educational systems have exerted a form of social control over children in order to transmit cultural values. Part I of the study examines ancient and modern societies, their cultures and their philosophical grounding to reveal the values and trends that contribute to social change in the early education of children. Part II adds a triangulation strategy to explore the ecology (environment and culture) of the three schools in the study. These strategies include archival content analysis of the preschool organizations, nonparticipant observation of the classrooms (Bell, 1993), intensive interviewing of the staff and administration members and a brief survey of the preschool parents. This study draws from the sociology of Weber's "ideal bureaucracy," Berger's "bureaucratic cognitive style," Elias' "civilizing process," Bernstein's "visible and invisible" pedagogy, Bourdieu's "cultural capital" and Anyon's "biased ideological messages." In this exploratory study, the data analysis uses a descriptive methodology, not to draw conclusions, but similar to Glaser and Strauss' "grounded theory" to introduce questions to be explored further by researchers. A final section on policy recommendations is included.
Language: English
Published: Boston, Massachusetts, 2000
Master's Thesis (Action Research Report)
The Impact of Vigorous Physical Activity on Preschool and Kindergarten Children's On-Task Behavior and Focus
Available from: St. Catherine University
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Abstract/Notes: This study aims to investigate the impact of daily moderate to vigorous physical activity on preschool and kindergarten-aged children’s on-task behavior and focus. The research took place over four weeks in a Montessori early childhood classroom with 15 children aged three to six. Each day, children participated in 12-15 minutes of physical activity, including running, jumping and marching, vigorous enough for them breathe hard. The researcher used both quantitative and qualitative data tools to examine effects on ability to focus and to be on-task during the following two hours. The increased movement had a positive impact on the children’s transition to the next activity and on the rate of children being on task for up to two hours. Continued research is needed to determine effectiveness on focus.
Language: English
Published: St. Paul, Minnesota, 2021
Archival Material Or Collection
Box 18, Folder 21 - Plays, ca. 1925-1931 - "The Gifts: A Nativity Play for Children" (original copy)
Available from: Seattle University
Date: ca. 1925-ca. 1931
Edwin Mortimer Standing - Biographic sources, Edwin Mortimer Standing - Writings
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Language: English
Archive: Seattle University, Lemieux Library and McGoldrick Learning Commons, Special Collections
Article
Food Tasting for Young Children
Publication: Infants and Toddlers, vol. 7, no. 3
Date: 2003
Pages: 12–14
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Language: English
Article
Gifted Children
Publication: Montessori Courier, vol. 2, no. 2
Date: Jun 1990
Pages: 14–15
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Language: English
ISSN: 0959-4108
Article
Multisensory Gains in Simple Detection Predict Global Cognition in Schoolchildren
Available from: Nature
Publication: Scientific Reports, vol. 10, no. 1
Date: Feb 4, 2020
Pages: Article 1394
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Abstract/Notes: The capacity to integrate information from different senses is central for coherent perception across the lifespan from infancy onwards. Later in life, multisensory processes are related to cognitive functions, such as speech or social communication. During learning, multisensory processes can in fact enhance subsequent recognition memory for unisensory objects. These benefits can even be predicted; adults’ recognition memory performance is shaped by earlier responses in the same task to multisensory – but not unisensory – information. Everyday environments where learning occurs, such as classrooms, are inherently multisensory in nature. Multisensory processes may therefore scaffold healthy cognitive development. Here, we provide the first evidence of a predictive relationship between multisensory benefits in simple detection and higher-level cognition that is present already in schoolchildren. Multiple regression analyses indicated that the extent to which a child (N = 68; aged 4.5–15years) exhibited multisensory benefits on a simple detection task not only predicted benefits on a continuous recognition task involving naturalistic objects (p = 0.009), even when controlling for age, but also the same relative multisensory benefit also predicted working memory scores (p = 0.023) and fluid intelligence scores (p = 0.033) as measured using age-standardised test batteries. By contrast, gains in unisensory detection did not show significant prediction of any of the above global cognition measures. Our findings show that low-level multisensory processes predict higher-order memory and cognition already during childhood, even if still subject to ongoing maturation. These results call for revision of traditional models of cognitive development (and likely also education) to account for the role of multisensory processing, while also opening exciting opportunities to facilitate early learning through multisensory programs. More generally, these data suggest that a simple detection task could provide direct insights into the integrity of global cognition in schoolchildren and could be further developed as a readily-implemented and cost-effective screening tool for neurodevelopmental disorders, particularly in cases when standard neuropsychological tests are infeasible or unavailable.
Language: English
DOI: 10.1038/s41598-020-58329-4
ISSN: 2045-2322
Book
The Mass Explained to Children
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Language: English
Published: Amsterdam, The Netherlands: Montessori-Pierson Publishing Company, 2015
ISBN: 978-90-79506-19-4
Series: The Montessori Series , 19