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Child Development Research

Child Development Research

The following are research articles published by staff at the WVU Child Development Laboratory (WVU Nursery School). Please click on the links to view the full articles.

Teaching Pre-Schoolers to Self-Assess Their Choices in Pre-K

Young children have the capability of making decisions, informed choices, and self-assessing their progress on their choices. Gathering and reflecting on their own evidence about their accomplishments created a reflective loop by which the child evaluated their work, made revisions and ultimately applied the criteria to other conditions.

Documentation Panels Enhance Teacher Education Programs

Documentation of children’s projects is advantageous to their learning process and is also a good method for student teachers to observe the process of learning. Documentation panels are a unique way to help student teachers understand how children learn.

Skinner Meets Piaget on the Reggio Playground

Practical synthesis of applied behavior analysis and developmentally appropriate practice orientations.

History Invades the Preschool Classroom

This project was initiated at the WVU Nursery School. Young children engaged in a personal history project. Even with obvious developmental limitations to understanding past events, young children investigated occurrences of the past related to their families.

One of our students' history projects incorporated swing dancing lessons!
Click here to view the video.

The Andy Warhol Project with a Touch of B.F. Skinner

This visual arts project was initiated at the WVU Nursery School several years ago and has assisted children in reproducing prints of famous artists. Using the principles of behaviorism in conjunction with developmentally appropriate practice has helped young children extend their knowledge in the visual arts.

Hands on Harp: An Introductory Instrument for Young Children

A primary goal of any good program for young children is to maximize the children’s creative potential. The “Harp Project” is a learning center that has had a tremendous impact.

Encourage Young Children to Set Their Own Learning Goals

Why ask preschool children to set their own goals for learning? How do children use self-recording and reporting to develop important skills for life-long learning? Click on the link below to find out.

The Role of Etiquette in Social Skill Development of Preschoolers

Manners often are considered a lost art in today’s society but they are a topic of great interest to parents. This article presents a developmentally appropriate approach to teaching etiquette that was used with preschoolers at the WVU Nursery School.

Paper Dolls: Back to Basics, With a Contemporary Twist

Paper dolls are an inexpensive toy that fascinates children and engages their minds for hours. What many parents may not realize are the benefits children are gaining from this experience. .

Wacky Wednesday

The Scrapbook project at the WVU Nursery School was implemented many years ago as a means to encourage children to create stories that are further used in other ways. The teacher plans various ways to encourage children to invent stories that include certain story elements.