A study involving 45 physically handicapped brain injured children (including Ss diagnosed with cerebral palsy, spina bifida, and other types of brain injury) and 10 physically handicapped non-brain injured children ranging in age from 2-8 years was conducted to determine if there is something distinctive about a brain injured child which suggests differences in teaching behavior in a preschool setting. The procedure included four steps: student evaluation on such tasks as the Stanford Binet Intelligence Test, a five-hole form box, and Montessori cylinders; five initial observations of pupil-teacher interaction; individual tutorial sessions; and five follow-up observations. The major components (competence, temperament, and style of non work) which emerged were not situation specific, but were found to be related to teacher and child behaviors in both the individual tutorial session and the classroom. Distinctive patterns of response to cognitive demands, which were independent of competence, were found for the cerebral palsy, spina bifida, and non-brain injured groups. Findings indicated that a child's competence, cognitive style, and response style are dimensions of behavior which influence teaching style; and that there is a need to broaden the concept of brain injury in children because injury is not a unitary concept. (Provided are appendixes which include demographic characteristics of Ss, directions for numbering responses and recording, and a summary of classroom observations.) (Author/SB)