The purpose of the study was to assess early literacy skills and examine the presence and stability of challenging behaviors across the critical threshold of the kindergarten school year. Students' (n = 337) literacy performance (letter sound fluency, word attack, and phonological awareness) and challenging behaviors (teacher ratings of…

We examined associations between the quality of kindergarten teachers' mathematics instruction and their students' achievement and motivation in mathematics. Using a sample of 20 kindergarten teachers and their 285 students, we rated 5 video-recorded mathematics lessons per teacher throughout the spring semester with the Mathematical Quality of…

The purpose of this study was to examine the relationship between school-based kindergarten transition practices and student achievement and executive functioning using recent, nationally representative data from the Early Childhood Longitudinal Study, Kindergarten Class of 2010-11. The analysis employed 3-level hierarchical linear models and…

Analyzing Early Childhood Longitudinal Survey--Kindergarten (ECLS-K) data, we examine how exposure to instructional practices influences math test scores at the end of kindergarten for children from different racial/ethnic and socioeconomic backgrounds, and for children with different levels of math skills at kindergarten entry. We also analyze…

This 1-year prospective study aimed to examine associations between children's preschool emotional and behavioral problems and their kindergarten classroom engagement, and to identify any gender differences in this association. In preschool, parents and teachers completed questionnaires assessing aspects of children's (n = 575) emotional…

Multilevel modeling was used to investigate the relationship between poverty status, mathematics achievement gains, and behavioral engagement in learning over kindergarten. Data included information on 11,680 poor, low-income, and non-poor kindergartners from the Early Childhood Longitudinal Study-Kindergarten Cohort of 1998-1999 (ECLS-K). Results…

We examined relations between parent involvement and kindergarten students' behavior problems in classrooms with varying levels of teacher emotional support. Multi-informant data were collected on "n" = 255 low-income Black and Hispanic students, and "n" = 60 kindergarten classrooms in the baseline year of an intervention…

This study uses National Center for Early Development and Learning (NCEDL) data to examine the moderating effects of child ethnicity and family income on the links between parent-teacher relationships and kindergartners' social skills. This study includes 481 Caucasian, African American, and Latino children from low-income households. Overall,…

We examined kindergartners' (N = 160) reports of their conversations with parents about school, including whether parents ask about school, what parents ask about, what children tell them, and whether children want to tell their parents. We also investigated whether school adjustment and achievement were associated with either parent questions or…

This study addressed questions about the relations between personal characteristics and aspects of home environments and young children's subsequent academically relevant peer interaction behaviors in kindergarten in a sample of 108 preschool-age children (57 males, 51 females) from 2 Midwest cities and neighboring communities. A year prior to the…

This research focused on finding ways to assess instructional practices in grades kindergarten through 3 that are consistent with the American Psychological Association's Learner-Centered Psychological Principles. In several stages of research, conducted with over 2,100 children and their 124 teachers in several states, specific instructional…