Making Friends in School: Promoting Peer Relationships in Early Childhood (Early Childhood Education Series)

Traditionally, issues of early social development have been the concern of preschool teachers and researchers in the field of psychology and education. The wealth of knowledge and experience that has been accumulated in these domains is now surfacing as educators and and politicians expand their search for solutions to America's deepening educational crisis. In this book, the author aims to accomplish the formidable task of not only synthesizing research efforts from a range of disciplines, but also showing their direct applications to the education of children in preschool and elementary classrooms. Her research on developmental trends, group dynamics, and individual differences in the social arena, is continually grounded in the classroom through the presentation and analysis of a range of interpersonal scenarios that will be familiar to any classroom teacher. The synthesis of these areas results in an unusually comprehensive picture of the child's world - one further complemented by the author's examination of interpersonal relationships in a multicultural context. The author illuminates the components of the child's world and furthers our understanding of the social and educational importance of promoting peer relationships in the early childhood classroom. This book should prove an excellent supplemental text in undergraduate courses in early childhood and elementary education, developmental psychology, and human development. In-service early childhood professionals should find it thought provoking and engaging.