Biography

Professor of Early Childhood Education (Ph.D., Stanford University, 1968) in the Department of Curriculum and Instruction and Director of ERIC/EECE Clearinghouse on Elementary and Early Childhood Education. Author of more than 100 articles and chapters on the education of young children, most recently Engaging Children's Minds: The Project Approach, (with S. C. Chard), and Talks with Teachers of Young Children: A Collection. Founding editor of The Early Childhood Research Quarterly, and President of the National Association for the Education of Young Children (1992-1994).

http://www.ed.uiuc.edu/ci/ci_people/LKatz.html

Articles

Building Resilience: Helping Your Child Cope with Frustrations at School

When the Going Gets Tough... Your children--like mine and all others--are bound to experience frustrations, distress, and setbacks from time to time in their school careers, such as stage fright at... [more]

"Well Excuse Me!"

It's been said that good manners make it possible for us to get along with people we don't really like. Most of us take a less cynical view. We see manners as expressions of respect for the feelings... [more]

Chores and Children

The idea that everyone should do his or her share is a basic value for most of us. There are reasons why even preschoolers should be encouraged to pull an appropriate amount of their weight.... [more]

Twins in School: What Teachers Should Know

The incidence of multiple births has increased dramatically in the past two decades. The birth rate for twins, who constitute the most common kind of multiple births, increased 42% from 1980 to 1994... [more]

Healthy Habits for Kids

Parents often wonder if the health cautions they hear on television also apply to children. The answer for many of them is-YES! Here are several of the popular suggestions about diet and exercise... [more]

Adopted Children

Most parents find responding to young children's questions about where they came from a bit tricky. It is not surprising that adoptive parents have particular worries about how best to answer them,... [more]

Nongraded and Mixed-Age Grouping in Early Childhood Programs.

Interest in the potential benefits of mixed-age grouping in preschools and the early primary grades has increased steadily in recent years (Willis, 1991). Two large-scale mandates to "ungrade" the... [more]

In the Company of Friends

Enjoying the company of friends is not merely one of the good things of life. Contemporary research indicates that the failure to acquire friendship-making skills during the early years is associated... [more]

Making Friends

Being able to make friends and get along with other children during childhood has important far-reaching consequences in later life. Many specialists studying the long-term development of social... [more]

Coping With Stress

The traditional view of childhood as a time of lighthearted bliss has given way to recent recognition that children are susceptible to a variety of stresses. Although the term "stress" is difficult... [more]

The Only Child

The "only child" has historically been the object of concern and even scorn in many cultures. It is only common sense, after all, that an only child gets excessive adult attention, perhaps taking on... [more]

Coping With Separation Anxiety

Preschooler's unwillingness to leave a parent or other beloved adult is a good sign that important attachments have developed. Many experts believe this capacity is a prerequisite for a healthy... [more]

Getting Ready for School

Kindergarten is now a nearly universal experience for children in the United States: 98%, or more than 3 million children, attend kindergarten prior to entering first grade (National Center for... [more]

Curriculum Disputes in Early Childhood Education

Disputes concerning curriculum and teaching methods go back a long way in the field of early childhood education. Over the years, many different terms have been used to capture the opposing... [more]

Discussing Death with Preschoolers

Even though we have come a long way from treating death as a taboo subject, many parents still feel uncomfortable when children raise questions about death. Inevitably, the subject evokes... [more]

Helping Children Cope with Divorce

By the time a couple breaks a relationship permanently, all involved have already experienced a good deal of anguish. In fact, if the period leading to the breaking point has been a long, agonizing... [more]

Academic Redshirting and Young Children.

The term redshirting originally referred to postponing a college athlete's participation in regular season games for one year to give him an extra year of further growth and practice with the team in... [more]

Those Delicate Questions about Sex

Most preschoolers have learned quite a bit about sex even before they begin asking specific questions. They have been making observations of anatomical differences among themselves and between... [more]

Self-Esteem and Narcissism: Implications for Practice

Helping children to "feel good about themselves" is frequently listed as an important goal of early education. For example, the National Association of Elementary School Principals (1990) listed the... [more]

Whose Bed Is it Anyway?

Almost all children seek the comfort and warmth of their parents' bed at some time during the early years. The Circumstances May VarySome youngsters just enjoy the cozy snuggle from time to [more]

When Angels Fear to Tread

Even newborns show the capacity to feel fear; They typically react strongly to loud noises or sudden changes in height. These early responses gradually develop into more mature fearfulness that... [more]

Child-Rearing Disagreements

It is not surprising that occasionally parents have different ideas about how to raise their child. Child rearing involves constant decisions-big ones and little ones. Should Robin start preschool?... [more]

Coping with Trauma

Although we always hope the the course of family life and growing up will run smoothly, almost every child will be disrupted by what we call a "traumatic" event before reaching maturity. Short-Term... [more]

Decisions, Decisions

One of the advantages-and pleasures of living in a modern society is having a range of choices in many of the aspects of life that we consider important. Most of our children begin to exercise their... [more]

Monitoring TV Time

It is difficult for most young parents to imagine a world without television. Indeed, today' preschoolers are one of the first generations whose parents also grew up under television's powerful... [more]

Assessing Your Preschooler's Development

Few parents make it through their child's early years without occasionally thinking they should consult a counselor about the way things are going. It can be difficult to judge development-- there is... [more]