This study describes trajectories of early literacy skill development of 99 children (n ϭ 55 boys) in their first year of primary school in New Zealand (NZ). Children were assessed twice weekly for 8 weeks on Dynamic Indicators of Basic Early Literacy Skills (DIBELS; Good & Kaminski, 2011) First Sound Fluency (FSF) and AIMSweb Letter Sound Fluency (LSF;Shinn & Shinn, 2002), with other early literacy and beginning reading skills assessed before and after progress monitoring. FSF and LSF growth trajectories were modeled separately. Multilevel modeling indicated improved performance; however, growth mixture modeling indicated 3 growth trajectories (i.e., latent classes; FSF and LSF, respectively): typical (77.6% of children, 65.7%), developing (10.8%, 14.6%), and limited progress (11.6%, 19.7%). Beginning of year screening was sometimes associated with latent class membership, whereas latent class membership differentiated mid-and year-end literacy skills. Results support progress monitoring of early literacy skills within the NZ context to aid earlier identification of children at-risk for difficulties with reading acquisition. Impact and ImplicationsThis study demonstrated that monitoring children's progress on early literacy skills over one term can reflect skill development in the first year of school. Although most children's performance improved over time, this study identified distinct growth trajectories, finding some children with low initial performance who showed limited progress. This research supports screening and progress monitoring for earlier identification and provision of supports to children experiencing challenges with reading acquisition.

Various forms of behavioural and parent training interventions are effective at reducing the behaviour problems in children with developmental disabilities. However, research on prevention and early intervention continues to be relatively scarce. Further large-scale dissemination studies and effectiveness studies in clinical or applied settings are needed.

The aetiology of obesity is multifactorial. An understanding of the contributions of various causal factors is essential for the proper management of obesity. Although it is primarily thought of as a condition brought on by lifestyle choices, recent evidence shows there is a link between obesity and viral infections. Numerous animal models have documented an increased body weight and a number of physiologic changes, including increased insulin sensitivity, increased glucose uptake and decreased leptin secretion that contribute to an increase in body fat in adenovirus-36 infection. Other viral agents associated with increasing obesity in animals included canine distemper virus, rous-associated virus 7, scrapie, Borna disease virus, SMAM-1 and other adenoviruses. This review attempted to determine if viral infection is a possible cause of obesity. Also, this paper discussed mechanisms by which viruses might produce obesity. Based on the evidence presented in this paper, it can be concluded that a link between obesity and viral infections cannot be ruled out. Further epidemiologic studies are needed to establish a causal link between the two, and determine if these results can be used in future management and prevention of obesity.

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