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Results supported the compensatory trajectory of development. Speech-language pathologists are encouraged to adopt evidence-based practices in order to boost reading outcomes for children with LD beginning in preschool.

Social interactions with peers are an important aspect of childhood development that is closely linked to emotional well-being and success in school. We conducted a comprehensive review of recent intervention studies evaluating strategies to improve the peer interaction outcomes of students with intellectual disabilities and/or autism. The purpose of this review was to characterize the current knowledge base, to analyze key dimensions of recent studies, and to identify important areas for future research and synthesis. The 85 reviewed studies addressed 20 educational practices, which we categorized as (a) student-focused, (b) peer-focused, and/or (c) support-focused. Although the overall quality of these studies was high, considerable variation exists in the degree to which specific practices have been adequately evaluated with students across disability categories and grade levels. Additional research is needed to strengthen the depth of evidence for these practices across school levels, school settings, and disability categories.

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The effects of a multicomponent intervention strategy to increase peer-directed social communication in eight Head Start children at risk for poor language and social skill development were examined. The intervention consisted of three components: (a) a planning period, including reading a storybook that illustrated the play theme and use of the social pragmatic communication strategies, practice using vocabulary to be used in play, and choosing roles for the thematic activity; (b) a 10-min play session in which the interventionist coached children to interact while they played with the thematic related toys; and (c) a brief reporting period in which children reviewed their use of the social pragmatic strategies and specific vocabulary. A multiple-baseline design across dyads with pre- and postgeneralization probes was employed. Children increased their use of peer-directed communication over baseline levels, target vocabulary words, and other social pragmatic skills.

This study examined the social and behavioral characteristics of children with specific language impairment (SLI) as compared with a group of children with typically developing language skills (TL). The participants were 45 children (17 girls and 28 boys) with SLI and 53 children (27 girls and 26 boys) with TL. Maternal ratings of participants' social and behavioral characteristics were obtained using the Social Skills Rating System (Gresham & Elliott, 1990) and the Child Behavior Checklist (Achenbach, 1995). Analyses of variance revealed differences between the two groups of children in all areas of social skills as well as in specific indices of internalizing behaviors, although no differences were observed for externalizing behavior. The prevalence of clinically significant difficulties was significantly high in the area of social skills but not for behavioral problems. Implications of the results are discussed.

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We examined the self-reported practices of Head Start personnel toward children’s problem behavior in order to design an intervention for preschool personnel that was compatible with their needs. This study involved 78 Head Start staff from five programs in the Mid-Atlantic region. Participants were asked to respond to four questions concerning their practices for addressing their students’ problem behaviors. We found that survey respondents (a) listed externalizing behaviors as the predominant challenging behavior, (b) identified prevention and replacement methods for addressing problem behavior, (c) indicated that families of children with challenging behavior were involved in intervention planning and implementation, and (d) reported a need for additional training on classroom management and positive behavior support. Participants also were asked to respond to four conflict scenarios that were designed to measure how teachers would handle problem behavior situations. The majority of participants’ responses received a medium rating on a scale of low, medium, or high. Implications of these findings for preschool programs were discussed in terms of professional development and improved needs assessment measures.