Anne-Marie Morrissey

Pretend Play and Maternal Scaffolding: Comparisons of Toddlers With Advanced Development, Typical Development, and Hearing Impairment.

This study used measures of pretend play and maternal scaffolding to explore and compare the early development of deaf children, typically developing children, and children showing advanced intellectual development. Marked differences were found among the groups in both play development and characteristics of mother‐child interactions. In particular, children who scored above 130 IQ at four years of age were found, as toddlers, to have demonstrated significantly advanced pretend play. In addition, the mothers of the high IQ children engaged in scaffolding behaviors involving higher stages of pretend transformations, verbal analogies and world links. The findings are discussed in relation to childrens learning in Vygotskys Zone of Proximal Development, as well as possible implications for future research on early gifted development.

Problematic placement: pathways pre-service teachers’ perspectives on their infant/toddler placement

The inclusion of an infant/toddler placement in a ‘pathways’ early childhood teaching degree, where students already have qualifications and experience in working with young children, can be problematic. This pilot study investigated student teachers’ views on their infant/toddler (birth-to-two-years) placement. Sixty-six students completing their early childhood education degree at an Australian university responded to a survey seeking their perspectives on the effectiveness of the placement in developing teacher confidence, knowledge and skills, and the quality of the supervision they received. The participants had entered their degree with a two-year Diploma of Children’s Services. Responses indicated significant dissatisfaction with the quality of supervision, the absence of teacher-mentors, and the lack of opportunities to practise new approaches. Participants commented that they ‘already knew’ how to work with this age group, and that they aspired to work with older children. The results align with other findings on factors associated with positive placements, and raise questions about the effectiveness of the infant/toddler placement in its current form.

Beyond the image: The giftedness of Jimi Hendrix

This article explores aspects of the life and character of electric guitarist Jimi Hendrix based on the review of literature on gifted achievers and Dabrowskis theory on developmental potential in the gifted. The influential environmental and personality factors in the development of Hendrixs musical gift, including the role played by imagination and autodidactism with reference to Vygotkys theory on play, are a primary focus. Issues raised include the value of different musical education forms as they relate to the varieties of musical expression, and the usefulness of motivational and creative attributes as indicators of gifted potential.

Expectations of mentoring in a time of change: views of new and professionally isolated early childhood teachers in Victoria, Australia

This paper presents preliminary data from a mentoring program, initiated in response to widespread Government reform policy that targeted early childhood teachers who were new or professionally isolated. It was implemented over a period of two years (2011–2012) in the state of Victoria, Australia. The paper focuses on the voices of these future mentees regarding why they wanted to participate in the mentoring program and what they were hoping to achieve from participation in the program. These responses came from surveys completed on enrolment in the program and, based on grounded theory and using inductive coding, themes were identified. Their answers reveal their hopes and aspirations, as well as their doubts, anxieties, and feelings of isolation. Such responses prompt thinking about the importance of ensuring that professional learning is contextually relevant and recognising the situated nature of learning. From their answers, it is apparent that, for these teachers, professional learning needs to encompass a much sought-after space in which to be reflective of their practices, gain support and guidance, find new ideas for their practice, and get a feeling of belongingness in a professional learning community. It is argued that mentoring can meet these professional learning needs and aspirations in times of change.

Scaffolding, Analysis and Materials: Contributing Factors in an Unexpected Finding of Advanced Infant/Toddler Pretend Play?.

As part of a longitudinal study, infant/toddler pretend play development and maternal play modelling were investigated in dyadic context. A total of 21 children were videotaped in monthly play sessions with their mothers, from age 8 to 17 months. Child and mother pretend play frequencies and levels were measured using Brown’s Pretend Play Observation Scale. Child IQ assessments at 5 years (Stanford–Binet IV) indicated average to high ability levels (M = 122.62). Descriptive analyses showed that children’s levels of pretend development were markedly in advance of age-typical expectations. With a previous analysis showing no specific associations between play levels and IQ, intensive maternal scaffolding, data analysis approaches and use of abstract play materials are proposed as possible contributory factors to the children’s advanced pretend play development.

A comparison of sociodramatic play processes of preschoolers in a naturalized and a traditional outdoor space

ABSTRACT Sociodramatic play processes such as role play, transformations, persistence, and metacommunication are regarded as both important markers and facilitators of development. They are also influenced by the nature of the environment and resources available. With increased interest in the influence of naturalized play environments on sociodramatic play, researchers in this study used event sampling to compare sociodramatic play processes of 4- to 5-year-olds in two spaces at their preschool: one traditional and one highly naturalized. Play episodes in the naturalized space persisted for longer, were more mobile, and involved more fantasy role play. A chi-square analysis showed that children in the naturalized yard also demonstrated significantly higher levels of object substitutions, imaginative transformations, and metacommunications. Greater affordance of open-ended materials, flexible playscapes, and a greater sense of seclusion and quiet are proposed as possible factors, with implications for practice and design.