EE<br >A knowledge of child development is essential for<br >anyone who plans to work with children. Knowing<br >what children can do and understand at different<br >stages of development helps early childhood pro-<br >fessionals provide skilled care and plan activities<br >that are suited to each child s stage of d~velopment.<br > This book focuses on aspects of child develop-<br >ment that are particularly relevant to people who<br >will be professionally involved with children and<br > their parents. Although it includes comprehensive<br > coverage of the physical， intellectual， and emotion-<br > al and social development of children at various<br > ages， its orientation is distinctly practical. The book<br > divides child development into four broad stages<br > based on age:<br > ~ Infancy--children from birth to i year<br > ~ Toddlerhood--children from I to 3 years<br > ~ The preschool years--children from 3 to 5 years<br > ~ The school years--primary focus on children from<br > 6 to 8 years plus coverage of children from 9 to 12<br > years and a brief overview of adolescents<br >Content<br >The book begins with an overview of child devel-<br >opment that sets the stage for the rest of the book.<br >This first part includes a chapter on various meth-<br >ods of studying child development and a chapter<br >on leading theories of child development.<br > Part 2 provides important background informa-<br > tion for people working in early childhood educa-<br > tion. It contains chapters on heredity and pregnancy，<br > the family， and major issues in the child care profes-<br > sion， including multiculturalism， children with spe-<br > cial needs， and health and safety.<br > The next four parts are devoted to a detailed ex-<br > amination of the physical， intellectual， and emo-<br > tional and social development of infants， toddlers，<br > preschoolers， and children in the school years. In<br > these chapters， too， child development is viewed<br > from the perspective of the child care professional，<br >Preface<br >with particular emphasis on the abilities， needs，<br >and special concerns of children at different stages<br >of development.<br > The final part of the book consists of a step-by-step<br >guide to planning a career and obtaining a job in the<br >field of early childhood education. Throughout， the<br >text uses either female or male examples in order to<br >avoid awkward he/she and him/her constructions.<br >Chapter Structure<br >Each chapter in the book begins with learning ob-<br >jectives and a list of the main headings in the chap-<br >ter. These can be used as a preview of the material<br >to be learned. Within the chapter， important terms<br >are highlighted in italics; they are defined again in<br >the Glossary at the back of the book. Author and<br >publication date of each source are cited in the text<br > (Erikson， 1972); full bibliographic information is<br > provided in the References at the back of the book.<br > All the chapters in the book except the final one<br > on careers contain sections entitled Implications<br > and Applications. These show how the theory and<br > information presented in the chapters relate to the<br > classroom or child care setting. They underline the<br > book s practical approach.<br >Special Features<br >The practical approach is reinforced in a series of<br >special features on topics of immediate concern to<br >early childhood professionals.<br > "Focus on Cultural Diversity" covers a range of<br >topics designed to illustrate differences in customs<br >and values among various groups of people. The<br >theme of multiculturalism runs through the text<br > portion of the chapters as well， with topics such as<br > curriculum， play， and classroom management dis-<br > cussed from a multicultural perspective.<br > "Focus on Commt~y6cating" presents discussions<br > of both ordinary everydaY problems and extremely<br >vii<br ><br >