ABSTRACT
In many schools an increasing number of children are entering kindergarten and/or first grade with special needs. Teachers label them emotionally and socially “needy,” and ask why? Why can’t they pay attention? Why can’t they talk and share ideas? Why can’t they wonder? Why aren’t they curious? Why aren’t they ready to learn when they enter school? For each child there is a unique set of causal factors. Whether the reason is physical, psychological, or social, these children have failed to clear a hurdle in their cognitive, linguistic, and social development on which later success depends; failure in the early grades does guarantee failure in later schooling even if remedial programs such as Chapter 1 are provided (Slavin, Karweit, & Wasik, 1992–1993). We need to look beyond school instruction for remedies.
