Therapeutic intervention with children relies on the use of play materials as medium for communication. Within Gestalt play therapy play materials are utilised with the assumption that children will project their thoughts and feelings onto the play materials. Projection creates a sense of safety that allows children to discuss information that they generally would not raise. The use of puppets as play technique has many advantages in the therapeutic context. One of the key characteristics of puppets as play technique, is that it tends to enhance communication in the therapeutic context. Puppets are suitable for intervention in individual and group contexts. The goal of this study was to determine the influence of puppets as medium for communication in group work with children in middel childhood. Educational groups that focused on bullying as a topic of discussion were implemented with two groups of children in middle childhood. Bullying has a significant effect on may school-age children and was regarded as an appropriate topic for the groups. The research was based on a mixed methods research approach, with applied research as the type of research. A dominant less dominant research design was followed. A multi-group post-test research design was used for the quantitative research, whereas a collective case study design was used for the qualitative part of the study. Quantitative data collection focused on the communication and the interaction patterns during group sessions where puppets were utilised compared to sessions without the use of puppets. Data were collected by means of structured observation with the use of an observation schedule. Qualitative data collection focused on the responsents? experience of the use of puppets during group work. Semi-structured interviews that were guided by a semi-structured interview schedule were used to collect the qualitative data. A total of 10 respondents were selected by means of purposive sampling from children in middle childhood who attended a after school centre. Simple random sampling were used to divide the respondents into two groups of five respondents each. The two groups were exposed to the same group work programme. The research findings indicate that the use of puppets generally showed positive results in respect of the communication and interaction patterns in the two groups. The use of puppets resulted in an increase of contributions and in the initiation of discussions by the respondents. Furthermore, the respondents showed greater involvement in the group and tended to more readily include other group members in the group discussion. When using puppets, the respondents were were less likely to follow the opinion of other group members. Most of the respondents indicated that they enjoyed talking through the puppets. The use of puppets did however not enhance discussions of sensitive topics that focused on negative elements. Some of the respondents found it difficult to concentrate on the group discussion and manipulate the puppet at the same time and some exhibited more attention seeking behaviours when using the puppets in the group session. The study can be regarded as an exploratory study with a limited number of respondents. The conclusion is made that the use of puppets could benefit the communication and the interaction patterns during group work with children. Due to the promising results, the researcher recommends that further research be conducted on using puppets as medium for communication during group work. / Terapeutiese intervensies met kinders steun op die gebruik van spelmateriale as gespreksmedium. In Gestaltspelterapie word spelmateriale benut met die aanname dat kinders hul denke en gevoelens op die spelmateriale projekteer. Projeksie skep n gevoel van veiligheid wat daartoe bydra dat kinders inligting bespreek wat hul andersins nie sou opper nie. Handpoppe is n speltegniek wat verskeie voordele in die terapeutiese konteks inhou. Een van die uitstaande kenmerke van handpoppe as speltegniek, is dat dit kommunikasie in die terapeutiese konteks kan bevorder. Handpoppe kan tydens individuele intervensie en in groepsverband gebruik word. Die doel van hierdie studie was om die invloed van handpoppe as gespreksmedium tydens groepwerk met kinders in die middelkinderjare te bepaal. Vir die doel van die navorsing is opvoedkundige groepe wat op afkouery as onderwerp fokus met twee groepe kinders in die middelkinderjare geïmplementeer. Afknouery het n groot invloed op talle skoolkinders en is as n gepaste onderwerp vir die groepe beskou. In die studie is n gemengde navorsingsbenadering gevolg, met toegepaste navorsing as die tipe navorsing. n Dominante minder dominante navorsingsontwerp is gevolg. n Multi-groep na-toets navorsingsontwerp is vir die kwantitatiewe navorsing gebruik, terwyl n kollektiewe gevallestudie-ontwerp vir die kwalitatiewe deel van die navorsing gebruik is. Kwantitatiewe data het gefokus op die kommunikasie en interaksiepatrone tydens groepsessies waar handpoppe gebruik is teenoor dié sonder die gebruik van handpoppe. Data is deur middel van gestruktureerde observasie aan die hand van n observasieskedule ingesamel. Kwalitatiewe data het gefokus op die respondente se ervaring van die benutting van handpoppe tydens groepwerk. Semi-gestruktureerde onderhoude met die benutting van n semi-gestruktureerde onderhoudskedule is gebruik om laasgenoemde data in te samel. n Totaal van 10 respondente is op grond van doelgerigte steekproefseleksie vanuit kinders in die middelkinderjare wat n naskoolsentrum bygewoon het, geselekteer. Eenvoudige ewekansige steekproefseleksie is gebruik om die respondente in twee groepe van vyf respondente elk in te deel. Dieselfde groepwerkprogram is aan albei groepe aangebied. Die navorsingsbevindinge toon aan dat die benutting van handpoppe oor die algemeen voordelig vir die kommunikasie en interaksiepatrone in die twee groepe was. Dit het tot n verhoging van bydraes en van die inisiëring van gesprekke in die groepe gelei. Die respondente het groter betrokkenheid by die groep getoon en was meer geneig om ander groeplede in die groepsgesprek in te sluit. Respondente was ook minder geneig om bloot die mening van ander te volg wanneer handpoppe gebruik is. Die meeste respondente het aangetoon dat hulle dit geniet het om deur die handpoppe te praat. Die benutting van handpoppe het egter nie daartoe bygedra dat sensitiewe onderwerpe met negatiewe elemente meer geredelik bespreek is nie. Sommige respondente het dit moeilik gevind om gelyktydig op die groepsgesprek en op die manipulering van die handpoppe te fokus, terwyl ander meer geneig tot aandagsoekendende gedrag was wanneer handpoppe gebruik is. Die studie kan as n eksploratiewe studie met n beperkte aantal respondente beskou word. Die gevolgtrekking word gemaak dat die benutting van handpoppe wel die kommunikasie en die interaksiepatrone tydens groepwerk met kinders kan bevorder. Weens die belowende resultate stel die navorser voor dat verdere navorsing oor die benutting van handpoppe as gespeksmedium tydens groepwerk gedoen word. / Mini Dissertation (MSW)--University of Pretoria, 2016. / Social Work and Criminology / MSW / Unrestricted

Emotional awareness is a basic skill underlying emotional intelligence and forms a critical part of the holistic development of children. This skill is described as a person?s capacity to be in contact with his/her emotions and to effectively express emotions. Emotional awareness can enhance the social skills, academic performance, interpersonal relationships, and positive behaviours of children in middle childhood. Middle childhood is the life stage when children enter the formal school system. The school system primarily emphasises the academic performance of children. However, children also need psychosocial skills in order to adapt to the demands of school and effectively function within the school system. Emotional awareness can thus benefit children within the school environment. Emotional awareness is regarded as a cognitive skill that can be taught to children, for example by means of an emotional awareness programme. The goal of this study was to evaluate the effectiveness of an emotional awareness programme that was developed for children in middle childhood within the school context. For this purpose, the programme was presented to a sample of 55 children in middle childhood in a public school in the Free State Province. A quantitative research approach, based on a quasi-experimental comparison group pre-test post-test research design, was followed. Data was collected and analysed by means of a standardised measuring instrument, the Levels of Emotional Awareness Scale for Children (LEAS-C). The research findings indicate that the respondents that attended the emotional awareness programme, showed enhanced levels of emotional awareness. Thus, it could be stated that the emotional awareness of children in middle childhood can be enhanced through their exposure to an emotional awareness programme. Based on the research results, it is recommended that public schools in South Africa consider the implementation of similar programmes in the school environment. It is further recommended comparative studies are conducted in other public and private schools in South Africa. / Emosionele bewustheid is n vaardigheid onderliggend aan emosionele intelligensie en vorm n kritiese deel van die holistiese ontwikkeling van kinders. Emosionele bewustheid word beskryf as n persoon se vermoë om in kontak met sy/haar emosies te wees en emosies effektief uit te druk, en kan kinders se sosiale vaardighede, akademiese prestasie, interpersoonlike verhoudings en positiewe gedrag bevorder. Die middekinderjare is die lewensfase waarin kinders die formele skoolsisteem betree. In die skoolsisteem word daar hoofsaaklik klem gelê op kinders se akademiese prestasie. Suksesvolle aanpassing en funksionering in die skool vereis egter ook dat kinders oor genoegsame psigososiale vaardighede beskik om by die eise van die skoolomgewing aan te pas. Emosionele bewustheid kan dus voordele vir kinders in die skoolomgewing inhou. Emosionele bewustheid word beskou as n kognitiewe vaardigheid wat aan kinders geleer kan word, byvoorbeeld deur middel van n emosionele bewustheidsprogram. Die doel van hierdie studie was om die effektiwiteit van n emosionele bewustheidsprogram wat vir kinders in die middelkinderjare in die skoolomgewing ontwerp is, te evalueer. Vir hierdie doel is die betrokke program oor n tydperk van twee maande aan n steekproef van 55 leerders in n openbare skool in die Vrystaat aangebied. n Kwantitatiewe kwasi-eksperimentele navorsingsbenadering, gebaseer op n vergelykende groep voortoets natoets navorsingsontwerp, is gevolg en data is ingesamel en geanaliseer deur gebruik te maak van n gestandardiseerde meetinstrument, die Vlakke van Emosionele Bewustheidskaal vir Kinders (LEAS-C). Die navorsingsbevindinge dui daarop dat die respondente wat aan die emosionele bewustheidsprogram deelgeneem het, verhoogde vlakke van emosionele bewustheid getoon het. Derhalwe kan dit gestel word dat die emosionele bewustheid van kinders in die middekinderjare verhoog kan word deur hul blootstelling aan n emosionele bewustheidsprogram. Op grond van die navorsingsresultate word daar aanbeveel dat openbare skole in Suid-Afrika die moontlikheid oorweeg om soortgelyke programme in die skoolomgewing aan te bied. Daar word voorts aanbeveel dat vergelykende navorsingstudies in ander openbare- en privaatskole in Suid-Afrika herhaal word. / Mini Dissertation (MSW)--University of Pretoria, 2016. / Social Work and Criminology / MSW / Unrestricted

Emotional awareness refers to a person's ability to identify and describe one's emotions and the emotions of others. It assists people to manage and control their emotions and is an important skill underlying effective psychosocial functioning. Emotional awareness is a core component of emotional intelligence. For children, the capacity for emotional intelligence and emotional awareness can hold advantages such as enhancing their interpersonal and communication skills, academic performance, coping skills and self-esteem. Emotional awareness can thus assist children with their adjustment to and academic performance in school. Emotional awareness is regarded as a skill that can be taught to children. The goal of this study was thus to evaluate an emotional awareness programme that was developed for children in middle childhood within the educational setting (Knoetze, 2012). The study was based on a quantitative research approach. A quasi-experimental comparison group pre-test post-test research design was followed, according to which the effect of the programme could be determined by comparing pre-test and post-test data of an experimental and a comparison group. The respondents were children in middle childhood attending a private school for learners with learning disabilities. A standardised measuring instrument, the Levels of Emotional Awareness Scale for Children (LEAS-C) was used to collect data. / Mini Dissertation (MSW)--University of Pretoria, 2016. / Social Work and Criminology / MSW / Unrestricted

Parenting sets up the characteristics of the environment in which development takes place, making it a major predictor of most developmental outcomes, including academic skills. Much research has demonstrated that parenting behaviors influence math performance, however, the mechanisms and conditions under which this association takes place remain unclear. My thesis project assessed how child executive functions (EFs) influence the effects of middle childhood parenting on adolescents’ math skills. 77 mother-child dyads from Blacksburg contributed data in two different occasions: during the first visit (child age=9), maternal parenting behaviors (supportive and non-supportive), and child EF were assessed via questionnaires, behavioral coding, and a battery of EF tasks; during the second visit (child age=14), children’s math skills were assessed using a standardized test of achievement. Regression analyses revealed a direct effect of a composite measure of non-supportive parenting during middle childhood on adolescents’ math performance. Furthermore, EF did not mediate or moderate the effect of parenting on math skills, when using composite measures of parenting. However, when the parenting behaviors were assessed individually, maternal facilitation of attention, maternal expressive encouragement, and maternal minimizing reactions had indirect effects on adolescents’ math skills via EFs; specifically, working memory and inhibitory control were significant mediators. Furthermore, child cognitive flexibility moderated the effect of maternal distress reactions on adolescents’ math skills, but only when the levels of cognitive flexibility are considerably low. / M.S. / Parenting has great impact on different areas of child development, including academic skills. Researchers have shown strong associations between parenting and children’s math outcomes, however, the mechanisms explaining this associations remain unclear. This project explored how child Executive Functions explain the effect of different types of childhood parenting on adolescents’ math performance. 77 mothers and their children were assessed when the child was 9 and 14 years old; data on parenting and child executive functions were obtained during the age 9 assessment, and data on adolescent math performance was obtained at age 14. Results reveal that the combination multiple non-supportive parenting behaviors during childhood has a direct and negative effect on adolescents’ math skills. Furthermore, specific parenting behaviors such as maternal attentiveness and encouragement have a positive effect on children’s working memory and inhibitory control, which in turn has a positive effect on math skills in adolescence. Oppositely, minimization of the child’s negative emotions had a negative effect on child inhibitory control, which in turn had a negative effect on math skills at age 14.

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Cognitive reappraisal (CR) involves changing one’s mental states in response to an emotionally eliciting event in order to down regulate the potential emotional impact. In this study, 50 children who were 9-10 years old were instructed to engage in CR during a sad film. Children were then exposed to a disappointing situation and asked to self-report on their CR after the disappointment task. As hypothesized, there was variability in level of CR use during the disappointment task. Contrary to hypothesis, children’s CR was not related to parent CR. Nor was the association between parent CR and child CR moderated by child baseline frontal EEG asymmetry, as hypothesized. Post-hoc analyses revealed that parent CR moderated the association between child baseline frontal EEG asymmetry and task-related frontal EEG asymmetry, such that children presenting with left frontal asymmetry at baseline and who had parents with higher CR showed left frontal asymmetry during the disappointment task. This was conceptualized as physiological regulation during an emotion event. Post-hoc analyses also revealed that children’s CR after the disappointment task was predicted by task-related frontal EEG asymmetry, as well as self-reports of ER strategies. I conclude that task-specific CR can be assessed in preadolescents but that much research is needed to determine the correlates of child use of CR during emotional situations. / M.S. / Changing the way one thinks of an emotional event is considered highly adaptive, this strategy is referred to as cognitive reappraisal (CR). 50 children between the ages of 9 and 10 and their parents participated in this study. Children were asked to engage in CR while watching a sad film. Then, they were exposed to a disappointing event. After the disappointment, children were asked to complete a self-report questionnaire which gathered information on their CR during the disappointment task. Parents also completed an adult version of this questionnaire. Children’s responses were varied, but their CR was not related to their parent’s CR. Children’s brain activity was also not related to either parent’s nor children’s CR. Parent’s own CR was linked to children’s brain activity during rest and during the disappointment task, making brain activity more extreme for children with greater activation in the frontal left hemisphere of the brain during rest, the area involved with greater regulation. Additionally, children’s CR was predicted by their self-reported emotion regulation and their brain activity during the disappointment task. Our results indicate that wen parents are capable of changing the way they think about an emotional event, using CR, their children are benefitting in ways that are not easily observable, such as through brain activity.

Academic achievement involves complex processes that are not fully understood. That being said, the connection between working memory and academic achievement is well developed and emphasized in the literature. However considering the complex nature of academic achievement, other processes are likely involved. The current study examined the contributions of recollection, familiarity, working memory, and verbal IQ longitudinally in children at ages 6 and then 9. Recollection, but not familiarity, contributed to measures of both reading and math at age 6, but not 9. Path models suggested that the direct and indirect effects of working and episodic memory to academic achievement change from age 6 to 9. Furthermore, this study examined the contributions of the neural correlates of recollection and working memory to measures of academic achievement at ages 6 and 9. The neural correlates of working memory and recollection did not contribute to academic achievement, but additional research is needed to draw concrete conclusions. Overall, the results suggest that episodic memory should be considered in addition to working memory when examining academic achievement. / Ph. D. / Academic achievement incorporates many different abilities. I examined how different memory systems impact math and reading achievement at ages 6 and 9 years. I specifically examined working memory, recollection, and familiarity. Working memory involves information that is currently within one’s awareness. Recollection is a vivid re-experiencing of an event or events. Familiarity is a general sense that something has been seen or heard previously. The results suggest that working memory and recollection, but not familiarity, primarily impact math and reading achievement. Furthermore, different patterns emerged for the relation between memory and math achievement when compared to reading achievement, but were dependent on the child’s age. The results suggest that older children rely on different memory systems for math when compared to reading, while younger children use the same memory systems for math and reading. We further examined the neural (brain) regions related to memory and academic achievement. Additional research is needed to interpret and expand on the neural results found. Overall, the results provide information on how children learn and develop math and reading skills.

Canadian children have policy and infrastructure rich environments, but their physical activity levels are among the lowest in the world. The disconnection between opportunities to be active and actual physical activity suggests that factors other than policies and resources need to be investigated in the Canadian context. Finding ways to increase physical activity levels is critical in order for children to obtain adequate levels throughout childhood. Fundamental motor skill proficiency and positive perceptions of physical competence have been previously identified as factors that may contribute to physical activity engagement across childhood. This dissertation examined the developmental trajectories of fundamental motor skill proficiency (FMS), perceptions of physical competence (PPC), physical activity (MVPA), and sedentary behaviour (SB) from kindergarten to grade 2, in both cross-sectional and longitudinal samples of children. Three interrelated studies were conducted to address the overall purpose. The aim of study 1 was to examine the change in the relationship between fundamental motor skill proficiency and perceptions of physical competence from early to the beginning of middle childhood. The Test of Gross Motor Development–2 (TGMD- 2) and The Pictorial Scale of Perceived Competence and Social Acceptance for Young Children were used to measure FMS and PPC from kindergarten to grade 2 (n=250). Motor skills improved from kindergarten to grade 2, while PPC was high in both kindergarten and grade 2. Mixed design analyses of variance revealed overall significant effects for object control skills and PPC from kindergarten to grade 2. Furthermore, boys had higher object control skills and girls had higher locomotor skills and perceived physical competence. The aim of study 2 was to examine the levels of physical activity and sedentary behaviours sequentially from kindergarten to grade 2. A sample of 176 cross-sectional and 21 longitudinal participants wore Actigraph GT1M accelerometers for ≥ 10hrs per day for 7 days to measure physical activity and sedentary behaviour. Physical activity levels were lower in grade 2, while sedentary behaviour was higher. Pearson product- moment correlations revealed sedentary behaviour tracked more consistently over time than MVPA or total physical activity. The aim of study 3 was to examine whether perceptions of physical competence mediated the relationship between motor competence as the predictor variable and both physical activity and sedentary behaviour as dependent variables among children in grade 2 or 3. The TGMD-2 measured FMS and Actigraph GT1M accelerometers measured physical activity and sedentary behaviour for 129 grade 2–3 children. The Pictorial Scale of Perceived Competence and Social Acceptance for Young Children and The Self- Perception Profile for Children were used to assess PPC. Overall, PPC did not mediate the relationship between object control skills and MVPA or SB. Also, the path between object control skills and MVPA was significant for boys as were the paths between MVPA and SB for boys and girls. / Graduate