Category: S

A set of prerequisite skills important in a child’s being able to learn effectively from a course, including knowing how and when to take notes, being able to organize material, knowing how to approach tests, and having the basic locational skills to find the information needed in printed sources.  

A type of word-attack skill necessary for effective, independent reading.  

Darkened streaks on a woman’s abdomen, breasts, and thighs, often because of enlargement during pregnancy, in which case they are called striae gravidarum, but sometimes also during the growth spurt associated with puberty. The marks later fade but do not disappear completely. They are also sometimes associated with hormone disorders. Streaks or lines in the…

A type of genetic disorder, classed as a metabolic disorder, in which the body lacks certain enzymes necessary to break down compounds, the result being abnormal and damaging accumulations of various substances in body tis¬ sues, often seriously affecting the brain. Examples include mucopolysaccharidoses, lipid storage diseases (lipidoses), and mucolipidoses.  

A family that includes children who share one parent, not two.  

An act that is “criminal” only because it is committed by someone having a particular status, such as a minor, and breaks a law applying only to such people. An adolescent who runs away from home or is truant from school is a status offender. By contrast, an act that would be criminal if committed…

Foods for which the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has established basic standards for ingredients if the name (such as ketchup or mayonnaise) is to be used.  

A federally subsidized loan program under which banks, credit unions, other financial institutions, and sometimes schools lend money to undergraduate and graduate college students who have no previous federally subsidized loans; formerly called Guaranteed Student Loans (GSL). Amounts available (as of 1990) vary: up to $2,625 a year for the first two years of undergraduate…

Laboratory analysis of the mucous material in the air passages, called sputum or phlegm, which is increased by infection, allergies, and asthma. The amount, color, and makeup of sputum is an aid to diagnosis of lung and breathing disorder, such as tuberculosis.  

Alternate term for so-called solid foods fed to infants from about six months of age.