The reading comprehension assessment tool is a product developed for the Regional Educational Laboratory's (REL) initiative, Pacific Communities with High performance In Literacy Development, herein named the Pacific CHILD. This research project is focused on school improvement, especially as it relates to the teaching and learning of early…

This report describes a program for improving reading skills of first graders. The targeted population consisted of a blue-collar community located in western Illinois. Many of the families had a language barrier. The problem of below grade level readers was documented through assessments and teacher observations. An examination of causes revealed…

The Braille Readiness Skills Grid identifies activities and skills that foster braille readiness in children with visual impairments. The grid assesses five readiness areas: tactile, fine motor, listening/attention, concept, and book/story. It is intended to encourage systematic braille readiness activities from infancy and foster children's…

This article discusses home/family factors related to the development of emergent literacy skills in preschool-age children and presents the Home Literacy Inventory for assessing children's non-print activities, reading activities, writing activities, and current reading and writing abilities. How the information can be used to develop…

A study examined the effectiveness of the Chapter 1 Early Literacy Summer School program. The program provided additional reading instruction to underachieving first-grade pupils at seven schools located throughout the Columbus, Ohio public school district. The program featured group instruction (with many of the activities modeled after the…

The "Direct Instructional System for Teaching Reading" (DISTAR) is a highly structured, synthetic method of teaching reading that was developed to provide beginning and remedial reading instruction to primary school children who have had difficulty learning from other materials. To determine DISTAR's effectiveness as a teaching method,…

Designed to provide practical information for all elementary teachers, whether they are just getting started, getting comfortable, or fine-tuning their assessment program, this book examines manageable and practical ways to collect information about young learners. It presents the voices of many elementary teachers at various grade levels…

A practicum provided child-centered activities for 20 kindergarten children during regular school hours. Goals for the practicum were to: (1) develop literacy; (2) increase social interaction between the teacher and the child through verbal and body language communication which weaves reading and writing into the relationship; and (3) obtain a…

The purpose of this study was to determine the significance of teaching phonological awareness directly in the classroom. Student samples were conducted of both special education and general education students. Teacher interviews and observations were also used in this process. This research was conducted in an elementary school with approximately…

In 1997, the Indiana Department of Education began implementing the Early Literacy Intervention Grant Program (ELIGP), designed to assist schools in their efforts to raise the reading proficiency of students most at risk for reading failures. This report summarizes a study of the impact of ELIGP on schools in the second year of funding, 1998-99.…

A study examined the development of phonemic awareness and its relationship to beginning reading among 20 first-grade children at risk for failing to learn to read and write. Their instructional programs were observed; their levels of reading, writing, and phonemic awareness development were measured in October and April; and their home literacy…

This guide is intended for use in conducting a reading lab for a broad group of workers ranging from nonreaders to persons reading at a fifth-grade level. Presented first is a course overview that includes the following: information on the course's targeted population, student selection process, and demographics; strategies for adult remediation;…

A study evaluated the effectiveness of the Success in Beginning Reading and Writing (SBRW) program which is based on the philosophy that children should be taught to read and write using materials they will rely on later in life. Subjects, four teachers and 48 students in the SBRW program and five teachers and 50 students in a Holt Basic Reading…

A balanced, systematic, instructional reading program was designed to increase word recognition in beginning readers. The targeted population consisted of first graders in an upper middle class community located in the Chicago suburbs. The lack of word recognition was documented through assessments revealing students' phonemic awareness, reading…

A study examined the effectiveness of a project to increase reading readiness skills. The targeted population consisted of kindergarten students in a growing middle class community located in northern Illinois. The problems of lack of reading readiness were documented through teacher observation and district assessment tools. Analysis of probable…