Reading motivation declines across elementary school. Although a substantive body of empirical work exists specific to the reading motivation of older children, researchers have paid less attention to younger readers. Given that children's perceptions of school experiences shape motivation, and motivation impacts achievement, it is imperative that…

Decision-making is essential for the work of teaching. Preservice teachers must learn to leverage knowledge about young readers' strengths, needs, and interests in order to plan and teach guided reading lessons skillfully. However, limited research examines preservice teachers' decision-making based on what they know about individual children. In…

This document describes the guidelines followed by the author in writing books for reluctant or unskilled teen-age readers and discusses the techniques which should be used when helping these readers to understand and appreciate what they read so that they will want to continue reading. In addition, the document contains questions for discussion…

Teachers of reading must fully appreciate the two concepts of reading: (1) a skill acquired only through formal reading instruction, and (2) the result of a natural emergence of language development. (Author/MB)

This article offers suggestions to teachers of middle school students on how to encourage children to read for pleasure and how to build a classroom library suited to their interests and abilities. (JD)

Describes ten practical ideas for classroom teaching at the elementary level, including "roulette" writing, story map raps, and theme cubes. (MM)

The systems approach to learning used in the majority of classrooms today redefines reading as its component skills. Two different approaches developed by teachers to teach reading as the sum of its components are presented. (JN)

Discusses the role of the elementary teacher in instilling a love of reading in children. Stresses need to provide material of interest to children, the pitfalls of oral reading, and the need to help parents plan book purchases. (CJM)

Presents a study of United States History textbooks that identifies possible shortcomings of several readability formulas as tools in determining the appropriateness of reading materials. Suggests additional factors to consider when selecting textbooks and techniques to help students understand reading materials. (AEM)

If the purpose for teaching children's literature is to introduce readers to books to which they can respond and to encourage self-directed reading, the necessity of considering the reader's point of view is obvious. If the teacher approaches the subject from the student's point of view, the selection of materials will be influenced, thereby…

This course is designed for independent students to improve their reading skills and their ability to interpret literature. The course should enable students to understand and use highly idiomatic vocabulary and grammatical structures of present-day English that interfere with comprehension. Excerpts from contemporary novels, short stories,…

Papers presented suggest a variety of views aimed at helping the teacher become more proficient in using children's literature in teaching reading. David C. Davis points out the need for developing programs in which books are selected on their literary quality, not on tastes or personal points of view. William G. McCarthy discusses the…

Noting that children's experiences at home during the preschool years set the stage for reading success, this guide provides the initiative, principles, and activities for reading to children from early months to 7 years to improve their literacy acquisition. The nine chapters are as follows: (1) "Reading: An Overview of the Discovery…