Suggestions from eight contributors include the following: how to use pattern books with beginning readers, how to develop a locally relevant basic sight word list, how to use learning styles in individualizing instruction, and how to personalize handouts. (FL)

Two curriculum evaluation projects were conducted in response to requests from practitioners interested in determining the quality of commercially developed reading programs. The 1st project, sponsored by 3 school districts in Texas, focused on 5 1st grade reading programs. The 2nd, conducted at the request of junior high, middle-, and high-school…

Offered as a policy statement rather than as a how-to manual, this program advisory provides the policy direction and instructional guidance needed to support the improvement of reading achievement in California through the development and implementation of a balanced, comprehensive reading program in prekindergarten through grade 3. The first…

Fast Start is a program designed to get primary grade children off to a successful start in learning to read through intensive and systematic parental involvement that is coordinated through the school and is based upon proven and effective methods of parent-child interaction around reading. The program is simple to learn, easy to implement,…

Substantial linguistic growth took place in grade one children who were taught beginning reading by a language experience approach. (JH)

Intended to provide children with pleasurable reading experiences by letting them feel successful in their early reading attempts, the program described in this booklet employs reading comprehension techniques that have been found effective and focuses on helping to prevent comprehension problems before they arise. The program was designed to be…

Part of the first book series of "Ch'al," the word workbook written in the Navajo language provides supplementary activities to the reading program. Illustrations are in reference to the 11 sound/symbol associations in the Navajo language introduced in the reader-workbook. Illustrated objects are captioned in the Navajo language using…

The student's reader-workbook accompanies the teacher's guide to "Nashdoi." Organized in the same format as the "Ch'al" and "Chaa" books, "Nashdoi" builds on the vocabulary introduced in those first two readers in the series. The reader-workbook introduces the consonant "x," 14 new vowel environments, 6 new diphthong environments, and 102 new…

Data on beginning reading practices in 23 countries are presented in this report. Each entry provides information about the age at which children are introduced to reading; the methods, materials, and classroom organization used in the primary reading classes; and the involvement of parents and family in beginning reading activities. Selected…

Children in the kindergarten and first grade classes at 14 London (Ontario) schools were selected to participate in a pilot project that compared procedures for the early identification and remediation of children likely to experience difficulty acquiring reading skills. Analysis of the results indicated that the six screening systems tested did…

THE FIRST YEAR OF A 3-YEAR PROJECT ENTITLED "COMPARING READING APPROACHES IN FIRST GRADE TEACHING WITH DISADVANTAGED CHILDREN" (CRAFT) IS REPORTED. CRAFT COMPARES A SKILLS-CENTERED APPROACH WITH A LANGUAGE-EXPERIENCE APPROACH TO TEACHING READING. VARIATIONS OF THE SKILLS-CENTERED APPROACH ARE THE BASAL READER METHOD AND THE PHONOVISUAL…

UNTIL SUBSTANTIAL MASTERY HAS BEEN ACHIEVED BY THE SLOWER READERS, THE SUB-SKILLS TO LEARNING THE MECHANICS OF READING SHOULD BE MADE THE OBJECTIVES OF INSTRUCTION. FOCUSING ON WORDS, BLENDING, AND HANDLING IRREGULARS ARE THREE OF THE SUB-SKILLS NEEDED. TO TEACH THE CHILD TO FOCUS ON WORDS, THE TEACHER INTRODUCES VERBAL RHYMING AND ALLITERATION…

A study was conducted to determine the effectiveness of six approaches to beginning reading instruction (basal, linguistic, phonic, programed reading, i/t/a, and unifon) in schools serving educationally disadvantaged children and to determine the effectiveness of lay aides in project classrooms. Subjects were approximately 4,000 pupils in primary…

This book reviews the research literature relevant to the language experience approach to the teaching of reading, in which instruction is based upon the use of reading materials created by writing down children's spoken language. The first major section provides a narrative review of the research studies, organized, for the most part,…

A kindergarten pre-reading program was designed based upon Piagetian and Montessorian theory. During the pilot study, pre-reading experiences, materials and games were created to encourage individual diagnosis and specific pre-reading skills assessment. The following year the investigator conducted a descriptive study of the program's…