In recent years, the rate of Chinese immigrants to the United States has been increasing. Chinese parents desire that their Chinese-American children learn Chinese as a second language. The purpose of this study is to examine the effects on four American-born Chinese children when the researcher, as an instructor, employed whole language…

Explores whether there are unique approaches to early literacy among children reared in a rural Appalachian culture. Describes the reading/writing development of two children--both developed unique styles and approaches to literacy, stemming from home and cultural influences, and a supportive, constructivist, whole language classroom. (PA)

Shares examples from Florida elementary schools that show what happens when librarians and teachers collaborate in language arts curriculum and instruction. Outlines practices that enhance the development of selecting books and using libraries. (MG)

Helping teachers to discover approaches and techniques that fit their teaching style and their teaching situation, this book presents as fairly, completely, and clearly as possible the major approaches and techniques of reading instruction that research and practice have indicated to be successful. Based on the idea that the best reading programs…

Children from rural backgrounds often struggle with the unfamiliar language and settings in basal reader selections, but the rich knowledge and experience that a rural child brings to the classroom is rarely reflected there. These papers describe a literature based program developed in the Washington Court House City Schools (Ohio) to teach…

Describes implementation of a whole-language approach in a middle school that has a majority of students for whom English is a second language. The transitional English program for sixth graders used high-interest, high-action novels in combination with a writing program and portfolios. (SLD)

Examined the acquisition of decoding and spelling skills and the writing fluency of first graders who received either whole-language or traditional basal instruction. Children with high phonemic awareness outperformed those with low phonemic awareness on all literacy measures, regardless of the instructional method used. (MM)

Provides examples of how holistic procedures can be implemented by teachers who want to supplement the required basal. Demonstrates how students' reading ability, language acquisition, and communication skills can be strengthened as teachers activate prior knowledge, provide language-rich environments, consider reading/writing connections, and…

Providing introduction to the whole language philosophy, this book aims to demonstrate that whole language is indeed good education. It outlines what kinds of research support whole language education, how a whole language philosophy may be carried out in practice, and how to go about implementing a whole language philosophy in a school or a…

Defines the notion of literacy scaffold and explains why literacy scaffolding applies to both first- and second-language learners. Offers criteria for teachers to apply in developing scaffolds. Illustrates the model with scaffolding activities used with elementary children, emphasizing the kinds of social contexts that optimize learning. (MG)

Presents two kindergarten teachers' accounts of the use of the whole language approach to children's learning in class. Describes the reading of a children's book to a public kindergarten class and the subsequent literacy-related activities. (BB)

This practicum was designed to allow first graders the opportunity to read and write in a more natural and authentic manner than that permitted by using the basal reading series as the basis for reading instruction. The first grade reading program was transformed from a basal-oriented approach to a whole language approach. Through the use of…

Like so many slogans, "Whole Language" is a dangerous term because its meaning varies with each educator. Whole Language is not a method of teaching, nor is it a program; it is a philosophy or viewpoint. Nine major characteristics of a Whole Language approach as culled from a variety of sources, with most agreed upon by a majority of…

A 1-year investigation of writing took place in an urban second grade and focused on three low-income African American children with different reading abilities in their third year of whole language instruction. Data collection included written artifacts, structured interviews at the beginning and end of the school year, and field notes. Artifacts…

A first-grade teacher describes how she successfully applied the writing process model to her classroom readings. Focuses on one student's experience with reading.(BB)