Anecdotal evidence shared by teachers appears to support the iPad as a useful tool for working with children with autism. However, there are thousands of possible applications, known as "apps", available in the Apple iTunes store for download and trying to decide what would be most useful for students can be daunting. This article will…

Picture books are often seen as a valuable tool for younger readers. In this article, the author suggests that the multiple literacies required to read a picture book can provide scaffolding and transmission of additional concepts for older readers.

Visual compositions can be used in the content areas to address comprehension problems posed by implicit factors in any content theme. The importance of a visual presentation for writing is that it can instantly portray the theme to be learned and act as a catalyst to elicit words and sentences to help explain that content theme. Stages of…

Concludes that there is a relationship between imagery level and comprehension and that imagery level of text can be determined "a priori" of pupils reading text. (FL)

Teachers can confront issues of students' infrequent reading and infrequent choice of content area texts by using specific instructional strategies that are highly motivating. Five research-based language arts strategies that many teachers use to successfully teach content area information are: (1) previewing vocabulary and content; (2) developing…

A lesson from a physics textbook for secondary students was redesigned in three versions and given to 600 students. Results of achievement measures suggested that one of the experimental versions (which stressed the visual aspects of the printed page) was superior to the standard and the other experimental versions. (GT)

Examines how students use geographical maps in history and social studies textbooks for comprehension purposes. Reports training 32 eleventh graders to use maps as aids in their comprehension of information. Finds a positive impact upon comprehension and learning of the original training passage. (MG)

The effect of pictures on reading comprehension under different levels of text organization was investigated. Sixth graders (N=132) read three science passages, presented with or without pictures representing text content. Picture condition was crossed with three levels of text organization. Multiple-choice test scores were analyzed using reading…

Visual representations of the main ideas of information text (frames) help middle-grade students learn from reading. A study investigated frame development by middle-grade teachers. Twenty-seven teachers worked alone and collaboratively to frame experimental passages that had been selected from content area textbooks in social studies and science.…

Eighteen average readers and 18 less-skilled readers (grades 8 and 9) were presented with social studies and science passages via a computer either visually (on screen), auditorily (read by digitized voice), or bimodally (on screen, highlighted while being voiced). Less-skilled readers demonstrated comprehension in the bimodal condition equivalent…

An exploratory study developed ways to describe systematically a particular graphic organizer, the frame. For the study, 27 middle-grade teachers each constructed 2 frames on sections of fourth-grade science and social studies texts. Teachers also worked collaboratively in pairs and larger groups to produce frames. Collaborative sessions were…

Describes six types of illustrations most frequently used in elementary-level content area texts. Presents ideas to teachers for effectively using illustrations to support children's learning and to develop children's abilities to verbalize the information acquired from illustrations. (DST)