Describes a teaching method involving folk music for enriching language arts programs and developing children's library skills. (HTH)

Suggests a variation on the language experience approach designed for groups of nonverbal children. (MKM)

A study of 46 first-grade children to determine how basal instructed and language experience instructed children would differ in their use of written language cues revealed no significant differences between the two groups in their use of these cues. (TJ)

Investigates the effects of an expanded Language Experience Approach (LEA) on emergent literacy skills of 44 kindergartners. Results indicate that the expanded LEA is more effective than the traditional LEA for the development of listening comprehension skills in kindergartners. (RJC)

Bilingual Cambodian and Hispanic tutors were trained to teach English to non-English-speaking adults using nondirective methods such as language experience approach, individualized reading, expressive writing, and person-centered counseling. The high degree of personal involvement was the key to meeting learners' affective and social as well as…

Examines the behaviors of two teachers during language experience dictation events to describe the "productive ambiguity" of their decisions about how and when to translate children's talk into "school" language. Finds two conceptual categories of teacher behavior--scaffold building and gatekeeping. Suggests that scaffold building increased…

A kindergarten teacher recounts her classroom experience introducing children to reading via the whole language approach, which is based on the belief that children learn to read and write naturally by listening, watching, speaking, and writing. Classroom photographs and samples of student work illustrate the article. (DB)

"Lance" and "Leana" are two posterboard groundhog characters used in a language experience program with elementary students with mild disabilities. The activity provides an opportunity for students to brainstorm, organize their thoughts, and make complete sentences. Suggestions for construction, use, and adaptations are offered. (DB)

Discusses the practice of language experience and individualized reading to better understand the methodology of these approaches. States that the fundamental principle is that each teacher must utilize some aspect of the internal world of the student. (MG)

Describes and analyzes how an Urban Appalachian woman who could not read or write progressed to functional levels when instruction involved her in reading her own language. Argues that educators who failed to acknowledge her language as an integral aspect of her as a learner may have denied her previous access to literacy. (SR)

Proposes a curricular framework that provides an alternative view of "balance" in guided reading and literature discussion groups. Suggests several possible scenarios for the future of literature in classroom instruction. Presents a curricular model for a literature-rich classroom. (NH)

The Apple/Polaroid Language Experience Approach is an extension of the language experience approach which combines photography (a form of communication) and word processing skills. It is considered a holistic approach because it is based on the whole language model of teaching literacy which develops reading skills naturally through the…

This curriculum guide was developed for tutors using the "Challenger Adult Reading Series." The guide is intended to help tutors make the lessons more effective, motivational, and meaningful for students. The guide is based on a five-part lesson plan prescribed by the Computer-Assisted Literacy in Libraries (CALL) program: language…

The readings and activities in this competency unit focus the attention of language arts program advisers and primary grade teachers on language instruction/development that is student-centered instead of program-centered. The first section of the unit shows teachers how to clarify their expectations and objectives concerning language instruction…