Transcriptions of a teacher using the "look and say" method of teaching reading to her beginners grade are analyzed. Methodological problems are identified and related to the children's view of the reading process and to their views of themselves as learners. The language experience approach is also discussed. (Author/KC)

Reviews the 1886 reading research findings of J. McK. Cattell, and their confirmation by E. B. Huey in 1908; points to considerations that militate against accepting the Cattell/Huey evidence on word recognition processes as support for pedagogical practice. (GT)

Reviews the literature on the native language approach and the direct method of reading instruction for bilingual children in several countries. (MKM)

Discusses the relationship between children's knowledge of their language and the process of reading, along with some implications for teachers. (MP)

Presents a stage-structure analysis of reading applicable to any method of reading a teacher might choose to use. (Author/MP)

To investigate reasoning capacities involved in learning to read, a Test of Multiple Seriation (from Piaget) was developed. Problems of a test used by Lunzer and Dolan are discussed. Results showed that word recognition and reading comprehension at age nine correlate significantly with multiple seriation, independent of IQ. (Editor/SJL)

Reports on a study that examined the predictive power of five specific prereading skills tests for first-grade reading achievement and assessed their value as indicators of reading readiness. (FL)

Describes instruction that has proven effective in teaching Black children to read. (MKM)

Suggests that giving non-English speaking children positive experiences with literature may help them want to learn to read. Includes an annotated bibliography. (MKM)

A study was done extending work on children's literacy by relating quality of parent-child interactive exchange during book reading to assessments of infant-parent attachment security. Compared to secure mother-child pairs, insecure-avoidant pairs and insecure-resistant pairs were more inclined to encounter distraction and ambivalence on the part…

Review of the contribution of various oral language abilities to early reading performances found that, although phonemic awareness was the best predictor of early reading skills, metasyntactic ability also often accounted for significant variance. Once children acquire initial decoding skills, narrative discourse and other metalinguistic skills…

Describes how a writer discovers validity in an idea for a children's story, a story about the difficulties some children face in learning how to read. Recalls the author's own troubled elementary school experiences with reading. (TB)

The limitations of standardized tests of reading ability in young children are examined and authentic assessment alternatives, including multiple measures of student learning and the close interaction of assessment and teaching, are identified. Examples of authentic classroom assessments are detailed for emergent readers, beginning readers, and…

This study examined the relationship between first and second language oral language proficiency and reading skills in Spanish-English first grade children (n=85). Reading and phonological processing were related both within and across languages. Three factors (a reading factor, an oral proficiency factor, and an implicit phonological factor) were…

Describes phonological sensitivity at different grain sizes as a good predictor of reading acquisition in all languages. Presents information on development of phonological sensitivity for syllables, onsets, and rimes. Illustrates that phoneme-level skills develop fastest in children acquiring orthographically consistent languages with simple…