Teachers, principals, and other administrators who are considering the adoption of i.t.a. for language arts in the primary grades need objective information about its advantages and its disadvantages. The purpose of this paper is to provide a list of the disadvantages which may be inherent in the adoption of i.t.a. The disadvantages of i.t.a. may…

The purpose of this book is to present in a single source a portrait of the primary reading textbook as a learning motivator and transmitter of a culture's values and behavior standards. Some of the topics covered in the twelve chapters include: a description of the methods and the results of the analyses of 1,307 stories from twelve of the most…

This book is aimed primarily at assisting parents, nursery school teachers, and kindergarten teachers with teaching their children to read prior to beginning first grade. The preface, "The When, Who, Why, What, and How of Early Reading Instruction," discusses the preliminary aspects of early reading instruction and provides background information.…

The purposes of the study were to determine whether phonic analysis training could be used to prepare children to be successful on the Auditory Analysis Test (AAT) of phonic skills and to then relate phonic knowledge to reading performance. Subjects were 40 first graders in suburban Pittsburgh who had attended kindergarten together. A group of 16…

This study analyzed the relationship between oral language facility and reading achievement of 140 selected first-grade children in the state of Virginia. Teacher selection, general intelligence tests, and language and verbal fluency tests were used to place the children in two groups, a Verbal Group and a Non-Verbal Group. Significant differences…

The purpose of this study was to determine if significant differences in first grade achievement appeared among pupils who participated in an eight-week Summer Head Start Program and qualified pupils who did not participate. Both groups were divided into three subgroups according to scores on the Draw-A-Man Test. Each subgroup (high, middle, and…

The main purpose of this investigation was to study the relationships between visual memory and early reading achievement. Short term and intermediate memory were examined in relation to vocabulary, reading comprehension, and reading readiness in first grade pupils. The Gates MacGinitie Readiness Skills Test; the Visual Memory for Designs Tests,…

The development of a psychology of instruction calls for qualitative, as well as quantitative, information about curriculum components. An analysis of selected instructional sequences of the New Primary Grades Reading System, a reading acquisition curriculum for five and six year olds, was performed by applying appropriate category systems from…

The effect of mastery of three prereading skills (letter order, letter orientation, and word detail) on first-grade reading achievement was investigated in a study of 1068 students from 42 randomly selected classrooms; 687 students completed all instruments and could be included in analyses of results. Systematic instruction was given to 16…

The author discusses the processes by which children learn to read and how the natural sequence of learning may be used to improve reading instruction. (JD)

This article points out the importance of pleasure and enjoyment in increasing children's motivation to read and offers suggestions on books that are interesting and exciting and also well written and fine literature. (JD)

Describes a study designed to determine whether children identified as learning disabled by Slingerland's Pre-reading Screening Procedures would progress further in sensory abilities and reading achievement as a result of receiving reading instruction by the synthetic-multisensory or the multiple-factor method. (JM)

Describes approaches to involving parents in reading programs. (MKM)

An educational psychologist discusses the problems children encounter in comprehending the written word. (JD)