The argument between advocates of the whole language approach and the phonics approach threatens to become so polarized and politicized that agreeing on a middle ground seems at times impossible, and the voices of reason and experience are drowned out. The debate erupted anew in California after alarming news stories about reading scores ranked…

Designed for parents and teachers of students with dyslexia, this book uses accessible terms, charts, graphics, and lesson plans to provide step-by-step instructions for teaching reading. Part 1 of the book discusses different types of learning disabilities, followed by case studies that illustrate how children overcame each particular disability.…

This bibliography lists books appropriate for first and second graders and other children just beginning to exercise some reading skills. Most of the books listed have a controlled vocabulary, but textbooks are not included. Each entry includes author, title, publisher, publication date, and price. Approximately 175 books are listed in…

This paper describes the Ball-Stick-Bird reading system, which shows students how all the letters of the alphabet can be built with three basic forms: a circle (ball), a line (stick), and an angle (bird). The method also uses modified phonics and developmental linguistics, aids story reading by using capital letters in the beginning, and enhances…

A study examined the ways teachers and children in a preschool classroom enacted informal book-reading and other informal book-related events. Four key patterns in children's activities and teachers' curricular responses were identified: (1) children naturally selected their own "themes" for reading at the book center, and often these themes were…

Designed to provide practical information for all elementary teachers, whether they are just getting started, getting comfortable, or fine-tuning their assessment program, this book examines manageable and practical ways to collect information about young learners. It presents the voices of many elementary teachers at various grade levels…

A study examined the historical development of the Cathedral Basic Readers (a.k.a. the Dick and Jane readers), a special edition used to teach reading in Catholic schools. Three questions served as a guiding framework: (1) what factors led to the creation, development, and discontinuance of this Reader series? (2) what were the differences between…

A study examined the ecological validity of five modified measures for children in the prereading and initial reading stages of development. Subjects, 650 students in two cohorts, kindergarten through second grade, were administered modifications of the Early Reading Test (ERT), the Chicago Reading Test (Chicago), the Error Detection Test (EDT),…

This paper explains two observation guides that teachers can use to describe emergent reading behaviors among young children during the children's interactions with familiar storybooks. The guides are derived from a review of research and focus on independent and assisted interactions. When observing children's independent interactions with…

Recognizing the crucial role played by parents and family in literacy development, a program called "Family Focus: Reading and Learning Together" has published this packet designed to teach parents ways to use the newspaper to reinforce reading skills in a relaxed home setting. It contains suggestions and materials for four 90-minute…

A practicum designed to help prospective teachers explore instructional approaches that differ from their intrinsic beliefs about how reading should be taught is described in this report. Particular emphasis was placed on using the whole language approach, as opposed to the more traditional basal reader or skills oriented approaches to reading.…

Showing how fiction is a natural genre for children, this book helps teachers experiment with 10-minute fictional occasions, write with the children, and meld work in writing fiction with the reading program. The book includes a series of "actions"--experiments for personal growth and discovery in the classroom. Chapters in the book are:…

Numerous reviews of the experimental research conclude that phonics is indispensable in word recognition instruction. However, there have been numerous objections to phonics teaching over the years. Some of the intolerance of phonics teaching reflects a lack of knowledge about the subject. Critics suggest that phonics hinders children's learning…

This document provides the final evaluation report of the language development component of the Columbus, Ohio, Public Schools' Chapter 1 All-Day Kindergarten Program for 1989-1990. The overall goal of the program was to prepare underachieving kindergarten children for first grade. A total of 17 teachers in 17 elementary schools participated in…

A practicum provided child-centered activities for 20 kindergarten children during regular school hours. Goals for the practicum were to: (1) develop literacy; (2) increase social interaction between the teacher and the child through verbal and body language communication which weaves reading and writing into the relationship; and (3) obtain a…