Discusses how early childhood educators can use reading lessons as part of a global curriculum and help children develop an understanding of other peoples and their customs. Includes criteria for choosing international books as early reader selections, and annotated lists of picture books for beginning readers, chapter books for young readers, and…

Discusses the importance of the home setting for the development of literacy. The article focuses on a pilot study employing homelike interactive models in classroom settings. Results reveal that pupils of low socioeconomic status in an experimental group, who were exposed systematically to series books in English, had higher reading comprehension…

Principles of "shared reading," in which a book is read by the teacher, then by teacher and students together, and then by the students independently, are discussed and applied to language acquisition and reading instruction of deaf and hearing impaired children. Students use the book to help them write and compare English and American…

Most students who are deaf or hard of hearing do not read proficiently. When adults read regularly to these students, the students' language and literacy abilities improve. Ten essential practices for adults to use when reading aloud are presented with examples. Also included are activities in which students read to adults. Contains 24 references.…

Evaluated Hong Kong Chinese kindergarten children's literacy development through dialogic reading, typical reading, and control groups. Found that early literacy-related activities in the home have strong effects on literacy growth and language development in Chinese. Concluded that success of the dialogic reading technique contributes to the goal…

Explains that the core materials used during literature-based instruction are narrative and expository works. Notes that this type of instruction, which has gained increased emphasis in reading research and practice, provides authentic learning experiences and activities by using literature to teach and foster literacy. Reviews pertinent research…

This article provides an overview of the critical elements of emergent literacy, discusses specific strategies for using storybooks with preschoolers to facilitate language development and emergent literacy skills, and provides specific strategies for children learning English as a second language. Sample phonological awareness activities are also…

Shares how one kindergarten teacher communicates with parents about children's early learning of reading and writing. Includes excerpts from the flyers and newsletters sent to parents and discusses other ways in which the teacher builds a strong working relationship with parents. (MG)

Reports findings from 2 studies investigating the social practice of book reading in the homes of 10 mainstream New Zealand families. Finds that with unfamiliar storybooks both adults and children aged 3 and 4 initiated insertions most often focused on the meaning of the immediate text rather than on print or illustrations. (KEH)

The most successful approach for promoting interactions with books and fostering voluntary reading habits in the early childhood classroom involves daily reading aloud of storybooks by teachers, a classroom library, availability of trade books for children's use, and encouragement of children's emergent readings of storybooks. (BB)

Provides suggestions for elementary school teachers to use shared reading experiences with their students. Notes that having teacher and students read together encourages classroom discussion, models appropriate reading behavior and pronunciation, and encourages children to think about the book or story. Other benefits of shared reading are…

The purpose of this study was to derive the criteria/dimensions underlying learners' second-language oral ability scores across three tests: an oral interview, a narration, and a read-aloud. A stimulus tape of 18 speech samples was presented to 3 native speaker rater groups for evaluation. Results indicate that researchers might need to reconsider…

Describes a "remedial" program for seventh and eighth grade students who failed a state literacy test and were reading below grade level. Outlines the successful program, based on a reading-aloud program, responding to stories, writing, paired reading and questioning, connecting vocabulary to individual stories, and reading to kindergarten and…

The Bama Bookworm Program, developed by a university remedial reading summer school program, encourages parents of remedial readers to listen to their children read and to ask comprehension questions four nights a week for a month. The program provides incentives (pizzas and t-shirts) and was enthusiastically received by parents and children. (DB)

Two methods of reading "Paradise Lost" aloud were used in a college course: (1) round robin reading observing the poet's own divisions of the material and spread over 10 days; and (2) round robin reading of the entire poem continuously taking up an entire day. Both approaches were effective in emphasizing the poem's oral dimension. (MSE)