A child's literary experience may be "stretched" through extension activities such as reading aloud, discussion, writing, art, music, and drama. While any planned activity can be overused and work against the intent of furthering the child's literary growth, there are many valid ways of offering the child opportunities for savoring and reflecting…

A nationwide survey was conducted among families with children enrolled in Kinder-Care Learning Centers (KCLC) to determine parental practices of reading aloud to preschool children. A total of 50 KCLCs was selected in such a way that the geographic distribution by four U.S. regions was representative of the 900 KCLC-Randomly selected centers were…

A review of the literature on read-aloud programs reveals two studies that extensively examine program content and practices and teacher procedures. The first study, conducted in 1969, compiled responses from 582 intermediate teachers of grades four, five, and six throughout the United States. The second study, conducted in 1979, surveyed 29…

The annotated materials contained in this list of children's books for 1981 have been selected for literary merit, usefulness, and enjoyment, and are intended to reflect a year's publishing in a balance between books to be enjoyed for free reading, those for reading aloud, and those recognized as valuable for individualized reading programs or as…

In order to be motivated to include reading aloud in classroom reading instruction, teachers sometimes need to be informed of the specific benefits this method provides. When children listen to stories being read aloud they become aware of story components, can recognize plot, character, and theme, and they learn that a story involves one or more…

Noting that the ways children encounter and use print in the classroom can be examined as surface and organizing content of curriculum, this article provides descriptions of innovative uses of print in the kindergarten and elementary school classroom. Curriculum "surface content" includes activities, use of classroom space, display, and…

Disadvantaged secondary school students with special reading needs can be motivated in the reading room. The school year can start with "popcorn" reading involving materials that are funny, interesting, and exciting. The teacher reads to the students or the students read silently, using materials on the students' independent rather than…

Many parents who wish to help their children with reading at home need assistance in choosing the right technique. This illustrated guide for parents outlines simple enrichment experiences designed to encourage and develop children's reading skills. Each experience assumes a positive parent attitude and aims at stimulating thinking and arousing…

There are a number of ways in which parents can serve as role models in helping children to value reading, including parent-child sharing of culture through family rituals, reading aloud to children or having the children read aloud, tutoring at home and in the schools, using home learning kits for skill development and to provide a carry-over of…

Describes a Story Reading Program and Shared Book Experience to improve the language and reading skills of multiply handicapped children. Concludes that the employment of multiple stimuli--large print, pictures, speech, and signs--in story reading activities increases children's attention skills, improves receptive and expressive language use, and…

Cites research supporting the theory that young children need several exposures to a story for complete understanding and reports on a study involving six rereadings of one book to a five year old over a two week period in an effort to guide "literary" development. (NH)

Maintains that learning to read must take advantage of the child's natural playful tendencies. Shows how stories in widely-used school primers make use of trick themes based on puns, figures of speech, or metaphors. Concludes that such stories should be used to reinforce the relationship between reading and natural language. (JDH)

Brief articles by junior and senior high school librarians describe how they teach library skills, including integration with classroom activities; use of videotapes; gaming; student participation in booktalks, instruction, and updating of vertical files; courses in librarianship and reading aloud. A bibliography of audiovisuals is also provided.…

Suggests that remedial reading teachers deemphasize skill building in favor of reading aloud to children, replicating the experience of children raised in a book-reading family. (AEA)

Noting that everyone who interacts with a young child is a teacher, this booklet for preschool teachers and child care providers draws from scientifically based research about what they can do to help children develop their language abilities, increase their knowledge, become familiar with books and other printed materials, learn letters and…