This report describes a program for improving reading skills of first graders. The targeted population consisted of a blue-collar community located in western Illinois. Many of the families had a language barrier. The problem of below grade level readers was documented through assessments and teacher observations. An examination of causes revealed…

Evidence suggests that preschool children are more likely to use and explore print when their environment actively supports the use of print through real-life contexts. Children who have knowledge about print have been shown to have greater success with literacy development on entering school. This paper describes the Preschool Literacy Project…

This collection of articles provides background information about reading and includes the research base that has defined best practices in teaching reading. Section 1 of the collection, "The Big Picture," contains the following articles: "Reading the Right Way" (Bill Honig); "Statement of Dr. G. Reid Lyon, April 28,…

This paper investigates the validity of two current approaches for estimating text difficulty at the first-grade level--the Scale for Text Accessibility and Support-Grade 1 (STAS-1) and the Fountas/ Pinnell system--and analyzed student performance in relation to each. Subjects, 105 first graders in two schools, used "little books"--easy to read…

Providing one-to-one tutoring, five days per week, 30 minutes a day, by specially trained teachers, Reading Recovery is an early intervention program designed to assist children in first grade who are having difficulty learning to read and write. A program overview gives background information on different facets of the program. Illustrating the…

This paper addresses recent educational policy developments in England and Wales, focusing on the National Literacy Strategy, National Numeracy Strategy, and the proposed Early Learning Goals. The paper delineates research findings regarding the early mathematics and English learning achieved before entry into formal schooling, effective teaching…

This position paper aims to clarify the International Reading Association's stance on methods for teaching beginning reading (i.e., reading methods). The paper first defines a reading method as a set of teaching and learning materials and/or activities often given a label, such as a phonics method, literature-based method, or language experience…

Philosophical and methodological differences exist regarding how best to instruct and encourage young children to read and write. In America, teaching reading and writing to young children has always been an area of controversy and debate, and it remains so today. The purpose of this digest is to review various studies and to identify essential…

A recent analysis of Even Start, the federal family literacy program, has concluded that the relative emphasis in many local programs has shifted too far toward background issues of family functioning and too far away from focused efforts to enhance literacy skills (Haslam, 1998). In keeping with this analysis, the time seems to be right for a…

This review includes investigations and discussions of the teaching of reading in a multi-cultural society. An annotated bibliography follows the completed review of the literature. (Author)

Results of this study reinforce Kagan's postulation of reflection-impulsivity as a dimension of cognitive style which influences performance on a wide variety of reading-like tasks. (Authors)