In state legislatures and school boards around the country, the approach and the quality of reading instruction are under attack because of a decline in reading scores. The best reading instruction draws on the strengths of different philosophies. School boards should encourage schools to teach both phonics and the whole-language approach. (MLF)

Outlines a psycholinguistic framework for reading and spelling methodology at the preliminary stage. Based on the theory of metalinguistic development of A. Karmiloff-Smith and J. Gombert, the framework involves a three-step model for early reading and spelling instruction. The approach balances focus on meaning with focus on skill. (SLD)

Children who are successful readers tend to come from homes with specific factors present, including reading and writing materials, adults who read regularly with children, discussion during book reading, children who see their parents reading and writing daily, and parents actively involving their children in common literacy tasks. Tips for…

This article explores how children with deafness learn to read. It discusses findings that indicate children with deafness read by using a code that is not based on sound, the importance of understanding the language that is mapped by the print system, and what types of interventions are needed. (Contains references.) (Author/CR)

Investigates the role of different linguistic levels in beginning readers' oral reading as the first step in a longitudinal investigation of Swedish beginning readers' reading behavior. Reveals that the readers are sensitive to all of the linguistic levels analyzed: the majority of reading errors lead to acceptable linguistic consequences,…

Previous correlational and experimental research has found a positive association between phonological awareness and reading skills. This paper provides an overview of studies in this area and shows that many studies have neglected to control for extraneous variables such as ability, phonological memory, pre-existing reading skills and letter…

There is a wealth of evidence linking letter knowledge and phoneme awareness, but there is little research examining the nature of this relationship. This article aims to elucidate this relationship by considering the links between letter knowledge and two sub-skills of phoneme awareness: phoneme segmentation and phoneme invariance. Two studies…

The theme of this book cuts across disciplines. Contributors to this volume are specialized in education and especially classroom research as well as in linguistics, most being transdisciplinary themselves. Around 65 sub-Saharan languages figure in this volume as research objects: as means of instruction, in connection with teacher training,…

This article focuses on a concept that has rarely been studied in beginning reading research--a child's concept of word in text. Recent examinations of this phenomenon suggest that a child's ability to match spoken words to written words while reading--a concept of word in text--plays a pivotal role in early reading development. In this article,…

Information processing theory suggests that sublexical fluency skills are important to word reading development, but there are few supportive data. This study investigated if sublexical fluency (letter name fluency, letter sound fluency, and phoneme segmentation fluency) contributed to the development of word reading and spelling in 92…

This study explored the effects of "Reading Mastery Plus" in grades K-2 at a Title 1 school with six students with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD). Two students in each of grades kindergarten, 1, and 2 participated. "Diagnostic Indicators of Basic Early Literacy Skills (DIBELS)" spring fluency probes were used…

An extensive research base on beginning reading acquisition and reading difficulties, developed over the past few decades, has important implications for the teaching of reading. Unfortunately, much of this research does not appear to be reaching teachers, whose knowledge is essential for scientific findings about reading to benefit children. This…

Many individuals who work with young children between birth and age 8 assume that literacy activities must be planned and executed as elaborate, formal lessons. The increasing pressure seeping through national accountability measures and the renewed focus on early literacy is trickling down to this age group. The Division for Early Childhood of…

Early literacy development is the gateway to reading and future academic success. Learning about sound-letter correspondence and basic decoding strategies are but two fundamental skills that have been found to support this later success. In addition, an emphasis on environmental print (e.g., McDonald's, Wal-Mart, Shell) and functional print (e.g.,…

Intended for use with youngsters eager to begin reading as well as reluctant starters, this book is filled with time-tested, entertaining, and simple games that build on children's curiosity and sense of fun to teach reading skills. The book contains a brief introduction outlining the methods and goals of the reading games and instructions on how…