During a 15-year longitudinal study, 31 Finnish students (risk group) who had been identified as having deficiencies in reading and writing readiness at pre-school through the German Breuer-Weuffen Differentiation Test were compared with their peers (n = 62) in order to study long-term differences that emerged at the starting point of the study.…

Concludes that potential users of the Clymer-Barrett Readiness Test should exercise caution in drawing inferences or conclusions about children on the basis of anything other than raw score data associated with the measure. (FL)

Examined the reliability and validity of the Individual Reading Readiness Inventory (IRRI) and determined that it could be used with confidence as a measure to predict the extent to which children would profit from formal reading instruction in kindergarten. (Author/RWB)

Examines the following: the history and current status of the assessment of prereading skills or reading readiness in the United States, recent research findings with implications for readiness testing, future directions for prereading measures, and classroom implications of prereading assessment research. (GT)

Reports correlations between scores on the Metropolitan Readiness Tests, teacher rankings of reading readiness, and socioeconomic (SES) status of 536 beginning first-grade pupils. Discusses results in terms of the effects SES may have on both a student's readiness scores and a teacher's view of student readiness. (FL)

Preschool children (N=38) from low-income households enrolled in Head Start were evaluated for written language awareness. Analysis indicated significant gaps in print, word, graphic, and metalinguistic awareness. Lowest performance was found in children's ability to identify contextualized print within illustrations and their understanding of the…

This article identifies similarities and differences between Head Start parents of European American and Puerto Rican backgrounds regarding their socialization goals and expectations concerning the early educational experiences of their pre-school children. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 60 parents (30 European American and 30…

Reviews literature on different aspects of reading readiness, then presents a reading readiness material analysis inventory constructed according to the findings of the review. Explains how the instrument can be used by educators to compare readiness program materials. (FL)

This study investigated how self-regulation contributes to the development of reading competence in an at-risk sample of 157 children born to adolescent mothers. It was hypothesized that reading readiness at age 5 would shape self-regulation at age 10, which in turn would influence reading competence at age 14. Based on structural equation…

The paper describes the beginnings of a total developmental language learning system for mainstreamed visually impaired children in Israel. The readiness program is divided into five sections: auditory perception and discrimination, tactile perception and discrimination and fine motor coordination, gross motor coordination, body image awareness,…

Reports on a study that examined the predictive power of five specific prereading skills tests for first-grade reading achievement and assessed their value as indicators of reading readiness. (FL)

Materials are suggested for facilitating braille reading readiness of blind children. Four critical areas are addressed and materials offered for each: auditory discrimination, tactual discrimination, language development, and concept development. (CL)

Results indicated that normal-language children responded meaningfully to print settings that contained reduced nonprint cues while language-disordered Ss did not. General language ability was correlated with print awareness, but knowledge of specific oral lexemes was not necessary for accurate print responses. Parent questionnaire data suggested…

In this article the author argues that the new "brain glitch" research is theoretically, empirically, and conceptually deficient. The author states that claims about the results of brain imaging studies constitute an ideological barrier to a sounder understanding of the connections between brain activity and learning to read. This work is a danger…

Many children act like readers by parroting phrases from favorite stories and poems. Acting like a reader is a step toward becoming a reader. Classic pattern stories teach children that words are for using, for playing with, and for giving pleasure. A list of recommended stories is presented. (MT)