Describes five categories of reading material appropriate for students in grades seven through nine: books about daily life, stories in other media, books in a series, books within a genre, and guessing books. (HOD)

Argues that the Degrees of Reading Power test is not a valid tool for its main purpose, matching students to appropriate texts, because the test's units of text difficulty are not uniformly comparable to the test's units used to reflect a reader's ability. (HOD)

Explains significant but accounted for factors that affected the validity of the Degrees of Reading Power Test. (HOD)

Finds that utopias act as catalysts to young people exploring issues of personal growth through reading. Discusses several books that contain utopian elements. (EL)

Discusses the characteristics of three popular readability formulas: the Dale-Chall, the Fry Graph, and the Spache. Describes text based and reader/text based alternatives. Offers appropriate applications of each form of assessment. (FL)

This study collected data via a three-page questionnaire administered to active readers 8 to 12 years old and half-hour taped interviews. Questionnaire findings (general information, interests, recent reading, information network), interview findings (book experience, reading taste, libraries, help in reading material selection, lists, reviews,…

Provides a system for evaluating both the quality and the appropriateness of the placement and instructional tests that accompany basal reading series. (FL)

Advocates focusing literature instruction on the classroom community rather than the individual because through language, as through mathematics, concepts and worlds are fabricated. (CRH)

Suggests how teachers can make materials more comprehensible for students rather than relying on readability formulas for reading material selection. (AEA)

Connecting reading and writing has become an important trend in teaching the language arts. Poetry, as a salient facet of the reading curriculum, integrates well with different purposes in writing. Poetry read aloud to students can assist learners to enjoy reading activities and develop the feeling and aesthetic dimension of learning, among other…

The end of the world, or civilization, is probably one of humankind's most horrifying fears. The apocalypse has been explored by many writers, and the decision to include this type of literature in a curriculum depends on how the situation is presented and resolved. The work should offer some solution and hope. Two recent works of apocalyptic…

Considering how literature for children provides more than just word recognition skills and thinking skills, this paper discusses several reasons why there should be a good children's literature curriculum in the school setting. It points out how children can experience life vicariously through good literature; how good literature can aid a child…

A children's book editor explains how manuscripts are evaluated. The "best" fiction must be a product of an author's deep insight and exhibit fine writing style, creative and far-reaching vision, and story-telling ability, while blending the reality of today with a bit of the possible tomorrow. (PP)

Reviews several incidents involving censorship and suggests that if current trends continue, such incidents will become more numerous. (AEA)

Discusses "Cobblestone," a social studies magazine, and "Penny Power," a consumer education publication, in this the second of a two-part article concerning content area periodicals for intermediate grade students. (FL)