Noting that linguistic, social, emotional, and cognitive development are complementary processes that ultimately work together to shape a child's literacy growth, this article discusses the relationship between children's development and their social interaction with knowledgeable others on the selection of children's literature for the promotion…

Presents and discusses the resolution concerning reading material availability that was passed by delegates at the 1980 convention of the International Reading Association in response to pressures from special interest groups. (FL)

Reports on the author's shift from depending on popular adolescent novels to the more traditional "classics" as the reading materials for his literature classes. (RL)

Argues that using the themes and stories of humans' earliest heritage can enhance language and learning for children. (FL)

Discusses acceptable and unacceptable treatments of Mexico, its people, and culture in books for children and young adults. (MKM)

Analyzes the way fairy tales reflect and clarify real-life situations, human behavior, and moral values, enabling children to contemplate powerful and urgent themes. (GT)

Presents arguments for and against the use of bibliotherapy in secondary education, and suggests strategies for appropriate use. For example, in a group setting, bibliotherapy can be applied in a non-confrontational, preventive manner by counselors, media specialists and teachers; however, when it is used as prescriptive measure, extreme caution…

States that students struggling to find ways of establishing independence need support from home, school, and community. Suggests books and activities suitable for classroom use dealing with moving, being different, money, family concerns, and death. (PRA)

Explores some of the conflicts in Jewish religious culture related to choosing literature to enhance or reflect literacy and to ensure continuity. Outlines questions that have stimulated postmodern skepticism about the stability of canons, and offers guidelines for selecting new materials into the canon and, hence, curriculum. (DSK)

Describes the Americas Award for children's and young adult literature, designed to encourage and commend authors and publishers who produce quality children's and young adult books that portray Latin America, the Caribbean, or Latinos in the United States and to provide teachers with recommendations for classroom use. (Author/JL)

Examines the Organization of American Historians' (OAH) "Magazine of History," a specialized journal devoted to the teaching of history. Praises the magazine's interesting, colorful, and accessible treatment of historical subjects, methods, and controversies. Summarizes several innovative articles from recent theme issues. (MJP)

Suggests that teachers should provide text that supports students' changing interactions with text as they move from learning about print and how it works, to the labors of learning to decode, and on to growing independence and fluency. Highlights effective uses of simple predictable text, transitional text, decodable text, easy readers, and…

Numerous concepts in the teaching of reading have been emphasized since the middle of the 20th century. Four such concepts are the Initial Teaching Alphabet (ITA), traditional linguistic procedures, rebus, and programmed reading. Each has advantages and serious disadvantages. ITA stressed a rather consistent sound/symbol relationship, but pupils…

It is important for parents to teach their children to associate learning with sweetness, enjoyment, and pleasure. Suggestions to help parents make reading to their children a special time are: (1) make reading a "snuggle time"; (2) visit the library once a week; (3) develop a regular reading time with children; (4) select appropriate…

A great deal can be taught using the newspaper because this medium contains a variety of information in a number of differing formats. Straight news and sports stories can be used to teach or reinforce the skills of attending to detail, comparing and contrasting, categorizing, determining the main idea, understanding vocabulary, sequencing,…