The responses children make during read-alouds bridge meaning from stories. Educators must grasp the value of children's responses and reactions to literature. Children's discourse is central to the reading process; thus, children must be allowed to participate in this learning process. Due to this, the read-aloud process in the classroom should…

Literacy educators, spurred by curricular standards requiring increased attention to reading nonfiction, are compelled to consider text-specific reading instruction. As research supports the connection between motivation and reading achievement, these mandates beg the question, "Are children equally motivated to read fiction and…

This article describes part of a study that explored the responses of nine- and ten-year-old children during a picture book read aloud in a small group setting in a New Zealand classroom. The read aloud was interactive, where the participants were encouraged to respond to the book and to each other throughout the session. The authors created a…

We reply to three critiques regarding our reporting that White, English-speaking children are much more likely than otherwise similar racial, ethnic, and language minority children to receive special education services in the United States. We show how each critique is unsound. We present further evidence of the robustness of our findings.

In this technical comment, we argue that Morgan et al.'s claim that there is no minority overrepresentation in special education is in error due to (a) sampling considerations, (b) inadequate support from previous and current analyses, and (c) their failure to consider the complexities of special education disproportionality. [For Morgan et al.'s…

Describes an approach, called "Questioning the Author," that is targeted toward getting young readers to engage with their textbooks--to really consider ideas deeply. Notes that the approach attempts to actualize the presence of an author, understand the author as a fallible transmitter of ideas, and transform author's ideas into readers' ideas.…