Kindergarteners' three pretend readings of two picture storybooks are analyzed in terms of approximate, ambiguous, and five types of extrapolated tokens. Seven tables show the results of analyses. It is suggested that children use various constructive strategies to acquire a familiarity with the registers of typical written story language.…

Preschool students were given picture symbol prereading activities instead of traditional prereading activities. Results indicate that picture prereading activities have a positive effect on preschool children's attitudes toward books. (NH)

Sixty second grade students participated in an investigation of the usefulness of an instructional technique, "story impressions," for improving readers' processing of unfamiliar narratives. Both above- and below-average readers in the story impressions group answered more postreading test questions correctly than did students who only read the…

Examined 13 preschool classes to determine whether the voluntary literacy behavior of children could be increased by means of teacher-guided introduction of reading and writing materials into dramatic play areas. Thematic play with teacher guidance and literacy materials yielded significantly increased literacy behavior. (SH)

A study was conducted to determine whether or not a child who is older when entering school performs better on reading readiness and achievement tests than a younger child. Two samples of second grade students from a middle class community in Bloomfield, New Jersey, were established by examining the ages of all the children in the cohort. Sample A…

To investigate what and how a child was learning about reading, a case study was conducted of one preliterate child's retelling of a story. The 5-year-old child (Jamie) heard the story in its complete form on the first session and then retold it each week for 8 weeks. The adult listener answered her questions but did not help unless asked. The…

A total of 26 preschools and day care centers in Saint Leo, Florida indicated the extent to which they were involved in teaching prereading and reading skills, when a questionnaire listing 50 reading and related activities was sent to 54 local centers. Respondents were instructed to indicate whether they engaged in the listed activities…

An informal field study to design a system of beginning writing for the prefirst-grade child is presented in this paper, following a review of the literature. A series of questions are then raised regarding what letter form should be taught first, how letters should be grouped for instruction, and what verbal references should be used for…

The purposes of this study were to custom make a reading readiness program for a group of kindergarten children and to compare their progress with that of a second group. A pretest was administered to all of the children and then each child was grouped according to his or her needs. Two classes were involved in the study, one labeled control and…

The appendix to the report of the minimum objective system of the Hinesburg Elementary School (Vermont) includes the revised language arts objectives from kindergarten through grade 6. Most objectives are presented in the format of condition (or task), student behavior, and criteria. Changes from the original listing of language arts objectives…

This follow-up study assessed the effects of two different intervention strategies on the reading, language, and intellectual development of preschool children who participated in a North Carolina Head Start program during the period from 1968 to 1969. Children in the experimental group received structured language arts instruction in the first…

Results from reading tests and demographic variables indicated that knowledge about books and print conventions is strongly related to reading achievement, and is predictive of comprehension involving the inferential linking of two pieces of information separated in the text. Students in a subskills-emphasis program outperformed those in a…

Investigates whether early childhood teachers could achieve consensus on three basic questions related to reading readiness: (1) What is reading readiness? (2) How do we know when a child is ready to read? (3) What should be included in an appropriate reading readiness curriculum for kindergartners? (FL)

The purpose of this study was to determine which of nine Piagetian tasks could function as a measure of a child's cognitive developmental readiness for reading and mathematics. Second, an attempt was made to identify patterns of acquisition of the component skills associated with seriation, classification, and conservation. (Author/BW)

Reports the results of a study of five-year-olds, which indicate that social relationships are a facilitator of cognitive learning of reading readiness concepts and imaginativeness. Girls in the experimental treatments significantly outperformed the boys. (JD)