Argues that the primary value of literature lies within the work itself, an appreciation of it, and the connections readers make to it. Discusses how a reader response approach offers one way to open the door for children to the lived-through experience of literature as art with intrinsic value. (SR)

Discusses how curriculum can be designed so that it has the transforming power to change lives and transform words and actions, especially through literature study. Describes a group of third-graders' transactions with Patricia Polacco's "Chicken Sunday" to show how a "narrative curriculum" can be transformative. Discusses distinctive features of…

Shares a classroom vignette illustrating ways in which the author shared her own feelings about books as a demonstration to her students, demonstrating why a reader values a certain text, how reading can help readers see the world with a fuller insight, and how literature can help readers come to terms with real-life situations. (SR)

Offers a classroom vignette that describes how the author invites students to collect pearls of wisdom (memorable quotations in books) as a source of inspiration. Offers an example of such a quote that stimulated rich discussion in a sixth-grade classroom. (SR)