Print in the environment is typically posted in early childhood classrooms. However, the print that exists is often not meaningful to children, and teachers rarely engage children in using the print. This is a missed opportunity to support children's writing. This article presents research-based ideas for engaging children with meaningful print in…

With the adoption of the Common Core State Standards, curriculum resources are shifting from an emphasis on literary texts to a greater focus on informational texts. Although we need to understand the intention of these new Common Core State Standards, and the important drive toward greater content knowledge for all students, we must be wary of…

In the author's experience, a significant source of reading difficulty for many beginning and struggling readers are misconceptions about print concepts so basic teachers assume their students are aware of them. Many children fail to grasp implicit principles of print such as the following: the reader cannot make up the words, the order of letters…

Reports that children do employ semantic/syntactic linkages in comprehending text, but not so early as expected. (DD)

Presents an overview of research findings concerning children's storytelling and then considers a number of issues that need to be addressed, including the importance of children's expectations about what a story is and whether this "sense of story" is important in learning to read. (FL)