The purpose of this manuscript was to describe information about an animal-assisted therapy, specifically the Reading Education Assistance Dog (R.E.A.D.) program. In this manuscript I provide information about R.E.A.D. programs in general. Next, I share perspectives solicited from R.E.A.D. participants, specifically teachers, parents, students and…

Describes how a fourth-grade teacher made poetry part of the daily ritual of her class. Describes how students began to read poems, write poems, and love poems enough to work persistently at reading and writing them. Describes a poetry festival that the class prepared. Describes the many effects, both cognitive and affective, of daily poetry. (SR)

Describes a 10-week project in two second-grade classrooms that used daily Readers' Theatre experiences to develop children's meaningful and fluent reading. Discusses access to manageable materials, effective reading models, rereadings, instructional support and feedback, choosing the texts, and preparing. (SR)

Due in part to conflicting opinions and research results, the practice of sustained silent reading (SSR) in schools has been questioned. After a frustrating experience with SSR, the author of this article began a data-driven decision-making process to gain new insights on how to structure silent reading in a classroom, including a comparison…

Provides a brief background on Retrospective Miscue Analysis (RMA) and explains how the author used it with one struggling third-grade reader. Describes how RMA was used in sessions with Michael over the course of one school year and describes the learning and revaluing that happened for both Michael and the author. (SR)

Recommends Sustained Silent Reading (SSR) in grades 2-12 to improve students' reading and to teach them to love to read. Outlines rules for SSR, and offers notes to the teacher on its implementation. (SR)

Offers the response of a professor and former elementary and secondary teacher to the question posed by a seventh-grade teacher regarding what teachers can do to encourage students with negative attitudes toward reading to read both in and out of school. Discusses ways that both reading aloud and reading along are effective strategies to entice…

Presents a hypothetical situation of an elementary school principal's concern at students writing during reading time, and offers a possible teacher's response with information about the direct tie between writing and reading improvement. (JC)

Investigates why children are attracted to scary books, and what they find scary. Addresses children's fears through scary books and the instructional value of scary books. Discusses successful classroom experiences with scary books and notes selection considerations. Offers literature study ideas and a 100-item bibliography of scary books. (SR)

Describes a cross-age reading and writing program in which sixth-grade students (all average and low-average readers) were paired with kindergarten children to read and write collaboratively on a regular basis. Finds evidence from the students themselves, their parents, the teachers, and the school librarian showing how students' attitudes toward…