Traces the trends in reading instruction, and proposes that reading be taught according to the Quantity Reading Method in which students are given a brief course in reading skills, followed by opportunities to read widely and quantitatively. References. (VJ)

Concludes that first grade boys in a basal reader program supplemented with phonics instruction learned reading skills and read with comprehension as well as those in an intensive phonics program. (FL)

Provides information concerning the value of letter names in the teaching of reading and spelling. Presents specific discussions about the importance of letter names to prereading phonics abilities, the phonemic values in letter names, and the use of letter names in word analysis, semantic word recognition, and semantic spelling. (MKM)

Reports on a study that indicated the effectiveness of Scottish methods of teaching beginning reading to boys from working class homes. Describes the teaching methods used and concludes that Scottish success may be partially accounted for by early phonics teaching and by daily involvement of parents in children's reading. (GT)

Two longitudinal studies examined the relationship between phonemic awareness and reading achievement in primary grades. Results found a significant correlation between kindergarten performance on phonemic awareness tasks and second-grade reading achievement. A three-year followup of low-scorers indicated that most of those students (who were a…

Studies the effects of reading instruction using D. Carnine and J. Silbert's "Direct Instruction Reading." Finds that direct instruction in phonics is more successful than basals at teaching the essential skills that provide the foundation for future success in reading. Dispels the myth that explicit phonics instruction interferes with…

Explains new research findings about how children learn letter-sound correspondences, relates the findings to whole-language reading instruction, and outlines a theory for how children acquire the letter-sound system without direct instruction in phonics. Describes recent findings on phonological processes involved in learning letter-sound…

Describes LETTERLAND, a unique teaching model that blends a structured phonics approach with whole-language teaching and is widely used in British classrooms as an initial approach to literacy as well as in special needs contexts. (HTH)

As the phonics/whole-language debate continues, a method called "whole-part-whole" provides a balanced conceptual framework for thinking about and planning skills instruction. It addresses the need for teaching that is grounded in fundamental understandings about whole texts (stories, informational books, and poems), allows for indepth…

Describes a multisensory reading program for teaching beginning reading to general education students. The program's main feature is that students learn to read by seeing, hearing, saying, and signing words. Pretesting and posttesting of participating kindergartners indicated that signing greatly enhanced the ability of hearing students to retain…