Describes program combining language experience approach, formal readiness material, linguistic and phonetic readers, and identity" readers. (SP)

Nineteen kindergarten children were pretested on readiness and blending tests and randomly assigned to a control or experimental group to determine if auditory blending skills were teachable and important in a beginning reading program. Following instruction in sequencing and blending sounds, the experimental group gained significantly in both…

Illustrates how it is possible for teachers to prepare children for reading without workbooks and formal texts. (FL)

Reports on a study that examined patterns and interrelationships in the development of print awareness over the preschool years with results indicating that preschool children do not acquire such skills and concepts in a fixed order. (MKM)

Describes how children develop printed word knowledge when taught with a top-down, sentence-based approach. Cites four stages in word knowledge development: word as a nameable object in text; word as an object with a beginning element; word as an object with a discernible beginning and end; and word as an object with a beginning, middle, and end.…

The article examines assessment of phonological coding skills (considered important in in acquiring early word-reading skills) in young children. Although tests of memory span for digits, words, or letters are most commonly used, a combination of tasks including naming-rate and articulation-rate tasks are suggested. (Author/DB)

This article reviews the literature on the importance of phonological awareness within the context of language/literacy learning and discusses the developmental continuum of phoneme awareness skills. Specific techniques are suggested to guide the speech-language pathologist in the assessment of phonological awareness skills. (Author/DB)

This brief article describes "Move, Touch, Read", a set of adaptations of commercial books to develop early Braille literacy prerequisites in young children and to systematize the transition from adapted to unadapted books. (DB)

The process of creating handmade books with children is a great way to experience communication through art and words. One of the important literacy skills children need to learn is "concepts of print." These include the basic understanding of what a book is, the ability to recognize the front and back covers, and the capacity to turn the pages…

Discusses the role of parents and teachers in preparing children for beginning reading. (RB)

This study analyzes the quantity and quality of English used orally by 6-year-old Crow and Northern Cheyenne reservation Indian children. Interviews, conducted by American Indian teacher aides following a standardized interview guide, were recorded on cassette tapes. Random samples of the tapes were transcribed and analyzed for total utterances,…