Describes a study of the poetry preferences of 15 classes of primary school children. (DD)

Analyzes the plot structure of the 61 most popular picture books on the 1982 "Children's Choices" list and discusses interesting trends found in the list. (FL)

States that "The Cat in the Hat" (1957), written from a basic 225 word list, explores the level of activity that a child needs to keep secret from the adult world, and is a picture book which is also nominally a "reader" and not a storybook. Includes questions for stimulating student response; encapsulates classic elements in…

Several points need to be addressed when selecting humorous books for children. First, people of all ages react to humor in different ways; therefore, what one child finds funny another may not. Care must therefore be taken in sharing books with and recommending books for children. Second, humor itself is difficult to define, but humor should…

This study was prompted by the lack of consistency in defining the interests, both general and in the area of reading, of children in the primary grades. Analysis of more than 15 introductory texts used to teach reading indicated that interest measurement is based on certain unquestioned theoretical assumptions. Students in 27 first- through…

This book is the third in a series of books for a literature-inspired curriculum for grades 1-3 organized around thematic units. The book's "story stretchers" are a means to extend children's enthusiasm for stories and to better connect children's books and teaching ideas with other areas of the curriculum. The book contains 18 units or…

Designed to appeal to children who are entering the world of poetry for the first time, this collection combines the traditional with the contemporary. It could be used equally well at home or in the book corner of a primary classroom. The collection includes poems by such classic children's writers as A. A. Milne, Ogden Nash, Christina Rosetti,…

While literacy is an important part of anyone's education, it should be noted that visual literacy, being able to view, interpret and react to visuals, is just as important for today's population. College students are reluctant at first to take the time to really examine a picture book, whereas youngsters go over and over their favorite books to…

Designed as supplementary reading materials appropriate for Indian and non-Indian children in the primary grades, this series of 20 booklets presents legends and stories of Northwest tribes. Stories in this first level of a six-level series were developed by the Blackfeet, Northern Cheyenne, Skokomish, Shoshone-Bannock, Crow, and Muckleshoot…

Designed as supplementary reading materials for Indian and non-Indian children in the primary grades, this series of 10 booklets presents 13 legends and 7 stories of Northwest tribes. Stories in this second level of the six-level series were developed cooperatively by people of the Crow, Muckleshoot, Skokomish, Blackfeet, Northern Cheyenne,…

Designed as supplementary reading materials for Indian and non-Indian children in the primary grades, this series of 20 booklets presents legends and stories of Northwest tribes. Stories in this third level of the six-level series were developed cooperatively by people of the Blackfeet, Kootenai, Jamestown-Clallam, Assiniboine, Sioux,…

In order to determine the variables which influence children's choice of books, 52 second-grade students from one elementary school were selected and interviewed. Twenty books, which circulated most frequently among second-grade children, were designated "high preference"; another 20, randomly selected from 634 books which were borrowed only once,…

This report describes an intervention to improve American kindergarten children's understanding of Japanese culture. The intervention consisted of a curriculum unit presented in a kindergarten class of 14 American and 7 Japanese children in Brookline, Massachusetts. Before and after the intervention, the American children's knowledge of Japanese…

Offers suggestions relating to the general characteristics of young readers to aid library media specialists in effective teaching and communication. Topics discussed include physical access, dependence, and activity levels; the use of games and dramatic play; children's interests; conceptual development; and emotional needs and behaviors. (CLB)

This book emphasizes the reading process by suggesting effective ways to read with children, to engage children as thinkers, and to model the processes of studying a text. The book's "story stretchers" are a means to extend children's enthusiasm for stories and to better connect children's books and teaching ideas with other areas of the…