Provides a descriptive bibliography of titles that show the significant role books play in a young person's existence. Includes a letter excerpted from "Dear Author" magazine, from a 14-year old to "Charlotte's Web" author E.B. White telling how the book changed her life. (AEF)

Reviews 31 collections of children's poetry that help students see the world from a fresh perspective. Notes how they were used in a variety of classrooms and how children responded to them. Organizes the books in terms of: making the ordinary extraordinary; looking at relationships in new ways; new views of the world; and a fresh look at animals.…

Argues that the purpose of teaching students to read includes challenging children to take up books that contain "dangerous truths." Discusses two such books: "Forged by Fire" by Sharon Draper and "The Watsons Go to Birmingham--1963" by Christopher Paul Curtis. Includes children's statements regarding why they insist on being able to read good…

Describes a veteran teacher's (the author's) childhood memories of learning to read and of the enduring value of literature. Shares the path she has taken as a first and second grade teacher, and a teacher educator, using quality literature and experiences to lead children to reading and writing. (SR)

This article looks closely at a subset of books about literacy in and out of school by analyzing images of children learning and struggling to learn to read in realistic fiction. There are several books in which characters wish to learn to read, worry about being poor readers, and work hard to learn to read. These books raise important questions…

Activities and teaching methods for involving children (especially young children) in literature are presented in order to establish positive attitudes towards reading. Ideas are provided for use with wordless books, patterned or repetitive books, books organized around a theme, and picture books. The activities, each related to specific…

This practical guide for parents who care and want to help children learn to read and enjoy reading discusses ten ways in which parents and the home environment can influence reading habits and attitudes. These include: (1) encouraging the child while he or she reads, (2) reading aloud to the child and listening while he or she reads aloud, (3)…

Whitehead disputes the interpretation given his work in an article written by Roger Knight. (DF)

Summarizes current research on teaching children to love reading, and identifies techniques that can be used by parents, teachers and librarians to foster this attitude. The topics discussed include the value of reading aloud to children, selecting children's books, the different interests of boys and girls, and reading to develop values. (six…

Describes Focus on Teenage Parents, a project with an integrated approach that incorporates material on child development, personal identity, and parenting issues to immerse high school students, many of them parents, in children's literature and process writing. (SR)

Describes one New York City teacher's project to establish a book store in school offering quality, low cost titles to children. Covers the funding process, physical set-up, parent involvement, staffing with student workers, stocking the store, hours of operation, and positive student and parent response. (JB)

Offers brief descriptions of 25 books, both fiction and nonfiction, that are accessible to struggling readers, provide a high-quality reading experience, and may allow them to break through their difficulties to see reading as something of value to their lives. (SR)

A university reading educator exchanged jobs with an elementary school teacher for a full year of teaching and research in a second-grade classroom. The educator's perspective on teaching and learning literacy was based on the 3-part principle that immersion in a rich literate environment, explicit teacher instruction in literacy skills and…

This book aims to show parents how to instill the love of reading in their children and how to nurture that love throughout their lives, even in the face of television, video, and computer entertainment. The book is based on the concept of "reading pathways," developed after more than 20 years of classroom observation and interviews. It…

A study examined three different basal reading series (MacMillan, Harcourt-Brace, and Scott Foresman) at four different levels for the types of stories found in the readers, as well as for acts of reading portrayed in the stories. Subjects, 12 second grade students at a New Jersey elementary school, completed a teacher-constructed inventory on the…