In an interview focused on his book "On Learning to Read: The Child's Fascination with Meaning," Bruno Bettelheim explains why he thinks reading primers are insulting and demeaning. He asserts that the absence of content in the primers teach children to dislike reading. (ML)

Describes a case study that explored the responses of four elementary school students actively involved in a literature-based reading program and how the teacher handled each child. (FL)

Discusses the "Teachers as Readers" movement, which focuses on teachers reading children's literature and responding personally to the literature as readers. Concludes that the Teachers as Readers movement is an effective tool for teacher renewal and for professional development. Suggests that participation in Teachers as Readers groups…

Describes how the educational experience of sixth grade remedial readers was revitalized and enriched through a project that grew out of reading "Sadako and the Thousand Paper Cranes." Suggests using "real" books (literature) to liberate remedial students from skill drills and reading games. (NH)

Reflects upon rekindled enthusiasm by teachers for children's literature and upon the lean years when teachers stressed reading skills and disdained the use of literature in class. (EL)

Develops strategies for encouraging students to read a variety of genres and authors. Shows how a program was organized with this end in mind. Discusses what students chose to read and their attitudes and perceptions of their reading and themselves as readers. (HB)

A study examined similarities and differences between adults' and children's responses to the same children's book, and the role of discussion in shaping adults' perceptions about the book and their understanding of children's responses. Subjects, 129 students in five university children's literature classes, read and responded in writing to…

In this study of elementary school children's responses to two children's books, a participant-observer presented reading material to the children and studied their reactions. Spontaneous responses and variations in solicited verbal responses at different age levels and the implications of nonresponse are considered. (PP)

Outlines an observational album assessment device, which describes children's reading behavior, taking into account attitudes, responses and strategies to produce a profile of each reader's achievements. (NH)

A brief review of the literature on the various approaches which have been used to help children formulate their emerging attitudes towards reading and literature helps clarify the goal of creating lifelong readers. Samway (1991), discussing literature study circles, relates that students read the book they have selected, answer assigned…

While story grammar and cognitive science theories of stories state or imply that a story will be more interesting if the protagonist experiences difficulty in attaining his or her goal, neither theory considers that the importance of the goal may also affect how interesting the story is. The structural-affect theory, however, defines stories on…

Describes the rationale, problems, and successes of a literature-based reading program. (FL)

Argues that the way teachers and students transact with a piece of literature needs to change if teachers are to change the way students read and see themselves as readers. Suggests teachers need to support a variety of responses and avoid the tendency to reduce discussion to a search for a single main idea. Includes a brief response by Susan…

There is a strong link between the notion of childhood prevalent in a society and presumptions about children as readers. Versions of "Little Red Riding Hood" written in different centuries illustrate how the character of texts for children have changed as society's views of children and of education have evolved. (PP)

To examine the effect of structural factors on the development of story appreciation, a developmental model of story liking for suspense stories was tested by having second, fourth, and sixth grade children rate suspense stories on 10 affective scales. Specifically, the model predicted that (1) reader identification would increase with greater…