This reader-friendly text examines the key foundational studies in early literacy. It addresses such essential questions as how research informs current practices and where the field still needs to go to provide the best learning opportunities for all children. Each chapter describes the methods and findings of one to five seminal studies,…

Preschool and kindergarten educators know that strong oral language skills must be in place before children can learn to read. In "Before They Read: Teaching Language and Literacy Development through Conversations, Interactive Read-Alouds, and Listening Games," Cathy Puett Miller helps educators teach those early literacy skills with engaging…

As early as preschool, children who struggle with emergent literacy skills can benefit from effective response to intervention. Don't wait until later grades when they've already fallen behind--improve their literacy skills now with this evidence-based Tier 2 RTI curriculum, ready for any pre-K educator to pick up and use right away. Created by…

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…

Designed for the grades K-2 literature-based classroom, this reading assessment kit includes 6 books which represent the stages most developing readers pass through as they move from being emergent to fluent readers. The kit also contains reading ladder assessment tools and reproducible charts and checklists. The literature selections in the kit…

Expanded to cover prereading through grade 12, this book presents a simple method for effectively assessing the reading proficiency of students K-12. The second edition of the book provides, using preprimer and primer passages, a means for assessing the emergent/beginning reading skills of students just entering school. The book includes a special…

Recognition of the significance of early years has heightened interest and support for early childhood programs. Prevention steps designed to reduce the number of children who arrive at school with inadequate literacy-related knowledge would considerably reduce the number of children with reading difficulties. While there is great potential for…

This 1-year study found that emergent literacy behaviors were developed in 14 children (ages 4-6) with disabilities who were exposed to daily structured literacy activities. Independent book interactions increased in complexity and sustained attention, and "writing" behaviors increased in complexity, variety, and structure. (Author/JDD)

Intended for parents, as well as school administrators, policymakers, and teachers, this digest discusses resources available for developing children's early literacy. The digest first discusses research indicating the role of parents in early reading experience, then discusses, in general terms, sources for literacy materials for parents,…

Designed to be useful for teachers, students, and parents, this resource book contains skill-appropriate, easy-to-follow activities for emergent readers. Noting that helping children become successful readers by developing reading readiness skills and a love for literature requires careful planning and instruction, the book states that children…

In this article, the author proposes to offer a glimpse into the practical challenges of teaching literacy in a public school setting where students enter classrooms at various stages of reading readiness. The author begins with the case of Kahea, a kindergarten student reading at an emergent literacy level, as an illustration of some of the…

The National Early Literacy Panel (NELP) was appointed in 2002 and carried out its work under the auspices of the National Center for Family Literacy (NCFL). NELP's primary goal was to identify interventions, parenting activities, and instructional practices that promote the development of children's early literacy skills. The National Institute…

The inclusion of talk, written language, and body language are critically important in primary classrooms. Although reading and writing may be regarded as cognitive activities, they are embedded in a social/cultural milieu, and the practice of mechanical decoding as a necessary precedent to real reading is not pedagogically sound. A whole class…

Given preschool children's characteristically short attention spans and unpredictable interests, teachers can encourage early reading most effectively and appropriately through the systemization of informal or incidental, rather than formal, learning. They can make learning to read relevant to traditional preschool activities in a number of ways.…

Describes a program for parents and preschool teachers that has produced positive results in emergent reading behaviors in young children with developmental disabilities. Essential program elements include parents as literacy role models, frequent and regular exploration of print, interactions with adults in reading situations, and family…