Phonics has been taught from the time of the ancient Greeks to make the written language more accessible. The first task of learning to read is learning to recognize in print the language used in speech. As a result of many studies conducted during the 1960s which demonstrated the effectiveness of phonics, its use as an instructional method…

This practical guide to teaching reading offers activities to teach reading readiness and mathematics. It also discusses the reasons for reading to children, teaching phonics, and using the basal reader. The section on reading readiness focuses on the importance of such skills, and specific reading readiness skills such as visual discrimination,…

Six contributors suggest ways to (1) improve handwriting, (2) help children choose reading materials, (3) develop sight vocabulary, (4) use phonics with ESL learners, (5) use Uninterrupted Sustained Silent Reading, and (6) teach reading comprehension. (FL)

Reading readiness is defined, and the assessment of emergent literacy is discussed. An informal Reading Readiness Inventory is proposed to provide a profile of students' specific strengths and weaknesses at the beginning levels. The assessment comprises such subtests as oral cloze, sound/symbol relationships, and instant recognition of high…

This teacher's manual is designed to help teachers organize primary level reading instruction according to the particular skill being taught and to integrate lessons from several different sources. Skills are suggested for instruction, and directions and examples are given to aid the teacher in selecting lessons from different reading program…

Activities used with intermediate-grade students who have reading difficulties are presented, and suggestions for building interest and motivation are listed. Included are (1) motor development exercises such as practice in coloring, drawing, and tracing; (2) activities such as various listening games which are designed to improve auditory…

The primary purpose of this study was to provide empirical evidence for the assumption that if the essential subskills of word attack are mastered, then functional word attack ability will result. To obtain such evidence, the study was designed to test the functional word attack ability of 140 elementary school students who had been taught the…

This comprehensive informal reading inventory was based on the Harper and Row Basic Reading Program. It includes four major sections: a reading attitude inventory, a phonics inventory, a word recognition checklist, and an oral and silent reading inventory. The reading attitude measure is a list of 25 questions to be read silently and answered with…

This literacy kit is designed for adult students reading at the 0-2nd level and their teachers or tutors. It is divided into eight sections: basal reader, phonics, sight words, spelling, writing, comprehension, generative words, and survival skills. The basal reader section consists of a cross-reference guide relating chapters in the reader to…

In the past, phonics instruction has done little to lessen the difficulties that many poor readers have with decoding words quickly and accurately enough to construct meaning from text. Based on an analysis of the research literature in decoding and a four-year cycle of program development, a new program was created for teaching decoding to poor…

This study describes a program designed at Stanford University in the computer-assisted instruction (CAI) of reading, which has been used by children in kindergarten through grade three. The program is an adjunct to classroom instruction, stressing the decoding aspect of reading and leaving the communication aspect to the teacher. The report…

Analysis of research on reading instruction for children with moderate mental retardation indicated that word analysis instruction is a feasible option; word analysis is the most effective method of oral reading error correction; and the strongest sight-word instruction methods include those that use picture integration, constant delay, and the…

The purpose of this booklet is to help teachers become familiar with current research-based spelling trends so that they can apply them in their classrooms. The first section of the booklet reviews current trends likely to influence spelling instruction, including practices related to the writing process, studying spelling from the learner's…

A study examined the relationship between reading instruction method, sex of learner, word learning proficiency and reading achievement in the first grade. Subjects were 78 males and 88 females chosen from two white, middle class suburban schools, one having a sight vocabulary instruction program, the other a phonic basal program. Students were…

A series of articles with the chief emphasis on phonics as a means of analyzing words is presented. Various articles pertain to elementary, secondary, and college level instruction. The first of the five parts into which the volume is divided is comprised of a single article which gives an excellent overview of the field of word recognition. Part…