Finds that the home literacy environments of European American and African American families did not differ as strongly as those of middle-income and low-income families, with many low-income parents (regardless of race) placing relatively more emphasis on structured activities and on ostensible component skills in literacy. (SR)

Concludes that potential users of the Clymer-Barrett Readiness Test should exercise caution in drawing inferences or conclusions about children on the basis of anything other than raw score data associated with the measure. (FL)

Reflects on the possible factors that enabled the author's child to learn to read at the age of five. (MKM)

Discusses a model of the reading process drawn from ideas used in foreign language instruction and resting on the distinction between reading acquisition and reading learning. Explains how the model can be applied in the classroom. (FL)

Research shows that kindergarten children can and do learn to read, but many questions about early instruction remain unanswered. (MKM)

Discusses the concept of emergent literacy, summarizing several theories and studies on children's early experiences with reading and writing. Examines the implications of this research for beginning reading and writing instruction. (MM)

Notes that, while the test is not recommended for children at the lower and extreme upper levels, it does provide a valid and reliable measure of some of the abilities that may be involved in the reading behaviors of five- and six-year-old children. (FL)

Concludes that young children of varying abilities, given an opportunity to experience reading as a visual and a thought process, take a more active role in their own learning. (FL)

Details events from the experiences of two young children as they learned written language. Concludes that children need to have a say in why and what they are reading. (FL)