Based on the concept that readiness for reading is brought about by the nurturing of a child's physical, social, emotional, and intellectual growth, this guidebook presents reading readiness guidelines and carefully planned workshop activities designed to provide a classroom climate conducive to discovery and language development. The first…

Children begin school with some very basic ideas about written language and reading. The first is that of sign and message. That a graphic representation, a "sign," conveys meaning is an early and easy concept for children that stems from their visually attending to print in their environment. The realization that spoken language can be…

Test score data for kindergarten and first grade children were subjected to several forms of multivariate analysis. First, all fall and spring kindergarten data were factor analyzed to reduce the test scores to the least number of dimensions possible. General ability factors corresponding to the expected test dimensions were obtained in all…

The effects of educational stimulation on creative thinking ability and the relationships among verbal and figural creativity, intelligence, and school readiness were investigated in a sample of 123 first grade children. The educational stimulation consisted of special advanced instruction in physical education, music, art, social studies, and…

A small-group procedure for teaching consonant sounds was tested in two studies with rural kindergarten and first-grade students whose teachers had been trained to use the procedure by means of a videotape model and a live demonstration. In the first study, done at the end of the 1974-1975 school year, the kindergarten and first-grade participants…

This study examined the construct validity of the subtests in the California Entry Level Test (ELT). The ELT is administered to every first grade pupil in California as part of the California Assessment Program and is used as a baseline measure of the prereading skills of beginning first graders. The discriminant validity of the subtests was…

The purpose of this study was to determine whether boys read to by their fathers for the six-month period immediately preceding entrance into first grade would score significantly higher on predictor instruments for first-grade reading achievement when compared with boys read to by their mothers or boys in an unplanned situation for the same…

This study examined the effects of two programs which differed in the methods they employed to develop reading readiness. The two methods represented were a language experience approach and a phonics approach. The subjects were children from kindergarten classes in two elementary schools in Flint, Michigan. All subjects were randomly assigned…

The program outlined in this guide was developed on the theory that an important factor in determining a child's success in reading is an enriched background of prereading educational experiences (in the areas of language, motor skills, auditory and visual perception, and self-image) which can be directed at home by parents. In this program, the…

This study investigated the relationships between symbolic play, reading readiness, drawing, Piaget's principle of conservation, and age, in 41 preschool children. Subjects were participants in a pre-first-grade summer program; they had had kindergarten experience but no formal reading instruction, and they ranged in age from five years, six…

Investigates the effect of corrective feedback on the capacity of preliterate children to learn explicit phonetic segmentation. (HOD)

Relates the belief that "shared reading" using big books will provide children with a meaningful introductin to reading. (DF)

In recent years, the focus on reading instruction has turned to the primary grade levels. Debates over phonics, whole language, and balanced literacy approaches occur among researchers, educators, and parents. Using a balanced approach in the classroom has received the most support from teachers and researchers, according to five related articles…

Numerous studies have linked reading aloud to preschoolers and these children's later success as readers. But some of the parents with whom teachers work, whether they work at Head Start, childcare centers, or primary grades, have limited reading skills. However, the Hispanic, Native American, African American, Irish American, and many other…

The patterns of second grade French immersion students' spontaneous reading in English during the first and second year of their immersion program are reported and compared with their French reading performance. (MSE)