Reading skills are an important component of academic success for school-age youth, and are associated with increased academic performance and positive attitudes about school. The presence of an animal appears to reduce stress during reading. Therefore, the goal of this study was to assess the feasibility and effects of a 6-week after-school…

The action research project report began when the teacher researchers determined that students at Sites A and B struggled with reading achievement. The purpose of the project was to improve students' reading achievement through increased motivation, specific skill instruction, and additional practice time. The project involved 26 students: 17…

A practicum targeted a need to develop and improve student attitudes toward reading for fun and pleasure. The target group was 30 second-grade pull-out Chapter 1 reading students identified as primarily non-leisure-time readers based on a student/teacher interview questionnaire. A pre- and post-reading attitude survey was administered. Parents of…

Noting that some elementary school children may have difficulty learning to read using basal readers, this paper describes the successful implementation of the Big Books for Beginning Readers reading program in a California elementary school. The first section of the paper discusses the problems students were having with reading, including a lack…