This paper examines the perspectives of children in two East London primary schools on what influences their independent choice of text, in the context of developing reading for pleasure in schools. All children in three selected year groups (ages approximately 6, 8 and 10) were invited to take part in the research, and from those that…

Although early childhood theorists agree on the importance of spending time in nature and the outdoors, it unfortunately appears that today's young children do not always have sufficient opportunities to experience and strengthen this connection. Lack of time spent in nature, combined with the health issues associated with large quantities of time…

Reading is linked to numerous positive outcomes, including academic achievement, reduced stress, and enhanced life expectancy. However, a significant portion of Chilean adolescents engage in limited reading. Notably, male students tend to exhibit lower levels of reading motivation compared to their female counterparts, with declining reading…

The conventional wisdom among educators and literacy gurus is that reading comprehension depends on the acquisition of isolatable, teachable, and generalizable skills. Consequently, many elementary and middle school English classrooms follow the "reading workshop" model, an approach to literacy instruction, with several variations that…

Teachers of beginning readers have choices in the books they select. A careful look at the features of books provides an informed basis for choosing books that engage young readers. In this article we share insights from a comparative content analysis of leveled readers and Geisel award books that can motivate children to read and prepare them for…

The purpose of this study was to analyze the impact of Flipgrid-based discussion activities with student-selected nonfiction texts on middle school students' motivation to read. The study investigated how teacher training affected teachers' comfort and confidence in using Flipgrid. While various discussion-based activities have been used with…

We suggest that a healthy literacy diet for beginning readers consists of literacy experiences along a number of dimensions, including experiences with decodable text. As such, this article explores the role of decodable texts in a comprehensive early literacy curriculum that recognizes literacy as a complex, culturally mediated, and multifaceted…

African American males have consistently scored lower than their peers on national reading assessments for the last 50 years (Ladd, 2017). These readers are among many students who find their reading motivation wanes as they matriculate through school. Reading attitudes of middle schoolers are also generally negative. This qualitative case study…

The purpose of this study was to gauge the effects of offering LGBTQIA+ novels to students in an English Language Arts and Reading high school setting. Most novel options for students come from old books available in the school's book closet consisting of antiquated stories offering little in the way of diversity. Students are more likely to be…

Reading aloud to students is a common practice among teachers of young children. While reading aloud is a research-based instructional strategy with many potential benefits, studies show that not all teachers read aloud to their students, and read-aloud use tends to decline as students age. The purpose of this study was to explore the current…

This study explores the relationship between features of the books students select for independent reading and their motivation to read. After spending 15 to 20 minutes reading from their self-selected texts, participants (n = 340) completed the Motivation to Read Profile-Revised (MRP-R) (Malloy et al., 2013) and provided information about their…

Engaging students in the reading process is challenging when they are unable to connect to texts. It is important to provide inclusive and diverse texts (IDTs) in the language arts curriculum. To promote a positive reading experience, all students need to read IDTs with non-stereotypical depictions of girls, women, people of Color, and more. This…

Reading is and continues to be on the decline in the U.S. Perhaps more startling to consider is the impact that low reading motivation levels may have on the persistent achievement gaps that pervade Black and Hispanic minorities. This research study aimed to elucidate the intersection of these two points and the implications of introducing choice…

The role of student choice reading on engagement and academic achievement from the perspective of teachers is the topic of this study. The problem addressed is that middle school students often struggle with reading due to a lack of engagement in English Language Arts courses. Students and educators are mainly impacted by this problem; however,…

This study sought to find out whether educated Arabs read paper or digital materials; which reading technologies they use; amount of material they read; the place where they read; how much time they spend on reading; when they read; how they reduce distractions; how they motivate themselves to read; how they interact with the text; their reading…