This study examined the predictive validity of combinations of progress-monitoring measures: (a) curriculum-embedded phonemic awareness and alphabetic/decoding measures, and (b) Dynamic Indicators of Basic Early Literacy Skills (DIBELS; Good & Kaminski, 2002) nonsense word fluency and phoneme segmentation fluency on reading outcomes of…

Substantial research supports the need for early intervention efforts for students at risk for failure. Despite the empirically documented importance of early, explicit reading intervention for students who enter school without critical prereading skills, many kindergarten programs delay intensive reading instruction until later in the year.…

The research indicates that there are many benefits to pre-kindergarten participation which includes positive social and emotional benefits and academic achievement gains (Barnett et al., 2005; Cody, 1993; Neuman, 2007; U.S. Dept. of Health & Human Services, 2010). The purpose of this quantitative study was to examine the effects of the…

This study was concerned with assessing both prereading and reading activities on the kindergarten level. A questionnaire survey was made of selected aspects of the content and conduct of the kindergarten prereading and reading programs in school districts throughout the state of California. The questionnaire used consisted of three parts: Part 1…

This series of 12 articles for parents on how to help pre-schoolers and beginning readers at home was written for the National Reading Center by specialists in reading and early childhood education. The titles and authors are: "Getting Ready to Read" (E. Robert La Crosse), "Creating a Good Reading Climate at Home" (Mary Frances K. Johnson),…

This 34-item annotated bibliography was compiled to help professional educators decide whether reading should be taught in kindergarten and, if so, how the instruction should be conducted. The references include varying and even opposing points of view. The authors of the articles are teachers, administrators, professors, and researchers. (TO)

THE RESULTS OF A FOLLOWUP INVESTIGATION TO DETERMINE WHETHER THE PERSISTENCE OF LEFT-LATERAL TENDENCIES OF A GROUP OF CHILDREN WAS RELATED TO FIRST-GRADE READING PERFORMANCE ARE REPORTED. THE ORIGINAL INVESTIGATION AT THE PRESCHOOL LEVEL INCLUDED 64 SUBJECTS. FORTY SUBJECTS REMAINED IN THE LOCAL SCHOOL SYSTEM THROUGH FIRST GRADE FOR THE FOLLOWUP…

Twenty-six articles and books, both pro and con kindergarten reading instruction, are selected to encourage objective consideration of the wisdom of early reading instruction, at least for some children. Research reports, descriptions of kindergarten programs, and studies of various aspects of readiness, ranging in date from 1937 through 1965, are…

A study examined the effects of preschool reading intervention procedures on the knowledge about reading (reading readiness) of the subjects as they entered kindergarten. One such intervention, carried out for two consecutive years, involved giving low and middle income parents packets of several small, easy-to-read books and guidelines for using…

Teachers make false assumptions about concepts five-year-olds can understand. (JH)

The question of whether children should be taught to read before first grade has long been discussed, but never settled. As the educational level of the people and the demands of industry increase, the rate of functional illiteracy also rises, provoking criticism of school programs and creating a need to find new ways of dealing with the problems.…

Describes children's process of constructing their own knowledge by going through one level after another of being "wrong" and relates this process to reading. Describes six strategies children invent and discusses implications for teaching. (AS)

The validity of introducing reading on the preschool level is the premise behind this study. The objective was to determine the effectiveness of the Categorical Sound System (CSS) developed by the author, as a highly structured linguistic-based readiness and beginning reading program, on kindergarten children from underprivileged and privileged…

There are many pros and cons to the recent trend of early reading. The opponents fear that too much emphasis on early reading may lead to a less rounded development of the child; they agree on providing the child with richer and more varied experiences to insure reading readiness. The advocates believe that today's children have already had more…

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