Background: Recent government papers have expressed concern about the poor educational attainment of "looked after" children. Early reading development has been found to be significant in their subsequent academic achievement. The possibility that biosocial factors extraneous to their experiences in public care may underpin their low…

This study examined the relationship between early language measures and kindergarten literacy measures for children from 40 low-income families. Early literacy measures were based on conversations between mother and child during a book-reading session; the child's report of an event as elicited by the mother; and mealtime. Conversations were…

Some children become capable readers and writers before ever attending school and without exposure to formal instruction. This phenomenon--sometimes referred to as natural literacy development--is not, in the strictest sense, natural; as the adult presents much of the literacy environment to the child in a socialized, mediated form, teaching is…

The Bridge Reading Program, a developmentally based teaching method that uses logographs, the pairing of words with pictures, for teaching prereading skills as well as the basic concepts of reading in the context of reading itself, is described in this handbook. The first two chapters contain background information, a rationale for the program,…

Part of a series designed to provide practical ideas parents can use to help children become readers, this booklet focuses on how parents can encourage their children to read and write. The booklet describes how individuals learn to use language; discusses how to encourage the use of language; urges parents to build positive attitudes toward…

A case study of a young boy's learning to read and write from the beginnings of literacy at age 5 up to age 11, after reading and writing have converged, is the focus of this book. The first part of the book, a description of his learning to write, discusses invented spelling, research about other young spellers and writers, the shift toward…

A study examined prereaders' story processing strategies by assessing their performance on tasks that tapped their ability to (1) use story grammar and role playing, (2) retell a wordless picture book, (3) read a predictable book, (4) retell an oral story, (5) sequence pictured story events, and (6) fingerpoint-read a nursery rhyme. Parent…

Adapted from Idaho's original Parents in Reading program, the materials in this booklet are designed for use by school administrators who want to begin a positive program that involves parents in reading. Various sections contain samples of board policy statements, press releases, and radio commercials; samples of letters to parents new to the…

The "back to basics" movement raises questions regarding the nature of reading that is assumed in instruction and testing. Of the three definitions of reading (decoding, meaning-from-page, and intellectual processes) the latter view, which sees reading as a broad range of perceptual, associative, and cognitive elements, is preferred. The…

This guide was developed for parents of young children to help them develop their child's readiness to learn to read and to help them teach beginning reading skills to their child. Background information on the reading process and a quiz entitled, "are you preparing your child to read?" are presented. Activities are suggested for reading…

A self-instructional unit in early reading designed for community college child care students is presented in this paper along with information about the development of the unit. Introductory chapters discuss the controversy about teaching young children to read, the systems approach used in developing the unit, and the steps followed in preparing…

This volume contains a selection of the papers presented at the fifth International Reading Association World Congress on Reading. Part one, "Reading: An Expanding Concept," contains papers that examine such topics as literal comprehension, miscue analysis, and children's literature and reading. Part two, "Some Implications for the…

This is book two in a series of beginning readers in Spanish for preschool and grade one. The program is designed to prepare children to read in Spanish by teaching the sound-symbol relationship in sequential order with simple reading selections. This book introduces "d" and "t" and reinforces the sound-symbol relationships…

A scientific approach to the teaching of reading is provided in this book. The chapters are: "Psychological Factors in Word Recognition,""Factors in Reading Ability,""Preparatory Period in Learning to Read,""A Psychological Analysis of Reading Methods,""Organization of Reading in Infant Classes,""Organization of Reading in Junior…

Children growing up in literate societies, surrounded by the printed word, begin to read and write long before they start school. The extent and scope of early literacy development is examined. Theoretical explanations of this development are offered. Implications for schools are presented. (RM)