Stresses the importance of reading aloud to children. Notes several keys to the success of reading aloud. Shares success stories from several reading aloud programs. Answers potential objections, from skeptical parents, to reading aloud. (MG)

Examined preschoolers' experiences with their mothers and during group reading in preschool. Concludes that the patterns of adults' and preschoolers' talk about books support a model of a home-school relationship in which mothers provide an introduction to book reading that teachers expand by engaging children in cognitively challenging…

Jumpstart, a homegrown before-school tutoring program piloted at a Massachusetts school, has proven successful with at-risk first graders. Implemented as a low-cost alternative to Reading Recovery and Success for All programs, the 18-week action-research project employed 11 inclusion and Title I aides as volunteers. (MLH)

Highlights qualitative studies from two preschools that view the framework of literacy use as socially constructed and embedded in social and cultural perspectives and practices of communities. Suggests ways to strengthen early-childhood programs, including greater use of writing and drawing materials readily available, additional orientation to…

Early literacy involves daily reading aloud as well as writing or dictating activities. Preschoolers learn that reading is enjoyable, pictures provide story clues, and print goes from left to right and represents words and meaning. Listening, watching, and asking questions increase vocabulary and comprehension. Sidebars include tips, a book list,…

Early literacy experiences play an important role in later literacy skills and school achievement. Communities offer early literacy experiences in a variety of venues to meet the diverse needs of families. The author of this article provides four vignettes illustrating community-based early literacy activities: (1) private group classes such as…

Research studies that have focused on the educational effectiveness of "Sesame Street" are reviewed, and a summary and synthesis of research results are presented. Educational effectiveness is defined as effectiveness in areas related to beginning schooling and the early years of the child's formal education. From the more than 100…

"Reaching the Goals" is a series of eight books designed to inform people involved in education reform, or people who want to be involved, of the myriad of programs and resources that are available from the Federal Government to support each of the National Education Goals defined in 1990. This first book is dedicated to Goal 1,…

The guide, intended to help teachers, parents, and community workers throughout the world develop educational services for children with severe cerebral palsy, is published in English, French, Spanish, Arabic, and Chinese. The 11 practitioner-contributed chapters stress specific intervention techniques based on the practitioners' own experiences…

Dealing with the critical years from birth through kindergarten, this micromonograph answers parents' questions about when and how to prepare a child for reading. The pamphlet discusses in depth these suggestions: (1) talking and reading to the child, (2) letting the child read and write, (3) being a model of reading and writing behavior, and (4)…

The program entitled Prevention of Learning Disabilities: An Interdisciplinary Model, developed and operated by the Learning Disorders Unit of New York University Medical Center, has three elements: scanning, diagnosis, and intervention. Educational intervention is done primarily by Board of Education teachers and educational assistants under the…

A questionnaire on reading was administered to every student in the St. Joseph, Missouri, "Rainbow" program for gifted and talented readers. The same questionnaire was administered to a cross sectional sample of fourth, fifth, and sixth grade students in regular classrooms in the same district. Among other things, results showed that (1) 75% of…

A literature based reading program was developed to improve reading comprehension skills of 14 students in a Chapter 1 pre-first grade class. Instead of using a basal reader for instruction, the students were exposed to trade or literature books, The reading strategies that were pre- and posttested were recognition of a sight vocabulary,…

This collection of abstracts is part of a continuing series providing information on recent doctoral dissertations. The 28 titles deal with a variety of topics, including the following: (1) the usefulness of peer-shared reading information in primary-grade reading groups; (2) development and evaluation of a sustained silent reading program in…

Six eclectic basal readers were evaluated to determine what basal readiness programs are teaching kindergarten and early first grade children. Each lesson was analyzed to discover the main purpose of instruction as stated in an objective or skill and the actual requirements placed upon the child during instruction. Using the recommendations from…