Matching teaching strategies and classroom environment to students' learning preferences has been found to be related to students' self-concept and achievement. By identifying the learning and reading style of each student, the teacher will increase the youngster's chances of being successful, thus having a positive effect on the child's…

Elementary school children were questioned about what and why they read. The 20 children, four each from kindergarten and grades one, three, four, and six, included 12 boys and 8 girls. The teachers were asked to send two good readers and two poor readers from each grade, without indicating which children were good or poor readers. During…

A study investigated the diversity of reading behaviors reported by 3,354 middle-aged (45-64) and older (65 and older) Canadian readers in response to a questionnaire on reading habits. The study coupled the amount of time spent reading with a "breadth" score based on the variety and frequency of books read. Based on the subjects' time…

A study investigated the effects of text condensation, field independence, and sex on students' comprehension of and attitudes toward instructional prose materials. Fifty-eight high school juniors and seniors were divided into three groups on the basis of sex and their scores on a field independence measure. Students in the original treatment were…

Three steps in teaching reading to Upward Bound students are considered in this paper: individualized needs assessment, determination of students' attitudes toward reading, and the actual instruction. In discussing the diagnosis of students' individual needs, the paper describes the Nelson Reading Test and additional diagnostic tests that may be…

A study was conducted to determine the effect of the direct and systematic teaching of the nature, purpose, and language of instruction of reading on first grade children's knowledge of this information, on their attitudes toward reading, and on their reading achievement. Subjects were 60 first grade students randomly assigned to one of two…

This paper examines the concept of creativity through the identification of traits and characteristics found in the so-called creative personality. The works on creativity of several scholars and researchers are briefly reviewed, including those by Ellis Paul Torrance, Donald W. MacKinnon, Sarnoff A. Mednick, Paul Heist, Philip Wesley Jackson, and…

A survey of 857 teachers and field studies in 23 elementary classrooms during two school years provided data on whether teachers have conceptions of reading, the nature of those conceptions, how they develop over time, and the degree to which they govern the pattern of instructional decisions in reading. The results suggest seven general…

A study focusing on teacher conceptions of reading as they influence instructional practice and pupil outcomes required the development of an instrument to use in selecting teachers possessing various beliefs about reading. Teacher beliefs about reading can be viewed both in terms of standard models (such as basal text, linear skills, natural…

Reports on a project to increase reading frequency in the home among working class disadvantaged White children. Concludes that in spite of many adverse factors decreasing the likelihood of increased reading frequency, the majority of families became and stayed involved with the project over its three-year span. (SRT)

Describes a reader response study indicating (1) a high degree of agreement on reader beliefs and text events and (2) that students who empathized with a particular character identified the story conflict as pertaining to that character. Suggests specific reader-based and text-based factors that produce convergence and divergence in reader…

Annotates a number of books that can help teachers demonstrate for young children the importance of reading. (FL)

Describes how the educational experience of sixth grade remedial readers was revitalized and enriched through a project that grew out of reading "Sadako and the Thousand Paper Cranes." Suggests using "real" books (literature) to liberate remedial students from skill drills and reading games. (NH)

Reveals four different categories of teacher-student books conferences. Reports findings of a study of four children's book conferences over a year that shows the teacher preferring different foci with different students. (FL)

Reports that librarians in Nebraska find the Golden Sower Award program to be a positive force in influencing children's reading habits and awareness of literature. (FL)