The purpose of this article is to describe a strategy called the Poetry Academy used to boost reading skills in elementary school students. The Poetry Academy paired struggling readers with a community volunteer to read poetry on a weekly schedule to practice fluency, work on word recognition abilities, and build confidence. A research study took…

This study documents the implementation of research-based strategies to minimize the occurrence of reading difficulties in a first-grade population. Three strategies were implemented: (a) A system of progress monitoring was used to assess student progress and skill acquisition; (b) instruction was characterized by high intensity through the use of…

Data gathered from 25 rural public school districts in Texas during 2002-2003 were used to assess the impact of educator professional development and technology-intensive classroom learning activities on first- and second-grade students' reading achievement. Students from 18 school districts received the treatment while students from 7 randomly…

This book teaches that U.S. geography includes both natural and human-made landmarks, and that all 50 states and all major landmarks can be found on maps. The suggested grade range is K-3; the guided reading level is L; and the Windows on Literacy stage is fluent (levels 13-18).

This paper explores the issues surrounding the relationship among content, content pedagogical, and pedagogical knowledge uses in the areas of mathematics and reading. In this era of teacher accountability, it is prudent to examine the types of knowledge teachers must possess to reach an increasingly diverse student population. (Contains 2…

From a very young age, children actively strive to make sense of their world through constant questioning. The ability to ask questions comes naturally for young children, but such natural inclination does not continue because it teachers who ask most of the questions. Sheena Hervey suggests that teaching students how to pose questions is a…

Teaching and learning about comprehension is of paramount importance, from the beginning of reading instruction right through all years of school, in all curriculum areas. Research has shown that comprehension instruction can improve the reading comprehension of all readers, even beginning readers and struggling older readers. This article offers…

This author, an academic achievement teacher for second and third grade reading and math at Theodore Roosevelt Elementary School in Park Ridge, Illinois, contends that since fluency is such a measurable skill, over-emphasizing decoding and de-emphasizing comprehension results in short-changing students. In this article, she shares several reading…

Readers theater is a familiar literacy strategy for children who can read independently; however, it can also be used with younger children who have not yet developed independent reading skills. The purpose of this article is to adapt the concept of readers theater for use with emergent readers. It focuses first on defining readers theater and…

The teaching of reading in different languages should be informed by an effective evidence base. Although most children will eventually become competent, indeed skilled, readers of their languages, the pre-reading (e.g. phonological awareness) and language skills that they bring to school may differ in systematic ways for different language…

This essay discusses the author's encounter with PRAXIS II test preparation questions that distort and misrepresent complex reading processes. Three sample test items are presented and discussed.

A. W. Inhoff, R. Radach, and B. Eiter (see EJ750907) argue that the current version of the E-Z Reader model (A. Pollatsek, E. D. Reichle, & K. Rayner, see EJ750906) cannot explain 2 key findings in their data, and as a result, the assumption of words being attended to 1 at a time is likely to be false. In this rejoinder, the authors argue that…

Background: Studies focusing on reading errors can help to understand how children learn to read and to structure key components of reading instruction. However, no prior studies have examined which letters might be a greater source of difficulty for beginning readers in Spanish. Aims: First, to examine the pattern of reading errors in beginning…

Argues that teachers, diagnosticians, and other educators need to reevaluate their thinking about reading. (Author)

Presents a technique for adapting the kinesthetic method for classroom use. (WR)