Vocabulary development, operationally defined as the isomorphism between an individual's store of concepts and the labels society uses to represent those concepts, is akin to concept development. Therefore, vocabulary development can be facilitated if presented in clusters of related concepts. One approach used to reinforce such basic concept…

Discusses how microcomputers can stimulate invention in composition, through electronic mail, text analysis, and word processing programs. Describes two exploratory studies designed to examine the feasibility of using a word processor for language experience and sentence-combining activities in the elementary school classroom. (HTH)

A Piagetian, language-experience approach to the early teaching of reading to normal young and older developmentally delayed preoperational children was developed. The approach was discussed in a specially-developed manual which was field tested by 42 teachers among 390 children in 16 school systems in several states and in Canada. Subjects were…

Evaluation for acceptability and utility of 5 common reading methods and materials by 32 middle school students with learning disabilities found the basal reader approach preferred over the other methods (language experience, direct instruction, multisensory, and neurological impress) which were all rated equally. (Author/DB)

Thirteen subjects (aged 5:6 to 6:6) with language disorders were given elicited imitation and spontaneous language tasks, and their performance was compared among and within subjects. The two procedures produced significantly correlated results for some children but not for others. Analysis of specific syntactic forms also produced variable…

Argues that microcomputer programs in LOGO can support children's development of invented spelling within a language experience approach. Presents protocols of three nursery school children using such programs that show promising growth in their writing and reading skills. (FL)

To provide the most effective instruction, materials, and support for beginning readers, teachers need to know if young children are more likely to process from print to meaning-- bottom-up or text-driven processing--or to interpret print to follow meaning--top-down or concept-driven processing. While some studies reveal a correlation between…

The product of a two-year study investigating the literacy behavior of nine kindergarten students and their classmates, this report first explains the impetus and the theoretical foundations for the investigation and describes its subjects and setting. It then presents the methodology and the data collected from several related studies: (1)…