UPSTART is a federally funded i3 validation project that uses a computer-based program to develop the school readiness skills of preschool children in rural Utah. Researchers used a randomized control trial design to evaluate the impact of the program in advancing children's early literacy skills. Preschoolers in the experimental group were…

Examines four specific areas of reading readiness--visual discrimination, visual memory, auditory discrimination, and auditory comprehension--and reviews teaching strategies in each of the four areas. (FL)

The purposes of this study were to determine (1) if it is possible to predict which children will develop word recognition deficits based on levels of articulation proficiency and auditory discrimination ability; (2) the effect of two different instructional approaches for beginning reading, phonics, and whole-word approach; and (3) if first grade…

The assumption that the learning of letter names in their proper sequence is a prerequisite for literacy can be questioned. There is disagreement over the value of early letter-name training. It is variously said to aid in letter or word discrimination, to aid in attaching sounds to letters, and to interfere with both of these tasks. An analysis…

Four possible alternative approaches for developing word recognition skills (including sample lesson plans for both primary and intermediate grades) were presented. The first emphasized the importance of the relative order of difficulty of word analysis skills involving phonic abilities and auditory and visual discrimination in both primary and…

In an attempt to describe the place of phonics in a word-attack program, five areas of word attack are discussed: sight recognition, the use of context clues, morphology (structural analysis), phonics, and dictionary use. Facility in the use of all of these, singly and in combination, is stated as being necessary for a person to be an independent…

A 3-year study concerning teaching a phonics-oriented kindergarten readiness program of letter recognition and beginning consonant sounds was discussed. Sixty-eight children attending kindergarten in a suburban middle and upper-middle class community composed the sample. The experimental group consisted of 33 children; the control group consisted…

Behavioral objectives for various skill areas related to reading are listed for eleven levels (A through K). Each level deals with seven or eight skill areas, and each area has from one to 12 objectives with specific examples given for each objective. The skills for the various levels are visual discrimination, auditory discrimination, literal…

The skills listed in this booklet may form the base guideline for organizing the total school reading program or for individual classroom teachers. Several reasons are listed for constructing a reading program around a sequential listing of skills: (1) an orderly arrangement, (2) diagnosis, (3) blueprint for organizing flexible groups, (4) goal…

Shows that the ability to impose a distinct and exact meaning on what is seen underlies the skills involved in reading; notes the importance of training in perception combined with a clear sense of the purpose of reading. (GT)