A free reading program in which learning disabled adolescents select from a variety of high interest-low vocabulary materials can help motivate students to read. Students follow up the reading period by writing in a journal which the teacher reads and responds to. (CL)

Listed are the 12 criteria for a good high interest, low vocabulary book, which is a stepping stone between the picture book and the juvenile novel. The author believes there will continue to be dramatic improvements in good literature for problem readers. (KC)

This article describes several high interest, easy reading book series, provides contact information for 12 publishers of easy reading material, and discusses factors that influence reading difficulty and how the various series approach them. (Contains 8 references.) (Author/DB)

A teacher of learning disabled middle school students relates how she uses picture books to teach reading disabled students the elements of literature. A list of picture storybooks for older readers is followed by activities for teaching theme, setting, plot, and characterization. (CL)

Formulas for assessing the appropriateness of printed material for a disabled reader are criticized, and guidelines for selecting a high-interest/low-reading-level book are offered. (Author/SBH)

A reading resource room was developed for 59 deaf and hard-of-hearing secondary-level students, to improve vocabulary and reading skills and encourage reading for pleasure. Books of interest to teenagers with limited reading levels were located from several publishing companies and were arranged in a space with shelves and comfortable seating.…

Offers a critique of existing methods of assessing the human interest of basic writing textbooks, contending that most are abstract and subjective and that the more objective Flesch formula inflates texts' human-interest level. Advocates modifying existing formulas and guidelines. Suggests criteria (e.g., appropriateness of readability level) for…

Offers suggestions from six contributors regarding a variety of classroom activities, including the use of high interest-low vocabulary books with gifted and average readers, an exercise in sequencing, a Halloween project to improve students' grammar, a technique to improve students' dictionary skills, and methods for helping students write books.…

Identifies and describes reading materials, programs, and resource materials in the areas of content and reading skill development that can be used by vocational teachers of secondary-level special needs students. (HOD)

As part of a project in the developing nations of the Asian Pacific region to promote the use and improvement of newly acquired literacy skills, exemplary reading-related materials for this population were gathered from a number of countries. A selection of posters, booklets, audio-visual materials, games, and other printed material are presented…

This book is an annotated bibliography of recommended print materials for English-speaking adults (18 years of age and over) reading at the seventh-grade level or below. More than 95 percent of the titles are paperbacks; hardbacks are indicated in the annotations. The titles are selected for their broad appeal to the general adult new reader. (All…

This article discusses literature selection for students with learning differences, focusing on types of material available and criteria for selecting books for and about students with learning differences. The article includes a list of literature for and about children with learning problems and a checklist for evaluating these materials. (JDD)

Designed to provide a comprehensive literacy reference for public libraries, this handbook presents a glossary of terms, background information on functional literacy, and brief reviews of 14 additional topics: (1) literacy statistics; (2) adult performance levels; (3) the problem of adult education; (4) illiteracy generates itself; (5) about…

Analyzes 25 high-interest low-vocabulary fiction books and compares them to representative young adult literature in terms of 10 characteristics: youthful protagonist; adolescent's interpretation; direct exposition, dialogue, and confrontation; structural conventions; independent protagonist; consequential events; authoritative portrayals;…

Discusses why social studies is suitable for multilevel textbook programs, and important features of viable multilevel textbook programs are examined. A sample unit of study for a high school U.S. history course using multilevel texts is provided. A list of easy-reading secondary grade social studies materials is also included. (RM)