The poetry selections in eleven reading programs were analyzed and generally found to be based on sound philosophy and concerned with children's genuine responses. (JH)

Products evaluated in this column are two readiness kits: Readiness Steps (Houghton Mifflin) and Experiences in Reading Readiness (Milton Bradley) plus three text series for the full elementary grade span: Pathfinders (Allyn and Bacon); American Book Reading Program (American Book Company); and Young America Basic Series (Rand McNally). (SJL)

Five speculations can be made about basal-series reading instruction: if it sells well, it may be bad; basal series may be based on marketing principles rather than educational principles; possession of a basal series by a school district tells llittle or nothing about the instruction in the school district that owns it; stories in basal series…

The purposes of the study were to determine the extent to which basal readers contain stories pertaining to blacks; to find out if the racial implications stated in basal texts are those that blacks want; to locate the black heroes in basal readers and evaluate whether or not these are the preferred heroes of the population of blacks sampled in…

Beginning reading instruction is a challenge that teachers can meet successfully by using imagination, working hard, displaying enthusiasm, and expressing genuine concern for the young children that they teach. This paper offers guidelines for beginning reading teachers who base their programs on traditional basal readers. The guidelines are…