Reading aloud makes important contributions to young children's literacy development, but some methods of reading aloud are much more beneficial than others. Researchers have investigated ways to make read-aloud sessions more meaningful for children, and several methods have emerged as particularly effective. This article examines the role of…

Describes the responses of children in kindergarten through second grade to reading aloud. Finds a proclivity toward a wide range of play with the action, sound, and rhythm of language related to the book's content. Suggests that verbal exclamations such as laughter, changing facial expressions, and imitative gestures are legitimate features of…

Examines the nature of third graders' responses to the literature that is read aloud to them. Documents both individual and class development in response patterns over time. Finds responding to literature fostered comprehension, discussion, and writing skills, and promoted emotional involvement with and appreciation of literature. (MG)

Examined toddlers' spontaneous responses to six repeated readings; subjects were 2- to 3-year olds from at-risk backgrounds. Found that frequent children's responses included labeling pictures, commenting about the picture/story, and repeating what the reader said. Overall verbal activity and number of different responses increased across repeated…

Analyzes read-alouds of information books in a first-grade classroom. Finds that children's responses to the books and the connections they made among texts and between texts and other aspects of their lives shows that children's backgrounds are important factors in their literacy development. Notes the strength that diversity in children's…

This study explored the relative strength of relationships between text, child, adult reader, and mode of story reading style in contributing to comprehension and memory in young children. Specifically, the study asked: What is the correlational relationship between the four vertices of a tetrahedral model of understanding and memory in children's…

This paper defines an already existing body of literature in trade books whose intrinsic characteristics provide a superstructure of support that make it particularly attractive to readers engaged in ongoing growth beyond beginning or emergent reading who, for whatever reason, cannot be considered mature or independent enough readers to engage…

Describes a young child, age two-and-a-half to three-and-a-half, as he interacts with three types of storybook media (CD-ROM, Language Experience Approach, and traditional) at home with his mother. Reveals seven distinct episodes of interaction, which were compared across storybook media experiences. Finds that the proportion of engagement in…

Investigating the extent to which reading to children and book type affect kindergartners' ability to recall, write about, and read the text that their teacher has just read to them, a study examined the effects that the story reading techniques of six kindergarten teachers had on 52 of their students during three book reading sessions. On three…

Reports on the observation of a group of kindergartners in their classroom library twice a week for eight weeks to learn more about how the nature of the texts--familiarity, predictability, and size--influence the children's use of books. (NH)

Describes parent-child activities during storybook reading, suggesting that interactive reading (constructing meaning) is more developmentally enriching than attending to story. Found that Curacaoan mothers were more concerned with child's understanding of story than with constructing meaning. Argues that parents should be trained in dialog that…

Cites research supporting the theory that young children need several exposures to a story for complete understanding and reports on a study involving six rereadings of one book to a five year old over a two week period in an effort to guide "literary" development. (NH)

Drawing on thousands of "reading autobiographies," in which generations of students wrote about their experiences with reading, this book investigates what makes young people want to read. Chapters include: (1) Growing with Books; (2) Learning To Read; (3) Literature and the Human Voice; (4) Reading Habits and Attitudes: When, Where, and…