The purpose of this study was to determine the significance of teaching phonological awareness directly in the classroom. Student samples were conducted of both special education and general education students. Teacher interviews and observations were also used in this process. This research was conducted in an elementary school with approximately…

This report describes a program designed to develop positive attitudes toward reading and to improve achievement in third and fourth grade students in two Midwestern communities. Teachers' observations and conversations with parents and students indicated students did not receive essential reading practice time to improve skills. Analysis of…

Being well prepared for teaching instills confidence within the teacher for teaching. The capstone of the university experience is student teaching whereby the preservice teacher is now ready to apply what has been learned sequentially. Students have already taken methods courses and courses in educational psychology. The university student, prior…

This inservice professional development module, part of the Alabama Reading Initiative, presents research summaries, notes for presenters, and activities. The Effective Intervention module relays that if we do not do what the research tells us to do with students who struggle to read, then we have no reason to expect different results. However, if…

This report provides a summary of the preliminary investigations conducted by the Early Literacy Workgroup in Maine's schools, and is designed to serve the following purposes: articulate a set of interrelated, common characteristics of successful literacy programs; extend to schools an invitation to dialogue about effective literacy practices and…

This Ready--Set--Read Kit includes an activity guide for families, a 1997-98 early childhood activity calendar, and an early childhood growth wallchart. The activity guide presents activities and ideas that families (adults who have nurturing relationships with a child--a mother, father, grandparent, other relative, or close friend) can use to…

This book uses pseudonyms for the 22 high school students who were researched, observed, interviewed, and worked with, in preparation for their appearance in this narrative. Their stories are presented in the book in their own words--to support a strong plea for a much more effective literacy curriculum. Noting that their voices validate much of…

This book, part of a series of guides for K-12 teachers who are striving to align lively, classroom-tested practices with standards, that gathers together brief articles spotlighting suggestions for effective instruction. Noting that the upper elementary years are crucial ones in students' literacy development, the book opens with diverse ways for…

This pamphlet presents First Lady Laura Bush's "Ready to Read, Ready to Learn Initiative," whose goals are to highlight successful early childhood programs that teach children important pre-reading and vocabulary skills; provide parents and caregivers with information to help their children learn; and help recruit and retain excellent…

This teacher's guide is intended for the instruction of both French as a first language and French as a second language in an immersion setting. It provides a host of strategies for teaching reading skills in the classroom in Grades 6 through 12. The first section is designed to bring the teacher's awareness to the training procedure. It discusses…

This teacher's guide, intended for the instruction of both French as a first language and French as a second language in an immersion setting, provides a host of strategies for teaching reading skills in the classroom (Grades 1 through 7). Section 1 is designed to bring the teacher's awareness to the training procedure, discussing the motivation…

Currently, many states are providing inservice education for teachers so that higher student test scores result. State mandated objectives are available to teachers for study and used as benchmarks for teaching. The local reading curriculum then needs to be aligned with these objectives of instruction. The major objective of inservice education is…

This paper discusses the importance of reading aloud to students. It emphasizes the teacher's need to plan carefully when to read and what books to read. The paper suggests the following ideas should guide a teacher's choice of reading material: whether the story will capture students' attention; whether the story will increase students'…

As part of the final year evaluation of the Reading First Program, the Georgia Department of Education (GDOE) continued to follow the achievement of the original group of Reading First schools during the 2000-2001 school year. The final evaluation focuses primarily on the Reading First program's effect on students' reading achievement. Information…

The present study tested the effects of assisted-repeated reading on four first-grade students--a special education student, an at-risk, student, an English as a Second Language (ESL) student, and a general education student. The students engaged in echo and assisted-repeated reading two times a week for eight weeks. Each session lasted between 10…