Carol A. Donovan

Supporting Comprehension Acquisition for Emerging and Struggling Readers: The Interactive Information Book Read-Aloud.

This article begins with the suggestion that comprehension-related activities need not wait until children are fluently decoding but may be used during a phase that we term comprehension acquisition. We turn our attention to the features of the interactive information book read-aloud, an instructional approach we see as supporting both nonreaders and nonfluent readers prior to the introduction of instruction in cognitive and comprehension strategies. Following our presentation of the 4 key features of this approach-interaction, information books, teacher awareness of text features, and time for in-depth readings-we examine the ways in which these read-alouds relate to what Ellis and Wortham (1999) termed a watering up of curriculum for students with special needs.

BEYOND THE INDEPENDENT-LEVEL TEXT: CONSIDERING THE READER?TEXT MATCH IN FIRST GRADERS' SELF-SELECTIONS DURING RECREATIONAL READING

This study examined the recreational self-selections of two classes of first graders from extensive classroom libraries that included a large percentage of informational books. The following questions guided this study: 1) What are the readability levels of the books self-selected by low-, average-, and high-ability readers during recreational reading in their first grade classrooms? 2) Are there differences in the amounts or readability levels of story and informational books selected by boys and girls of different reading abilities? The participants were students of the same teacher in two consecutive years at two different schools. Self-selected texts were recorded for six continuous weeks during the once-daily, thirty-minute recreational reading period that served as one part of the reading program. The selections were examined for the match between the childrens reading level and the readability level of books selected by low-, average-, and high-ability readers. Findings indicate influences of gend...This study examined the recreational self-selections of two classes of first graders from extensive classroom libraries that included a large percentage of informational books. The following questions guided this study: 1) What are the readability levels of the books self-selected by low-, average-, and high-ability readers during recreational reading in their first grade classrooms? 2) Are there differences in the amounts or readability levels of story and informational books selected by boys and girls of different reading abilities? The participants were students of the same teacher in two consecutive years at two different schools. Self-selected texts were recorded for six continuous weeks during the once-daily, thirty-minute recreational reading period that served as one part of the reading program. The selections were examined for the match between the childrens reading level and the readability level of books selected by low-, average-, and high-ability readers. Findings indicate influences of gender and genre on the high percentage of selections that were made above childrens reading levels. The relation of frustration-level texts to interest and motivation, as well as to supporting childrens conceptual and genre knowledge growth, are discussed.

Supporting Informational Writing in the Elementary Grades

The greater emphasis on information books in elementary schools has led to an increased emphasis on informational writing as well. Although some have suggested utilizing mentor texts to engage children in informational writing, there has been little information about the developmental progression of childrens ability to compose in this genre. What has been missing is advice on how to support childrens approximations of the information report genre. This article aims to do precisely that by presenting a developmental framework of informational writing derived from a study of K–5 childrens writing. We share the framework, provide examples of childrens compositions at each developmental level, and demonstrate how teachers can use this continuum to support increasingly more mature forms of information text.

Visual Representations in Second Graders' Information Book Compositions.

This paper describes the visuals second grade students included in their own information book compositions during a science unit on weather during which multimodal science trade books on the topic of weather were read aloud. First, the multimodal nature of the information books used in the unit are described. Second, the teachers talk about visual representations during read alouds of books on weather is presented. And third, the childrens own information books about weather topics are examined for inclusion of labeled pictorial illustrations with accompanying captions and graphical representations. These analyses reveal that 1) information book authors vary in their use of visual information, 2) some graphics may be more salient for children, and 3) childrens use of pictorial illustrations and graphical representations in their own compositions seems to be impacted by both teacher attention to particular types of visual representations and immersion in information book graphics.

Science and Literacy: Considering the Role of Texts in Early Childhood Science Education

This chapter examines the integration of science and literacy in early childhood education. We begin with a review of research on the types of science texts designed for young children and for early childhood classrooms – commercially produced, trade literature, and researcher-created. Such science texts present unique challenges in their content, their linguistic structures, and their varied visual representations. As relates specifically to trade literature, genre and subject matter can be sources of concern – genre in that texts that conflate story with scientific information and explanations may produce little science learning or scientific misconceptions, and subject matter in that current trade literature for young children chiefly addresses life science, with very few books written on physical science topics. Despite their importance, science texts have a very limited presence in current early childhood classrooms. Further, early childhood teachers appear reluctant to include such texts in common early childhood instructional practices, such as read alouds; this may be due to their own insecurities regarding science instruction. Given the importance of inquiry science, multiple researchers, working to enhance the quality of early childhood science instruction, have integrated text and inquiry science. We examine various Text Integrated Inquiry Science (TIIS) programs, acknowledging both unique and common program features, as well as limitations in research designs. A consideration of promising TIIS practices concludes this chapter.

Teaching Development and Diversity in Field-Based Methods Courses

Abstract This paper focuses on the issue of teaching development and diversity in an innovative elementary and special education teacher preparation program. Using the language arts and physical education components as examples, we describe problematic conceptions that preservice teachers hold about development and diversity and a set of learning experiences aimed at confronting these conceptions and helping undergraduates begin to learn to differentiate instruction. These learning experiences occur in elementary school settings during lessons taught by the university professors as a way to model effective practice and provide links to theory taught in the university.