The road to becoming a reader begins the day a child is born and continues through the end of third grade. At that point, a child must read with ease and understanding to take advantage of the learning opportunities in fourth grade and beyond. This booklet offers advice for parents of children from grades K-3 on how to support reading development at home, and how to recognize effective instruction in their children's classrooms.

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This 64-page booklet provides teachers with a summary of the findings of the National Reading Panel from its review of reading research. Organized by major reading topic for kindergarten through grade 3 (phonemic awareness instruction, phonics instruction, vocabulary instruction, fluency instruction, and text comprehension instruction), the booklet lists the main findings from the research, suggests how the findings can be translated to practice, and answers some frequently asked questions about each topic.

This brochure, designed for parents, provides a quick overview of the findings of the National Reading Panel and gives ideas for what to expect from a school's reading program based on evidence from the research (preschool through grade 3). The brochure also suggests ways parents can reinforce reading instruction at home with everyday activities and interactions.

An Evidence-Based Assessment of the Scientific Research Literature on Reading And Its Implications for Reading Instruction-Reports of the Subgroups
This document contains the full report of the National Reading Panel, which was created by Congress in 1997 to review the research on reading instruction and identify those practices proven effective through quality research. The report contains sections on seven major topics in reading instruction for kindergarten through grade 3: phonemic awareness, phonics, fluency, vocabulary, text comprehension, computer technology, and teacher education. This highly-detailed report is designed for educators, teachers, and policy-makers interested in a thorough grounding in evidence-based reading research. The NRP also offers a summary of this report and a video.

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This report from the American Federation of Teachers discusses the current state of teacher preparation in reading. It reviews the reading research and describes the knowledge base that is essential for teacher candidates and practicing teachers to master if they are to be successful in teaching all children to read well. Finally, this report makes recommendations for improving the system of teacher education and professional development.

This video, produced by the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD), addressed reading success and the consequences of reading failure: "the psychological, social, and economic consequences of reading failure are legion. If you do not learn to read and you live in America, you do not make it in life." - Dr. G. Reid Lyon, Chief, Child Development and Behavior Branch, NICHD. Produced in 1999; 13 minutes.

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The NICHD Clearinghouse
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Rockville, Maryland 20847

A companion to Every Child Reading: An Action Plan, this publication by the Learning First Alliance provides a blueprint for professional development that is responsive to the need to base reading instruction on evidence-based research. Published November 2000.