Book Reading Activities Research Articles

Expanding the boundaries of shared book reading: E-books and printed books in parent–child reading as support for children’s language

Early shared book reading activities are considered to be a promising context for supporting young children’s language development. Ninety low socioeconomic status preschoolers and their mothers were randomly assigned to one of three groups: (1) e-book reading; (2) printed book reading; (3) regular kindergarten literacy program (control). Mothers of children in the intervention groups received guidance on how to read to their child, and had five sessions of reading within a period of two weeks. The final session was videotaped and transcribed. Children in both intervention groups showed significant progress in word comprehension and phonological awareness compared to the control group. Children’s initial knowledge in each skill and both interventions contributed to language progress more than maternal education, frequency of shared book reading and computer use. The authors conclude that parents and children may expand their shared book reading experience to include e-books, which may serve as promising contexts for developing young children’s language.

The Effects of Summer Reading on Low-Income Children’s Literacy Achievement From Kindergarten to Grade 8

This meta-analysis reviewed research on summer reading interventions conducted in the United States and Canada from 1998 to 2011. The synthesis included 41 classroom- and home-based summer reading interventions involving children from kindergarten to Grade 8. Compared to control group children, children who participated in classroom interventions, involving teacher-directed literacy lessons, or home interventions, involving child-initiated book reading activities, enjoyed significant improvement on multiple reading outcomes. The magnitude of the treatment effect was positive for summer reading interventions that employed research-based reading instruction and included a majority of low-income children. Sensitivity analyses based on within-study comparisons indicated that summer reading interventions had significantly larger benefits for children from low-income backgrounds than for children from a mix of income backgrounds. The findings highlight the potentially positive impact of classroom- and home-based summer reading interventions on the reading comprehension ability of low-income children.

The uses of overlap: Carer–child interaction involving a nine-year-old boy with auditory neuropathy

The subject of this single case study, Ricky, is a nine-year-old boy with a profound hearing loss arising from auditory neuropathy. Despite cochlear implantation at the age of two, his receptive language skills remain very restricted and his speech is unintelligible. Techniques of interactional linguistics are used to analyse recordings of Ricky and his mother during shared book reading. Both participants display competences in managing turn-taking and overlapping talk that enable them to progress the book-reading activity, to talk spontaneously on topically related matters and also to handle issues of phonetic and linguistic repair. Instances of both competitive and non-competitive overlap reveal that Ricky has access to interactionally important prosodic skills. The study thus reinforces the need, when assessing a child’s potential to understand and use spoken language, to examine the child’s talk from an interactional perspective. It further indicates that overlapping talk is not necessarily a problem; indeed it can be part of a solution to issues of interpersonal understanding that routinely arise in the course of talk-in-interaction.

Effects of A Picture Book Reading Intervention Program on Young Children's Language Development and Print Concept

The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of picture book reading intervention activities on language development of low-income children. The subjects were 60 children in low-income families, aged 5, selected from 24 child care centers located in three cities nearby Seoul, South Korea. The experimental group had received intervention program for 8 weeks, two days a week, and three teachers conducted the intervention program for 30 to 40 minutes for each session. The intervention program was administered to the children with picture book reading activities in the first session, followed by providing more extensive activities in the second session. Afterwards, the study allowed the children to take one picture book to read at home. To evaluate the effect of the picture book reading intervention program, this study utilized instruments called the Preschool Receptive-Expressive Language Scale and the Concepts about Print. Significant differences found between the two groups. The experimental group showed higher scores compared with the control group in the post-test of expressive language development. Also, children in the experimental group showed a significant increase in the concepts about print after the intervention program was administered. In conclusion, findings indicate several changes in positive outcomes after implementation of the picture book reading intervention program.

Does combined cognitive training and physical activity training enhance cognitive abilities more than either alone? A four-condition randomized controlled trial among healthy older adults

Cognitive training and aerobic training are known to improve cognitive functions. To examine the separate and combined effects of such training on cognitive performance, four groups of healthy older adults embarked on a 4 months cognitive and/or mild aerobic training. A first group [n = 33, mean age = 80 (66–90)] engaged in cognitive training, a second [n = 29, mean age = 81 (65–89)] in mild aerobic training, a third [n = 29, mean age = 79 (70–93)] in the combination of both, and a fourth [n = 31, mean age = 79 (71–92)] control group engaged in book-reading activity. The outcome was a well-validated multi-domain computerized cognitive evaluation for older adults. The results indicate that, when compared to older adults who did not engage in cognitive training (the mild aerobic and control groups) older adults who engaged in cognitive training (separate or combined training groups) showed significant improvement in cognitive performance on Hand-Eye Coordination, Global Visual Memory (GVM; working memory and long-term memory), Speed of Information Processing, Visual Scanning, and Naming. Indeed, individuals who did not engage in cognitive training showed no such improvements. Those results suggest that cognitive training is effective in improving cognitive performance and that it (and not mild aerobic training) is driving the improvement in the combined condition. Results are discussed in terms of the special circumstances of aerobic and cognitive training for older adults who are above 80 years of age.

Book reading mediation, SES, home literacy environment, and children’s literacy: Evidence from Arabic-speaking families

This article investigates the contribution of maternal mediation in storybook reading, socioeconomic status (SES), and home literacy environment (HLE) to children’s literacy level in kindergarten and first grade in Israeli Arabic-speaking families. A total of 109 kindergarten children and their mothers participated. Children’s literacy level was assessed in kindergarten. Mothers and children were videotaped at home in a book reading activity, and HLE data were gathered from the mothers. One year later, the children’s literacy level was assessed in first grade. Results show that mothers often used paraphrasing in the reading activities and dealt less with the written language. Correlations were found between SES and children’s literacy measures in oral and written language in kindergarten and in first grade. Significant positive relationships were found between HLE and children’s literacy level in kindergarten and first grade. No relationship was found between maternal mediation and children’s spoken and written language skills in either age group. Regression analysis showed that HLE was the best contributor variable to children’s literacy level, followed by family SES level, with no contribution of maternal mediation. Implications of the relationships between children’s literacy development, SES, HLE, and parental mediation in Arabic-speaking families for researchers and educational practitioners are discussed.

Shared Book Reading and Head Start Preschoolers' Vocabulary Learning: The Role of Book-Related Discussion and Curricular Connections

This study examined the ways in which the language that Head Start teachers used during book reading, as well as the extent to which they made explicit connections between book reading and other instructional activities, were linked to preschoolers' vocabulary development. Participants included 10 Head Start teachers and 153 children in their classrooms. Research Findings: Analyses revealed that teachers varied substantially in the frequency and nature of their book-related remarks, and connections between books and the broader curriculum were relatively few in number and constrained in nature. On average, children learned more words over the course of the year when teachers used more contextualized and decontextualized talk during book readings. Contextualized book-related talk was most positively associated with learning among children with relatively low initial vocabulary knowledge. Too few connections between book reading and the curriculum were observed to afford analysis of their contributions to children's vocabulary skills. Practice or Policy: The findings show the nuanced ways in which shared book reading, a critical part of the preschool day, is linked to vocabulary growth among the nation's most vulnerable learners. The results also highlight potential avenues through which readings could be strategically individualized to optimize early vocabulary development.

Preliminary evidence suggests that Visual Scene Displays and Grids both support shared book reading activities in young children

This review provides a summary and appraisal commentary on the treatment review by Wood Jackson, C., Wahlquist, J., & Marquis, C. (2011). Visual supports for shared reading with young children: The effect of static overlay design. Augmentative and Alternative Communication, 27, 91–102. Source of funding and disclosure of interest: No source of funding reported, and no conflicts of interest reported by the original authors of this research report.

제 2 언어 습득에서 유아의 영어 문해 능력에 영향을 미치는 변인 연구 : 그림책 읽기에서 어머니의 언어적 행동을 중심으로

The purpose of this study was to explore the factors influencing preschoolers` emergent English as a second language literacy skills in terms of maternal language behavior in Korean and English picture book reading. This study was also conducted in order to identify the pathways of each factor. The subjects consisted of 201 mothers and their 3~5 year-old children from middle income families living in Seoul, Incheon, Gyyounggi-do, and Chungcheongbuk-do. The results indicated that the factors influencing preschoolers` emergent English as a second language literacy skills acquisition were as follows : maternal beliefs about the value of picture book reading, the child`s level of interest in picture book reading, the time spent on picture book reading and maternal language behavior during picture book reading activities. The results further indicate that it is important that the mother shares desirable language interaction with her children in their native language while reading not only Korean but also English picture books when aiming to improve preschoolers` emergent English literacy skills.

Integrating music into small-group book reading activities increases the engagement of students with autism

ed from: Carnahan, S., Basham, J., & Musti-Rao, S. (2009). A low technology strategy for increasing engagement of students with autism and significant learning needs. Exceptionality, 17, 76–87. Source of funding: No funding sources were reported by the authors.

Interrelations between communicative behaviors at the outset of speech: parents as observers

The Hebrew Parent Questionnaire for Communication and Early Language (HPQ-CEL) was administered by 154 parents of Hebrew-speaking toddlers aged 1 ; 0 to 1 ; 3 (77 boys, 77 girls). The Questionnaire guided parents in observing and rating their toddlers in six contexts at home. The study aimed to identify inter-correlations between toddlers' non-linguistic behaviors that co-occur during the transition to speech. Seven communicative behaviors were extracted from the questionnaire data: Crying, Vocalizations, Collaboration with Adults, Pointing, Words, Joint Engagement in a Peek-a-Boo Game, and Triadic Interaction in Book Reading. Collaboration with Adults and Triadic Interaction in Book Reading yielded more significant correlations than other prelinguistic behaviors. Participation in social games and book-reading activities was associated with the toddlers' number of words at the period studied.

The Effects of Book-reading Activities on the Reading Comprehension of Children in Multicultural Families

The Effects of Book-reading Activities on the Reading Comprehension of Children in Multicultural Families

Teaching Latino Parents to Support the Multi-Symbol Message Productions of their Children who Require AAC

Many children who require augmentative and alternative communication (AAC) have difficulties shifting from the single- to multi-symbol stage of language development. Ensuring that children who use AAC receive evidence-based interventions to address this problem is critical. Furthermore, there has been little AAC treatment efficacy research to date that addresses the needs of multicultural populations, particularly those of Latino children who use AAC and their families. To address these issues, the current investigation used a mixed methodology, which included a focus group to determine if any changes needed to be made to an existing instructional program; and a single subject, multiple probe, across participants design to evaluate the effects of a caregiver instructional program on the multi-symbol utterance productions of Latino children who used AAC. Specifically, a cognitive strategy instructional approach that has been used to teach turn-taking skills to both Caucasian and African American children who use AAC was modified and used to teach caregivers how to support the production of their children's multi-symbol messages. In order to foster emergent literacy skills, caregivers implemented the strategy during book reading activities. Focus group results revealed that changes to the instructional program may be required for some Latino families. With regard to the instructional program, all caregivers successfully learned to use the instructional strategy, and all children increased their use of multi-symbol messages. Research and clinical implications of the findings are discussed.

Maternal Evaluations of Children's Emergent Literacy Level, Maternal Mediation in Book Reading, and Children's Emergent Literacy Level: A Comparison between SES Groups

This study examined whether maternal evaluations of children's emergent literacy (EL) levels, maternal mediation during a book-reading activity with children, and the children's EL levels differ as a function of socioeconomic status (SES; low vs. high), and whether the relationships between these variables differ as a function of SES levels. Study participants included 84 kindergarteners, 41 from low SES (LSES) and 43 from high (HSES) families, and their mothers. Maternal evaluations of their children's EL levels were gathered, mother-child interactions in a book-reading activity were videotaped, and the children's EL levels were independently assessed. LSES mothers were less accurate in evaluating their children's EL levels and exhibited lower mediation levels in the book-reading interactions. Their children exhibited lower EL levels than did the children in the HSES group. In the HSES group, children's EL levels were explained by maternal evaluations and by maternal mediation levels. HSES maternal mediation levels while book reading were explained by their children's EL levels. No such relationships appeared between these variables in the LSES group. Suggestions for educational practices and further research are discussed.

Enhancing Phonological Awareness and Letter Knowledge in Preschool Children with Down Syndrome

This study investigated the effectiveness of a phonological awareness intervention for 4‐year‐old children with Down syndrome. Seven children with Down syndrome who attended an early intervention centre participated in the intervention. Their performance on measures of phonological awareness (initial phoneme identity), letter name and sound knowledge, and print concepts pre‐intervention and post‐intervention, was compared with that of a randomly selected group of age‐matched peers with typical development. The intervention involved print referencing techniques whereby the children’s parents were instructed to bring the children’s attention to targeted letters and sounds within words and to draw their attention to the initial phonemes in words during daily shared book reading activities. The intervention was presented for a 6‐week period. The results indicated a significant treatment effect on phonological awareness and letter knowledge for the children with Down syndrome. Additionally, above‐chance performance on the initial phoneme identity task was contingent on letter knowledge of the particular phoneme. Individual profiles of the children with Down syndrome pre‐intervention and post‐intervention are presented, and implications for the management of preschool children approaching the age of integration into mainstream primary schools are discussed.

Comparison of Context-Based Interaction Patterns of Mothers Who Are Homeless With Their Preschool Children

The primary purpose of this exploratory study was to examine the influence of context on interaction patterns used by mothers who are homeless with their preschool children during book-reading and game-playing activities. The impact of mothers' previously determined language functioning on their contextual use of facilitating language utterances was also examined. Using a prospective, nonrandomized, comparison group design, mothers read a book and played a game with their preschool children. Facilitating language utterances produced by the mothers in 16 mother-child dyads during each activity were analyzed. Regardless of their language functioning, no significant contextual differences in percentage use of facilitating language utterances were found across mothers. Overall maternal use of facilitating utterances was less than 50%. Across both contexts, mothers used few different types of facilitating language utterances. This exploratory study provides initial evidence of overall consistency of facilitating language utterance use by mothers who are homeless during interactions with their preschool children across contexts, regardless of maternal language functioning. This study provides an initial framework for future research investigating the interactions of families who are homeless and discusses possible language interventions for these at-risk families.

Genetic and environmental influences on prereading skills and early reading and spelling development in the United States, Australia, and Scandinavia

Genetic and environmental influences on prereading skills in preschool and on early reading and spelling development at the end of kindergarten were compared among samples of identical and fraternal twins from the U.S. (Colorado), Australia, and Scandinavia. Mean comparisons revealed significantly lower preschool print knowledge in Scandinavia, consistent with the relatively lower amount of shared book reading and letter-based activities with parents, and lack of emphasis on print knowledge in Scandinavian preschools. The patterns of correlations between all preschool environment measures and prereading skills within the samples were remarkably similar, as were the patterns of genetic, shared environment, and non-shared environment estimates: in all samples, genetic influence was substantial and shared environment influence was relatively weak for phonological awareness, rapid naming, and verbal memory; genetic influence was weak, and shared environment influence was relatively strong for vocabulary and print knowledge. In contrast, for reading and spelling assessed at the end of kindergarten in the Australian and U.S. samples, there was some preliminary evidence for country differences in the magnitude of genetic and environmental influences. We argue that the apparently higher genetic and lower shared environment influence in the Australian sample was related to a greater emphasis on formal reading instruction, resulting in more advanced reading and spelling skills at the end of kindergarten, and thus there was greater opportunity to observe genetic influences on response to systematic reading instruction among the Australian twins.

Leisure book reading and purchasing: an analysis of Turkish consumers

AbstractTracking studies all over the world report a decline in time devoted to reading in all age groups. There is a common stereotype indicating that people prefer other leisure activities to reading books. Low levels of book readership and book purchasing has always been a matter of discussion in Turkey. Accordingly, the aim of this study was to develop a better understanding of Turkish people’s involvement with books. To achieve this aim, a research survey via self‐administered questionnaire to collect data about leisure time reading, book purchasing and related attitudes was prepared. The sample represents 601 people from eight cities. It was found that around 80% of the sample had read at least one book within the last 6 months, and 58% had purchased a book for her‐ or himself. In addition, a Likert scale with 26 items was utilized to understand the attitudes of respondents to book reading, purchasing and book marketing activities. A factor analysis was also used to check the possibility of reducing the number of attitude items on the scale. Four factors emerged as a result of the factor analysis, labelled as ‘high involvement in books’, ‘preference towards more visual products’, ‘economy factor’ and ‘books must be heavily promoted’. Furthermore, ANOVA and t‐tests were performed to analyse whether attitudes change with demographic variables. Contrary to common beliefs about book readership, this study has revealed favourable attitudes towards book reading and purchasing.

The effects of a language and literacy intervention on Head Start children and teachers.

A language and literacy intervention was implemented in 10 Head Start classrooms. Teachers were trained in specific book reading and conversation strategies. The focus of the intervention was to train teachers how to increase opportunities for language and vocabulary development in young children. At the end of the year, children in the intervention classrooms performed significantly better than children in the control classrooms on the Peabody Picture Vocabulary Test-III and the Expressive One-Word Vocabulary Test (3rd ed.). In addition, teachers in the intervention classrooms used strategies that promoted language development during book reading and other classroom activities. Head Start teachers can be trained to implement strategies that have positive effects on children's language and literacy development.

Beyond the pages of a book: Interactive book reading and language development in preschool classrooms.

The effects of a book reading technique called interactive book reading on the language and literacy development of 4-year-olds from low-income families were evaluated. Teachers read books to children and reinforced the vocabulary in the books by presenting concrete objects that represented the words and by providing children with multiple opportunities to use the book-related words. The teachers also were trained to ask open-ended questions and to engage children in conversations about the book and activities. This provided children with opportunities to use language and learn vocabulary in a meaningful context. Children who were in the interactive book reading intervention group scored significantly better than children in the comparison group on Peabody Picture Vocabulary Test-III and other measures of receptive and expressive language. Book reading and related activities can promote the development of language and literacy skills in young children.