ABSTRACT
John Guthrie and Nicole Humenick found that ensuring that students had access to an array of interesting texts produced reading achievement gains roughly four times as large as the small effect of producing systematic phonics instruction as reported by the National Reading Panel. Connecting what children know about the books in the classroom to what they know about themselves as readers helps narrow their selections. Visitors to our classroom sometimes wonder how children as young as six, seven, and eight can sustain reading for forty-five or fifty minutes a day. When teachers and children truly share in the responsibility for their learning, it’s about shared ownership of growth over time.
