Connecting the constructs of meaning and experience in the fields of English education, teacher education, literacy and narrative inquiry, Making Meaning with Readers and Texts broadens understandings of teachers’ use of literacy practices for making meaning from classroom events.

In many places in the Western world, churchgoing is in decline and it cannot be assumed that people have a good grasp of the Bible’s content. In this evolving situation, how would “the person on the street” read the Bible? Reading the Bible Outside the Church begins to answer this question. David Ford spent ten months at a chemical industrial plant providing non-churchgoing men with the opportunity to read and respond to five different biblical texts. Using an in-depth qualitative methodology, he charts how their prior experiences of religion, sense of (non)religious identity, attitudes towards the Bible, and beliefs about the Bible all shaped the readings that occurred.

The global pandemic has caused devastating social and economic disruptions worldwide. These circumstances have widened and deepened the inequalities of access to socio-economic and academic achievement for diverse groups. This new reality compels us to look for possibilities of developing leadership and agency that will lead to transformation and hope in our communities. One of the ways to implement change is through the use of literacy practices. Utilizing diverse and innovative literacy approaches can allow for better access to educational opportunities and promote critical thinking, a better understanding of the world, and an awareness of others and self. Using Innovative Literacies to Develop Leadership and Agency: Inspiring Transformation and Hope presents multiple innovative literacy approaches that promote self-leadership and agency for individuals and communities. The work included showcases practical field experiences supported by a theoretical framework. Covering topics such as spatial literacy, digital storytelling, art literacy, and self-leadership, this premier reference source is an essential resource for business leaders and executives, community leaders, faculty and administrators of both K-12 and higher education, pre-service teachers, teacher educators, students of higher education, librarians, researchers, and academicians.

Dialogic Readers: Children talking and thinking together about visual texts celebrates the sophisticated and dynamic discussions that primary-aged children can have as they talk together to make meaning from a variety of texts, and it highlights the potential for talk between readers as a tool for critical and creative thinking. It proposes a new dialogic theory of reading comprehension that incorporates multi-modal media and adds further weight to the argument that talk as a tool for learning should form a central part of primary classroom learning and teaching. The book explores: • the language of co-construction • children’s critical and creative responses to text • the dialogic transaction between text and readers • the use of language as a tool for creating a social cohesion between readers. This significant work is aimed at educational lecturers, researchers and students who want to explore an expanded notion of reading comprehension in the twenty-first century, realizing how opportunities for children thinking creatively together might transform the potential for learning in the classroom. It provides a framework for analyzing co-constructive talk with suggestions for promoting children’s critical and creative thinking.

The field of reading is a compelling one, characterised by many debates and discussions. It is also amenable to investigations through a range of theories and research studies. In this book, eight leading authorities provide a ‘state-of-the-art’ overview of reading, using perspectives that have informed their work. There are overviews from linguistic, psychological, sociological and literary viewpoints, as well as more hybrid ones from investigations of digital literacy and multi-modality. This book celebrates what has already been achieved by bridging research, scholarship and practice; it also suggests what still needs to be done to bring the positive rewards from reading to greater numbers of young people. It also recognises that the benefits of reading extend beyond the personal. Accomplished reading skills empower people to meet the challenges of everyday life: making decisions, solving problems, and dealing with unexpected events. The need to refresh and renew our knowledge of reading has gained further impetus in the ‘information age’. New technologies for information and communication continually appear: manifestations of ‘fake news’, disinformation and conspiracy theories spread rapidly across the globe. The book underlines the importance not only of reading, but also the fact that reading between and beyond the lines is more important than ever, in print and across multiple media platforms. The chapters in this book were originally published as a special issue of Education 3–13: International Journal of Primary, Elementary and Early Years Education.

Develop students' literacy and active reading skills with this balanced, whole-child approach to reading for 21st-century learners. This updated book co-published with the International Literacy Association (ILA) equips educators with numerous rigorous and engaging techniques that promote critical thinking and problem solving while reading. The strategies provided concentrate on effective instruction within the five components of reading: phonemic awareness, phonics, fluency, vocabulary, and comprehension. Features include: more than 125 enhanced classroom-tested techniques in the areas of word study, vocabulary, fluency, and comprehension; 18 new techniques to motivate and engage all learners; embedded scaffolding and teacher talk within each technique; a focus on core literacy strands required by College and Career Readiness Standards; and digital resources including an assortment of reproducible student and teacher resource sheets.

Readings for Reflective Teaching in Schools provides a portable library of over a hundred readings to support teacher education and professional development. Extensively updated since earlier editions, the book concisely introduces both classic and contemporary research and understanding on teaching and learning. The selection reflects current issues and concerns in education and has been designed to support school-led teacher education as well as a wide range of school–university partnership arrangements. Uniquely, two types of reading are provided: - summaries enabling easy access to evidence on key classroom issues – including relationships, behaviour, curriculum planning, teaching strategies and assessment processes; - analyses of deeper forms of understanding about teaching and learning processes, to support the development of expertise throughout a teaching career. This collection of readings is edited by Andrew Pollard, former Director of the UK's Teaching and Learning Research Programme, with the advice of primary and secondary specialists from the University of Cambridge. Readings for Reflective Teaching in Schools is part of a fully integrated set of resources for primary and secondary education. Reflective Teaching in Schools focuses on how to achieve high-quality teaching and learning. By design, it offers both practical support for effective practice and routes towards deeper expertise. The website, reflectiveteaching.co.uk, offers supplementary resources including reflective activities, research briefings, advice on further reading and additional chapters. It also features a glossary, links to useful websites, and a conceptual framework for deepening expertise. This book is one of the Reflective Teaching Series – inspiring education through innovation in early years, schools, further, higher and adult education.

A photocopiable resource to support the English language curriculum. It provides comprehension questions that require pupils to answer with inference and deduction. It offers questions that provide opportunities for written, discussion or drawing activities.

"This revised handbook will be even more useful to elementary teachers who want to explore the best techniques for teaching reading and writing. Totally re-written, the second edition of this popular guide offers one hundred procedures and activities based on the latest research. A collection of proven strategies, teachers will find old favorites as well as new approaches they will want to try - from using reading comprehension strategies and the writing process to working with information texts and technology." "Literacy Techniques for Building Successful Readers and Writers includes checklists and guidelines, many in reproducible form, for easy classroom use. This flexible and adaptable resource for the busy teacher is also useful for supply teachers and other teaching partners - buddies, volunteers, and parents."--Jacket.

Close . . . Closer . . . Closest! Close Reading. Not in a very long while has a term been freighted with so much responsibility to lead every student to a great future of college and career readiness. Finally, here’s a book that tunes out all of the hubbub and gets down to the business of showing how exactly to “get close reading right.” Chapter by chapter, Nancy Boyles delivers astoundingly practical ideas on how to Connect close reading with other instructional practices Select rich texts and plan for initial close reading lessons Deliver initial and follow-up close reading lessons Coordinate comprehension strategies and close reading