Striking a Balance: A Comprehensive Approach to Early Literacy

This book helps teachers create a comprehensive early literacy program that places direct skills instruction within the context of rich and varied reading and writing experiences. In her clear and engaging style, the author addresses language acquisition, the beginnings of literacy, teaching to standards, informational reading and writing, new literacies, and common questions about using assessment to inform instruction; she also provides guidance and strategies for working with English learners and struggling readers. The fourth edition has been updated to reflect current research and field knowledge.

New to the Fourth Edition
A new chapter on literacy and technology. Exciting new innovations that can help teachers engage children in literacy in today s world are discussed in a new chapter. It includes information on writing electronically, reading and finding information online, creating multimodal/hypertext projects, and communicating and collaborating online.

An in-depth section on literacy from birth to the primary grades. A new section shows what to expect from children at every stage of literacy development--from birth to conventional reader.

A discussion of Response to Intervention. The implications of RTI for literacy teachers are highlighted.

New case examples. Expanded teaching scenarios look at such topics as RTI in action helping one child achieve literacy success and providing explicit instruction of a comprehension strategy. In the assessment chapter, the case example follows a specific child from diagnosis to intervention to avid reader, showing the teacher s decision-making processes along the way.

New sections throughout. This new material looks at national standards, visual literacy including viewing and visually representing, formative and summative assessment, guidelines for selecting multicultural literature, putting together a family literacy night, and conducting a literature circle, among other topics.

An expanded children's literature appendix. The appendix now includes books that are ideal for enhancing vocabulary, writing skills, and comprehension.

Greater emphasis on working with English learners. New ideas and consideration for English learner, together with variations of activities and strategies, have been incorporated throughout.

Now full color throughout. The book's new color layout enhances the features and pedogogy and will help to engage readers more fully.

Other Special Features
An updated interactive companion website and study guide.

In the Classroom chapter-opening vignettes.

More than 40 hands-on activities for use in the classroom.

Step-by-step instructions are included to help readers put these activities to work in their own classes.

Questions for journal writing and discussion.

Suggestions for projects and field activities.

Glossary.

Assessment devices.

Nancy Lee Cecil, Ph.D., has had a rich and varied background in education as an elementary school teacher and a literacy specialist in New York; urban Savannah, Georgia; and in the public schools in the U.S. Virgin Islands. She is especially attuned to the needs of linguistically and culturally diverse children.

Cecil received her doctorate from the University of Buffalo and currently teaches in the Department of Teacher Education at California State University in Sacramento, where she has won the prestigious Outstanding Educator Award.

She has written seventeen books on literacy including Activities for a Comprehensive Approach to Literacy, Focus on Fluency, Literacy in Grades 4-8, and Striking a Balance and has received the Teacher's Choice award for her book For the Love of Language: Poetry for All Learners. Cecil has published articles in many literacy journals, including The Reading Teacher. She often speaks about literacy to groups of educators on local, national, and international levels. She lives with her husband in Carmichael, California, with two cats and a dog; there she enjoys reading, traveling, and hiking, and is involved in the issues of foster care youth.