Synopses & Reviews
Review
"This text should be required reading for all preservice and inservice elementary teachers who want to use nonfiction trade books effectively in their teaching. Moss's explanations, examples, and classroom-tested strategies help teachers understand how to select and use nonfiction texts throughout their curriculum. The classroom descriptions, student work samples, and practical suggestions make this book a valuable resource that will be useful for professional development programs, children's literature courses, and content area reading courses."--Laurie Elish-Piper, PhD, Department of Literacy Education, Northern Illinois University
"While the past decade has seen an explosion in the availability of nonfiction trade books for the elementary grades, teachers' knowledge and use of these important resources has lagged behind. This book takes a significant leap forward in closing the gap between fiction and nonfiction in teachers' knowledge and classroom usage. Moss, one of the country's leading scholars in this area, provides teachers, teacher educators, and literacy educators with an in-depth, comprehensive treatment of how to use nonfiction to improve students' achievement and motivation. The many teaching suggestions provided are clearly detailed, user-friendly, classroom proven, and applicable in nearly any content area. This book is a 'must' for any teacher or teacher educator interested in making nonfiction trade books an integral part of the elementary school curriculum."--Timothy Rasinski, PhD, Department of Teaching, Leadership, and Curriculum Studies, Kent State University
"A real gold mine! This book goes beyond the recommendations for teaching nonfiction literature found in most texts. Moss addresses the environmental and instructional factors necessary for helping students learn to read, write, and love the literature of fact in constructive, inquiry-oriented classrooms. Readers will appreciate the abundance of practical classroom activities presented within the context of a rich theoretical framework and a current research base--all written in an engaging conversational style. Another bonus is found in the many citations of notable, current nonfiction titles. This book will serve as an excellent text for nonfiction children's literature courses in university settings, and as a wonderful resource for elementary teachers."--Terrell A. Young, EdD, Department of Teaching and Learning, Washington State University
Synopsis
Filling a crucial need for K-6 teachers, this book provides practical strategies for using nonfiction trade books in language arts and content area instruction. Research-based, classroom-tested ideas are spelled out to help teachers:
*Select from among the many wonderful nonfiction trade books available
*Incorporate nonfiction into the classroom
*Work with students to develop comprehension strategies for informational texts
*Elicit responses to nonfiction through drama, writing, and discussion
*Use nonfiction to promote content area learning and research skills
Unique features of the book include teacher-created lesson plans, extensive lists of recommended books (including choices for reluctant readers), illustrative examples of student work, and suggestions for linking nonfiction reading to the use of the World Wide Web.
Synopsis
Filling a crucial need for K-6 teachers, this book provides practical strat
About the Author
Barbara Moss, PhD, is a professor at San Diego State University in the area of literacy education. A former classroom teacher and reading supervisor, Dr. Moss has presented and trained widely on using nonfiction literature in elementary and middle grade classrooms. She is the author of a number of journal articles and coeditor of several International Reading Association publications. In 1997 she received an Elva Knight Grant from the International Reading Association, which helped to support portions of the research described in this book.
Table of Contents
Introduction
Chapter 1. Exploring the Nonfiction Genre
Chapter 2. Choosing Nonfiction Trade Books
Chapter 3. Bringing Nonfiction into the Classroom
Chapter 4. Helping Students Read Nonfiction Strategically
Chapter 5. Guiding Student Response to Nonfiction
Chapter 6. Content Area Learning through Nonfiction
Appendix: Orbis Pictus Award-Winning Books
Index