Language Arts and Reading Research

Over the last 40 years, research in the field of reading has led to a greater understanding in how children learn to read and write. This has led to changes in academic institutions to implement the best curriculum when teaching the language arts. Some institutions now have an answering service dedicated to academic excellence. Students should be given a strong foundation in phonemic awareness and an exposure to rich literature. Reading and writing are intertwined, and language arts activities should be a part of every area of the curriculum to most effectively benefit the student and reinforce learned material. To enhance and enrich lessons, teachers may find useful resources on the Internet.

Grammar

• Purdue Online Writing Lab: The writing lab offers resources for teachers and writers, including a grammar blog.

• Guide to Grammar and Writing: A grammar and writing review and resource.

• Grammar Bytes!: Grammar definitions, exercises, and handouts for classroom use.

• Grammar Web Quest: A fun way to review or introduce the parts of speech.

• Grammar Slammer: Resources for defining and teaching grammar.

• University of Chicago Writing Program: A collection of grammar and writing resources.

Balanced Literacy

• Balanced Literacy Background Knowledge: An explanation of the research results that advocates a balanced literacy approach.

• National Writing Project: A union of universities and professionals that generate research to better teach writing and literacy.

• Flying Start: The research and case study results of the Tasmanian school system’s literacy program.

• Reading and Writing in the Primary Classroom: An Internet based guide to creating a balanced literacy program in 1^st or 2^nd grade classroom.

• Literacy - It All Connects: An overview of research on balanced literacy and the best practices components in teaching literacy.

• Teacher Education Research Report: An article on the early research of balanced literacy instruction.

Lesson Plans

• Educator's Reference Desk: A collection of language arts lesson plans for all grade levels.

• Teachnology: Multi-level lesson plans and resources for all areas of language arts.

• Michigan State University Language Arts: Lesson plans that offer cross-curriculum activities with language arts.

• Writing Lesson Plans: Writing lesson plans for a variety of grade levels.

• Language Arts for All Levels: A huge collection of language arts lesson plans submitted by teachers of levels K - High School.

• Education World: A variety of lesson plans and activities in language arts.

• Educational Technology Clearinghouse: Technology and language arts lesson plans for grades 3-5.

• CREATE for Mississippi: Middle school lesson plans that focus on the language arts.

Interactive Games and Lessons

• Comic Creator: A fun online activity that allows K-High School students to create and caption their own comics.

• Grammar Practice Park: A selection of interactive games to help grades 3-5 to practice their grammar and sentence structure.

• Houghton Mifflin English: Kid’s Place provides a number of interactive activities for grades 3-5.

• Primary Games: Fun learning games based on language arts.

• Mr. Nussbaum: Interactive games and activities that cover many aspects of language arts curriculum.

Professional Organizations

• International Reading Association: An association for literacy professionals that offers professional development and international outreach.

• American Educational Research Association: An association dedicated to scientific research in educational issues.

• National Council of Teachers of English: A research and professional organization for English teachers of all educational levels in the US.

• Canadian Council of Teachers of English Language Arts: A Canadian professional organization for English teachers.

• Children's Literature Association: A scholarly organization that encourages high standards in the study and teaching of children’s literature.

• Society of Children's Book Authors and Illustrators: This professional guild offers author visits to schools.

Publishers

• All About Kids Publishing: Richly illustrated leisure and educational books for children.

• Barker Creek: Educational products and books that can be used in the home and the classroom.

• Cobblestone and Cricket: Publishers of educational children’s magazines and books.

• Candlewick Press: A large variety of children’s books for different purposes and reading levels.

• Gryphon House: Specializing in early childhood resources and easy readers.

• Golden Books: The division of Random House that publishes the classic Golden Books for young children.

• Harper Collins Children's: Popular books and programs for schools and libraries.

• Penguin Putnam Young Readers: A range of fiction and non-fiction books for early readers to teens.

• Scholastic: A large publisher of educational books and learning material.

• Usborne: An international publisher of children’s books covering all levels and interests.