S Although scholars have called for greater attention to informational texts in the early grades for some time, there have been few data available about the degree to which informational texts are actually included in early grade classrooms, and in what ways. This study provides basic, descriptive information about informational text experiences offered to children in 20 first‐grade classrooms selected from very low‐ and very high‐SES school districts. Each classroom was visited for four full days over the course of a school year. On each visit, data were collected about the types of texts on classroom walls and other surfaces, in the classroom library, and in classroom written language activities. Results show a scarcity of informational texts in these classroom print environments and activities—there were relatively few informational texts included in classroom libraries, little informational text on classroom walls and other surfaces, and a mean of only 3.6 minutes per day spent with informational texts during classroom written language activities. This scarcity was particularly acute for children in the low‐SES school districts, where informational texts comprised a much smaller proportion of already‐smaller classroom libraries, where informational texts were even less likely to be found on classroom walls and other surfaces, and where the mean time per day spent with informational texts was 1.9 minutes, with half the low‐SES classrooms spending no time at all with informational texts during any of the four days each was observed. Strategies for increasing attention to informational texts in the early grades are presented. [Note: This article is reprinted in Promisng Practices for Urban Reading Instruction, http://www.reading.org/publications/bbv/books/bk518/.] Si bien, desde hace algún tiempo, los investigadores han mostrado la necesidad de prestar mayor atención a los textos informativos en los grados iniciales, se dispone de pocos datos acerca del grado en el que efectivamente se incorporan textos informativos en las aulas de grados iniciales y de la forma en que son utilizados. Este estudio proporciona información básica, descriptiva acerca de experiencias con textos informativos llevadas a cabo con niños de 20 aulas de primer grado seleccionadas de distritos escolares de nivel socioeconómico (NSE) muy bajo y muy alto. Se visitó cada aula durante cuatro días completos en el curso del año escolar. En cada visita se recogieron datos sobre los tipos de textos que aparecían en las paredes del aula y otras superficies, en la biblioteca del aula y en las actividades de lenguaje escrito. Los resultados muestran una escasez de textos informativos en las escrituras del medio y en las actividades; había pocos textos informativos en las bibliotecas de las aulas, pocos textos informativos en las paredes del aula y otras superficies y una media de sólo 3.6 minutos por día dedicados a textos informativos durante las actividades con el lenguaje escrito. Esta escasez fue particularmente aguda en el caso de los di...

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S This study explored, with both experimental and correlational designs, the roles of (a) authentic, communicatively functional reading and writing and (b) the explicit explanation of genre function and features on growth in genre‐specific reading and writing abilities of children in grades two and three. The genres used for this exploration were informational and procedural science texts. Sixteen grade 2 classes participated, 10 of which were followed through grade 3 (N = 420), in one of two conditions: (a) authentic reading/writing of science informational and procedural texts or (b) authentic reading and writing of these genres with the addition of explicit explanation of language features typical of each. Growth was modeled across six assessment time points using Hierarchical Linear Modeling. Results showed no effect of explicit teaching on reading and writing growth for six of seven outcomes. Similarly, correlational analyses showed no relationship between teachers' degree of explicitness and growth for six of seven measures. However, correlational analyses showed a strong relationship between degree of authenticity of reading and writing activities during science instruction and growth for four of seven outcomes, with an interaction with degree of explicitness for a fifth. Children from homes with lower levels of parental education grew at the same rate as those from homes with higher levels, and findings regarding explicitness and authenticity also did not differ by level of education. These results add to the growing empirical evidence regarding the efficacy of involving students in reading and writing for real‐life purposes in the classroom. They also contribute to a growing knowledge base regarding the complexities of language learning in school. Mediante un diseño experimental y correlacional, este estudio exploró los roles de: a) la lectura y la escritura auténticas y comunicativamente funcionales y b) la explicación de la función y los rasgos del género sobre el crecimiento en las habilidades de lectura y escritura de textos de géneros específicos en niños de segundo y tercer grado. Los géneros utilizados fueron el informativo y procedimental en textos científicos. Participaron dieciséis clases de 2° grado, diez de las cuales fueron seguidas en 3° grado (N = 420), en una de dos condiciones: a) lectura y escritura auténticas de textos científicos informativos y procedimentales o b) lectura y escritura auténticas de estos géneros con el agregado de explicaciones explícitas sobre los rasgos lingüísticos típicos de cada uno de ellos. El crecimiento se formalizó tomando seis puntos de evaluación en el tiempo mediante el uso de un Modelo Lineal Jerárquico. No se observaron efectos de la enseñanza explícita sobre el crecimiento en lectura y escritura en seis de siete resultados. De forma similar, los análisis correlacionales no mostraron relación entre el grado de explicitud de los docentes y el crecimiento en seis de siete medidas. Sin embargo, los análisis correlacionales mostraron una fuerte rela...