Have Recommended Book Lists Changed to Reflect Current Expectations for Informational Text in K-3 Classrooms?

“Not Just For Us Nerds”: Examining Elementary Teachers’ Perspectives of Contemporary Children’s Nonfiction

“…Some identify subgenres of nonfiction, in particular informational or expository books and narrative or literary nonfiction (e.g., Donovan & Smolkin, 2001;Duke, 2000;Ness, 2011;Williams, 2009). Informational books are "topic-oriented" and nonlinear (Williams, 2009, p. 253), meaning they may not need to be read from beginning to end; they include content-specific vocabulary and text structures like compare/contrast and problem/solution (Dreher & Kletzien, 2016;Ness, 2011). A book like Katherine Roy"s (2014) Neighborhood Sharks is an example of a title that some might classify as informational.…”

“…Scholarship such as Duke"s (2000) now-classic study of the scarcity of informational texts in first grade classrooms has called attention to the importance of sharing nonfiction with children. Further, the (Dreher & Kletzien, 2016). Nonfiction appears to be gaining the recognition that it has arguably always deserved given its affordances as an instructional resource and a means of engaging children in reading.…”

Prosody, Pacing, and Situational Fluency (or Why Fluency Matters for Older Readers)

“…As a field, we have begun introducing a broader range of texts in the primary and elementary grades as a result of both research (e.g., Duke, ) and policy (e.g., the Common Core State Standards; National Governors Association Center for Best Practices & Council of Chief State School Officers, ). Also, although we have moved away from a binary “learning to read/reading to learn” view of literacy development in favor of a more fluid understanding, what Goldman, Snow, and Vaughn () called “reading to learn with understanding” (p. 255), we are still relatively new at applying instruction that supports this broader instructional approach to early literacy learning effectively (e.g., Brock & Schwanenflugel, ; Dreher & Kletzien, ).…”

What If “Just Right” Is Just Wrong? The Unintended Consequences of Leveling Readers

“…One of the most pressing challenges in reading instruction at the elementary level has been the lack of attention to and engagement with informational texts (Duke, ). Despite repeated calls for curriculum integration and expanded attention to informational texts and disciplinary literacies (Duke, ; Maloch & Bomer, ; C. Shanahan & Shanahan, ) and evidence that such integration works to the benefit of learners (Cambria & Guthrie, ; Guthrie & Klauda, ), there is little evidence that the overwhelming focus on narrative texts in practice is any different today from what Duke () described more than a decade ago (Brown & Spang, ; Dreher & Kletzien, ; Pentimonti, Zucker, Justice, & Kaderavek, ; Yopp & Yopp, ).…”

“…Despite repeated calls for curriculum integration and expanded attention to informational texts and disciplinary literacies (Duke, 2016;Maloch & Bomer, 2013;C. Shanahan & Shanahan, 2014) and evidence that such integration works to the benefit of learners (Cambria & Guthrie, 2010;Guthrie & Klauda, 2014), there is little evidence that the overwhelming focus on narrative texts in practice is any different today from what Duke (2000) described more than a decade ago (Brown & Spang, 2008;Dreher & Kletzien, 2016;Pentimonti, Zucker, Justice, & Kaderavek, 2010;Yopp & Yopp, 2006). Duke (2016) suggested that one of the limiting factors for informational texts in classrooms has been the lack of preparation offered to teachers in how to use informational texts in classrooms.…”