Through the use of children's literature in a school reading program, youngsters can enter the world of literature while they learn to read. At the very least, real literature could be substituted sometimes for the excerpts found in basal readers. They describe common elements found in different literature based programs, such as the use of natural text, reading aloud, and sustained silent reading. Even young children can be involved in activities that establish positive attitudes toward reading and that pave the way for the use of children's literature as a medium for reading instruction. In the first weeks of kindergarten, many teachers use books to stimulate language development in children.
Many wordless books use a repeated pattern or a rhyme.
No one was there. A second grade teacher in a rural Appalachian school supplements the required basal readings with familiar regional literature to teach reading to her students. The children also write their own regional stories. A well stocked reading corner in the classroom gives children the opportunity to read a book more than once along with the option of sometimes reading a book with no academic follow-up activities. Teachers can develop checklists to fill out as they listen to children read.