Abstract
Children often prefer nonfiction to fiction books but historically, teachers have neglected nonfiction books during reads alouds. The present study examined how young readers collectively make meaning of nonfiction picturebooks with the help of the teacher and their peers during a whole group interactive read-aloud in one kindergarten classroom. Using Bakhtin’s dialogism and Rosenblatt’s reader response theory, this study captured videos of nonfiction read-alouds, interviews, and formal observations to examine how children make sense of nonfiction picturebooks during whole group read-alouds. This study exposes the social nature of learning. Findings indicate that readers of nonfiction consider the responses of those around them in their takeaways, that making sense of nonfiction is a continual and discursive process, and that children used nonfiction books as a way to connect with one another. Implications for conducting nonfiction read-alouds with young children are discussed. This research exposes the power and potential for interactive read-alouds using nonfiction picturebooks with kindergarteners.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Adomat, D. S. (2009). Actively engaging with stories through drama: Portraits of two young readers. The Reading Teacher, 62(8), 628–636. https://doi.org/10.1598/RT.62.8.1.
Bakhtin, M. M. (1984). Problems of Dostoevsky’s poetics (8th ed.). (C. Emerson, Trans.). University of Minnesota Press. (Original work published 1929).
Barone, D., & Barone, R. (2016). Really, not possible, I can’t believe it: Exploring informational text in literature circles. The Reading Teacher, 70(1), 69–81. https://doi.org/10.1002/trtr.1472
Belfatti, M. A. (2015). Lessons from research on young children as readers of informational texts. Language Arts, 92(4), 270.
Chlapana, E. (2016). An intervention programme for enhancing kindergarteners’ cognitive engagement and comprehension skills through reading informational texts. Literacy, 50(3), 125–132. https://doi.org/10.1111/lit.12085.
Conradi Smith, K., Young, C. A., & Core Yatzeck, J. (2022). What are teachers reading and why? An analysis of elementary read aloud titles and the rationales underlying teachers’ selections. Literacy Research and Instruction, 61(4), 383–401. https://doi.org/10.1080/19388071.2021.2008558.
Cummins, S. (2013). Close reading of informational texts: Assessment-driven instruction in grades 3–8. Guilford Press.
Dawes, E. T., Cappiello, M. A., & Magee, L. (2019). Portraits of perseverance: Creating picturebook biographies with third graders. Language Arts, 96(3), 153–166.
Detillion, R. (2021). Using science texts to foster informational reading comprehension. The Reading Teacher, 74(6), 677–690. https://doi.org/10.1002/trtr.1991.
DeVries, B. A. (2023). Literacy assessment and intervention for classroom teachers. Routledge.
Dollins, C. A. (2016). Crafting creative nonfiction: From close reading to close writing. The Reading Teacher, 70(1), 49–58. https://doi.org/10.1002/trtr.1465.
Duke, N. K. (2000). 3.6 minutes per day: The scarcity of informational texts in first grade. Reading Research Quarterly, 35(2), 202–224. https://doi.org/10.1598/RRQ.35.2.1.
Dyson, A. H., & Genishi, C. (2005). On the case. Teachers College Press.
Eeds, M., & Wells, D. (1989). Grand conversations: An exploration of meaning construction in literature study groups. Research in the Teaching of English, 4–29.
Fisher, D., & Frey, N. (2015). Teacher modeling using complex informational texts. The Reading Teacher, 69(1), 63–69. https://doi.org/10.1002/trtr.1372.
Galda, L., & Liang, L. A. (2003). Literature as experience or looking for facts: Stance in the classroom. Reading Research Quarterly, 38(2), 268–275. https://doi.org/10.1598/RRQ.38.2.6.
Gill, S. R. (2009). What teachers need to know about the new nonfiction. The Reading Teacher, 63(4), 260–267. https://doi.org/10.1598/RT.63.4.1.
Graff, J., & Shimek, C. (2020). Revisiting reader response: Contemporary nonfiction children’s literature as remixes. Language Arts, 97(4), 223–234. https://doi.org/10.58680/la202030512.
Greeter, E. (2016). Examining meaning-making through story-based process drama in dual-language classrooms (Doctoral dissertation). Retrieved from: https://repositories.lib.utexas.edu/bitstream/handle/2152/41667/GREETER-DISSERTATION-2016.pdf.
Hadjioannou, X., Cappiello, M. A., Bandré, P., Burgess, M., Crawford, P., Dávila, D., & Stewart, M. (2023). Position statement on the role of nonfiction literature (K-12). National Council of Teachers of English. https://ncte.org/statement/role-of-nonfiction-literature-k-12/
Kersten, S. (2016). Nonfiction is not another name for fiction: The co-construction of nonfiction in a primary classroom (Doctoral dissertation). Retrieved from: https://etd.ohiolink.edu/!etd.send_file?accession=osu1460978333&disposition=inline
Khieu, T. L. (2014). The nature of students’ efferent or aesthetic responses to nonfiction texts in small, peer-led literature discussion groups (Doctoral Dissertation). ProQuest LLC.
Maloch, B., & Bomer, R. (2013). Informational texts and the common core standards: What are we talking about. Anyway? Language Arts, 90(3), 205.
Many, J., & Wiseman, D. L. (1992). Analyzing versus experiencing: The effects of teaching approaches on students’ responses. In J. Many, & C. Cox (Eds.), Reader stance and literary understanding: Exploring the theories, research and practice (pp. 250–276). Praeger.
McClure, E. L., & Fullerton, S. K. (2017). Instructional interactions: Supporting students’ reading development through interactive read-alouds of informational texts. The Reading Teacher, 71(1), 51–59. https://doi.org/10.1002/trtr.1576.
Moss, B. (2003). Exploring the literature of fact: Children’s nonfiction trade books in the elementary classroom. Guilford Publications.
Moss, B., & Hendershot, J. (2002). Exploring sixth graders’ selection of nonfiction trade books. The Reading Teacher, 56(1), 6–17.
Norris, S. (2019). Systematically working with multimodal data: Research methods in multimodal discourse analysis. John Wiley & Sons.
Oliveira, A. W., & Barnes, E. M. (2019). Elementary students’ socialization into science reading. Teaching and Teacher Education, 81, 25–37. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tate.2019.02.007.
Pentimonti, J. M., Zucker, T. A., Justice, L. M., & Kaderavek, J. N. (2010). Informational text use in preschool classroom read-alouds. The Reading Teacher, 63(8), 656–665. https://doi.org/10.1598/RT.63.8.4.
Rosenblatt, L. (1995). Literature as exploration (5th ed.). Modern Language Association. (Original work published 1938).
Schnazer, R. (2023). A “golden age” of nonfiction Reading Rockets: Launching Young Readers. https://www.readingrockets.org/videos/golden-age-nonfiction.
Shimek, C. (2019). Sites of synergy: Strategies for readers navigating nonfiction picture books. The Reading Teacher, 72(4), 519–523. https://doi.org/10.1002/trtr.1754.
Shimek, C. (2021). Recursive readings and reckonings: Kindergarteners’ multimodal transactions with a nonfiction picturebook. English Teaching: Practice and Critique, 20(2), 149–162. https://doi.org/10.1108/ETPC-07-2020-0068.
Shimek, C. (2023). Movement as literacy learning in elementary classroom. In S. G., Mogge, S. Huggins, J. Knutson, E. E. Lobel, & P. Segal (Eds.). Multiple literacies for dance, physical education and sports (pp. 39–52). Springer International Publishing.
Singh, S. (2023). Engaging young children with science concepts in a community-based book distribution and animal-themed literacy intervention program. Early Childhood Education Journal, 51(6), 1079–1089. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10643-022-01335-0.
Sipe, L. R. (1998). How picture books work: A semiotically framed theory of text-picture relationships. Children’s Literature in Education, 29(2), 97–108.
Sipe, L. R. (2008). Storytime: Young children’s literary understanding in the classroom. Teachers College Press.
Stead, T. (2014). Nurturing the inquiring mind through the nonfiction read-aloud. The Reading Teacher, 67(7), 488–495. https://doi.org/10.1002/trtr.1254.
Strong, J. Z., Amendum, S. J., & Conradi Smith, K. (2018). Supporting elementary students’ reading of difficult texts. The Reading Teacher, 72(2), 201–212. https://doi.org/10.1002/trtr.1702.
Wilfong, L. G. (2009). Textmasters: Bringing literature circles to textbook reading across the curriculum. Journal of Adolescent & Adult Literacy, 53(2), 164–171. https://doi.org/10.1598/JAAL.53.2.7.
Wiseman, A. (2011). Interactive read alouds: Teachers and students constructing knowledge and literacy together. Early Childhood Education Journal, 38(6), 431–438. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10643-010-0426-9.
Yenika-Agbaw, V., Lowery, R. M., Hudock, L. A., & Ricks, P. H. (2018). Exploring nonfiction literacies: Innovative practices in teaching. Rowman & Littlefield.
Yopp, R. H., & Yopp, H. K. (2000). Sharing informational text with young children. The Reading Teacher, 53(5), 410–423.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Additional information
Publisher’s Note
Springer Nature remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.
Rights and permissions
Springer Nature or its licensor (e.g. a society or other partner) holds exclusive rights to this article under a publishing agreement with the author(s) or other rightsholder(s); author self-archiving of the accepted manuscript version of this article is solely governed by the terms of such publishing agreement and applicable law.
About this article
Cite this article
Shimek, C. “Reading is Social”: Dialogic Responses to Interactive Read-Alouds with Nonfiction Picturebooks. Early Childhood Educ J (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10643-023-01590-9
Accepted:
Published:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10643-023-01590-9