Reading the Difference: Gender and Reading in Elementary Classrooms Book

Here are three points to think about:

• Girls read more than boys.
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• Both child and adult males and females read very different kinds of material.
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• Girls generally achieve higher in reading and writing at all ages.

These statements are virtually truisms, widely acknowledged and accepted, yet they illustrate a fact almost totally neglected by the education system-that there is a gender difference in reading. The implications of sex as a key determinant in reading achievement and interest are significant for teaching language arts. How do we select the books available to children? Does the primarily female culture of the classroom affect children's attitudes towards reading? And what influences do parents and teachers have on a child's early reading?

In this remarkable book, twelve teachers and researchers draw on their classroom experiences and their own backgrounds to address these and other significant topics. Reading the Difference is structured in a way that reflects the different partners in the reading process, focusing in turn on children and parents, on texts, and finally on teachers.

The concluding chapter looks at ways in which some teachers provide a rich reading curriculum and environment that involves both boys and girls, promoting their development as readers. Reading the Difference:

• Presents clearly the complex relationship between gender and reading.
• Takes discussions of gender equality into new areas.
• Encourages reading teachers to look more deeply into implications of "reading development."
• Offers a stunning selection of photos fromclassrooms discussed in the articles that may be read along side the text.