Abstract of

Telling Stories and Talking Facts: First Graders' Engagements in a Nonfiction Book Club

Mary F. Heller

Four 6-year-old girls participated in a nonfiction book club during reading/language arts classes. Ten of the sessions featured illustrated nonfiction. The girls' oral and written response to the texts involved telling stories (personal and fictional) and talking facts (literal telling/retelling), with the latter being predominate. The girls were engaged and animated in their responses, suggesting that nonfiction can be used successfully with young children—and, notably, with girls, who are often thought to prefer fiction and storybooks.

Abstract from Heller, M.F. (2006, December). Telling Stories and Talking Facts: First Graders' Engagements in a Nonfiction Book Club. The Reading Teacher, 60(4), 358–369. doi: 10.1598/RT.60.4.5