IRA-NICHD Conference on Early Childhood Literacy Research:
A Summary of Presentations and Discussions

In February 2005, researchers from a variety of disciplines met in Washington, D.C., to discuss early childhood literacy. The conference was part of an ongoing collaboration between IRA and the National Institute of Child Health & Human Development (NICHD), part of the U.S. National Institutes of Health.

In individual presentations and panel, small-group, and informal discussions, participants explored topics including current large-scale studies, the work of the U.S. National Early Literacy Panel, needs among children from targeted populations, parental involvement, the role of writing and storybook reading, preschool curricula, and teacher professional development. Partipants included Liz Albro, David Dickinson, Naomi Goldstein, Laura Justice, Christopher Lonigan, Lesley Mandel Morrow, Victoria Purcell-Gates, Kathleen Roskos, Deborah Rowe, Monique Sénéchal, Timothy Shanahan, Kyle Snow, Patton Tabors, Julie Washington, and David Yaden.

Download the summary of presentations and discussions, prepared by Carol McDonald Connor and Patrick John Tiedemann

See also “IRA/NICHD workshop addresses early childhood issues,” from Reading Today