This selection deals primarily with explaining what a basal reader is, how the basal text is outlined, what elements it is comprised of, and how it is used in the classroom. The article also explains that this is and has been the most common form of reading instruction over the past few decades.
             The basal reader comes in a series and each text is developed specifically for each grade level. The earlier grades have shorter and easier to read selections than the later grades. Lessons are taught in clusters that are outlined in the Teacher's guide and they usually take a few days to complete. The lessons follow a sequence called the DRA (or Direct Reading Activity) that is split into three parts: introducing the story, guiding the story, and following up. The fist step provides students with schema for the story and introduces them to new vocabulary. The second step is Guided Reading. The children read quietly to themselves. The goal of Guided Reading is comprehension, so teachers are instructed to interrupt children at intervals to check for understanding. The third step is to complete the activity shown in the text or corresponding workbook.
             The idea of the basal reader is to introduce skills and vocabulary to students and then to give them practical experience reading examples of and using the knowledge. For this reason, the literature selections found in basal readers are often developed for the text. The stories in the readers must utilize and build upon the vocabulary and skills already covered and must be sequential. Literature that isn't created for the text is usually heavily edited to fit this purpose. The strengths of this program are that basal readers are a thorough and comprehensive program, they make instruction easier for the teacher, and they provide a certain structure for the child to follow. Critics of basal reader programs protest that reading taught through basal readers is not natural, the teacher&ap...