Informational books at kindergarten: preschool teachers change their practices.
Published:
Mar 1, 2026
Keywords:
informational books, early literacy, Literacy Knowledge Processes, action research
Abstract
Informational books as distinct kinds of books are highlighted in much research for their impact on preschool children. Their features, such as scientific knowledge, academic language, complex syntactic forms, technical-special vocabulary, and multimodal text provide preschoolers with many possibilities. They give them the chance to gain knowledge about the world around them, to expand their literacy experiences, while familiarity with decontextualized language leads to the development of their critical and academic thinking. However, recent research has found that the time that preschool teachers dedicate to reading informational books is much less than that dedicated to reading fiction. In this paper we present research, with elements of action research, which was carried out with Greek preschool teachers regarding their attitudes about informational books and especially the change in their practices after they participated in this research. Data was collected in various ways (training programme, in-situ practice, personal portfolios, comments and notes during the training meetings) as action research requires. However, it did not begin from preschool teachers’ initiative, and this is why we cannot call it actual action research. The results indicated that, although at the beginning of action research the participants were puzzled regarding informational books and their use in kindergarten classrooms, in the end they were able to use them more easily and with more confidence, being ready to change their practices and the contents of their classroom library.
Article Details
- How to Cite
-
Papadimitriou, K., & Stellakis, N. (2026). Informational books at kindergarten: preschool teachers change their practices. Preschool and Primary Education, 14(1), 109–124. https://doi.org/10.12681/ppej.39440
- Section
- Articles
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.
Authors who publish with this journal agree to the following terms:
- Authors retain copyright and grant the journal right of first publication with the work simultaneously licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution Non-Commercial License that allows others to share the work with an acknowledgement of the work's authorship and initial publication in this journal.
- Authors are able to enter into separate, additional contractual arrangements for the non-exclusive distribution of the journal's published version of the work (e.g. post it to an institutional repository or publish it in a book), with an acknowledgement of its initial publication in this journal.
- Authors are permitted and encouraged to post their work online (preferably in institutional repositories or on their website) prior to and during the submission process, as it can lead to productive exchanges, as well as earlier and greater citation of published work (See The Effect of Open Access).
Downloads
Download data is not yet available.
References
Alatalo, T., & Westlund, B. (2019). Preschool teachers’ perceptions about read-alouds as a means to support children’s early literacy and language development. Journal of Early Childhood Literacy, 21(3), 413-435. https://doi.org/10.1177/1468798419852136
Bergman Deitcher, D., Johnson, H., & Aram, D. (2019). Does book genre matter? Boys’ and girls’ word learning from narrative and informational books in the preschool years. Journal of Research in Reading, 42(1), 193-211. https://doi.org/10.1111/1467-9817.12266
Bluestein, N. A. (2010). Unlocking text features for determining importance in expository text: a strategy for struggling readers. The Reading Teacher, 63(7), 597-600. https://doi.org/10.1598/RT.63.7.7
Broemmel, A. D., Rearden, K. T., & Buckner, C. (2021). Teachers’ choices: are they the right books for science instruction? The Reading Teacher, 75(1), 7-16. https://doi.org/10.1002/trtr.1998
Cappiello, M. A., & Hadjioannou, X. (2022). Exploring the purposes of backmatter in nonfiction picturebooks for children: a typology. The Reading Teacher, 76(3), 309-316. https://doi.org/10.1002/trtr.2154
Caswell, L. J., & Duke, N. K. (1998). Non-narratives as a catalyst for literacy development. Language Arts, 75(2), 108-117. https://www.proquest.com/scholarly-journals/non-narrative-as-catalyst-literacy-development/docview/196831285/se-2
Cecil, N. L., Baker, S., & Lozano, A. S. (2015). Striking a balance: a comprehensive approach to early literacy. Holcomb Hathaway.
Creswell, J. W. (2016). H ereuna stin ekpaideusi - Sxediasmos, dieksagogi kai aksiologisi posotikis kai poiotikis ereunas (Educational research – Planning, conducting and evaluating quantitative and qualitative research». (Ch. Tsorbatzoudis, Ed.), (N. Kouvarakou, Trans.). Ion. (Original work published 2015)
Dreher, M. J., & Kletzien, S. B. (2016). Have recommended book lists changed to reflect current expectations for informational text in k-3 classrooms? Reading Psychology, 37(3), 371-391. https://doi.org/10.1080/02702711.2015.1055871
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
Duke, N. K. (2003). Reading to learn from the very beginning: Information books in early childhood. Yc Young Children, 58(2), 14-20.
Erlingsson, C., & Brysiewicz, P. (2017). A hands-on guide to doing content analysis. African Journal of Emergency Medicine, 7(3), 93-99. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.afjem.2017.08.001
Georgas, D. (1986). Koinoniki psichologia Social Phycology. Volume Α’. Ellinika Grammata.
Gibbs, A. S., & Reed, D. K. (2021). Shared reading and science vocabulary for kindergarten students. Early Childhood Education Journal, 51, 127-138. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10643-021-01288-w
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
Grilli, G. (2018). Per un superamento delle ‘due culture’. I nuovi albi illustrati di divulgazione per l’ infanzia e l’ intreccio possible e fecondo tra scienza e arte. Studi sulla Formazione, 21, 217-230. https://doi.org/10.13128/Studi_Formaz-24667
Grilli, G. (2020). The new non-ficiton picturebook for children: Mending the rift between science and art. Libri e Liberi, 9(1), 75-89. https://doi.org/10.21066/carcl.libri.2020.1.5
Grilli, G. (2021). Re-enchanting the world. The new non-fiction picturebook. In G. Grilli (Ed.), Non-fiction Picturebooks, Sharing Knowledge as an Aesthetic Experience (pp. 17-49). Edizioni ETS.
Hammet Price, L., Bradley, B. A., & Michele Smith, J. (2012). A comparison of preschool teachers’ talk during storybook and information book read-alouds. Early Childhood Research Quarterly, 27, 426-440. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ecresq.2012.02.003
Kalantzis, M., Cope, B., Stellakis, Ν., & Arvaniti, Ε. (2019). Grammatismoi - Mia paidagogiki diaforopoiimenou sxediasmou kai politropikon noimatodotiseon (Literacies – A pedagogy of differentiated planning and multimodal making meaning). Kritiki
Kassotaki-Psaroudaki, P. (2019). Informational texts in classroom: a blended training program for kindergarten teachers. Education Sciences, 2 (22-36). https://doi.org/10.26248/.v2019i2.590
Katsarou, E. (2016). Ekpedeutiki ereuna-drasi: Poliparadeigmatiki diereunisi gia tin anamorfosi tis ekpaideutikiks diadikasias (Educational action-research – Multiparadigmatic investigation for the reformation of educational praxis). Kritiki.
Kotaman, H., & Tekin, A. K. (2017). Informational and fictional books: young children’s book preferences and teachers’ perspectives. Early Childhood Development and Care, 187(3-4), 600-614. https://doi.org/10.1080/03004430.2016.1236092
Kuhn, K. E., Rausch, C. M., McCarty, T. G., Montgomery, S. E., & Rule, A. C. (2015). Utilizing nonfiction texts to enhance reading comprehension and vocabulary in primary grades. Early Childhood Education Journal, 45(2), 285-296. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10643-015-0763-9
MacKay, K. L., Young, T. A., Munòz, S. H., & Motzkus, T. L. (2020). Expository texts in first-grade classroom libraries: issues in teacher selection. Reading Psychology, 41(4), 264-286. https://doi.org/10.1080/02702711.2020.1768978
Mantzicopoulos, P., & Patrick, H. (2011). Reading picture books and learning science: Engaging young children with informational text. Theory into Practice, 50(4), 269-276. https://doi.org/10.1080/00405841.2011.607372
Matsagouras, P. I. (2001). Keimenokentriki prosegisi tou graptou logou (Text-centered approach of writing speec)h. Grigori
Merveldt, N. v., (2018). Informational picturebooks. In B. Kümmerling-Meibauer (Ed.), The Routledge Companion to Picturebooks (pp. 231-245). Routledge.
Ness, M. (2011). Teachers’ use of and attitudes toward informational text in k-5 classrooms. Reading Psychology, 32, 28-53. https://doi.org/10.1080/02702710903241322
Patrick, H., & Mantzicopoulos, P. (2014). Engaging Young Children with Informational Books. Corwin Press.
Pentimonti, J. M., Zucker, T. A., Justuce, 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
Saul, E. W., & Dieckman, D. (2005), Choosing and using information trade books. Reading Research Quarterly, 40(4), 502-513. https://doi.org/10.1598/RRQ.40.4.6
Sanders, J. S. (2018). A literature of questions: nonfiction for the critical child. University of Minnesota Press.
Shiel, G., Cregan, A., McGough, A., & Archer, P. (2012). Oral language in early childhood and primary education (3-8 years). Research Report No 14. NCCA.
Tabernero Sala, R., & Colón Castillo, M. J. (2023). Reading to think. The non-fiction picturebook in the development of critical thinking. Revista de Educación a Distancia, 75(23), 1-25. http://dx.doi.org/10.6018/red.545111
Tower, C. (2002). “It’s a snake, you guys!”: “The power of text characteristics on children’s responses to information books”. Research in the Teaching of English, 37(1), 55-88. https://doi.org/10.58680/rte20021765
Wright, T. S., Cervetti G. N., Wise, C., & McClung, N. A. (2022). The impact of knowledge-building through conceptually-coherent read alouds on vocabulary and comprehension. Reading Psychology, 43(1), 70-84. https://doi.org/10.1080/02702711.2021.2020187
Yopp, R. H., & Yopp, H. K. (2006). Informational texts as read-alouds at school and home. Journal of Literacy Research, 38(1), 37-51. https://doi.org/10.1207/s15548430jlr3801_2
Yopp, R. H., & Yopp, H. K. (2012). Young children's limited and narrow exposure to informational text. The Reading Teacher, 65(7), 480-490. https://doi.org/10.1002/TRTR.01072
Young, T. A., Moss, B., & Cornwell, L. (2007). The Classroom Library: A Place for Nonfiction, Nonfiction in its Place. Reading Horizons: A Journal of Literacy and Language Arts, 48(1). Retrieved from https://scholarworks.wmich.edu/reading_horizons/vol48/iss1/3
