Living in an age of communication, literacy is an extremely integral part of our society. We are impacted by literature during our infancy, childhood, adolescence, and adulthood. "Literacy for the New Millennium" includes information from specialists in the field who discuss the influence of popular culture, media, and technology on literacy. Together, they offer a comprehensive outline of the study and practice of literacy in the United States. Volume two, "Childhood Literacy," includes information on popular approaches to reading instruction, children's literature, spelling, computer and instructional technology, book clubs, and after-school programs. After a set preface and a preface to the volume, this book is divided into three parts. Part I, Recent Issues in Childhood Literacy, contains the following chapters: (1) Effective Teaching and Teacher Preparation in Reading: Lessons that Matter (James V. Hoffman and Misty Sailors); (2) The National Assessment of Educational Progress in Reading (Terry Salinger and Barbara Kapinus); and (3) High-Stakes Testing of Reading and Writing at the Elementary Level (Randy Bomer). Part II, Assessment and Instruction in Childhood Literacy, continues with: (4) Methods for Reading Instruction in Grades 3-6 (James F. Baumann and T. Lee Williams); (5) Informal and Formal Assessment in Literacy (Jerry L. Johns and Janet L. Pariza); (6) Writing Development: Curriculum, Instruction, and Assessment (Robert C. Calfee and Kimberly A. Norman); (7) Children's Literature: Connecting and Transforming Children's Worlds (Kathy G. Short); (8) The Nature and Development of Spelling (Shane Templeton and Bob Ives); (9) Teaching Literacy for Social Justice (Rachelle D. Washington, John Bishop, Emma Bailey, and JoBeth Allen); and (10) Accommodating Digital Literacies within Conceptions of Literacy Instruction for a New Century (David Reinking and Amy Carter). Part III, Childhood Literacy beyond the Classroom, then presents: (11) Child Culture and Popular Culture (Thomas Newkirk); and (12) Resources for Childhood Literacy (Denise N. Morgan and Wendy C. Kasten). An index is also included. (Individual chapters contain references.) [For Volume 1, "Early Literacy," see ED498284. For Volume 3, "Adolescent Literacy," see ED498286. For Volume 4, "Adult Literacy," see ED498285.]