Picturebooks and Reading Response Theory

Abstract

The main purpose of this study is to investigate second graders’ responses towards two
picturebooks. In this study, second graders’ text and reader centered written responses and the distribution
of these responses were investigated. Sixty second graders from two different schools were selected by
using the purposeful sampling method. The results showed that second graders gave reader centered
written responses, they could establish personal interaction with books, they could make connections
between their own experiences and the picturebooks, and they wished to participate in the story events.
After analyzing the data, “main idea” subtitle was added to the text centered responses. In this study, picture
storybooks were used. There is a need for a type of studies that focus on primary school students’ personal
interactions with and responses towards informative books.