San Diego

Books from the publishing house of Harcourt Brace Jovanovich have been recommended as the major text for the new kindergarten-through-sixth-grade reading program to begin in July for more than 70,000 students in the San Diego Unified School District.

“Imagination: An Odyssey Through Language” would be used for most classes in basic education, second language and special education in the district.

The Prentice Hall Literature Series from Prentice Hall publishers would be used in the seventh and eighth grades under the new program, which emphasizes the use of literature instead of controlled stories, along with merging reading, writing and discussion to teach grammar skills, rather than teaching skills separately.

School board trustees are expected to approve the selections next week.