This paper explores the policies that determine the choice of school dictionaries for the first grades. Taking different aspects of literacy, it compares official documents issued by the Brazilian Ministry of Education (MEC), the contents of the bidding documents and the students' needs in these classes. Three structures can be distinguished in a dictionary - macro-, microand mesostructure - and the clearer their conception, the better a dictionary will meet users' needs. Dictionaries should comply with both the purposes of the MEC and users' needs. It thus needs to have clear structural components that meet these demands. The study that follows has found no evidence that bidding requirements ensure the quality and functionality of the lexicon material in the classroom.
Literacy; Pedagogical lexicography