Blogs About Reading

Shanahan on Literacy

Timothy Shanahan

Literacy expert Timothy Shanahan shares best practices for teaching reading and writing. Dr. Shanahan is an internationally recognized professor of urban education and reading researcher who has extensive experience with children in inner-city schools and children with special needs. All posts are reprinted with permission from Shanahan on Literacy.

Why doesn’t increasing knowledge improve reading achievement?

January 19, 2021

Teacher question: Can we raise student achievement by teaching subject area content knowledge? I’m concerned about this approach because I work with struggling readers. We know a lot about how to help them learn to read, so I was wondering if there is evidence that teaching “knowledge” to such students really makes any difference.

3P versus 3-cueing: why recommend one and shun the other?

January 11, 2021

Teacher question: Can you explain the difference between 3P (Pause, Prompt, Praise) and 3 cueing? I know you encourage one and discourage the other, but they seem to be the same thing to me. Help. Shanahan's reply: At Shanahan on Literacy, we strive for consistency. Let’s see if we can get this straightened out.

Should we use narrative texts to teach science, math, and social studies?

December 8, 2020

Teacher question: In graduate school, we are being taught that we should use “hybrid texts” to teach content subjects. As a middle school math teacher, I think this is a horrible idea given our scant resources. Where do you stand on the use of hybrid text? Shanahan's response:

What Kind of Early Reading Intervention Should We Provide?

November 16, 2020

Teacher question: It seems there is currently a focus on intervention solely for the word recognition side in the early grades. The explanation is that most students who struggle, struggle with decoding, and I of course agree.

Should We Alter the Reading Benchmarks Because of the Pandemic?

November 9, 2020

Teacher questions: Over the past few weeks, I'e fielded many questions about testing — from policymakers and teachers. Here are a couple of examples:

Letters in Phonemic Awareness Instruction or the Reciprocal Nature of Learning to Read

October 13, 2020

Teachers’ question: I’m confused. I’ve heard you say that we should teach phonemic awareness and letters simultaneously. Other “experts” say that phonemic awareness is strictly an auditory skill and that including letters slows children’s learning. Help!