Learn about the typical stages we see in children as they become readers, from pre-K through high school. Literacy begins with a strong foundation in oral language comprehension and word recognition (decoding).
The National Early Literacy Panel looked at studies of early literacy and found that there are many things that parents and preschools can do to improve the literacy development of their young children and that different approaches influence the development of a different pattern of essential skills.
Learn the basics about text-to-speech, what the research says about how well it supports comprehension, tips on how to get the most out of the technology, and a short list of recommended text-to-speech tools.
Dysgraphia is a learning disability that affects a child’s handwriting. Children with dysgraphia usually have other problems such as difficulty with written expression. Learn more about causes, the importance of early assessment, dysgraphia and spelling, and effective instructional strategies that strengthen written language skills.
Discover the typical literacy milestones for your first grader, and how to support your child’s developing skills in reading and writing. Use the links on the left to find activities, videos, and other resources to build skills in these key areas: recognizing the sounds in speech, phonics, fluency, vocabulary, comprehension, and writing.
The identification of a child with dyslexia is a difficult process, but there are ways that parents and teachers can learn more about the reading difficulty and support the child’s learning.
April is National Poetry Month, 30 days of celebrating the joy, expressiveness, and pure delight of poetry. Learn more about the National Poetry Month, get to know some of our most well-loved children’s poets in our video interview series, browse the many online resources listed here, and visit your local library or bookstore to discover wonderful new books and anthologies.
We know from research that an effective reading program must address several aspects of reading. Among others, these aspects include the alphabetic code, fluency, comprehension, and motivation.
Many kids lose ground during the summer months, especially those from low income families. Part of the problem is that many students don’t have easy access to books. This article presents some suggestions for what schools can do.
Dr. Jack Fletcher is the Hugh Roy and Lillie Cranz Cullen Distinguished University Professor of Psychology at the University of Houston. Dr. Fletcher, a child neuropsychologist, has conducted research on many issues related to dyslexia and other learning disabilities, including definition and classification, neurobiological correlates, and intervention. Dr. Fletcher has written more than 400 articles in peer-reviewed journals.
Over the last 25 years, the federal government has made a concerted effort to find out why so many children struggle with learning to read. This research has yielded a rough consensus on the best ways to teach reading, and we now know much more about how to identify children at risk and how to intervene effectively. The challenge that remains is getting this research-based information out to educators, parents, and others who work with children. The following are major federal reports on reading readiness and instruction, ordered alphabetically. Whenever possible, we’ve provided links to a free, online version of the research article, study, or book. In other cases, you’ll find a link to a publisher, journal, or online bookstore where you can obtain the resource. Before you buy though, we encourage you to check to see what community and university resources may be available to you. Universities and some public libraries often buy access to online databases and journals. Users should check to see if those resources are available to them.
In teaching second language learners how to speak and read English, it is important not to neglect their writing development. Here are some strategies for teaching ESL children to become writers.
Children come to our classrooms from so many different ability levels and backgrounds. As a teacher, it’s important to recognize and know what to do to help a struggling reader.
With the Common Core, literacy is intentionally taught within content areas. See what a CCSS mini-thematic unit in science might look like for children in the primary grades.
Vocabulary lies at the heart of content learning. To support the development of vocabulary in the content areas, teachers need to give their students time to read widely, intentionally select words worthy of instruction, model their own word solving strategies, and provide students with opportunities to engage in collaborative conversations.
