The specific signs of dyslexia, both weaknesses and strengths, vary widely. Problems with oral language, decoding, fluency, spelling, and handwriting are addressed, as well as strengths in higher order thinking skills.
To comprehend a story or text, young readers need a threshold of knowledge about the topic, and tougher state standards place increasing demands on children’s prior knowledge. This article offers practical classroom strategies to build background knowledge such as using contrasts and comparisons and encouraging topic-focused wide reading.
Some children can master decoding and still be poor comprehenders. Learn what interventions have been found to help these children read narrative and expository texts more strategically.
On a daily basis, ELLs are adjusting to new ways of saying and doing things. As their teacher, you are an important bridge to this unknown culture and school system. There are a number of things you can do to help make ELLs’ transitions as smooth as possible.
Photo by Allison Shelley/The Verbatim Agency for EDUimages
Interactive writing is a dynamic instructional method where teacher and students work together to construct a meaningful text while discussing the details of the writing process. The writing demands of the Common Core standards require explicit and efficient teaching guidance, which is at the heart of interactive writing. Learn four specific ways teachers can adapt this practice when working with children in grades 2-5 who are more developed writers.
From free books to home visits, non-profit organizations play an important role in promoting reading. Learn about some of the non-profits with a commitment to helping children become readers.
Reading comprehension is often a concern for the teachers of students with autism. The comprehension strategies described in this article may help some students gain comprehension skills and improve their ability to read and communicate about written material.
Discover how one elementary teacher set up her classroom library, making it easy to use and inviting — encouraging her students to find joy in selecting and reading books they will love.
Meet 100 wonderful authors and illustrators who create beautiful and timeless books for children, contributing fiction, nonfiction, graphic novels, and poetry to our bookshelves. We hope you discover some new books and learn about the folks who brought them to life.
We don’t really know why alphabet knowledge is such a good predictor of reading achievement, but it is. Teaching letter names should be a small part of the mix in phonemic awareness and phonics instruction.
The most influential educational leaders are the principal and superintendent, and their leadership is inextricably linked to student performance. This article looks at the basics of good leadership and offers practical suggestions.
Learn about the three psychological theories of ASD — Theory of Mind, Weak Central Cohesion, and executive functioning. Understanding these theories can help families and educators manage challenging behaviors at home and in the classroom.
Reading instruction does not need to stop when the bell rings. Using out-of-school time (OST) can be an effective way to boost academic skills while engaging students outside of the classroom. Education research lab McREL reviews effective afterschool and summer programs that focus on reading, and identifies the components that make them successful.
With televisions, computers, video games, and cell phones, modern culture makes it difficult to escape time in front of a screen, especially for our newest generation of kids. Deb Linebarger, Lisa Guernsey, and Marnie Lewis discuss what the growing exposure to media means for children’s literacy development.
Special literacy events and celebrations can be a great way to get kids excited about books and reading. But for kids who struggle with reading, these kinds of events can challenge their self-confidence. Here are 15 strategies to help you plan a successful, joyful reading event for all kinds of readers and learners.
Concepts of print need to be expanded to include graphics, with instruction in how to read and analyze graphical devices such as diagrams, timelines, and tables. Learn more about how to teach young students to read and understand visual information.
In this webcast, Carol Ann Tomlinson, G. Michael Pressley, and Louise Spear-Swerling outline the most effective strategies teachers can use to address the many different needs of each of their students — so that all kids get the chance to learn to read.
Students with autism spectrum disorder have a number of unique challenges in the classroom. Learn how to set up work systems that can help your students become more independent by strengthening organization skills, reducing distractibility, understanding sequence of events, and more.
