A science of reading requires that our prescriptions for teaching be tempered by rigorous instructional evaluations. If a claim hasn’t been tried out and found effective, then the claims aren’t part of reading science.
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.
Reading expert Linda Farrell helps Michael master the ‘silent e’ pattern to help him become a more accurate and ultimately more fluid reader. She begins with making sure that Michael can distinguish between short and long vowel sounds in spoken words, then teaches him a multi-sensory way to recognize the short vowel and ‘silent e’ long vowel patterns in written words. Ms. Farrell emphasizes the need to practice each skill to the point of mastery.
Reading expert Linda Farrell works with Aiko on a common letter reversal — confusing the letters ‘b’ and ‘d’. Ms. Farrell coaches Aiko to look at the letters during b/d practice and to look at the words while she works with Aiko to read short vowel words accurately.
Explore the five recommended practices for teaching literacy in English to English language learners: (1) Screen and monitor progress, (2) Provide reading interventions, (3) Teach vocabulary, (4) Develop academic English, and (5) Schedule peer learning.
Moms, dads, or grandparents can play simple word games with kids to increase their ability to recognize and use letters and sounds. Try these games the next time you’re on the go.
This guidance from the International Reading Association represents a consensus of the thinking of literacy leaders in the field who support thoughtful implementation of the Standards for student literacy achievement. Seven key topics are addressed: use of challenging texts; foundational skills; comprehension; vocabulary; writing; content area literacy; and diverse learners.
Parents can do much to nurture early oral language development in their children through creative and focused quality time spent with them. Try the simple activities described in this article.
Texts that are challenging and that represent a wide range of genres and content areas need to play much bigger roles in comprehension instruction. These texts expose students to rich content and vocabulary and can help build knowledge.
Sight vocabulary instruction as being less about memorizing a list of words, and more about learning how to recognize and remember words. Research shows that as students get better with decoding, remembering sight words becomes easier.
Learn some of the ways that pre-kindergarten through elementary school teachers can enhance the vocabulary development of young children. The article focuses on teaching words from texts that are read aloud to children and presents activities that help young children make sense of new words.
Teaching reading is a complex process that draws upon an extensive knowledge base and repertoire of strategies. This article argues that many novice teachers are underprepared to teach reading effectively, and examines some of the reasons why.
Put together a summer listening program for your child. Listening is an engaging way to learn, so your child may love listening to books and other written documents. Have them listen to music and stage plays, comedy routines, and other works. Point out background sounds, such as the way the peppy tune on a sound track adds fun and humor to an adventure tale. Learning to listen is particularly helpful to children with learning disabilities.
Improving the effectiveness of interventions for struggling readers requires a school-level system for early identification of ‘at risk’ students and then providing those students with intensive interventions. Learn from Reading First schools with demonstrated success in reaching struggling readers.
In this guide, each section targets one grade level in print concepts, phonological awareness, phonics and word recognition, and fluency. It also includes instructional examples aligned to the sub-skills and instruction for students who are either struggling and need extra support or intervention, or for students performing above grade-level expectations and require enrichment.
