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.
Studies have indicated that as many as 40-75% of children with specific language impairment will have problems in learning to read. This article offers tips for parents and educators to help learners develop their language skills.
It’s not an easy thing, learning to read. This article provides a brief overview of what is involved and what parents, teachers, and everyone else who touches the life of a child can do to help those who struggle.
Beginning readers are not usually fluent, but classroom practices can help them develop this important skill. This article describes both direct and indirect methods for increasing fluency through classroom instruction.
Get tips and classroom practices for supporting reading instruction for children with hearing loss. Parents can find answers to frequently asked questions about nurturing their deaf child’s literacy growth.
This is a checklist to help educators carry out the five recommendations made in the What Works Clearninghouse report “Assisting Students Struggling with Reading: Response to Intervention (RTI) and Multi-Tier Intervention in the Primary Grades.”
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.
Get an overview of developmentally appropriate teaching practices recommended by the International Literacy Association (ILA) and the National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC).
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 Committee for the Prevention of Reading Difficulties in Young Children has compiled detailed lists of literacy accomplishments for children of different ages. Find out what the typical child can do in first grade.
Play with letters, words, and sounds. Hosted by Annette Bening, this episode focuses on how children learn the relationship between sounds, letters, and words as an initial step before being able to decode the printed word. Features children’s book author and illustrator Norman Bridwell (Clifford the Big Red Dog).
Inspire young readers to practice every day. Hosted by Deborah Norville, this episode explores the ability to decode quickly and achieve fluency — and how early testing and intervention can help struggling readers.
Children from a variety of backgrounds struggle with learning to read. However, as described in this article, research points to one common reason they struggle, and common strategies to help them succeed.
Originally designed with seventh grade students, Reciprocal Teaching is a research-based strategy that teaches students to work in small groups to coordinate the use of four comprehension strategies: prediction, clarification, summarization, and student-generated questions. This article illustrates how to implement Reciprocal Teaching for the Primary Grades (RTPG). Modifications include: additional strategies, cue cards with pictures and scripts, group work interspersed with whole class follow-up, and an independent written component for individual student accountability.
