The Institute of Education Sciences (IES) within the US Department of Education periodically issues free practice guides for teachers. They convene a panel, review the research, and formulate general recommendations based on the evidence. What I like about these practice guides is that they are concise, accessible, and practical. The goal is not to get…
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Happy Spring!! The weather is getting warmer, the flowers will be in bloom, and the Kindergarten Center teachers are wondering when it will be time to teach letter names! For those of you who did not read, “Lynbrook Takes the Lead on Long Island,” the Lynbrook School District is revamping its reading curriculum and is…
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I’m a reading girl, but let’s talk math. If you were teaching long division to your students, what does that practice look like? Are you giving children 2 division, 4 multiplication, 18 addition, and 2 simplifying fraction problems (even though they’ve never seen them) for a challenge? Of course you aren’t! In math, ample amounts…
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So often in the past, I have had parents sit in my reading tuition lessons observe their child, a struggling reader, learn to read. With a structured phonics program and decodable books that support it, the child begins to decode words independently. At first it is laborious and some children may need a great deal…
Read MoreRaise your hand if you’ve ever heard the phrase “some kids are just poor spellers.” I’ve got both hands and feet raised over here. Children are not destined to be poor or great spellers. All children can grow in their spelling, but we have to make sure we are giving them the proper instruction…
Read MoreAs conversations about effective literacy instruction continue in schools and on social media, questions about the definition, use, and purpose of decodable texts inevitably arise. I’ve even heard these books described as a “battleground.” I recently watched a presentation on literacy to the school committee in a local district, where phonics teaching is currently layered…
Read MoreLynbrook District in Long Island, NY is like many districts. It’s not very poor and not very rich. Most of the kids do okay. So, why have the leaders of Lynbrook district decided to take the plunge and ditch balanced literacy for systematic phonics? They decided that too many children were not thriving with balanced…
Read MoreOver the years, it has become apparent that the Reading Workshop/Guided Reading model of instruction, popular in U.S. schools, does not produce the results promised. Special Education numbers have increased, and many children get labeled, unnecessarily, as having a “reading disability.” It is undoubtedly a huge undertaking to put the brakes on and start fresh.…
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Have you had a chance to listen to some of these interesting conversations yet? See Part One for a summary of broad themes that arose in the course of the meetings. Below are a few more takeaways from some of the discussions. Syllable Types and Division Rules In the conversation with Devin Kearns, which…
Read MoreAs summer vacation draws to a close and thoughts turn to the coming school year, you may be interested in a unique (and free) opportunity for professional development. Reading researcher Mark Seidenberg, author of Language at the Speed of Sight, and Molly Farry-Thorn, a postdoctoral research associate at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, have been…
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