Science of Reading

I want to remember this article, so this is my bookmark. I’m totally on board with the need for reforming how we teach reading. Yes, yes, yes, amen! I think phonics, in particular where I live and teach, is crucial for literacy. But I would also stress this small part of the article:

“There is also the danger of overemphasizing phonics. To establish true literacy, students need to be able to not only sound out words, but also read quickly and build enough vocabulary and background knowledge for comprehension.

Another risk: impatience.

When Mississippi improved reading scores in 2019, it was touted as a “miracle.” In fact, progress came over many years, with systemic reform that included sending literacy coaches to the state’s lowest-performing schools.

“I don’t want the science of reading to be the shiny object — ‘look here, look here,’” said Jack Silva, the chief academic officer in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, an early adopter of the science of reading. “You forget the hard work that it takes to implement.”

In his district, principals were trained first, then teachers, grade by grade. Eight years later, training is now underway for middle and high school principals…”

We need ALL of the 5 essential components/elements of reading. As I was taught them, here they are: phonemic awareness, phonics, fluency, vocabulary, comprehension. Roughly in that order. And I would add background knowledge. I’m not getting into defining these terms in this post, you can easily google it and learn. But for my students, they’re lacking in all 5 of these, and while we need to provide systematic and direct phonics instruction, for sure, that alone won’t lead to fluently-reading kids who love books. You may have come across a person who can decode quickly, and even read fairly fluently, but they have little comprehension because they lack the vocabulary and necessary background knowledge that the author is assuming they have. We need all of the essential components, and that starts with phonemic awareness and talking to our kids as babies.