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This is my comprehension planning guide from class. I felt this was useful with similar reasoning to adding my phonics planning guide.

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This podcast explains that dyslexia affects about 15% of students and is linked to difficulties with processing the sounds of language, not just reversing letters. It lists common signs, like trouble rhyming, blending sounds, or recalling letter–sound connections. Early recognition and evaluation are emphasized. Recommended supports include explicit phonics instruction, multisensory learning, and extra practice to help students succeed.

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How to Spot Dyslexia, and What to Do Next | Cult of Pedagogy

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Learn the traits that might indicate dyslexia in students and what you can do inside and outside the classroom to better support these students.

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This is my phonics planning guide we created for class. I added this as it serves as an example of what a phonics lesson plan could look like in my classroom one day.

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In this episode, educator Donalyn Miller discusses why giving students time and choice to read independently is powerful for building lifelong reading habits and motivation.
She reflects on her own teaching journey and how independent reading allowing students to pick books they care about increases reading volume and deepens engagement more than assigned reading alone. Miller suggests that offering freedom, respect, and support around independent reading can help students develop stronger reading identities and autonomy.

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#29 Donalyn Miller: The Power of Independent Reading (pt.1) - Teach Me, Teacher

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Hello everyone! It’s finally here, episode 29, the first episode of season 2 of Teach Me, Teacher, and it is my biggest privilege to bring you Donalyn Miller for the two-part opener of the season. I mention Donalyn Miller more times […]

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This article explains why many early‑grade writing assignments allow students to use “inventive spelling” rather than correct spelling during drafting. The idea is that focusing on idea generation without freezing creative flow helps kids write more fluently and build confidence. It argues that spelling doesn’t “count” until later stages (e.g. editing or final draft), because constant correction early can inhibit idea development.

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Dear Cult of Pedagogy, Last week, my son brought home a stack of papers from his first-grade class. Some of them had obvious spelling errors, but no one had marked them wrong. Later that same day, I was helping my 10-year-old daughter with a research paper. I noticed a few misspellings on her draft, but when I pointed them out, she said, "My teacher told us not to worry about spelling when we're drafting." What's the deal? Why don't teachers seem to care about spelling anymore?
When kids first learn how to write, they grapple with many different skills at once. After they master letters and build them into words, their next step is stringing those words together into complete ideas. That takes a lot of mental work, and trying to spell every word perfectly can slow the whole process way down. For this reason, many teachers in the early grades encourage inventive spelling, also known as temporary spelling - where the child makes his best guess on the spelling of the word, rather than stopping to find out the correct version.

This practice is grounded in research. A number of studies demonstrate that kids who are allowed to use inventive spelling learn to write more quickly, more fluently, and with a richer vocabulary than those who work under more rigid spelling expectations (Kolodziej & Columba, 2005).

Researchers suggest that parents think about inventive spelling the way they once viewed their child's early attempts at speech:

When the child said "ba-ba," did the parent say, "No, honey, it is pronounced "bottle"? Parents treasure this developmental step their child took towards conventional speaking by lavishly praising the child and offering the bottle...The child will not call the item a "ba-ba" for the rest of his/her life; rather, when the child is developmentally ready, he/she will be able to say "bottle" (Kolodziej & Columba, 2005, p. 217).

In the later years, spelling does "count," but it has a time and a place. Most writing teachers use some version of the Writing Process, where students are taught to (1) gather and group their ideas (pre-writing), (2) flesh out those ideas in sentences and paragraphs (drafting), and (3) reorganize the piece so that it accomplishes the writer's goals (revising). Only then, after the piece has been revised into a shape that's close to finished, do most teachers tell their students to start the next step: editing. In this stage, final corrections are made to spelling, punctuation, and usage.

The reason spelling and mechanics are de-emphasized in the first few steps is the same as in the younger grades: Too much focus on correctness interrupts the flow of ideas. Furthermore, teachers want students to understand that good writers revise their pieces many times for structure, development, clarity and voice. Although the mechanics are important for polish, correct spelling can't make up for a poorly structured, underdeveloped piece of writing. And if a piece is going to be revised several times, it makes no sense to keep correcting the mechanics, only to have those words dumped entirely in a later revision.

Producing a finished piece of writing is a lot like putting on a polished musical performance: It requires the synthesis of many skills, some of which need to be handled separately. Imagine if a band conductor brought a brand-new piece of music to her band and expected all sections to play it together, perfectly, the first time. Even someone with no musical training can see that this is an unreasonable approach. Instead, if each instrument section starts by practicing their part separately, the performers will get really solid on their individual parts before pulling it all together to refine the complete performance.

So what should you do if your child comes home with a paper full of spelling or other mechanical errors? Take a cue from the teacher: If the teacher hasn't mentioned the errors, then spelling was not a priority for this particular assignment or at this particular stage. Instead, praise the content itself. Here are some specific things to look for, and if they are there, to praise:

Strong, vivid vocabulary: "You chose a really interesting word to describe that monster - ferocious."

Idea development: "You described how the lizard's tongue works really clearly. At first I couldn't understand how a tongue can smell, but this sentence helps."

Audience awareness: "This introduction really grabbed my attention."

Organization: "Nice transition here: 'On the other hand.' That's a good way to show that you're going to talk about a different side of the issue."

Attempts at sophisticated construction: "Is that a semicolon? That's a pretty advanced punctuation mark. I like to see you trying new things with your writing."

If you want to help your child improve his spelling, keep assignments that contain errors in a folder. Later in the year, after a certain kind of word has been taught - say, the difference between there, their, and they're - have your child go through the folder and see if they can catch some old mistakes with this set of words.

Rest assured, teachers still care very much about spelling. They just recognize that learning other skills - harder, more complex skills - often works best when those skills get a student's full attention. Single instruments first, then the whole orchestra.
Reference:
Kolodziej, N.J., & Columba, L. (2005). Invented spelling: Guidelines for parents. Reading Improvement, 42 (4), 212-223.

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Why is my kid allowed to make spelling mistakes?

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"Last week, my son brought home a stack of papers from his first-grade class. Some of them had obvious spelling errors, but no one had marked them wrong. What's the deal? Why don't teachers seem to care about spelling anymore?"

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Moats’s article argues that spelling and reading draw on much of the same underlying knowledge specifically, the relationships between letters (graphemes), sounds (phonemes), and meaning so understanding spelling supports better reading. She shows that although English spelling seems unpredictable, most words follow fairly regular, learnable patterns, making spelling more systematic than many assume. The article suggests that explicit, systematic spelling instruction helps build reading, writing, and word‑recognition skills that support fluent reading and comprehension.

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This podcast describes an episode of Melissa & Lori Love Literacy featuring The Writing Revolution authors Judith Hochman and Natalie Wexler. The discussion centers on how The Writing Revolution approach emphasizes teaching writing starting at the sentence level, rather than assuming students can write full paragraphs or essays from the start. The authors describe writing not as a separate subject, but as a tool embedded in the regular curriculum: writing activities are integrated across content areas so students build both knowledge and writing skills. They outline six core principles: explicit writing instruction from early grades; sentences as foundational building blocks; content‑driven writing activities; grammar taught in context; and the importance of planning and revising.

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Melissa and Lori Love Literacy Podcast | Featuring Dr. Judith Hochman and Natalie Wexler - The Writing Revolution

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The Writing Revolution authors, Judith Hochman and Natalie Wexler, share a ‘revolutionary’ approach to writing. The best part: It begins at the sentence level AND content knowledge drives the rigor. Moreover, there is an overlap in reading, writing, and critical thinking. What are the principles of The Writing Revolution? There are six: Students need explicit instruction in writing, beginning in the

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This is my writing planning guide from class. I felt this was useful with similar reasoning to adding my phonics and comprehension planning guide.

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This handout talks about the phonological awareness umbrella and the skills that fall under phonological awareness. It also describes the difference between phonological and phonemic awareness.

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Following is a list of the 44 phonemes along with the letters of groups of letters that represent those sounds. It shows the phoneme, grapheme, and gives examples of words they are found.

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This video shows how reading development involves the brain linking visual patterns (“letterbox”) to sounds (phonemes) and then connecting those to meaning a process that gradually becomes automatic with practice.
It emphasizes that systematic and explicit instruction especially in letter‑sound correspondences and decoding is crucial for wiring the brain’s reading circuitry effectively. As learners practice and build fluency, they begin to recognize words by sight, freeing cognitive resources for comprehension and deeper understanding.

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Dr. Amy Schulting, Dyslexia Specialist for the MN Department of Education, explains the areas of the brain that take in language (language input) and produce language (language output). She then describes how a pathway must develop between these two areas of the brain that result in one's "Reading Road" to facilitate the ability to read print.

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Video 1: How the Brain Learns to Read - The "Reading Road" analogy - MediaSpace > Minnesota State

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Dr. Amy Schulting, Dyslexia Specialist for the MN Department of Education, explains the areas of the brain that take in language (language input) and produce language (language output). She then describes how a pathway must develop between these two areas of the brain that result in one's "Reading Road" to facilitate the ability to read print.

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In this article is shows the jarring statistics over the last decade of the amount of students who can read. It talks about the reasoning for these results such as assumptions like learning to read is a natural process. It then goes into the science behind giving literacy the proper time to be taught in schools. It then shows the improvement of results after using the science of reading training in schools.

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Scientific research has shown how children learn to read and how they should be taught. But many educators don’t know the science and, in some cases, actively resist it. As a result, millions of kids are being set up to fail.

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This video demonstrates the process of splitting words into syllables as a game. It teaches the steps from underlining the vowels and splitting the word. It explains open syllables and closed syllables, and how that can change the way the vowel sounds.

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Syllable Division | Learn the six rules of syllables | Chunking words | Learn to Read

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This video shows a program called Spellography, designed to support students who struggle with spelling and shows how it works in a classroom or intervention setting. It gives viewers a behind‑the‑scenes look at how the program teaches spelling systematically, likely emphasizing structured instruction, repetition, and explicit teaching of phonics/spelling rules. The goal of Spellography (as presented) is not just to correct individual spelling errors, but to build foundational skills so students become more confident and independent spellers. Overall, the video makes a case that with the right support and systematic approach, struggling spellers can improve, rather than just “get by.”

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Spellography: A look inside a program for struggling spellers

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Podcast: Sold a Story (How students learn to read)

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Podcast: Sold a Story (How students learn to read)

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This podcast investigates how many U.S. schools continue using reading curricula that de‑emphasize explicit instruction in phonics, spelling, and word structure. It argues that relying primarily on meaning‑based reading instruction has left many children particularly those from low‑income or marginalized backgrounds without the foundational skills needed to actually decode and understand text. The work highlights inequities in reading achievement and calls for evidence‑based reading instruction grounded in the science of reading.

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NEW PODCAST

There's an idea about how children learn to read that's held sway in schools for more than a generation - even though it was proven wrong by cognitive scientists decades ago. Teaching methods based on this idea can make it harder for children to learn how to read. In this new podcast, host Emily Hanford investigates the influential authors who promote this idea and the company that sells their work. It's an exposé of how educators came to believe in something that isn't true and are now reckoning with the consequences - children harmed, money wasted, an education system upended.

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In 2017, Emily Hanford began investigating how children are taught to read. In a series of ongoing reports, collected here, she helped teachers, parents and policymakers recognize widespread flaws in instruction and helped spark a movement to bring the science of reading to schools.

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Article: What Teachers of Reading Need to Know and Be Able to Teach 

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Article: What Teachers of Reading Need to Know and Be Able to Teach 

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The article emphasizes that effective reading instruction requires a deep understanding of the full scope and sequence of reading skills, not just effort or experience. It breaks down the “five core components” of reading and explains how each should be taught systematically across grade levels. The article provides detailed examples of phonological awareness and phonics activities, including syllable, onset‑rime, and phoneme manipulation, as well as instruction in letter‑sound patterns, vowel types, morphemes, and word origins. It also addresses vocabulary, fluency, and comprehension strategies, emphasizing explicit, research‑based instruction that can be adjusted for struggling readers. Overall, Tolman argues that teachers can significantly improve student reading outcomes by teaching strategically, systematically, and with knowledge of evidence‑based practices rather than relying on time and effort alone.

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This video shows common reading and spelling mistakes made by individuals with dyslexia. It explains how dyslexia affects decoding, word recognition, and spelling, even in motivated learners. Traditional instruction often isn’t enough, so the video highlights research‑based interventions like structured, explicit phonics and word-study approaches.

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These free videos are a great way to learn about dyslexia.

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Article: How to Recognize Early Warning Signs

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Article: How to Recognize Early Warning Signs

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This article explains that dyslexia is a learning disability affecting word recognition, decoding, and spelling, often despite average intelligence. It highlights early warning signs so teachers can identify students who may struggle. Evidence‑based interventions, including systematic instruction in phonics, fluency, vocabulary, and comprehension, are provided to support student achievement.

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Article: Strategies for Building Fluency and Comprehension

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Article: Strategies for Building Fluency and Comprehension

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This IRIS Center module explains PALS (Peer-Assisted Learning Strategies), a structured peer-tutoring program for reading in grades 2–6. Students work in pairs to practice fluency, comprehension, summarizing, and predicting through guided activities. The module walks teachers through how to set up, teach, and manage PALS in the classroom. Its goal is to improve reading skills through active, cooperative learning.

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This module outlines the benefits of implementing PALS for Grades 2-6, a peer tutoring strategy in which students work in pairs to strengthen their reading skills. Also included are step-by-step instructions for each of the three PALS activities as well as printable PALS materials (est. completion time: 1 hour).

Work through the sections of this module in the order presented in the STAR graphic above.

Related to this module

Copyright 2020 Vanderbilt University. All rights reserved.

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This module outlines the benefits of implementing PALS for Grades 2-6, a peer tutoring strategy in which students work in pairs to strengthen their reading skills. Also included are step-by-step instructions for each of the three PALS activities as well as printable PALS materials (est. completion time: 1 hour).

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Article: Instruction for Struggling Readers

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Article: Instruction for Struggling Readers

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This article lays out research‑based recommendations for how to support older students (grades 4–12) who struggle with reading. It identifies five core areas of instruction — word study (decoding), fluency, vocabulary, comprehension, and motivation/engagement that are critical for adolescent readers to access academic content. The article describes how effective programs compare to struggling readers: successful readers continually monitor comprehension, draw on background knowledge, use a variety of reading strategies, and engage with text purposefully; struggling readers often lack those skills. Finally, it recommends instructional practices that are explicit, systematic, and appropriately intensive including small-group or one-on-one sessions, tailored word‑study, and explicit strategy instruction so older struggling readers can catch up and succeed.

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Video: What is it Like to Have Dyslexia?

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Video: What is it Like to Have Dyslexia?

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The video features children with dyslexia sharing their personal experiences, what reading and learning feels like when you have dyslexia. It offers insight into the daily challenges and frustrations dyslexic learners face, giving viewers a more human, empathetic understanding of the condition.

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This speaker argues that people with dyslexia aren’t “broken” instead, their brains are simply wired differently, and dyslexia should be viewed as a different way of thinking rather than a deficit. The talk challenges common stigmas and misconceptions about dyslexia, encouraging listeners to recognize the strengths that often accompany it, rather than focusing only on difficulties. It advocates for evidence‑based, strength‑oriented instruction and support that empowers dyslexic learners helping them thrive rather than just cope.

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Dyslexic? They're not broken | Dr Rosa Kwok | TEDxCoventry

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The article argues that repetition is essential for building reading skills because each correct, repeated practice helps forge and strengthen the neural pathways required for fluent reading. It explains that learners especially those with dyslexia or other reading difficulties need many more repetitions than typical students to “automatize” decoding, spelling, and letter‑sound mapping. It recommends embedding repeated decoding, spelling, letter‑sound review, and reading/spelling practice throughout lessons so that reading becomes more automatic and less effortful over time.

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Why Repetition is Important in Reading Instruction

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The number of repetitions matter when planning reading instruction for the dyslexic learner, While some may believe that our lessons are filled with constant drilling of skills, this is not the case.

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Video: Technology to Assist Dyslexic Learners

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Video: Technology to Assist Dyslexic Learners

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This video introduces three assistive‑technology tools (within Word and OneNote) designed to support students with dyslexia. It shows how these tools like dictation and text‑to‑speech can help by reducing the decoding/spelling burden, enabling students to focus more on meaning and comprehension. The video is aimed at educators and families, offering practical tech‑based strategies to make reading and writing more accessible for dyslexic learners.

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Three Assistive Technology Tools to Help Students with Dyslexia

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Video: How Can Phonemic Awareness Impact Reading?

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Video: How Can Phonemic Awareness Impact Reading?

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In this video she talks about the impact phonemic awareness has on reading comprehension. As well as the importance of teaching this skill systematically and explicitly.

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How Can Phonemic Awareness Impact Reading | Kathleen Jasper

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Article: Supporting Fluency Using the Science of Reading

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Article: Supporting Fluency Using the Science of Reading

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This article explains how reading fluency supports comprehension and why both are essential parts of the Science of Reading. It describes fluency as a combination of automatic word recognition and expressive reading (prosody). The article highlights evidence based strategies such as repeated oral reading, choral reading, and partner reading to build fluency. It also emphasizes that fluency instruction benefits both early readers and older students working with complex texts.

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Supporting fluency and comprehension using practices grounded in the science of reading

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Fluent reading supports understanding meaning but kids also need instruction that maximizes comprehension. The science of reading shows how.

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The video shows six effective strategies for building reading fluency with kindergarten through second-grade students. The methods are designed to help young readers practice smooth, expressive reading, which supports comprehension and confidence. It’s aimed at teachers and caregivers offering practical, classroom-ready techniques to strengthen early reading skills.

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The Top 6 Ways to Build Fluency with K-2 Students

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Article: Why Your Kids Can Never Have Too Much Vocabulary 

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Article: Why Your Kids Can Never Have Too Much Vocabulary 

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The article argues that a rich vocabulary is more than knowing a word’s definition, it includes how to use it, when it applies, what it connects to, and what associations it carries. It explains that strong vocabulary knowledge underlies reading comprehension because it helps readers understand context, subtlety, and meaning in different texts. The piece also notes that children learn many of their words outside the classroom through reading, conversations, media, and experiences not just formal instruction. Finally, it offers practical tips for families to support vocabulary growth at home, such as reading together, discussing unfamiliar words, exploring synonyms/antonyms, and encouraging repeated exposure and usage.

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Reading and vocabulary: Why your kids can never have too much of either

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Having a rich vocabulary helps kids read. The more they have, the more they can understand text, from word problems to graphic novels.

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Article: Vocabulary and Morphology in Early Learning

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Article: Vocabulary and Morphology in Early Learning

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This article talks about the science behind teaching vocabulary at an early age to build their reading skills. It shares how to develop this into classrooms.

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Reading is the act of processing text in order to derive meaning. To learn to read, children must develop both fluent word reading and language comprehension (Gough & Tunmer, 1986). Language comprehension encompasses vocabulary and morphology, knowledge, syntax, and higher-level language skills.

How Vocabulary and Morphology Contribute to Reading Development

Vocabulary refers to "all of the words of our language. One must know words to communicate effectively. Vocabulary is important to reading comprehension because readers cannot understand what they are reading without knowing what most of the words mean. Vocabulary development refers to stored information about the meanings and pronunciation of words necessary for communication" ( Florida Center for Reading Research Glossary of Reading Terms).

"[T]he role of vocabulary in academic success increases through the grades, and that early vocabulary knowledge predicts reading comprehension skill in later grades" (Pierce, Wechsler-Zimring, Noam, Wolf, & Tami Katzir, 2013).

Morphology refers to "the knowledge of meaningful word parts in a language (typically the knowledge of prefixes, suffixes, and/or roots and base words)" ( Foorman et al., 2016 ). Knowledge of word structure and how words are formed is linked to both greater vocabulary development and stronger reading comprehension (Prince, 2009; Wolter & Green, 2013). Research has shown that in children as young as first grade, knowledge of word parts has influenced their literacy development (Wolter, Wood, & D'zatko, 2009).

Promoting Vocabulary and Morphology Development in the Classroom

Vocabulary and morphology knowledge are supported by explicit teaching in word meaning, word parts, and spelling. "Current vocabulary research confirms the benefits of explicit teaching over implicit teaching in promoting vocabulary development" ( National Reading Technical Assistance Center, 2010 ). Also, "teachers need to show the spellings of new vocabulary words when they discuss their meanings. Students need to stop and pronounce unfamiliar words rather than skip them during independent reading" (Ehri & Rosenthal, 2007). "Instructional implications are that teachers should include written words as part of vocabulary instruction and that students should pronounce spellings as well as determine meanings when they encounter new vocabulary words...Students who see the spellings of words actually learn the meanings of the words more easily - orthographic knowledge benefits vocabulary learning" (Rosenthal & Ehri, 2008).

When teaching vocabulary, activities that support deeper understanding allow students to:

make connections between a new vocabulary word and other known words

relate the word to their own experiences

differentiate between correct and incorrect uses of the word

generate and answer questions that include the word (Foorman et al., 2016 )

To support students with vocabulary and morphology, teach word parts: roots, prefixes, suffixes, tenses, and plurals. See the Basic Morphology section of this sample LETRS scope and sequence for Word Study, Spelling, and Reading.

Selecting Vocabulary for Instruction

When selecting vocabulary for instruction, approaches that support students to make connections and build knowledge include:

Focusing on new word meanings from oral sources such as content rich read alouds (Beimiller, 2015)

Deriving vocabulary from content learning materials so students can readily use them in many contexts (National Reading Panel, 2000)

Presenting words in integrated contexts to support students in remembering not only the words themselves, but the linkages in meaning between them (Wright & Neuman, 2014)

Additionally, the Texas Center for Learning Disabilities recommends targeting words that are

essential to understanding the main idea of the text or unit,

used repeatedly or frequently encountered across domains, and

not part of students' prior knowledge.

Resources to Support Selection of Vocabulary for Instruction

Examples of Evidence-Based Vocabulary Strategies

Selecting and Using Academic Vocabulary in Instruction , from Achieve the Core (Resource)

Six-step process for teaching vocabulary (Marzano & Simms, 2013)

Morphological Awareness, from University of Michigan (Resource)

Morphology, from Institute of Education Sciences (Video)

Base Word, Prefix, Suffix, from the Institute for Education Sciences (Video)

Word Analysis Strategy, from the Institute for Education Sciences (Video)

Recommendation 2 from the IES Practice Guide "Foundational Skills to Support Reading for Understanding in Kindergarten Through 3rd Grade": Teach students to decode words, analyze word parts, and write and recognize words , (Resource) (see section 3, pp. 26-27)

Language and Vocabulary, from Florida Center for Reading Research (Activities for PreK)

Word Knowledge, Morphemic Elements, Word Meaning, and Word Analysis, from Florida Center for Reading Research (Activities for Grades K-1)

Word Knowledge, Morphemic Elements, Word Meaning, and Word Analysis, from Florida Center for Reading Research (Activities for Grades 2-3)

A Teaching Routine for Academic Vocabulary in Grades PreK-1, from Institute for Education Sciences (Video)

Learn More about Vocabulary and Morphology

Considerations for Students Learning English

English learners should have equal opportunity to meaningfully participate in all literacy instruction. The WIDA Can Do Descriptors highlight what language learners can do at various stages of language development.
Taking Bilingualism into Account
While vocabulary instruction is important to all learners, explicit vocabulary instruction with second language learners has bigger impacts on learning than usually reported for first language students (August et al., 2008).
Supports for English Learners

Choose a brief, engaging piece of informational text that includes academic vocabulary as a platform for intensive academic vocabulary instruction (Baker et al., 2014 ).

Choose a small set of academic vocabulary for in-depth instruction (Baker et al., 2014 ).

Teach academic vocabulary in depth using multiple modalities (writing, speaking, listening) (Baker et al., 2014 ).

Emphasize the acquisition of meanings of everyday words that native speakers know and that are not necessarily part of the academic curriculum (Baker et al., 2014).

Teach word-learning strategies to help students independently figure out the meaning of words: Word Parts and Cognates, from Institute of Education Sciences (Video EL support example Grades 2 & 3); Activities to Promote Word Learning Grades 2 and 3, from Institute of Education Sciences, (Video).

The Go To Strategies , from Project EXCELL

Language Development for Preschool ELLs **, from Colorin Colorado (Strategies for ELs)

Recommendation 3, Provide extensive and varied vocabulary instruction , from Institute of Education Sciences (Resource)

The WIDA Instructional Supports provide a reference list of appropriate graphic, sensory, and interactive supports to use with the WIDA Can Do Descriptors when instructing language learners.

August, D., Beck, I. L., Calderón, M., Francis, D. J., Lesaux, N. K., Shanahan, T., Erickson, F., & Siegel, L. S. (2008). Instruction and professional development. In D. August, & T. Shanahan (Eds.), Developing reading and writing in second-language learners: Lessons from the report of the national literacy panel on language-minority children and youth (pp. 131-250). New York: Routledge.

Baker, S., Lesaux, N., Jayanthi, M., Dimino, J., Proctor, C. P., Morris, J., Gersten, R., Haymond, K., Kieffer, M. J., Linan-Thompson, S., & Newman-Gonchar, R. (2014). Teaching academic content and literacy to English learners in elementary and middle school (NCEE 2014-4012). Washington, DC: National Center for Education Evaluation and Regional Assistance (NCEE), Institute of Education Sciences, U.S. Department of Education. Retrieved from the NCEE website: Product Search.

Beimiller, A. (2015). Which words are worth teaching? Perspectives on Language and Literacy. Summer 2015. The International Dyslexia Association.

Ehri, L.C., & Rosenthal, J. (2007). Spellings of words: A neglected facilitator of vocabulary learning. In Dorit Aram & Ofra Korat (Eds.) Literacy development and enhancement across orthographies and cultures, pp.137-152.

Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development, NIH, DHHS. (2000). Report of the national reading panel: Teaching children to read: reports of the subgroups (00-4754). Washington, DC: U.S. Government Printing Office.

Foorman, B., Beyler, N., Borradaile, K., Coyne, M., Denton, C. A., Dimino, J., Furgeson, J., Hayes, L., Henke, J., Justice, L., Keating, B., Lewis, W., Sattar, S., Streke, A., Wagner, R., & Wissel, S. (2016). Foundational skills to support reading for understanding in kindergarten through 3rd grade (NCEE 2016-4008). Washington, DC: National Center for Education Evaluation and Regional Assistance (NCEE), Institute of Education Sciences, U.S. Department of Education.

Gough, P.B. & Tunmer, W.E. (1986). Decoding, reading, and reading disability. Remedial and Special Education, 7, 6-10.

Hogan, T. P., Adolf, S. M., & Alonzo, C. N. (2014). On the importance of listening comprehension. International journal of speech-language pathology, 16(3), 199-207.

Pearson, P. D. & Gallagher, M.C. (1983). The instruction of reading comprehension. Contemporary Educational Psychology, 8, 1983, pp. 317-344.

Pierce, M.E., Wechsler-Zimring, A., Noam, G., Wolf, M., & Tami Katzir, T. (2013). Behavioral problems and reading difficulties among language minority and monolingual urban elementary school students. Reading Psychology, 34(2), 182-205.

Prince, R.E.C. (2010). Making the words add up: How morphology - viewing words as a combination of parts - can become an instructional tool for building reading skills. Usable Knowledge.

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massachusetts department of elementary and secondary education

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Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education

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The goal of the Massachusetts public K-12 education system is to prepare all students for success after high school. Massachusetts public school students are leading the nation in reading and math and are at the top internationally in reading, science, and math according to the national NAEP and international PISA assessments.

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Video: Effective Teaching Strategies for Vocabulary 

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Video: Effective Teaching Strategies for Vocabulary 

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This video is focused on teaching phonics or reading, aimed at helping children learn vowel sounds or reading fundamentals. It’s part of a broader set of “learn-to-read” videos. The video is designed for parents or teachers to use with early-readers to build foundational reading skills.

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Effective Strategies for Teaching Vocabulary

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Article: The Importance of Comprehension

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Article: The Importance of Comprehension

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This article explains that the Science of Reading isn’t tied to a single method, but is a broad body of research about how people learn to read including what skills are involved and how they interact. It highlights that comprehension (the ability to understand language and meaning) is fundamental to reading. Models of reading development show that comprehension must work together with word recognition for true reading skill. The article also points out that research-based guides and tools from IES are available to help educators improve reading comprehension instruction for students.

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What is the science of reading?

Just as biology is the scientific study of living organisms or chemistry is the scientific study of elements and compounds, the science of reading refers to a body of research about how people learn to read. The research is extensive dating back over 100 years and includes research from many disciplines, such as cognitive science, developmental psychology, educational psychology, neuroscience, linguistics, and others. The science of reading combines both theoretical models and empirical studies of how people learn to read. Theoretical models summarize what we know (and what we don't know) based on evidence from empirical studies and are useful in testing new approaches or developing effective instructional materials. The research is rigorous and replicable, not based on opinion.

It is important to note that the science of reading is not a product, curriculum, or singular method of teaching, such as teaching phonics. Rather, it encompasses rigorous study of the processes our brains use to learn to read, what skills are necessary for reading, how those skills develop over time, and how they can be taught to all students effectively.

Importance of comprehension in the science of reading

Strong reading comprehension skills are necessary across nearly all aspects of education and learning. While theoretical models of reading development vary in complexity and detail, all models of reading include one's ability to understand what is read or the comprehension of text. For example, one theory of reading, the Simple View of Reading, shows how recognizing words in print (word recognition) and understanding the language used (language comprehension) work together to lead to reading comprehension. Other models, such as the Reading Rope model or the Active Model of Reading have expanded word recognition and language comprehension components into several important subcomponents, noting how they work together to lead to skilled reading and text comprehension. Other models of reading comprehension, such as the Lattice Model, include additional linguistic, social-cognitive, and contextual factors that influence how reading comprehension develops.

Seminal work in the science of reading includes efforts by experts across multiple disciplines. The report of the National Reading Panel summarized more than 100,000 research studies about effective ways to teach children to read including emphasis on alphabetics, reading fluency, and reading comprehension. The Reading for Understanding Research Initiative created by the Institute of Education Sciences (IES) developed effective approaches for improving reading comprehension for all students and by 2016 had produced over 200 publications. This is the kind of work embodied by the science of reading.

Resources for reading comprehension

Since 2006, IES has issued 29 practice guides through the What Works Clearinghouse (WWC) that summarize research and present recommendations for educators to address challenges in their classrooms and schools. Nine guides (listed below) are focused on supporting teachers in providing effective instruction in reading and literacy.

WWC practice guides on instruction in reading and literacy
Effective Literacy and English Language Instruction for English Learners in the Elementary Grades
Improving Adolescent Literacy: Effective Classroom and Intervention Practices
Assisting Students Struggling with Reading: Response to Intervention (RtI) and Multi-Tier Intervention in the Primary Grades
Improving Reading Comprehension in Kindergarten Through 3rd Grade

Teaching Academic Content and Literacy to English Learners in Elementary and Middle School
Foundational Skills to Support Reading for Understanding in Kindergarten Through 3rd Grade Providing Reading Interventions for Students in Grades 4-9 Teaching Elementary School Students to Be Effective Writers Teaching Secondary Students to Write Effectively
REL West is adding to this collection with a toolkit to support K-3 reading comprehension. In collaboration with educators in the Dysart Unified School District in Arizona, REL West is currently developing this toolkit to help educators implement the recommendations in the Improving Reading Comprehension in Kindergarten Through 3rd Grade practice guide. This comprehensive toolkit will include resources and supports to help teachers implement the practice guide recommendations to improve student reading comprehension. After it is usability tested with a small group of educators, it will also go through a peer review process to ensure it both represents the evidence-based recommendations in the practice guide and is practical for educator use. Starting in fall 2024 the toolkit will then undergo a rigorous study to test the impact of the toolkit on teacher practice and student literacy outcomes. The anticipated timeline for release of this toolkit is fall 2025. We will keep you posted as we approach its release. In the meantime, we will continue to share evidence-based strategies that empower educators and support students to achieve reading proficiency.

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The Importance of Comprehension in the Science of Reading

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In this blog post, Regional Educational Laboratory West (REL West) discusses the science of reading and its impact on early childhood reading comprehension. The blog also outlines resources from IES through the What Works Clearinghouse that summarizes research and presents recommendations to support teachers in providing effective instruction in reading and literacy.

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Article: Strategies for Teaching Comprehension

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Article: Strategies for Teaching Comprehension

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This article outlines seven research‑based strategies that help students better understand what they read.
These include teaching students to monitor their own comprehension, use metacognition (thinking about their thinking), use graphic or semantic organizers, answer and generate questions, recognize text or story structure, and summarize what they’ve read. The article emphasizes that comprehension instruction is most effective when it’s explicit: teachers should model strategies, guide practice, then gradually let students use them independently. This helps students become active, purposeful readers rather than passive ones.

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Seven Strategies to Teach Students Text Comprehension

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Comprehension strategies are conscious plans — sets of steps that good readers use to make sense of text. Comprehension strategy instruction helps students become purposeful, active readers who are in control of their own reading comprehension. These seven strategies have research-based evidence for improving text comprehension.

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Video: Instructional Strategies for Teaching Writing in Elementary

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Video: Instructional Strategies for Teaching Writing in Elementary

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This video outlines effective strategies for teaching writing to elementary‑age students, focusing on how to build their writing skills systematically. It emphasizes explicit instruction, meaning teachers should model writing skills, guide students through examples, and provide scaffolded support rather than assuming writing skills develop naturally. The video recommends using mentor texts, giving students a variety of writing strategies, and embedding writing across different content areas not just in a “writing class.” It also highlights the importance of differentiating instruction: adjusting support based on each student’s needs, strengths, and areas for growth.

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Instructional Strategies for Teaching Writing to Elementary Students (REL Southeast)