Learning foundational reading skills through explicit and systematic instruction is an important starting point for readers. However, some students will continue to struggle even with high quality early instruction based in the science of reading. Students are left...
Get your striving readers off to a good start for the new school year! WordFlight supports all tiers of learners—whether they are just developing essential reading skills or have gaps in their reading skill set. It’s estimated that up to 50% of students struggle with...
As much as I love reading scholarly articles and current books focused on language and literacy development, I am making recommendations for starting the summer with reading for pleasure and rejuvenation. It is a great time to take a break and experience the...
Children with dyslexia have significant challenges in phonological processing It’s estimated that 20% of students have dyslexia. We know that individuals with dyslexia have significant challenges in phonological processing—the ability to perceive and manipulate the...
“The thing that surprised me most about my teacher preparation program was that we never talked about how kids learn. Instead, we were taught how to structure a lesson and given tips on classroom management… I assumed that I would eventually learn how the brain worked...
In part 2 of this series, I talked about the common challenges educators are facing in the classroom, and the culture and technology shifts individuals can make to support struggling fourth grade readers. But no educator operates in a vacuum. What are some systemic...
By Dr. Carolyn Brown, Chief Academic Officer In part 1 of this series, I talked about the urgent reading challenge faced by fourth graders who experienced school closures during their early learning. In this blog, I’ll share what I’ve been hearing from teachers trying...
By Dr. Carolyn Brown, Chief Academic Officer Elija held back tears as he tried to continue sounding out words. He was too frustrated to go on. As a fourth grader, he knew something was wrong and he felt like it was his fault that reading wasn’t getting easier. His...
By Jennifer Flieder As a middle school language arts teacher, I know that for students who do not have decoding or automatic word recognition skills, there is no room in the regular curriculum to reteach them the skills they should have learned in elementary...
Over the past several years, our work has focused on students in middle school who struggle to read because they lack basic reading skills. Unfortunately, at least half the students who can’t read at grade level fall into this category. I’d like to reflect on the...
