Reading takes work and since the work goes “underground” the concept becomes daunting for students who need to work harder than others because it is not a visual process. How do we impress upon all students that reading at any age takes practice and work?
I think the most powerful ways we can show students reading at any age takes practice and work are through modeling and continuous goal setting. During reading instruction, I model strategies for decoding and comprehending text. I also share my personal experiences as a reader, what I like to read, and the reading goals I’m currently working towards. When a struggling reader can see a reason to improve their reading they will be more motivated to engage in the hard work and practice it takes. I also believe students can be influenced to practice and work at their reading ability when they have specific reading goals to work on. To facilitate this, I schedule reading conferences with my students to discuss and make a plan for their reading journey. This could include goals like increasing their vocabulary knowledge so they can understand words as they appear in their text, or working at reading sentences appropriately given specific punctuation. I think students are more likely to be motivated if they can achieve “small successes” along the way.
What stood out to you in these chapters?
I found the idea of “truth decay” to be fascinating. Working with struggling readers, I can’t help but think about what their life would be like if they never learned to read. How difficult would their life be? How would they be a successful adult? I appreciate how Beers explains specific answers to these questions in Chapter 1. Without the ability to read, people lose the ability to be independent and need to rely on others to make sense of the world for them. Some of the outcomes of “truth decay,” defined by Kavanagh and Rich, make perfect sense. Individuals who cannot read can fall victim to trends like an increasing disagreement about facts and a blurring of the line between fact and opinion. This phenomenon was extremely interesting to explore. We tell kids how important it is to read and read well, but what happens when kids can’t read brings terrible consequences well beyond missing out on a good book.
How does the Science of Reading impact your instruction? (regardless of content area)
The Science of Reading is reflected in my instruction where students learn and practice skills in areas beyond word recognition and memorization. As a special education teacher, I work with many students that have specific needs and goals that pertain to their reading ability. I’ve been able to see success come from teaching these students rules and patterns as well as building their vocabulary. When I was an elementary student, my school placed a heavy focus on independent reading where “students learn to read by reading.” The Science of Reading explains that different parts of our brain need to be accessed when we learn to read.
What skills are important to be able to read?
-Vocabulary skills
-Phonemic awareness
-Phonological awareness
-Fluency
-Comprehension skills
-Phonics
-Decoding