We describe the rationale for- and content of- a freely available, novel, theoretically driven and evidence-based approach to improving the teaching of word reading in reception classrooms called 'Flexible Phonics'. Flexible Phonics (FP) adds measurable value to-, rather than wholly replacing, existing synthetic phonics programmes. The rationale…

Language learning is an important developmental experience for young children during their preschool years, and book reading is an important context for promoting this growth. Book reading introduces children to a wider range of words than is evident in typical conversations and provides meaningful opportunities to practice using new words in…

This article addresses the characteristics of learners in the emergent stage of literacy development and describes two instructional practices that facilitate the development of the alphabetic principle and concept of word in text.

The increased use of smartphones and tablets sets the stage for new mobile-based educational programs that seek to increase student learning and engagement in school and at home. This study examines the effectiveness of Escribo Play, a game-enhanced educational program, on preschool students' phonological awareness, word reading, and writing…

The enigma of the Systematic Synthetic Phonics (SSP) policy directive in England, alongside the conspicuous 'school readiness' agenda appears to be inducing detrimental incongruities in graduate early years educators' teaching of phonics to two-year olds. This paper outlines the findings of a contemporary research study highlighting that graduate…

The rhetoric of the reading wars has become more than just an armchair academic debate, but is encoded now in the very laws, house and senate bills, and legislative policies of the majority of the states. In turn, these policies are powered by staggering sums of money such as the 90-million-dollar investment of Fulton County, Georgia in a revamp…

This research paper investigates how graduate early years practitioners support under-threes with early reading; presenting their perceptions and daily encounters. Previous research into the practice and pedagogy of early reading appears to have resulted in the latest overarching policy investment in phonics. This paper suggests that this…

How children understand reading and who they are as readers comprises children's reading identities. Reading identities can have very real effects on the reading outcomes of children, and may support the development of foundational reading skills and the process of learning to read (McCarthey & Moje, 2002). Despite the potential importance of…

This appendix provides additional details on the underlying data, statistical models, and results presented in the main report. We first describe how we created each control and outcome variable and its source (e.g., parent report), followed by an overview of the logistic regression models employed, and then provide the full set of results from…

The Big Lift™ (Big Lift) is a preschool-third-grade collective impact initiative in San Mateo County, California. The initiative is a partnership of the County of San Mateo, San Mateo County Office of Education, and the Silicon Valley Community Foundation. Launched in 2012, the initiative aims to boost children's reading proficiency by third grade…