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…

Ohio elementary schools are moving to the Science of Reading, an approach that emphasizes phonics along with vocabulary- and knowledge-rich content. Keen on learning what this transition looks like inside classrooms, the Thomas B. Fordham Institute asked Ellen Belcher, a former journalist with the Dayton Daily News, to visit Margaretta Local…

Students with learning disabilities in word-level reading typically require explicit, systematic, and intensive phonics intervention. Teachers' capacity to provide effective intervention depends largely on their depth of understanding of language and their proficiency with evidence-based instructional methods. This article outlines the key…

More and more students with learning disabilities and other diverse learners are placed for instruction in general education classrooms, which often leaves teachers grappling to design successful peer interactions and literacy activities to meet the needs of all learners in their classrooms. As the shift is made to align literacy instruction to…

Recently, the term "science of reading" has been used in public debate to promote policies and instructional practices based on research on the basic cognitive mechanisms of reading, the neural processes involved in reading, computational models of learning to read, and the like. According to those views, such data provide convincing…

The author, a former early grades teacher, recounts how she overcome erratic curriculum implementation to find her own way to effective reading instruction. What worked for her was an emphasis on explicit phonics in the context of providing engaging and relevant reading material for her students. "As a matter of educating the whole…

Reading workshop is a way for students to find what kinds of books they love, practice reading independently, and move up to higher levels of reading with teacher guidance. This type of workshop can develop a lifelong love of reading in children. But several conditions need to be met to make it successful. The authors discuss those conditions,…

Reading is one of the most significant academic skills and numerous students have difficulties with reading including students who are deaf and hard of hearing. An average student with hearing impairments graduates from a high school with a fourth-grade reading comprehension level that is alarmingly poor. Several reasons may cause this low reading…

A hallmark of skilled reading is recognizing written words automatically from memory by sight. How beginning readers attain this skill is explained. They must acquire foundational knowledge, including phonemic segmentation, grapheme-phoneme knowledge, decoding, and spelling skills. When these skills are applied, spellings of words become bonded to…

The teaching of reading has been a source of contentious debate for many years. Margaret Meek Spencer contributed her passion for the importance of specific texts to help children learn to read. In addition to the kinds of texts to be used, important aspects of the debate include the relationship between national curriculum policies and robust…

Poetry can help develop in students a love for reading, writing, and playing with language, yet it is often a neglected literary form in many reading curricula. Those who see the value of poetry recognize it as the perfect genre for teaching phonics, fluency, and a love of language. The rhyming, rhythmical language of poetry provides the perfect…

This article discusses the current contradictory policies surrounding the push for phonics instruction in Texas schools. Focusing on this current iteration of the reading wars, this article seeks to help teachers develop a historical context for reading instruction, review existing research on learning to read, and turn that knowledge into…

Learning to read is an expectation rather than an exception in society today. Despite this, some children experience reading difficulties. The purpose of this article is to review recent and seminal research on reading difficulties through the lenses of three perspectives: cognitive, social and cultural and interactive. The three perspectives are…

The Ofsted report entitled Bold Beginnings: the Reception curriculum in a sample of good and outstanding primary schools is part of a research programme aimed at reviewing the primary curriculum and its implementation. Although the report highlights the 'uniqueness' of the Reception year, it also undermines the principles of Early Years Foundation…

Ofsted's 2021 Curriculum Research Review outlines a language pedagogy predicated on an exclusively cognitivist approach to language learning, which relies on three 'pillars of progression': phonics, vocabulary and grammar. The review makes a brief acknowledgement of the importance of motivational factors, including 'pupils' positive views of…