The Structured Literacy approach has been found to be particularly effective with learners with dyslexia because it focuses on decoding skills, which are critical components of finding success in reading. By emphasizing spelling patterns (instead of specific words), I can lead my students toward using decoding as a strategy, rather than them trying to memorize words by their appearance. It’s true—“Memorization is Not Understanding.”

Teaching reading in any classroom requires a complex set of skills and knowledge. A guided reading program is often used and a teacher must have a highly organized system of meeting with small groups, providing direct instruction when possible, and assessing and engaging in error correction. At the same time must also be working on comprehension skills while keeping students engaged and excited about reading and one can easily agree that while teachers do one of the hardest jobs on Earth, they are often lacking adequate training in how to effectively teach reading.

This blog was written to unpack the development of fluency, particularly among struggling readers and those with Rapid Automatized Naming weaknesses. I will highlight recent research that implies fluency results when students simultaneously activate multiple aspects of word knowledge. That means as fluent students encounter words, they initially retrieve information about letters and corresponding sounds, but nearly instantaneously also activate additional aspects of word knowledge like vocabulary, parts of speech, grammar, and morphological information.

The 2020 Aspiring Teacher Scholarship was sponsored by LETRS (Language Essentials for Teachers of Reading and Spelling), Voyager Sopris Learning’s landmark professional learning series on the science of reading. Mississippi uses LETRS as a key part of its statewide literacy initiative to teach educators the science of reading and give them the skills to teach language and literacy to every student, even those with reading challenges like dyslexia.

The 2020 Aspiring Teacher Scholarship was sponsored by LETRS (Language Essentials for Teachers of Reading and Spelling), Voyager Sopris Learning’s landmark professional learning series on the science of reading. Alabama uses LETRS as a key part of its statewide literacy initiative to teach educators the science of reading and give them the skills to teach language and literacy to every student, even those with reading challenges like dyslexia.

Much has been published about bringing students and teachers back to school this fall. Educators must consider the health and safety of students and school personnel as well as academics, including gathering information about student learning to inform classroom instruction and curriculum programs. Our senior assessment staff has surveyed various sources for information to help guide school and district decision-making.