This is a good summary of articles supporting the need to improve teacher preparation in the area of reading instruction. PC READS understands this issue and, thanks to community support, offers professional development grants to educators who want to learn more.
News & Articles
Good Grades are not enough to Support a Finding of Ineligibility
Article by Attorney Michael Connolly, focused on the decision in Doe v. Cape Elizabeth School District.
EXCERPT:
In other words, while a student’s generalized academic performance (i.e., his or her grades) may be a factor in determining whether progress has been made, the weight given to that overall performance must be based on the unique circumstances of the child, particularly when the child’s overall academic performance is discrepant from his or her performance on assessments or progress monitoring measuring the specific areas impacted by his or her disability.
Interview with Max about overcoming challenges with dyslexia
Good interview for students to watch – to the end.
PC READS Aims to Bring Families Together through Summer Program
We’re excited for our new summer reading program, full of unique reading challenges that families can complete together!
Select the Best Graphic Organizers to Teach Math Facts and Procedures – Christopher L. Woodin, Ed. M
One of IDA’s free videos offered in spring 2020.
Switching Letters, Skipping Lines: Troubled and Dyslexic Minds
This essay was written by Hayden Miskinis, a 12 year old from Epping Middle School in Epping, NH. It was one of the top three winners in the middle school category of the New York Times Annual Student Editorial Contest.
The Top 10 Ways to Advocate for a Child with Dyslexia
This Dyslexia Quest podcast features Dr. Kelli Sandman-Hurley, author of Dyslexia Advocate.
Literacy: The Forgotten Social Justice Issue
EXCERPT: Yes, Black lives matter. But in the context of schools, as educators, as people who claim that their life’s work is for Black, brown, and disenfranchised children, we can not fully proclaim that Black Lives Matter until Black literacy does.
Prioritizing Educator Knowledge through Grassroots Activism
Inspiring article by Maria Murray, CEO and President of The Reading League.
EXCERPT: I received numerous emails from previous students once they began teaching. Their inquiries confirmed that even if knowledge of the science of reading is taught in university classes, it will likely melt away if the schools in which graduates are hired do not embrace it.
How ‘Reading Instruction’ Fails Black And Brown Children
By Natalie Wexler, author of The Knowledge Gap: The Hidden Cause of America’s Broken Education System – and How to Fix It
EXCERPT: When it comes to reading, what works is a simultaneous mix of two things at early grade levels: systematic instruction in phonics, and starting to build the kind of knowledge students will need in high school and beyond. What doesn’t work is what schools have been doing: giving a token nod to phonics while encouraging kids to guess at words, and scrapping social studies and science to focus on illusory reading comprehension skills.
Parley’s Park First Grade Teacher Kara Cook Receives PC READS Literacy Award
Congratulations to Kara Cook, the recipient of PC READS’ 2020 Elevating Literacy Award!
Every Child Is Unique… and Every Child Has to Learn the Same Skills
“It is simply not true that there are hundreds of ways to learn to read… when it comes to reading we all have roughly the same brain that imposes the same constraints and the same learning sequence.”
— Dr. Stanislas Dehaene, Reading in the Brain (2009)
This fall, teachers will be on the front lines
“How do we safely pass out and collect papers? Can students work in groups? Educators need answers.”
Is dyslexia going ‘unnoticed’ in schools?
Article out of New Zealand which notes that “Dyslexia tutors from Learning Matters saw a surge in enquiries from parents who started noticing problems with their children’s literacy, once they began helping their children to learn from home.”
Takeaways from research on tutoring to address coronavirus learning loss
Interesting article about tutoring, although it doesn’t specifically address the needs of students with learning differences.
HRH Princess Beatrice Made By Dyslexia Interview
Reading wars hit home during lockdown lessons
A personal read about the “Reading Wars” from an Australian mother.
EXCERPT: And so it began. Perched at the dining table, armed with a 257-page guide on teaching a child to read, I was about to try to do just that. My daughter, Margot, had been at school for two months when the niggling concerns about her reading progress began.
Our Dyslexic Children – 2020 – Full Film
Definitely an important and worthwhile film to watch!
10 Signs of a Decoding Problem
This article has a comprehensive list of signs for parents (or teachers) to consider if a child appears to be struggling with reading. Signs include skipping words, misreading words, and guessing at unfamiliar words.
A Parent’s Guide to Helping Your Student with Dyslexia Get Ready for College – Janet P. Thibeau
And IDA Presentation during spring 2020.
Bill requiring dyslexia screening for elementary students becomes law
News from Oklahoma.
We Can’t Teach Love But We Can Teach Reading
“No one had noticed he hadn’t the slightest idea how to tackle unfamiliar words until he got to mid-second grade and his guessing strategies began to fail him.” Unfortunately, this sentence is true for too many students.
Schools Face Challenge of Teaching Reading in Proven Way – And Now in a Pandemic
Some states are leading the way in providing teacher training based in the science of reading. Let’s hope more follow this path!
Riccards: Twenty Years After the National Reading Panel, It’s Time for a Reading Rights Movement
Senators Call for Additional Funding in Next Stimulus Package, Write Letter to Education Secretary DeVos Asking for Clear Guidance to Protect Students with Disabilities
Why every child needs explicit phonics instruction to learn to read
Good overview of the importance of teaching phonics explicitly. Students need decoding skills to read unfamiliar words.
“Without decoding skills, children could not read made-up words such as Harry Potter’s “quidditch”. Nor could they read unfamiliar names (of places such as Oodnadatta) or medication names (such as azithromycin) as these have no other cues to guide the reader to pronunciation.”
IEP and 504 Accommodations for Zoom/Online Classes.
This blog lists a few reasonable ideas on how to make Zoom or other online classes more manageable.
Why Copying from a Board is Ineffective for Dyslexics
An older article, but still relevant to student accommodations.
