Melissa & Lori Love Literacy ® Making Words Stick with Molly Ness and Katie Pace MIles
Jun 20, 2025
Katie Pace Miles, a researcher and co-author of "Making Words Stick," teams up with Molly Ness, another co-author and education expert, to dive into orthographic mapping. They discuss how mapping aids reading fluency and comprehension, differentiating it from mere memorization. Their four-step protocol enhances vocabulary retention, emphasizing the trifecta of phonology, orthography, and meaning. They also address tailored literacy instruction, exploring strategies for diverse reading abilities and the pivotal role of function words in language comprehension.
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Orthographic Mapping Defined
- Orthographic mapping stores a word's spelling, pronunciation, and meaning in long-term memory.
- This cognitive process is the on-ramp to fluent reading and better comprehension.
Mapped Words Free Cognitive Energy
- Mapped words become instantly recognizable and free up cognitive energy for comprehension.
- Proficient readers typically have about 50,000 orthographically mapped words.
Don't Rely On Memorization
- Avoid rote memorization like flashcard-only practice; it often fails to transfer to text.
- Teach students to analyze words so they connect pronunciation, spelling, and meaning.
