Shanahan on Literacy

Middle school reading scores are stagnant or dropping all over the country. What can we do about that? This podcast explores what a science of reading based response should look like. If you want to help upper elementary, middle school, and high school readers, please tune in!

This episode explores the idea of teaching students with leveled books at their so-called instructional reading levels. For 70+ years, educators have been told that this was the key to optimum amounts of learning. This podcast challenges that idea.

"Experts" make lots of recommendations about how to teach oral reading or text reading fluency. One of those recommendations is that it is important to "model" oral reading for the students. The research is nearly silent on this issue, so what makes sense?

This episode explores what it meant by the term "science of reading" and it distinguishes that idea from a "science of reading instruction." The issue here has to do with what kind of evidence should be used to determine how best to teach reading.

This episode explores the effectiveness of Orton-Gillingham approaches to the teaching of phonics as well as which method is best for facilitating growth in decoding -- teaching students connect letters to sounds or sounds to letters.

This podcast explores the pluses and minuses of benchmark reading testing, including considerations of test frequency, time of day the tests are administered and who proctors the tests.

Many kids only want to read graphic novels. Is that a problem? This podcast explores the pluses and minuses of graphic novels when it comes to learning to read. It includes practical suggestions for parents and teachers.

The podcast dives into the ongoing debate surrounding reading instruction methods. It questions the effectiveness of small group teaching compared to whole-class approaches. Research findings reveal surprising drawbacks of small group strategies, pushing educators to rethink their methods. The discussion highlights the importance of equitable learning opportunities, especially for disadvantaged students. Tune in for insights that challenge conventional wisdom and aim to reshape reading education.

Discover the vital role of summer reading in children's literacy development. Dive into creative strategies like forming book clubs and letter exchanges to keep young readers engaged. Learn how to leverage local resources such as libraries and parks to foster a love for reading. With book recommendations tailored for different age groups, this conversation inspires parents to cultivate an enriching reading environment at home. Join in on the fun of exploring both fiction and non-fiction during those sunny months!

Children on the autism spectrum (ASD) present some interesting challenges when it comes to reading instruction. Part 1 of this series considered the difficulties that these children may have with decoding -- despite the fact that there are a surprising number who have hyperlexia, especially good decoding ability. However, most of these students struggle more with comprehension than decoding and this podcast explores what their comprehension problems tend to be and how they might be addressed.