Kory Jensen is a 4th grade teacher in Colorado, obsessed with learning more about reading science! He read The Knowledge Gap by Natalie Wexler… which set him off to learn more about knowledge building. On today’s podcast, he talks about how background knowledge impacts his students’ comprehension and engagement (spoiler alert: they love going deep into topics!). He provides real-life examples and ways to supplement knowledge on topics through experiences, experiments, texts, videos, and more. Kory’s optimism shines through and we can’t get enough of his lifelong learner spirit. “When you build knowledge and give students opportunities to learn, you’ll be impressed by what they can do.” Thanks, Kory! Visit OUR WEBSITE to subscribe to our newsletter and podcast! https://www.literacypodcast.com/Connect with Melissa & Lori:TwitterInstagramFacebook We answer your questions about teaching reading in The Literacy 50-A Q&A Handbook for Teachers: Real-World Answers to Questions About Reading That Keep You Up at Night.Grab free resources and episode alerts! Sign up for our email list at literacypodcast.com.Join our community on Facebook, and follow us on Instagram, Facebook, & Twitter.

Today we talk with author and professor Dr. Morgan Polikoff. His first book, Beyond Standards: The Fragmentation of Education Governance and the Promise of Curriculum Reform, provides insights along the rocky road of standards in education. The goal of the standards movement is consistency, as page 39 states, “consistency in instruction across classrooms, across grades, across schools and districts. Consistency that ensures that all students receive instruction that is high quality…” Morgan is an advocate for high quality curriculum in every classroom, as a first step in implementing education reform. Visit our website and subscribe to our newsletter. Follow us!Facebook and join our Facebook Group Twitter Instagram  We answer your questions about teaching reading in The Literacy 50-A Q&A Handbook for Teachers: Real-World Answers to Questions About Reading That Keep You Up at Night.Grab free resources and episode alerts! Sign up for our email list at literacypodcast.com.Join our community on Facebook, and follow us on Instagram, Facebook, & Twitter.

Mitchell Brookins, education consultant extraordinaire (and one of the moderators of the wildly popular Facebook group Science of Reading - What I Should Have Learned in College) talks with us about this article, titled Teaching Reading to African American Children: When Home and School Language Differ by Julie A. Washington and Mark Seidenberg. We know that reading depends on spoken language. How do language variants affect how we teach reading to African American students? What are key features of African American English (AAE)? How does AAE differ from General American English (GAE)? How do we utilize this information as practitioners to empower our students? Listen and learn with us! Visit our website and subscribe to our newsletter. Follow us!Facebook and join our Facebook Group Twitter Instagram  We answer your questions about teaching reading in The Literacy 50-A Q&A Handbook for Teachers: Real-World Answers to Questions About Reading That Keep You Up at Night.Grab free resources and episode alerts! Sign up for our email list at literacypodcast.com.Join our community on Facebook, and follow us on Instagram, Facebook, & Twitter.

Francine Grannell and John Lawrence, leaders from Skaneateles School District, share how they narrowed their focus to strategically support teachers and students with year one Wit & Wisdom ELA implementation. Educators used NY State Briefs (like this one on Complex Texts) to understand and thoughtfully engage in research-based practices within the curricula. District and school leaders provided wraparound strategic support for teachers: professional learning communities, horizontal and vertical planning time, and collaboration and resources. In turn, teachers felt more empowered to discuss deeper questions than ever before. They held strong with a “trust the process” mantra, modeled a learner-mindset, and reflected on their successes and challenges to grow stronger heading into year two. Visit OUR WEBSITE to subscribe to our newsletter and podcast! https://www.literacypodcast.com/Connect with Melissa & Lori:TwitterInstagramFacebook We answer your questions about teaching reading in The Literacy 50-A Q&A Handbook for Teachers: Real-World Answers to Questions About Reading That Keep You Up at Night.Grab free resources and episode alerts! Sign up for our email list at literacypodcast.com.Join our community on Facebook, and follow us on Instagram, Facebook, & Twitter.

“I just thought kids learned how to read… and my daughter didn’t. She could identify 4 letters by the end of kindergarten .” Katie Hickerson's daughter, Cora, went from a joyous little one to a child with lots of big feelings after starting school, saying she felt stupid. Katie pulled Cora out of school to be homeschooled - providing structured literacy instruction alongside rigorous tutoring through the International Dyslexia Association. In less than two years, Cora went from meeting a 1% reading benchmark to 92% and was back to herself - full of joy, laughter, and confidence.  How can parents (and educators) support the reading science movement? Listen and learn! Visit OUR WEBSITE to subscribe to our newsletter and podcast! https://www.literacypodcast.com/Connect with Melissa & Lori:TwitterInstagramFacebook We answer your questions about teaching reading in The Literacy 50-A Q&A Handbook for Teachers: Real-World Answers to Questions About Reading That Keep You Up at Night.Grab free resources and episode alerts! Sign up for our email list at literacypodcast.com.Join our community on Facebook, and follow us on Instagram, Facebook, & Twitter.

Take time to notice.Brendan O’Day shares an important message for educators - Start by noticing: Slow down and bring back the joy of schooling. He tells the story of preparing soon-to-be leaders, guiding them skillfully to seek curiosity rather than judgement. We realize this school year is unlike any other. Brendan writes that we should “Focus on bringing back the joy of schooling. Focus on this hard, with immense love and grace and compassion and rigorous expectations for academic achievement.” How? Start by noticing. Brendan O’Day, Ed.D. is a Founding Partner of the Meristem Group, LLC. Follow him on Twitter @BrendanODay. Bonus: For our Wit & Wisdom ELA educator listeners, we make explicit connections to the classroom and how this aligns with noticing and wondering about texts and students!  Visit OUR WEBSITE to subscribe to our newsletter and podcast! https://www.literacypodcast.com/Connect with Melissa & Lori:TwitterInstagramFacebook We answer your questions about teaching reading in The Literacy 50-A Q&A Handbook for Teachers: Real-World Answers to Questions About Reading That Keep You Up at Night.Grab free resources and episode alerts! Sign up for our email list at literacypodcast.com.Join our community on Facebook, and follow us on Instagram, Facebook, & Twitter.

Matt Hoganson, Assistant Principal in Aurora, CO, is committed to unthinking and thinking again… or in other words, "in a turbulent world, there's another set of cognitive skills that might matter more: the ability to rethink and unlearn.” In the book Think Again, author and psychologist Adam Grant discusses the ability to rethink and unlearn.  As literacy leaders (and lovers), how can we unthink what we think we know about literacy and become open, divergent learners to guide this work? Matt models a learning-first approach to leading literacy in his school. If you’re interested in learning more about how Clayton Elementary School made the shift to a content-focused curriculum, check out this blog. And, if you’d like to read about Matt’s Spartan kids foundation, read this. Visit OUR WEBSITE to subscribe to our newsletter and podcast! https://www.literacypodcast.com/Connect with Melissa & Lori:TwitterInstagramFacebook We answer your questions about teaching reading in The Literacy 50-A Q&A Handbook for Teachers: Real-World Answers to Questions About Reading That Keep You Up at Night.Grab free resources and episode alerts! Sign up for our email list at literacypodcast.com.Join our community on Facebook, and follow us on Instagram, Facebook, & Twitter.

What are we aiming to accomplish in early reading instruction? Dr. Julia Lindsey asks this  as she tackles topics such as decoding, decodable texts, sound walls, and more.We discuss the role of instruction and how that pushes a child to be better instead of keeping them at the same place where they might not develop skills as an independent reader. This two-part SoR series is a must-listen for educators!Visit OUR WEBSITE to subscribe to our newsletter and podcast! https://www.literacypodcast.com/Connect with Melissa & Lori:TwitterInstagramFacebook We answer your questions about teaching reading in The Literacy 50-A Q&A Handbook for Teachers: Real-World Answers to Questions About Reading That Keep You Up at Night.Grab free resources and episode alerts! Sign up for our email list at literacypodcast.com.Join our community on Facebook, and follow us on Instagram, Facebook, & Twitter.

What are we aiming to accomplish in early reading instruction? Dr. Julia Lindsey asks this  as she tackles topics such as decoding, decodable texts, sound walls, and more. We discuss the role of instruction and how that pushes a child to be better instead of keeping them at the same place where they might not develop skills as an independent reader. This two-part SoR series is a must-listen for educators! Visit our website and subscribe to our newsletter. Follow us!Facebook and join our Facebook Group Twitter Instagram  We answer your questions about teaching reading in The Literacy 50-A Q&A Handbook for Teachers: Real-World Answers to Questions About Reading That Keep You Up at Night.Grab free resources and episode alerts! Sign up for our email list at literacypodcast.com.Join our community on Facebook, and follow us on Instagram, Facebook, & Twitter.

In today's episode, Melissa and Lori break down the components of Wit & Wisdom ELA.  Curious about Wit & Wisdom's texts and tasks? Wondering what 'integrated approach' means?  Want to learn more about the role of knowledge building in comprehension? Implementing the curricula for the first time? Then this Wit & Wisdom primer is JUST. FOR. YOU.  Visit OUR WEBSITE to subscribe to our newsletter and podcast! https://www.literacypodcast.com/Connect with Melissa & Lori:TwitterInstagramFacebookToday is a great day to start your own podcast... If you’re thinking about it, we say GO FOR IT! We love Buzzsprout for so many reasons, but especially because it’s easy to use and their customer service rocks! Use our Buzzsprout affiliate link to sign up for their podcast media hosting and get a $20 Amazon gift card.  We answer your questions about teaching reading in The Literacy 50-A Q&A Handbook for Teachers: Real-World Answers to Questions About Reading That Keep You Up at Night.Grab free resources and episode alerts! Sign up for our email list at literacypodcast.com.Join our community on Facebook, and follow us on Instagram, Facebook, & Twitter.