Join Alana Mangham, literacy specialist for the Center for Development and Learning, as she shares her pathway from educator to changemaker in the Science of Reading field. She’ll also highlight her successful four-part literacy plan and urge you to question your instructional practices to better foster reading achievement in children today. Quotes:“The power in not being an expert to start out with is that we grow together.”“We need to give teachers credit, but we need to get to work. We have things to do.Resources:Center for Development and LearningGrowing Reading BrainsPlain Talk ConferenceNarrowing the Third Grade Reading Gap | EABWant to discuss the episode? Join our Facebook group Science of Reading: The Community.

Join Kate Cain, professor of language and literacy at Lancaster University, as she unwinds language structures, a strand of Scarborough’s Reading Rope. In the latest episode of our Deconstructing the Rope series, Kate explores language structures in the simple view of reading and explains its connections across reading comprehension in literacy development. She also highlights the reciprocal relationship between books and conversation and underscores the importance of reading aloud to children from a young age to develop their vocabulary and semantics. Quotes:“Simply knowing the individual word meanings and the word order alone is not going to be sufficient to have accurate sentence comprehension.”“The language of books is different from the language of conversation.”References:Professor Kate Cain’s Publications SiteWant to discuss the episode? Join our Facebook group Science of Reading: The Community.

Join Nancy Hennessy, past president of the International Dyslexia Association, as she unwinds vocabulary, a strand of Scarborough’s Reading Rope. In the latest episode of our Deconstructing the Rope series, Nancy defines the role of vocabulary and elaborates on the nuanced structures of comprehension in literacy instruction. She also highlights how to explicitly teach vocabulary to students through her research-backed, four-pronged approach.  Quotes:"Every one of the strands of the rope is important. If any strand frays, then reading is in jeopardy. ""Vocabulary instruction is really getting our students interested in words as the building blocks of our language." Resources:The Reading Comprehension Blueprint: Helping Students Make Meaning from Text by Nancy HennessyDaniel Willingham–Science & Education Want to discuss the episode? Join our Facebook group Science of Reading: The Community.

Join Sonia Cabell, assistant professor at the School of Teacher Education at Florida State University, in the latest episode of our Deconstructing the Rope series as she unwinds language comprehension, a strand of Scarborough’s Reading Rope. Sonia explains the true definition of language comprehension in relation to the simple view of reading and highlights the role of parents and educators in the use of advanced language models in literacy development. She also reflects on the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on teachers and families and discusses how it has highlighted the importance of education today.Quotes:“Young children are very smart. They know a great deal more than we give them credit for and they can do a lot more than we understand.”“Parents are childrens’ first teachers and so, to really embrace parents in childrens’ learning process is really critical.”Show Notes:Florida Center for Reading ResearchCore Knowledge Language ArtsWriting Into Literacy TEDx Talk by Sonia CabellEdWeek Science of Reading Article by Sonia CabellLive with the Author interviewThe Power of Conversations: Building Primary Grade Students’ Vocabulary and Comprehension in a Changing Educational Landscape by Sonia CabellTwitter: @SoniaCabellWant to discuss the episode? Join our Facebook group Science of Reading: The Community.

In this special episode, Dr. Maria Murray, President and CEO of The Reading League, analyzes the intricacies of literacy instruction and shares common misconceptions that educators have about the science of reading. She explains why The Science of Reading: A Defining Movement coalition was founded: the belief of clear understandings of what the science of reading is and what it is not to promote the proper use of instructional practices aligned with the findings from the science of reading.Quotes:“What systems do we need to change and strengthen to ensure that everyone is successful?”“Nothing creates excitement more than success.”Show notes:The Science of Reading: A Defining MovementThe Reading LeagueWant to discuss the episode? Join our Facebook group Science of Reading: The Community.Episode timestamps*03:00 Introduction: Who is Maria Murray?04:00 Seeing the impact of effective reading programs09:00 The birth of The Reading League13:00 The Reading League's growth and mission17:00 The Science of Reading: Going beyond the “buzz word”31:00 Science of Reading as an education system issue33:00 Defining the Science of Reading35:00 The Importance of a common definition43:00 Science of Reading as a social justice issue50:00 Introducing The Reading League's TV Show01:00:00 Conclusion and call to action*Timestamps are approximate, rounded to nearest minute

Join Susan Neuman, Professor of Childhood and Literacy Education at the Steinhardt School at New York University, as she unwinds background knowledge, a strand of Scarborough’s Reading Rope. In the sixth episode of our Deconstructing the Rope series, Susan explains the important link between background knowledge and reading comprehension in the science of reading and shares about her five research-based principles to build knowledge networks in literacy instruction. She also highlights the connection between speech and reading and previews her upcoming studies on the role of cross-media connections in children’s learning.Quotes: “What you’re helping children do is create a mosaic; putting all those ideas together in a knowledge network. If you don’t do it explicitly, many children cannot do it on their own.”“We’ve got to start early. We’ve got to start immediately and know that children are eager to learn and use the content to engage them.”Resources:Book: "Giving Our Children a Fighting Chance" by Susan Neuman. More books in the link.Article: Developing Low-Income Children's Vocabulary and Content Knowledge through a Shared Book Reading Program by Susan Neuman and Tanya KaeferArticle: The information book flood: Is additional exposure enough to support early literacy development? by Susan NeumanWant to discuss the episode? Join our Facebook group Science of Reading: The Community.

Join Dr. Bruce McCandliss, Professor at the Graduate School of Education of Stanford University, as he unwinds sight recognition, a strand of Scarborough’s Reading Rope. In the fifth episode of our series, Bruce explains the role of sight and word recognition in the science of reading and highlights the importance of the rapid integration of print, speech, and meaning. He also encourages listeners to be cognizant of the ever-changing, technological learning environment while nurturing young readers and writers.Quotes:“You’re continually developing the system of word recognition. It’s not a one-and-done kind of thing. It’s continually being refined; it becomes more and more automatic.““Word recognition is the ability to see a written word and then in your mind link it very precisely to how that word is spoken and what that word might mean.”Resources:Word Recognition in Beginning Literacy by Linnea EhriStanford University Educational Neuroscience InitiativeScience of Reading: The Podcast, Season 1 Episode 12 with Bruce McCandlissWant to discuss the episode? Join our Facebook group Science of Reading: The Community.

Join leading experts Natalie Wexler, Ernesto Ortiz, Dr. Carolyn Strom, and Susan Lambert for a podcast on making the shift to the science of reading. In this special episode, they discuss how educators can implement the science of reading through an incremental change on all levels, from a classroom to entire districts. Sharing their research and both professional and personal experiences, the panelists share the leadership knowledge, training, and curriculum advice you’ve been looking for. Quotes: ”We need to show how research can translate to practice–making it accessible to teachers and deeply connect it to their local reality.” –Dr. Carolyn Strom, Professor of Early Childhood Literacy and Innovation at NYU“My advice for building leaders: you have the next bigger impact on students after teachers. It’s never too late to start and it’s okay to not know everything.” –Ernesto Ortiz, Principal at McDonald Elementary School, PAShow notes:Plain Talk about Literacy and Learning ConferenceErnesto's blog: Decoding LeadershipCarolyn Strom NYU BioNatalie's books:The Knowledge Gap: The hidden cause of America's broken education system--and how to fix itThe Writing Revolution: A Guide to Advancing Thinking Through Writing in All Subjects and GradeWant to discuss the episode? Join our Facebook group Science of Reading: The Community.

Join Dr. Louisa Moats, President of Moats Associates Consulting, as she unwinds decoding, a strand of Scarborough’s Reading Rope. In the third episode of our Deconstructing the Rope series, Louisa highlights the significance of decoding in the science of reading and discusses the value of becoming students of our own language. She also mentions the reciprocal relationship between decoding and encoding and why both are essential to provide effective phonics instruction to children in the classroom.Quotes:“We need to be students of our own language so that when we accept the responsibility of teaching kids how it works, we’re very comfortable.”“We have much more insight into how kids learn any language-based academic skill, not only from neuroscience but also cognitive, developmental, linguistic, and educational intervention research.”Want to discuss the episode? Join our Facebook group Science of Reading: The Community.Episode timestamps*02:00 Introduction: Who is Louisa Moats?07:00 The Importance of teaching teachers09:00 Changes in literacy education over the years17:00 Decoding and encoding in reading22:00 The complexity of the English language26:00 Systematic and explicit instruction37:00 Spelling in relationship with the reading process43:00 The role of decodable texts46:00 Final thoughts and key takeaways*Timestamps are approximate, rounded to nearest minute

Join Alice Wiggins, Vice President of Instructional Design & Products at UnboundEd, as she unwinds word recognition, a strand of Scarborough’s Reading Rope. In the second episode of our Deconstructing the Rope series, Alice explains the role of word recognition in the science of reading and highlights the importance of explicit phonics instruction. She also urges listeners to advocate for an aligned curriculum to bring forth a systematic and equitable approach to reading for all students.Quotes:“By explicitly teaching sound spellings, we’re strengthening students’ abilities to read so they can learn more.”“For equity’s sake, we want to teach reading in a way that we cast the widest net possible and support the most students possible.”Resources:UnboundEdThe Reading Mind: A Cognitive Approach to Understanding How the Mind Reads by Daniel WillinghamLanguage at the Speed of Sight: How We Read, Why So Many Can't, and What Can Be Done About It by Mark SeidenbergInternational Dyslexia AssociationThe Reading LeagueWant to discuss the episode? Join our Facebook group Science of Reading: The Community.