Reading Rockets offers a wealth of reading strategies, lessons, and activities designed to help young children learn how to read and read better. Our reading resources assist parents, teachers, and other educators in working with struggling readers who require additional help in reading fundamentals and comprehension skills development.

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For Teachers

Teachers who care about students and are knowledgeable about reading make all the difference in the world! Even though children come to school with varying language and literacy experiences, all of them benefit from the same thing – excellent reading instruction that's tailored to students' individual needs.

You are the key. Skilled teachers open the doors of opportunity for all students through reading.

The Reading Rockets web site was created for teachers like you! We gather great resources and make them easily available for free. We encourage you to print out and distribute whatever you need.

Here are some shortcuts to what you might find most useful:

Information that's research-based on how to teach reading effectively

See the Techniques for Teaching Effectively section
Order instructional materials from our online store
Dig into topics in the Articles from A-Z section

Good books that motivate kids with the pleasures of reading

Pick engaging children's books from our recommended books by theme section
Watch our video interviews with top children's book authors

Methods for helping kids who are falling behind

See the Strategies to Help Kids Who Struggle section
Pinpoint a child's reading difficulty with Target the Problem!
Provide encouragement to discouraged kids with Put Downs & Comebacks
Show a video of kids who overcame their reading difficulties called Reading Rocks!
E-mail us your questions about teaching reading and receive a confidential, personal, e-mail reply from one of our reading experts

Ideas for keeping your skills and knowledge up-to-date

Watch one of our professional development teleconferences or webcasts
Sign up for our free monthly e-newsletter

Information for helping students with special needs

Visit our sister site LD OnLine, the leading web site on learning disabilities
Find out how to teach English language learners at our ColorinColorado.org web site

Information for new teachers

See the First Year Teachers page

Ideas for strengthening parent-teacher partnerships

Learn how to build better parent-teacher relationships in this publication from the American Federation of Teachers
Discover ways to reach out to your Hispanic students and their families at our sister website Colorin Colorado
Download and use our weekly classroom newsletter template
Reading Rockets has packed a virtual Beach Bag of activities for teachers to help families get ready for summer and to launch students to fun, enriching summertime experiences.

We believe that at the heart of effective reading instruction are dedicated and knowledgeable teachers. Thank you for having the heart to be a teacher!

"Thank you so much for the quality of your newsletter; I anticipate its arrival each month!"
~ Laurie L.

Learn the challenges of teaching children to read in a new language with this PBS special called 'Becoming Bilingual,' narrated by Rita Morena. Go to store.

Reading Rockets is a national multimedia project that offers research-based and best-practice information on teaching kids to read and helping those who struggle. It is an educational service of public television station WETA in Washington, D.C.

Visit WETA's educational web sites:

© Copyright 2008. All rights reserved. Reading Rockets is funded by a grant from the U.S. Department of Education, Office of Special Education Programs. Reading Rockets® is a registered trademark of WETA.

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