Research has shown that students can be taught to comprehend the material better while they are reading. Successful instruction of this type has usually focused on the teaching of comprehension strategies — that is, intentional actions students can use during reading to guide their thinking. Such strategies improve both understanding and memory. Some strategies that have been successfully taught include summarization, questioning, story maps, comprehension monitoring, and graphic organizers; however, the teaching of the combined use of multiple strategies has been most effective in improving reading. Strategy teaching is most effective when it takes a gradual release-of-responsibility approach in which the teacher models the strategy use (“I do it”), guides students to use it successfully within reading (“We do it”), and then assigns independent practice with the strategy (“You do it”). Reading comprehension instruction needs to take place in both narrative and expository text.
Recent research has provided a clearer picture about reading difficulties and how to prevent them. This position paper of the International Dyslexia Association argues for reform in teacher preparation to reflect these research-based understandings.
It might seem that evaluating information online (just one form of “new literacy”) and reading a book (more of a foundational literacy) are pretty much the same thing. But there are differences that, when brought into the classroom and incorporated into curricula, are enriching the educational experiences of many K-12 students. Many administrators are beginning to recognize the need to revise their districts’ media skills instruction.
According to a recent major study of over 1,300 children across a seven-year period, different child care experiences influence the development of young children. Learn about these influences in this summary of a study conducted by the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development.
Day trips, vacations and special outings create special memories and great learning opportunities for families. Here are a few “stops” to make before your visit to help your child get the most out of a family or school educational experience.
Parent-teacher conferences are a great opportunity for families to sit down one-on-one with your child’s teacher and talk about school progress. Here are some tips to make the most of this time.
U.S. Presidents have lived at a mansion at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue in Washington, D.C. since it was rebuilt after it was burned by the British during the War of 1812. It is important to remember that it is voters who elect the President and their congressional representatives. Even before women could vote, they had a positive impact on the new nation. Find out a bit about the White House, voting, and some of the people who helped grow this country.
Who can understand all the jargon that’s being tossed around in education these days? Consider all the similar terms that have to do with the sounds of spoken words — phonics, phonetic spelling, phoneme awareness, phonological awareness, and phonology — all of them share the same “phon” root, so they are easy to confuse, but they are definitely different, and each, in its way, is very important in reading education.
