Today’s Literacy Headlines

As early literacy has become a national cause célèbre, there is momentum in about half the states to require or allow retention of students in third grade who are behind grade level in reading. The case for retention has powerful appeal. Research shows that students who are behind after third grade rarely catch up. And as RAND Corporation researchers Umut Ozek and Louis T. Mariano wrote this month in a policy brief for The Fordham Institute, the tide of research shows that retention is good for kids, at least in elementary school grades. That’s if it’s done right.

The latest batch of board books features smart offerings and sweet stories that meet young children right where they are developmentally. Many of these books are decked out with sounds, touch-and-feel elements, and die-cuts that will fully engage small hands and curious, growing minds. Also of note are the more sophisticated takes on the wider world that have continued to invade the board book category. For example, it’s now possible for toddlers to spend a few stiff pages in another country, immerse in another culture, or learn about climate change in their own.

With reading in elementary school, we can provide rigorous grade-level instruction, plan for rigorous grade-level meaningful learning opportunities, and provide responsive support. The most effective support comes in the form of just-in-time scaffolds that are temporary and provided only if needed. I focus on data to plan scaffolds (including observation and student work), rather than making assumptions about who needs them.

What, exactly, does the “science of reading” mean? The phrase has become popular over the past several years, used as a shorthand for many of the instructional changes schools have adopted to bring reading instruction more in line with research on how kids actually learn to read. But not all educators share the same definition, an EdWeek Research Center Survey found, a potential challenge to better aligning research and practice nationwide.

Jeff Kinney, author of the mega-bestselling Diary of a Wimpy Kid books, holds a unique position. With the launch of volume #18 in the series, No Brainer, he will use the requisite book tour to make a statement—in support of libraries. “We decided to put on a tour in which librarians and libraries are really the centerpiece,” he says. “These days, especially, librarians have been put in this position where they have to be very courageous, with the constant threat of book bans. Being at the center of the culture wars, libraries are in a really vulnerable position.”

The number of students in special education in the United States has doubled over the past four decades, with schools responsible for providing special services to a growing segment of their student bodies. The increase in the percentage of students on IEPs isn’t necessarily a bad thing, according to experts. While it could signal that traditional classrooms are less suited to meet the instructional needs of a growing segment of America’s student population, it could also mean that educators have become better at identifying when students need special services and parents have become less resistant to seeking them out for their children.

New works of nonfiction and fiction transcend stereotypes, and connect a wealth of ideas and facts for young readers. Over the last 25 years, children’s books by Native American authors and illustrators have presented a vibrant and expansive view of American Indians and America. Joseph Bruchac has been telling Native American stories since the 1970s, helping to fill the void he noticed as a child eager to read about his Abenaki heritage. With often inspired results, he has brought careful research to folk tales, biographies and novels.

Words matter. Bilingualism and multilingualism are superpowers. But the US education system has not always had that view. Traditionally, not speaking English has been seen as a deficit, and accented English has been considered imperfect English. This approach has made emergent bilinguals and multilingual students less confident and has reinforced stereotypes that lead to inequality. There is a rich cultural background to every student’s heritage, including the languages they speak. We must elevate and honor these students because they hold the superpower of bilingualism.

Holding back struggling readers in elementary school can yield benefits that extend in surprising directions, a recently released study suggests. In addition to improving academic performance for targeted students, the authors determine that younger siblings in the same families also see greater success in school in subsequent years. The study, circulated as a working paper through the National Bureau of Economic Research, focuses on a Florida policy that has previously been shown to boost achievement among young learners.

A new study suggests that a curriculum that promotes science learning over time not only increases students’ science vocabulary and ability to read science-related texts, it enhances their general reading comprehension and even their mathematics achievement. Researchers from Harvard University, North Carolina State University, and the American Institutes for Research investigated the effects of a curriculum intervention called the Model of Reading Engagement (MORE). MORE was designed to help children in grades 1-3 build their knowledge of social studies and science content and vocabulary.

With about 66,000 students — more than the public school enrollment in Boston or Seattle — the Pentagon’s schools for children of military members and civilian employees quietly achieve results most educators can only dream of. How does the military do it? In large part by operating a school system that is insulated from many of the problems plaguing American education. Defense Department schools are well-funded, socioeconomically and racially integrated, and have a centralized structure that is not subject to the whims of school boards or mayors.

Recent school board and public library meetings discussing specific books in collections have been packed with emotional speeches and incendiary language.  Those arguments—for removing or retaining titles—can be very compelling. They capitalize on parental fears or succeed in tapping the empathy of others. But the battle against book ban attempts should be waged from a foundation of fact and statistics, says First Book president, CEO, and co-founder Kyle Zimmer. “We should not be making educational decisions, which impact the future of our kids, our communities, and, honestly, our country, based on emotion,” Zimmer says. “This should be a data-driven conversation. That’s why First Book has stepped up with these two studies.”

Although learning to identify sounds, letters and words is necessary for reading comprehension, it is not enough. Effective readers connect what is on the page with what they already know. So, what is deep reading comprehension, and how might we promote it in schools? For starters, it looks different in each discipline.

Teachers, reading specialists and other educators conducting dyslexia screenings should pay particular attention to students’ linguistic backgrounds to avoid over- or under-identification of students whose home languages differ from the language of instruction at school, according to an advisory released Monday by the International Literacy Association. 

When teachers make their teaching and learning goals clear to their class, every activity has a purpose and every student understands what they’re doing.

In July of 2021, Robert “Robby” Asberry took over as the new superintendent of Hancock County Schools, a small district in Hawesville, Kentucky. Driven by the negative academic effects of the pandemic on students and his own son’s struggles with reading, Asberry made overhauling the district’s literacy instruction one of his first priorities. Here’s what happened next.

For years, research has pointed to dual language immersion schools as a reliable option for English learners and their monolingual English-speaking peers to achieve academic and linguistic success. However, a longstanding dearth of bilingual educators has made it difficult to ensure universal access to this type of programming. New research from The Century Foundation, a progressive think tank, explores the challenges in growing a bilingual teacher workforce as well as potential federal and state policy solutions.

Gil Gershoni is the founder of the “Dear Dyslexia Postcard Project” being launched this October for Dyslexia Awareness month. Gershoni says he grew up feeling the frustration firsthand of seeing words on the page as a puzzle, struggling to read with dyslexia. This year, he asked others to write a postcard, expressing what dyslexia means to them through artwork and a word. “To me, dyslexia is mysterious,” said Maren Samuels, 11, who is in the sixth grade at North Bridge Academy in Mill Valley.

Reading-based learning differences such as dyslexia can pose unique challenges for students in school. These challenges, however, aren’t indicative of a student’s intelligence or potential. With understanding and tailored approaches, educators can create a supportive environment for these learners. Here are five critical steps to support students with reading-based learning differences.

It’s important to recognize that teaching reading is complex and cannot be left to chance. Students need instruction all aspects of word recognition and language comprehension in a systematic and intentional way. And they deserve to have teachers to continually update their knowledge base about effective instruction and actually work to implement that knowledge.

Schools nationwide are encountering ultiple challenges as they try to drive down stubbornly high absence rates. Students’ mindsets about attending school in person every day have shifted, staff say. Families are more likely to keep sick kids home. In some places, more families are experiencing economic hardships and housing instability. Emerging state data, compiled by Chalkbeat, suggests that the stunning rise in students missing school did not come close to returning to pre-pandemic levels last school year.

Debut picture books by Jason Reynolds and Michael Datcher celebrate the cultural history of a neighborhood. One click of his camera’s shutter is all it took for the New York Times photographer Chester Higgins Jr. to capture the magic of two powerful literary figures — the regal Maya Angelou, aglitter in sequins, and the soft-shoed Amiri Baraka, shoulders bowed and knees bent — dancing together. Higgins’s photo is all it took to inspire the multi-award-winning Jason Reynolds to write his debut picture book, so he could answer the question that immediately popped into his head: “Why were they dancing?”

A truly effective SEL program needs planning, resources, and structure to succeed. Buy-in must start from the top, with the district engaging administrators at each school as well as other key stakeholders, including classroom teachers, families, and the community. In the past couple years, the superintendent in my district, Terrell Hill, prioritized an SEL plan to support educators and students for their transition into the post-pandemic academic world.

For more than 100 years, Knapp Elementary has served students in its Racine, WI neighborhood. Today, of its 465 students, 85% are considered economically disadvantaged. The class that had largely missed Kindergarten due to COVID ended first grade in the spring of 2022. Just 4 percent read on grade level. One year later, in the spring of 2023, the number of students meeting benchmarks in reading had jumped to 42 percent, a better than tenfold increase. Kindergartners and K4 early childhood learners are making similarly impressive gains. The building is now buzzing with optimism–even teachers in upper grades.

A fun and meaningful activity can help early elementary students appreciate the different languages in their backgrounds. In my class, I have students make language portraits. Language portraits can come in different shapes and sizes, such as posters, collages, questionnaires, journals, and even poetry.

Students with learning differences may need extra support to thrive in school, engage in classroom discussions, and complete tasks. But all students bring unique strengths and needs to the classroom—whether or not they have diagnosed challenges with executive functioning or a learning disability like dyslexia—educators said. Education Week asked teachers to share the best advice they’ve received for supporting students with learning differences. They spotlighted flexibility, inclusivity, and clear communication as keys to success.

Teachers can guide pre-K students to understand and appreciate nature by discussing and documenting their observations. When young children spend time in natural environments, their cognitive, social and emotional, and communication skills improve. Connecting with nature expands brain development, promotes social interaction, and provides an environment conducive for imaginary play, discovery, wonder, and effortless curiosity.

Chicago Public Schools said Monday that last year’s kindergarten, first, and second grade students made promising progress in reading, according to data from a new test now used in most district elementary schools. Officials touted reading growth on a new test called i-Ready, which students took at the beginning, middle, and end of the 2022-23 school year. According to a press release, about 40% of kindergarten through second grade students were at or above grade level in reading by May, up from just 9% in September.  

Research into children’s learning disabilities is occurring at an elevated level all over the country but applying findings into impactful solutions can take years, much to the frustration of families and educators involved. But a research effort by principal investigators from Florida State University’s Florida Center for Reading Research (FCRR), the MGH Institute of Health Professions and the University of Virginia hopes to change that. A five-year grant is behind the Learning Disabilities Translational Science Collective, a multisite research center that will utilize $8,911,922 from the Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health & Human Development. The goal: translating discoveries from research into practical solutions.

Do teachers need to choose between instructional materials being high quality or culturally relevant and responsive? That is a subtext in many debates about school curriculum. But it shouldn’t even be a question, according to a new report from The Education Trust, an advocacy and research organization. Instructional materials, the group says, must be both to best serve students. Researchers behind the report created a tool designed to analyze the degree to which children’s grade school books present a balance of complex representation of people, cultures, and topics. 

Science education must start early, because children develop their interests and passions early. And it must attract all kids, no matter their backgrounds, resources or experiences. The way to do that is to move students from learning about science from behind a classroom desk to exploring the world outside and around them — whether that’s studying drainage and flooding in an urban area or finding the angle of the sun to determine the best placement of solar panels in a rural community. Children’s minds come alive to science when they see it in every part of their world. 

Most teachers, and many parents, are well aware of IEPs, or individualized education programs. Today, an educator and parent shares her experience transforming the typical IEP process and meeting. “My child is a 5th grader, and I have been attending IEP meetings since before kindergarten. I have picked up strategies along the way to share with educators and families alike to navigate the inevitably emotional process of IEP meetings.”

In the latest children’s book from mother-daughter duo Julie Andrews and Emma Walton Hamilton, a village subdued by a mysterious purple fog finds joy again by serenading an audience of appreciative houseplants. As whimsical as it looks, and as fanciful as it sounds, The Enchanted Symphony is inspired by a true story.

SEL-focused read-alouds present an opportunity for teachers and students to build classroom community through collaboration. The discussion and questioning that read-alouds can facilitate opens opportunities for students and teachers to make personal connections with characters or events in the story and to learn about their classmates’ diverse experiences, backgrounds, and cultures—thereby developing empathy.

The goal of homework is not simply to improve academic skills. Research finds that homework may have some non-academic benefits, such as building responsibility, time management skills, and task persistence. Homework may also increase parents’ involvement in their children’s schooling. Yet, too much homework may also have some negative impacts on non-academic skills by reducing opportunities for free play, which is essential for the development of language, cognitive, self-regulation and social-emotional skills. 

A new report from The Century Foundation examines the common challenges that make it hard to build a pipeline of bilingual educators, as well as potential policy solutions. The goal is for the number of bilingual educators to grow to serve the needs of a more multilingual public school student population, and to create opportunities for more multilingual students to build successful professional careers as teachers, according to report co-author Conor P. Williams, a senior fellow at the think tank.

At the height of the pandemic, school closures disrupted many students’ lives. In 2022, nearly 16 million students across the U.S. were chronically absent, double the pre-pandemic truancy rate, according to a new Stanford University analysis. To learn more, Ali Rogin speaks with Hedy Chang, founder and executive director of Attendance Works, an organization helping schools face this challenge.

As National Ambassador for Young People’s Literature, Meg Medina is making history as the first to hold office hours. The Newbery-winning author is launching Meet Meg Medina: Family Office Hours with the National Ambassador for Young People’s Literature, an opportunity for DC-area families to speak with her for 20 minutes at the Library of Congress. In each session, children, teens, and family members can talk about their favorite books and ask questions about writing. Medina will share her favorite Library of Congress resources as well as book recommendations connected to a child’s interests.

Metacognition, the higher-order thinking that enables understanding, analysis, and control of one’s cognitive processes, especially when engaged in learning—or more simply put, evaluating how one thinks and learns—helps students develop an understanding of their own strengths and weaknesses and the strategies that are most useful in specific situations. This self-awareness promotes knowledge and optimizes understanding, memory, and independent learning skills.

A reading intervention once hailed as a “phenomenal success” for Indiana’s first graders may be one of the first phased out from schools this year as the state pushes to align elementary literacy instruction with the science of reading. Reading Recovery, an intervention which pairs first graders with trained teachers for 30 minutes of one-on-one reading help each week, was used to instruct thousands of Indiana students beginning in the 1990s and found champions at Purdue University.

Author and illustrator Jerry Craft, who won a Newbery Medal for his graphic novel The New Kid, had never been to Africa. The New York City native had also never visited a school outside of the United States. So he had no clue what to expect from students when he arrived at Nyaani Primary School in the rural Kenyan village of Wamunyu in July. It was quite the introduction for Craft and the rest of the literacy team assembled by his buddy Kwame Alexander, the #1 New York Times bestselling author of 39 books, including Newbery Medal-winner The Undefeated. 

Teaching students academic and discipline-specific language in the classroom isn’t about getting them to stockpile “big” words. Rather, researchers concur, when students know the contextual meaning of words in academic or informational texts, it allows them to unlock new and difficult materials—in the process making them better readers, which in turn exposes them to even more high-level vocabulary. 

Researchers focused on a program called Educare, which experts say could serve as a model for the future of Head Start. In a field with high turnover, Educare is known for keeping children with the same teacher until age 3. Other features — small class sizes, a full-day schedule and strong family support — further set the model apart from most early-childhood centers serving young children from poor families. Those elements pay off once children enter school, according to a recent study focusing on an Educare site in Tulsa, Oklahoma, which follows the same model as the Long Beach center. Those who spent their early years in the program entered kindergarten on pace academically with students from more affluent families, the study found. And even through third grade, they had stronger language and math skills than peers without the same early experiences.

Read one book a day for Latinx Heritage Month, from September 15 to October 15, and every month after that. From migration and history to food and family, these works capture the many complexities and joys of the Latinx culture.

Education Week interviewed longtime reading teachers caught in the evolving landscape of literacy instruction to ask what it was like for them to move from a familiar strategy for teaching reading to “science of reading”-based approaches to instruction. They described being handed a mashup of literacy curriculums over the years ranging from methods heavy on balanced literacy heavy to a “hodgepodge” of strategies that left them feeling insecure about their instructional ability and uncomfortable about students who left their classrooms without a strong reading foundation. They also revealed how, after years of teaching reading, they’ve recently embraced a more systematic and explicit method of instruction that finally has them feeling confident in their teaching roles.

Schools minister Lotta Edholm moves students off digital devices and on to books and handwriting, with teachers and experts debating the pros and cons. The return to more traditional ways of learning is a response to politicians and experts questioning whether Sweden’s hyper-digitalized approach to education, including the introduction of tablets in nursery schools, had led to a decline in basic skills.

Two middle grade debuts — the brilliant graphic memoir MEXIKID, by Pedro Martín, based on his web comic of the same name; and the richly textured novel SALSA MAGIC, by Letisha Marrero — explore how first-gen kids are empowered by the stories and experiences of their forebears. In the opening pages of “Mexikid,” Martín riffs on his first name: “They call me Peter … but my real name is Pedro. … Some people go full-on Mexican and keep their real names. Some of us slip and slide between an American-style name and a Mexican one.”

The READ Act, passed by the Minnesota legislature, mandates that school districts switch to a literacy approach that emphasizes the science of reading. But it didn’t focus on the experiences or needs of multilingual learners. Sahan Journal checked in with schools that serve immigrant communities to see how the new approach may work.

One teacher says, Instead of choosing sides, teachers can: choose explicit phonics instruction AND content-rich curriculum; choose to let go of practices unsupported by evidence; and choose culturally and linguistically responsive practices; they’re evidence-based, too.

The superintendent and his team decided to go “all-in” on improving early literacy. Instead of piecemeal changes, they put together a comprehensive reworking of our approach to early literacy, called the Every Student Reads Initiative. Starting in 2021, this initiative has impacted almost every aspect of Palo Alto’s early literacy program, from teacher development and instructional materials to district administration and leadership.

U.S. students have seen unprecedented declines in math and reading performance since the pandemic on the National Assessment of Educational Progress. Peggy Carr, the commissioner for the National Center for Education Statistics, which administers the assessment known as the Nation’s Report Card, said the NAEP system itself is changing to better understand how the pandemic has affected students and how they can regain their academic momentum.

In four new picture books, lions, tigers and house cats stand in for young children as they rein in wild emotions or finally let out a roar.

The so-called Mississippi miracle in education really isn’t one. The state’s surge in student achievement results not from divine intervention but from careful policy applied by committed human beings. One of these policies has received extra attention: the decision to hold back third-graders who don’t meet state reading standards. But by focusing too much on this rule alone, reformers risk missing what makes the broader program successful.

It took an infusion of federal funding and a national call to action to expand states’ role in summer learning. Here are 4 ways to sustain the momentum.

The term “heat recess” has entered teachers’ vocabularies recently, overtaking the long-held “rainy day recess” as a sign of a tough day ahead. Both call for the same thing: indoor activities, more supervision and antsy kids. Recess, and outdoor activities like physical education, provide young kids with a much needed break during the school day. Research says it’s important for students to let off some energy in order to come back to the classroom more focused and ready to concentrate.

Lucy Calkins ran a beloved — and criticized — center at Teachers College for four decades. It is being dissolved. Critics said Dr. Calkins downplayed phonics and overlooked a large body of scientific research on how children become skilled readers.

Nestled between a nondescript section of route 40 and the Patapsco River in Catonsville, Md., lies a 33-acre plot of land owned by Baltimore City Public Schools. Called the Great Kids Farm, the land serves as an outdoor classroom for students in the urban district. Students visit the farm during the school year for outdoor learning programs. But come summer, rising 3rd through 5th graders have the opportunity to spend up to two weeks at the farm, learning from high school-age counselors as part of the district-run summer camp.

At least two groups are working on bots that would make peer-reviewed research, buried in expensive academic journals, accessible for everyday use.

Coming off a hot Labor Day weekend, many students around the country had their return to classrooms cut short. Schools along the East Coast and in parts of the Midwest changed their schedules – in some cases sending students home early – due to heat advisories and lack of air conditioning.

The first few weeks in a classroom can help set the tone for the rest of the school year. Building a sense of safety and belonging for young students early on is critical, said Berol Dewdney, a pre-K teacher and Maryland’s 2023 teacher of the year. Dewdney also says that consistency helps children know what to expect each day, which also allows them to feel confident and safe in a familiar environment.