Finland has become famous for their play based learning for kindergarten aged children. This has turned heads because academically, Finland always ranks high on their test performance. And since the United States continues to place high importance on eradicating poverty through our education system, and simultaneously working to ensure our future workforce is the best in the world, the US is searching for the best methods of teaching our students.
Many families have heard or used the advice that if your students is struggling to read, the "best thing you [parents] can do is read more." While students certainly have to read to become better readers, students need specific skills to successfully read a book. Without those skills, trying to read a book is going … Continue reading The Myth That Parents “Just Reading More” With Struggling Readers And How To Better Practice Reading
Dyslexia. Reading Disabilities. Learning Disability in Reading. Language disability. These names are all used to refer to students with a pronounced reading struggle that cannot be explained by lack of instruction or other cognitive difficulties. That means, by definition, dyslexia is NOT related to mental retardation. A student with dyslexia is just as intelligent as … Continue reading A Quick Guide To Dyslexia (Info Graphic)
Need: Student scores intensive or strategic on the CORE letter sound survey. (If you don't have a CORE Phonics survey I highly recommend buying and using it frequently. That is a gold mine of data for teachers. However, you can always check their letter sound from flash cards.) Example Research Based Interventions: Make flash … Continue reading Educational Intervention: Student is struggling to recall their letter sounds.
Need: Student scores strategic or intensive on naming their letters on the CORE Phonics survey. (strategic is 65-82, intensive is 0-64). Approximate Developmental Age: Kindergarten/Pre-School Example Research Based Interventions: The teacher opens each session with these instructions (adapted from Schuster et al., 1990): "I am going to show you cards with letters/numbers/words. If you know … Continue reading Educational Intervention: Student Cannot Name Their Letters