TEACHING READING REALLY IS ROCKET SCIENCE. IT IS AN ENORMOUSLY- COMPLEX ACT. Donald N. Langenberg, Chair National Reading Panel Chancellor, University of Maryland

Speaking and listening come first Speaking and listening come first. But learning to read is, without question, the top priority in elementary education. Boyer, 1995, p.69

“Yes, parents may have the greatest impact on how their children come to us. But we have the greatest impact on how they leave us.” Superintendent, North Carolina

High Home Support Low Home Support Consistent High Quality Classroom Support Instruction 100% Mixed Classroom Support 25% Consistent Low Classroom Support 60% 0%

The Simple View of Reading R = D x C (Phil Gough)

Word Recognition & Comprehension Fluency Word Recognition & Comprehension

What are the Essential Components? Phonemic Awareness Phonics Vocabulary development Reading fluency Reading comprehension The Fab Five!

Classroom organization Matching pupils and texts Access to interesting texts, choice, and collaboration Writing and reading

What are the Major Findings? Most children need explicit instruction in decoding and comprehension. While fluency isn’t sufficient for comprehension, it is absolutely necessary for good comprehension. Assessment and instruction are inextricably linked. Writing, spelling, and reading are highly related, especially in the early stages of learning to read. Children should spend more time independently reading and writing. Children not reaching benchmarks benefit from daily intensive instruction.

Chall’s Stages of Reading Development

Changing Emphasis of Big Ideas K 1 2 3 Phonological Awareness Alphabetic Principle Automaticity and Fluency with the Code Vocabulary Comprehension Letter Sounds & Combinations Multisyllables Listening Reading Listening Reading

The Effects of Weaknesses in Oral Language on Reading Growth/Academic Achievement 16 15 14 13 12 11 10 9 8 7 6 5 High Oral Language in Kindergarten 5.2 years difference Reading Age Level Low Oral Language in Kindergarten (Hirsch, 1996) 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 Chronological Age

Children must become accurate readers as a first step toward becoming fluent readers.

An accurate, fluent reader will read more.

The Failure Cycle

The Reading Gap Target Actual Target: 85-90% of students can handle grade level material. Actual: Where schools say they are. The difference between the Target and Actual levels is the Reading Gap that can only be closed by comprehensive literacy strategies at the school level.

Importance of Independent Reading

Importance of Independent Reading Percentile Rank Minutes/Day (Books, Magazines, Newspapers) Words/Year 98th 67.3 4,733,000 90th 33.4 2,357,000 70th 16.9 1,168,000 50th 9.2 601,000 30th 4.3 251,000 10th 1.0 51,000 2nd 0.0 --

Reading rate is strongly correlated with comprehension.

Reading rate (fluency) is causally related to reading comprehension.

Reading rate is correlated with many other student characteristics that also influence reading comprehension. Vocabulary = .99 % F/R Lunch = .97 % Minority = .97 % ELL = .96

How much fluency (rate) is enough to facilitate good reading comprehension? DIBELS Norms H & T Norms Aimsweb Norms 1st 45 wpm 43 wpm 2nd 91 wpm 79 wpm 85 wpm 3rd 110 wpm 96 wpm 102 wpm

Oral Reading Fluency Goals Grades 1 – 2 2-3 words per week Grades 3 – 5 1½-2 words per week

The role of vocabulary becomes increasingly important as students progress in school.

Kindergarten vocabulary (PPVT) is closely related to later reading comprehension End of Grade One -- .45 End of Grade Four -- .62 End of Grade Seven -- .69 The relationship of vocabulary to reading comprehension gets stronger as texts become more complex. (Snow, 2002)

Comprehensive Vocabulary Development Wide reading Direct teaching of important words Teaching word learning strategies Fostering word consciousness

Magic Number = 1,000,000 words read per year For a child who reads 15-200 words per minute, reading 20 minutes per day will yield 1,000,000 words read in a year. Anticipated vocabulary growth: 1,000 – 4,000 new words learned

Tier One: The most basic words Rarely require instruction in school Examples: happy, bed, school

Tier Two: High-frequency words for mature language users Instruction adds productivity to an individual’s language ability Examples: coincidence, absurd, industrious

Tier Three: Words whose frequency of use is quite low, often limited to specific domains Best learned when needed in a content area Examples: isotope, lathe, peninsula

Better than I.Q. for predicting success on inferential comprehension. Prior Knowledge . . . Better than I.Q. for predicting success on inferential comprehension.

Types of Prior Knowledge Topic knowledge Text structure and organization Vocabulary

The punter kicked the ball. The baby kicked the ball. The golfer kicked the ball. How did the ball change?

Mary Lou’s heart was pounding as she stood on the highest portion of the platform, flanked by a Japanese and a Rumanian. The last two years had been worth it!

Today’s Cricket The batsmen were merciless against the bowlers. The bowlers placed their men in slips and covers, but to no avail. The batsmen hit one foul after another with an occasional six. Not once did a ball look like it would hit their stumps or be caught.

Proficient comprehension of text is influenced by: Accurate and fluent word reading skills Oral language skills Extent of conceptual and factual knowledge Knowledge and skill in use of cognitive strategies to improve comprehension or repair it when it breaks down. Reasoning and inferential skills Motivation to understand and interest in task and materials

Three Major Strategies to Teach Comprehension Reading a lot Strategic reading Deep discussions about books or articles

Two Approaches Competent reader strategies Text structure strategies

The Big Five Predict and Infer Self-Question Monitor and Clarify Evaluate and Determine Importance Summarize and Synthesize

Narrative Structure (Story Grammar) Expository (Informational) Structure

The effectiveness of instruction in comprehension strategies depends critically on how they are taught, supported, and practiced.

An explicit description of the strategy and when and how it should be used. Teacher and/or student modeling of the strategy in action. Collaborative use of the strategy in action to construct meaning of text. Guided practice using the strategy with gradual release of responsibility – scaffolding by the teacher. Independent use of the strategy.

Engaged Readers Meaningful conceptual content in reading instruction increases motivation for reading and text comprehension. Giving students choices of texts, responses, or partners during instruction. Have an abundance of interesting texts available at the right reading level for every student. Allow students the opportunity to work collaboratively with ample opportunities for discussion, questioning, and sharing.