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This week during an executive leadership coaching session, the principal and I found ourselves deep in conversation about the power of oral language—specifically, how teachers can use what they hear  from students to inform their next instructional move. We talked about how student talk can signal whether more modeling is needed, whether the class is ready for guided practice, or whether it’s time to release students into independent work. It struck me that, despite years of

In 2024, Dr. Matthew Burns authored an insightful article in IDA’s Perspectives on Language and Literacy Journal  emphasizing the importance of aligning instruction with students’ learning needs. The science of learning shows that students progress through a predictable set of stages as they acquire and master new skills. This framework, known as the Instructional Hierarchy  (Haring et al., 1978), provides teachers with a roadmap for delivering targeted and effective instruct

As I attended The Reading League Conference  this week, I was reminded of the tremendous value of actively engaging students in...

The difference between chaos and clarity in an explicit phonics lesson often comes down to one small, yet crucial, detail: signaling....

Reading is a complex action that requires the coordination of many cognitive skills from decoding the letters on the page to bringing...

Should students need to master foundational skills and become fluent readers before engaging with grade-level texts? In this short video,...

Published on MiddleWeb, June 10, 2025 and available at https://www.middleweb.com/52305/scaffolding-strategies-to-teach-challenging-text/

Kindergarten teachers across the U.S. are increasingly reporting that children are entering school with weaker oral language skills than...

Published in Education Week, May 20, 2025 and available at https://www.edweek.org/teaching-learning/opinion-want-students-to-read-on-grad...

In my time as an educator working in schools across the U.S., I’ve consistently encountered an untapped opportunity: the need for...

With all the necessary focus on teaching students phonics to help them become automatic word readers, there has been some debate about...

Engaging readers is crucial for educators, writers, and communicators alike. When readers actively participate with a text, they achieve...