Supporting Secondary Struggling Readers
Secondary teachers are at a disadvantage when it comes to reading instruction. So much of the focus beyond fourth grade is on meeting English language arts (ELA) standards, particularly comprehension, that preservice middle and...
Phonemic Awareness and Phonics Instruction Are NOT the Way We Learn to Read
An appropriate way to honor Kenneth Goodman is to describe a presentation I gave recently as a guest lecturer in a class at the University of Southern California. I began by telling the students...
Creating Contentment
In our media-saturated environment of ubiquitous devices, streaming video, and the pressure to keep up with instant messages and social media, students are often portrayed as mindless consumers of popular culture. But even the...
Balancing in Sync
Inequalities. Growing failing rates. Achievement gaps. Learning loss. The concerns I had for students falling into the student categories of the “haves” and “have nots” as we headed further and further into this pandemic...
Shortening Distances
This past year added a new layer to the challenges that language teachers perennially confront with the pivot to online learning. In this article, I will share a semester-long project that took place in...
Learning from Long Shadows
My decade-long involvement in shadowing projects across the country has taught me that the average percentage of time that multilingual learners (MLLs) are speaking is often 5–10%. This is in contrast to what researchers...
Realia for Radical Teaching
Chasing the Gingerbread Man around the halls of my elementary school was the experience that made me fall in love with reading. Our class had just finished a book about him, and all of...
Tips for Launching a District-Wide Phonics Program
Over the course of a few years here at Lumpkin County Schools, our leadership team began to realize that literacy was a root cause of many challenges in our district. We serve a large...
Grade Expectations
A week before spring break, I had a conversation with a student about language learning. Since I was a language learner myself, the student asked me for tips on learning a second language. Instead...
Managing Reunions
This fall, many educators across the U.S. will be welcoming students back to brick-and-mortar classrooms for the first time in 18 months. Along with feeling excitement at resuming in-person learning, educators may simultaneously feel...