I have been using Evan-Moor’s Daily Reading Comprehension series for the past 5 years. This great product works well in providing regular practice and instruction that will help develop a child’s reading comprehension skills. CLICK HERE to read my full review of Evan-Moor’s Daily Reading Comprehension series. This product is very versatile and can be […]
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Reading practice is essential for developing reading fluency. Although there are a lot of books available to children, it can be challenging to find books at the right level. Leveled readers have been used historically to teach reading and build fluency. Although the current education model for teaching reading generally begins with phonics instruction, readers […]
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Two techniques to teach reading include 1) using phonics to decode words and 2) recognizing whole words by sight. Whole word reading programs have fewer prerequisite skills in comparison to decoding reading programs. CLICK HERE to read an overview of the prerequisite skills for learning to read. This article is a round-up of whole word […]
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Stimulus fading is a procedure where an extra stimulus, like a picture or cue, is used to teach a correct response and then is systematically faded out. Stimulus fading is a research based instructional approach that has been effectively used to teach children to recognize whole words (Birkan, McClannahan, & Krantz, 2007; Cory & Shamow, […]
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Reading comprehension is the ability to process text and understand what it means. CLICK HERE to read about the factors that can influence reading comprehension. This article covers reading comprehension strategies that activate prior knowledge and demonstrate how to process information from the text. This article does NOT cover methods for improving general language comprehension or […]
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Phonics reading curricula teaches children to decode words by recognizing letter combinations and blending sounds together. A quality phonics program will also work on building phonemic awareness. CLICK HERE to read an overview of research regarding phonics reading programs. I personally use an unpublished phonics program to teach decoding skills. This phonics reading curricula review […]
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A phonics based approach to reading instruction will teach children how to decode unfamiliar words. Decoding skills involve 1) recognizing letters, letter combinations, and word patterns, 2) knowing the corresponding sounds for each letter and letter combination, and 3) blending those sounds together to form words. This phonics overview covers the prerequisite skills for learning […]
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Reading fluency is the ability to read at the rate of natural speech. A child’s reading fluency can impact their reading comprehension. A fluent reader processes the visual input of text automatically, allowing them to focus their attention on the meaning of a passage and tie it in to their prior knowledge (Bos & Vaughn, […]
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Dyslexia is a reading disability that results in difficulty learning to read and decode words, but does not affect general intelligence. Symptoms include reading below grade level, difficulty with phonemic awareness, and difficulty with decoding. Parents and teachers of children with dyslexia may notice that literacy activities result in fatigue. Although there seems to be […]
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When teaching children to read, using images to support reading is a common practice. Pictures used in the right way can facilitate the development of comprehension skills; however, using pictures can also have an adverse effect. The picture blocking effect can occur when pictures are introduced with new words. Research on the picture blocking effect […]
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