Evidence Based Reading Practices

The evidence on reading instruction is a "comprehensive body of research that encompasses years of scientific knowledge, spans across many languages, and shares the contributions of experts from relevant disciplines such as education, special education, literacy, psychology, neurology, and more" (IMSE). Based on the simple view of reading by Gough and Tunmer in 1986 which describes reading as Decoding x Language Comprehension = Reading Comprehension, and the Reading Rope by Dr. Scarborough in 2001, a metaphor representing the complexity of reading, we have decades of research on how to ensure all students learn to read.

Key Principles

Reading must be taught explicitly and systematically (highly structured and highly sequenced) (National Reading Panel).
We know how the brain learns to read (Dehaene). Reading comprehension is a product of word recognition and language comprehension. Both are essential (Scarborough, Gough, and Tunme, Ehri). Both must be explicitly taught and used simultaneously for comprehension to occur.
"Phonics instruction should continue through the elementary grades (TK-5) to build deep and secure neural systems for sight word recognition" (Kilpatrick, Ehri). Each grade level focuses on different aspects of word recognition moving through a systematic phonics sequence. (See California Reading Foundations Standards.)
Teaching reading is rocket science (Moats). The evidence on teaching reading includes explicit instruction in phonemic awareness, phonics, fluency, vocabulary, and comprehension (National Reading Panel).
Teaching sound to letter correspondence is essential (Kilpatrick, Moats, National Reading Panel). "Whole-word reading is a myth". The brain processes every single letter and does not look at the whole word shape (Dehaene).
Language is the foundation of comprehension. Language skills include utilizing prior knowledge, a robust vocabulary, the ability to make inferences, and the ability to utilize morphology, text structure, and syntax to aid in comprehension (Scarborough, Gough, and Tunme, Ehri).
Strong phonological skills are the foundation for learning to read and write (Adams , Kilpatrick, National Reading Panel)
Use diagnostic and progress monitoring assessment data to inform instructional decisions.
Create a safe learning environment for students that embraces student differences, relationships, and risk-taking. Learning to read is difficult and students will need an environment that is supportive, safe, and welcoming (Hammond, 2019).
The three brain networks that are essential to learning are the recognition, strategic, and affective networks (CAST, 2018). The Universal Design principles help us design learning environments that work for all of our students.
Each of the reading ropes works together in strong readers. If one or more of the reading ropes are frayed, there is a potential for reading difficulty. Diagnostic reading assessments are key to determining how to strengthen all of the ropes.

This collection of web pages has been designed to provide educators with access to information on each of the elements of reading. Each of the pages will provide you with information on the specific component of reading, why it's important, best practices, and resources.

We invite individual or collaborative teams to use these resources to deepen your understanding of evidence-based reading practices and how to implement these practices with your learners. We encourage you to select an inquiry focus and then utilize these resources to deepen your learning as you implement evidence-based practices.

The resources are designed to be bite-sized professional learning that can be used over time. The hyperlinks provided are there to provide you with more information on that topic or strategy. These pages will be updated regularly with new resources so we hope you visit often.

RESOURCES

How the Brain Learns to Read Overview

The PK–6 Literacy Roadmap was designed to support districts with messaging and grounding theoretical frameworks into action and implementation.

Dr. Molly McCabe provides an overview of how the brain learns to read words in this webinar. She explains the importance of phonological awareness, code-based explicit, systematic, and sequential reading instruction, as well as orthographic mapping

If you are interested in a specific topic from this video, we have divided the Webinar into smaller segments: