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Shannon and Mary record their Season 8 finale, catching up on what they've been doing during the school year. They've both been busy with balancing personal and professional responsibilities, with work hours increasing for Shannon in tutoring and for Mary in advocacy work and supporting parents in IEP meetings. In their tutoring practices, they're both advancing beyond decoding work with many of their students, and during the discussion, they both realized they had adopted sentence-composing activities, inspired by 8.8's guest, Sara Lee. During the discussion, they detail how their students use literature-based model sentences and scaffolded imitation to build sentence skills, comprehension, and vocabulary. Shannon describes how she adds language support using English Linking Blocks and word lists. The discussion then highlights their excitement about UFLI's upcoming structured morphology curriculum, Word Origins (adapted from Australia). In the episode chat, they also touch on the AMIRA screener, Mary's recent SWI professional learning through Word Torque, and how they're both supporting students' math knowledge and skills in their tutoring. Listen in to catch up with these reading teachers and find out how their literacy instruction continues to evolve.

00:38 Life as Busy Parents
02:30 Tutoring and Advocacy Load
04:29 Discovering Sentence Composing
07:37 Harry Potter Hook
09:17 Linking Blocks Breakthrough
13:18 From Sentences to Writing
19:43 Structured Morphology Word Origins
22:58 Structured Morphology Wins
23:48 Curriculum Fidelity First
27:06 Word Origins Details
28:41 Australia Connections
31:17 Getting It Into Schools
32:15 Georgia Reading Screening
37:59 Math Fluency Intervention
40:22 Subitizing And Word Problems
47:12 Wrap Up Season Notes

RECOMMENDED RESOURCES RELEVANT TO THE EPISODE:

1. UFLI Word Origins news updates form
2. UFLI Word Origins Information
3. Hands-On English Linking Blocks
4. Word Torque website
5. Word Inquiry In Action
6. Reviews of Curriculum - The Reading League
7. GA Dyslexia Handbook related to updated laws for HS 307
8. Math Their Way
9. Aubree Teaches - conceptual, visual math
10. Aubree Teaches - store (this is not an affiliated link)

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Shannon and Mary welcome Dr. Ellen Ballock and Julia D'Onofrio from Gordon College to talk about teacher preparation programs. Discover how they design and implement teacher prep programs focused on literacy instruction, the science of reading, and practical teaching methods. Our guests shed light on the importance of comprehensive training, common misconceptions in literacy education, and the roles of explicit instruction and evidence-based practices. They also delve into how their curriculum bridges gaps in teacher knowledge, ensuring future educators are well-equipped to foster student success. This episode will likely remind you of your own teacher training and inspire you, making you feel hopeful about the future of our field and for new teacher candidates.

01:16 Meet Today’s Guests
05:10 Teacher Prep Shifts Nationwide
10:54 Data Language and Decision Making
14:36 Unlearning Balanced Literacy
18:06 Teaching Phonemic Awareness to Adults
22:06 Modeling Explicit Instruction
25:39 Morphology and Word Study
29:49 Curriculum Partnerships and Fidelity
32:01 Adapting Curriculum with Scaffolds
35:50 Redesigning for Comprehension
38:13 Gateway Checks for Think Alouds
40:39 Coaching Struggling Candidates
43:53 Writing Methods and Sentence Work
48:22 Sentence Composing Mentor Models
52:11 Practicum Pathway and Feedback
01:03:04 Doctoral Program for Change Agents
01:07:19 Closing Thanks and Takeaways

RECOMMENDED RESOURCES RELEVANT TO THE EPISODE:

1. Gordon College
2. Sentence Composing (Don Killgallon)
3. Grammar for Middle School: A Sentence Composing Approach by Don and Jenny Killgallon *Amazon affiliate link
4. NCTQ
5. Early literacy observation tool (Massachusetts)
6. Moat's Survey of Teacher Knowledge
7. How Spelling Supports Reading article by Louisa Moats
8. Gordon College's Science of Learning Doctoral Program

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In this episode of the Reading Teacher's Lounge, hosts Mary and Shannon welcome expert Sara Lee to discuss best practices for teaching grammar and syntax. They dive into how understanding sentence structure, grammatical functions, and modifiers can elevate both reading comprehension and writing skills for students of all ages. Sara emphasizes the importance of embedding grammar instruction within reading and writing activities, and provides practical strategies for making grammar engaging and relevant. Specific strategies, such as focusing on sentence nuclei, harnessing descriptive modifiers, and being mindful of students' language acquisition backgrounds, are discussed. Additionally, Sara emphasizes the importance of providing meaningful practice opportunities and underscores the value of understanding grammar as the structure of language. The episode is rich with actionable insights and resources to help teachers better support their students.

NOTE FROM GUEST:

Re: our discussion about adverbs at minute 33 in the episode, I want to make sure listeners understand that the word "so" can also modify adverbs (as adverbs can modify other adverbs), rather than thinking that adverbs can only modify adjectives.

01:38 Introducing Our Special Guest: Sara Lee
02:31 Diving into Grammar and Syntax
05:33 Understanding Grammatical Functions
07:55 Challenges and Resources for Teaching Grammar
10:04 Practical Applications and Student Engagement
12:41 The Importance of Sentence Structure
25:05 Using AI to Enhance Grammar Lessons
32:23 Supporting Multi-Language Learners
35:22 Challenges in Teaching Writing
36:38 Tips for Enhancing Writing Skills
39:34 Using Sentence Nucleus for Creativity
41:28 Grammar in Reading and Writing Instruction
44:30 Engaging Students in Grammar
48:41 Resources for Teaching Grammar
01:02:02 Making Grammar Fun and Approachable
01:03:18 Conclusion and Final Thoughts

RECOMMENDED RESOURCES RELEVANT TO THE EPISODE:

1. The Literacy Doctor
2. Sentence Composing (Don Killgallon)
3. Grammar for Middle School: A Sentence Composing Approach by Don and Jenny Killgallon *Amazon affiliate link
4. The Death of Practice (Sara's blog post)
5. Grammarism
6. Linguistics Girl
7. Word Hippo
8. Video from Dr. Bowers and Marie Foley (Nested Combinatorial Structure)
9. Timothy Shanahan's blog post: Comprehension Instruction that Really Helps-Teaching Cohesion
10. Evan Moor Daily Paragraph Editing book *Amazon affiliate link

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In this episode, we explore effective practices for supporting students with homework. Join us as we discuss strategies to foster a productive & stress-free homework environment. We cover the importance of EF, the advantages and challenges of traditional homework, & how to address post-COVID implications. Also, we share insights on balancing homework with students' SEL, creative engagement techniques, & practical communication tips for accommodations.

01:14 Supporting Learners at Home
02:20 The Role of Executive Functioning in Homework
05:27 Creative Homework Approaches
09:01 Simplifying Homework for Better Engagement
10:32 Flexible and Individualized Homework Strategies
19:24 Creating a Productive Homework Environment
25:28 Understanding Executive Functioning in Children
26:07 Dealing with Meltdowns and Connection Issues
27:37 Empathy and Minimal Help Strategies
28:07 Middle School Homework Challenges
29:28 Reaching Out to Teachers for Support
29:58 Effective Homework Breaks and Routines
36:55 Positive Feedback and Encouragement
43:52 The Role of Parents in Homework Success
44:22 Reading Logs and Encouraging Curiosity
46:59 Research on Homework Benefits
48:18 Conclusion and Resources

RECOMMENDED RESOURCES RELEVANT TO THE EPISODE:

1. Reading Rockets: What the Research Says About the Value of Homework
2. Understood.org Homework Challenges & Strategies
3. 11 Tips for Helping Your Child Manage Homework
4. Why Nov. is Hard For Students and 7 Ways Parents Can Help
5. Infographic: How Does Homework Actually Affect Students?
6. Stanford Research Shows Pitfalls of Homework
7. Copy of Mary's Email
8. Scripts to Use When Requesting Support
9. Effective Practices for Homework
10. 5 Homework Strategies for Working with Students with Learning Disabilities
11. Tips for Parents
12. Timer * affiliate

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Shannon and Mary revisit the topic of Structured Word Inquiry (SWI) and discuss the importance of understanding the deliberate reasons for English spellings with guests Jennifer Petrich and Bradley Johnson.

The conversation follows the hosts' and guests' experiences with SWI, detailing how it helps students understand and apply the structure of English spelling with its focus on word structures, etymology, and morphology.

Emphasizing a shift from a phonics-only approach to one that also prioritizes morphology & etymology, the episode highlights the importance of starting with word meaning and developing scientific inquiry skills in literacy teaching.

The journey into SWI is one of discovery, collaboration, & continuous learning. With the tools and strategies shared, educators can confidently embark on this path, helping their students gain a deeper understanding of the rich tapestry that is the English language.

Join the conversation and dive into the world of SWI. Whether you're an educator, a parent, or a lifelong learner, there’s always more to uncover in the fascinating study of words.

01:01 Welcome to the RTL
01:44 Introduction to SWI
03:11 Meet the Guests: Jennifer Petrich and Bradley Johnson
04:25 Jennifer's Journey with Dyslexia and SWI
07:10 Bradley's Path to SWI
12:14 Explaining SWI to Teachers
21:59 Importance of Meaning & Morphology
34:25 Importance of Lifelong Learning
35:01 Introducing SWI
35:34 Overcoming the Fear of Not Knowing
36:12 Utilizing Curricular Modules and Materials
37:26 Inquiry-Based Learning in the Classroom
38:26 Developing Content Knowledge and Pedagogical Skills
40:33 The Role of Big Ideas in Teaching
42:43 Practical Applications and Teacher Experiences
43:18 Scientific Inquiry in Word Study
44:09 Integrating Phonics & Morphology
54:17 The Importance of Community & Collaboration
59:02 Final Thoughts & Resources

RECOMMENDED RESOURCES RELEVANT TO THE EPISODE:

1. The Literacy Doctor website
2. One Step Now Education
3. Dyslexia Training Institute
4. Pete Bowers's website
5. Our Season 7 episode with Dr. Peter Bowers about SWI
6. The High Frequency Word Project book by Rebecca Loveless & Fiona Hamilton *Amazon affiliate link
7. The Literacy Doctor weekly drop-ins (on Wed. )
8. Investigating English Spelling by Bradley Johnson and Jennifer Petrich *Amazon affiliate link
9. Structured Word Inquiry in the Classroom (FB group)
10. Marie Foley's course

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Mary and Shannon are joined by Lindsay Kemeny, a returning guest and 1st grade teacher. Lindsay discusses her latest book and shares insights into structuring an effective literacy block. During the chat, Lindsay stresses the importance of routines, transitions, and frequent student responses in her data-driven instruction. Lindsay also opens up about her personal journey, detailing how her son's struggles with dyslexia transformed her teaching methods. The conversation covers practical tips for teaching phonics, spelling, high-frequency words, and integrating content into literacy. Listen to the episode to learn valuable tips for optimizing your reading instruction.

01:17 Welcoming Back Lindsay Kemeny
01:49 Lindsay's Journey and New Books
03:36 Implementing Literacy Block Changes
07:04 Structuring the Literacy Block
08:53 The Importance of Data and Intervention
21:09 Green Chef Sponsorship
22:07 Phonics and Spelling Integration
28:20 Reflecting on Classroom Data
28:39 Optimizing Lessons and Routines
35:06 The Importance of Student Responses
37:08 Focusing on Progress, Not Perfection
39:55 A Personal Journey with Dyslexia
52:36 Final Thoughts and Resources

RECOMMENDED RESOURCES RELEVANT TO THE EPISODE:

1. Our Season 6 episode with Lindsay: Best Reading Instruction Moves
2. Our Season 7 episode: The Reading Team
3. Lindsay's website
4. Lindsay's podcast: Literacy Talks
5. Rock Your Literacy Block by Lindsay Kemeny *Amazon affiliate link
6. 7 Mighty Moves by Lindsay Kemeny *Amazon affiliate link
7. 7 Mighty Moves Reading Resources (companion book) by Lindsay Kemeny *Amazon affiliate link
8. Reading Rockets: An Example of the 90 Minute Reading Block
9. Ascend (Smarter Intervention): How Do I Fit It All In?
10. Reading Rockets: What Does Your Literacy Block Look Like? It Depends.
11. Timothy Shanahan: How Would You Schedule the Reading Instruction?
12. Mississippi Dept of Ed: Suggested Instructional Routines for Teaching Reading First Through Fifth Grade

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Educator and author Erin Waters joins Shannon and Mary to discuss supporting the whole child through Social-Emotional Learning (SEL). Erin shares her teaching journey and highlights the crucial connection between SEL & literacy development—because our students aren’t just learning to read; they’re learning who they are. They explore what SEL looks like in real classrooms: morning meetings that build community, read-alouds that spark emotional awareness, and simple coping strategies that help students manage anxiety and stress. The discussion also acknowledges the lasting impact of the digital age and the COVID-19 pandemic on students’ social-emotional well-being, as more children than ever are navigating big feelings.Erin introduces her book Wally Is Worried as a relatable resource for helping children understand and express their emotions. Listeners will walk away with practical tools, recommended texts, and encouragement to make SEL an intentional part of everyday literacy instruction.

01:40 Special Guest: Erin Waters on SEL
03:06 Defining SEL and Its Importance
06:03 Real-World SEL Classroom Experiences
11:41 Impact of Digital Age on SEL
16:18 Post-COVID SEL Challenges
21:43 Coping Mechanisms and Solutions
39:16 Final Thoughts and Resources

RECOMMENDED RESOURCES RELEVANT TO THE EPISODE:

1. Wally is Worried by Erin Waters *Amazon affiliate link
2. Our engagement episode
3. Our technology episode
4. Book list with SEL topics, curated by Love Grows Learning
5. Big Little Feelings blog
6. NEA (National Education Association): SEL Resources
7. Reading Rockets: Classroom Strategies that Support SEL
8. Reading with Relevance: a CASEL-certified SEL supplemental program
9. CASEL.org
10. Centervention: 95 Social Emotional Learning Activities
11. Integrating SEL Into Your Reading Block
12. Children's Institute: SEL Resources and Tools
13. Erin Waters' website
14. Connect with Erin via IG

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In this episode, you're getting a preview of the types of conversations happening with educators in our bonus subscription episodes.

This month, Shannon and Mary chat with Dr. Jasmine Rogers, a reading specialist and college educator, about her dual roles in literacy. Dr. Rogers discusses her research on African American English (AAE) and structured literacy, emphasizing the importance of affirming behaviors in promoting student motivation and effective communication. Drawing on personal experiences and professional expertise, she emphasizes the importance of affirming diverse dialects, including Black English, and fostering an inclusive and supportive classroom environment. The episode also covers translanguaging and strategies for teachers to support multilingual students, highlighting the significance of creating a positive, inclusive, and affirming classroom environment. Tune in to learn more about effective teaching practices, the science of reading, and how teachers can better support students from diverse linguistic backgrounds.

0:00 Welcome to the Reading Teacher Lounge

01:09 Introducing Dr. Jasmine Rogers

02:37 Understanding Black Language in Education

04:34 Research on Affirming Student Language

07:32 The Importance of Cultural Awareness in Teaching

13:55 Personal Experiences and Reflections

15:48 Journey into Structured Literacy

17:37 Merging Identity with Teaching Practices

22:14 Reflecting on Teaching Practices

23:03 The Power of Translanguaging

24:57 Effective Communication Techniques

26:55 Building Positive Classroom Environments

30:04 Supporting Teachers and Students

31:29 The Importance of Authenticity in Teaching

32:59 Insights from Research

36:12 Morphology and Language Learning

39:50 Final Thoughts and Farewells

RESOURCES MENTIONED IN THE EPISODE

1. Dr. Jasmine's website
2. Connect with Dr. Jasmine Rogers through her website
3. Connect with Dr. Jasmine Rogers through LinkedIn
4. 44 Phonemes Video from RRFTS (Rollins Center for Language and Literacy)
5. DC Public Schools Reading Clinic
6. Frayer Model
7. Strive for Five Conversations by Tricia Zucker and Sonia Cabell *Amazon affiliate link
8. Education Week: What is Translanguaging and How Is it Used in the Classroom?
9. Buy us a coffee

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In this special episode of the Reading Teachers Lounge, hosts Shannon and Mary have an engaging and insightful conversation with acclaimed children's author Kate DiCamillo about treasured stories. They explore Kate's journey as a writer, discussing the profound impact of her debut novel 'Because of Winn-Dixie,' the themes of her books, and the role of animals in her stories. Kate shares her thoughts on writing with empathy, the importance of ending stories with hope, and the joy of reading aloud. Highlights include listener questions about vocabulary development and character inspirations, and Kate's reflections on the magical connection formed between readers and stories.

RESOURCES MENTIONED DURING THE EPISODE:

1. Ferris by Kate DiCamillo *Amazon affiliate link
2. Kate DiCamillo's website
3. Contact Kate via Candlewick Press

Kate DiCamillo
c/o Candlewick Press
99 Dover Street
Somerville, MA 02144 4. Because of Winn-Dixie by Kate DiCamillo Amazon affiliate link 5. The Tiger Rising by Kate DiCamillo Amazon affiliate link 6. The Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane by Kate DiCamillo Amazon affiliate link 7. The Tale of Despereaux by Kate DiCamillo Amazon affiliate link 8. Louisiana's Way Home by Kate DiCamillo Amazon affiliate link 9. Facebook page for Kate DiCamillo 10. Story resources for teachers 11. Mercy Watson Books by Kate DiCamillo Amazon affiliate link 12. Flora and Ulysses by Kate DiCamillo Amazon affiliate link 13. Raymie Nightingale by Kate DiCamillo Amazon affiliate link 14. our 6.16 Delightful Word Learning episode 15. Bookworms reading curriculum * Buy us a coffee * Bonus Episodes access through your podcast app * Bonus episodes access through Patreon * Free Rubrics Guide created by us * Finding Good Books Guide created by us

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Shannon and Mary kick off the new season with reflections on how far the podcast has come, from family anecdotes to stories of former students thriving—like Rigby, a once-struggling reader now headed to college. They share practical tips for using Canva to teach morphology, highlight successes from their summer tutoring, and discuss balancing work, rest, and family life. Additionally, they unveil exciting plans to feature more teacher voices in the show through their bonus episodes, available to all subscribers.

RESOURCES MENTIONED DURING THE EPISODE:

1. Mary's husband's band Cherokee Ave Project
2. Google form for teacher guests
3. Marie Foley Visuals Morphology class
4. Geodes decodables
5. Handwriting Without Tears
6. Bookworms
7. Amplify CKLA
8. Blossom & Root
9. Buy us a coffee
10. Bonus Episodes access through your podcast app
11. Bonus episodes access through Patreon
12. Free Rubrics Guide created by us
13. Finding Good Books Guide created by us

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Shannon and Mary look back over Season 7 and reflect on what really matters for our reading students. "The right things for our learners" emerged as the unofficial theme of our seventh season. This phrase encapsulates what each of us strives for – cutting through the noise to identify the most impactful practices for the unique students in front of us.

The conversations with our guests this season revealed a common thread: the need to simplify and focus on what's most important. In this episode, Shannon and Mary share some of their key takeaways from the discussions with the podcast guests over the course of the season. They also provide details about the professional learning they've done over the past year, changes they've made in their own teaching practices, and new resources they're using with their students.

We want to hear from YOU in Season 8! If you're interested in joining us as a guest to discuss real classroom experiences, email us at team@readingteacherslounge.com or reach out through our social media handle @ReadingTeachersLounge

LINKS FOR RESOURCES MENTIONED IN THE EPISODE:

1. Magic School AI
2. Chat GPT (Mary uses for decodables)
3. Dyslexia GA DOE resources
4. Season 7 overall link
5. SWI resouces
6. Uncovering the Logic of English by Denise Eide *Amazon affiliate link
7. All About Spelling
8. Spelling for Life by Lyn Stone *Amazon affiliate link
9. Bonus Episodes access through your podcast app
10. Bonus episodes access through Patreon
11. Free Rubrics Guide created by us
12. Finding Good Books Guide created by us

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Shannon and Mary chat with Dr. Katie Pace-Miles about MTSS and RTI, sharing practical tips for delivering effective reading interventions, choosing quality resources, and running efficient team meetings to support struggling readers. Whether you're a classroom teacher trying to support struggling readers, a specialist designing intervention programs, or a parent advocating for your child, this conversation provides clear, actionable guidance for making literacy interventions both manageable and truly impactful.

LINKS FOR RESOURCES MENTIONED IN THE EPISODE:

1. Easy CBM
2. Making Words Stick by Katie Pace Miles and Molly Ness Amazon affiliate link
3. our episode with Molly Ness from Season 6
4. overview of MTSS/RTI from understood.org
5. meeting norms
6. FCRR Fast Phrases
7. Wrights Law
8. Caregiver Guide from Katie Pace Miles
9. Letter Knowledge Guide from Katie Pace Miles
10. The Reading Institute website
11. The Reading Institute on IG
12. The Reading Institute (LinkedIn)
13. The Reading Institute (Facebook)
14. Katie Pace Miles' website
15. Connect with Katie through LinkedIn
16. Find Katie on IG
17. McGraw Hill Science of Literacy Library:
    A free resource hub containing blogs, videos, research reports, and more— designed to connect teachers with practical classroom resources and Professional Learning tips.
18. Bonus Episodes access through your podcast app
19. Bonus episodes access through Patreon
20. Free Rubrics Guide created by us
21. Finding Good Books Guide created by us

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What's really happening when students struggle to stay on task, complete assignments, or transition between activities? In this illuminating conversation with literacy experts Dr. Matt Strader and Dr. Douglas Fisher, Shannon and Mary delve into the complex world of executive functioning and its impact on classroom performance. Executive functioning isn't just about behavior—it's about cognitive processes happening in the brain's prefrontal cortex. Both guests help us understand the crucial distinction between the neurological processes of executive functioning and the observable skills of self-regulation.

RESOURCES MENTIONED DURING THE EPISODE:

1. McGraw-Hill Science of Literacy Library:
   A free resource hub containing blogs, videos, research reports, and more— designed to connect teachers with practical classroom resources and Professional Learning tips.
2. Dr. Douglas Fisher's website
3. Dr. Matt Strader on LinkedIn
4. Executive Skills and Reading Comprehension: A Guide for Educators by Kelly Cartwright and Nell Duke *Amazon affiliate link
5. Center on the Developing Child from Harvard University
6. Deborah Phillips-EF as the "air traffic control system"
7. Lynn Meltzer- mountain versus trees (cognitive flexibility)
8. Amy Berry- Teacher expectations on engagement
9. Timothy Shanahan's blog from 2022 on Executive Functioning and Reading
10. Center on the Developing Child (Harvard University): EF- video
11. Unmasking Autism by Devon Price Amazon affiliate link
12. FCRR: Alphabet Arc
13. Promoting Executive Functioning in the Classroom by Lynn Meltzer Amazon affiliate link
14. Cognitive Challenges article by Stephen Chew and William Cerbin
15. Bandura-outcome expectations
16. Understood.org: What is neurodiversity?
17. Bonus Episodes access through your podcast app
18. Bonus episodes access through Patreon
19. Free Rubrics Guide created by us
20. Finding Good Books Guide created by us

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Shannon and Mary talk with Dr. Jeanette Mancilla-Martinez about supporting Multi-Language Learners, exploring language development, daily classroom language demands, and practical strategies to help MLLs thrive. The information presented is relevant for teachers, administrators, and support staff seeking practical tools to enhance instruction for multilingual learners.

RESOURCES MENTIONED DURING THE EPISODE:

1. Our Season 5 Episode 2: Supporting English Language Learners
2. McGraw-Hill Science of Literacy Library:
   A free resource hub containing blogs, videos, research reports, and more— designed to connect teachers with practical classroom resources and Professional Learning tips.
3. Vanderbilt University: Jennifer Mancilla-Martinez
4. Edutopia: Using SIOP with English Learners
5. Savvas Learning Company: SIOP Model Professional Learning
6. Impact of Multilingualism and Learning Patterns on Student Achievement in English and other subjects by Raees Calafato and Kevin Simmonds
7. WIDA Can Do Descriptors for various grade levels
8. Reading Rockets: What Does Research Tell Us About Teaching Reading to English Language Learners?
9. Academic Language and ELLS: What Teachers Need to Know
10. Reading Horizons: What's the Difference Between ESL, EFL, ESOL, ELL, MLL, and ESP?
11. Bonus Episodes access through your podcast app
12. Bonus episodes access through Patreon
13. Free Rubrics Guide created by us
14. Finding Good Books Guide created by us
15. Information about our Patreon membership

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Shannon chats with Laura Stewart (from 95 Percent Group) about bold moves that literacy leaders can take to transform the literacy practices in their learning communities. Laura provides stories and strategies relating to successfully implementing best practices informed by the Science of Reading into schools and classrooms, and Shannon shares some real-life examples of what she's learned to do and not to do as a literacy leader. Listen and also download the recommended resources from the show notes to be empowered in your transformation efforts.

RESOURCES MENTIONED DURING THE EPISODE:

1. The Courage to Lead: 10 Bold Moves for Transformational Change by Laura Stewart ebook (download link from our Google Drive)
2. bio for Laura Stewart, 95 Percent Group's Chief Academic Officer
3. Becoming a Literacy Leader by Jennifer Allen Amazon affiliate link
4. Cox Campus Structured Literacy training
5. The Courage to Teach: Exploring the Inner Landscape of a Teacher's life by Parker Palmer *Amazon affiliate link
6. Science of Reading 2.0 ebook from 95 Percent Group
7. Uphill Climb article by Laura Stewart
8. NIRN Hub
9. EdWEb.net Recording with Laura Stewart and Ken Kirby regarding Professional Learning in 2025
10. 95 Percent Group on IG
11. 95 Percent Group on Twitter/X
12. 95 Percent Group on Facebook
13. Morpeheme Magic
14. Science of Reading Defining Guide (The Reading League)
15. Bonus Episodes access through your podcast app
16. Bonus episodes access through Patreon
17. Free Rubrics Guide created by us
18. Finding Good Books Guide created by us
19. Information about our Patreon membership

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Shannon and Mary welcome Dr. Timothy Shanahan to the Reading Teachers Lounge to quiet the noise within the literacy community and help us all realize the MOST important things we should be doing for our learners according to the reading research. Listeners will find out what practices and activities they should prioritize to improve their students' reading achievement.

RESOURCES MENTIONED DURING THE EPISODE:

1. Leveled Reading, Leveled Lives: How Students' Reading Achievement Has Been Held Back and What We Can Do About It by Timothy Shanahan (available for PreOrder) *Amazon affililate link
2. Dr. Shanahan's website (Shananan on Literacy)
3. Dr. Shanahan's blog
4. Connect with Dr. Shananan via Facebook
5. Dr. Shanahan's blog post about Comprehension (mentions text cohesion)
6. Are We Teaching Reading Comprehension Part II: 6 Things Every Teacher Should Know (blog post by Dr. Shanahan)
7. 30 Second Mysteries *Amazon affiliate link
8. McGraw-Hill Science of Literacy Library:
   A free resource hub containing blogs, videos, research reports, and more— designed to connect teachers with practical classroom resources and Professional Learning tips.
9. Bonus Episodes access through your podcast app
10. Bonus episodes access through Patreon
11. Free Rubrics Guide created by us
12. Finding Good Books Guide created by us
13. Information about our Patreon membership

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Shannon and Mary chat with Brandi Dugal from The Fidget Game, featured on Shark Tank, about unique ways to engage and motivate students to learn. They share methods for gamification, brain breaks, and other strategies teachers can use to increase student engagement. Listen for ideas to make reading more fun and how to help motivate even the most reluctant readers to get excited about their learning.

RESOURCES MENTIONED DURING THE EPISODE:

1. The Fidget Game website
2. Fidget Game TikTok account
3. Shannon's favorite (FREE) growth mindset activities via TpT-lower grades
4. Shannon's favorite (FREE) growth mindset activities via TpT-upper grades
5. The Fidget Game for purchase *Amazon affiliate link
6. King Komodo game for purchase *Amazon affiliate link
7. SquishyLand game for purchase *Amazon affiliate link
8. The Vocabulary game for purchase *Amazon affiliate link
9. ASCD: New Thinking about Student Engagement
10. Bonus Episodes access through your podcast app
11. Bonus episodes access through Patreon
12. Free Rubrics Guide created by us
13. Finding Good Books Guide created by us
14. Information about our Patreon membership

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Dr. Pete Bowers shared how Structured Word Inquiry (SWI) transforms spelling and vocabulary into tools for deep thinking - perfect for engaging advanced and struggling readers in the elementary reading classroom.
We encourage the listeners to also check out this episode on YouTube to learn from the visuals Dr. Bowers shared during the discussion (link is at the top of the show notes).

RESOURCES MENTIONED DURING THE EPISODE:

1. Our Youtube link to the episode
2. Pete Bower's Word Works Kingston website: See MANY helpful links at the bottom of the page. We use this homepage as a hub for SWI information.
3. Dr. Bowers' Monday 5 pm EST office hours link
4. Real Spelling Toolbox
5. Active View of Reading Duke, Cartwright, 2021
6. Homophone Principle - described in this lesson
7. David Share: Self teaching
8. "Ultra-detailed brain map shows neurons that encode words’ meaning" Nature 631, 264 (2024)
9. Spelling Out Orthography demonstration video from Dr. Bowers
10. Document describing a SWI hunt for all the jobs of the final, non-syllabic
11. Video from Dr. Bowers with Marie Foley about The Nested Combinatorial Nature of English Spelling
12. 2025 Reading League presentation from Dr. Bowers about Morphological Instruction and Language Comprehension
13. Upcoming SWI Training in June 2025 with Pete Bowers and Rebecca Loveless
14. Upcoming 4 day in-person training with Dr. Bowers in July 2025 on Wolfe Island
15. Structured Word Inquiry: An Implementation Guide for Teachers by Jennifer A Constantine and Kara B Lee *Amazon affiliate link
16. Teaching How the Written Word Works by Peter Bowers (via www.wvced.com Store)
17. Bonus Episodes access through your podcast app
18. Bonus episodes access through Patreon
19. Free Rubrics Guide created by us
20. Finding Good Books Guide created by us
21. Information about our Patreon membership

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How can teachers effectively support advanced readers in elementary school? In this insightful episode, we’re joined by literacy expert Nancy Young to explore practical, evidence-based strategies for meeting the needs of gifted and high-achieving readers in the classroom.

Nancy shares her expertise on differentiation strategies, including offering choice in reading materials, using tiered assignments, and implementing project-based learning to keep advanced readers engaged. We also discuss how to encourage critical thinking, promote independent reading, and create meaningful peer discussion and mentorship opportunities.

Whether you’re a classroom teacher, reading specialist, or literacy coach, this episode offers valuable tools and inspiration to elevate your elementary reading instruction and ensure all students—especially your strongest readers—are challenged and supported.

RESOURCES MENTIONED DURING THE EPISODE:

1. Updated Ladder of Reading & Writing with permissions for usage
2. Chapter 2 of her book-free download
3. Guided Inquiry Design
4. SEM-R. School-wide enrichment model for reading
5. William and Mary Center for Gifted Ed Resources
6. Climbing the Ladder of Reading & Writing by Nancy Young and Jan Hasbrouck *Amazon affiliate link
7. contact Nancy via her website
8. Acceleration Institute
9. Subject-specific acceleration across grade grouping *Google drive file download
10. Bonus Episodes access through your podcast app
11. Bonus episodes access through Patreon
12. Free Rubrics Guide created by us
13. Finding Good Books Guide created by us
14. Information about our Patreon membership

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Shannon and Mary welcome Brandon Cardet-Hernadez from Mrs. Wordsmith to the RTL to chat about smart technology resources. They talk about intentional uses of technology resources for instructional purposes and what skills will be required as our students advance in the next part of the 21st century. Listeners will gain ideas for ways to incorporate technology to elevate students' learning.

RESOURCES MENTIONED DURING THE EPISODE:

1. Mrs. Wordsmith website
2. Edutopia article: SAMR model
3. How to use SAMR in Designing Instruction
4. Instagram for Mrs. Wordsmith
5. Facebook for Mrs. Wordsmith
6. Youtube for Mrs. Wordsmith
7. TikTok for Mrs. Wordsmith
8. Word Tag Vocabulary Learning app from Mrs. Wordsmith
9. Science of Reading white paper from Mrs. Wordsmith
10. Free Literacy resources from Mrs Wordsmith
11. Bonus Episodes access through your podcast app
12. Bonus episodes access through Patreon
13. Free Rubrics Guide created by us
14. Finding Good Books Guide created by us
15. Information about our Patreon membership

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Shannon and Mary talk with Melissa Taylor from ImaginationSoup.net about the importance of nonfiction texts in a student's reading diet. They chat about the flexible comprehension strategies students need to organize the information gathered from nonfiction and text features and structures that are specific to nonfiction texts. Listeners should walk away inspired to put more NF texts in their readers hands.

RESOURCES MENTIONED DURING THE EPISODE:

1. Imagination Soup
2. Melissa's Article: Reading Nonfiction Prepares Kids for Success
3. Comprehension Strategies
4. types of NF texts
5. CBS Sunday Morning-Finland schools Media Literacy story
6. Refutational Texts
7. Melissa on IG
8. Melissa on FB
9. Bonus Episodes access through your podcast app
10. Bonus episodes access through Patreon
11. Free Rubrics Guide created by us
12. Finding Good Books Guide created by us
13. Information about our Patreon membership

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Shannon and Mary welcome LaMonica Williams from Teaching Matters back to the Reading Teachers Lounge. This time they chat about professional development experiences and the most effective ways to bring about positive change in school systems. They discuss the differences between management and leadership and how to foster student-centered school improvement.

RESOURCES MENTIONED DURING THE EPISODE:

1. Changes that Stick (Kappan)
2. Teaching Matters website
3. NYC Reads
4. Student Focused Coaching by Jan Hasbrouck and Daryl Michel Amazon affiliate link
5. our previous episode with LaMonica Williams
6. The Good Struggle of Flexible Specificity
7. Reading Universe
8. LaMonica's Bio & Contact Information
9. Bonus Episodes access through your podcast app
10. Bonus episodes access through Patreon
11. Free Rubrics Guide created by us
12. Finding Good Books Guide created by us
13. Information about our Patreon membership

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Shannon and Mary chat with Katherine Hamilton about maximizing the learning impact of co-teaching. The conversation is centered around an article from Choice Literacy written by Franki Sibberson titled Aligning Curriculum with Struggling Readers in Mind. The article proposes that co-teachers need to reflect and determine how their various teaching activities and strategies align into a cohesive instructional plan for the students, so that the readers can build transferable skills they can apply across the school-day.

RESOURCES MENTIONED DURING THE EPISODE:

1. Choice Literacy article by Franki Sibberson
2. Ensemble Learning
3. Thinking Maps
4. Six Approaches to CoTeaching
5. 6 Models of CoTeaching
6. Collaborative Team Teaching: Challenges and Rewards
7. Bonus Episodes access through your podcast app
8. Bonus episodes access through Patreon
9. Free Rubrics Guide created by us
10. Finding Good Books Guide created by us
11. Information about our Patreon membership

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Shannon and Mary welcome @MindfulTeacherRachel back to the podcast to discuss strategies for helping their students strengthen spelling skills. They talk about the stability of English spelling and the meaning-based reasons for a word's spelling, beyond sound-symbol connections. Listeners will know what to look for in students' spelling errors and accuracies and walk away with fresh ideas for spelling instruction.

RESOURCES MENTIONED DURING THE EPISODE:

1. Our Etymology episode with Rachel
2. our Schwa episode with Rachel
3. Morrison-McCall Spelling Scale
4. spelling error analysis sheets from Rachel
5. Uncovering the Logic of English by Denise Eide Amazon affiliate link
6. Spelling for Life by Lyn Stone Amazon affiliate link
7. How to Teach Spelling by Laura Toby Rudginsky and Elizabeth C. Haskell Amazon affiliate link
8. Dyslexia and Spelling by Kelli Sandman-Hurley Amazon affiliate link
9. And Sometimes Y by Rachel
10. Short Vowel Proctors by Rachel
11. Schwa in 1st Grade by Rachel
12. Rachel on IG
13. Rachel on Tiktok
14. Explode the Code
15. Words Their Way Spelling Inventory
16. Spelling Choice Tests
17. Sound Mounds (the Eppich Classroom)
18. Scribal O
19. Bonus Episodes access through your podcast app
20. Bonus episodes access through Patreon
21. Free Rubrics Guide created by us
22. Finding Good Books Guide created by us
23. Information about our Patreon membership

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Shannon and Mary welcome Heidi Martin (@Droppin' Knowledge with Heidi) back to the podcast, and Heidi's husband, Adam, a LETRS trainer, also joins the conversation. They talk about all the aspects that go into the topic of Word Knowledge. What are all the things students should know and understand about a word to demonstrate complete knowledge of that term? You'll walk away from listening to this episode with a more complete understanding of all the layers of skills within Word knowledge that we need to help our readers build.

RESOURCES MENTIONED DURING THE EPISODE:

1. Heidi's website
2. Heidi's social media TikTok
3. Heidi's social media Instagram
4. Heidi on FB
5. Heidi's decodables
6. Heidi's freebie about the Reading Brain
7. SOR 101 (Science of Reading 101) Membership
8. Strive for Five Conversations by Sonia Cabell and Tricia Zucker *Amazon affiliate link
9. Etymonline
10. our previous Science of Reading episode with Heidi
11. our episode about Delightful Word Learning with Collette Hiller
12. InferCabulary
13. 3 Clicks Spelling
14. Spelling Riddles
15. Morpheme Magic
16. Structured Word Inquiry (Dr. Pete Bowers)
17. Bonus Episodes access through your podcast app
18. Bonus episodes access through Patreon
19. Free Rubrics Guide created by us
20. Finding Good Books Guide created by us
21. Information about our Patreon membership

Brilliant Beaver Guidebook - Audio Version
Engage kids aged 6-9 with fun, screen-free activities from the world of scouting
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Shannon and Mary welcome Marty Martinez from Reach Out and Read and Judy Newman from Scholastic to the podcast to talk about Book Equity. They share ideas for getting quality books in students' hands and nurturing students' reading diversity.

RESOURCES MENTIONED DURING THE EPISODE:

1. Reach Out and Read website
2. Evidence Based Research initiatives for Reach Out and Read
3. Their list of 35 books
4. Their impact statistics
5. Modeling of Shared Reading
6. our Molly Ness (Read Aloud) episode
7. our Books as Mirrors, Windows, and Doors episode
8. Reach out and Read website about Scholastic ’35 for 35’ collaboration
9. Reach out and Read x Scholastic ’35 for 35’ partnership press release
10. Connect with Reach Out and Read on Twitter/X @reachoutandread
11. Watch and Subscribe to their YouTube content @ReachOutandRead
12. Connect with Reach Out and Read on Facebook @reachoutandread
13. Connect with Reach Out and Read on IG @reachoutandread
14. Scholastic's Teaching Tools: Diverse Books for Students
15. Scholastic's Parent Store for Diverse Books
16. Scholastic's Teacher Store with Diversity Collections
17. Bonus Episodes access through your podcast app
18. Bonus episodes access through Patreon
19. Free Rubrics Guide created by us
20. Finding Good Books Guide created by us
21. Information about our Patreon membership

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Shannon and Mary welcome Marty Martinez from Reach Out and Read and Judy Newman from Scholastic to the podcast to talk about Book Equity. They share ideas for getting quality books in students' hands and nurturing students' reading diversity.

RESOURCES MENTIONED DURING THE EPISODE:

1. Reach Out and Read website
2. Evidence Based Research initiatives for Reach Out and Read
3. Their list of 35 books
4. Their impact statistics
5. Modeling of Shared Reading
6. our Molly Ness (Read Aloud) episode
7. our Books as Mirrors, Windows, and Doors episode
8. Reach out and Read website about Scholastic ’35 for 35’ collaboration
9. Reach out and Read x Scholastic ’35 for 35’ partnership press release
10. Connect with Reach Out and Read on Twitter/X @reachoutandread
11. Watch and Subscribe to their YouTube content @ReachOutandRead
12. Connect with Reach Out and Read on Facebook @reachoutandread
13. Connect with Reach Out and Read on IG @reachoutandread
14. Scholastic's Teaching Tools: Diverse Books for Students
15. Scholastic's Parent Store for Diverse Books
16. Scholastic's Teacher Store with Diversity Collections
17. Get Literacy Support through our Patreon

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This is our 2nd exclusive bonus episode of Reading Teachers Lounge podcast. In these episodes, Shannon and Mary will share about the students they're helping in reading, the resources they're using, and the books and other materials they're studying to further their practical knowledge about the Science of Reading.

In September 2024, Shannon and Mary provide details about their tutoring students of various ages and how they're using different curriculum resources with their readers. Mary shares how she's using Bookworms, All About Spelling, Measured Mom Plus, and the Times Tales resources with her students. Shannon talks about the free Structured Literacy training she's taking online through Cox Campus. She also chats about how she's working on handwriting skills, preparing for the structure of MAP testing questioning format, and using the UFLI reading curriculum with the 1st grader she's working with.

RESOURCES MENTIONED IN THE EPISODE:

1. All About Spelling curriculum
2. Bookworms-baseball
3. Times Tales
4. All About Reading curriculum
5. Anna Geiger: Measured Mom Plus
6. Cox Campus Structured Literacy Training
7. CERI certification
8. our favorite FCRR game (long/short vowels sort)
9. Disc Shooter *Amazon affiliate link
10. Strive for Five Conversations by Tricia Zucker and Sonia Cabell *Amazon affiliate link
11. UFLI reading curriculum
12. Fundations Letter Formation Guide
13. Get Literacy Support through our Patreon

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Shannon and Mary have an informative and inspiring chat with Karen Gross. They learn details about how the Covid-19 pandemic affected teachers and students. Karen shares why the role of teachers is more difficult today, and she provides tons of specific ways teachers can fill their cups and take care of themselves and their class. If you've experienced stress or trauma, you'll discover ideas from this discussion with Karen about healing.

RESOURCES MENTIONED DURING THE EPISODE:

1. Mending Education: Finding Hope, Creativity, and Mental Wellness in Times of Trauma by Karen Gross and Edward K. S. Wang * Amazon affiliate link
2. Trauma Doesn't Stop at the School Door: Strategies and Solutions for Educators, PreK-College by Karen Gross * Amazon affiliate link
3. Virtual Teachers Lounge
4. Yoga with Adriene on YouTube (This is Shannon's favorite yoga channel)
5. Mirror Neurons (article by American Psychological Association)
6. The Other 3 Senses You Never Knew Existed but You Should: vestibular system, proprioception, and interoception
7. Understanding and treating a dysregulated nervous system: signs, symptoms, and rebalancing techniques
8. Karen's website
9. Follow Karen on Facebook @karengrossedu
10. Bonus Episodes access through your podcast app
11. Bonus episodes access through Patreon
12. Free Rubrics Guide created by us
13. Finding Good Books Guide created by us
14. Information about our Patreon membership

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• Get Literacy Support through our Patreon

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Shannon and Mary have an informative and inspiring chat with Karen Gross. They learn details about how the Covid-19 pandemic affected teachers and students. Karen shares why the role of teachers is more difficult today, and she provides tons of specific ways teachers can fill their cups and take care of themselves and their class. If you've experienced stress or trauma, you'll discover ideas from this discussion with Karen about healing.

RESOURCES MENTIONED DURING THE EPISODE:

1. Mending Education: Finding Hope, Creativity, and Mental Wellness in Times of Trauma by Karen Gross and Edward K. S. Wang * Amazon affiliate link
2. Trauma Doesn't Stop at the School Door: Strategies and Solutions for Educators, PreK-College by Karen Gross * Amazon affiliate link
3. Virtual Teachers Lounge
4. Yoga with Adriene on YouTube (This is Shannon's favorite yoga channel)
5. Mirror Neurons (article by American Psychological Association)
6. The Other 3 Senses You Never Knew Existed but You Should: vestibular system, proprioception, and interoception
7. Understanding and treating a dysregulated nervous system: signs, symptoms, and rebalancing techniques
8. Karen's website
9. Follow Karen on Facebook @karengrossedu
10. Get Literacy Support through our Patreon

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Mary and Shannon catch up with each other after the summer & podcast break. They chat about their own children, their personal lives, and their plans for this upcoming school year. They discuss the implementation of Georgia's dyslexia bill this year. They share about their professional reading and learning. And they fill listeners in on the activities they've done through their Patreon community and about some free reading guides they've created over the summer. This new year is full of changes and possibilities!

RESOURCES MENTIONED DURING THE EPISODE:

1. Strive for Five by Tricia Zucker and Sonia Cabell *Amazon affiliate link
2. List from GA DOE Universal Screeners
3. GA Dyslexia Videos
4. Bonus Episodes access through your podcast app
5. Bonus episodes access through Patreon
6. Free Rubrics Guide created by us
7. Finding Good Books Guide created by us
8. Information about our Patreon membership

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Mary and Shannon catch up with each other after the summer & podcast break. They chat about their own children, their personal lives, and their plans for this upcoming school year. They discuss the implementation of Georgia's dyslexia bill this year. They share about their professional reading and learning. And they fill listeners in on the activities they've done through their Patreon community and about some free reading guides they've created over the summer. This new year is full of changes and possibilities!

RESOURCES MENTIONED DURING THE EPISODE:

1. Strive for Five by Tricia Zucker and Sonia Cabell *Amazon affiliate link
2. List from GA DOE Universal Screeners
3. GA Dyslexia Videos
4. Bonus Episodes access through your podcast app
5. Bonus episodes access through Patreon
6. Free Rubrics Guide created by us
7. Finding Good Books Guide created by us
8. Information about our Patreon membership
9. Get Literacy Support through our Patreon

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This is our first exclusive bonus episode of Reading Teachers Lounge podcast. In these episodes, Shannon and Mary will share about the students they're helping in reading, the resources they're using, and the books and other materials they're studying to further their practical knowledge about the Science of Reading.

In August 2024, Shannon and Mary go step by step through interpreting the results of a student's writing screener. Shannon talks about using Fundations handwriting guide and the UFLI curriculum and apps with her first grade tutoring student. Mary shares how she's using Bookworms, Mrs. Wordsmith, Times Tales, and the Measured Mom with her tutoring students.

Resources Mentioned

1. Cherry Lee Writing Screener PDF
2. Measured Mom Plus - a paid membership for materials created by Anna Geiger. There are also many freebies!
3. fundations letter formation guide
4. Times Tales - a story based way for students to practice multiplication automaticity (once they have mastered the concept of multiplication only.)
5. UFLI Toolbox
6. UFLI apps
7. handwriting app
8. Bookworms Shared Reading
9. Mrs. Wordsmith
10. The Writing Revolution by Judith C. Hochman and Natalie Wexler *Amazon affiliate link
11. Uncovering the Logic of English by Denise Eide *Amazon affiliate link
12. Teaching Reading in Small Groups by Jennifer Serravallo *Amazon affiliate link
13. The New Art and Science of Teaching Reading by Julia A. Simms and Robert J. Marzano *Amazon affiliate link
14. The Reading Comprehension Blueprint Activity Book by Nancy Lewis Hennessy *Amazon affiliate link
15. Get Literacy Support through our Patreon

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Shannon and Mary chat with Jennifer Serravallo, whose literacy work they have long admired. Jennifer shares how her view about reading instruction have evolved over time. Jennifer's written a new book showing teachers different structured models for responsive teaching called Teaching Reading Across the Day, and she gives us many ideas from us the book about how teachers can apply the art of teaching to set up their literacy blocks to best meet their students' needs.

RECOMMENDED RESOURCES AND ONES MENTIONED DURING THE EPISODE

1. Teaching Reading Across the Day, Grades K-8: Methods and Structures for Engaging, Explicit Instruction by Jennifer Serravallo *Amazon affiliate link
2. The Reading Strategies Book 2.0 by Jennifer Serravallo *Amazon affiliate link
3. The Writing Strategies Book: Your Everything Guide to Developing Skilled Writers by Jennifer Serravallo *Amazon affiliate link
4. A Systematic Review of the Research on Vocabulary Instruction that Impacts Text Comprehension by Tanya S. Write and Gina N. Cervetti
5. Sci-Hub (to find reference articles)
6. Re:Thinking with Adam Grant (podcast mentioned)
7. Using Vocabulary Strategies for Independent Word Learning (blog on Jennifer's website and podcast discussion with Freddie Hiebert)
8. Effects of Fluency Oriented Instruction on Motivation for Reading of Struggling Readers by Gene Mehigan
9. Jennifer's website
10. Jennifer's podcast
11. Jennifer on Twitter/X:
12. Join us at Educate and Rejuvenate July 2024
13. Get a free Green Chef box using our link.

Comic Boom - Comics in Education
An education podcast exploring the use of comics in education. Each episode I’ll be...

Listen on: Apple Podcasts Spotify

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We have a summer bonus episode for you!
Shannon and Mary have Anna Geiger, the Measured Mom, join them in the lounge again to discuss the best evidence based practices that teachers can use to reach all readers. Anna's new book provides teachers and parents with a consolidated understanding of the Science of Reading findings.

RECOMMENDED RESOURCES AND ONES MENTIONED DURING THE EPISODE

1. our Season 5 episode with Anna Geiger, about Orthographic Mapping
2. Reach All Readers: Using the Science of Reading to Transform Your Literacy Instruction by Anna Geiger Amazon affiliate link
3. Use this link after purchase to get free bonus resources connected to Anna's book.
4. Anna's website The Measured Mom *with lots of freebies!
5. Anna's podcast: Triple R Teaching
6. Strive for Five Conversations: A Framework That Gets Kids Talking To Accelerate Their Language Comprehension & Literacy by Tricia Zucker and Sonia Cabell *Amazon affiliate link
7. Join us at Educate and Rejuvenate July 2024
8. Get a free Green Chef box using our link.

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Shannon and Mary gather together to review the school year and close out the podcast season. They give updates on their personal and teaching lives and share their summer plans. Later they're joined by Kelsey (wifeteachermommy) to talk about Educate and Rejuvenate 2024.

RECOMMENDED RESOURCES AND ONES MENTIONED DURING THE EPISODE

1. Cox Campus K-3rd Structured Literacy Training program
2. CERI certification
3. Join us at Educate and Rejuvenate July 2024
4. Kelsey's podcast episode with Kristina Kuzmic
5. Kelsey's podcast episode with Gaspare Randazzo
6. Get a free Green Chef box using our link.

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Shannon and Mary chat with Nancy Young and Jan Hasbrouck about differentiation and the latest updates to the Ladder of Reading and Writing. Listeners will get a better understanding of WHY it's so important to make adjustments to curriculum, instruction, activities, and/or assessments in order to meet the various needs of their students.

RECOMMENDED RESOURCES AND ONES MENTIONED DURING THE EPISODE
1. our season 4 episode with Nancy Young 2. our 2021 episode about the updates to the Ladder of Reading and Writing (more updated have been done since then, which Nancy details in this current episode) 3. the Ladder of Reading and Writing infographic, references, terminology, and usage/permission guides 4. Climbing the Ladder of Reading & Writing: Meeting the Needs of ALL Leaners by Nancy Young and Jan Hasbrouck Amazon Affiliate link 5. extra resources related to the book from Benchmark Education 6. Conquering Dyslexia: A Guide to Early Detection and Intervention for Teachers and Families by Jan Hasbrouck Ph.D. Amazon affiliate link 7. The Science of Reading video, with Dr. Jan Hasbrouck and ReadWA 8. Read Washington 9. Contact Nancy via e-mail: nyoung@nancyyoung.ca 10. Nancy Young's account on Twitter 11. Jan Hasbrouck's account on Twitter 12. Join us at Educate and Rejuvenate July 2024 13. Get a free Green Chef box using our link.

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Shannon and Mary chat with critically acclaimed author and experienced actress & advocate Colette Hiller about ways to make word learning innovative and fun. Colette is releasing a new book titled Colossal Words for Kids, which combines educational poetry with vibrant illustrations to teach new words and related content knowledge. The book is delightful and so is Colette. Listen to this episode to gain creative ideas about how to help get students excited about word learning and how to help make the vocabulary stick in the students' minds.

RECOMMENDED RESOURCES AND ONES MENTIONED DURING THE EPISODE

1. Colossal Words for Kids by Colette Hiller, Illustrated by Tor Freeman Amazon affiliate link
2. The B on Your Thumb: 60 Poems to Boost Reading and Spelling by Colette Hiller, Illustrated by Tor Freeman Amazon affiliate link
3. Colette's website
4. NPR Ways with Words
5. Street Pianos project
6. Statue Stories Chicago
7. our episode about Building Vocabulary-check out the show note links
8. our episode about Morphology-check out the show note links
9. our episode about Etymology-check out the show not links
10. Get a free Green Chef box using our link.

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Shannon and Mary chat about how to best support learners with working memory challenges. This is a companion episode to a deep dive learning topic we went through with our Patreon community about Working Memory. Listeners to this episode will walk away with increased awareness about which students may have working memory challenges AND strategies to help those students during reading instruction.

RECOMMENDED RESOURCES AND ONES MENTIONED DURING THE EPISODE

1. Working Memory and Learning: A Practical Guide for Teachers 1st Edition
   by Susan Gathercole (Author), Tracy Packiam Alloway (Author) Amazon affiliate link
2. What Is Working Memory? Understanding our mental ‘scratchpad’
   Writer: Rae Jacobson Clinical Experts: Matthew Cruger, PhD , Linda Hecker, MEd
3. 8 Working Memory Boosters
4. Why I Can't Remember Things -- How ADHD Affects Working Memory
5. 15 Memory Exercises for Forgetful Kids
6. Improving Working Memory Capacity | Torkel Klingberg | TEDxNorrköping
7. Dr. Erica Warren Executive Functioning activities
8. Lumosity app
9. Brain HQ app
10. Peak app
11. Get a free Green Chef box using our link.

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Shannon and Mary talk with Kelly Butler and Carla Stanford about professional learning that is meaningful. Kelly Butler worked with the Barksdale Reading Institute to bring about systems change in reading instruction in the state of Mississippi over the last twenty years. Kelly and Carla share about a free resource they're working on now called Reading Universe, which is a one-stop shop for teachers and interested stakeholders to learn about best practices in teaching reading.

RECOMMENDED RESOURCES AND ONES MENTIONED DURING THE EPISODE

1. ReadingUniverse.org
2. Reading Universe Taxonomy
3. REAP (Reading is Essential for All People)
4. Timely Talks
5. 10 Maxims
6. Scaling Up for Success
7. Why It Matters
8. Right to Read Project (Lunch & Lit)
9. Simple View of Reading Episode Season 5 Episode 9
10. Cuban Literacy Initiative
11. Contact Kelly Butler via e-mail: kbutler@msreads.org
12. Contact Carla Stanford via e-mail: cstanford@weta.org
13. Get a free Green Chef box using our link.

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Shannon and Mary chat with speech therapist Dr. Karen Dudek Brannan about the overlaps between speech, reading, and language. Dr. Karen helps us understand the challenges facing students with language impairments. From this episode, teachers can understand the perspective of a speech therapist to better understand speech and language challenges. After listening, you should walk away with ideas about conversations to have with the speech therapist in your building and an awareness of language challenges your students may face within your curriculum.

RECOMMENDED RESOURCES AND ONES MENTIONED DURING THE EPISODE

1. Dr. Karen's website
2. De Facto Leaders Podcast
3. Ultimate Guide to Sentence Structure
4. free Executive Functioning Implementation Guide for School Teams from Dr. Karen
5. Free Training from Dr. Karen about the 5-component Framework for Language Intervention
6. Free training from Dr. Karen about support that is evidence-based and neurodiversity-affirming (by building executive functioning skills)
7. Contact Dr. Karen on LinkedIn
8. Dr. Karen on IG
9. Dr. Karen on Facebook
10. Super Sentences graphic organizer (Bookworms) -need to sign up for a free login & then find in grades 3-5 printables
11. Super Sentences rubric grade 5 (Bookworms) -need to sign up for a free login & then find in grades 3-5 printables
12. Get a free Green Chef box using our link.

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Shannon and Mary discuss the importance of prioritizing handwriting instruction simultaneously with reading and writing instruction in the early grades. Learn why handwriting is essential for overall literacy development and how to include it in your daily instruction.

RECOMMENDED RESOURCES AND ONES MENTIONED DURING THE EPISODE

1. The Importance of Teaching Handwriting by Louise Spear Swerling
2. Writing by hand may increase brain connectivity more than typing, readings of student brains suggest by Aria Bendix
3. The unexpected connection between handwriting and learning to read by Sheldon H Horowitz
4. HOW HANDWRITING AND LITERACY SKILLS GO HAND-IN-HAND
5. The Importance of Teaching Handwriting
6. 7 Reasons Why Handwriting Is Important for Kids
7. The Importance of teaching handwriting for cognitive development - PLD (Australia)
8. How to Teach Handwriting—and Why It Matters
9. Why Don’t the Common-Core Standards Include Cursive Writing?
10. 6 Multisensory ways to teach handwriting
11. What Every Teacher Should Know about Handwriting (LWT)
12. Learning Without Tears Guides
13. Reading Universe
14. The Importance of Handwriting Experience on the Development of the Literate Brain by Karin H. James
15. Get a free Green Chef box using our link.

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Shannon shares with Mary the steps she follows for analyzing student data. This Date Your Data process requires multiple steps of looking at test scores, improvement goals, student strengths and weaknesses, and then connecting the data to standards to facilitate data-driven instruction. This method of data review makes the test score information meaningful to teachers, students, parents, and other stakeholders. Listen to find out how to Date Your Data to get to know your students and their learning better.

RECOMMENDED RESOURCES AND ONES MENTIONED DURING THE EPISODE

1. our Season 1 episode: Understanding the MAP test
2. Date Your Data free handout for MAP scores *created by Shannon
3. Date Your Data free handout for analyzing other data sources *created by Shannon
4. NWEA MAP Test information (login needed)
5. NWEA MAP Test website (no login needed)
6. MAP Quadrant Chart Analysis & Reflection *created by Shannon
7. Get a free Green Chef box using our link.

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Shannon and Mary are joined in by Linda Rhyne in the Reading Teachers Lounge. They share a deep dive of information from the book, The Knowledge Gap by Natalie Wexler. This episode is full of information and strategies to increase your student's knowledge helping them dive deep into comprehension and knowledge building. Linda Rhyne is a returning guest to the show and shares her expertise in guiding professional discussions to help educators meet their student's literacy goals.

RECOMMENDED RESOURCES AND ONES MENTIONED DURING THE EPISODE

1. The Knowledge Gap by Natalie Wexler *Amazon affiliate link
2. The Reading Comprehension Blueprint by Nancy Lewis Hennessy *Amazon affiliate link
3. The Reading Comprehension Blueprint Activity book by Nancy Lewis Hennessy *Amazon affiliate link
4. Cultivating Genius: An Equity Framework for Culturally and Historically Responsive Literacy by Gholdy Muhammad *Amazon affiliate link
5. Linda Rhyne Consulting
6. Placing Texts at the Center of the Science Aligned ELA Classroom PDF
   M. Liben, S. Pimentel
7. Podcast recommended listening: Melissa and Lori Love Literacy, Ep. 37: Placing Text at the Center of the ELA Classroom with Meredith Liben & Sue Pimentel
8. Knowledge Matters Campaign
9. Tim Shananon blog: Knowledge or Comprehension Strategies?
10. Centering Knowledge Building: An Interactive Reading Guide. Users can access the materials Shannon and Mary used in exploring The Knowledge Gap. Linda created this interactive course and now for $25 you can access this treasury of science of reading texts and recommended articles. Listeners can use the code "LOUNGE" for $5 off!
11. Contact Linda through e-mail contact@lindarhyneconsulting.com
12. Follow Linda on Instagram @lindarhyneconsulting
13. our season 5 episode with Linda Balancing It All
14. Get a free Green Chef box using our link.

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Shannon chats with her favorite literacy guru, Wiley Blevins, about the decisions and methods that go into differentiation. Shannon picks his brain about some of her reading students. Also, Wiley shares insights from his coming book about adjustments that teachers can make before or during their lessons to better suit the learning levels of their students. We always get some much wisdom from Wiley, whether it be from a direct chat, a webinar he hosts, or from a book he's authored. Listen to this entire episode to get inspired about ways you can best meet your students' needs.

RECOMMENDED RESOURCES AND ONES MENTIONED DURING THE EPISODE

1. Differentiating Phonics Instruction for Maximum Impact: How to Scaffold Whole-Group Instruction So All Students Can Access Grade-Level Content by Wiley Blevins *Amazon affiliate link (For PreOrder)
2. Wiley's website
3. Reading Rockets: Differentiated Instruction for Reading
4. Reading Rockets: What is differentiated instruction?
5. Differentiated Reading Instruction: Multiple Pathways to Literacy Success (Solution Tree)
6. Read Write Think: Differentiating Instruction Strategy Guide Series
7. (Kappan Online) Teaching Reading: Development and Differentiation
8. FCRR: Features of Effective Instruction Overview
9. Sadlier School: 13 Ideas for Differentiated Reading Instruction in the Classroom
10. (Read Naturally) Differentiating Instruction: Teaching Differently to Improve Instruction
11. Benchmark Decodable Books
12. UFLI Foundations Deconudable Text Guide
13. Linnea Ehri Continuous Blending Study
14. Stanford Study (Bruce McCandliss)
15. Empowering Writers
16. Our Season 4 Episode with Wiley

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Shannon and Mary chat with Dr. Karen Gazith about her new book The Power of Effective Reading Instruction. The conversation flowed through many topics but ultimately what you can gain from our discussion is the gifts we give our readers when we teach with intention. Listen to this episode to gain fresh ideas for enhancing your own reading instruction.

RECOMMENDED RESOURCES AND ONES MENTIONED DURING THE EPISODE

1. Ask the Right Questions about RTI
2. Wait to Fail Model
3. The Power of Effective Reading Instruction: How Neuroscience Informs Instruction Across All Grades and Disciplines by Karen Gazith *Amazon affiliate link
4. Teaching with Purpose: How to Thoughtfully Implement Evidence-Based Practices in Your Classroom by Karen Gazith *Amazon affiliate link
5. Website for Karen Gazith
6. Connect with Karen on Facebook
7. Connect with Karen on LinkedIn
8. Connect with Karen on Twitter
9. Karen's E-mail: Karen.gazith@hotmail.com

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Mary and Shannon chat with Dr. Molly Ness about her new book Read Alouds for All Learners. Molly shares how teachers should intentionally plan their read alouds, with thought put into the vocabulary instruction, the purpose for reading, the think aloud process, and engagement and extension activities for students after reading. Listen to this episode for TONS of ideas from our guest about how to get the most learning out of your read aloud experiences.

RECOMMENDED RESOURCES AND ONES MENTIONED DURING THE EPISODE

1. Reading Rockets: Reading Aloud to Build Comprehension
2. Reading Rockets: Vocabulary Development During Read Alouds
3. ASCD: The Hidden Power of Read Alouds
4. Scholastic: 5 Easy Skills to Teach Kids During Read-Alouds
5. Read Write Think: Teacher Read-Aloud that Models Reading for Deep Understanding
6. Cox Campus: Meaningful Read Alouds for Vocabulary and Oral Language Comprehension
7. Read Alouds for All Learners: A Comprehensive Plan for Every Subject, Every Day, Grades PreK-8 (Learn the step-by-step instructional plan for Read Alouds for All Learners) by Molly Ness * Amazon affiliate link
8. Think Big with Think Alouds: A Three-Step Planning Process That Develops Strategic Readers by Molly Ness *Amazon affiliate link
9. Love in the Library by Maggie Tokuda-Hall *Amazon affiliate link
10. The William Hoy Story: How a Deaf Baseball Player Changed the Game by Nancy Churnin *Amazon affiliate link
11. The Decline by Nine (Scholastic Reads Podcast)
12. End Book Deserts (Podcast by Molly Ness)
13. Website for Molly Ness
14. Contact Molly on Twitter
15. Contact Molly on IG

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Shannon and Mary wrestle with understanding the nature of the comprehension process. They discuss ideas from the Blueprint for Reading Comprehension and Executive Skills and Comprehension to understand the different cognitive processes and executive functioning required for students to extract and construct meaning from texts.

RESOURCES MENTIONED DURING THE EPISODE

1. the Reading Comprehension Blueprint by Nancy Hennessy *Amazon affiliate link
2. Executive Skills and Reading Comprehension: A Guide for Educators by Kelly B. Cartwright *Amazon affiliate link
3. A Blueprint for Reading Comprehension webinar recording
4. A Comprehension Checkup webinar recording
5. excerpt from Chapter 1: the Reading Comprehension Blueprint
6. The Science of Reading Comprehension Instruction by Nell Duke
7. Webinar and other info from Nell Duke
8. Reading Comprehension Orchestra
9. How do we teach the Language Comprehension strand of Scarborough's Reading Rope?
10. Don't Stop Teaching Comprehension-Just Embed it In Context (Natalie Wexler)
11. Does text structure instruction improve reading comprehension?
12. Reading for Meaning: Teaching Rubric
13. The Role of Background Knowledge in Reading Comprehension: A Critical Review
14. Reading Rockets: Comprehension 101
15. Micro Comprehension Amplify
16. Cohesive devices
17. Common Lit Curriculum
18. Idaho Comprehension Routines
19. Shanahan blog: Knowledge or Comprehension Strategies?

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Shannon chats with Lindsay Kemeny about her new book titled 7 Mighty Moves: Research-Backed, Classroom-Tested Strategies to Ensure K-3 Reading Success. Both Shannon and Lindsay have classroom experience teaching Kindergarten, first grade, and second grade students, so their discussion was filled with details and stories about the best instructional strategies and techniques teachers should use to help their students become fluent readers.

RESOURCES MENTIONED DURING THE EPISODE

1. 7 Mighty Moves: Research-Backed, Classroom-Tested Strategies to Ensure K-to-3 Reading Success by Lindsay Kemeny *Amazon affiliate link
2. Videos and Resources that accompany Lindsay's book
3. Lindsay's website
4. Lindsay on Twitter @LindsayKemeny
5. Lindsay's Youtube channel
6. Lindsay's blog
7. FREE Science of Reading self-paced Professional Development unit from Lindsay
8. FCRR Student Center Activities (Phonics, Phonemic Awareness, Fluency, etc)
9. Explicit Instruction: Effective and Efficient Teaching (What Works for Special-Needs Learners) by Anita L. Archer *Amazon affiliate link
10. our Decodable Texts episode
11. our Scope and Sequence episode with Wiley Blevins
12. our Phonemic Awareness episode Season 4
13. our Phonemic Awareness episode Season 1
14. Book a free call with us to tour our Patreon and see if it's right for you!
15. Get Literacy Support through our Patreon

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Shannon and Mary talk about why they love student mistakes. They share how to make mistakes meaningful in the ways they show insight into students' learning. They chat about establishing a trusting relationship with students so they feel comfortable showing us mistakes. Lastly, they discuss ways to provide student feedback without inducing shame. Learning happens between the lessons, and in this episode, you'll find concrete ideas for what to do and say each day with your students to promote a growth mindset and engagement in learning.

RESOURCES MENTIONED DURING THE EPISODE

1. Actual Reading Errors
2. Reading Simplified: 4 Types of Reading Errors
3. Common Reading Mistakes and How to Fix Them
4. Error Analysis for Reading
5. Achieve to the Core: Mistakes Tell us What Students are Ready to Learn
6. How to Help when Students Don't Notice Errors
7. Teaching Students to Embrace Mistakes
8. Examination of the Student Mistakes in Oral Reading
9. Yo Yo Ma: Music Happens Between the Notes (On Being podcast)
10. The Big Secret Episode from Season 1
11. Explicit Instruction: Effective and Efficient Teaching (What Works for Special-Needs Learners) by Anita L. Archer *Amazon affiliate link
12. Book a free call with us to tour our Patreon and see if it's right for you!
13. Get Literacy Support through our Patreon

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Shannon and Mary meet with Kionna Squires (@DaLiteracyLady) to talk about the challenges facing older struggling readers. During the discussion, they explain how meeting students where they are IS rigorous and the right thing to do for our readers. They also share ideas for boosting student engagement and their favorite activities for upper grade reading intervention.

RESOURCES MENTIONED DURING THE EPISODE

1. Texas Center for Learning Disabilities: Effective Reading Interventions for Upper Elementary Students
2. Providing Reading Interventions for Students in Grades 4-9 (What Words Clearinghouse)
3. EdWeek: How Schools Can Support Older Students Who Lag in Reading
4. Reading Rockets: Best Practices in Planning Interventions for Students with Reading Problems
5. Teaching Phonics & Word Study in the Intermediate Grades by Wiley Blevins *Amazon affiliate link
6. Florida Center for Reading Research 4th and 5th Grade Activities
7. Assessing Reading Multiple Measures (Core Literacy) *Amazon affiliate link
8. Structured Literacy Interventions edited by Louise Spear-Swerling *Amazon affiliate link
9. Raffi songs
10. Moon Dogs books
11. The Big Secret Episode from Season 1
12. Explicit Instruction: Effective and Efficient Teaching (What Works for Special-Needs Learners) by Anita L. Archer *Amazon affiliate link
13. Book a free call with us to tour our Patreon and see if it's right for you!
14. Get Literacy Support through our Patreon

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Shannon and Mary host a returning guest to the Reading Teachers Lounge @MindfulTeacherRachel, who you heard in Season 5 on the Schwa episode. In this episode, Shannon, Mary, and Rachel talk about English word histories and how they may inform how a word is spelled. Check out this discussion to get ideas for how to share word origin stories with your reading students and help students see how important morphology is in addition to sound symbol connections.

RESOURCES MENTIONED DURING THE EPISODE

1. Online Etymology Dictionary
2. When is an O a Scribal O?
3. Literacy Nest resource for Scribal O
4. Scribal O video
5. Latin Connective I
6. Word Smarts: Van Cleave Vocabulary
7. Connecting Vowels
8. Historical Layers of English: Reading Rockets
9. IG Post from Laura.Loves.Teaching: English Language Layer Cake
10. Scribal O slides by Laura Watkins
11. Real Spelling Toolbox
12. Sounds & Syllables (Jason Wade) on Twitter
13. Word Origins by John Ayto *Amazon affiliate link
14. Once Upon a Word by Jess Zafarris *Amazon affiliate link
15. Beneath the Surface of Words by Sue Scibetta Hegland *Amazon affiliate link
16. And Sometimes Y by Rachel *Amazon affiliate link
17. Short Vowel Protectors by Rachel *Amazon affiliate link
18. Science of Reading book list (compiled by Rachel and others)
19. Contact Rachel on Twitter @TeachRachelSOR
20. contact Rachel on IG @MindfulTeacherRachel
21. contact Rachel on TikTok @TeacherRachelSORSEL
22. our SCHWA episode with Rachel from last season
23. Book a free call with us to tour our Patreon and see if it's right for you!
24. Get Literacy Support through our Patreon

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Shannon and Mary meet again to begin the 6th season of the podcast. They recap their summer activities in both professional and personal lives, update the audience on the plans they're making for their reading students this school year, and preview what's coming next in Season 6 of the podcast.

RESOURCES MENTIONED DURING THE EPISODE

1. Georgia Department of Education: Dyslexia Information
2. Great E-books about Structured Shared Reading & Writing and other guides Regarding Dyslexia
3. Assessing Reading Multiple Measures from Core Literacy Library Amazon affiliate link
4. Book a free call with us to tour our Patreon and see if it's right for you!
5. Get Literacy Support through our Patreon

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Shannon and Mary bring you a surprise bonus episode for Season 5. They chat with Dr. Amanda Alexander from Scholastic about statistics about summer reading. In the episode, they all share tips about how to make the most of the summer reading experience.

Note: The research statistics cited were compiled by Scholastic in conjunction with Fluent Research. The findings are based on a nationally representative sample of 1,724 parents and children, including 531 parents of children ages 0–5; 1,193 parents of children ages 6–17; plus one child aged 6–17 from the same household.

RESOURCES MENTIONED DURING THE EPISODE

1. Scholastic Summer Reading Home Base
2. Scholastic Ultimate Summer Reading Guide
3. Scholastic Kids and Family Reading Report
4. How Educators Can Strengthen Summer Reading Connections with Families by Dr. Amanda Alexander
5. Scholastic Warehouse Book Sale
6. our Season 3 Episode 1: Books as Windows, Doors, and Mirrors
7. our Season 5 Episode 5: Classroom Libraries
8. Learning Ally: Audiobooks
9. The Good Egg by Jory John Amazon affiliate link
10. Get Literacy Support through our Patreon
11. Educate & Rejuvenate June 27-28, 2023 <---This is the link for ALL the information and WHERE to sign up!
12. Shannon's bundle of lesson plans for teaching syllables (You get this free if you upgrade to the Conference Platinum Pass!)

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Shannon and Mary meet up to review how season 5 of the podcast has gone. They share some of the things they learned during the season and list some of their favorite episodes and guests. They also chat about the school year as it winds down, their upcoming summer plans, and what is in store for the podcast in Season 6. At the end of the episode, they're joined by Kelsey Sorenson from Wife Teacher Mommy to talk about the Educate and Rejuvenate event they're all participating in during June 2023.

RESOURCES MENTIONED DURING THE EPISODE

1. Season 5 Episode 4: the Schwa with Mindful Teacher Rachel
2. Season 5 Episode 6: Balancing It All with Linda Rhyne
3. Season 5 Episode 7: The Reading Brain with Dr. Marnie Ginsberg
4. Season 5 Episode 8: Orthographic Mapping with Anna Geiger
5. Season 5 Episode 9: the Simple View of Reading and Beyond with Dr. Janet Mort
6. Season 5 Episode 10: Decodable Texts with Emily Gibbons
7. Season 5 Episode 15: Practical Tips for Reading Teachers with Jamie Sears
8. Season 5 Episode 17: Putting the Science of Reading Into Action
9. Great E-books about Structured Shared Reading & Writing and other guides Regarding Dyslexia
10. Get Literacy Support through our Patreon
11. Educate & Rejuvenate June 27-28, 2023 <---This is the link for ALL the information and WHERE to sign up!
12. Shannon's bundle of lesson plans for teaching syllables (You get this free if you upgrade to the Conference Platinum Pass!)

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Shannon and Mary chat with Malia Hollowell (@Playdough2Plato) about her new book, Science of Reading In Action. They summarize the big ideas within the Science of Reading for listeners and share practical actions teachers and parents can take to ensure they're doing best practices for students that are backed by literacy research. After listening, you'll understand more about WHAT the SoR is, WHY it is important, and HOW to put it in action, no matter your literacy role.

Episode Links for Resources mentioned:

1. Science of Reading: Defining Guide from The Reading League
2. White Paper-The Science of Reading (Zaner-Bloser)
3. Timothy Shanahan: What is the Science of Reading? (Reading Rockets)
4. our Season 4 Episode about the Science of Reading
5. The Science of Reading in Action by Malia Hollowell Amazon affiliate link
6. Malia's website: Playdough To Plato
7. Connect with Malia on IG: @playdough2plato
8. Facebook group: Science of Reading in Action

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Shannon and Mary chat with Khadijah Abdullah, a public school teacher in their area, about how she balances the wide variety of reading abilities in her classroom. Khadijah shares about her trauma-informed teaching practices and how she uses visual literacy to provide learning scaffolds for her students.

Episode Links for Resources mentioned:

1. Teaching With Multiple Modalities
2. 10 Visual Literacy Strategies
3. Media Literacy
4. Visual Learning
5. Tips for Viewing Images in Picture Books
6. Trauma Informed Teaching
7. Teaching Visual Literacy: Using Comic Books, Graphic Novels, Anime, Cartoons, and More to Develop Comprehension and Thinking Skills Amazon affiliate link
8. Teaching Visual Literacy in the Primary Classroom: Comic Books, Film, Television and Picture Narratives (David Fulton Books) Amazon affiliate link
9. Visual Approaches to Teaching Writing: Multimodal Literacy 5 - 11 (Published in association with the UKLA)
10. Journey (Aaron Becker's Wordless Triology, 1) Amazon affiliate link
11. Unspoken: A Story from the Underground Railroad by Henry Cole Amazon affiliate link
12. Connect with Khadijah on Instagram @the_whole_brain_teacher

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Shannon and Mary chat with Jamie Sears from Not So Wimpy Teacher about how to get more done as a reading teacher in less time. Jamie shares practical tips for teachers from her newly published book titled How to Love Teaching Again. Listeners will walk away with ideas on how to save time in preparing lesson plans, routines for lesson structure, easy grading techniques, and ways to simplify reading groups. Check out this episode to find out how to make your jobs as reading teachers easier and more enjoyable!

Episode Links for Resources:

1. Jamie's book information and website
2. How to Love Teaching Again by Jamie Sears Amazon affiliate link
3. Reading Basics from Reading Rockets
4. Classroom Management from Reading Rockets
5. 5 Ways to Keep Reading Centers Running Smoothly (Chalk and Apples)
6. How to Make Guided Reading Manageable (Scholastic)
7. Launching Readers Workshop (The Curriculum Corner)
8. Making Readers Workshop Work (ASCD)

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Shannon and Mary read over and discuss the Speaking and Listening standards in Reading to develop a deeper understanding of how and why these standards exist and help the students grow in literacy. They show how the standards develop in the depth of knowledge across the grade levels from Kindergarten to Fifth Grade. They also share ideas of ways to embed Speaking and Listening standards practice in classroom routines and project-based learning.

Episode Links for Resources:

1. Common Core Standards
2. Reading Rockets: Speaking and Listening in Content Area Learning
3. Speaking and Listening standards Utah
4. Elementary Nest: How to Fit in Daily Speaking and Listening Activities
5. Education Week: Helping English-Learners Meet the Common Core's Speaking and Listening Standards
6. The CCSS Speaking and Listening Standards...in 20 days or Less!
7. The Forgotten Strand in ELA: Speaking and Listening
8. 9 Big Ideas Within the Speaking and Listening Standards
9. Let's Talk...About the Speaking and Listening Standards
10. Listenwise: A tool to build listening comprehension
11. Teaching the Common Core Speaking and Listening Standards: Strategies and Digital Tools by Kristen Swanson Amazon affiliate link
12. Teaching the Core Skills of Listening & Speaking (ASCD) by Erik Palmer Amazon affiliate link

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Shannon chats with Stephanie Summers from Pride Reading Program about the topic of helping students build their reading fluency. They talk about what skills go into a student's reading fluency. They share ways to work on fluency with readers. In their chat, they reference ideas from The Megabook of Fluency by Timothy Rasinski.

Episode Links for Resources mentioned:

1. What is fluency?
2. Fluency methods
3. Note from Timothy Raskinski
4. The Megabook of Fluency by Timothy Raskinski Amazon affiliate link
5. Reading Rockets: Reading Basics-Fluency
6. Reading Rockets: Developing Fluent Readers
7. Reading Plus-a reading fluency software
8. The Measured Mom: How to Improve Reading Fluency
9. FCRR Fluency Activities K & 1st Grade
10. FCRR Fluency Activities 2nd & 3rd Grade
11. FCRR Fluency Activities 4th & 5th Grade
12. Google Docs Forced Copy of Shannon's created Weekly Fluency Rubric
13. Pride Reading Program's Website
14. Pride Reading Program on Facebook
15. Pride Reading Program on Instagram

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Shannon and Mary focus their conversation on how to build students' vocabularies. They share less effective methods used in the past and how they've evolved their vocabulary instruction to help students the most. In the chat, they reference ideas from Bringing Words to Life by Isabel Beck.

Episode Links for Resources mentioned:

1. How do we teach the Language Comprehension strand of Scarborough's Reading Rope?
2. Word Building: 20 root words and 14 prefixes= 100,000 words (Dyslexia Associates)
3. Academic Word Finder (AchievetheCore.org)
4. Word Study that Sticks: Best Practices by Pamela Koutrakos Amazon affiliate link
5. Llamophones by Janik Coat
6. How to Teach Vocabulary for Reading Comprehension
7. Routine for Explicit Vocabulary Instruction
8. Morphological Awareness Test
9. Research update: Morphemes, Meaning, and Dyslexia
10. 10 Quick Vocabulary Activities (from the Twitter teacher)
11. Vocabulary Routine Cards: (source unknown)
12. ReWordify to locate Tier 2 vocabulary
13. Build Vocabulary
14. Frayer model:
15. Thinking map templates:
16. FCRR 2nd and 3rd grade Vocabulary activities
17. FCRR 4th and 5th grade Vocabulary activities
18. Google Slides Forced Copy of Shannon's created vocabulary slide show
19. Google Docs Forced Copy of Shannon's created student vocabulary page

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Often Shannon and Mary discuss different types of student assessments. Today we are going to dive a little deeper and discuss how we use data analysis to make meaningful adjustments and decisions to our teaching practices. Shannon brings the perspective of a classroom teacher and Mary shares how she individualizes plans for her private tutoring clients.

Episode Links for Resources mentioned:

1. SoR assessment list
2. Reading Rockets: Assessment In Depth
3. CORE Phonics Survey
4. Wiley Blevins Comprehensive Phonics Survey
5. Dibels 8th Edition
6. Cherry Lee Informal Writing Screener
7. our Getting to Know Your Readers episode Season 1 Episode 3
8. our MAP test episode Season 1 Episode 4
9. Access to grade level text
10. Behind Test Scores: What Struggling Readers Really Need

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Shannon and Mary chat with Emily Gibbons from the Literacy Nest about decodable texts. This discussion provides information about how decodables are similar and different to trade books and leveled texts. In this episode, teachers will find out how and when to use decodable texts in reading instruction. Listeners will also learn the best sources for high quality decodable books and short texts.

Episode Links for Resources mentioned:
1. Decodable Texts Guide UFLI 2. A tweet with a graphic that says "Decodable texts are a bridge, not a destination!" -C. Tartaglione 3. A Research Study on the Effects of Using Decodable Texts with Systematic Phonics Instruction-Sadlier (Wiley Blevins) 4. Decodable Readers: Benchmark Education 5. Free Books for Kids: Beyond Decodables 6. What are decodable books? IDA Ontario 7. FB Group: Let's Talk Decodable Books & Literacy Resources! 8. Five from Five: Decodable Books 9. Decodable Comics 10. What can I do with all these predictable books? 11. Wiley Blevins webinar training 12. Ready to move on from decodables? 13. Decodable text tips 14. Choosing and Using Decodable Texts by Wiley Blevins Amazon affiliate link 15. Scholastic's Super Book of Phonics Poems by Linda Ross Amazon affiliate link 16. Emily Gibbon's podcast: Together in Literacy 17. Emily Gibbon's website The Literacy Nest 18. Emily Gibbon's Word List Builder

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Shannon and Mary chat with Dr. Janet Mort, who has fifty years of experience in the field of education and reading. We discuss the Simple View of Reading and how that affected reading instruction in the 1980s and 1990s. Dr. Mort then shares how the research following the Simple View of Reading has shifted and become more defined. This discussion provides context to reading research over the last few decades and helps reading teachers understand how Science of Reading discoveries impact classroom instruction.

Episode Links for Resources mentioned:

1. Reading Rockets: Simple View of Reading
2. The Reading Universe: Understanding the Big Picture: A Professional Development Guide to Illustrate the Universe of Skills for a Structured Approach to Early Literacy Instruction
3. Twitter photo of the Simple View of Reading
4. Path to Proficient Reading (Dr. Spear-Swerling)
5. Video explanation of 4 quadrants
6. Nell Duke: Beyond Simple View
7. Simple View of Reading YouTube
8. Reading League Curriculum Evaluation Guide
9. Language Comprehension
10. Fatal flaw in SOR
11. Reading in the Brain: The New Science of How We Read by Sanislas Dehaene Amazon affiliate link, where we earn a small commission from your purchase
12. Strategies that Work by Stephanie Harvey and Anne Goudvis Amazon affiliate link
13. NAEYC Literacy Learning for Infants, Toddlers, and Preschoolers by Tanya Wright, Sonia Cabell, and Nell Duke Amazon affiliate link
14. Hugh Catt's Florida State University
15. Dr. Mort's website Joyful Literacy Online
16. Science of Reading Summit May 2023
17. Sprig Learning's partnership with Joyful Literacy Interventions
18. Shannon's High Frequency Word Mapping resources

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Shannon and Mary chat with Ann Geiger from The Measured Mom about how readers orthographically stores words in their reading brains. This episode follows our overview of the reading brain, where we talked about the reader's journey to whole word recognition and how reading teachers can help their readers bolt on the orthography to what students already know in spoken language and language comprehension. In this episode, we go into greater detail about best practices to do in the classrooms to help your students gain this meaningful letter sequence storage.

Episode Links for Resources mentioned:

1. Dr. Linnea Ehri's List of Instructional Guidelines for Orthographic Mapping
2. Why 3 Cueing is Ineffective
3. Grapheme Deck
4. Sight Words, Orthographic Mapping, Phonemic Awareness by Stephen Parker
5. ISME tweet about Orthographic mapping
6. Visual model showing morphology as a binding agent relating semantics, orthography, and phonology (J. Kirby and N. Bowers)
7. How Orthographic Mapping Starts with Phonemic Proficiency
8. Song for Kids about Orthographic Mapping
9. Word Mapping Tool
10. Reading in the Brain: The New Science of How We Read by Sanislas Dehaene Amazon affiliate link, where we earn a small commission from your purchase
11. Proust and the Squid: The Story and Science of the Reading Brain by Maryanne Wolf Amazon affiliate link
12. The Measured Mom on Twitter
13. The Measured Mom on Instagram
14. The Measured Mom's Website
15. The Measured Mom's Membership
16. Shannon's High Frequency Word Mapping resources

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Shannon and Mary chat with Dr. Marnie Ginsberg from Reading Simplified about what happens in the brain during reading. We talk about the reader's journey to whole word recognition and how reading teachers can help their readers bolt on the orthography to what students already know in spoken language and language comprehension. Listeners will learn how to build a strong foundation for reading and how to help their students build flexible decoding strategies. Teachers will also hear examples of feedback to provide to readers in order to promote orthographic mapping. Check out this episode to learn all about how the brain learns to read.

Episode Links for Resources mentioned:

1. Twitter image of the Reading Brain image by @empoweredliteracy
2. Our Brains Were not Born to Read...right?
3. Brain Builders Amplify-video series
4. The Brain Dictionary
5. Dr. Molly McCabe on the Science of Reading video
6. Lecture by Dr. Stanislas Dehaene on "Reading the Brain"
7. Cortex in the Classroom video
8. Reading in the Brain: The New Science of How We Read by Sanislas Dehaene Amazon affiliate link, where we earn a small commission from your purchase
9. Proust and the Squid: The Story and Science of the Reading Brain by Maryanne Wolf Amazon affiliate link
10. Keys to Literacy: How the Brain Learns to Read
11. Lexia Learning: How the Human Brain Learns to Read
12. Hill Learning Center: The Reading Brain video
13. Cognitive Load
14. Reading Brain patterns
15. Eternal Triangle Model
16. The Role of Set for Variability (Reading Rockets)
17. Reading Simplified Switch It Activity
18. Reading Simplified's YouTube Channel
19. Reading Simplified on IG

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Shannon and Mary ask Linda Rhyne to join them for a live Reading Teachers discussion about how to find balance in our reading instruction. Teachers are asked to follow various curriculum programs, teach the grade level standards, differentiate for their students' needs, and utilize their own expertise & experience. How can teachers blend all this together into cohesive literacy instruction that makes sense to students and themselves and balance what they're asked to do with what they know their students need to be successful in reading? All these points are brought up in the chat, and Linda shares some tips for how teachers can be critical consumers and advocates for their students in their individual school buildings. We hope this chat inspires you to think critically about your own teaching practice and instructional decisions.

Episode Links for Resources mentioned:

1. It's Our Science blog post
2. Providing Reading Interventions for Students in Grades 4-9
3. Curriculum is Misunderstood
4. Acadience Learning
5. DIBELS Data System
6. Upper Grade Fluency Activities
7. Sold A Story by Emily Hanford
8. Literacy View response to Sold a story
9. Opinion response to Sold a Story
10. NEPC: Ed in the Apple: The Reading Wars: Balanced Literacy versus Phonics, Revisited by Peter Goodman
11. A balanced view of reading
12. The Science of Reading Movement: The Never-Ending Debate and the Need for a Different Approach to Reading Instruction
13. Both And
14. Reading shifts
15. https://twitter.com/lindaschultzie
16. https://www.instagram.com/lindarhyneconsulting/
17. https://www.lindarhyneconsulting.com/
18. https://www.facebook.com/lindarhyneconsulting
19. https://www.linkedin.com/in/linda-schultz-rhyne-91704b93/

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Shannon and Mary chat with Donalyn Miller & Colby Sharp about their recently published Common Sense Guide to Your Classroom Library. The reading teachers discuss how to set up and use the library to maximize its impact with kids. This conversation provides the WHY behind decision making and instructional use of the classroom library.

Episode Resources:

1. The Commonsense Guide to Your Classroom Library: Building a Collection that Inspires, Engages, and Challenges Readers by Donalyn Miller & Colby Sharp * Amazon affiliate link*
2. Colby Sharp's Blog
3. Nerdy Book Club (joint blog)
4. Donalyn Miller's website The Book Whisperer.com
5. Game Changer! Book Access for All Kids by Donalyn Miller & Colby Sharp Amazon affiliate link
6. Reading Rockets: Creating a Classroom Library
7. Scholastic: 6 Tips to Help Set Up a Classroom Library
8. Education to the Core: Setting Up Your Classroom Library
9. our episode about Books as Windows, Doors, and Mirrors
10. Building an Effective Classroom Library by Susan Catapano, Jane Fleming, and Martille Elias (Journal of Language and Literacy Education 2009)
11. Choice Literacy: Creating a Student-Organized Classroom Library
12. ASCD: Creating a Classroom Library Together
13. BookSource to Organize your Collection
14. Regie Routman: Organize an Outstanding Classroom Library
15. Booksourcebanter: Resources for Building a Classroom Library
16. Follett Classroom Library Manager
17. The Yarn (Children's Literature Podcast by Colby Sharp and Travis Jonker)
18. Colby's Youtube description of a Book Pass
19. Twitter: https://twitter.com/colbysharp
    https://twitter.com/donalynbooks
20. IG: https://www.instagram.com/donalynm/
    https://www.instagram.com/colbysharp/

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Shannon and Mary chat with Mindful Teacher Rachel about the Schwa vowel sound and how to teach it to students. She shares great stories from her classroom about teaching reading and all about her newly published book that can be used to introduce the Schwa to readers. You'll want to listen in on this chat between reading teachers to get strategies and resources for working on the Schwa with your own reading students.

Episode Resources:

1. Rachel's book Schwa in 1st Grade on Amazon
2. Uncovering the Logic of English by Denise Eide Amazon affiliate link
3. Tools4Teachers Schwa information
4. Phonics Hero The Schwa Explained and How to teach it
5. Literacy Nest: How to Teach Schwa Part 1
6. Literacy Nest: How to Teach Schwa Part 2
7. Keys to Literacy: Teaching Schwa in Unaccented Syllables
8. Five from Five: The Schwa
9. Lists of Multi-Syllable Words with Schwa from Reading Rockets
10. Schwa Words and Activities
11. Rachel on Instagram @mindfulteacherrachel
12. Rachel on Tiktok @teacherrachelsorsel

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Shannon and Mary chat about their favorite free and low cost literacy resources to use in reading lessons and tutoring sessions. They share links to: complete phonics curriculum resources that include scope and sequences, decodable texts, vocabulary lists and activities, phonics and phonemic awareness activities, and strategies for teaching comprehension. Check out the links in the show notes to find resources to use with your own reading students.

Episode Resources:

1. our episode about favorite FCRR resources
2. Florida Center for Reading Research Student Center Activities
3. Open Source Phonics
4. Tools4Teaching (formerly West Virginia Phonics)
5. UFLI new reading resources (Univ. of Florida)
6. CKLA Curriculum Resources
7. Emily Gibbon's Literacy Nest -Also check out her podcast, TpT resources, and her Tuesday newsletter for tips!
8. The Measured Mom
9. This Reading Mama
10. Walpole & McKenna Open Up Resources
11. Academic Vocabulary Word Lists by Grade Level (Flocabulary)
12. Get More Vocabulary.com: Shades of Meaning
13. Reading Rockets: Semantic Gradients
14. Edison Literacy
15. Readwritethink lessons
16. Flyleaf Publishing Decodables
17. Open Source Phonics Decodable Texts
18. Free passages according to Lexile (Read Works)
19. Jan Richardson's resources
20. Emily Gibbon's Word List Builder
21. ISME (Institute for Multi-Sensory Education) Digital Resources
22. Getting Reading to Read Phonemic Awareness activities Amazon affiliate link
23. How to Teach Spelling Amazon affiliate link
24. Handwriting Joke book Amazon affiliate link
25. Learning Ally Audiobook Solution
26. Recipe for Reading Success books
27. our Patreon site and details

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Mary and Shannon chat with Stephaney Jones-Vo about how to best support the reading needs of English Language Learners. Stephaney describes the differences in needs of ESOL students at various levels and provides easy ideas for differentiation and scaffolding for students at different levels. Stephaney shares how to understand the language load of class assignments and assessments, and this lens will help teachers view their own learning assignments in a fresh and supportive way for their students.

Episode Resources:

1. How Does the Science of Reading Apply to Teaching Multilingual Learners?
2. Podcast episode about SOR and ELL
3. Stephaney's book about Differentiation for ELLs Amazon affiliate link
4. Stephaney's book: Powerful Practices for Supporting English Learners Amazon affiliate link
5. Stephaney's book: Engaging English Learners Through Access to Standards Amazon affiliate link
6. WIDA Can Do Descriptors for various grade levels
7. WIDA Language Development Standards Framework (2020)
8. About the WIDA Access assessments
9. Reading Rockets: What Does Research Tell Us About Teaching Reading to English Language Learners?
10. EdSource: Why Phonics Instruction is not Enough for English Learners
11. What are BICS and CALP?
12. Academic Language and ELLs: What Teachers Need to Know
13. Academic Vocabulary Word Lists by Grade Level (Flocabulary)
14. our Patreon site and details

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Shannon and Mary meet up after the summer hiatus to chat about going back to school. They catch up on their personal activities from the summer and then share their instructional plans for the new school year in 2022-2023.

Episode Resources:

1. Shannon's Phonics Units
2. Decodable readers from Heggerty
3. Decodable readers from High Noon
4. Decodable readers from Geodes
5. Decodable readers from Flyleaf
6. Morpheme Magic from Deb Glaser
7. Mary's updated website
8. Van Cleave vocabulary resources
9. our Patreon site and details

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Shannon and Mary catch up on their teaching activities and personal lives during the past school year. They share highlights from the past season and what is coming next in Season 5 and the 2022-2023 school year.

Episode Resources:

1. Shannon's Phonics Units
2. Decodable readers from Heggerty
3. Decodable readers from High Noon
4. Decodable readers from Geodes
5. Decodable readers from Flyleaf
6. Morpheme Magic from Deb Glaser
7. our Morphology episode
8. our Wiley Blevins Scope and Sequence episode
9. our Nancy Young Differentiation episode
10. Mary's updated website
11. Van Cleave vocabulary resources
12. our Patreon site and details

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Shannon and Mary share some new understandings they've discovered about the differences between long and short vowels. They chat about how they'll modify some phonics activities for students after discovering these new understandings.

Episode Resources:

1. The ABC's and All Their Tricks by Margaret M. Bishop (*Amazon affiliate link)
2. our Season 1 episode about Short Vowels
3. our Season 1 episode about Long Vowels
4. our Season 4 episode about Sound Walls
5. Shannon's Long and Short Vowel Soccer game
6. Shannon's phonics units
7. FCRR Long and Short Vowel picture sort
8. FCRR Long and Short Vowel word sort

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Shannon and Mary chat with Nancy Young, the creator of the Ladder of Reading & Writing, about differentiated instruction for readers at different levels. [Note: Our podcast has explicit permission from Nancy Young to use her Ladder infographic image and information with our audience.] In this episode we discuss the equitable need for differentiation, in order to "offer children what they need based on where they are." Strategies, examples, and activities are shared for teachers to modify their literacy instruction based on the unique needs of their readers.

Episode Resources:

1. Nancy Young's website
2. Nancy's blog post about her updates to the Ladder
3. The Updated Ladder of Reading and Writing (in pdf form)
4. Nancy Young's Structured Literacy Primer
5. Ladder of Reading and Writing: Terms Defined
6. Permission request to use the Ladder of Reading and Writing
7. Resources from Nancy Young about the Ladder of Reading and Writing
8. Our episode from Season 4 about the Ladder's updates
9. Recording of Nancy Young's presentation about Differentiation
10. Carol Connors' Differentiation research
11. Schoolwide Enrichment Model of Reading
12. Curriculum Compacting
13. Secret Code Actions resource
14. Secret Code Actions free downloads
15. Vickie Gibson's Classroom Management resource

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Shannon chats with Sarah Rich, CEO of Just Right Reader, about her company that provides decodable readers to students, families, teachers, and schools. Sarah and Shannon talk about how decodable texts are important for the right reading practice for students. Sarah provides details about their mission to make reading fun and for students to learn to read with engaging decodables that are representative of students in America's schools.

Episode Resources:

1. Decodable Book Collection from Just Right Reader
2. Sample Decodables
3. about Just Right Reader
4. Family Literacy Boxes
5. Just Right Reader on Instagram
6. Just Right Reader on Facebook
7. Just Right Reader's Phonics Scope and Sequence
8. Decodable Books Explained
9. Choosing and Using Decodable Texts by Wiley Blevins (*Amazon affiliate link)

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Shannon and Mary chat with Christina Edmondson (@literacywithmrs.e) about implementing Sound Walls into your literacy classrooms. Christina shares how Sound Walls compare to traditional word walls and provides ideas for using them with students in reading and writing. She describes exactly how to set up your own Sound Wall and start using with your readers.

Episode Resources:

1. Transitioning from Word Walls to Sound Walls (Reading Rockets)
2. Understanding the How and Why of Sound Walls (Tools4Reading)
3. Implementing a Sound Wall
4. Sound Wall Instruction and Template (Louisiana Literacy)
5. Timothy Shanahan: Should We Build a Word Wall or Not?
6. Sound Walls video (Pattan)
7. Putting Sound Walls to Practice
8. Word Walls, Sound Walls, What's the Difference?
9. Setting up a sound wall (Edutopia)
10. Uncovering the Logic of English (*Amazon affiliate link)
11. Christina's Instagram @literacywithmrs.e
12. Christina's TpT store

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Shannon and Mary chat about the recent debate in the science of reading community about whether phonemic awareness drills without letters are a worthwhile exercise for readers. They describe activities they've done with struggling readers to build phonemic awareness, and they talk about the use of those activities as a part of Tier 1 reading instruction.

Episode Resources:

1. Research article
2. Response from David Kilpatrick and others
3. Timothy Shanahan: RIP to Advanced Phonemic Awareness
4. I Think I was Wrong about Phonemic Awareness (a Teacher's perspective)
5. Heggerty Resources
6. Phonological Awareness Assessment
7. YouTube discussion about the topic among other reading teachers
8. Phonemic proficiency
9. Reading Meetings with Mark and Molly
10. Getting Ready to Read by Jo Fitzpatrick (*Amazon affiliate link)
11. Equipped for Reading Success by David Kilpatrick (*Amazon affiliate link)

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Shannon and Mary chat with Emily Conlan from @wordmorphed_ on Instagram about Morphology. Emily shows how and where Morphology fits into structured literacy instruction and the science of reading. Their discussion provides easy ways to strengthen students' word meaning knowledge at different grade and age levels of readers.

Episode Resources:

1. Wiliam Van Cleve: Morphology Matters, Word Sums, and More
2. Van Cleve-Morphology Matters Video
3. ODE-Using Word Bases video
4. What Should Morphology Instruction look like? (Reading Rockets)
5. The Base Bank from Jason Wade Education (Sounds & Syllables)
6. Morphology—A Gateway to Advanced Language
7. Morphological Awareness & Assessments article
8. Teaching Morphology to Improve Literacy: A Guide for Teachers
9. Uncovering the Logic of English (*Amazon affiliate link)
10. Base, Prefix, and Suffix Cards from Rhode Island Department of Education
11. Using Morphology to Teach Vocabulary (Keys to Literacy)
12. FCRR Morphology Activities for K and 1st Grade
13. FCRR Morphology Activities for 2nd and 3rd Grade
14. Emily Conlan's Website with Morphology Resources
15. Emily's Instagram: @wordmorphed_
16. https://morphememagic.com/

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Shannon describes some new ways she's helping her older elementary students learn how to encode and spell. Mary shares the SOS strategy for Spelling and explains the research about encoding and the brain processing that happens as students make spelling choices.

Episode Resources:

1. IMSE Journal Encoding vs. Decoding
2. What's in a word? Etymology for every teacher.
3. TED Talk: Making Sense of Spelling Gina Cooke
4. Using the SOS strategy
5. Our Episode from Season 1: Encoding First, Decoding Second
6. Uncovering the Logic of English (*Amazon affiliate link)
7. The Logic of English website and resources
8. Our Episode from Season 2 about Spelling
9. Heggerty Phonemic Awareness assessment
10. Heggerty Bridge the Gap curriculum
11. Words Their Way Spelling Inventory

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Shannon and Mary discuss the revised Ladder of Reading and Writing that was recently updated by Nancy Young. [Note: Our podcast has explicit permission from Nancy Young to use her Ladder infographic image and information with our audience.] In this episode we compare the updates to the Ladder to its original form and discuss the changes and how they may impact literacy instruction.

Episode Resources:

1. Nancy Young's website
2. Nancy's blog post about her updates to the Ladder
3. The Updated Ladder of Reading and Writing (in pdf form)
4. Nancy Young's Structured Literacy Primer
5. Ladder of Reading and Writing: Terms Defined
6. Permission request to use the Ladder of Reading and Writing
7. Resources from Nancy Young about the Ladder of Reading and Writing
8. Our season 4 opening episode where we discuss Nancy Young's Differentiation webinar
9. Our Season 2 episode about Structured Literacy where we first discuss the Ladder
10. Recording of Nancy Young's presentation about Differentiation

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Shannon and Mary chat with Anna Boldog from Bookr Class about the Importance of Storytelling. They share their own memories and experiences with stories as readers and teachers. And they talk about what research shares about how storytelling impacts language and literacy development. This discussion should prompt your own memories of stories and how they've impacted your life, your instruction, and your readers.

Episode Resources:

1. Information for parents about BOOKR Class App
2. 2 week free trial on BOOKR Class for teachers
3. Holiday Calendar campaign from Bookr
4. Our previous episode Books as Mirrors, Doors, and Windows
5. Storytelling Improves Literacy
6. The Literacy Benefits of Storytelling
7. Paths to Literacy: Importance of Storytelling
8. Learning Language and Literacy
9. Role of Storytelling in Early Literacy Development
10. Dual Coding Theory and Education (James Clark and Allan Paivio)
11. Four Good Reasons to Use Literature in Primary School (Irma Ghosn)
12. Bookr Class on Instagram
13. Bookr Class on Twitter
14. Bookr Class on Facebook
15. Bookr Class video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kJBaiBrHLUM
16. Another video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BcnaajQPu_Q

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Shannon and Mary chat with LaMonica Williams, Director of Programs for Teaching Matters, about how to support reading teachers and their students through intensive but supportive coaching and literacy training.

Episode Links for Resources mentioned:

1. Jumpstart program
2. Webinars & Trainings
3. Twitter @teachingmatters
4. Contact Teaching Matters : inquiry@teachingmatters.org
5. Early Reading Assessment Toolkit from Teaching Matters
6. Reading Matters
7. Literacy activities from Teaching Matters

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Shannon chats about the different strands of Scarborough's Reading Rope with Tess Kraft. They talk about all the many different skills that weave together into skilled reading and share ideas about transferring the science of reading into effective literacy instruction.

Episode Links for Resources mentioned:

1. Overview of the Reading Rope
2. Reading Rope padlet
3. 20 years of Reading Rope recordings
4. Nell Duke Reading Rope Redefined
5. Complete Nell Duke article link
6. Really Great Reading article about the Reading Rope
7. Animated Reading Rope
8. 39 Clues Text Series (*Amazon affiliate link)
9. The Knowledge Gap by Natalie Wexler (*Amazon affiliate link)
10. Literacy Program from American College of Education
11. Know Better, Do Better by Meredith Liben (*Amazon affiliate link)
12. Dyslexia and Spelling by Kelli Sandman-Hurley (*Amazon affiliate link)
13. LETRS trainings
14. Science of Reading Facebook group
15. Tess's website
16. Tess on Instagram @tessthekraftyteacher

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Shannon and Mary chat with Heidi Martin about her journey into learning about the Science of Reading. Heidi has been documenting her literacy transformation on Tiktok (@learningwithheidi) and Instagram (@droppinknowledgewithheidi).

Episode Links for Resources mentioned:

1. Heidi's website
2. Science of reading YouTube video
3. Science of Reading Blog and video series
4. Science of Reading Comprehension Instruction
5. What is the SOR?
6. Timothy Shanahan What is science of reading?
7. SOR guide
8. What teachers should know about SOR
9. The Science of Reading
10. The sciences of reading
11. Teaching Rubrics aligned with SOR
12. Creativity to the Core
13. Equipped for Reading Success by David Kilpatrick *(Amazon affiliate link)
14. Amplify resources
15. Really Great Reading free training about SOR
16. Heart Word Magic
17. Junior Learning resources
18. Magnet Chips & Wand *Amazon affiliate link
19. Zingo game *Amazon affiliate link
20. Really Great Reading free letter tiles

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Shannon and Mary chat with literacy expert Wiley Blevins about the scope and sequence of phonics instruction.

Episode Links for Resources mentioned:

1. ILA Brief Meeting the Challenges of Early Phonics Instruction by Blevins
2. Our Previous episode about Wiley's ILA Brief
3. A Fresh Look at Phonics by Blevins *
4. Choosing and Using Decodable Texts by Blevins *
5. Teaching Phonics & Word Study in the Intermediate Grades by Blevins *
6. Phonics from A to Z by Blevins *
7. 10 Common Causes of Phonics Instruction failure by Blevins (free)
8. Decodable Text Lesson Sampler (shared with us from Wiley)
9. Decodable Text Lesson Planner (shared with us from Wiley)
10. Leveled Books with a Phonics (shared with us from Wiley)
11. Look Fors: Routines (shared with us from Wiley)
12. Jeanne Chall
13. Wiley's training on Decodable Texts
14. Wiley Blevins website
15. Find Wiley on Twitter @wbny
16. Reading Rockets Scope and Sequence
17. University of Texas Scope & Sequence
18. University of Florida Scope & Sequence
19. Learning at the Primary Pond Scope & Sequences for each grade

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In their Season 4 opener, Shannon & Mary update listeners on their summer activities and their plans for the upcoming school year and podcast season. They share what they've been reading and learning about lately, which leads to a discussion about differentiating for students at various points on the Reading Ladder.

Episode Links for Resources mentioned:

1. Link to our MAP episode from Season 1
2. Heggerty Phonemic Awareness
3. LLI kits by Fountas & Pinnell
4. HD Word by Really Great Reading
5. Jennifer Serravallo Complete Comprehension Kits
6. What To Do About Dyslexia by Richard Selznick *
7. Suddenly Diverse: How Districts Manage Race and Inequality by Erica O. Turner *
8. Dyslexia and Spelling by Kelli Sandman-Hurley
9. Building Readers for Life (Emily Gibbons)
10. Seth Perler TEFOS Summit (Executive Functioning)
11. Tiimo app
12. Jennifer Serravallo Reading Strategies book *
13. Jennifer Serravallo Writing Strategies book *
14. Words Their Way book *
15. Beginning to Read: Thinking and Learning about Print by Marilyn Jager Adams
16. Science of Reading Facebook group
17. Holly Lane (University of Florida)
18. Know Better, Do Better by Meredith and David Liben *
19. Lucy Hart Paulson's site (LETRS creator)
20. Nancy Young (Reading Ladder)
21. Recording of Nancy Young’s Differentiation webinar

(*These are Amazon affiliate links, where we would make a small commission amount on your purchase.)

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In this episode, Shannon closes out the third podcast season. She describes the struggles from the 2020-2021 school year and shares what's coming next for the podcast in Season 4.

Resource Links:

1. Boundaries podcast episode (We Can Do Hard Things with Glennon Doyle)

2. Ross on Friends ("Pivot!")

3. How to Set Boundaries as a Teacher (Cornerstone for Teachers)

4. Teachers, This Should be the Summer of Saying No

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This title continues our multi-sensory series. In this episode, Shannon shares the characteristics of auditory learners. She gives some strategies and resources for incorporating more auditory practice in your literacy instruction.

Resource Links:

1. Is your Child an Auditory Learner?
2. Working with Auditory Learners
3. Tips for Auditory Learners
4. The Auditory Learner
5. Auditory Learning Style Explained
6. Auditory Learner Infographic
7. Characteristics of Learning Styles
8. Multisensory Triangle
9. Activities for Auditory Learners
10. Engaging Different Types of Learners in Your Classroom
11. Our Shared Reading podcast episode
12. Learning Ally audiobooks
13. 25 Sight Word Songs and Mini Books (This is an Amazon affiliate link, where we would make a small commission amount on your purchase.)

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Shannon and Mary chat with Maria Halkias about her on-line reading instruction. They talk about parent engagement with virtual instruction, teaching challenges during these unprecedented times, and what resources have been most helpful when teaching virtually. Maria shares about the community of inquiry and how she's using that framework to provide structure to her reflective teaching practice during this unusual teaching year. This episode provides ideas and inspiration for increasing student presence, teacher presence, and cognitive presence in your online reading instruction.

Resource Links:

1. Contact Maria here
2. Community of Inquiry Framework
3. Morning Meeting Ideas book -Jolly Jump Up is in here! (This is an Amazon affiliate link, where we would make a small commission amount on your purchase.)
4. Community of Inquiry Tips

Online resources mentioned:

• PearDeck for Google Slides
• Boom Learning (Shannon's Boom Store Link click here)
• Word Wall.net
• Blending Board free online resource (customize with your own Bitmoji)
• Learning A to Z RAZ Kids
• Epic books
• https://www.biguniverse.com/
• https://www.flippity.net/
• Flyleafpublishing.com is offering their books for the rest of the school year. The books are beautiful and engaging! 2020-2021
• List of Parent Resources

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Shannon and Mary continue the discussion about multisensory reading instruction. This episode focuses on strategies for visual learners.

Resource Links:

1. New Girl Youtube clip (Visual Learning chant)
2. The Visual Learner
3. Tips for Visual Learners
4. Jennifer Serravallo Reading Strategies book (This is an Amazon affiliate link, where we would make a small commission amount on your purchase.)
5. Main Idea stool video
6. Reading Graphic Organizers book (This is an Amazon affiliate link, where we would make a small commission amount on your purchase.)
7. Make Your Own Word Shapes Worksheet Generator

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Multisensory learning is something we have been preaching for a long time. It's time it deserved it's own episode. Shannon and Mary discuss the importance of when and how to implement multi sensory learning strategies.

Resource Links:

1. Multisensory Learning: Types and Strategies IMSE
2. What is Multisensory Learning: Waterford.org
3. Multisensory Overview
4. Literacy Nest Multisensory Part 1
5. Emily Gibbons Make it Multisensory - especially sight word practice
6. The Language Triangle Emily Gibbons
7. Ladder of Reading
8. Three Reasons Why Multisensory Learning is Food for the Brain
9. Sentence builder magnet tiles* (This is an Amazon affiliate link, where we would make a small commission amount on your purchase.)
10. Sentence builder reading rods*(This is an Amazon affiliate link, where we would make a small commission amount on your purchase.)
11. NOTE: The above two products are similar to the ones that Shannon mentions in the episode but are not the exact product. It's an older product that Shannon has, and we're having trouble finding a link to the exact product.

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Shannon and Mary explore how to start conversations about sensitive topics surrounding race, inequality, apathetic attitudes and apologism related to books. They discuss the controversy surrounding Dr. Seuss. Dr. Seuss is a prolific children’s book author and global icon. And Dr. Seuss has a history of racial baggage that educators should understand when introducing his writing to their students.

Resource Links:

1. It's Time to Talk about Dr. Seuss (Teaching Tolerance)
2. Research on Diversity in Youth Culture - St. Catherine
3. NPR Code Switch episode
4. Dr Seuss Art.com
5. Should Dr. Seuss be cancelled? Opinion page with links to news stories.
6. BBC The Surprisingly Radical Politics of Dr. Seuss
7. How Racist Are Dr. Seuss Books?
8. What TO DO: Is the Cat in the Hat Racist? Read Across America Shifts Away From Dr. Seuss and Toward Diverse Books
9. https://www.theconsciouskid.org/
10. Ada Twist, Scientist by Andrea Beaty* (This is an Amazon affiliate link, where we would make a small commission amount on your purchase.)

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Shannon and Mary open the season with a discussion about the importance of books to represent the diversity of our students giving them an opportunity to see themselves in books and opportunities to view other cultures, family structures and values.

Resource Links:

1. THE Actual Paper that started this discussion
2. Building a Diverse Book Collection
3. Windows, Mirrors, and Sliding Doors
4. Librarian Professor article in the Atlantic
5. We Are Teachers: Mirrors and Windows
6. Teaching Tolerance article
7. Book Harvest article
8. Book List from NPR
9. Windows & Doors eBook and Portfolio Perspective (free activity on TpT)
10. The Tutu Teacher’s Diverse Book List
11. Combining Teaching Tolerance Standards with Read Alouds

Follow: @diversereads & @thetutututeacher @loveteachbless @weneeddiversebooks
@readlikearockstar @littlesandlit @nouvelle_ela @theapron_education @hereweread

ownvoices

Specific Book Titles Mentioned:

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1. Crown: An Ode to the Fresh Cut by Derrick Barnes
2. The Name Jar by Yangsook Choi
3. I Am Enough by Grace Byers
4. Hair Love by Matthew Cherry and Vashti Harrison
5. Dreamers by Yuyi Morales
6. My Papi Has a Motorcycle by Isabel Quintero
7. Jabari Jumps by Gaia Cornwall
8. A Bad Case of Stripes by David Shannon
9. A Chair for My Mother by Vera B. Williams
10. Fish in a Tree by Lynda Mullaly Hunt
11. Last Stop on Market Street by Matt de la Pena
12. Preaching to the Chickens by Jabari Asim
13. She Persisted by Chelsea Clinton
14. Be Who You Are by Todd Parr

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Shannon and Mary catch up after their Season 2 hiatus to discuss Quarantine Life, Home Learning, and what's next.

RESOURCE LINKS:

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Are you familiar with the FCRR? They have done incredible work making free effective research-based literacy activities. The centers include directions for teachers and all the necessary materials. They are mostly print and go activities requiring minimal teacher prep!

In this episode, Shannon and Mary share their favorite FCRR reading center activities. They give ideas for storage and organization of the materials and ways to scaffold.

RESOURCE LINKS:
(General links are listed first, then below those you will see the links for the specific games mentioned.)

1. FCRR homepage
2. Jill Shook loves FCRR too!

SPECIFIC GAME DIRECT LINKS FOR ACTIVITIES CREATED BY FCRR or SHANNON

1. FCRR: Vowel Picture Sort
2. FCRR: Phoneme Swap
3. FCRR: Vowel Stars
4. FCRR: Multiple Meaning Match
5. FCRR: Medial Phoneme Dominoes
6. FCRR: Speedy Phrases
7. FCRR: Word Web
8. FCRR: Sandpaper Words
9. FCRR: Contraction Bingo
10. FCRR: Root-A-Word
11. FCRR: Synonym and Antonym Connections
12. Shannon's Soccer Goal DIGITAL Vowel Sound Sort on Boom
13. Shannon's Read Around the Shape on Boom

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Shannon and Mary speak with consultant and literacy specialist Allison from Learning at the Primary Pond all about spelling tests and best practices in phonics instruction.

Resource Links:

1. blog post by Alison at Learning At the Primary Pond
2. Literacy website by Alison
3. Blog post about Best Practices in Phonics by Allison
4. Words Their Way Primary Spelling Inventory
5. Best Practices in Literacy Instruction, Sixth Edition*
6. Words Their Way by Donald Bear, Marcia Invernizzi, Shane Templeton, & Francine Johnson *
7. Rethinking Phonics: Making the Best Decisions by: Karin Dahl, Patricia Grogan, Lora Lawson, and Patricia Scharer*
8. Letter Lessons and First Words: Phonics Foundations That Work (The Research-informed Classroom) by Heidi Anne Mesmer & Nell K. Duke *
9. A Fresh Look at Phonics, Grades K-2: Common Causes of Failure & Ingredients for Success by Wiley W. Blevins *
10. Kindergarten scope and sequence from Alison
11. first and second grade scope and sequence from Alison
12. Learning at the Primary Pond FACEBOOK
13. Learning at the Primary Pond INSTAGRAM
14. Learning at the Primary Pond BLOG
15. Learning at the Primary Pond WEBSITE
16. Learning at the Primary Pond PINTEREST
17. Learning at the Primary Pond TpT STORE
18. Learning at the Primary Pond BOOM LEARNING DIGITAL GAMES

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Shannon and Mary discuss another pillar in the Balanced Literacy Series: Shared Reading. Shared reading is interactive reading with teacher guided support. This is essential for helping struggling readers build their fluency and expression as well as explicitly modeling how proficient readers approach text. It can be done in whole group, small group, or with individualized instruction. Sometimes you will see shared reading experiences modeled with big books or books that are projected for the whole class to share.

Resource Links:

1. Reading Rockets: Shared Reading
2. Medium Shared Reading with Small Groups of Struggling Readers
3. Reading Rockets PDF of Shared Reading
4. Fountas & Pinnell Blog post about Shared Reading
5. Reading A-Z Shared Reading
6. What is Shared Reading and why is it so important? Blog post
7. Read aloud, Shared reading, Guided Reading: What’s the difference? Blog post
8. What is shared reading and how does it compare to close reading and other types of reading?
9. NEWSELA
10. Mary recommends: Executive Skills and Reading Comprehension: A Guide for Educators by Kelly B. Cartwright

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Shannon and Mary talk about the recent discussions in the news and educational circles related to the reading wars. Additionally, based on listener questions, they recommend some resources for teachers who want to implement more structured literacy into their classroom practices.

Resource Links:

1. Emily Hanford APM Reports Educate Podcast New Salvos in the Battles over Reading Instruction
2. Emily Hanford APM Reports How a Flawed Idea is Teaching Millions of Kids to be Poor Readers
3. Lucy Calkins' response: No One Gets to Own the Term "The Science of Reading"
4. Need to practice Phonics instruction? *Speech to Print Workbook by Louisa Cook Moats and Bruce Rosow *
5. Shannon recommends Phonics A to Z by Wiley Blevins
6. Shannon recommends Teaching Phonics & Word Study in the Intermediate Grades by Wiley Blevins
7. Free webinars IDA Upper Midwest Branch
8. IDA PDF Structured Literacy: Effective Instruction for Students with Dyslexia and Related Reading Difficulties
9. Comprehensive List of Programs based on Structured Literacy
10. Mary recommends Equipped for Reading Success by David Kilpatrick
11. our Encoding episode (Season 1, episode 22): Encoding First, Decoding Second

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Mary describes the differences between Balanced Literacy vs. Structured Literacy.

We have been doing a series on Balanced Literacy which might confuse some of our listeners. RTL wants to bring best practices to our conversations. If you, like us, believe that a strong phonics practice is essential, you will want to help your school transition to using a stronger structured literacy approach to word study. In this episode, we will be discussing ways to effectively bring stronger phonics instruction to your schools' teaching practices.

Resource Links:

1. Nancy Young Infographic, IDA
2. NHSD Components of Balanced LIteracy
3. IDA definition of Structured Literacy
4. Iowa Reading Research Center article An Explanation of Structured Literacy, and a Comparison to Balanced Literacy
5. Emily Gibbons blog post: How to Help Your School With the Transition to a Structured Literacy Approach
6. Balanced Literacy article k12 Reader
7. Lucy Calkins' Response to "phonics-centric"

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Shannon and Mary continue the conversation about balanced literacy elements by discussing supporting students' independent reading in the classroom and at home. They share ideas about goal setting, making time for reading, reading conferences, and helping students develop literacy preferences.

"Teaching children to read and providing them with something worthwhile to read is not a job for the faint of heart in this world. But I'll keep at it, and I won't be alone. You'll come too. We're fortunate, you know. Too many people in this world spend their lives doing work that doesn't matter in the great scheme of things, but bringing children and books together does matter. And we get to do it."
~Katherine Patterson

Resource Links:
NOTE: As an Amazon Associate program, we earn a small amount from your qualifying purchases. We'd appreciate if you would use our links to help support the podcast.*

1. A Teachers Guide to Reading Conferences by Jennifer Servallo*
2. Conferring with Readers book*
3. Conferring: The Keystone of Readers Workshop*
4. Accelerated Reader
5. Accelerated Reader Certification Levels
6. The Value of Independent Reading
7. Reading Logs
8. Laura Candler Free Literacy Printables
9. Fountas and Pinnell: What is Independent Reading?
10. Cult of Pedagogy:How to Stop Killing the Love of Reading

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Shannon and Mary share their tips and tricks for one of the most enjoyable experiences of reading with young readers: Read Aloud! We share professional resources, essential tips for working with struggling readers, and how parents can make reading aloud at a home a treasured time for any type of reader.

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1. The Art of Teaching Reading by Lucy Calkins*
2. The Book Whisperer Awakening the Inner Reader in Every Child by Donalyn Miller*
3. Example of Youtube read-aloud
4. Raising Readers Free Course from Read Everyday Blog by Jansen Bradshaw
5. Read Aloud Handbook by Jim Trelease*
6. How to Get your Child to Love Reading by Esme Raji Codell*
7. How to Help a Child with Dyslexia with Home Reading from The Literacy Nest
8. Accommodations for Dyslexia by Susan Barton
9. The Reading Zone by Nancie Atwell*
10. Beyond Leveled Books by Franki Sibberson and Karen Syzmusiak and Lisa Koch*
11. Plot Mountain Youtube clip

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Shannon shares how guided reading groups are the non-negotiable element in her daily classroom. In this episode Mary and Shannon weigh in on the importance and power of small group teaching of guided reading.

Resource Links:NOTE: As an Amazon Associate program, we earn a small amount from your qualifying purchases. We'd appreciate if you would use our links to help support the podcast.*

1. Guided Reading video
2. Lucy Calkins videos (small group videos on this page)
3. Decodable text guided reading lesson video
4. Comprehension Discussion prompts
5. AMAZING free resources from Jan Richardson, a guided reading guru
6. Guided reading self-assessment for teachers
7. Prompts for Guided Reading
8. Fountas & Pinnell-What is Guided Reading
9. Narrative Nonfiction Guided Reading Lesson video
10. Guided Reading-the Nuts and Bolts (from Scholastic)
11. The Next Step Forward in Guided Reading by Jan Richardson*

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Mary discusses the concept of alphabetic principle and strategies for teaching blending.

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1. Reading Rockets Blending and Segmenting Strategies
2. The Alphabetic Principle from Phonological Awareness to Reading Words
3. What is the Alphabetic Principle? This Reading Mama
4. Florida Center for Reading Research - Letter Correspondence
5. Teaching Word Recognition, Second Edition: Effective Strategies for Students with Learning Difficulties (What Works for Special-Needs Learners) by Rollanda E. O'Connor*
6. Finger tapping
7. Blending Board Binder (great example)
8. The Blending Slide

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Great news! Shannon is here to help address more listener questions about Lucy Calkins, comprehension strategies and professional development for reading specialists.

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1. Lucy Calkins Writing Units of Study
2. The Writing Revolution by Judith Hochman and Natalie Wexler*
3. Strategies That Work by Stephanie Harvey and Anne Goudvis*
4. Dyslexia Training Institute

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Mary discusses a student she is working with who flies under the radar in his general education classroom. In this discussion, she poses the question "Who are kids who fly under the radar? How can we better address their needs?" This episode will engage listeners to consider their own students and reflect on who and why kids "fly under the radar."

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1. Hiding in Plain Sight: Tips to Spot an Under-the-Radar Student—and Tools to Get Her Back on Track
2. Our episode S1 Ep 13 Recognizing a Struggling Reader: The Big Secret
3. Catching Readers Before They Fall by Pat Johnson and Katie Keier*

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Mary responds to listener questions about time management and the components of a tutoring session.

Resource Links:

1. OG Drill information
2. I <3 Emily Gibbon's materials at The Literacy Nest
3. Our episode on Executive Functioning
4. Our episode on Sight Words

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Mary discusses a brief that has been put out by the International Literacy Association that shares information about how phonics instruction must be systematic and explicit as part of an overall efficient, effective, and timely reading curriculum.

Resource Links:

1. Education Week July 18, 2019 Influential Reading Group Makes it Clear: Students Need Systematic, Explicit Phonics
2. Brief from ILA Meeting the Challenges of Early Phonics Instruction
3. Hard Words Why Aren't Kids Being Taught to Read (APM report by Emily Hanford)
4. our Episode about reading terms: Phoneme and Grapheme
5. our Episode about Phonological and Phonemic Awareness

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This is the beginning of season 2! Shannon and Mary catch up about what they have been up to during the summer and how they're getting ready for the new school year.

Resource Links:

1. SMART Goals (lol)
2. Fundations Phonics Program
3. our Sight Words Episode
4. our Short Vowels episode
5. our Long Vowels episode
6. our R-Controlled Vowels episode
7. our Vowel Teams episode
8. our Syllables episode
9. our Phonemic Awareness episode
10. Kindergarten activities for books about different colors

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Are you ready for summer? We can't wait to play with our kids! Mary and Shannon have compiled some resources for hands-on summer play to practice important reading skills outside of the classroom.

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1. What Mom's Love blog with 101 ideas to encourage learning with chalk
2. Letter Sounds (Beginning, Middle, Ending sound Or or Sight Word with a spray bottle)
3. Pool Noodle games - CVC stack and knock over the rings
4. Jumping Rope games with rhymes! :) Anna Banana*
5. Sight Word Soccer - label cones with words
6. Construction Site- Alphabet Rocks Scoop and Spell - Spell Name, Match Letters, Spell CVC words, etc
7. Sight Word Pebbles
8. Fly Swatter I Spy (beginning sound), or letter/sound correspondence
9. Baby Pool - Foam letters in the water and then match the letters to chalk letters (I Can Teach My Child.com)

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We share some of the unexpected phonics lessons that students need that aren't always obvious in the curriculum guides. These important and necessary phonics lessons are essential in phonics instruction.

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1. How To Teach Spelling by Laura Toby Rudginsky and Elizabeth C. Haskell*
2. Emily Gibbon's of The Literacy Nest Spelling Generalizations Bundle
3. The Orton Gillingham Educators' Guide
4. Make Take Teach FLoSZ poster
5. Gentle Cindy anchor chart
6. FCRR Student Activities
7. 3 sounds of ed
8. The K or Ck Rule

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Shannon and Mary share how to facilitate digital assignments in the reading classroom.   We go into detail about using Moby Max, Imagine Learning, and Boom Learning with students. 

Resource Links:

1. Digital Assignments Sheet
2. Cult of Pedagogy Podcast - Check Your Tech: 6 Strategies
3. Boom Learning
4. Imagine Learning
5. Moby Max
6. Lexia
7. Amplify
8. Nessy
9. Language Live
10. Epic

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Shannon and Mary review the terms phoneme and grapheme. They're important terms to understanding the connections between letters and sounds.

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1. Phonics they Use Words for Reading and Writing by Patricia Cunningham
2. Phonics A-Z by Wiley Blevins
3. Phonemes, Graphemes, and Letters: The Word Burger
4. 44 Phonemes in English

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Shannon and Mary discuss a professional article, "Why Phonics Teaching Must Change" published in Educational Leadership, September, 2008 by Jeannine Herron. They talk about a different approach to teaching students to read. What if we focus more on encoding rather than starting with decoding?

Resource Links:

1. Article: Why Phonics Instruction Must Change
2. Encoding, Decoding, and Understanding the Print Language
3. Teaching Encoding and Decoding
4. Equipped for Reading Success by David Kilpatrick
5. Review of Left and Right Brain - Healthline
6. FREE sound wall bulletin board

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Shannon and Mary talk about pre-reading skills and other school readiness skills that students need before going to Kindergarten. They interview Emily Howland, a pre-school educator about important early literacy skills and language development. 

Resource Links:

1. All About Learning - Motivation to Read 10 Tips for Preschoolers
2. Conscious Discipline - Social/Emotional curriculum
3. Play based curriculum
4. Types of preschool programming

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Executive Functioning is a term being thrown around a lot in schools today. We break down what this term means and why it's important for educators to understand it. We discuss the importance of teaching these essential life-long skills.

Resource Links:

1. Executive Functioning in Plain English
2. Executive Functioning Task Cards
3. 5 Ways Executive Functioning Issues Can Impact Reading
4. The Reading Brain: Executive Function Hard at Work
5. Executive Function Skills: the Building Blocks for Reading to Learn

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Reading and Writing go hand-in-hand. Hesitant readers tend to be hesitant writers. We ask students to do a lot of writing throughout the day. Shannon and Mary discuss the importance and elements of quality writing instruction.

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1. Thinking Maps
2. The Writing Revolution: A Guide to Advancing Thinking Through Writing in All Subject Areas by Judith C. Hochman and Amanda Wexler*
3. Reading and Writing Strategies Facebook Community
4. LOTS of writing instruction videos from The Teachers College Reading and Writing Project (Lucy Calkins)
5. What is Writing Workshop
6. Writers Workshop Procedures
7. 7 Ways to Support Student Writing in any Content Area
8. Seth Perler student video describing how audience and purpose are essential to "getting your words on paper."
9. Seth Perler video blog The Writing Process (in plain English)
10. Empowering Writers

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Shannon and Mary discuss the concept of metacognition - thinking about the way you think. We discuss tips about how to teach your students how to evaluate their performances, learning, and reading.

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1. How Metacognition Can Help Kids
2. Executive Functioning Task Cards
3. Strategies that Work book link*
4. Strategies that Work Study Guide
5. 5 Ways to Boost Metacognition in the Classroom
6. Metacognition Overview
7. 3 Ideas for Teaching Students Struggling with Reading to Use Metacognition

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Consonants deserve their own episode! We can't let vowels steal all the glory. Learn about the building blocks of language: vowels/consonants, blends, digraphs. Learn more about how we teach our students about consonants as we share our tricks, tips, and resources.

Resource Links:

1. Precise Pronunciation
2. Digraph brothers
3. FCRR Digraph a Word
4. FCRR Student Center Activities
5. Ending Blends Clip Cards
6. PBS Videos and Resources for Consonant Blends
7. Curated Video Playlist about Blends and Digraphs

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Mary and Shannon sort out the complex terms that are related to phonological processing. What is the difference between phonological awareness and phoneme awareness? We discuss how we teach these skills and provide resource ideas for you to try!

Resource Links:

1. Phonological and Phonemic Awareness Introduction
2. Orton Gillingham Educators' Guide
3. Equipped for Reading Success by David Kilpatrick
4. Phonological Awareness and Dyslexia
5. Phonemic Awareness Overview (from U. of Oregon)
6. Getting Ready to Read Phonemic Awareness Centers (with the Frog book cover)
7. FCRR Student Activities-look at the Phonological Awareness resources
8. The Literacy Nest:Building Phonemic Awareness for Struggling Readers
9. Long and Short Vowel Phonemic Awareness sort

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Shannon and Mary discuss how to determine "just right activities" for their students by working within the ZPD (Zone of Proximal Development) and how analyzing your students' scores can lead to developing rigorous activities within the student's instructional level. We believe that learning to read is rigorous and teachers must continue to teach students where they are while developing their lofty learning goals.

Resource Links:

1. ZPD Overview (Wikipedia)
2. ZPD and Scaffolding
3. Reading Levels and ZPDs
4. Zone of Proximal Development
5. ZPD and Accelerated Reader/Renaissance Learning
6. How do you find the instructional reading level? Analyzing Accuracy
7. Free Data Folder resource
8. Episode 4: Decoding the MAP Test

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Shannon and Mary have a conversation about reversals of letters and numbers. Many parents and teachers are concerned about reversals, but the truth is that all reversals do need to be explicitly taught. Some children will make developmentally appropriate errors, while others are struggling with working memory, visual, and phonological processing. Direct instruction with model (verbal and visual cues) and demonstration is the only research-based strategy to help children correct their reversals.

Resource Links:

1. Bat and Ball; Drum and Stick
2. B is a bad, bad boy; D's like to talk
3. Letter reversal poster
4. Guest Blogger from Bay Tree Blog Ultimate Teacher's Guide to Letter and Number Reversals
5. Handwriting Without Tears Professional Development
6. Ann Marie Morey - Free handwriting resources

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Shannon and Mary talk about coping behaviors that struggling readers use to hide the "big secret" that they can't read. They share details about students' actions that teachers can look for in the classroom to gather more insight about their learners. Some tactics that are labeled as troublesome are actually deflection tactics that struggling students use to mask their learning deficits. Come join the conversation! Do the children in your room display these behaviors? We think you'll recognize many of your kids in these examples.

Resource Links:

1. Struggling Reader Behavior Checklist
2. Why Millions of Kids Can't Read and What Better Teaching Can Do About It
3. 45 Questions to Encourage Student Reflection and Growth
4. Instructional Level versus Independent Level
5. Selecting Just Right Books
6. Hi-Lo Books High Interest/Low Readability Books

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Mary and Shannon discuss Dyslexia. There are a lot of misconceptions that are due to lack of training. Many teachers are somewhat familiar with dyslexia and may even say that they have previously taught students with dyslexia. However, the reality is that almost 20% of the population struggles with dyslexia and may or may not be formally diagnosed. Find out more about dyslexia and join the conversation. Are you wondering what you can do to keep your classroom "dyslexic-friendly?" We have plenty of ideas!

Resource Links:

1. Overcoming Dyslexia by Sally Shaywitz
2. Yale Center for Dyslexia and Creativity
3. Dyslexia in the Classroom: What every teacher should know from IDA
4. 8 Things Every Teacher Should Know about Dyslexia
5. Teachers Don't Understand the Depth of Dyslexia
6. Letter Fed Gov Guidance on Dyslexia 2015
7. APM Reports Educate: Hard Words by Emily Hanlon
8. Dyslexia Simulation - Dyslexia Training Institute
9. Learning Ally
10. An interview with Patricia Polacco (children's author) about her struggle with dyslexia

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Are you teaching sight words in your classroom? Parents, are you supporting your child's practice in learning sight words? It's important to have a large bag of tricks. Listen as Shannon and Mary discuss many different ideas for parents and teachers to reinforce multiple practice turns for students as they are gaining automaticity in reading and spelling sight words.

Resource Links:

1. Red Words
2. Sight Word Stories by Margaret Hillert
3. Structured Word Inquiry Webinar
4. Sight Word Phrases
5. Sight Word Parking Log
6. Sight Word Guess Who

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Shannon and Mary discuss the final pattern of the six syllable types: 'consonant+le'. Listen and join the conversation as they review CLOVER (closed, consonant + le, open, vowel teams, magic-e, and r-control syllable types). Find resources for how to teach syllables in your classroom and some clever tricks to reach your struggling readers. If you have students in your classroom who still haven't "cracked the code", come learn some strategies that will help you reach readers with phonics-based reading instruction.

Resource Links:

1. FCRR Speedy Syllables activity
2. Curated Syllables Youtube clips playlist
3. Wiley Blevins upper grade phonics book
4. How to Teach Syllables
5. The Literacy Nest CLOVER syllables

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Vowel teams are combinations of vowels (two or more) that make one sound. When students begin learning about vowel teams they have to demonstrate an understanding of sound symbol relationship where multiple vowel teams represent a single sound. This developmental decoding milestone is quite complex and is a critical step that students must take on their journey to mastering syllable patterns. Shannon and Mary will walk you through some of the important steps in teaching readers vowel teams.

Resource Links:

1. The Literacy Nest Tips for Teaching Vowel Teams
2. Curated Vowel Teams Youtube clips playlist
3. FCRR Same but Different activity
4. FCRR Vowel Digraph Baseball activity
5. Words Their Way Within Word text
6. Pat Cunningham Looks Right strategy
7. Pat Cunningham Brand Name Phonics (unit within the text)
8. Vowel Team Word list with pictures (made by Shannon)
9. Electric Company video link (from the end of the episode)

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Shannon and Mary discuss how they discovered the importance of teaching phonics instruction and syllable division to help their student begin to crack the code of reading. Throughout the episode they will talk about strategies and activities that include multi-sensory phonics instruction for teaching r-controlled vowel patterns.

Resource Links:

1. R-Controlled Spin game from FCRR
2. GREAT Youtube video clips to introduce & practice the sounds!
3. The Literacy Nest article about r-controlled vowels
4. Smitten with First R-controlled Friends
5. The Measured Mom Gem r-controlled game
6. Pat Cunningham Looks Right Strategy
7. Pat Cunningham Making Words activity
8. The Measured Mom FREE Elkonin boxes
9. R-Controlled word list and pictures (made by Shannon)

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Mary and Shannon describe how they teach long vowels to their struggling readers. They share their favorite resources and routines for conducting phonics lessons. Are you challenged by your struggling readers? Do you need some casual professional development without sitting in the media center? Come join the conversation and start implementing new strategies tomorrow!

Resource Links:

1. FCRR Long & Short Vowel Picture sort
2. Long Vowels Videos Playlist
3. Free Reading.net Decodable passages
4. The Literacy Nest Syllable game
5. The Literacy Nest Long Vowel Clip Cards
6. FCRR Short and Long Vowel Word sort
7. Long Vowel Foldable created by Shannon
8. CVC to CVCe word list created by Shannon
9. Short and Long Vowel Soccer reading center & lesson created by Shannon
10. Short and Long Vowel Soccer Boom Cards digital game created by Shannon

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Shannon and Mary discuss background and strategies for teaching short vowels. You will learn facts and tidbits about literacy and why short vowels make their short, unique sounds. Hint! It has to do with the consonant next door. Learn about multi-sensory phonics based games and strategies for teaching struggling readers in your classroom. In the show notes you will find links to the resources we enjoy and use with our students.

Resource Links:

1. FCRR Short vowel reading center
2. FCRR Real & Nonsense word center
3. FCRR CVC make words & pictures
4. Really Good Stuff teaching guide with short vowel word family pictures
5. Orton Gillingham Educator's Guide *
6. The Multisensory Language Triangle
7. Short Vowels Videos Playlist
8. The Measured Mom vowel picture sort
9. Short Vowels practice game on Boom Learning (created by Shannon)
10. Short Vowel Word Family lists
11. Vowels and Consonants Teaching Presentation (created by Shannon)
12. Short Vowels foldable

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The process for identifying a specific learning disability such as dyslexia is complicated in the public school setting. In this episode Mary explains the RTI (Response to Intervention) process. She also breaks down how a student is eligible for special education in the public school. Key take away is ensuring that the student is receiving appropriate instruction to remediate their decoding struggles. Strong Tier 1 and 2 instruction is necessary to determine whether the student has a learning deficit or a learning disability.

Resource Links:

1. What to Expect at an IEP Eligibility Meeting
2. Response to Intervention
3. Intervention Central
4. 13 Conditions Covered Under IDEA
5. How Does the Reading Brain Work? (video)
6. RTI pyramid "triangle"
7. Struggling Readers Checklist

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You've completed the benchmark assessments. You have done what has been asked of you by the administration. But really...what does that MAP score mean? Can you explain it to your students? Is it valid? Can you help your students set meaningful goals with the data? Are you just doing what is asked to get by, or are you really able to interpret and utilize the data for meaningful support? Shannon can help you! We have both been there! It's honest talk about data. We are here to help you work smarter and not harder.

Resource Links:

1. Parent Toolkit from NWEA (makers of MAP test)
2. NWEA Professional Learning for Teachers
3. RIT to Concept Document need NWEA login

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How do you get to know your readers? Shannon and Mary share some of their experience using basic assessment tools to check foundational skills of their students: 

• oral reading fluency
• sight words
• phonemic awareness
• decoding skills
• spelling

Resource Links:

1. Oral Reading Fluency (Dibels)
2. Easy CBM
3. Dolch Sight Words
4. Basic Phonics Test
5. Quick Phonological Awareness Test
6. Words Their Way Spelling Inventory

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When was it that you first felt like you were a reading teacher who made the reading "magic" happen? When did you start to see growth from your students? What was the difference in your instruction or approach? 

In this episode, Shannon and Mary describe their development as literacy teachers.    They talk about the "moment when it clicked" and they figured out the magic of how to teach someone how to read.

Listen to this episode to learn more about the hosts and figure out their secrets to reading success.

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In this first episode, Shannon and Mary (two elementary reading teachers) introduce themselves and tell the stories about why they chose education and describe their varied teaching experiences.

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