We are not born to read! Speaking is natural but we must rewire our brain to be able to read. Don’t we all want our children to do better than we did? Then we must give our children the tools to be successful and reading is the most essential of all these. Did you know that in the US only about one-third of fourth graders can read at grade level with accuracy, fluency, and understanding (NCES,2019)?
Beginning in the 21/22 school year our Educational Excellence and Innovation Department has put together a series of professional development for our elementary teachers and administrators based on the Science of Reading. This is NOT a curriculum but a convergence of evidence from thousands of studies around the world that inform how proficient reading and writing develop in the human brain.
Research shows that learning to read and write happens through explicit and systematic instruction. We must start with Phonological awareness, understanding sounds and words.
Phonics and word recognition, this is when the sounds become connected to written letters and words. Fluency, automatic word recognition and expression.
Vocabulary and oral language comprehension, both academic and inferential language. Finally, text comprehension, which starts long before children can read independently.
Through our series of PD’s we are helping teachers to learn the skills they need to support reading for all students. These skills are taught either minimally or not at all during many teaching programs. Many educators come to the classroom not fully prepared to teach these foundational skills. In VUSD we believe all children have a basic human right to learn to read and will continue to work towards cultivating the talents of our educators.
