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Literacy supports
Science of reading. Structured literacy. No cueing.
My doctorate is in literacy, language, and culture, and it’s still where I do my closest work with schools. Explicit, systematic instruction is not a preference: it’s what the research supports, and moving a building toward it is some of the most satisfying work I do.
Teaching reading the way the research says
- Phonemic awareness and systematic, explicit phonics
- Morphemic analysis and multisyllabic decoding
- Teaching high‑frequency and irregularly spelled words correctly
- Moving a building away from cueing‑based practices
Beyond decoding: knowledge, vocabulary, and writing
Decoding gets students to the words. Knowledge is what lets them understand what the words are saying.
- Building background knowledge across content areas
- Vocabulary instruction that sticks
- Writing instruction and disciplinary literacy
- Differentiating text without lowering expectations
Reading data and progress monitoring
- Screening, diagnostic, and progress‑monitoring systems that align
- Reading data analysis and grouping decisions
- Program evaluation and curriculum review
- Coaching teams through the shift in practice
Where AI fits, and where it doesn’t
AI can help you differentiate a content‑area text, draft comprehension questions, or generate practice sets quickly. It cannot teach a child to decode, and it cannot tell you which child needs what next.
That judgment stays with the teacher who knows the reader. I’m clear about that line in every literacy session I run.
Reading instruction and assessment are inseparable. You can’t teach what you haven’t measured, and data you can’t act on is just paperwork.