Instructional
Practices
To build confident, proficient readers, we teach foundational skills in an environment that accelerates learning.
A landmark study by the National Reading Panel found that the best approach to reading instruction is one that incorporates:
Explicit instruction in phonemic awareness
Systematic phonics instruction
Methods to improve fluency
Ways to enhance comprehension
The path to high-level reading comprehension
The correspondence between the sounds of spoken language and the letter(s) used to represent them in written language. Students use knowledge of these relationships to read and write words.
During phonics periods, students improve their ability to decode, use letter-sound patterns to read written words, and develop strategies to spell words. As students become proficient decoders, they read with greater speed and expression.
The ability to read a text accurately, quickly, and with expression. Fluent readers recognize words automatically and group words quickly to help derive meaning from what they read.
During fluency periods, students practice reading aloud texts geared to their independent reading level. To improve fluency, students engage in repeated reading, rereading the same text as many as four times. Each read is followed with corrective feedback from the coach.
The storehouse of words a given student knows. Vocabulary has both print and speech forms: oral vocabulary refers to words that we use in speaking or recognize in listening; our reading vocabulary consists of words we recognize or use in print.
Students learn new vocabulary explicitly using research-based methods and through the reading of rich, authentic texts as they build the ability to use a variety of strategies to derive the meanings of words.
The ability to understand, remember, and communicate meaning from what has been read. Reading comprehension is the ultimate goal of all reading instruction.
During reading periods, students read fiction and nonfiction books at or just above their reading level. Coaches ask comprehension questions before, during and after the reading, helping students develop strategies to make sense of, and draw meaning from, the texts they read.
Increased fluency and an expanded vocabulary lead to greater comprehension. When children are able to decode words quickly and easily, they can devote all of their mental energies to making meaning from the text.
Curated instructional plans
We divide the coaching hour into discrete periods so that each student builds multiple reading skills using an individualized plan. Double periods are used to reinforce skills that require more intensive work.
Optimizing the learning environment
The learning environment strongly impacts student achievement; studies show that the environment can affect student’s learning and academic progress by as much as 25%. A positive learning environment is one where students feel a sense of belonging, trust others, and feel encouraged to tackle challenges, ask questions, and take risks. To create and support a positive environment, we provide:
Tools to build coach-student rapport to increase student participation, encourage social interaction, and accelerate learning
A robust menu of engagement techniques to get students excited and interested in the material
Methods for setting consistent behavioral expectations in order to minimize confusion and to provide a platform for positive feedback
Strategies for setting session goals, offering clarity about learning objectives and providing achievable daily targets to redirect young learners when attention wanes
Process praise language frames to build a growth mindset in students, boosting their motivation and achievement
Techniques to regulate participants who experience a triggering event, taken from trauma-informed best practices