You May Be Right, I May Be Crazy: MTSS and Tier I Instruction

This is a guest re-post of a blog recently written by Stephanie Stollar, founder of Stephanie Stollar Consulting and creator of The Reading Science Academy. Stephanie's message caught our eye -- she shares some important insights about issues related to implementing core literacy instruction for schools using a multi-tiered system of supports framework.
Stephanie Stollar | March 20, 2024 | 1 Comment
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Vocabulary Instruction for English Language Learners

Together with my colleagues at Keys to Literacy, I have recently updated the content in our Key Vocabulary Routine professional development course, including information related to vocabulary instruction for English language learners (ELLs). This quote from Michael Graves sums up an important message for teachers of all grades and subjects: “While most of the assistance we provide for ELLs will not be different in kind from that we provide for English only students, many ELLs will need to be taught more words, will need more powerful instruction, and will need to be given particular help in mastering word-learning strategies. This is also true of other students who enter school with small vocabularies.”  (2016, p. 41)
Joan Sedita | June 6, 2023 | 1 Comment
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What is DIRECT, SYSTEMATIC and EXPLICIT Instruction?

Direct, explicit, and systematic instruction has been recognized as an essential strategy for teaching reading and writing.
Joan Sedita | December 1, 2022 | 0 Comments
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Culturally Responsive Literacy Instruction

Culturally Responsive Teaching is a pedagogy that recognizes the importance of meeting students where they are culturally and linguistically. It puts students at the center of instruction that validates and affirms students' identities and gives students from historically marginalized communities an equitable education experience. When culturally responsive educators validate and affirm students and bring them where they need to be academically, students are more likely to feel recognized, valued for their contributions, and eager to learn. (Hollie, 2017)
Joan Sedita | January 5, 2022 | 2 Comments
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What is Structured Literacy instruction?

Keys to Literacy recently launched our new "Understanding Dyslexia" online course, and one of the major topics in the course is the importance of using a structured literacy approach to teaching reading to students with dyslexia. Structured literacy is a comprehensive approach to literacy instruction that research shows is effective for all students and essential for students who have difficulty with reading. This approach addresses all the foundational elements that are critical for reading comprehension. It is characterized by the provision of systematic, explicit instruction that integrates listening, speaking, reading, and writing. It includes instruction for multiple levels of language.
Joan Sedita | May 5, 2021 | 0 Comments
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Multisensory Teaching by Emily Gibbons

This post was written by Emily Gibbons, a dyslexia instructor. Emily provides suggestions for using multiple senses when teaching foundational reading skills.  Multisensory teaching is not just crucial for kids with dyslexia, it is good solid teaching for ALL students. Using a variety of senses helps with memory and retrieval and allows students to support their areas of weakness with their areas of strength.  Incorporating multisensory learning tools into your classroom lessons will not replace intervention services, but it will make classroom lessons more accessible to students with learning differences.
Joan Sedita | November 26, 2018 | 0 Comments
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Stress: Toxic to the Brain and Learning Literacy Skills by Noel Foy

This month's blog post was written Noel Foy, one of our Keys to Literacy trainers who is an expert on learning and the brain and who has just published a children's book about anxiety titled "ABC Worry Free". In her post, Noel discusses how stress affects learning. Stress is a topic typically associated with adults, but with the increase in anxiety disorders among children over the last ten years, its impact on their ability to learn literacy skills is worrisome. Neuroscience research reveals the brain can experience stress as feelings of anxiety, anger, frustration, boredom or lack of personal relevance. Unfortunately, many students in classrooms across the country find themselves in at least one of these negative states on a chronic basis, causing the amygdala, the brain’s personal watchdog for potential threats, to activate the stress response.
Joan Sedita | November 5, 2018 | 2 Comments
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Differentiated Literacy Instruction: I, We, You

The Reading Rockets website has a short, introductory article titled “Differentiated Instruction for Reading” that includes this description of differentiated instruction: “Differentiated instruction is a process through which teachers enhance learning by matching student characteristics to instruction and assessment. Differentiated instruction allows all students to access the same classroom curriculum by providing entry points, learning tasks, and outcomes that are tailored to students' needs. Differentiated instruction is not a single strategy, but rather an approach to instruction that incorporates a variety of strategies. Teachers can differentiate content, process, and/or product for students.”
Joan Sedita | October 19, 2017 | 1 Comment
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What is MTSS?

Over the past few years, a number of state-level departments of education have developed requirements for adoption of MTSS by school districts, as well as resources to help schools implement MTSS. As I work with districts to develop literacy plans, I am often asked to explain MTSS and how Keys to Literacy professional development support an MTSS literacy instruction model.
Joan Sedita | November 16, 2016 | 1 Comment
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Scaffolds to Support Summarizing

Summarizing is one of the most effective activities for improving both comprehension and writing skills (National Reading Panel, 2000; Graham & Perin, 2007). Summarizing enhances comprehension as students select, condense, and synthesize in their own words the big ideas of what they have learned. Summarizing also lets teachers monitor student comprehension. It’s not surprising that the Common Core has devoted one of the ten reading standards to summarizing....
Joan Sedita | March 29, 2016 | 11 Comments
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Great Apps for Struggling Readers/Writers

I ran across an interesting piece by Jamie Martin at the Forbes online site titled “Apple vs. Google: The Real Winners are Students with Dyslexia.” Martin makes the point that the competition between Apple and Google has resulted in great benefits for people who struggle with reading and writing skills. Both companies, in order to keep the competitive edge as they rolled out new devices (e.g., Apple’s Apple Watch and updated versions of iPhone and iPad; Google’s updates to Android and Chromeboook) have made a significant number of features, tools, and software applications available on their products related to assistive technology (AT)....
Joan Sedita | November 24, 2015 | 2 Comments
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Teaching ELLS with Learning Disabilities

It is hard to know why some English language learners struggle with literacy skills. Is it just due to their lack of English skills? Or might there also be a learning disability? As a recent post at the blog EdCentral points out, studies show that there is both an over- and under-representation of language learners in special education programs likely due to teachers’ misunderstanding of student needs and poorly designed language assessments...
Joan Sedita | November 3, 2015 | 0 Comments
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Balanced Assessment Systems

“You can either fight assessment or embrace it. However; you cannot be a high performing school without embracing assessment.”

Do you agree with this quote from Lynn Fielding?

I know one thing we can all agree on: There is no shortage of assessments taking place in schools! DIBELS, DRA, DDM's, Benchmark Assessment, MAP, ANET, MCAS, ACCESS, PARCC., etc..........sound familiar? ...
Donna Mastrovito | October 20, 2015 | 1 Comment
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“Voice of Literacy” Podcasts

I’d like to share a resource I recently found that archives podcasts related to literacy. On the Voice of Literacy site, Dr. Betsy Baker (Associate Professor of Literacy studies at the University of Missouri) posts bi-weekly podcasts of interviews of researchers as they discuss the implications of their literacy research. Most podcasts range from 10 to 12 minutes long, and are archived back to 2008. I can’t believe I am just finding out about this resource!....
Joan Sedita | March 24, 2015 | 0 Comments
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Adolescent Literacy Tips for Struggling Readers

Beth Morrow wrote a helpful guest post for the ASCD blog titled Seven Considerations When Developing Adolescent Literacy.

Based on her experience in middle school classrooms that include students who struggle to read and write, Beth makes seven great suggestions......

Joan Sedita | September 23, 2014 | 1 Comment
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ACCESSING KEYS TO LITERACY PD DURING SCHOOL CLOSURES

We are closely monitoring the COVID-19 situation and the impact on our employees and the schools where we provide professional development.

During this time period when onsite, face-to-face training and coaching is not possible, we offer multiple options for accessing our literacy PD content and instructional practices.

If you are a current or new partner, explore our website or contact us to learn more about:

info@keystoliteracy.com
978-948-8511