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It's now well past February, but the remnants of Valentine's Day still linger in my couch cushions. The handmade cards are always my favorite ones to find… especially the ones wishing a "Happy Valantine's Day." I asked my first grader if he knew what makes the word Valentine so hard to spell. He guessed, "Because it's a long word," which is half right. Long words are usually multisyllabic, and multisyllabic words usually have a schwa. The schwa sound—such as the one on the first "e" in Valentine—is notorious for making words difficult to read and spell.

Raise your hand if you've ever heard a child joyfully declare, "X is for Xylophone!"?

When it comes to teaching children to read, the importance of a quality phonics program cannot be overstated. With so many options available, it can be challenging to determine which program will best suit the needs of your students.

If you are looking for an evidence-based reading solution whose strategy is backed by scientific research and over three decades of classroom use, check out Read Live. Try this program free for 60 days!

Signs for Sounds is a phonics-based spelling program that aligns with the Science of Reading. This program teaches phonics elements and builds mastery in encoding and decoding words with these elements. It also builds mastery in encoding and decoding high-frequency words that do not follow regular phonics patterns.

Surprisingly, just over 50% of elementary teacher preparation programs in the United States offer courses in scientifically based reading methods (Moorer, 2020). Our new Foundational Reading Skills White Paper explains the science of how students learn to read and what skills they need to be taught.

We are thrilled to share that Read Naturally's curriculum directors have recently been featured in two high-quality educational publications accessed by tens of thousands of educators nationwide. Our Director of Curriculum, Karen McKenna, wrote an article for THE Journal entitled 5 Ways to Add Elements of the Science of Reading to a Balanced Literacy Program. Our Assistant Director of Curriculum, Sarah Jane Schonour, wrote an article for SmartBrief Education entitled Providing Literacy Intervention, Support Within MTSS.

How can we make a difference for our students in the area of reading? What programs do we choose? How do we know these approaches will reach each student where they are? How can I help my students’ parents understand what they are supposed to do to support their child in the area of reading? These are all questions that educators reflect on regularly.

Whenever I’m grappling with a difficult question, I remember the wise words of my favorite teacher. “Maybe this is not an either/or situation,” she once told me. “Maybe it’s a both, and.” In a world that often urges us to take sides and to feel only one way about something, it can be helpful to remember that a productive way forward frequently lies somewhere in the both, and. This wisdom can be applied to many situations, including… yes… effective reading intervention.

Make Your Student a STAR!

Read Naturally Star of the Month​Share your student’s success story—nominate him or her for our Star of the Month award. Win a Barnes & Noble gift card for the student and a Read Naturally gift certificate for your class!

pointer Submit a Star-of-the-Month entry

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