Posted November 15, 2023 in Articles
Learning to read is an essential step in a child’s educational journey. But for many students, learning to read can be significantly difficult, especially for those with dyslexia and other language-based learning differences. Structured literacy instruction—an explicit and systematic approach based on the Science of Reading—can make all the difference.
These days, the Science of Reading is everywhere we look. Legislators are realizing something that Lawrence has known for decades. Learning to read is a science, and children with language-based learning challenges need to be taught in a specific way or face the possibility of lagging behind dramatically in school.
“Everything we do at Lawrence is designed with the Science of Reading in mind,” explains Associate Head of School and Lower School Head, Vanessa Diffenbacher.
She should know. She's been passionately helping generations of students learn this essential skill for more than 28 years.
What exactly is the Science of Reading?
The Science of Reading is a research-based approach to literacy and learning how to read and comprehend text. It consists of decades of research and scientific knowledge conducted by reading specialists, including Dr. Hollis Scarborough, a leading researcher of early language development.
Scarborough’s famous Reading Rope provides a framework for understanding the various skills necessary for proficient, accurate, and fluent reading comprehension. The Reading Rope is made up of lower and upper strands representing two areas of learning: word recognition and language comprehension.
The word recognition strand consists of decoding, phonological awareness, and sight recognition—skills that students need to achieve in order to read fluently, automatically, and accurately. The language comprehension strand combines vocabulary, background knowledge, language structures, literacy knowledge, and verbal reasoning to help students understand what they read.
Word Recognition
- Decoding: alphabetic principle, letter-sound correspondences
- Phonological Awareness: syllables, phonemes, etc.
- Sight Recognition: of familiar words
Language Comprehension
- Vocabulary Knowledge: breadth, precision, links, etc.
- Background Knowledge: facts, concepts, etc.
- Language Structures: syntax, semantics, etc.
- Literacy Knowledge: print concepts, genres, etc.
- Verbal Reasoning: interference, metaphor, etc.
Both threads simultaneously intertwine to create a skilled reader. However, this process takes time. It requires instruction and repeated practice—something Lawrence reinforces to develop mastery.
“Every component of the Reading Rope is embedded into our teaching methods,” Diffenbacher said. “We’re very deliberate about adhering to the science behind each strand.”
Lawrence teachers understand that learning to read is not necessarily intuitive for all learners. That’s why Lower School students spend the entire morning working on reading and writing.
CodeBreakers, our signature language arts curriculum, is based on Orton-Gillingham principles and uses multisensory activities to teach the rules of phonics in a step-by-step, explicit process. Each concept systematically builds upon the next and mastery is required. Phonetic segmentation is stressed throughout each lesson, giving students exposure to a “part-to-whole” and “whole-to-part” strategy. Using the curriculum, teachers can take students through all the speech sounds and syllable types one by one.
Lower School students aren’t simply doing letter drills out of a book. They’re standing, verbalizing, writing in shaving cream and sand, and making letters with Wikki Stix until the letter formation and sounds are etched into their memories.
“The students think they’re playing because of all the fun, multisensory activities that we do, but really we’re just activating the brain’s multimodal pathways by using visual, tactile, auditory, and kinesthetic strategies,” said Lower School Dean of Students Amy Erich.
The goal, Erich added, is to get students to decode words effectively and “keep students away from the guessing game” because it becomes increasingly difficult for older readers to comprehend passages at the middle or high school level without a strong vocabulary and being able to effectively decode unfamiliar words.
Reading instruction at Lawrence doesn’t end with CodeBreakers, but it’s a great jumping-off point.
“Because of the systematic foundation that is laid at the Lower School, we can work on building further background knowledge and analytical skills as students progress through Middle and High School,” said Rama Janamanchi, Upper School academic dean.
The Science of Reading has progressed and continues to grow with technology. At Lawrence, technology is thoughtfully embedded into daily life in a seamless K-12 integration.
Laptops and Chromebooks are essential for students who do better when reading text in digital formats or who struggle with handwriting. Headphones enable students to listen to text versions of documents, textbooks, and literature through Lawrence’s own digital library, Learning Ally, or Bookshare. A child with dyslexia who reads printed text at 60 words a minute may jump to 300 words a minute with a device that allows them to hear the text as they read.
And soon, more Ohio students will have an opportunity to learn to read this way. In early July, Ohio Governor Mike Dewine signed the state's two-year budget, which includes funds for implementing the Science of Reading.
“We are thrilled that the state of Ohio is dedicating funds to begin implementing the Science of Reading into the state’s curriculum, and we hope this will be helpful to students, “Diffenbacher said. “I have been with Lawrence since 1995, and we have been following and implementing this research in every classroom for years. To us, the Science of Reading is more than just a trend or a fancy buzzword. It’s woven into our fundamental foundation. This research, when implemented with fidelity, is powerful!”