More books about the science of reading

Hello, Anna Geiger here with more books that will help you learn about the science of reading! Last week I gave you four of the more short, simple books to get you started. Today these books will be great for building on what you've already learned.

One book I recommend is "Equipped for Reading Success" by David Kilpatrick. It offers a great summary of the research and will especially help you understand the concept of orthographic mapping. This book will give you a lot of insight into why some students struggle to learn to read and how to help them.

I also recommend "Teaching Word Recognition" by Rollanda E. O'Connor. I LOVE this book. If you teach struggling readers, this book is an absolute must-read. The layout isn't particularly eye-catching but once you get started, you will not be able to put this book down. Her book includes brilliant strategies for helping kids remember letters of the alphabet, learn to decode, and sound out multisyllable words. It's definitely one I want to take the time to read again.

Another book that every reading teacher should read is "Learning to Read: The Great Debate" by Jeanne Chall. Now this is an old book, and you will need to buy a used copy of this classic, but I urge you to put it on your list! The editions were published in 1967, 1983, and 1996, but the science that Jeanne Chall shared way back then still has not found its way into many American classrooms. It took her three years to write the first edition of the book because she was combing through thousands of pages of relevant reading research, and her conclusion was that beginning readers learn better when their first instruction focuses on learning the alphabetic code and places first importance on learning the relationship between letters and sounds, versus a meaning-based approach. Of course, it does not mean that we're not teaching students to understand what they read, but initially we're focusing on the code. So definitely check that book out. You'll want to read it with a highlighter because you're going to find lots of things that you want to remember.

Another book I recommend is "A Fresh Look at Phonics" by Wiley Blevins. I recommend his books every chance I get, and when I see he's published a new one, I buy it immediately. They're all easy to read and best of all, very practical, yet still building on the science of reading. In "A Fresh Look at Phonics," Blevins uses the data he's collected to show which phonics programs really work. You're going to get activities, routines, and lesson formats that will make your phonics lessons engaging and powerful.

While you're at it, go ahead and grab one of his newer books, "Choosing and Using Decodable Texts." If you're making the switch from leveled books to decodable books or you just want to do a better job with your decodables, this is the book you need. In his trademark style, he presents useful information in a conversational format, which I love, with lots of examples so you're immediately ready to apply what you've learned. You'll learn how to choose decodable books, how to develop before, during, and after routines, and more.

I could go on, but I think these are good for the intermediate student of the science of reading. In the show notes, you'll also find the link to my blog post where I'm adding all the books as I read them. That blog post includes simple books and more complex books, and for each one I give my overall rating, plus my rating for how easy it is to read, and how easy it is to apply. So head to the show notes where you can find all of that as well as links to purchase the books I mentioned today. You can find the show notes at themeasuredmom.com/episode10.

See you next time!