Bringing Joy Back into Reading Instruction: A Centrist’s Perspective

by Dr. Sam Bommarito

https://www.forbes.com/sites/nickmorrison/2024/05/19/science-of-reading-has-sucked-the-joy-out-of-learning-to-read-experts-say

A recent article in Forbes magazine has raised the question of whether the current rush to implement “Science of Reading” has resulted in an unintended consequence. The Joy is being taken out of the teaching of reading. Here is a screenshot of a key part of that article:

As a centrist who believes in taking the best elements from all sides of the issue of how to teach reading, here is a list of things we can do to help bring Joy back into the teaching of reading.

1. Put decodables in their place. Researchers like Meismer have said decodables are only needed very early in the reading process. My take on that is that there is no real use for them in the regular classroom past 1st grade. Even Tim Shanahan, a strong advocate for SOR, has said that the folks claiming we need years and years of decodable books are simply making that stuff up. It’s time to adjust our use of decodables to fit what research says about them. They are not silver bullets. They are a tool that is useful very early in the reading process. They can be useful in Tier 2 and Tier 3 settings. They can also be useful when teaching specific things like prefixes/suffixes (thanks to Leah Mermelstein for that idea- see comments). Let’s use them that way.
2. When picking decodables, please pay close attention to their content. Not all decodables are created equal. Some are devoid of any meaning. Others are well done and provide the kind of word-solving practice beginning readers need. Limiting district choices for decodables to those published by politically correct companies is not in the best interests of the students. As a centrist, the fact that some companies once associated exclusively with “balanced literacy” are now creating some well-done decodable books is a sign that folks are recognizing that you need to consider both sides (all sides) of the issue. Yet some folks are being stopped from buying decodables because the wrong company publishes them.  I’d love to hear from my readers about some of the “best of the best” decodables they have found.
3. There are Joyful ways to help students master the USE of sound-symbol relations in order to problem-solve their words. Tim Rasinski has been at the forefront of a movement designed to use what he has learned about repeated readings to foster a “learn by doing” approach to mastering sound-symbol relations. He and his colleagues include things like using songs, poetry and reader’s theatre to help students develop fluency and comprehension. I have an interview lined up with Tim and one of his co-authors in the very near future, so stay tuned for more information about the nuts and bolts of how that kind of approach can be implemented.
4. Part of bringing the joy back into reading instruction includes effectively using songs and read-alouds. Eric Litwin is a master of that. Though best known for his very popular children’s books, he has also written a research-based book about the topic. One of the things I always recommend to parents and students is that they find their favorite authors and explore all the books read by one of them. I often used Eric as a recommendation for an author to explore. Again, I’d love to hear from my readers about their ideas for recommended children’s authors at various grade levels.  
5. Last week I talked about Seidenberg’s newest ideas about SOR. My readers’ response to one of his newest ideas was overwhelming. He said, “The purpose of instruction is to enable the child to achieve escape velocity, not take them all the way to the moon” (bolding mine).” This was a follow-up to his idea that while beginning readers need a heavy dose of explicit instruction, the mix shifts to a greater reliance on implicit instruction as the child gains skill. Many of my RR friends saw this thought as dovetailing perfectly with Clay’s ideas of building the foundations for a self-extending system. Could it be that some common ground is starting to emerge here? I certainly hope so.

The above is just a starter set of ideas about how to bring Joy back into reading instruction. For the future, it is important that we proceed in a way that empowers teachers and lets them be treated as professionals. This post about teachers as professionals appeared recently on Facebook:

In my interview with George Hruby, he pointed out that teachers don’t want to be babysitters, tied as a room monitor to groups of kids using prescriptive online programs. They want to be professionals who are allowed to carry out programs of instruction based on the years and years of education, professional development and training many of them have. I would add that that needs to be done within the confines of the district’s programs and curriculum. Good, experienced teachers are leaving the teaching field in droves. If we want the remaining teachers to stay, it’s time to bring Joy back into reading instruction and treat teachers as the dedicated professionals they truly are.

As I indicated earlier, I’ll talk to Tim Rasinski in a few weeks. Next week, Susan Vincent returns to talk about her insights into the current state of reading instruction. So- stay tuned!

So, until next week, Happy Reading and Writing.

Dr. Sam Bommarito (aka, the guy in the middle taking flak from all sides)

Copyright 2024 by Dr. Sam Bommarito. Views/interpretations expressed here are solely this author’s views and do not necessarily reflect the views of any other person or organization.

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