Dr. Sam Bommarito                          Dr. William Kerns

In summary, we recommend the following:

• Literacy curriculums should emphasize the teaching of literacy in a way that achieves the goal of creating motivated lifelong readers.
• Both an analytic and synthetic phonics component should be included in any literacy program.
• The synthetic component should include the direct major letter-sound correspondences, including short and long vowels and digraphs. Instruction should be done in a direct and efficient manner in order to preserve more teaching time for other elements of the literacy program.
• A meaning making component is critical to any literacy program.
• A workshop model can be employed to provide the additional differentiated instruction needed by students who fail to thrive using the adopted literacy curriculum.
• Regular student conferences and ad hoc strategy groups done within the workshop structure are two of the ways the additional differentiated instruction can be provided.