5 Steps to Creating Teacher Led Literacy Training Experiences

Bringing EdCamp structures to literacy coaching Basics of EdCamp You may have heard of or attended EdCamp, an “unconference” structure that began in 2009. EdCamps are free events organized by educators, for educators, and their success relies on the participation of all attendees. In short, everyone arrives at a pre-secured location at a set time. […]

5 Must-Read Fluency Research Articles

Support for Fluency Interventions in Secondary Reading Updated 2025 Secondary teachers often assume older students have mastered early reading skills, including decoding and fluency. As a matter of fact, many secondary ELA teachers have trouble defining the role fluency plays in reading comprehension because it wasn’t included in any pre-service work. (Be sure to check […]

Multi-Tiered Systems of Support (MTSS)

And its role in secondary literacy education In education, we are used to “the next new thing.” MTSS is not that, though. It’s actually another iteration of 1965’s Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA). The past five and a half centuries have provided a few major revisions of that law: Kindergarten through eighth grade tended […]

So you wanted to be a literacy coach?

3 Actions to Start Your Year Hooray! You have been hired as a literacy leader! Perhaps that means your job title is literacy coach, reading coach, instructional coach, or even curriculum coordinator. No matter the title, though, your job is to move teachers forward in knowledge and practice. How do you do that without any […]

Is Reading Motivation Really the Issue?

Facing the CAN’Ts and the WON’Ts There are so many ways we say it: She would be fine if she would just read… I’m sure he can read, he just doesn’t want to… We can’t make them read… Kids just hate to read… These would make more sense if we inserted the phrase “string beads” […]

Great Word Games for Middle School Reading Classrooms

No matter the topic or age, research proves that having FUN improves the engagement and learning for students. This article suggests such things as rooftop meetings and even visiting a ball pit! While that’s a bit extreme, finding ways to incorporate laughter and fun is necessary in a secondary reading classroom, where student buy-in is […]

What Struggling Middle School Readers Actually Need

Follow this path to move students forward. If you’re working with struggling middle school readers, you already know this: Comprehension interventions alone aren’t enough. You’ve probably heard this phrase: K–3: Learn to read4–12: Read to learn It sounds clean and simple, but it doesn’t match what you see in your classroom. Students don’t just “finish” […]

Working with Middle School Struggling Readers – Decoding Words

How do you know what older struggling readers need? When I started my work with middle school struggling readers, I assumed I would be working with students who had trouble implementing comprehension strategies. That part was true enough, but I discovered many of these students needed more than that – they needed word solving strategies. […]