Reading Basics for All Teachers: Supporting the Common Core

Reading Basics for All Teachers: Supporting the Common Core guides teachers as they provide literacy instruction in every subject area. The components of the reading process are analyzed and provide the reader with an understanding of foundational reading skills as well as the shifts in literacy instruction. With the increased importance of complex texts and the use of textual evidence in support of comprehension, every teacher needs to be prepared to champion literacy development.

Each chapter analyzes one of the strands of the literacy process. The characteristics and impact of oral language, phonological awareness, decoding, phonics and word analysis, fluency, vocabulary, and comprehension are addressed in depth. The strands that students must master to become proficient readers are examined in each chapter. Classroom visits and literary connections help the reader visualize the strands’ impact on instruction. Then the overarching why is addressed by analyzing research supporting the instruction in each of the strands. Assessments and activities are incorporated to support the understanding and implementation of each strand in order to move readers from theory to practice. As readers tie the strands of reading together to form an understanding of the entire process, they will see how their instructional practices can impact effective literacy instruction in every subject area.