Kata Solow

This was a real joy to write!! Thanks to the @shankerinst for the opportunity to explore all of my favorite things in a single piece... Teacher Voice ✔️ Reading curriculum ✔️ Community organizing ✔️

“If you are tired from teaching reading well, you may be doing it right.” Doing the right thing is often harder and lonelier. Running and returning to the classroom reminded me of that. New 💭✍️ open.substack.com/pub/thekinderl…

Oh give me a break. Schatz is trying to actually pass a bill that would lower housing costs. Do we care about actually helping people or not?

Recently, @NateJoseph19 published a meta-analysis on reading comprehension. Almost immediately, it was misinterpreted. @oliviajune82 unpacks numerous flaws that should command attention, especially in light of the reactions to the paper. Nate is an educator. He has surely worked overtime on his writing and his new curricular materials. He deserves all-due-flowers for his work. His role as a teacher has caused many to pull punches about the new meta-analysis. I get it, all too well. I cheered it myself. But this paper is published in a journal, and any shortcomings warrant a response. I deeply appreciate Olivia's *incredibly detailed* response, and think you will, too. To Nate's credit, he puts a spotlight on the diminishing returns of strategy instruction. We seldom see this obvious conclusion from the research base, outside @DTWillingham @natwexler's valiant efforts. Also to Nate's credit, he spent years going down a rabbit hole to inform the field. Olivia has, too. I hope you will read her writeup, because the broader research base compels attention. @DavidDidau @vivramak @turing_hamster @C_Hendrick @tombennett71

"Structured literacy is about structuring our instruction so that students can actually access the complex things we want them to be able to do."- Sara Quinn

If hypothetically you were going to publish a roundup of the best literacy reading in the last few weeks, what should be in it? @HKorbey @ChadAldeman @KataSolow @AbbyTeachesDSM @MissyPurcell @Veggievangelist @alexanderrusso @laurapatranella @S_Oberle @amypento @EvidentlyR @mcglynn3 @margaretmckeow2 @MelK_Ed @KJWinEducation @brett_tingley @SoLInTheWild

It feels like half of Science of Reading discourse right now is about linguistic phonics. The latest column from @SoRclassroom, on multi-lingual learners: "The fact that 1, 2, 3 or 4 letters may produce one sound in English is a completely foreign concept to Spanish speakers. There are very few multi-letter spellings in Spanish, and the frequency of multi-letter spellings in English and the variability of sounds multiple letters can represent (such as or ) is mysterious and confusing. Without explicit instruction in Spanish, this paradigm remains invisible for the majority of learners. When reading an English word and attempting to pronounce each letter as a distinct sound, you will rarely be able to decode the word correctly. The manner in which we explicitly teach multi-letter spellings in English using linguistic phonics is exactly the tool our Spanish speakers need to grasp this structural difference between the languages, with strategies to identify multi-letter spellings and produce the correct sound."

Best experience!!

It's that time of year of again! We're now accepting applications for the 5th cohort of Goyen Literacy Fellows. The GLF offers educators the chance to connect with a nationwide cohort, share expertise, and engage in meaningful PL--all while receiving a $2,000 stipend for their participation.

Thanks for sharing @mommagordon2! So glad you found it helpful! Teachers teaching teachers is really the best PD!

@AnjanetteMcNee2 Thank you for yesterday’s Teacher’s Teach night. You really can go right back in your classroom and do this! I have a new direction. Loving it! It was so great to see the kids work through this

Repeated readings and partner reading is one of the key components of my 3rd grade ELA block. Take a look to see how it has worked with my students to increase fluency and comprehension open.substack.com/pub/scienceofr…

I wrote about how I think about this question here; however, doing this well involves being extremely attuned to students' oral reading, and lots of expertise. Telling teachers to move away from explicit phonics without telling them when and how is risky. scienceofreadingclassroom.substack.com/p/multisyllabi…

I am incredibly thankful @SoRclassroom to have been given this opportunity to share with others what's working in my classroom! I hope others can take something away from this. open.substack.com/pub/scienceofr…

Bob is an amazing secondary educator! Check out some of the powerful strategies he uses in this article.

This is such an important blog. 97% of students at @mommagordon2's school are economically disadvantaged. Last year, 80% of first graders ended the year at benchmark. How did they do it??? Read this wonderful piece to learn more!

New student started last week w/decent decoding, lots of HFW, but severely lacking letter formation which limits his ability to communicate his ideas. If you teach kinder/first here is an easy and free handwriting practice routine. It is so important! open.substack.com/pub/scienceofr…

The Case for whole class historical fiction novels. A 🧵 This year my 5th graders have read Number the Stars (WW2 time period), Bud Not Buddy (Great Depression), and are now reading Watsons Go To Birmingham (1960s). In Watsons the author uses an allusion referring to the 1/

How would YOU help a high school student with the below profile?

Got the Sunday scaries?!? How about a give-away to ease back into school after the holiday? Share this post by 12 p.m. Tuesday, January 6th, to enter, and I'll pick one random user to send a copy of my book, Reading Beyond the Basics! (US shipping only).

The best news to start 2026! We are so honored to work with and learn from Stephane every day. If you want to learn more about her practice (and she got all of her first graders reading chapter books), check out the link below...