Kandice and Bel Closing the Early Literacy Gap

Ep. 15- Dyslexia

How much do you know about dyslexia?  We start this episode with a true or false quiz.  Check it out and see how much you know.  Then keep listening to learn more. References: "Overcoming Dyslexia" by Dr. Sally Shaywitz International Dyslexia Association- https://dyslexiaida.org/ Music is "Funday" by bensound.com

Episode 14- The Brain

In this episode we tell we give a basic, easy to understand explanation of what is happening inside a person's brain when they learn to read.    We are not brain scientists but sometimes learning from brain scientist can be a little difficult to understand.  But, it is important to understand what it going on in kids' heads so we can be patient and understanding as we help them learn how to read.  So, enjoy this simplified explanation. Resources: "The Brain Song" by Laura Leavitt "Overcoming Dyslexia" by Sally Shaywitz "Letrs Manual Vol. 1" by Louisa C. Moats and Carole A. Tolman The International Phonetic Alphabet from http://www.accentbase.com/ipa.html Music is "Funday" by bensound.com

Episode 13- Vocabulary and Comprehension

How do kids learn vocabulary and comprehension?   In this episode we explore the different levels of word knowledge, how kids learn words, the different types or tiers of words and how do you choose what words to teach kids? We also talk about some of the reasons kids may struggle with comprehension.  We've also included another clip of 3-year-old Bea and her mother from Episode 6 in case you missed that back then. References: Letrs Manual Vol. 2 by Louisa A. Moats and Carol A. Tolman Bea & her mother Music is "Funday" by bensound.com

Episode 12- Reading Fluency

In this episode we talk all things fluency!  How do you help kids become fluent in reading? If kids do poorly on a fluency test, what do you do?  Should you encourage kids to read as fast as they can?   References: "Reading Above the Fray" by Julia B. Lindsey Quote by Jan Hasbrouck "The Megabook of Fluency" by Timothy V. Rasinski and Melissa Cheesman Smith Music is "Funday" by bensound.com

Episode 11- Sight Words

In this episode we talk about sight words, or what is better named high-frequency words.  We discuss how they are often taught and how we think they should be taught.  And we do a fun word sort to figure out which ones are decodable, not yet decodable, partially decodable or not decodable at all.  References: Fry word list Dolch word list "Reading Above the Fray" by Julia B. Lindsey Music is "Funday" by bensound.com