Posted October 24, 2024 in Articles
Learning to read is an essential step in a child’s educational journey. But for many students, learning to read can be significantly difficult, especially for those with dyslexia and other language-based learning differences. Structured literacy instruction—an explicit and systematic approach based on the Science of Reading—can make all the difference.
The Science of Reading is not just a buzzword—it’s part of the very fabric that makes up Lawrence School!
Everything done at Lawrence is designed with the Science of Reading in mind, and has been for some time.
What Is the Science of Reading?
The Science of Reading is a research-based approach to literacy and learning how to read and comprehend text. It consists of decades of research and scientific knowledge conducted by reading specialists, including Dr. Hollis Scarborough, a leading researcher of early language development.
Scarborough’s famous Reading Rope provides a framework for understanding the various skills necessary for proficient, accurate, and fluent reading comprehension. The Reading Rope is made up of lower and upper strands representing two areas of learning: word recognition and language comprehension.
The word recognition strand consists of decoding, phonological awareness, and sight recognition—skills that students need to achieve in order to read fluently, automatically, and accurately. The language comprehension strand combines vocabulary, background knowledge, language structures, literacy knowledge, and verbal reasoning to help students understand what they read.
Word Recognition
- Decoding: alphabetic principle, letter-sound correspondences
- Phonological Awareness: syllables, phonemes, etc.
- Sight Recognition: of familiar words
Language Comprehension
- Vocabulary Knowledge: breadth, precision, links, etc.
- Background Knowledge: facts, concepts, etc.
- Language Structures: syntax, semantics, etc.
- Literacy Knowledge: print concepts, genres, etc.
- Verbal Reasoning: inference, metaphor, etc.
Both threads simultaneously intertwine to create a skilled reader. However, this process takes time. It requires instruction and repeated practice—something Lawrence reinforces to develop mastery.
Every component of the Reading Rope is embedded into Lawrence’s teaching methods, and Lawrence is very deliberate about adhering to the science behind each strand.
CodeBreakers
Lawrence teachers understand that learning to read is not necessarily intuitive for all learners. That’s why Lower School students spend the entire morning working on reading and writing.
CodeBreakers, Lawrence's signature language arts curriculum, is based on Orton-Gillingham principles and uses multisensory activities to teach the rules of phonics in a step-by-step, explicit process. Each concept systematically builds upon the next and mastery is required. Phonetic segmentation is stressed throughout each lesson, giving students exposure to a “part-to-whole” and “whole-to-part” strategy. Using the curriculum, teachers can take students through all the speech sounds and syllable types one by one.
Lower School students aren’t simply doing letter drills out of a book. They’re standing, verbalizing, writing in shaving cream and sand, and making letters with Wikki Stix until the letter formation and sounds are etched into their memories.
The students think they’re playing due to the engaging, multisensory activities, but in reality, Lawrence is strategically stimulating the brain's multimodal pathways through visual, tactile, auditory, and kinesthetic approaches.
The objective is to equip students with effective word-decoding skills and steer them away from guessing, as this strategy can hinder comprehension, especially for older students navigating middle or high school-level texts without a robust vocabulary and the ability to accurately decode unfamiliar words.
Beyond Decoding
Reading instruction at Lawrence doesn’t end with CodeBreakers, but it’s a great jumping-off point.
The strong foundational skills established in the Lower School enable Lawrence to focus on developing deeper background knowledge and analytical abilities as students advance through Middle and High School.
The Science of Reading has progressed and continues to grow with technology. At Lawrence, technology is thoughtfully embedded into daily life in a seamless K-12 integration.
Laptops and Chromebooks are essential for students who do better when reading text in digital formats or who struggle with handwriting. Headphones enable students to listen to text versions of documents, textbooks, and literature through Lawrence’s own digital library, Learning Ally, or Bookshare. A child with dyslexia who reads printed text at 60 words a minute may jump to 300 words a minute with a device that allows them to hear the text as they read.
Building Future Leaders
Soon, more Ohio students will have an opportunity to learn to read this way. In July 2023, Ohio Governor Mike Dewine signed the state's two-year budget, which included funds for implementing the Science of Reading.
“We are thrilled that the state of Ohio is dedicating funds to begin implementing the Science of Reading into the state’s curriculum, and we hope this will be helpful to students," Associate Head of School and Lower School Head, Vanessa Diffenbacher, said. “I have been with Lawrence since 1995, and we have been following and implementing this research in every classroom for years. To us, the Science of Reading is more than just a trend or a fancy buzzword. It’s woven into our fundamental foundation. This research, when implemented with fidelity, is powerful!”