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Introduction to “The Cue to Reading” Series

“The Cue to Reading” Series (Article 1): The Three Cueing Systems of Reading

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For the last two weeks, I have been writing about a 9 year-old boy named Will who is struggling with reading. I prepared a short video explaining some basic, yet very important information about the biology of the brain. I am sending this video to Will because I believe it will give him hope and build his confidence. As a wise friend told me last year, when I was smack in the middle of trying to find help for my son, “Once you identify the problem, 50% of it is solved!” So true!

I hope this small snippet gives Will, and other students who struggle like Will, a better understanding of what their dynamic brains are capable of! Please, please, please share this with anyone you know who may be struggling with a learning disability.

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In last week’s article, I wrote about Cori, a heart-broken mother who is watching her bright son, Will, struggle with reading. She is out of options and feeling very hopeless.

Today, I am going to share some general recommendations that will help Will “catch up” and read on grade-level within the next 12-18 months. The following information may sound a little overwhelming at first, but I will pull it all together in a simple and manageable plan at the end.

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Last weekend, I was visiting a ski area in northern Michigan for a few days and met Cori.  She was working the front desk and checked me in as I arrived.  We were chatting as the paperwork was processing and Cori asked what I do for a living.  I told her about my work with study skills as I casually turned to grab something behind me.  She replied with great interest and, while my back was momentarily turned, she explained, “My son is illiterate.”

“My Son Is Illiterate.”

I stopped dead in my tracks.  In her four words, I could sense all of the worry and anxiety from which I am just emerging. I shared some of my stories in this newsletter last spring, explaining that my son was diagnosed with dyslexia, ADHD, and anxiety.  From the point we determined we needed help, it took over a year to get the proper resources aligned.

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Two-thirds of students entering high school are not proficient readers! This is a crisis, but there is a simple piece of the puzzle to fix this problem.  It would dramatically improve student performance! However, most of us don’t know anything about it.

The problem is that we do not teach a COMPLETE set of English rules. In last week’s article, I shared information about a fabulous book called, Uncovering the Logic of English.  The author, Denise Elde, clearly explains how much we are missing in our traditional reading instruction.

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The more I learn about learning disabilities, the more I see that the “best practices” for educating students with learning disabilities are actually considered “best practices” for all learners. For example, math and reading interventions focus heavily on “hands-on” and “experiential” learning activities.

Isn’t it well known that all students learn best when they can get actively involved in new learning topics? Why do we need special “intervention” programs to deliver this great instruction to struggling learners?  Why not teach everyone this way?

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When my son was a few months old and I was a new mom, I had no idea how or when to introduce him to solid foods. I fell asleep one night in the midst of reading an article about the topic. The article explained that solid foods should be introduced in very small bites, over the course of several days. “Let the baby test a bite or two at each meal. Don’t expect him to get nutrition from the food, at first. Just let him get used to the texture and slowly figure out what to do with it.” The last thing I read before drifting off to sleep was a warning not to overstuff the child. “If you push too much, the baby will just spit it all back up!”

The next morning, I went to a reading conference and sat with several teachers from a different school district. They told me about an exciting new reading program they had organized to build fluency scores. It was a systematic, five-minute routine built into the first few minutes of the day. As the students entered the classroom, they met with a pre-assigned partner. Each student read for one minute from specific reading passages, while the partner kept time with a timer. Then, the partners switched. After reading, each student counted the number of words he/she read and recorded the total on a graph. The objective was to beat their best pace. They were competing against themselves and they loved it! (more…)

As promised last week, I will share effective strategies for the remaining two cueing systems today. However, I’d like to begin with a story about a powerful way to support struggling readers…that I discovered by accident.

Several years ago, I had a third-grade student, Emilia (name changed) who had very few reading skills. She could identify letters, but not words. When looking at a sentence, she could not tell where the individual words began and ended. (more…)

Two weeks ago, our computers were down and my productivity came to a grinding halt. (Perhaps you noticed that I skipped a week with these articles…) With nothing else to do, we cleaned out our filing cabinets.

One large drawer was overstuffed with reading materials from my days in the classroom. “This ought to be good,” I thought. “Maybe I’ll find some good treasures to share with my ‘Cue to Reading’ subscribers.” (more…)

It was my husband who first suggested I go for a reading degree when I entered grad school.

“Are you kidding?” I replied.  “I HATE teaching reading!” (more…)