In this post, I share 5 simple things you can do to get students to engage with your classroom sound wall.  I’ll share simple instructional routines you can implement, sound wall games, and routines for review. All of these things are sure to keep your kindergarten, first and second-grade students excited about using a sound wall in the classroom! I have heard from so many teachers who have started using a sound wall in their classroom this ... read more

This is the third post in a blog series on the SoR 90-Minute Literacy Block.  It focuses on whole group word recognition instruction for kindergarten, first and second grade students. In the post, I provide a schedule for your whole group instruction and identify specific literacy skills to teach during this time.  Finally, I offer a list of science of reading-aligned resources to use during this part of your literacy block. Be sure to ... read more

In this post, I answer the question “What is phonemic awareness?" and explain how is it different from phonics instruction.  I share details about my science of reading-aligned phonemic awareness lesson plans for kindergarten and first-grade students, a resource that has ALL you need to bring effective, data-driven, small-group phonemic awareness instruction to your classroom. Be sure to download the FREE phonemic awareness lesson plans ... read more

In this post, I offer a 90-minute literacy block schedule aligned to the Science of Reading and can be used in kindergarten, first and second-grade classrooms.  The SoR-aligned literacy block is broken up into whole group word recognition instruction, small group instruction, and whole group language comprehension.  I explain what skills should be taught in each part of the literacy block and leave you with a FREE downloadable template to help ... read more