Reading Science

How can we prepare our students to think, read, and write like scientists? In Reading Science, Jennifer Altieri reminds us that literacy skills aren't add-ons to the science class-they are critical parts of instruction. She addresses the need for both literacy and science skills in our classrooms to prepare our students for the future challenges they will meet. Strategies you can use right away Filled with practical strategies customized for science classrooms based on Jennifer's decades of experience connecting content areas with literacy, this book supports: teaching students to be critical consumers of scientific information they read, regardless of the source or type of text developing students' interest in scientific vocabulary and rich understanding of how words relate to each other encouraging collaboration as students seek answers to scientific questions and communicate their findings. Science requires specialized literacy demands Our students should be prepared for not only the science class as we know it today but for future science classes and the world beyond. To create classrooms that support this kind of learning, we must use literacy as a tool to help students access science content, communicate their ideas precisely, and apply their discoveries in new contexts.

Reading Science looks at the distinctive language of science and technology and the role it plays in building up scientific understandings of the world. It brings together discourse analysis and critical theory for the first time in a single volume. This edited collection examines science discourse from a number of perspectives, drawing on new rhetoric, functional linguistics and critical theory. It explores this language in research and industrial contexts as well as in educational settings and in popular science writing and science fiction. The papers also include consideration of the role of images (tables and figures) in science writing and the importance of reading science discourse as multi-modal text. The internationally renowned contributors include M. A. K. Halliday, Charles Bazerman and Jay Lemke.

Humankind's most precious treasure is our children, and our future depends on them. We recognize literacy as a fundamental human right that empowers individuals in a society. We also know that grim life outcomes are connected to illiteracy. We are resolved to prevent the collateral damage that is incurred by our students, especially the most vulnerable among them, when adults have limited access to the convergent scientific evidence. Research has yielded proven assessment and instructional practices with which every teacher and leader should be equipped. We believe that providing educators with this knowledge is a moral imperative. We are committed to evidence-aligned reading instruction being scaled with a sense of urgency in a comprehensive and systematic way by multiple stakeholders. We know that our children can be taught to read properly the first time. In a knowledge economy, the currency of the 21st century will be built on the foundation of skilled reading. Students who can read well have a place at the table of opportunity whether their aspirations lead them to preparation for college or the workforce. We believe in a future where a collective focus on applying the Science of Reading through teacher and leader preparation, classroom application, and community engagement will elevate and transform every community, every nation, through the power of literacy.

The essential guide to the science behind reading and its practical implications for classroom teaching in primary schools. Teaching children to read is one of the most important tasks in primary education and classroom practice needs to be underpinned by a secure foundation of knowledge. Teachers need to know what reading entails, how children learn to read and how it can be taught effectively. This book is an essential guide for primary teachers that explores the key technical and practical aspects of how children read with strong links to theory and how to translate this into the classroom. Bite-size chapters offer accessible research-informed ideas across all major key topics including phonics, comprehension, teaching children with reading difficulties and strategies for the classroom. Key features include: · Discussions of implications for the classroom · Questions for further professional discussions · Retrieval quizzes · Further reading suggestions · Glossary of key terms Christopher Such is a primary school teacher and the author of the education blog Primary Colour. He can be found on Twitter via @Suchmo83.

The Science of Reading: A Handbook brings togetherstate-of-the-art reviews of reading research from leading names inthe field, to create a highly authoritative, multidisciplinaryoverview of contemporary knowledge about reading and relatedskills. Provides comprehensive coverage of the subject, includingtheoretical approaches, reading processes, stage models of reading,cross-linguistic studies of reading, reading difficulties, thebiology of reading, and reading instruction Divided into seven sections:Word Recognition Processes inReading; Learning to Read and Spell; Reading Comprehension; Readingin Different Languages; Disorders of Reading and Spelling;Biological Bases of Reading; Teaching Reading Edited by well-respected senior figures in the field

In this "important and alarming" book, see why so many American students are falling behind in their reading skills while others around the world excel (New York Times). In 2011, when an international survey reported that students in Shanghai dramatically outperformed American students in reading, math, and science, President Obama declared it a "Sputnik moment": a wake-up call about the dismal state of American education. Little has changed, however, since then: over half of our children still read at a basic level and few become highly proficient. Many American children and adults are not functionally literate, with serious consequences. Poor readers are more likely to drop out of the educational system and as adults are unable to fully participate in the workforce, adequately manage their own health care, or advance their children's education. In Language at the Speed of Sight, internationally renowned cognitive scientist Mark Seidenberg reveals the underexplored science of reading, which spans cognitive science, neurobiology, and linguistics. As Seidenberg shows, the disconnect between science and education is a major factor in America's chronic underachievement. How we teach reading places many children at risk of failure, discriminates against poorer kids, and discourages even those who could have become more successful readers. Children aren't taught basic print skills because educators cling to the disproved theory that good readers guess the words in texts, a strategy that encourages skimming instead of close reading. Interventions for children with reading disabilities are delayed because parents are mistakenly told their kids will catch up if they work harder. Learning to read is more difficult for children who speak a minority dialect in the home, but that is not reflected in classroom practices. By building on science's insights, we can improve how our children read, and take real steps toward solving the inequality that illiteracy breeds. Both an expert look at our relationship with the written word and a rousing call to action, Language at the Speed of Sight is essential for parents, educators, policy makers, and all others who want to understand why so many fail to read, and how to change that.

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