Organization of the Discipline's Knowledge Base
The knowledge structure for reading is arranged in a sequence that begins with oral speech and progresses to print. Phonemic awareness instruction develops students’ ability to hear and manipulate speech sounds apart from any connection to the written word. Phonics connects the sounds students know to their various spellings. Phonics is not viewed as a teaching technique, but as important knowledge to be acquired. Knowledge of the structure of English orthography goes beyond sounding out letters and letter combinations to the layers of the English language (Anglo-Saxon, Greek, and Latin), word origins, and the history of English.
Books and Materials
We have selected Reading Street as our core, comprehensive reading program. This program includes all five components of scientifically-based reading research, and was cited by top reading researcher Dr. Louisa Moats was being one of two programs that was reflects what we know about how children learn to read. In addition to this program, we will supplement with several programs from Sopris West that strengthen and enhance our core program in the areas of phonics, spelling, and writing.
Teaching Techniques
All students will be taught phonemic awareness and phonics in systematic and explicit fashion. The specific techniques will be a combination of the approaches used in Reading Street, and the techniques presented in the LETRS training, which all teachers will undergo. LETRS is world-class professional development in the science of reading instruction, which is planned to be taught over the first two years. In the two following years, the school will provide training to teachers so that they can be certified LETRS instructors
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