Reading Ranch Blog

 

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Reading Fluency – What is It and How Do We Measure It?

This post is the first in a series of posts on reading fluency. What fluency is, why it is essential, and how we can help our kids develop it and continue developing their fluency throughout their lives.

What Is the Summer Slide?

Researchers have known about the summer slide since at least 1996 when one of the first comprehensive studies on this phenomenon was published. The study showed that kids lose significant knowledge in reading and math over their summer vacation from school.

How Multisensory Teaching Helps Improve Reading Skills

I feel the best way is through multisensory teaching, which has been proven highly effective in improving a student’s phonemic awareness, reading ability, and comprehension skills, just to name a few!

The Reading Ranch Method

The Reading Ranch Method (RRM™) uses live instruction in small group sessions of 1-3 students to enable the critical interactive process between the student and teacher. Scientific research shows interaction is the most effective way to learn and remember new information.

Should I get intervention for my child’s reading?

If your child is a struggling reader, it can be tough to know when to seek intervention. You may feel like you’re just making a big deal out of nothing or that you’re going to seem like a bad parent if you ask for help. 

Kindergarten Reading Standards

Kindergarteners learn a lot of new things in school. One of the most important subjects they will be studying is literacy. Literacy skills are essential for success in school and in life. However, unless you are a teacher or in the education environment, you’re probably wondering …

How Dyslexia Affects the Ability to Spell

Dyslexia is a neurological disorder that affects reading and spelling skills. Dyslexia occurs when the brain does not accurately process information received from the eyes. This can cause difficulty with phonemic awareness, which can hear, identify, and…

Toddler Reading

This weeks blog is for parents with toddlers. I hope that by reading this, your little one will be more engaged in their learning and have fun at home too! I hope you enjoy it!  Try some of these tips this weekend!

Reading Stamina: What is it? Why is it important?

Reading stamina is the reading equivalent of physical fitness. It’s the stamina you need to read for extended periods of time, and it can be developed with practice. The reading muscles – your reading skills – get stronger as they’re used, just like any other muscle in your body…

Does Your Child Struggle with Handwriting?

Many children have trouble with handwriting. From the time they are little, kids want to learn how to write and make their mark on the world. But if you ever have a child who struggles with writing, you know it can be frustrating to them and to you.

Teach Kids Sight Words in an Easy and Fun Way

Did you know that more than 75 percent of the average children’s book is made of sight words? It’s an actual fact shared on Readandspell…

Ethical Considerations for Remote Assessments and Diagnostic Testing

It seems appropriate to start a discussion on remoa te assessment by first addressing certain ethical aspects of the assessment process. Cognitive and achievement assessments are fundamental tools in our performance and developmental monitoring toolkit.

Phoneme manipulation: Deletion, Addition, Substitution

When it comes to kids becoming good readers and writers, developing phonemic awareness skills is a game-changer. Phonemic awareness can make an incredible impact on children’s success.

Syllable Manipulation: Syllable Deleting, Adding, or Substituting

Understanding syllables is incredibly important for reading skills since students must recognize how words made of different parts can be decoded and blended with other elements to decode a word.

Blending Phonemes

Blending is one of two critical phonological awareness skills. Alongside segmenting, blending is an essential reading skill since it often predicts reading success with children. It is undoubtedly one of the readings and writing foundations.

Individual and Phoneme Isolation: Beginning, Medial, and Final

Most kids are fast learners, but if you really want to make sure you’re helping them develop their full reading potential, you should train their phonemic awareness. One of the most critical parts of that essential “package” is phoneme isolation.

Virtual Assessments – To Test or Not to Test: The COVID Dilemma

As COVID-19 continues to spread in the United States, it is complicating parents’ hopes of having their child assessed for possible learning difficulties.

Onset-Rime Segmenting and Onset-Rime Blending Are Critical for Your Kids’ Reading Development

This the next blog in my series of Phonological and Phonemic Awareness skills.  I hope your enjoying these, or at least learning something!

Syllable segmenting and syllable blending

Syllable segmentation is the ability to determine how many phonemes (i.e., individual sound units) exist in a word. Syllable blending is the act of pulling together individual sounds/syllables into the entire word.

Sound and Word Discrimination

The next foundational skill in phonological awareness and language is Sound and Word discrimination. Auditory or sound discrimination is the ability to recognize similarities and differences between sounds. Mainly, sound discrimination allows people to distinguish between phonemes in words.

Rhyme Awareness and Alliteration Discrimination

Rhyme awareness is a complex skill that benefits from constantly being used in back and forth with the child as they learn what a rhyme is and how to form a rhyme themselves.

Phonological and Phonemic Awareness

Over the next several weeks, I’m going to discuss phonological and phonemic awareness.   What do these terms mean, what are skills associated with these terms?  I’ll also discuss why these skills are essential and discuss some techniques and teaching points to help you assist your child.

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