Engaging Readers

Dana A. Robertson, EdD, is Executive Director of the Literacy Research Center and Clinic at the University of Wyoming. He was an upper elementary teacher, a literacy specialist and coach, and he has worked in clinical contexts, K-12.Evelyn Ford-Connors, EdD, is a senior lecturer in the Literacy and Language program at Boston University’s School of Education and the Associate Director of the Donald D. Durrell Reading and Writing Clinic. Her current work includes teacher coaching and collaboration to study and refine instructional practices that promote students’ literacy learning. Susan M. Dougherty, EdD is an assistant professor of literacy education at Rider University in Lawrenceville, NJ. She works with future teachers and literacy specialists, with a particular interest in preparing them to support children who find literacy learning difficult. Her most recent research focuses on the intersections between literacy learning and learning in the sciences.

• List of FiguresPart I: Understanding Teaching Actions1. Introduction2. Why Access the Complex Text Matters3. Classroom Talk4. Leading with Motivation and Engagement5. Providing Explicit Instruction6. Establishing Instructional Coherence7. Creating Optimal Learning Contexts8. The Importance of Cognitive ChallengePart II: Looking at Teaching in Action9. Mediating Word Reading and Fluency Difficulties10. Mediating Vocabulary Learning11. Mediating Comprehension through Discussion, Strategies, and Writing12. Putting It All TogetherFinal ThoughtsReferencesIndex

This book will be most useful for teachers looking for ways to help students’ build the literacy skills needed to grasp content in subject-specific disciplines. The main idea is that literacy skills and strategies should align with content instructional goals, rather than be just ‘another thing’ that teachers have to cover on top of everything else. Thoroughly researched, it provides evidence from the literature for the skills and strategies recommended or discounted (such as the practice of ‘round robin’ reading). The vignettes and examples clarify how the research can be put into practice, but this is not a book of ready-made activities; rather, it is a framework for helping educators understand how to create an environment that supports learning through literacy.