What happened to the LOVE of reading?

Hey there! Fresh off of the month of February, the month of love, let’s talk about the love of reading. I think we can all agree, all of us teachers want more than anything for the kids in our class  to love reading. Although, somehow with the recent attention to the Science of Reading, we know that the commonly used phrase "a love of reading" has been targeted lately. That is a heated topic, possibly for another post. 

Helping kids love to read means that we also must teach them properly. Research in reading education is clear. We know what is essential and critical for teaching children to learn to read. While we think that love is important, we believe that the research behind learning how to read is equally important.

I believe that nurturing a love for reading in kids goes hand in hand with providing them proper instruction. Extensive research in reading education has given us a clear understanding of the essential and critical methods for teaching children to read effectively. 

Our commitment at Ignite & Educate continues to focus on the love of learning AND also all the evidence based strategies backed by over 20 years of reading education research. 

So, what is the Science of Reading? Well, it is nothing new. The recent attention is new. But the term, Science of Reading has been used for almost 200 years. Many of the teachers we work with are surprised to hear this, especially because of the recent attention it has been given outside of the field of education. 

It is also dense. It is overwhelming. It is exhausting. Words like research and scientifically based can make it easy to walk away or simply give up. It also sounds boring and hard. Curling up with a research study on your comfy couch doesn’t sound so appealing. We get it and that is why we are here, to simplify the research. If we want to help children learn to read we have to understand what the reading science says. But when you start to pick at it and begin to understand nuggets of it feels really good, even empowering.  

We believe that a knowledgeable teacher is the best way to implement the Science of Reading. There is no silver bullet that can make your classroom a Science of Reading based classroom. It just doesn’t work like that. And if anyone is trying to sell you that - run! 

The best place to start is to define The Science of Reading. This should be interesting because there is not a formally agreed upon definition. Many prominent organizations and researchers in the field have developed definitions. They are similar.

A good place to start is directing you to reputable sources to see how “the experts” are for defining the Science of Reading.

The International Literacy Association (ILA),  defines it as:

The International Literacy Association (2020) defines Science of Reading  as “a corpus of objective investigation and accumulation of reliable evidence about how humans learn to read and how reading should be taught."

Petscher et al. (2020) defines it as:

The Science of Reading is a  “a  phrase representing the accumulated knowledge about reading, reading development, and best practices  for reading instruction obtained by the use of the scientific method.”

The Reading League’s defines it as “The science of reading is a vast, interdisciplinary body of scientifically-based research about reading and issues related to reading and writing” (2020). Also, check out the Reading League’s Defining Guide for a more robust understanding of the term. 

Whether you're a seasoned educator or just starting your journey in teaching reading, taking the time to unpack these definitions can lay a solid foundation for your journey in understanding the science of reading.

This is just the beginning of our journey together. Stay tuned for more insights, tips, and resources to support you on your path as a reading teacher.