Story Hour Academy provides free phonics lessons to kids via a self-paced video curriculum that’s divided into 9 sections. The curriculum has some flaws, which I’ve outlined here. However, these lessons are better than no instruction at all. If you use Story Hour Academy, I recommend that you also learn and use something called Structured […]
ArticleCategory: Article
Smart thinking on how to teach reading and share unforgettable stories in classic children’s literature
What’s Wrong with Phonics
My creation, Story Hour Academy, offers a free online phonics video course to beginning readers. I designed it to provide explicit, direct instruction in the Orton-Gillingham phonograms through a series of 100 video lessons in the style of Khan Academy. The videos are available to anyone with an Internet connection. What I didn’t expect when […]
ArticleA Parent’s Intuition: Identifying and Addressing Signs of Dyslexia in Pre-Readers
Imagine for a moment that you’re a parent that has overcome the reading challenges associated with dyslexia. Now, you have children of your own and you know that one or more of them could have dyslexia, like you do, because research has shown that it’s inheritable. As a parent, you have a choice to make. […]
ArticleChildren’s Stories to Read Aloud from Your Phone
Do your kids get energized when reading books at night? Mine do. That’s why I like to read to them from the glow of my smartphone. The darkness settles them down and lets them focus on listening. If you like to read to your kids from the glow of a phone, too, here are five […]
ArticleBeginning Readers Need Great Stories
What would you say if I told you that beginning readers don’t get to experience enough classic literature in our kindergarten, first-grade, and second-grade classrooms? Would you be concerned? I first became concerned after reading “The Story-Killers: A Common-Sense Case Against the Common Core” by Terrence Moore. In it, Moore writes: About the elementary classroom […]
Article10 Free Illustrated eBooks for Kids on Google Play
The bulk of advice to parents who want to establish a strong foundation for literacy in their kids is simply to read to them daily. I wrote yesterday that, “Children don’t learn to read by being read to.” However, daily exposure to books is certainly a part of the foundation. With my 2-year old, I’ve […]
Article