Despite what social media might have you believe, the academic Three R’s, Reading, (w)Riting and (a)Rithmetic, are still the foundation for all learning. Without these essential skills, students will not have the building blocks for the higher-order thinking that drives 21st century skills like computation, communication and collaboration. This back-to-school, students of all ages might struggle…
It’s a common concern that only one-third of fourth graders’ reading scores are at grade level. A lesser known statistic is that despite remediation and intervention, 66% of students aren’t reading at grade level in 8th grade. This latter statistic suggests two crucial problems: For many, when students receive reading remediation in elementary school it’s not lasting…
Are you worried about your student’s grades or difficulties in school? The best way to help is to start with an accurate idea of what exactly is the problem. Use this checklist to identify it. Then click on the skill in parentheses to learn more. Once you know the underlying reason your child is struggling, use your Mindprint…
This is one of many exclusive Mindprint guides found in the FREE Parent & Teacher Resources section of the Mindprint website. Independent reading is so important for students of all ages. We hope this list enables you to successfully foster a love of reading. If your child is reading below grade level consider audio books…
By Sarah Maraniss Vander Schaaff A few days ago, my six-year-old brought home a book from school that was considered a “right-fit”. Her assignment was to read the book to me out loud. We’ve been doing this since the start of the school year. It was a routine assignment and from what I could tell…
By Sarah Vander Schaaff Perhaps you, too, once had a weekend in college when you realized you had two days to read 700 pages of Dostoyevsky. I planted myself in a coffee shop and inhaled The Brothers Karamazov, along with the fumes of java, until I got the job done, my own form of crime…
By Sarah Maraniss Vander Schaaff When children’s book illustrator Paul O. Zelinsky was first starting out, he took a bus from New Haven to New York City to show his work to an editor at The New York Times. The meeting got him his first assignment with the paper. Back in New Haven a few…
By Sarah Vander Schaaff Editor’s Note: This was originally written in 2015 and edited by Mindprint staff in 2019. Structured phonics is proven to be the most effective instruction for all students, particularly struggling readers. If your student needs help to learn to read, our learning specialists recommend these reading strategies. Erika Bird was standing in front of a table ready…
By Sarah Vander Schaaff We’ve recently returned to the twenty-first century having spent a few days hanging out with the settlers and revolutionaries of Jamestown and Colonial Williamsburg. My kids will be talking about the experience for days and years to come, and certainly testing out the new words they learned during our trip back…
By Sarah Vander Schaaff When Peggy Kaye was first starting out in teaching, a parent asked if there was something she could use for the classroom. “Yes,” she said, “a tape recorder.” The parent got her one, and Kaye recorded herself reading books her students could later listen to on their own. Today, Kaye is…