Doug Fisher, PhD dfisher@mail.sdsu Nancy Frey, PhD nfrey@mail.sdsu

1. Supporting the Reading Lives of Children and Teens Doug Fisher, PhD dfisher@mail.sdsu.edu Nancy Frey, PhD nfrey@mail.sdsu.edu

2. Many people think that the brain reads this way . . .

4. But we know better

6. Pyramid of Reading Behaviors Behavioral Cognitive Perceptual/Motor Neural structures Neurons and circuits Genetic Foundation Wolf, 2007

7. Pyramid of Reading Behaviors Behavioral Cognitive Perceptual/Motor Unlike language, reading has no specific genes to set up its circuitry or to dictate its development. Neural structures Neurons and circuits Genetic Foundation Wolf, 2007

8. It took the species 2000 years of insights to develop an alphabetic system. A child is given 2000 days to gain the same insights. --Maryanne Wolf

9. Pyramid of Reading Behaviors Area of Influence Behavioral Cognitive Perceptual/Motor Neural structures Neurons and circuits Genetic Foundation Wolf, 2007

10. What does it mean to know a word? • Word knowledge is multidimensional • Involves recognizing many aspects of a word: • syntactic • morphological • pragmatic • relation to other words • different meanings in different contexts • Nagy & Scott, 2000

11. Morphological processes Syntactic processes Phonological processes Orthographic processes Semantic processes The more you know about a word…word… ...the faster you will read and comprehend that word. Wolf, 2007

12. Rich Semantic Knowledge: Semantic Neighborhood bites mane king of jungle roars big animal eats antelopes furry Leo 4 legs lion zodiac green lives in… zoo Lion King sour famous lions citrus Africa jungle fruit limeade Wizard of Oz Narnia good in food and drinks lime key lime pie Wolf, 2007

13. Partnering with School for Reading Success

14. Build background knowledge through rich experiences • Day trips to museums, historical sites, zoos, and other local interests • Spend time in different biomes (beach, desert, mountains, plains) • Read about locations before you go • Ask your child to chronicle the outing • Discuss and write about what you saw after you return

15. Read in front of your child • Make reading an important and visible part of what you do to locate information, to support your own learning, and for enjoyment • Show them how you use literacy in your professional life

16. Read and write with your child • Read and discuss texts together • Family book club • Take turns reading to one another • Let them choose what you’ll read together • Compose lists, letters, email messages, social networking status updates

17. Encourage your child to read to you and write for you… • Read to younger siblings • Read to the family pet • Write emails to relatives • Write messages, notes, and lists for family members • Compose holiday letters

18. Build comprehension with 21st century literacy in mind • Tell them what you’re thinking about when you watch a show • Pause the video to discuss predictions • Compare and contrast the book and the movie • Elicit opinions and ask for evidence • Select and listen to podcasts together • Create multimedia productions for the family (www.voicethread.com)

19. Talk to your child’s teacher about reading instruction • Ask about the topics students are learning in class • You are the keeper of your child’s history: Share successful strategies with the teacher • Ask about the kinds of supports and instruction your child receives at school • Volunteer time and resources to the school

20. Proust and the Squid: The Story and Science of the Reading Brain by Maryanne Wolf