There are so many valuable reading and literacy conferences it can be challenging to attend them all, but our Literacy Talks audience is in luck. Donell Pons, one of our podcast hosts, traveled to the SSSR Conference, and in this episode, she shares many of the insights and new data points she learned at this event. From the importance of teaching letter/sound combinations to the role of oral language comprehension, listeners will have the opportunity to take a deeper dive into reading science’s meta-analyses and recent studies. It’s like having a front-row seat at this important event for reading educators!

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From Pre-K readiness to advanced fluency, Ascend™ offers a consistent, needs-based reading experience across every grade, tier, and model—so every student can build mastery, one skill at a time. Learn More.

Too often, parents, classroom teachers, administrators, and even pediatricians have difficulty identifying the signs of dyslexia. Students are sometimes adept at hiding their reading struggles…and not every student who has difficulty learning to read has dyslexia. In this episode, our Literacy Talks trio will share their experiences identifying students who may need evaluation and support services and tips for talking to families about helping their children.

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Coming Soon: Reading Horizons Ascend™
From Pre-K readiness to advanced fluency, Ascend™ offers a consistent, needs-based reading experience across every grade, tier, and model—so every student can build mastery, one skill at a time. Learn More.

This is an episode to listen to many times over and share with your literacy colleagues. With featured guest Dr. Anita Archer, this Literacy Talks episode covers the literacy landscape and explores the power and practicality of explicit literacy instruction. From instructional content to instructional design, effective delivery to feedback and practice, listeners will have the opportunity to understand why Dr. Archer is in demand as a speaker, writer, curriculum developer, and consultant. Hear some of her most memorable “Archerisms” and come away inspired, informed, and energized to, as she says, “teach with passion and manage with compassion!”

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Coming Soon: Reading Horizons Ascend™
From Pre-K readiness to advanced fluency, Ascend™ offers a consistent, needs-based reading experience across every grade, tier, and model—so every student can build mastery, one skill at a time. Learn More.

For many of us, one book can make a profound difference in how we teach, our understanding of reading science, and our insights into how students learn to read. In this episode of Literacy Talks, our experts share the impacts that the book Speech to Print: Language Essentials for Teachers by Louisa Cook Moats, Ed.D, continues to have on their work in classrooms with young readers, pre-service teachers, and adult learners alike.

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Coming Soon: Reading Horizons Ascend™
From Pre-K readiness to advanced fluency, Ascend™ offers a consistent, needs-based reading experience across every grade, tier, and model—so every student can build mastery, one skill at a time. Learn More.

Ask most reading teachers if they learned everything they needed while in college, and chances are, they’ll say no. Hands-on classroom experience and in-the-classroom coaching and mentoring have been instrumental in helping them build confidence and capacity. But beyond in-class experiences, what kinds of professional learning will help reading teachers adapt and transform their practice? In this episode of Literacy Talks, our three literacy experts share their experiences, professional development recommendations, and wish lists. It’s a conversation every reading teacher will want to hear!

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Coming Soon: Reading Horizons Ascend™
From Pre-K readiness to advanced fluency, Ascend™ offers a consistent, needs-based reading experience across every grade, tier, and model—so every student can build mastery, one skill at a time. Learn More.

This episode can be a classroom game-changer. For many of us, spelling means a weekly word list handed out on Monday and assessed on Friday. In this episode of Literacy Talks, our experts share new perspectives on actually teaching spelling. It’s more than testing or memorizing words. Good spelling instruction can be a diagnostic window into students’ proficiency as readers and writers. Tune in and learn how spelling instruction can lead to strong, lasting literacy connections.

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Do you teach Structured Literacy in a K–3 setting?
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Coming Soon: Reading Horizons Ascend™
From Pre-K readiness to advanced fluency, Ascend™ offers a consistent, needs-based reading experience across every grade, tier, and model—so every student can build mastery, one skill at a time. Learn More.

Teaching is an art, and yes, it’s a science as well. In this episode of Literacy Talks, our three literacy experts talk about both the art and science of teaching. They unpack the need for educators to apply strategic learning science to instructional methods to ensure all students have optimum opportunities to learn. Our hosts talk movingly about the art of teaching, and the deep-rooted sense teachers have about knowing their students and their individual needs. It’s an enlightening and affirming look at today’s classroom practice, giving us even more appreciation for the work teachers do every day.

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Do you teach Structured Literacy in a K–3 setting?
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Coming Soon: Reading Horizons Ascend™
From Pre-K readiness to advanced fluency, Ascend™ offers a consistent, needs-based reading experience across every grade, tier, and model—so every student can build mastery, one skill at a time. Learn More.

Educators’ knowledge about reading science, its’ practical applications in the classroom, and its impacts on students’ experience is core to literacy learning and success. In this episode of Literacy Talks, you’ll hear an open and solutions-focused conversation about teacher and administrator knowledge and steps every educator can take to understand the how’s and why’s of teaching reading to all learners. Join hosts Stacy Hurst, professor at Southern Utah University and Chief Academic Officer at Reading Horizons, Donell Pons, a recognized literacy and special education expert, and Lindsay Kemeny, a Utah-based elementary classroom teacher, for a memorable session. 

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Do you teach Structured Literacy in a K–3 setting?
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Coming Soon: Reading Horizons Ascend™
From Pre-K readiness to advanced fluency, Ascend™ offers a consistent, needs-based reading experience across every grade, tier, and model—so every student can build mastery, one skill at a time. Learn More.

Welcome to Season 2! Teaching Pre-K-3 learners to make sound/symbol connections can be challenging. In this episode of Literacy Talks, our trio of literacy experts tackles this challenge with wit, insight, and a practical approach to explicit, systematic, and sequential phonics instruction. Make the leap from “drill and kill” practice to “skill and thrill” with hosts Stacy Hurst, professor at Southern Utah University and Chief Academic Officer at Reading Horizons, Donell Pons, a recognized expert in literacy and special education, and Lindsay Kemeny, a Utah-based elementary classroom teacher.

💬 Want more insights like this?
Subscribe to the Literacy Talks Podcast Digest for episode recaps, resources, and teaching takeaways delivered straight to your inbox!

Do you teach Structured Literacy in a K–3 setting?
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Coming Soon: Reading Horizons Ascend™
From Pre-K readiness to advanced fluency, Ascend™ offers a consistent, needs-based reading experience across every grade, tier, and model—so every student can build mastery, one skill at a time. Learn More.

Children hear and speak before they learn to read. Sound walls can accelerate student's articulatory learning and their production of speech, on the road to becoming proficient readers and spellers. In this episode of Literacy Talks, our trio of literacy experts share their experiences and recommendations for integrating sound walls into regular literacy instruction.

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Do you teach Structured Literacy in a K–3 setting?
Sign up for a free license of Reading Horizons Discovery® LIVE and start teaching right away—no setup, no hassle. Sign-up Now.

Coming Soon: Reading Horizons Ascend™
From Pre-K readiness to advanced fluency, Ascend™ offers a consistent, needs-based reading experience across every grade, tier, and model—so every student can build mastery, one skill at a time. Learn More.