Melissa & Lori Love Literacy ® | Science of Reading for Teachers

Episode 207 from Oct 11 2024

Imagine facing not only the struggles of growing up in a challenging environment,  but also battling a learning difference that went undiagnosed for years.

Hear the inspiring story of Ameer Baraka as he discusses his book: Undiagnosed: The Ugly Side of Dyslexia.

Ameer will discuss: 

• How he grew up in New Orleans, facing unimaginable obstacles 
• His experiences with being misunderstood and how it impacted his life 
• How he transformed his life by reclaiming his education while incarcerated 
• How he is now dedicated to helping others recognize their potential 

By the end of this episode, you'll see how Ameer’s journey not only sheds light on the challenges of dyslexia but also highlights the incredible strength it takes to overcome adversity.

Want to Learn More?

• Undiagnosed: The Ugly Side of Dyslexia by Ameer Baraka 

Looking for more literacy support and resources? Explore all of our podcast episodes, free listening guides, and classroom tools at literacypodcast.com.

Interested in bringing Melissa & Lori Love Literacy to your school or event? Email us at [email protected].

Episode 262

In this episode, we sit down with Nancy Blair and Pat Roberts, co-founders of AIM Academy and the AIM Institute for Learning & Research, to talk about how a school built on research came to be. Nancy and Pat share the story of meeting as parents of newly diagnosed daughters, and how that friendship grew into a non-profit school and a research institute that is celebrating its 20th year.

We discuss the early warning signs of dyslexia that too many families are told to wait out, why oral language and vocabulary deserve attention well before kindergarten, and how AIM's classrooms shifted over the years toward a fully integrated literacy model. Nancy and Pat also talk about AIM's ongoing partnership with literacy researchers, their free annual research symposium, and a forthcoming book meant to help any school or teacher follow a similar path.

This conversation is a fitting way to open Dyslexia Awareness Month, and a reminder of how much faster research and classroom practice can move when they move together.

Resources

• Learn more about AIM Academy and see their list of dyslexia warning signs and red flags
• Learn more about AIM's March Research to Practice Symposium:The Impact of Language on Reading and Writing. Registration is open for this free event! 
• AIM is hosting, as part of our Road to Symposium events, a free Dyslexia Awareness Month webinar on Wednesday, October 21 with Dr. Shelly Gray and Dr. RJ Risueno who created a Dyslexia and DLD Screener Questionnaire for pediatricians.  
• "Understanding Dyslexia: How Early Intervention Can Change Lives"
• Podcast Episode: "The Relationship Between Phonics and Language Comprehension" with Tiffany Hogan
• Podcast Episode:"Building Fluency with POSSUM" with Maryanne Wolf and Melissa Orkin 

Looking for more literacy support and resources? Explore all of our podcast episodes, free listening guides, and classroom tools at literacypodcast.com.

Interested in bringing Melissa & Lori Love Literacy to your school or event? Email us at [email protected].

Episode 100 from April 1, 2022

Over time, the chronic trauma of not being successful with reading wears down  many students. It has devastating effects. In our official 100th episode, Dr. Steven Dykstra discusses trauma and reading. He explains the connection between not being taught to read using evidence-based practices and the subsequent, unnecessary trauma this causes in children’s lives. This is a pervasive problem happening everywhere. 

Dr. Steven Dykstra is a psychologist, advocate, and troublemaker in the reading world. His passion for reading comes from the recognition that the thousands of children he has served often pay the highest price for our failures and mistakes. 

Resources: 

• Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs) 
• NAEP Report Card: Reading 
• Teaching Reading is Rocket Science by Louisa Moats

Looking for more literacy support and resources? Explore all of our podcast episodes, free listening guides, and classroom tools at literacypodcast.com.

Interested in bringing Melissa & Lori Love Literacy to your school or event? Email us at [email protected].

Episode 261  

In this episode, Caitlin Lucas shares innovative routines for kindergarten literacy instruction, emphasizing consistency and active participation to build foundational skills. Caitlin also uses sign language as part of her routines and shares easy ways teachers can use it too. 

Resources 

• Maximizing Instructional Time Through Routines and Rehearsal  

Looking for more literacy support and resources? Explore all of our podcast episodes, free listening guides, and classroom tools at literacypodcast.com.

Interested in bringing Melissa & Lori Love Literacy to your school or event? Email us at [email protected].

In this episode, we talk with Julia Lindsey about her book, Reading Above the Fray: Reliable, Research-Based Routines for Developing Decoding Skills. Julia shares why decoding is one of the most important skills we can help students develop and how research-based instructional routines can make that learning more efficient, effective, and joyful.

Together, we explore the foundational skills that support decoding, the role of purposeful practice, and how consistent routines help students know what to expect as they build confidence with sounds, words, and increasingly complex texts.

Decoding isn't the end goal of reading! It's the gateway. When students develop strong decoding skills, they gain the independence needed to tackle new words, access meaning, and fully engage with reading.

Whether you're a classroom teacher, literacy coach, interventionist, or school leader, this conversation is packed with practical, research-based ideas you can put into practice right away.

Looking for more literacy support and resources? Explore all of our podcast episodes, free listening guides, and classroom tools at literacypodcast.com.

Interested in bringing Melissa & Lori Love Literacy to your school or event? Email us at [email protected].

Episode 260

In this episode, Wiley Blevins shares practical strategies for differentiating phonics instruction in both whole group and small group settings. We explore high impact routines, effective use of decodable texts, and how to meet diverse student needs efficiently.

Wiley walks us through how to design routines that are expansive enough to serve everyone in whole group, while using small group for the high-intensity, targeted practice that takes kids further faster. Differentiation does not have to happen only in small group. It can live right inside the phonics routines you are already using every day. 

Resources

• Differentiating Phonics Instruction for Maximum Impact by Wiley Blevins 

Looking for more literacy support and resources? Explore all of our podcast episodes, free listening guides, and classroom tools at literacypodcast.com.

Interested in bringing Melissa & Lori Love Literacy to your school or event? Email us at [email protected].

Episode 259

In this episode, we’re joined once again by literacy researcher and educator Brennan Chandler for a practical, teacher-friendly conversation all about spelling routines that support students as spellers and writers. Brennan walks us through a sequence of short, research-based routines including 

• Sound Check
• Pattern Power Up,
• Word Workout
• Heart Word Heroes
• Sentence Sprint
• Spell Streak

Free scripts and printables for all six routines are here: Spell Squad

We talk about how these routines build from sounds to patterns to words to sentences, helping students move toward applying spelling knowledge in authentic writing. 

Throughout the episode, Brennan shares clear examples teachers can try right away, along with ideas for scaffolding instruction, providing immediate feedback, and making spelling practice more engaging and meaningful for students. We also discuss the importance of cumulative review, sentence-level practice, and transfer into real writing, especially for students who continue to need spelling support in upper elementary and beyond.

Resources

• Free scripts and printables for all six routines are here: Spell Squad
• Peer-Assisted Learning Strategies (PALS) Brennan references Fuchs’ peer-assisted learning work. 
• Anita Archer’s instructional routines
• How to Teach Students to Read Irregular Words with Danielle Colenbrander & Katie Pace Miles Podcast episode featuring Danielle Colenbrander discussion heart words.
• Follow Brennan Chandler

Looking for more literacy support and resources? Explore all of our podcast episodes, free listening guides, and classroom tools at literacypodcast.com.

Interested in bringing Melissa & Lori Love Literacy to your school or event? Email us at [email protected].

Episode 96 from 3/4/2022

We’re bringing back one of our most requested conversations about spelling and the important role it plays in reading development. In this episode, we revisit our conversation with literacy expert J. Richard Gentry, author of Brain Words , to explore how spelling supports automatic word recognition and stronger reading and writing overall.

Throughout the conversation, Richard explains how spelling connects directly to students’ speech and language systems. He also shares practical, science of reading-aligned strategies teachers can use to make spelling instruction more intentional.

Looking for more literacy support and resources? Explore all of our podcast episodes, free listening guides, and classroom tools at literacypodcast.com.

Interested in bringing Melissa & Lori Love Literacy to your school or event? Email us at [email protected].

Episode 258

In this episode, we sit down with literacy researcher Brennan Chandler to talk about the science of spelling instruction and why spelling deserves a much bigger role in science of reading conversations. Brennan explains how spelling supports stronger writing, more precise word knowledge, and better reading outcomes.

We discuss why spelling should be taught explicitly rather than left to chance, why patterns matter more than memorized rules, and how phonology, orthography, and morphology all work together when students learn to spell. Brennan also shares why morphology belongs in the early grades, how retrieval practice strengthens spelling knowledge, and why traditional Friday spelling tests often fail to lead to lasting learning.

This conversation is full of practical insights for teachers who want to move beyond isolated spelling activities and toward instruction that truly supports literacy development.

And this is just part one. Brennan will be back in our next episode focused entirely on practical spelling routines teachers can use right away in the classroom.

Brennan mentioned his TAP model of spelling instruction (Teach, Practice, Apply) in this episode. He's built six routines that put it into practice, called Spell Squad. Each one comes with scripting and a timer so you can teach it straight from the screen. Free teaching scripts and printables are on his site: Spell Squad

Resources

• Free teaching scripts and printables are on Brennan's site: Spell Squad
• "Spelling Is an Integral Part of Learning the Language, Not a Matter of Memorization."
• "How Spelling Supports Reading" by Louisa Moats
• This resource from Logic of English shares several high-utility spelling patterns and generalizations that may feel more useful and transferable than the long lists of spelling “rules” many of us learned in school.
• Follow Brennan Chandler

Looking for more literacy support and resources? Explore all of our podcast episodes, free listening guides, and classroom tools at literacypodcast.com.

Interested in bringing Melissa & Lori Love Literacy to your school or event? Email us at [email protected].

In this bonus episode, we're bringing you research right from the Society for the Scientific Study of Reading (SSSR) conference, one of the biggest gatherings of reading researchers in the world. We break down the key takeaways, emerging trends, and standout research that caught our attention, and talk about what it all means for your classroom. If you want to know where the science of reading is headed next, this one's for you.

Resources Mentioned

• Words as Tools (coming soon)
• Reading Ready + Reading Go 
• How To Plan for Differentiated Instruction (ACCESS Reading) 
• Anderson & Strong (2026)
• Jake Downs is the host of the Teaching Literacy Podcast (it's a M&L favorite!)
• Clarence Greene's British and American Word Families (BAWF) Database: https://cgg-projects.github.io/BAWF_V2/

Looking for more literacy support and resources? Explore all of our podcast episodes, free listening guides, and classroom tools at literacypodcast.com.

Interested in bringing Melissa & Lori Love Literacy to your school or event? Email us at [email protected].