In today’s episode, we’re tackling one of the biggest transitions in early literacy—helping students move from writing individual letters to constructing full sentences. If you’ve ever wondered how to bridge the gap between handwriting and confident writing, this episode is for you!

We’ll walk through: ✅ How to transition from letter formation to writing words ✅ The role of phonemic awareness and sound-to-letter mapping in writing ✅ Scaffolded word-building to strengthen encoding skills ✅ Sentence structure—teaching kids what makes a complete thought ✅ Engaging strategies like “Who/Do” sentences and The Missing Piece Game ✅ Why dictation and shared writing are essential for early writers ✅ How to make writing meaningful and connected to real-life experiences

By the end of this episode, you’ll have a clear, step-by-step approach to support your students as they grow into confident writers!

FULL SHOW NOTES HERE

Handwriting often gets pushed aside, but it’s a game-changer for literacy success. In this episode, we’re diving into: ✔️ Why handwriting matters for reading and spelling ✔️ Research-backed strategies to build fluency ✔️ The 5 essential components of writing success ✔️ Simple, effective ways to fit handwriting into your day

By the end of this episode, you’ll have practical strategies to help students move from letters to words to full sentences with confidence!

FULL SHOW NOTES HERE

All About Lisa Russo:

• Administrator in New York Public Schools at P.S. 152.

• Became a teacher in 2022 at P.S. 152 and taught for 13 years in a variety of grades.

• Pursued a masters and became assistant principal at P.S. 152 for seven years - the same school she grew up in!

• Now serves as the principal at P.S. 152.

You mention that you have former students who return as staff members or with their own children.  Can you talk about that?

• It’s so incredible and unique - a true family.

• It makes my job more important because I have a great connection with the families, staff, and kids.  I grew up alongside them!

• Having my own students come back or have their children is just so special.

FULL SHOW NOTES HERE

Small group instruction: where the magic happens.   It's here where we get to see those long-awaited lightbulb moments.  But with so many  needs and so little time, it can feel overwhelming.  Today, we will help you simplify your planning, chat about why small groups are so important, and give you all the tools you need to make your small group instruction successful.

Why Small Groups Matter

• Small groups allow us to meet them where students are and provide targeted support.  

• In fact, research supports that this time is one of the most effective ways to boost reading success.  

• But with so much planning, what do we do?

• We follow a structure and this three-part framework:

1. Warm-up with cumulative review

2. Explicit teaching

3. Application.  

• Following a framework takes the guessing out of planning and ensures that your lessons are aligned with the science of reading. 

• This framework works because it’s digestible, it’s consistent, it’s aligned with the science of reading, it’s efficient for teachers, and gives students a confident path towards reading.

FULL SHOW NOTES HERE

LE Podcast #52 

The Importance of Decodable Text with Elise Lovejoy

All About Elise Lovejoy:

• Former teacher and currently serves as an probono interventionist at a nearby school.

• Runs Express Readers, a foundational skills reading program as well as a decodable book series.

• Passionate about the science of reading.

FULL SHOW NOTES HERE

All About Elise Lovejoy:

• Former teacher and currently serves as an probono interventionist at a nearby school.

• Runs Express Readers, a foundational skills reading program as well as a decodable book series.

• Passionate about the science of reading.

How did you get your start in education?

• Teaching was always my calling - I loved playing “classroom” when I was younger. 

• I went to Boston College and got my undergrad in elementary education with a focus on special education.  I have a special needs brother, so I was always interested in how to help kids like him.

• I volunteered at the Campus School at Boston College, which is a school for children who have severe disabilities. 

• From there, I left college and went into the classroom during which I got my masters.

• Loved everything about teaching and had the same background as everyone else where I was a balanced literacy teacher and wanted to make reading fun.  But I found myself continually not knowing what to do or not understanding why it wasn’t clicking with some students.

• Thankfully, I worked with a co-worker who was good with sounds and I threw myself into that idea.

• I eventually came back to California and found a job, and was frustrated with reading materials I was given.

FULL SHOW NOTES HERE

LE Podcast #51 

New Year, New Goals: Using Data to Reset and Plan for 2025

What’s the most important question we can ask ourselves as teachers and reading specialists and coaches?  That’s easy: How do we teach reading in a way so that we can reach every student and every need?  The answer may not be what you think!  It all starts with assessments.  Analyzing data we get from assessments can completely transform our reading instruction and help us reach every student.  Today, we’re doing a deep dive into assessments and why we need them to drive our reading instruction.

FULL SHOW NOTES HERE

I want to share with you essential building blocks that can help your students move from letters to reading CVC words.  Before we begin, let’s start with some vocabulary we’ll use during these show notes today.

• Phonemic awareness - the ability to blend, segment, and manipulate phonemes.  This is oral and doesn’t involve letters or print.

• Phonemes - our smallest units of sound.

• Alphabetic principle - taking the sounds and connecting it to written letters.

The Checklist That Students Need Before Reading CVC Words

These foundational skills must be in place if we want to support our students efficiently.

• Letter name knowledge - They have to be able to look at the letter and know the name and sound of that letter.

• Automaticity - Simply knowing their sounds isn’t enough.  Students must be able to say their letter sounds automatically, which is what will help them blend and decode words.

• Phonemic awareness - blending and segmenting is critical for our students.

FULL SHOW NOTES HERE

All About Anna Geiger:

• Author of Reach All Readers: Using the Science of Reading to Transform Your Literacy Instruction.

• Former teacher in 1st-4th grades.

• Currently serves educators through her website, www.themeasuredmom.com.

• Shares tons of hands-on lessons, thoughtful articles, and printable resources and has been doing so since 2013.

• Hosts a weekly podcast called Triple R Teaching and presents at various summits and conferences.

FULL SHOW NOTES HERE

Podcast #48 - Yearlong Phonics Pacing Guide

Show Notes

You guys - it’s here!  My Yearlong Phonics Pacing Guide for Grades K-2 is designed to help you plan and implement effective phonics instruction throughout the school year. Here,  we’ll share tips on how to make the most of this invaluable resource in your classroom.

• Ensure a smooth and successful school year by planning ahead.

• Benefits of planning ahead:

• You have organization and clear goals and timelines to keep you on track.

• You have consistency to ensure a logical progression of skills.

• You have flexibility because you’re able to see ahead and adjust the framework as needed.

• Start by mapping out your phonics instruction for the entire year.

• Use the pacing guide to outline your weekly goals and objectives.

• Doing so will help you stay organized and, best of all, reduce stress throughout the entire year.

FULL SHOW NOTES HERE