To the Classroom: Conversations with Researchers & Educators

By Jennifer Serravallo

What's To the Classroom: Conversations with Researchers & Educators about?

Jennifer Serravallo interviews leading literacy researchers and scholars about their work. In each episode, she's joined by colleagues from her consulting team, teachers, and coaches, to talk about practical strategies for bringing the research to the classroom.

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To the Classroom: Conversations with Researchers & Educators episodes:

02.12.2024
33. Dr. Leigh Patel & Shawna Coppola
My guest today is Dr. Leigh Patel who is a transdisciplinary scholar whose research focuses on both the ways schooling delivers inequities and how education can be a tool for liberation. She is the author of Decolonizing Educational Research. We’ll...
02.05.2024
32. Zaretta Hammond -- The Science of Learning: Culturally Responsive Teaching and the Brain
Today’s guest is the brilliant Zaretta Hammond, author of Culturally Responsive Teaching and the Brain. We’ll talk about the science behind her recommended “six core design principles” that she calls “culturally responsive brain rules”. Later, I’m joined by my colleague...
01.29.2024
31. Dr. Leala Holcomb -- Equitable Literacy Instruction for Deaf and Hard of Hearing Students
My guest today is Dr. Leala Holcomb, a researcher of deaf education at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville, who accepted my invitation to teach us all about what true equity and inclusion looks like when supporting deaf children’s language and...
12.17.2023
A quick end-of-year announcement from Jen Serravallo
An end-of-year announcement from Jen Serravallo, host of To the Classroom Podcast. Listen to any episodes you missed, or read a full transcript at jenniferserravallo.com/podcast Please rate or review the show to support! More episodes in Jan 2024.Support the show
12.11.2023
30. Chris Wenz -- Autism and Literacy
My guest today is Chris Wenz, researcher and teacher, whose dissertation focused on profiles of adolescents with Autism Spectrum Disorders. We begin our conversation with an understanding of the diverse profiles of autistic individuals, and move into a conversation about...
12.04.2023
29. Dr. Karen Harris -- Writing Instruction, Self-Regulation Strategies, and Professional Development in Writing
Karen HarrisMy guest today is Dr. Karen Harris who joins us to talk about the role of strategy instruction for qualities of good writing such as focus, organization, and detail, as well as strategies for self-regulation. We’ll also discuss a...
11.28.2023
28. Dr. Steve Graham -- Reading and Writing Reciprocity, and Writing Instruction Best Practices Based on 40 Years of Research
My guest today is Dr. Steve Graham, who has, for over 40 years, studied how writing develops, how to teach it effectively, and how writing can be used to support reading and learning. We'll discuss some of his research around...
11.20.2023
27. Dr. P David Pearson -- Developing a Research-Informed Reading Curriculum and Literacy Block
Today's guest is none other than THE Dr. P David Pearson. Usually I approach guests with a topic in mind, but because Dr. Pearson had just written on just about every topic there is to write about in the field...
11.13.2023
26. Dr. H. Richard Milner -- Multiple Literacies, Including A Wider Scope of Research in SoR Conversations, Effective Leadership
My guest today is Dr. H. Richard Milner, author of the recent Reading Research Quarterly article titled “Disrupting Racism and Whiteness in Researching a Science of Reading” and the new book The Race Card. We talk about the importance of...
11.06.2023
25. Dr. Laura Ascenzi-Moreno -- Multilingual Learners: Assessment and Teaching
My guest today is Dr. Laura Ascenzi-Moreno, a NYC-based scholar who studies bi and multi-lingual education. She has several papers about reading assessment practices and considerations for students who speak multiple languages. We also discuss reader models such as the...
10.30.2023
24. Dr. Caitlin Ryan and Dr. Jill Hermann-Wilmarth -- The Hows and Whys of LGBTQ-inclusive Curriculum and Texts
My guests today, Dr. Caitlin Ryan and Dr. Jill Hermann Wilmarth, are co-authors of the professional book Reading the Rainbow as well as many scholarly articles. They will help us think about the whys and hows of LGBTQ-inclusive curriculum and...
10.23.2023
23. Dr. Elizabeth Sulzby -- Emergent Literacy and Language Development
My guest today is Dr. Elizabeth Sulzby whose research focus is on early language and literacy development in Pre-Kindergarten. She talks about research studies she did with preschoolers in NYC years ago where teachers do repeated readings of storybooks—even those...
10.16.2023
22. Dr. Haeny Yoon and Dr. Lalitha Vasudevan -- Play, Conceptual Knowledge Development, and Literacy Skills
My guests today are Dr. Haeny Yoon and Dr. Lalitha Vasudevan, researchers who study play in early childhood and adolescence. We talk about the many benefits of play, the role of adults in setting up and facilitating play, and ways...
10.09.2023
21. John Walker and Dr. Jan Wascowicz -- Speech to Print Approach to Phonics and Spelling Instruction
John Walker and Jan WasowiczToday’s episode is a double – I have two guests to teach us about a speech to print approach to spelling and phonics instruction. John Walker is the UK-based creator of Sounds-Write. Jan Wasowicz is the...
10.02.2023
20. Dr. Tim Rasinski -- Fluency Instruction, and Blending the Art and Science of Reading
Today’s guest is Dr. Tim Rasinski. We’ll talk about his newest book, Artfully Teaching the Science of Reading, along with several of his recently published studies that offer ways to support students’ fluency development through the use of poems and...
09.25.2023
19. Dr. Laura Steacy and Dr. Don Compton -- Set for Variability
Today’s guests are Drs. Laura Steacy and Don Compton, researchers who explore and write about the skill Set for Variability. You’ll hear them talk about this new area of research which offers an explanation for how students self-correct pronunciations of...
09.18.2023
18. Dr. Peng Peng -- Comprehension Strategy Instruction: What Strategies and Most Effective for Older Struggling Readers?
My guest today is Dr. Peng Peng, co-author of a recently-published meta-analysis that examined the role of strategy instruction with struggling readers in grades 3-12. The analysis sought to understand which strategies, and which strategy combinations, are most important to...
09.11.2023
17. Dr. Kristin Conradi Smith, Dr. Steve Amendum, and Tammy Williams -- Effective Small Group Instruction in Reading
My guests today are three authors of a recent article in The Reading Teacher about Maximizing Small Group Instruction: Dr. Kristin Conradi-Smith, Dr. Steve Amendum, and Tammy Williams. They’ll share essential recommendations for forming and conducting effective group lessons for...
09.04.2023
16. Dr. Margaret McKeown -- Vocabulary Development, Explicit Vocabulary Instruction, and the Questioning the Author Intervention
Today my guest is Dr. Margaret McKeown. We’ll start our conversation discussing vocabulary development and explicit vocabulary instruction, including how to choose words for instruction, how to teach words so students understand them deeply, and how to help students build...
08.28.2023
Season 2 Trailer
Season 2 of To the Classroom begins on September 4, with new episodes every Monday.Check out this season's guests: www.jenniferserravallo.com/podcastTogether, we’ll explore a wide range of topics that honors the complexities of what it means to teach literacy to a...
05.29.2023
15. Dr. Gholdy Muhammad -- Including Identity, Skills, Knowledge, Criticality, and Joy in a Literacy Instructional Framework
Today I welcome Dr. Gholdy Muhammad. She’ll teach us about the importance of including qualitative research, her studies of the Black Literary Societies of the 1800s, and how that research has inspired her instructional framework which includes identity, skills, knowledge,...
05.22.2023
14. Dr. Edmund Adjapong -- Hip Hop Ed, and Culturally Responsive and Sustaining Pedagogies
Today’s guest is Dr. Edmund Adjapong, a scholar whose work focuses on engaging youth through culturally responsive and sustaining pedagogies centered around embracing Hip Hop culture in the classroom. In the second half of the episode, I’m joined by my...
05.15.2023
13. Dr. Carla España and Dr. Luz Yadira Herrera -- Supporting Multilingual Students with Culturally and Linguistically-Affirming and Sustaining Practices
Today I welcome Dr Carla España and Dr. Luz Yadira Herrera for a conversation about supporting bilingual and multilingual students in monolingual or dual language classrooms. We discuss culturally and linguistically-affirming and sustaining practices, their advice for choosing texts to...
05.08.2023
12. Dr. Debbie Reese -- Native American Representation in Children's Literature and Our Literacy Classrooms
Today I welcome Debbie Reese to talk about her scholarship focused on Native representation in children’s literature, her AICL resource, and advice for teachers about selecting texts to use in the classroom. Later, I’m joined by my colleagues Lainie Powell,...
05.01.2023
11. Dr. HyeJin Hwang -- Bidirectional Relationship of Knowledge and Comprehension in Mono and Multilingual Learners
Today I welcome Dr. HyeJin Hwang to talk about her recently published study on the bidirectional relationship of knowledge and comprehension in monolingual and multilingual readers. In this conversation we talk about different types of knowledge, ways to support knowledge...
04.24.2023
10. Dr. Tanya Wright -- Vocabulary Development, Knowledge Building, and Comprehension
Today’s guest is Dr. Tanya Wright whose research and writing focus on vocabulary and knowledge-building, and comprehension. She’ll help us think about how to infuse vocabulary instruction into before, during, and after reading activities to move from passive word learning...
04.17.2023
9. Dr. Rachael Gabriel -- Teacher Quality, High Quality Instructional Materials, and What Research Shows Makes the Biggest Difference in Supporting Early Literacy Growth
Today’s guest is Dr. Rachael Gabriel. We’ll talk about the newly published book, How Education Policy Shapes Literacy Instruction, which includes chapters she authored and co-authored and which she edited. Specifically, we’ll explore the history of studies relating to teacher...
04.10.2023
8. Dr. Gabriel DellaVecchia -- The Perils of Third Grade Retention Laws
Today I welcome Dr. Gabriel DellaVecchia, who has reviewed decades of research about retention to answer the question: on the whole, do third grade retention laws—which are on the books in some form in 27 states in the US –...
04.03.2023
7. Dr. Henry May -- Early Literacy Intervention (Including Reading Recovery) and Implications for Practice
Today my guest is Dr. Henry May who has studied the popular first grade intervention Reading Recovery. We discuss results of two robust studies he was involved in—one showing strong positive effects in first grade, and another showing students...
03.27.2023
6. Dr. Melanie Kuhn -- Fluency Assessment and Instruction
Today’s guest is Dr. Melanie Kuhn, who you may know from her research and teacher professional writing around reading fluency. We’ll talk about what fluency is, how to best assess and teach it, and ways to differentiate instruction in K-5...
03.20.2023
5. Dr. Elfreida (Freddy) Hiebert -- Vocabulary Instruction, Text Complexity, and Self-Selected Reading
Today’s guest is Dr. Freddy Hiebert. We’ll talk about her newly published book about vocabulary instruction, her work around text complexity and her site textproject.org, how to ensure self-selected reading time is worth the time, and more. Later, I’m...
03.13.2023
4. Dr. Peter Afflerbach -- Reading Skills v Strategies, and the Role of Efficacy, Motivation, Engagement, Epistemic Beliefs, Attributions, and Executive Functions in Reading
Today my guest is Dr. Peter Afflerbach who researches individual differences in reading development, reading assessment, and comprehension. We’ll talk about the differences between skills and strategies – and why that matters for the classroom, as well as his new...
03.06.2023
3. Dr. Daniel Willingham -- Developing Successful, Independent Readers by Supporting thier Focus, Planning, Goal Setting, Notetaking, Studying, Comprehension of Complex Texts, and More.
Today’s guest is Daniel Willingham, author of the new book Outsmart Your Brain. I’m so excited for you to hear us talk about how we as teachers can help students to become successful, independent learners through supporting their focus, planning...
02.27.2023
2. Dr. Maryanne Wolf -- The Reading Brain, Digital Reading, Reading Engagement, and Dyslexia
Today I welcome Dr. Maryanne Wolf for a conversation about the incredible reading brain: what happens in neural circuitry when we are reading words accurately, the many different ways to read, and her important thoughts on how to cultivate true...
02.20.2023
1. Dr. Kelly Cartwright -- The Active View of Reading Framework and the Role of Executive Skills in Reading Comprehension
Today’s guest is Dr. Kelly Cartwright. We’ll talk about her invaluable work around executive skills, and the ways that these important skills undergird reading engagement and comprehension. We’ll also discuss her 2021 paper with Dr. Nell Duke titled “The Science...
02.09.2023
To the Classroom Trailer
An introduction to the new podcast for literacy teachers and leaders by Jennifer Serravallo. Listen in as she interviews today’s leading researchers and has post-interview conversations with colleagues about practical takeaways.Support the Show.

What's To the Classroom: Conversations with Researchers & Educators about?

Download our free app to listen on your phone

To the Classroom: Conversations with Researchers & Educators episodes:

33. Dr. Leigh Patel & Shawna Coppola

32. Zaretta Hammond -- The Science of Learning: Culturally Responsive Teaching and the Brain

31. Dr. Leala Holcomb -- Equitable Literacy Instruction for Deaf and Hard of Hearing Students

A quick end-of-year announcement from Jen Serravallo

30. Chris Wenz -- Autism and Literacy

29. Dr. Karen Harris -- Writing Instruction, Self-Regulation Strategies, and Professional Development in Writing

28. Dr. Steve Graham -- Reading and Writing Reciprocity, and Writing Instruction Best Practices Based on 40 Years of Research

27. Dr. P David Pearson -- Developing a Research-Informed Reading Curriculum and Literacy Block

26. Dr. H. Richard Milner -- Multiple Literacies, Including A Wider Scope of Research in SoR Conversations, Effective Leadership

25. Dr. Laura Ascenzi-Moreno -- Multilingual Learners: Assessment and Teaching

24. Dr. Caitlin Ryan and Dr. Jill Hermann-Wilmarth -- The Hows and Whys of LGBTQ-inclusive Curriculum and Texts

23. Dr. Elizabeth Sulzby -- Emergent Literacy and Language Development

22. Dr. Haeny Yoon and Dr. Lalitha Vasudevan -- Play, Conceptual Knowledge Development, and Literacy Skills

21. John Walker and Dr. Jan Wascowicz -- Speech to Print Approach to Phonics and Spelling Instruction

20. Dr. Tim Rasinski -- Fluency Instruction, and Blending the Art and Science of Reading

19. Dr. Laura Steacy and Dr. Don Compton -- Set for Variability

18. Dr. Peng Peng -- Comprehension Strategy Instruction: What Strategies and Most Effective for Older Struggling Readers?

17. Dr. Kristin Conradi Smith, Dr. Steve Amendum, and Tammy Williams -- Effective Small Group Instruction in Reading

16. Dr. Margaret McKeown -- Vocabulary Development, Explicit Vocabulary Instruction, and the Questioning the Author Intervention

Season 2 Trailer

15. Dr. Gholdy Muhammad -- Including Identity, Skills, Knowledge, Criticality, and Joy in a Literacy Instructional Framework

14. Dr. Edmund Adjapong -- Hip Hop Ed, and Culturally Responsive and Sustaining Pedagogies

13. Dr. Carla España and Dr. Luz Yadira Herrera -- Supporting Multilingual Students with Culturally and Linguistically-Affirming and Sustaining Practices

12. Dr. Debbie Reese -- Native American Representation in Children's Literature and Our Literacy Classrooms

11. Dr. HyeJin Hwang -- Bidirectional Relationship of Knowledge and Comprehension in Mono and Multilingual Learners

10. Dr. Tanya Wright -- Vocabulary Development, Knowledge Building, and Comprehension

9. Dr. Rachael Gabriel -- Teacher Quality, High Quality Instructional Materials, and What Research Shows Makes the Biggest Difference in Supporting Early Literacy Growth

8. Dr. Gabriel DellaVecchia -- The Perils of Third Grade Retention Laws

7. Dr. Henry May -- Early Literacy Intervention (Including Reading Recovery) and Implications for Practice

6. Dr. Melanie Kuhn -- Fluency Assessment and Instruction

5. Dr. Elfreida (Freddy) Hiebert -- Vocabulary Instruction, Text Complexity, and Self-Selected Reading

4. Dr. Peter Afflerbach -- Reading Skills v Strategies, and the Role of Efficacy, Motivation, Engagement, Epistemic Beliefs, Attributions, and Executive Functions in Reading

3. Dr. Daniel Willingham -- Developing Successful, Independent Readers by Supporting thier Focus, Planning, Goal Setting, Notetaking, Studying, Comprehension of Complex Texts, and More.

2. Dr. Maryanne Wolf -- The Reading Brain, Digital Reading, Reading Engagement, and Dyslexia

1. Dr. Kelly Cartwright -- The Active View of Reading Framework and the Role of Executive Skills in Reading Comprehension

To the Classroom Trailer

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