In this podcast episode, Katie Egan Cunningham, Jan Burkins, and Kari Yates, the authors of Shifting the Balance: 6 Ways to Bring the Science of Reading into the Upper Elementary Classroom. This much-awaited sequel to the first Shifting the Balance book introduces six more shifts for elementary teachers. In this episode, the authors discuss the third new shift, which involves recommitting to vocabulary instruction. They talk about the roles of implicit and explicit vocabulary instruction and address concerns that formal vocabulary instruction will look like the lamented practices of yesteryear with looking up definitions, writing sentences, and taking tests. They address the connections between vocabulary, language comprehension, and reading comprehension and suggest that teachers adopt some high-leverage routines to make learning vocabulary easier for children. Learn more about all twelve shifts at TheSixShifts.com.

In this podcast episode, Katie Egan Cunningham, Jan Burkins, and Kari Yates, the authors of Shifting the Balance: 6 Ways to Bring the Science of Reading into the Upper Elementary Classroom discuss the second new shift, which involves rethinking the way we teach comprehension strategies. They unpack two important misunderstandings about strategy instruction in light of reading research. They suggest that a few strategic moves are sufficient for readers, and they encourage teachers to make brain-friendly adjustments to their instructional practices. Learn more about all twelve shifts at TheSixShifts.com.

In this podcast, Katie Egan Cunningham, Jan Burkins, and Kari Yates, the authors of Shifting the Balance: 6 Ways to Bring the Science of Reading into the Upper Elementary Classroom. This much-awaited sequel to the first Shifting the Balance book introduces six more shifts for elementary teachers. In this episode, the authors discuss the first new shift: building knowledge. They explore the role that knowledge plays in reading comprehension and why content area instruction is so important. They challenge educators to give knowledge building the instructional time it deserves as an essential component of reading comprehension. Learn more about all twelve shifts at TheSixShifts.com.

In this podcast, Katie Egan Cunningham, Jan Burkins, and Kari Yates discuss the background and origin of their new book, Shifting the Balance 3-5: 6 Ways to Bring the Science of Reading into the Upper Elementary Classroom. This much-awaited sequel to the K-2 book introduces six more shifts for elementary teachers. In this conversation, Katie, Jan, and Kari talk about the vulnerability and riskiness involved with writing the book and the six commitments they made to the work and to each other. They also explore how the K-2 and the 3-5 books connect and how the shifts can help educators navigate the competing tensions of literacy instruction. Learn more about all twelve shifts at TheSixShifts.com.

In today’s episode, Jan and Kari with Stenhouse’s Dan Tobin, discuss the final shift:  Reconsidering Texts for Beginning Readers. LINKS Shifting the Balance: 6 Ways to Bring the Science of Reading into the Balance Literacy Classroom Follow Jan @drjanburkins and www.drjanburkins.com . Follow Kari @Kari_Yates www.thesixshifts.com