Lyuda Bentsiy, Jan/Feb blog post, Routman Ch. 8

A phrase that stood out for me was “The current emphasis on word calling, automaticity, and fluency in the early grades is often at the expense of understanding.” I agree with this and it reminds me to put more emphasis on students’ comprehension and not just reading fluency. The strategies on page 118 that “have been identified as being key for achieving full understanding when we read” is another reminder for me to model these strategies so students would use them. On page 119, the author writes that “In many cases, what gets left out is enough time for the independent reading that enables students to use and practice these strategies.” This is so true! I was once reminded on page 122, that teachers “need to take care not just to model individual strategies in isolation and hope for a transfer of learning.” Page 129 summarizes this chapter very well “We must take care that teaching a particular strategy does not take precedence over reading and understanding text.”