Anticipatory planning, that is, the ability to process information in advance to prepare to act, underpins activities that unfold in time, such as spoken language, reading and handwriting. One key, though not the only, mechanism that may facilitate anticipatory planning is rhythm, which is understood as the structured grouping of events in time.…

So much has changed since 1999 when the original "Wondrous Words: Writers and Writing in the Elementary Classrooms" was published. The world is a different place, and our classrooms have changed. But, so much of what we learned in "Wondrous Words" holds true today. In this new reimagined edition, Katie Wood Ray revisits some of…

It is common for learners to listen to background music during learning activities. However, existing research has produced inconclusive results on the effects of background music on learning due to different circumstances and contexts. There is a lack of detailed understanding regarding the effects of various background music properties on…

Timing of foster care placement, especially early in life, may have important implications for children's later academic functioning. Given racial disparities in placement decisions, examining associations between age at foster care entry and school outcomes by race is warranted. To address this gap, linked, longitudinal administrative data were…

Background: Learning interest is an intrinsic motivation that dynamically interacts with friendships. Students alter their learning interests to assimilate with their friends and actively establish friendships on the basis of similar interests. These processes do not operate in isolation but rather in the broader peer context. Class-level…

This study investigates the types of instruction multilingual learners (MLs) experience in the general education classroom in upper-elementary school. Using the Early Childhood Longitudinal Study, Kindergarten Class of 2010-2011 (ECLS-K) we examine the types of instructional practices MLs experienced in reading, math, and science in fourth and…

This article explores the use of the instant messaging app, WhatsApp, to teach close reading, critical thinking, and argumentation skills. Academic and argumentative essays continue to be the dominant form of both formative and summative assessments, particularly in literary studies. However, many students who enter university in South Africa…

Common sense and a growing academic literature suggest that student absences harm achievement. Public schools have witnessed a conspicuous surge in student absenteeism in the years since the COVID-19 pandemic. Social norms regarding school attendance have changed, as has technology that facilitates students' ability to communicate with their…

The uncertainty swirling around the Department of Education's future has created an opening to reconsider the course of the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP). The NAEP is an important tool for education accountability, helping ensure that our national education system is on track. Targeted changes could make it even more useful…

Listening comprehension and retelling are essential skills for academic success. However, students with learning disabilities experience difficulties in both areas, which can negatively affect their academic achievement. It is noteworthy that the relevant literature includes only a limited number of studies examining the correlation between these…

Teacher-student relationships play a pivotal role in fostering student motivation, engagement, and achievement, yet debates about literacy instruction often overlook how curricular choices shape these relationships. This article examines how Self-Determination Theory (SDT) can serve as a fulcrum for integrating explicit foundational skills…

This study examined the effect of pre-reading vocabulary instruction on learners' attention and vocabulary learning. We randomly assigned participants (L1 = 92; L2 = 88) to one of four conditions: pre-reading instruction, where participants' received explicit instruction on six novel items and read a text with the items repeated eight times;…

Studies of lexical coverage are valuable because they reveal the importance of vocabulary knowledge to comprehension. Lexical profiling research is also extremely useful because it indicates the vocabulary knowledge necessary to understand different text types such as novels, newspapers, academic lectures, television programs, and movies.…

Purpose: Multiple factors impact reading acquisition in individuals with reading disability, including genetic disorders such as Williams syndrome (WS). Despite a relative strength in oral language, individuals with WS usually have an intellectual disability and tend to display deficits in areas associated with reading. There is substantial…

In this article, we discuss tensions that emerged as we collaborated with teachers to iteratively design and refine an afterschool reading intervention approach that emphasizes inquiry and disciplinary learning for upper elementary readers positioned as struggling in school. Our findings are organized around four design tensions that help us…