Bridging literacy research and practice. Hosted by Jake Downs.
Teaching Literacy Podcast
Claim This Podcastby Jake Downs
4.9(59 reviews)
88 episodes
Updated Bi-weekly
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48
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Podcast Overview
Bridging literacy research and practice. Hosted by Jake Downs.
Language
🇺🇲
Publishing Since
9/28/2019
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48
Podcast Authority
BetaFairBased on show quality, social media presence, reviews, charts, and more
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YouTube74
Engagement51
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Recent Episodes
March 12, 2026
E74 | Robust Comprehension Using HQIM Featuring Dr. Dan Reynolds, Dr. Anna Jennerjohn, & Dr. Sara Rutherford-Quach
<div class="wp-block-group is-vertical is-layout-flex wp-container-core-group-is-layout-8cf370e7 wp-block-group-is-layout-flex"> <p class="has-text-align-left">In this episode I sit down with the SRI Education research team—Dr. Dan Reynolds, Dr. Anna Jennerjohn, and Dr. Sara Rutherford-Quach—to unpack their learning brief, Beyond the Surface.</p> <p class="has-text-align-left">This episode explores the gap between using high-quality instructional materials (HQIM) and achieving deep, robust reading comprehension.</p> <p class="">Read the Brief Here: <a href="https://www.sri.com/publication/education-learning-pubs/beyond-the-surface-leveraging-high-quality-instructional-materials-for-robust-reading-comprehension/">https://www.sri.com/publication/education-learning-pubs/beyond-the-surface-leveraging-high-quality-instructional-materials-for-robust-reading-comprehension/</a> </p> <p class="has-text-align-left"><strong>Quick Summary:</strong></p> <p class="has-text-align-left">Actionable advice for coaches and school leaders to build systems that support genuine meaning-making in the classroom.</p> <p class="has-text-align-left"><strong>The Study:</strong> Analyzed 111 comprehension lessons across districts with mature HQIM implementation and surveyed 500+ teachers.</p> <p class="has-text-align-left"><strong>The Central Finding:</strong> While HQIM was consistently used, 64% of lessons focused only on surface-level objectives (completing tasks) rather than robust comprehension (building a mental model).</p> <p class="has-text-align-left"><strong>Episode Highlights:</strong></p> <p class="has-text-align-left">Defining the crucial distinction between Surface and Robust comprehension.</p> <p class="has-text-align-left">Introducing the 6 high-leverage instructional practices that move the needle toward deep understanding.</p> <p class="">Timestamps<br>[0:00] – Teaser: Surface vs. Robust Comprehension</p> <p class="">[0:16] – Introduction & episode overview; Jake introduces the HQIM landscape</p> <p class="">[1:29] – Introducing the guests and their learning brief: Beyond the Surface</p> <p class="">[2:43] – What is HQIM and why has the term taken off so quickly?</p> <p class="">[4:46] – Background on the study: Schusterman Family Philanthropies partnership and why SRI undertook this observational research</p> <p class="">[7:14] – Why studying mature implementation matters — districts where HQIM had been in place for several years</p> <p class="">[9:34] – Defining surface-level comprehension vs. robust comprehension</p> <p class="">[20:58] – How the data was collected: 111 classroom observations, 500+ teacher surveys, 100+ interviews, 62 PLCs observed</p> <p class="">[25:10] – Finding #1: Teachers were using their HQIM consistently (72–89% daily or almost daily)</p> <p class="">[21:26] – Finding #2: High floor established — 98% of lessons had a comprehension purpose; but 64% of lessons set only surface-level goals</p> <p class="">[26:06] – The “voltage drop”: how robust lessons erode</p> <p class="">[29:57] – The six high-leverage practices for robust comprehension:</p> <p class="">[30:11] Practice 1: Engaging students in text-specific analysis<br>[33:29] Practice 2: Activating and leveraging prior knowledge<br>[36:10] Practice 3: Explaining and modeling meaning-making<br>[38:48] Practice 4: Providing instructional feedback<br>[40:36] Practice 5: Providing opportunities for text-based reasoning<br>[41:59] Practice 6: Setting up peer learning opportunities<br>[44:25] – What surface-level instruction looks like in practice</p> <p class="">[47:37] – It’s not a checklist: how the six practices can serve surface OR robust ends</p> <p class="">[48:56] – Three action steps for coaches and school leaders:<br>[56:07] – Walkthrough tools and their limitations: why you can’t see robust comprehension in a 5-minute walkthrough</p> <p class="">[1:00:28] – Jake’s curveball: How do standards interact with comprehension instruction? (The PLC/Norse mythology example)</p> <p class="">[1:06:05] – Student engagement in robust vs. surface lessons — the House on Mango Street discussion example</p> <p class="">[1:04:12] – What’s next: upcoming SRI briefs on foundational skills, multilingual learners, and knowledge-building</p> <p class="">[1:10:17] – Optimism for the future of literacy: teachers hungry for the “how,” and a push toward more honest comprehension assessment</p> <p class="">[1:14:25] – Jake’s Take: Reflections on HQIM as an “instructional floor,” why all three gears must turn (content knowledge, pedagogical knowledge, curriculum knowledge), and a simple habit for keeping comprehension instruction tethered to meaning-making</p> <p class="">[1:30:30] – Closing</p> </div> <p class=""></p> <p class=""></p>
March 4, 2026
Complex Text & Fluency with Dr. Jake Downs and Dr. Chase Young
<h5 class="wp-block-heading" id="show-notes"><strong>This is a rebroadcast of Episode 245 from the Melissa and Lori Love Literacy Podcast – you can check out that episode here: <a href="https://podcasts.apple.com/ca/podcast/read-like-us-building-fluency-through-repeated-reading/id1463219123?i=1000748503901">https://podcasts.apple.com/ca/podcast/read-like-us-building-fluency-through-repeated-reading/id1463219123?i=1000748503901</a></strong><br><br>Make sure to check out the Literacy.io training on the Kat Framework for Comprehension this June!<br><strong>-June 24-25 in East Lansing Michigan<br>-Individual registration available at: <a href="https://tamu.estore.flywire.com/products/cusp---the-reading-leagueliteracy10-participant-registration--412940">https://tamu.estore.flywire.com/products/cusp—the-reading-leagueliteracy10-participant-registration–412940</a><br>-Group registration available at: <a href="https://tamu.estore.flywire.com/products/cusp---the-reading-leagueliteracy10-group-participant-registration--412945">https://tamu.estore.flywire.com/products/cusp—the-reading-leagueliteracy10-group-participant-registration–412945</a><br>-More information available at literacy.io/contact</strong></h5> <div class="wp-block-group"><div class="wp-block-group__inner-container is-layout-constrained wp-block-group-is-layout-constrained"> <div class="wp-block-group"><div class="wp-block-group__inner-container is-layout-constrained wp-block-group-is-layout-constrained"> <p class=""><br>Show Notes<br><strong>2:30 – What is Read Like Us?</strong></p> <ul class="wp-block-list"> <li class="">Overview of the five-step repeated reading protocol</li> <li class="">How it supports accuracy, automaticity, and prosody</li> </ul> <p class=""><strong>4:10 – The Five Reads Explained</strong></p> <ol start="1" class="wp-block-list"> <li class="">Listening passage preview</li> <li class="">Echo reading</li> <li class="">Choral reading</li> <li class="">Partner reading</li> <li class="">Performance/independent reading</li> </ol> <p class=""><strong>6:00 – Implementation in Classrooms</strong></p> <ul class="wp-block-list"> <li class="">Can it work in whole group settings?</li> <li class="">Small group intervention applications</li> <li class="">Working with paraprofessionals and volunteers</li> </ul> <p class=""><strong>10:00 – Maximizing Reading Time</strong></p> <ul class="wp-block-list"> <li class="">Why 90% of intervention time should be actual reading</li> <li class="">The workout approach to building fluency</li> <li class="">Ensuring students are actually reading (not just holding books)</li> </ul> <p class=""><strong>12:53 – How Read Like Us Differs from Traditional Approaches</strong></p> <ul class="wp-block-list"> <li class="">More than just “read three times and check for speed”</li> <li class="">Building all three components of fluency simultaneously</li> <li class="">The role of modeling and scaffolding</li> </ul> <p class=""><strong>15:00 – Gradual Release of Responsibility</strong></p> <ul class="wp-block-list"> <li class="">Transferring task responsibility to students</li> <li class="">Why rate/speed wasn’t emphasized in coaching</li> <li class="">Automaticity as the outcome, not the input</li> </ul> <p class=""><strong>18:00 – Prosody and Comprehension</strong></p> <ul class="wp-block-list"> <li class="">Expression as an indicator of understanding</li> <li class="">Using the Rasinski multidimensional fluency rubric</li> <li class="">Rotating focus areas: expression, phrasing, smoothness, pace</li> </ul> <p class=""><strong>20:00 – Study Results</strong></p> <ul class="wp-block-list"> <li class="">Fourth grade students: 16.5 WPM growth in 50 days</li> <li class="">Effect size of 0.9</li> <li class="">Improvements in accuracy, vocabulary, and comprehension measures</li> </ul> <p class=""><strong>22:30 – Potential Comprehension Enhancement</strong></p> <ul class="wp-block-list"> <li class="">Adding a 10-word takeaway or gist statement</li> <li class="">Keeping it “fluency heavy, comprehension light”</li> <li class="">Future iterations of the protocol</li> </ul> <p class=""><strong>25:30 – The Stacking Protocol Approach</strong></p> <ul class="wp-block-list"> <li class="">Learning from dissertation chair Dr. Kit Moore</li> <li class="">Combining multiple evidence-based practices</li> <li class="">Weaving the reading rope together</li> </ul> <p class=""><strong>27:30 – Cost and Accessibility</strong></p> <ul class="wp-block-list"> <li class="">Read Like Us is free to implement</li> <li class="">Comparison with commercial tier-two interventions</li> <li class="">Open access article available</li> </ul> <p class=""><strong>28:48 – Text Selection Philosophy</strong></p> <ul class="wp-block-list"> <li class="">The month-long process of curating 50 texts</li> <li class="">Using challenging and engaging content (100-200 words)</li> <li class="">Types included: giggle poetry, science facts, short stories with twists, weird state laws</li> </ul> <p class=""><strong>30:30 – The “Challenging Text” Debate</strong></p> <ul class="wp-block-list"> <li class="">Using texts above grade level with proper scaffolding</li> <li class="">Addressing the 1960s neurological impress research</li> <li class="">Why modern research supports stretching students</li> </ul> <p class=""><strong>33:17 – Texts Students Actually Want to Read</strong></p> <ul class="wp-block-list"> <li class="">Students asking to take intervention texts home</li> <li class="">Incorporating core reading program texts for continuity</li> <li class="">Balance between practical and engaging content</li> </ul> <p class=""><strong>36:00 – Lexile Levels and Text Complexity</strong></p> <ul class="wp-block-list"> <li class="">Many texts in 6th-8th grade Lexile range for 3rd-4th graders</li> <li class="">Testing the hypothesis: Can struggling readers succeed in harder texts?</li> <li class="">Being “level agnostic” in text selection</li> </ul> <p class=""><strong>39:00 – Rethinking Leveled Texts</strong></p> <ul class="wp-block-list"> <li class="">Limitations of the Lexile formula</li> <li class="">Starting with engaging content, not filter levels</li> <li class="">The scaffolding makes the difference, not the exact level</li> </ul> <p class=""><strong>42:00 – Student Motivation and Text Choice</strong></p> <ul class="wp-block-list"> <li class="">Chase’s son reading adult-level joke books in first grade</li> <li class="">The power of “want to” over prescribed levels</li> <li class="">Teacher control vs. student self-selection</li> </ul> <p class=""><strong>43:00 – Repeated Reading vs. Wide Reading</strong></p> <ul class="wp-block-list"> <li class="">Defining both approaches</li> <li class="">Why they shouldn’t be pitted against each other</li> <li class="">Read Like Us = repeated reading across wide array of texts</li> </ul> <p class=""><strong>46:30 – Wide Reading and Teacher Control</strong></p> <ul class="wp-block-list"> <li class="">Students won’t achieve wide reading through self-selection alone</li> <li class="">The teacher’s role in exposing students to diverse genres</li> <li class="">Balancing instruction with student choice</li> </ul> <p class=""><strong>48:00 – Benefits of Wide Reading</strong></p> <ul class="wp-block-list"> <li class="">Exposure to different language patterns across genres</li> <li class="">Informational vs. narrative text structures</li> <li class="">Building terrain navigation skills with various text types</li> </ul> <p class=""><strong>49:00 – Getting Started with Read Like Us</strong></p> <ul class="wp-block-list"> <li class="">Start with tomorrow’s text</li> <li class="">Find the 200-300 word section with the most “oomph”</li> <li class="">Use what you already have in your classroom</li> </ul> <p class=""><strong>50:21 – Closing</strong></p> <ul class="wp-block-list"> <li class="">Where to find the protocol and resources</li> <li class="">Final thoughts and wrap-up</li> </ul> </div></div> </div></div> <p class=""></p>
January 5, 2026
E72|Pragmatic Differentiation for Reading Acceleration with Dr. Sharon Walpole
<p class="">In this episode we welcome Dr. Sharon Walpole, a professor at the University of Delaware. We explore the challenges teachers face in addressing varying student needs, Dr. Walpole’s pragmatic approach to differentiation, and the developmental roadmap for reading proficiency. Dr. Walpole shares insights on the importance of grade-level instruction, the flaws of certain assessment systems, and practical classroom applications. <br><br>Make sure to check out Dr. Walpole’s books with Guilford Press! <a href="https://www.guilford.com/author/Sharon-Walpole">https://www.guilford.com/author/Sharon-Walpole</a></p> <p class="">00:00 Introduction to Differentiation<br>01:03 Meet Dr. Sharon Walpole<br>02:15 Defining Differentiation<br>03:23 Acceleration vs. Remediation<br>04:45 Pragmatic Approaches to Differentiation<br>08:03 Challenges with Guided Reading<br>16:46 The Science of Reading and Differentiation<br>23:51 The Stairway to Proficiency Model<br>35:47 Maximizing Instructional Impact<br>36:03 The Importance of Dosage in Education<br>36:38 Resources for Differentiated Reading Instruction<br>37:35 Grouping Students for Effective Learning<br>40:20 Aligning Small Group and Whole Group Instruction<br>48:57 Tiered Instruction: Strategies and Misconceptions<br>56:40 Effective Use of Paraprofessionals<br>01:01:32 Curriculum and Instructional Materials<br>01:03:51 Conclusion and Final Thoughts</p> <p class=""></p>
88 total episodes available
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