What is the Biggest Mistakes Schools Can Make When Shifting to the Science of Reading?

Sarah works with teachers to understand the different components of skilled reading.

Before diving into what I believe is the biggest mistake schools make, let’s first look at a common instructional practice in many classrooms: the Reading and Writing Workshop models. These models typically involve a mix of mini-lessons and one-on-one conferences. Teachers emphasize student choice in selecting books that match their reading levels. While this approach promotes student engagement, it contradicts research showing that learning to read is not a natural process. Writing instruction follows a similar format, where students are taught through mini-lessons and then given ample time to write independently. Unfortunately, this lack of explicit instruction in foundational skills leaves many children, especially struggling readers, at a disadvantage.

Many schools have realized that balanced literacy and workshop models have failed to provide systematic, explicit instruction in phonics. The simple solution is to add in a phonics program. However, this solution often leads to another mistake. Phonics instruction typically takes 30-40 minutes, depending on the grade and topic. But after the phonics lesson, the remaining 60+ minutes of the ELA block continue with the same workshop model: mini-lessons, guided reading, and independent work. This approach fails to build a deep, integrated body of knowledge which provides students with the essential background knowledge needed for mastering new content. Without this foundational knowledge, the ability to decode words alone won’t lead to comprehension.

What Can Schools Do to Avoid This Pitfall?

For the teacher:

Keep using the phonics program provided by your district. Next, review your social studies and science standards. Select a few key essential questions to focus on and determine how you can group concepts together. Select appropriate material to help teach those concepts. Take advantage of your school library, which often has a wealth of content-specific books and children’s literature that can serve as an instructional anchor when learning new concepts. Online platforms such as Newsela or ReadWorks also offer texts categorized by subject. Identify the key vocabulary students need to learn to fully engage with the material. Make sure to provide students with plenty of time to practice using the vocabulary in reading, writing, and speaking. Once you have the materials, you can decide what literacy skills and strategies you can teach using those materials. Summarizing, main idea, using text evidence to answer questions, text/graphical features, and writing persuasive essays are among a few, that are good skills that lend themselves to supporting students’ comprehension and learning.

For the administrator:

To make systematic moves like this, you will need to get both teachers and other administrators on board with the idea of shifting instruction. Change begins with knowledge. Start by launching a book study with your team—The Knowledge Gap by Natalie Wexler or the Sold a Story podcast are great starting points. These resources can help build a shared understanding of how the Science of Reading supports better outcomes for students.

Once you’ve established a foundation, form a formal committee to explore different curriculums or programs. Use the Reading League’s curriculum guide to evaluate potential programs. Gather a group of interested parties—teachers, literacy coaches, administrators—and have them review and select one or two programs to trial in the 2025-2026 school year.

It’s crucial to remember that teacher buy-in is key to the success of any new program or initiative. Fullan (2001) reminds us that educational change depends on what teachers do and think. Change is as simple and as complex as that. More on teacher buy-in in my next post!

Don’t fall into the trap of thinking adding a phonics program to a workshop model will solve your problem. While a phonics program is a good first step, without addressing the need for more comprehensive and integrated knowledge-building students will not be able to understand complex text. When schools approach literacy with a holistic understanding of how students learn to read, they can better support their teachers and, ultimately, their students.

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