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One misunderstanding about the Science of Reading (SoR) is the belief that it is only a new emphasis on phonics. It is certainly true that phonics is a critical component of the Science of Reading. However, SoR also emphasizes systematic phonics instruction that includes language meaning development, knowledge-building, phonemic awareness, pre-alphabetic phonological awareness, and visual recognition support. Also, an important part of this curriculum is the timing of each of these components.

The SoR research evidence shows that all of these subject areas must be taught in a completely systematic and explicit manner. Unfortunately, the current situation in roughly 43% of American classrooms¹ is that phonics is taught somewhat sporadically, as part of a “balanced” approach that allows teachers broad discretion about when and how to teach it.

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Systematic Phonics Instruction Wipes Out “Three-Cueing” System

This so-called “balanced literacy” approach encourages a “three-cueing” system, of which phonics is only one-third. Many practitioners of balanced literacy believe they are already teaching enough phonics. They present phonics lessons as needed, and teach children to rely on picture cues and structural cues in the sentence as well.² However, as Natalie Wexler points out in a recent Forbes article: teachers may think anecdotally that students are learning to read in this way. However, brain science says otherwise.³

It’s not an exaggeration to say that when young children struggle to sound out a word, they are quite literally laying down the lanes for reading circuitry in the brain. According to Nadine Gaab, PhD., Boston Hospital, learning to read requires three different areas of the brain to function simultaneously. The “sound recognition” region, plus the “speech production” region, both must connect to the “shapes recognition” region. To do this, new circuitry is created, which scientists call “white matter” because new neural connections are sheathed in a fatty substance that smooths the way.⁴

For our purposes, Dr. Gaab suggests thinking of white matter as the reading interstate highway. Studies have shown that non-reading adults are actually missing a section of the brain, or have weak links, that reading adults developed in their early school years.

Teaching Connects Centers of the Brain

Perhaps you can now connect the dots: the “sound recognition” region and the “speech production” region require systematic phonics instruction to connect. Naturally, these are prompted by the “shapes recognition” region and form the sound-letter-phoneme building blocks of reading. To develop this interstate highway requires systematic phonics instruction—about 20 to 30 minutes per day in Grades 1 through 3.⁵ Leaving it up to teacher discretion won’t do.

Scientists have concluded therefore, that humans are not born with a “reading brain.” They have to build it. Therefore, one of the Science of Reading’s most important messages is that reading is not natural, it is a result of explicit intervention. Therefore, phonics must be taught systematically.

Most people would not be surprised to learn that humans are born “hard-wired” to acquire language. The human brain is ready to hear sounds, distinguish sounds, and make sounds. A child surrounded by language will learn to speak.

The brain is also “hard-wired” to recognize shapes and color. A child surrounded by objects will learn to recognize them. But no human child is hard-wired to read. Just surrounding children with environmental print, including books, will not create a reader.⁶ To do this, humans must experience interventionist instruction. The hearing and speaking brain is natural. The reading brain is learned.

Hope for Middle-School Students

If your school promotes a “balanced” literacy approach, or your middle school students came out of this pedagogy, take heart. Since cognitive psychology tells us that brain development continues throughout the first two decades of human life, there’s much to support hope that it’s not too late in middle school to catch up kids who might have missed out on Science of Reading instruction.

Phonics is just part of the SoR equation. Stay tuned for more SoR information about filling the knowledge gap—another critically important puzzle piece to developing the reading brain.⁷ And have you heard about the Mississippi Miracle? We’ll talk about that next.”⁸

1. https://time.com/6205084/phonics-science-of-reading-teachers/. Paragraphs 11 and 27. ↩︎
2. Ibid. See center graphic. ↩︎
3. https://www.forbes.com/sites/nataliewexler/2023/05/31/clearing-up-misconceptions-about-the-science-of-reading/?sh=3db92d7c3a83. Paragraph 7. ↩︎
4. https://hms.harvard.edu/news-events/publications-archive/brain/reading-brain. Paragraph 4. ↩︎
5. https://time.com/6205084/phonics-science-of-reading-teachers/. Paragraph 15. ↩︎
6. https://time.com/6205084/phonics-science-of-reading-teachers/. Paragraph 7. ↩︎
7. https://www.forbes.com/sites/nataliewexler/2023/05/31/clearing-up-misconceptions-about-the-science-of-reading/?sh=3db92d7c3a83. Paragraphs 20, 21. ↩︎
8. https://time.com/6205084/phonics-science-of-reading-teachers/. Paragraph 17. ↩︎

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