A Blog by Dr. Gary G. Brannigan and Dr. Howard Margolis

As we mentioned before, frequent, extreme stress and the anxiety it produces can devastate children with reading and other disabilities:

If the stress is too severe or too prolonged … stress begins to harm learning…. Stressed people don’t do math very well. They don’t process language very efficiently. They have poorer memories, both short and long forms. Stressed individuals do not generalize or adapt old pieces of information to new scenarios as well as non-stressed individuals. They can’t concentrate. In almost every way it can be tested, chronic stress hurts our ability to learn. (Medina, 2008, p. 178)

Preventing Stress

Children with reading disabilities or other disabilities tend to become stressed and anxious when they believe they have no control over a situation or task, believe they can’t succeed, and believe their lack of control and inevitable failure will harm them. If schools allow teachers to continuously adapt instruction to struggling readers’ current needs and abilities—which some schools forbid, but deny—teachers can often help them develop a healthy sense of control and a belief that with reasonable, moderate effort they can succeed. This helps prevent chronic, destructive stress. Teachers can do this by giving struggling readers:

• Reading materials at their proper independent and instructional levels.
• Limited choices with tasks at their proper independent and instructional levels.
• Feedback that emphasizes recent successes, effort, and the correct use of strategies.
• Lots of opportunity to safely express their needs and concerns.

In this post, we’ll focus on giving struggling readers (and all readers) reading materials at their proper independent and instructional levels. In future posts we’ll discuss the other ways we listed for preventing stress; then we’ll deal with specific stress reducing strategies, such as teaching struggling readers to speak to themselves constructively, progressive muscle relaxation, and meditation. We’ll also present research to show that relaxation methods, such as progressive muscle relaxation and meditation, can improve struggling readers’ behavior and reading. But now, we’ll discuss the criteria for proper independent and instructional levels.

Criteria for Selecting Independent Level Reading Materials

If teachers ask struggling readers to do homework independently, or to do classwork independently, teachers should assign struggling readers materials on which they can easily and regularly achieve both these criteria for word recognition and comprehension.

• Reading word recognition is 99-to-100%. Independent levels refers to “the readability or grade level of material that is easy for a student to read with few word-identification problems and high comprehension…. Better than 99 percent word-identification accuracy … [is] often used as standards in judging if a reader is reading at this level.” (Harris & Hodges, 1995, p. 115)
• Reading comprehension is 90-to-100%. The independent level “is the highest level at which an individual can read and satisfy all the criteria for desirable reading behavior in silent- and oral-reading situations. At the independent level the child can read successfully on his or her own without any assistance. When the student is reading orally or silently at this level, he or she should be able to achieve a minimum comprehension score on literal and interpretive questions of at least 90 percent.” (Rubin, 1997, p. 168)

Criteria for Selecting Instructional Level Reading Materials

If teachers directly instruct struggling readers, give them supportive feedback, and immediately help them overcome difficulties, teachers should usually give them instructional level materials that are more demanding than independent level materials. However, the demands should not overwhelm or frustrate them. When reading instructional level materials, struggling readers should regularly and independently—without help, before instruction—achieve these criteria for both word recognition and comprehension:

• Reading word recognition in context (e.g., paragraphs): ………….    95 to 98% correct
• Reading comprehension: ……………………………………………………..    70 to 89% correct

In addition to achieving these percents, struggling readers should not show excessive difficulty with fluency (such as speed and expression) or excessive anxiety.

Cautions

The statistical criteria for independent and instructional levels are good, solid guidelines that should help improve the learning and motivation of most struggling readers. If however, your child is highly anxious about reading, he may need more lenient—easier—criteria for instructional level materials.

The independent and instructional level materials he’s asked to read may also need to be shorter than those of his peers. To help him avoid embarrassment, his teacher might ask him to read the same materials as other children in his group, but privately ask him to read shorter portions.

Don’t take for granted that your child’s teacher will assign him reading materials at his proper independent and instructional levels. In some schools, instructional policy requires teachers to use only the books they’re given, books that may well frustrate your child and diminish his chances of success. In schools where teachers can use whatever books they judge appropriate, not all teachers know how to match books to children. If your child’s teacher has little understanding of how to determine his proper instructional level, she should request the school’s reading specialist to determine his levels. If his school lacks a reading specialist (an unfortunate, but all-too-common occurrence) and if his teacher is amenable to suggestions, you might suggest that she administer the “3-Minute Reading Assessment: Word Recognition, Fluency, and Comprehension” for his grade (Raskinsi & Padak, 2005, http://www.amazon.com/3-Minute-Reading-Assessments-Comprehension-Three-minute/dp/0439650895/ref=sr_1_3?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1311015995&sr=1-3). This will help her identify your child’s proper reading levels.

In any case, consider meeting with your child’s teacher to discuss his appropriate reading levels, his interests, his ability to work independently, and the frequency and nature of the progress reports you’d like to get. Generally, the earlier you meet, the better.

The IEP

If your child is eligible for special education, his Individualized Education Program (IEP) Team, of which you’re a member, must write a new IEP for him at least annually. Make sure that his IEP states that for homework and independent classwork, all reading materials must be at his appropriate independent level, and that for instruction, in which his teacher directly instructs and works with him, all materials must be at his appropriate instructional level. Except on rare occasions, when he requests more difficult materials on a topic he finds immensely interesting, teachers should not ask him to read such materials. Usually, they’re frustrating.

Control

When teachers regularly give your child interesting reading materials at his proper independent and instructional reading levels, they’re creating opportunities for him to succeed, to develop confidence, to develop the well-justified perception that “If I control my effort and attention, I have an excellent chance of succeeding.”  Simply put, properly matching reading materials to your child’s current abilities is a critical step in preventing destructive stress and anxiety.

References

Harris, T. L., & Hodges, R. E. (1995). The Literacy Dictionary: The Vocabulary of Reading and Writing. Newark, DE: International Reading Association.

Medina, J. (2009). Brain Rules. Seattle, WA: Pear Press.

Rubin, D. (1997). Diagnosis and Correction in Reading Instruction. Boston: Allyn & Bacon.

Howard Margolis © Reading2008 & Beyond

www.reading2008.com

howard@reading2008.com

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Reading Disabilities: Beating the Odds (www.reading2008.com)

Psychology Today.com recently wrote that Reading Disabilities: Beating the Odds was one of the three “best books about education published in 2010. Recommend [it] to your friends.” On our blog, an English teacher and author wrote that Beating the Odds “is one of the best books, if not the best book on education published this year.”  A Thinking Person’s Guide to Autism called it “a great book.” A parent wrote, “Your Reading Disabilities book is by far the best resource I have found regarding the IEP and IDEA and providing understandable and concrete suggestions and implementation strategies.” Another wrote, your book is “fascinating and effective.” On Amazon, a professor of special education called it “a fantastic resource… well-written, practical… an essential guide.” The Kansas City Examiner.com cited our blog as one of the ten best special needs blogs of 2010. We thank these and many other reviewers for their kind words.

And we hope that our book and blog helps lots of children, parents, teachers, IEP Team members, and schools. It’s why we keep plugging away. – HM & GB

A Blog by Dr. Gary G. Brannigan and Dr. Howard Margolis

Take lots of photos of your child doing safe, enjoyable July 4^th kinds of things. Show him the photos and discuss them with him in relaxed, informal ways. During your conversation, stress two or three common words you think he can learn. Informally, tell him the meaning of the words and use them whenever it fits the situation. Encourage him to use the words. Avoid stress. Have fun.

For older children, give them a camera and discuss some of their photos. Again, informally stress only a few common words they can learn. Have fun.

Howard Margolis (c) Reading2008 & Beyond        www.reading2008.com howard@reading2008.com

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Reading Disabilities: Beating the Odds (www.reading2008.com)

Psychology Today.com recently wrote that Reading Disabilities: Beating the Odds was one of the three “best books about education published in 2010. Recommend [it] to your friends.” On our blog, an English teacher and author wrote that Beating the Odds “is one of the best books, if not the best book on education published this year.”  A Thinking Person’s Guide to Autism called it “a great book.” A parent wrote, “Your Reading Disabilities book is by far the best resource I have found regarding the IEP and IDEA and providing understandable and concrete suggestions and implementation strategies.” Another wrote, your book is “fascinating and effective.” On Amazon, a professor of special education called it “a fantastic resource… well-written, practical… an essential guide.” The Kansas City Examiner.com cited our blog as one of the ten best special needs blogs of 2010. We thank these and many other reviewers for their kind words.

And we hope that our book and blog helps lots of children, parents, teachers, IEP Team members, and schools. It’s why we keep plugging away. – HM & GB

A Blog by Dr. Gary G. Brannigan and Dr. Howard Margolis

Many people claim the “good old days” were the golden days of education.

Like many people of the time, Maynard Hutchins, president and chancellor of the University of Chicago (1929–1951) saw it differently:

It has been said that we have not had the three R’s in America, we had the six R’s; remedial readin’, remedial ‘ritin’ and remedial ‘rithmetic.

So let’s stop extolling the good old days, when more than half of American’s children never went to high school. Today, let’s do all we can to support and improve our schools, libraries, and communities. Let’s help rather than attack one another. Let’s solve problems while they’re small, so we have happier children and less need for expensive remediation and special education. Let’s prevent problems by supporting excellent nutrition for pregnant women and all children, preschool education, full-day kindergarten, early intervention, after school programs like NJ After 3, community mental health centers, and in-home literacy assistance for parents. Let’s also support one of the most powerful ways to improve academic achievement: well-paid jobs for all adults willing to work hard.

HM © Reading2008 & Beyond   www.reading2008.com

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Reading Disabilities: Beating the Odds (www.reading2008.com)

Psychology Today.com recently wrote that Reading Disabilities: Beating the Odds was one of the three “best books about education published in 2010. Recommend [it] to your friends.” On our blog, an author and English teacher wrote that Beating the Odds “is one of the best books, if not the best book on education published this year.”  A Thinking Person’s Guide to Autism called it “a great book.” A parent wrote, “Your Reading Disabilities book is by far the best resource I have found regarding the IEP and IDEA and providing understandable and concrete suggestions and implementation strategies.” Another wrote, your book is “fascinating and effective.” On Amazon, a professor of special education called it “a fantastic resource… well-written, practical… an essential guide.” The Kansas City Examiner.com cited our blog as one of the ten best special needs blogs of 2010. We thank these and many other reviewers for their kind words.

And we hope that our book and blog helps lots of children, parents, teachers, IEP Team members, and schools. It’s why we keep plugging away. – HM & GB

A Blog by Dr. Gary G. Brannigan and Dr. Howard Margolis

In his highly recommended book about reading for parents of babies and older children through age 7, Dr. Richard Gentry makes many practical recommendations for making reading a satisfying, motivating experience. Below are several recommendations that apply to children of all ages.

• Know what your child is capable of doing.
• Tune in to what’s enjoyable.
• Turn off what’s not interesting.
• Step away and hold off on literacy activities that your … child seems to resist.
• Compliment your child often.
• Avoid correcting your child.
• Let your child read any book that engages his or her attention.
• Read in front of your child so that he or she knows that you value books and reading.
• Avoid scripted formal lessons–they kill your child’s desire to read.
• Tune in to your young child’s cues and moods.
• Respond with sensitivity.
• Nurture literacy—don’t force it.
• Make reading a reward.

If you’re a parent of a child birth through age 7, Dr. Gentry’s book—Raising Confident Readers—is one I urge you to read. It may be the difference between your child becoming a happy,  confident, successful reader or one who struggles and sobs about reading.

Reference

Gentry, Richard J (2010). Raising Confident Readers: How to Teach Your Child to Read and Write–from Baby to Age 7 .Philadelphia, PA: Da Capo Lifelong Books, pp. 32-33.

HM © Reading2008 & Beyond

www.reading2008.com

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FREE CONFERENCE CALL ON

GETTING AND KEEPING SPECIAL EDUCATION SERVICES IN TOUGH ECONOMIC TIMES: PART II

MICHAEL INZELBUCH, ESQ., SPECIAL EDUCATION AND BOARD OF EDUCATION ATTORNEY

When: Thursday May 26, 2011 @ 9 pm EST

Phone number: Call (661) 673-8600

Use Access Code: 899615# (remember the #)

Length: Approximately 40 minutes

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A Note on Reading Disabilities: Beating the Odds (www.reading2008.com)

Psychology Today.com recently wrote that Reading Disabilities: Beating the Odds was one of the three “best books about education published in 2010. Recommend [it] to your friends.” On our blog, an English teacher wrote that Beating the Odds “is one of the best books, if not the best book on education published this year.”  A Thinking Person’s Guide to Autism called it “a great book.” A parent wrote, “Your Reading Disabilities book is by far the best resource I have found regarding the IEP and IDEA and providing understandable and concrete suggestions and implementation strategies.” Another wrote, your book is “fascinating and effective.” On Amazon, a professor of special education called it “a fantastic resource… well-written, practical… an essential guide.” The Kansas City Examiner.com cited our blog as one of the ten best special needs blogs of 2010. We thank these and many other reviewers for their kind words.

And we hope that our book and blog helps lots of children, parents, teachers, IEP Team members, and schools. It’s why we keep plugging away. – HM & GB

AUTHOR OF THE SHUT-DOWN LEARNER

When: Tonight, Thursday, February 3, 2011 @ 9 pm EST

Phone number: Call (661) 673-8600

Use Access Code: 899615# (remember the #)

Length: Approximately 1 hour

Professor Selznick is a licensed psychologist, nationally certified school psychologist, university professor of pediatrics, Director of the Cooper Learning Center, Department of Pediatrics, Cooper University Hospital, and author of The Shut-Down Learner: Helping Your Academically Discouraged Child. In this call, he will discuss shut-down learners and answer your questions about how to motivate discouraged children.

A Personal Note. Well before I met Richard, many parents told me he was an outstanding psychologist and person who was of immense help to their children.  All were thankful for his concern, his expertise, and his effectiveness. Thus, he is our first speaker. – HM

If possible, please share this announcement with anyone who might be helped by Dr. Selznick.

If you would like to submit questions in advance or during the call, please send them to http://www.facebook.com/Reading2008.

Thanks.

Howard Margolis

A Blog by Dr. Gary G. Brannigan and Dr. Howard Margolis

One simple way to motivate reluctant readers is to give them choices—acceptable to teachers—about what they read, where they read, when they read, with whom they discuss their reading, and what follow-up assignments they prefer. This statement is not armchair conjecture; it’s the result of clinical experience and research. In summarizing the research, John Guthrie and Nicole Humenick (2004) noted that “a substantial body of experimental evidence undergirds … beliefs about the power of choice to increase intrinsic motivations for reading” (p. 340). As such, choice should be built into the Individualized Education Programs (IEPs) of all readers.

In her book, Let Them Have Books: A Formula for Universal Reading Proficiency, Gaby Chapman gives life, energy, and texture to the dry research about the power of choice. Here’s an excerpt from her book.

Kids Become Skilled Readers When They

Read Plenty of Books They Chose for Themselves

“Hank, you don’t have to read that book.” He is twisting in his chair and heaving sighs.

“Yes, I do,” he replies.

“Do not waste your time reading something that you obviously don’t like. Time is too precious and there are so many books you will like.”

“If I don’t read this book, I won’t pass History.”

Hank’s eleventh-grade history teacher had made him an offer. She knew he liked to read, but his class-work did not meet eleventh-grade standards. If he read The Jungle, by Sinclair Lewis, she would give him enough extra credit for him to pass. He had to read that book.

In ninth grade, Hank didn’t know how to arrange a group of sentences on a piece of paper, let alone how to write an essay. His grade transcripts showed a history of moving from school to school—the previous two years he had been home-schooled. He read at a third grade level but had never read a book.

I started Hank with The Mouse and the Motorcycle, by Beverly Cleary, followed by Wayside School Gets a Little Stranger, by Louis Sachar. Then I gave him The Outsiders, by S.E. Hinton, and he was hooked. He read all of her novels and kept on going. In tenth grade, he began with Stephen King, but his favorite book for the year was The Historian, by Elizabeth Kostova.

By eleventh grade, he knew how to write whole sentences and how to arrange them into paragraphs. But he always needed help with his homework. He knew how to write essays, but without help and patience with rewriting, they were riddled with errors. Getting passing grades remained a real struggle.

Hank did not finish The Jungle, and he did not pick up another book. Before the end of his eleventh-grade year, he dropped out of school.

This is not a story about how bad a book The Jungle is. It is a great book. So is The Mill on the Floss, by George Eliot. It was required reading for my mother when she was sixteen in 1940. She hated that book so much that it took her 65 years to overcome her loathing and pick it up again. This time, she loved it.

This is a story that illustrates the immense difference between reading a chosen book and reading an assigned book. The former grabs the reader’s full attention and powers information into the reading brain. The latter throws up a blank wall for the reading brain and all the reader can think of is what they could be doing instead. The former breeds readers; the latter destroys them.

If you are in a position to provide books for kids, you should occasionally read a book you have no interest in reading. This works best if someone else expects you to read it. But it also works if you go to a bookstore or a library and choose a book from a genre that you already know you don’t like. Even better, when you do this, have a stack of books on your bedside table you can’t wait to read—the newest novel from one of your favorite authors; a new book on a period of history you can’t get enough of; and another mystery from your favorite mystery writer. As you read your “assigned book” and feel your mind slowly turning into cardboard, you will know how kids feel when they have to read a book they have not chosen for themselves. You will also realize how little they gain from such books.

In guiding kids to become proficient, life-long readers, the significance of letting them choose their books can not be exaggerated. This is even more important for kids like Hank who struggle for years to become readers. Their struggle tends to give them a poor opinion of reading.  Not only do they need to know that reading can satisfy their own personal curiosity in a way that nothing else can, they need to have the opportunity to make up for an significant lack of exposure to print. The only way they can go this is by reading plenty of books they choose for themselves.

Reading only develops reading skills when kids are interested in what they are reading—not only do they read with more attention, they finish the book wanting to read another one, which gives them more practice. Kids are instinctively drawn to books that offer them information they subconsciously seek. Their innate survival instincts drive them to seek meaning from their still new world. They recognize when a book contains material that offers insight. They then read with full attention, comparing any new information with what they already know. They use the newly synthesized information to make their next reading choice. This pattern of seeking and finding satisfaction from books generates a commitment to the life-long habit of reading—an education that never ends.

The risk of not allowing kids to choose their own books is too great. Adults who want to make kids wiser and stronger by assigning books for them to read may achieve instead the opposite of their goal: they may make them more vulnerable. When kids do not choose their own books, they do not gain the information they instinctively seek. They pay less attention to what they do read and they do less reading. They are less literate, less informed about the world. They are weakened.

In Hank’s case and in the case of many struggling readers, the required book and attendant assignments does more than prevent them from reading the books that will capture their interests.  It can make them never want to read again. It can take away the one key that can open the door to an educated life. The avid reader is the skilled reader, and the skilled reader always gets the most from education. And the avid reader is one who chooses his own books.

Gaby Chapman’s book, Let Them Have Books: A Formula for Universal Reading Proficiency, is available on Amazon and Barnes & Noble’s websites.

References

Chapman, G. (2010). Let Them Have Books: A Formula for Universal Reading Proficiency. Bloomington, IN: iUniverse.

Guthrie, J. T., & Humenick, N. M. (2004). Motivating students to read: Evidence for classroom practices that increase reading motivation and achievement. In P. McCardle & V. Chhabra (Eds), The Voice Of Evidence In Reading Research (pp. 329–354). Baltimore: Paul H. Brookes.

A Note on Reading Disabilities: Beating the Odds (www.reading2008.com)

Psychology Today.com recently wrote that Reading Disabilities: Beating the Odds was one of the three “best books about education published in 2010. Recommend [it] to your friends.” On our blog, an English teacher wrote that Beating the Odds “ is one of the best books, if not the best book on education published this year.”  A Thinking Person’s Guide to Autism called it “a great book.” A parent wrote, “Your Reading Disabilities book is by far the best resource I have found regarding the IEP and IDEA and providing understandable and concrete suggestions and implementation strategies.” On Amazon, a professor of special education called it “a fantastic resource… well-written, practical… an essential guide.” The Kansas City Examiner.com cited our blog as one of the ten best special needs blogs of 2010.

We thank these and many other reviewers for their kind words. And we hope that our book and blog helps lots of children, parents, teachers, IEP Team members, and schools. It’s why we keep plugging away. — HM and GB    www.reading2008.com

AUTHOR OF THE SHUT-DOWN LEARNER

When: Thursday, February 3, 2011 @ 9 pm EST

Phone number: Call (661) 673-8600

Use Access Code: 899615# (remember the #)

Length: Approximately 1 hour

Dr. Selznick is a licensed psychologist, nationally certified school psychologist, university professor of pediatrics, Director of the Cooper Learning Center, Department of Pediatrics, Cooper University Hospital, and author of The Shut-Down Learner: Helping Your Academically Discouraged Child. In this call, he will discuss shut-down learners and answer your questions about how to motivate discouraged children.

A Personal Note. Well before I met Richard, many parents told me he was an outstanding psychologist and person who was of immense help to their children.  All were thankful for his concern, his expertise, and his effectiveness. Thus, he is our first speaker. – HM

If possible, please share this announcement with anyone who might be helped by Dr. Selznick.

If you would like to submit questions in advance or during the call, please send them to http://www.facebook.com/Reading2008.

Thanks.

Howard Margolis

Calling All Parents—Teach Your Preschooler to Read! – Part 1 of 2
By J. Richard Gentry, Ph.D.

Parents are children’s first reading teachers. As such, parents have wonderful opportunities to prevent their preschoolers from developing reading problems. How? By starting early, by teaching reading at home in fun, joyful, and informal ways.

Reading aloud to your preschooler and engaging him in simple game-like activities will draw his attention to the building blocks of literacy. And, at times, these activities take only seconds—such as pointing out that the T in the Target store sign makes the same /t/ sound as the T in Tim’s name. “Let’s look for T’s in Target today!” Lots of short, informal, joyful, literacy activities over your child’s preschool years will add up to a huge early exposure to literacy and will enable him to enter kindergarten with the background needed for reading success. He may, in fact, become a reader and writer before his first day in kindergarten.

Quick Tips from Raising Confident Readers
My latest book, Raising Confident Readers: How to Teach Your Child to Read and Write—from Baby to Age 7 (www.amazon.com) is chock full of reading, writing, and spelling or phonics activities matched to your child’s developmental levels so that he’s getting the right kind of activity at the right time. You know it’s right if he enjoys it and he’s successful. Here’s a sampling:

• Start reading aloud to your newborn and engaging him in conversation about books. Reading aloud and talking to him during the early critical brain-building years will give him a 32-million-word advantage by age four. You’ll not only provide data to help him learn language, but also help him begin to organize the reading circuitry in his brain.
• Choose happy, easy books from a wide range of genres: picture books, labeling books, books you can chant or sing, pattern books with predictable text, board books that withstand baby handling, soft cloth books, story books, alphabet books and information books. (I provide suggested book lists for each of the five phases of development to help you choose the right book at the right time.) Some books will become your child’s favorites and you’ll read them aloud hundreds of times over the early years, taking advantage of the critical role repetition plays in learning to read. You don’t have to spend a lot of money. Get a library card and take your toddler to the library and give him books as presents.
• Start word reading early—even before your child can speak in words. In Raising Confident Readers, I describe a joyful labeling and reading activity called “reading around the room” that uses finger tracking and demonstrates how to break the word into sounds. It takes only thirty seconds two or three times a day. In addition to reading aloud to your child, work these activities into his daily routine: handling books and visiting the book box, playing with words he hears and seeing how words are made, using rhymes and singing songs, and eventually, engaging him in pencil-and-paper activities.
• Teach your child to write his name by age 3 or 4. Start with the letter sounds before focusing on the letter names. Introduce alphabet books early and teach the alphabet song. Recognize that early writing leads to early reading.
• Stop an activity whenever your child loses interest. Start something else. Remember the secret to easy, joyful, early reading: fun.

Fun, successful literacy activities like these benefit your child. They also benefit you. They strengthen bonds and feelings of affection. They increase love.

A Future Post
My next post will appear in early February. It will answer a question that confounds many parents (and some teachers): What do early spelling and reading development look like?

Reference
Gentry, J. R. (2010). Raising confident readers: How to teach your child to read and write—from baby to age 7. Cambridge, MA: Da Capo Press. Available from http://www.amazon.com/Raising-Confident-Readers-Teach-Write/dp/0738213977/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1277584427&sr=8-1

A Blog by Dr. Gary G. Brannigan and Dr. Howard Margolis

The Right Amount of Homework

For children who successfully finish classwork or homework without struggle, who complete their homework without tears, fights, trembling, or other forms of frustration, Dr. Harris Cooper of Duke University, one of the nation’s leading authorities on homework, offers these research-based guidelines:

A little amount of homework may help elementary school students build study habits. Homework for junior high students appears to reach the point of diminishing returns after about 90 minutes a night. For high school students, the positive line continues to climb until between 90 minutes and 2.5 hours a night, after which returns diminish. (Harris, 208, p. 21)

How valuable is homework? For elementary school students, it may not improve academic achievement:

The average correlation between time spent on homework and achievement was substantial for secondary school students, but for elementary school students, it hovered abound no relationship at all. (Harris, 208, p. 20).

If your child typically struggles with homework—if it’s too difficult or confusing for him—we strongly suggest that you meet with his teachers to develop a homework policy that produces lots of success. Otherwise, homework is likely to have a destructive influence on his academic and emotional well-being. If your child is in special education, make sure his Individualized Education Program (IEP) describes a homework policy that will typically produce success and satisfaction. Otherwise, you, he, and his teachers are headed for trouble.

For information on homework strategies and policy, we suggest you search for our posts on homework and, at a minimum, read the posts below. You can find our search engine on the right side of each post, immediately below the picture of our book and our biographies.

http://www.reading2008.com/blog/using-ieps-to-solve-the-homework-problems-of-struggling-readers.htm

http://www.reading2008.com/blog/solving-homework-problems-three-unique-suggestions-2.htm

http://www.reading2008.com/blog/my-child-has-a-reading-disability-what-level-reading-materials-should-teachers-assign-him-for-homework.htm

[ANNOUNCEMENT: In 2011 we plan to begin a series of free conference calls on topics of concern to our readers. If you want to suggest a topic, please e-mail your suggestion to howard@reading2008.com. Thanks.]

Reference

Cooper, H. (2008). Does homework improve academic achievement? SEDL Letter, 20(2), 20-21.

Howard Margolis, Ed.D. © Reading2008 & Beyond                        www.reading2008.com

A Blog by Dr. Gary G. Brannigan and Dr. Howard Margolis

To motivate children with reading disabilities or other learning disabilities, use novelty and choice.

Novelty refers to anything new that’s slightly different from what children have previously liked and succeeded on. If, for example, they enjoyed completing 100-piece puzzles of cartoon characters, let them choose 125-piece puzzles of familiar animals. If they enjoyed reading articles about current baseball teams, let them choose to read one of several books, with attractive covers, about the history of baseball. As they routinely achieve success, expand their choices. Instead of puzzles, introduce them to model making. Instead of baseball books, have them listen to stories about the hobbies of famous people; then encourage them to read a book about one of these people. Which book? Their choice. And if you want to introduce a new concept, arouse children’s curiosity with a new, novel magic trick or two, which illustrates the concept. But be sure the trick and concept are not so removed from their experiences that they’ll get frustrated.

Is there a sound basis for recommending novelty and choice? Clearly, yes. So, if your child is not motivated to read or do other school work, and his program is at the right level of difficulty, but ignores novelty and choice, you might want to share the quotes below with his tutors, teachers, or Individualized Education Program (IEP) Team:

• Novelty. What text features “arouse situational interest and promote text comprehension and recall [?]: personal relevance, novelty, activity level, and comprehensibility.” (Eccles &Wigfield, 2002, p. 115)
• Novelty. People [including children] seek novel situations and situations that challenge their current skill levels or understanding, and then they strive to achieve mastery to conquer the challenge and experience feelings of competence or understanding. (Stipek, 1998, p. 122)
• Choice. Almost all motivation theories suggest . . . choice increases motivation (Pintrich & Schunk, 2002, p. 298).
• Choice. Choice produced an effect size of 0.95 on motivation for reading and 1.20 on reading achievement and comprehension. (Margolis & McCabe, 2004, p. 249; referring to Guthrie & Humenick) [These statistics show that choice can powerfully affect motivation for reading, reading achievement, and comprehension.]

[ANNOUNCEMENT: In 2011 we plan to begin a series of free conference calls on topics of concern to our readers. If you want to suggest a topic, please e-mail your suggestion to howard@reading2008.com. Thanks.]

References

Eccles, J. S., & Wigfield, A. (2002). Motivational beliefs, values, and goals. Annual Review of Psychology, 53:109–32.

Guthrie, J. T., & Humenick, N. M. (2004). Motivating students to read: Evidence for classroom practices that increase reading motivation and achievement. In P. McCardle & V. Chhabra (Eds), The Voice Of Evidence In Reading Research (pp. 329–354). Baltimore: Paul H. Brookes.

Margolis, H., & McCabe, P. P. (2004). Resolving struggling readers’ homework difficulties: A social cognitive perspective. Reading Psychology, 25(4), 225-260.

Pintrich, P. R., & Schunk, D. H. (2002). Motivation in Education: Theory, Research and Applications (2^nd ed.). Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice Hall Merrill.

Stipek, D. (1998). Motivation to learn: From Theory to Practice (3^rd ed.). Boston: Allyn & Bacon.

Howard Margolis, Ed.D. © Reading2008 & Beyond            www.reading2008.com