Knowledge Ignites Literacy and Learning
Knowledge about the world fuels a child’s reading comprehension and critical thinking. We share stories from schools that use “knowledge-building” curricula from the earliest grades to inspiring effect.
Season 2 of the Knowledge Matters Podcast is here!
Teachers and reading experts David and Meredith Liben host “Know Better, Do Better: Comprehension,” a six-part podcast series based on their book of the same name.
With their signature charm and straight talk, David and Meredith take on an urgent problem in American schools today—kids not understanding what they read—and how reading comprehension can be taught more effectively.
New model legislative language from our Scientific Advisory Committee
Just in time for legislative sessions happening across the country, our Scientific Advisory Committee offers model language for the next generation of state reading legislation to ensure reading comprehension receives attention alongside foundational reading skills.
Knowledge Matters Review Tool adds Early Childhood Essentials
Recognizing that many who review curriculum for elementary classrooms are also in a position to support curricular decisions by early childhood programs, we’ve added a dimension to the Review Tool – what we’re calling “Early Childhood Essentials”- that highlights the critical connection between a child’s oral language development and their success in learning to read.
Every student deserves a knowledge-building literacy curriculum
To develop students’ reading comprehension muscles from the earliest grades, leading schools use English language arts (ELA) curricula that are carefully designed to build background knowledge in science, history, literature, and the arts, alongside sound foundational skills instruction.
Introducing all young children to rich disciplinary content and vocabulary levels the playing field for learning. Knowledge is like an interest-bearing savings account: the more you know, the faster you learn. Therefore, growing knowledge about the natural and human world in the early grades is an essential equity investment, and it sets the stage for a lifetime of critical inquiry and analysis.