Links to External Reading Resources

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Early Reading Web Sites

• The American Federation of Teachers has collected several interesting articles on early literacy and published them on their Web site.

  Also, the American Federation of Teachers has published a short, but extremely informative booklet titled "Teaching Reading IS Rocket Science." This valuable booklet can be downloaded free of charge.

• The Big Ideas in Beginning Reading Web site includes information on the five major components of beginning reading instruction: phonemic awareness, alphabetic principle, fluency, vocabulary, and comprehension. The site provides information on curriculum, instruction, a schoolwide reading model, and provides links and resources.
• The Florida Center for Reading Research is jointly administered at Florida State University by the Learning Systems Institute and the College of Arts and Sciences. The center offers information and resources for teachers, instructional coaches, administrators, parents, and researchers.
• The International Reading Association (IRA) is a professional organization devoted to facilitating improvements in reading instruction.
• Literacy First Process is a research-based, systematic, systemic and comprehensive reform process that accelerates reading achievement of all students in grades PreK to 12. Literacy First was founded in 1998 under the guiding principle that all future learning stems from a strong foundation in literacy; Literacy must come First. With this as a mission, Literacy First set forth as a premiere provider of professional development services for PreK-12 educators, delivering the Literacy First Process, through a national network of reading and leadership professionals—on site and real time. Their professional development strategy focuses on enhancing teacher's knowledge-base, and on developing systemic solutions to literacy instruction problems.
• The National Center for Education Statistics contains demographic and descriptive data about students in the United States. Here summaries of the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP report), comparative studies across countries, reports on violent crime in our nation's schools, and other descriptive data can be found. The information in this site is diverse and concise with a logical format.
• The National Reading Conference (NRC) is an organization composed of individuals interested in reading research.
• The Reading Genie is a concise, easy-to-understand synthesis of research findings in reading acquisition, and an informative resource for tools and classroom activities that teachers can use to teach reading-related skills. In addition to describing research findings in both cognitive psychology and reading instruction, particular topics, such as phonemic awareness, blending skills, and oral reading fluency are addressed.
• The Reading First Support Web site provides information about Reading First for teachers, principals, parents, state and local education officials, and anyone with an interest in improving reading instruction and increasing student achievement.
• Reading Rockets is a national multimedia project offering information and resources on how young kids learn to read, why so many struggle, and how caring adults can help.

  The Reading Rockets project is comprised of PBS television programs, available on videotape and DVD; online services, including the Web sites ReadingRockets.org and ColorinColorado.org; and professional development opportunities. Reading Rockets is an educational initiative of WETA, the flagship public television and radio station in the nation's capital, and is funded by a major grant from the U.S. Department of Education, Office of Special Education Programs.

• The Success For All Foundation (SFAF), formerly housed at Johns Hopkins University, has become an independent not-for-profit organization. The SFAF is devoted solely to the development and dissemination of Success For All (SFA) and Roots & Wings education programs.
• The Texas Center for Reading and Language Arts is committed to providing leadership to educators in effective reading instruction through its diversified research, technical assistance, and professional development projects. From translating research into practice to providing online professional development, the Center emphasizes scientifically based reading research and instruction.