We KNOW what WORKS!-----In the war over literacy, phonics wins By Molly Macek

In the war over literacy, phonics wins - By Molly Macek 

• For years, a ‘whole language’ approach taught students to guess, not to read

"...Here’s the problem: Balanced literacy doesn’t teach students to read...

• Phonics-based instruction, which used to be the dominant method for reading instruction, teaches these decoding skills systematically and sequentially so that students can read new words in any context.
• Balanced literacy approaches don’t work because they do not place enough emphasis on systematic phonics. Instead, they encourage students to use pictures and other contextual cues to essentially guess the word in question. Lacking decoding skills, students must figure out unrecognizable phonemes on a page. This is particularly problematic for students with dyslexia and other learning challenges.

...In Michigan, each district selects or develops an academic curriculum to meet the state’s academic standards. 

This means some districts will choose a curriculum centered on phonics to support the state’s K-5 Reading Standards. 

Others will opt for a curriculum like balanced literacy...