Teach Them ALL to Read: Catching the Kids Who Fall Through the Cracks [Paperback]

Elaine McEwan's new book, "Teach Them All to Read: Catching the Kids Who Fall Through the Cracks," is the first book I've come across that truly captures all the necessary ingredients needed to create a reading culture where every student learns to read. I always enjoy McEwan's vivid metaphors and chatty practical tips which won't disappoint in her latest book. Thematically, McEwan uses jigsaw puzzle imagery to help the reader understand the necessary role of phonological awareness, phonics, spelling, reading a lot, a reading culture, language, fluency, knowledge, and cognitive strategies. But wait - this is far more than a book providing information about effective teaching of reading.

In addition to her years as a principal who dramatically increased reading performance in her school, McEwan draws upon her years of experience crisscrossing the country to consult with school districts attempting to turn around their reading programs surround by a mishmash of misinformation from the reading establishment that hurls at them from all directions. A strength of this book is her intimate experience with Best Practices that often have no research substantiation.

I should mention that I'm not totally impartial about this book and have been eagerly waiting for it to come out in print since our literacy project was used as one example of a comprehensive program, with interview quotes from some of our staff. Those of you who enjoy reading Consumer member Nettie Griffin's commentary and descriptions of her teaching, will also find a section of this book highlighting her teaching.

These are my three favorite sections of the book:
1. The section that identifies common fallacies in the teaching of reading that frequently surface, boldly exposes myths that have no research basis. I wish that my local whole language curriculum director would read about two of her favorite myths: "The Three-Cueing System: A Genuine Urban Myth" and "The Fat Cat Sat on the Rat is Borrrring and Bad for Kids"

2. The comprehensive chapter entitled: "Fluency: The Forgotten Piece of the Puzzle" is a must-read!

3. "Why Can't we Just Drop Everything and Read?" details what McEwan calls "reading in the zone," or the intersection between (a) reading a lot and (b) reading at an appropriate or somewhat challenging level of difficulty, and (c) reading with accountability.

McEwan set forth the following goals in the preface and these should provide more information on the book in its totality:
1. To give you a short course in the most current reading research regarding how students learn to read, regardless of age or grade, so that you can make informed decisions about curriculum and instruction.
2. To help you understand that learning to read is only the first step: students must also develop fluency, acquire cognitive strategies, and continue to read a lot to deepen their knowledge and understanding.
3. To focus your attention on the variables at work in your school and district that can be altered to create a reading culture and make a huge difference in reading achievement-especially for those students who are currently falling through the cracks
4. To convince you of the power that rests in you and your colleagues to teach every child to read.

Read and enjoy. Mary Damer