How Does the LearningRx Reading Program Fit with the Science of Reading?

LearningRx is committed to providing the highest quality program that will deliver the most benefit to our clients. When it comes to reading help, our reading program has been proven again and again to be effective, even if you have an additional learning challenge. With the move towards the Science of Reading in classroom instruction, how does LearningRx fit?

Our reading program is a one-on-one, multi-sensory, structured literacy program delivered through a brain training approach. 

Here’s more of what that means…

What Is the Science of Reading?

Just in case this term is new for you, the Science of Reading is a big view on the best way to teach kids to read. It takes into account decades of research and prescribes a method both for delivering instruction and for what content to teach. 

In general, the Science of Reading returns to a phonics-based practice that builds kids’ ability to decode new words. This is a move away from sight words, visual clues, and other “tools” that have been used in the past 20 years or so. Research continues to show that strong phonetic skills are what makes readers successful.

There are several key elements of the Science of Reading. Here’s what they are and how LearningRx aligns:

Multisensory Approach

The senses of reading include hearing it, saying it, seeing it, writing it, and feeling it (what does your mouth do when you say a particular sound). These are all elements of mastering phonological awareness and other key reading skills!

The LearningRx reading program takes all of these elements into consideration to deliver the most benefit to our clients.

Structured Literacy

For many years, most schools have taken a balanced literacy approach to teaching reading. This mindset assumes that learning to read is a natural process that kids will pick up on if they are just surrounded by word-rich environments. These approaches rely heavily on sight words, visual clues, and other cues to help kids “remember” words instead of decode them.

A structured literacy approach has been found to be much more effective, especially for kids who may have a learning difference. In structured literacy, reading instruction is:

• Explicit (kids learn sounds that letters make, instead of inferring them based on known words)
• Systematic (there is a logical progression of learning sounds and learning how to combine, blend, and decode them)
• Diagnostic (focusing on which sounds are hard for an individual and allowing for more practice in these weaker areas)

Structured literacy relies on the ability to recognize sounds before words, which sets kids up for a lifetime of more successful reading skills as they encounter unfamiliar texts.

At LearningRx, we have been using this approach since we started. Our reading skills program follows these steps—but in a unique way. The brain training approach that we use along with explicit and systematic instruction in phonemes and reading skills allows learners to become more fluent, confident readers.

Focus on Decoding Skills

If a kid learns 10 words by sight, he can read 10 words. But if the child learns 10 sounds, he or she will be able to read:

• 350 three-sound words
• 4,320 four-sound words
• 21,650 five-sound words

This is a HUGE benefit to sound-based reading instruction! Kids need to be able to have the skills to decode a new word when they come across it in order to be successful at reading long-term. 

LearningRx’s reading program dives into this skill and builds it from the ground up. All of our students go back to the basics of what sound each “code” (or letter combination) makes and how we can blend, segment, and decode these words. 

If your child struggles with reading new things or seems stuck in the “sight word” mentality of guessing instead of really diggin in to figure it out, extra support in this area is key. 

Take It One Step Further: a Foundation that Makes Learning to Read Easier

Say your child receives high-quality instruction in reading, but it still doesn’t click. We know that it is frustrating and hard to navigate, especially if your child has other diagnosed learning challenges. 

The Science of Reading is a GREAT step in reading instruction. But without a strong foundation of cognitive skills, even good reading instruction isn’t going to be good enough.

In order to learn to read, your child also needs to be able to:

• Focus
• Process quickly
• Visually recognize letters
• Discriminate between different sounds
• Analyze, blend, and segment words
• Logically reason their way through a new word
• Remember sounds and words (even ones they just read a few seconds before)
• And more.

Reading is SUCH a complex task that if any of these areas are weak, your child may continue to struggle unnecessarily.

Strengthening cognitive skills is the foundation of all learning. Having a brain that can remember, focus, and process efficiently makes all the difference! 

LearningRx has the ONLY reading program that trains phonemic awareness and phonics, along with cognitive skills like memory, processing speed, visual processing, attention, and reasoning skills.

While the Science of Reading approach to reading instruction is a great move in general, as a parent you need to take into consideration the way your child’s brain is interacting with the world. If cognitive skills are weak, they may continue to struggle with reading until these are strengthened.

Not sure how your child’s cognitive skills rank? You can get a quick view with this FREE brain skills quiz! 

For a deeper dive, call our center today to schedule an assessment that will finally provide the answers you need as to why your child is struggling and what you can do to help them succeed.