elcome to the Plano ISD website for secondary reading programs!   Plano has based the foundation of the secondary reading/literacy program on current research as well as the results from the National Reading Panel.  Teachers have had intensive training in best reading practices, scaffolded instruction, small group instruction, guided reading, and inquiry-based learning through book studies and author presentations such as Comprehension Strategies by Stephanie Harvey and Anne Goudvis, When Kids Can't Read by Kylene Beers, Deeper Reading by Kelly Gallagher, Comprehension and Collaboration by Smokey Daniel and Stephanie Harvey, Word Wise and Content Rich by Doug Fisher and Nancy Frey, To Understand by Ellin Keene, and Words Their Way by Donald Bears and Shane Templeton.  The curriculum centers around the components of reading:  fluency, word analysis such as phonics and vocabulary, comprehension, and literary response, e.g., reciprocal writing, where readers learn to READ like a writer and interact with the author.

There is a big difference between assigning reading and teaching reading.  We have to show students what good readers do…how good readers discover deeper meanings embedded in text. Therefore, teachers provides rich literacy experiences by modeling think-alouds, sharing reading experiences,  and implementing guided reading practices before, during, and after reading.  Our goal is that every lesson creates a change in student thinking, understanding, and reading behaviors.

Reading comprehension is a process that involves the reader’s prior experience and world knowledge.  The process also involves affective ideas such as motivation, ownership, purpose, and self-esteem. Readers need all of these factors in order to construct meaning in text.  If there is a malfunction in one of these factors it’s like a string of lights with a section that doesn’t work. The total effect is lost.