Article of the Month — For Educators
AUGUST 2026STARTING THE SCHOOL YEAR STRONG
Featured article — American Federation of Teachers (Louisa Moats, 2020)
Teaching Reading Is Rocket ScienceLouisa Moats' landmark article makes the case that teaching reading is complex, knowledge-intensive work — as demanding in its own way as rocket science. Skilled reading instruction requires deep knowledge of language structure that most teacher preparation programs never provided.
As a new school year begins, this is the essential reset for educators: an overview of what the research says about phonology, decoding, fluency, vocabulary, and comprehension — and why explicit, systematic instruction matters for every student, not just those with dyslexia.
KEY TAKEAWAYS
- Reading is not natural like speech; it must be taught explicitly and systematically.
- Teachers benefit from knowing the structure of English — phonemes, syllable types, morphology — not just activities.
- Early screening plus informed instruction prevents most reading failure.