New strategies come along all the time, but these strategies matter little if educators are not sure why they are using them or what the desired outcome is. Quality literacy instruction should be rooted in effective foundational practices. Text-dependent questions offer a foundation for literacy practices that support students' comprehension,…

The year 2021 marked the 10-year anniversary of the Texas Association for Literacy Education (TALE). The current study is a historical inquiry that explores the following research questions: (a) between the years 2011 and 2021, what contributions gave value to the mission of promoting literacy and enhancing the lives of all Texas citizens…

Multicultural texts are essential classroom tools because they create opportunities for all students to feel visible, included, and valued. In this summary paper, the authors begin with an overview of why multicultural literature and multiple identities have a place inside elementary and secondary classrooms. The authors then describe three…

The Advocacy Development Committee has a mission to "advocate about, advocate for, and support the importance of lifelong literacy learning in and through education." Educators continue facing challenges. The committee explores ways that literacy educators can advocate, such as making self-care a priority, educating oneself, joining a…

The Inquiry and Research strand of the 2017 ELAR TEKS for sixth through twelfth grade includes vertically aligned standards for teaching students critical media skills by questioning the reliability and credibility of sources, evaluating bias, and recognizing logical fallacies. This article describes how increased media saturation has led to…

The teaching of literacy/language arts and mathematics is not a pairing traditionally found in classrooms. However, there are ways to link the two vital core subjects. This article will explore using writing as a tool for students to work through mathematical processes by integrating writing and literacy curriculum as a subject to complement, not…

The "Science of Reading" (SOR) has gained traction due to public media, resulting in a nationwide prioritization of teacher training and changes in the way reading is taught. The nationwide emphasis on the SOR led to new teacher certification requirements in Texas. Although teacher candidates already take a content exam to demonstrate…

Some children come to school with a smaller vocabulary than their peers. If children do not have knowledge of the meaning of the words they read in texts, they will fail to comprehend those texts and struggle to keep up with their peers. This is critical because the link between vocabulary and comprehension is very clear (Sticht et al., 1974, as…

During the COVID pandemic, faculty and staff working within educator preparation programs faced the challenge of having to get future educators the tools they needed to be successful in a "normal" setting while working to set up and create their own virtual environments. This article looks at the practice of structuring course…

The purpose of this self-study was to examine my coaching conversation skills in the context of individual coaching sessions held with undergraduate student tutors enrolled in my Reading Assessment and Intervention course in Fall 2020. Each tutor met with their tutee once per week for 30 minutes while their partner observed the lesson. Prior to…

What happened when a global pandemic shut down schools in March of 2020, causing an after-school graphic novel book club to be all but forgotten? Magic happened, when led by a determined instructional literacy coach and a local university professor. Undaunted, they decided to adapt the graphic novel book club into a synchronous virtual experience…

The onset of the COVID-19 pandemic forced teachers to shift teaching and learning from face-to-face in brick-and-mortar classrooms to online learning platforms. For many teachers, this abrupt change was not an easy transition, particularly when working with students in early childhood who are reading and writing in the early years of literacy…

The literacy classroom is a powerful context for students to learn about their own lives and the lives of others. By integrating lessons on identity and diversity in the literacy classroom, the learning experiences become more relevant and engaging. Not only is this the case for K-12 students, but also for the preservice teachers in teacher…

The new ELAR TEKS include consistent content vocabulary across grade levels that represent an opportunity for teachers to build a strong foundation for efficient growth and development. In this article, the author looks at consistent content vocabulary, shifting content vocabulary, and content vocabulary spread in the new ELAR TEKS and then ends…

The establishment of self-identity within the learning community is at the core of participation; as educators, it is critical that we consider the cultural makeup of our classroom participants, and address those cultures through instructional decision making, teaching opportunities, and development of the classroom community. This article…