Hi Literacy Lovers,
In our 100th podcast episode, Trauma and Reading, Dr. Steven Dystra joins us to discuss how chronic trauma wears down kids who can’t read, which results in devastating effects. Dr. Dykstra’s bio includes one of the most powerful paragraphs we’ve ever read about reading and its collective trauma impact on children. So, we’ll let him do the talking:
“I think facts and information are our only tools, and while we must wield them carefully, we should not be afraid to call out the failures and injustice we see. Too much decision making is driven by the delicate feelings of adults who, however hard working and well-intentioned, have protected their colleagues and friends over the interests of our most vulnerable children. We are investing the lives of little children in bad decisions, in order to avoid the shame and discomfort of admitting we were wrong. This is not unprecedented. It has happened many times before, in many places, surrounding many decisions. But, like all of those other times, this must end. Any other result would be immoral. The victims are, after all, children.”
We’re so glad you’re here to learn with us.
Learn More
Watch this ten minute video of Dr. Steven Dykstra: “Reading: The Great Vaccine.” The description of the video says: “Being able to read is a vaccination against the negative windfalls of life. Listen as Dr. Dykstra tells a story about the power of being able to read proficiently.”
Community and Connection
If you’re looking for community, look no farther! With almost 150k members, the Facebook Group, Science of Reading: What I Should Have Learned in College, brings educators and experts together looking to collaborate and connect around reading science.
Related Episodes
Episode 74: Dyslexia and Reading Science: A Parent Advocate’s Perspective
“I just thought kids learned how to read… and my daughter didn’t. She could identify 4 letters by the end of kindergarten .” Katie Hickerson's daughter, Cora, went from a joyous little one to a child with lots of big feelings after starting school, saying she felt stupid.
Katie pulled Cora out of school to be homeschooled - providing structured literacy instruction alongside rigorous tutoring through the International Dyslexia Association. In less than two years, Cora went from meeting a 1% reading benchmark to 92% and was back to herself - full of joy, laughter, and confidence.
Episode 39: Discussing Dyslexia with Advocate and Mom, Liz Hembling
Episode 67: Learning to Read at 62 Years Old: A Conversation Illuminating Adult Literacy
