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As parents, family members, or mentors, we naturally coach and gradually release children to help them learn new skills. For example, we automatically use training wheels or a training bike before putting a child on a real bike. Next, we hold the back of a child’s bike seat as they pedal. Finally, we let go quietly and smile as we watch them ride alone.  

It should be the same approach in the classroom. Teachers must decide how to scaffold their students, coaching them and gradually releasing them once they have mastered new skills. 

This blog is inspired by one of my students, whom I will call Jessica, for anonymity. Jessica transferred to our school at the beginning of her first-grade year. After spending kindergarten in a bilingual classroom, Jessica had literacy knowledge in Spanish. English literacy, however, was uncharted territory for her. Our initial conversations were heavy in Spanish. 

I remember asking myself, “How will I help her read in English as well as her peers?” Then I remembered that Marie Clay’s book is titled Literacy Lessons Designed for Individuals…not One Size Fits All Lessons for All Students. I immediately changed my outlook. There is no set recipe for all readers to be taught the same way. Likewise, all learners begin their learning journey at different places. 

Another one of Clay’s books is called, By Different Paths to Common Outcomes. My common outcome was to help Jessica actively use English, and I needed to determine what scaffolds to support her based on her unique path. Clay’s article, “Reading, Writing, and Talking,” helped me discover Jessica’s learning recipe! 

Main ingredient: language 

Practice: reading, writing, listening, and speaking in English 

Tools: What scaffolds will I need to support Jessica? 

The first scaffold I used was reading aloud to Jessica. I did not expect her to read in English, which would be like diving in the deep end without learning to swim. Instead, I modeled reading in English. I used books that sparked her interest. For example, she enjoyed books with funny stories and lovable recurring characters, like Hameray’s Joy Cowley Classics. 

                        

Next, we practiced talking and writing about the books we read in English. Jessica did not always have the vocabulary or grammatical knowledge in English to express the idea she wanted to say. However, she could express herself in Spanish, so we used that skill as a scaffold to figure out what she wanted to say about the book. Then I would provided words she did not know in English, and together we would practice speaking and writing about the shared stories we read.   

                        

Combining these scaffolds allowed Jessica to read all the writing we created together! She read them right after we wrote them and even days later!  This was because that writing meant something to her. The writing related to meaningful events in her learning representing her genuine reactions to characters and events of stories read together. 

As more time passed, Jessica took over more reading and writing, needing less scaffolding. Eventually, she completed the book’s initial reading and composed the writing consistently on her own. I learned that I had to give more to get more, create her unique recipe, embrace her home language of Spanish, and provide specific scaffolding right from the start. 

Sometimes at school, we have invisible chains of “rules.” These rules may feel rigid, causing teachers to confuse what should be viewed as teaching and what is an assessment. This may stop us from offering the support our students need at the time.  Let’s not be afraid to provide our students with what they need to grow.  As educators, we must patiently and willingly provide the scaffolding each of our children needs so that we can gradually step away and watch them shine independently.   

Let us always teach to inspire and lead with joy.   

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Liz Armstrong has been a Reading Recovery and Descubriendo la Lectura Teacher Leader for eight years. In addition to being a Teacher Leader, she is a Literacy Coach and Consultant.  She has provided professional learning for other districts, presented at conferences nationwide, published blogs, adapted hundreds of books to Spanish, and leveled many children’s books for publishers. Before training to be a Teacher Leader, Liz obtained her Master’s degree in Administration with licensure as Principal, Director of Instruction, and significant coursework toward Director of Special Education and Pupil Services licensure. She has been an educator since 2002 with experience as an ESL teacher, bilingual classroom teacher, bilingual literacy intervention specialist, and bilingual instructional coach. In 2011, she completed a Professional Development Certificate program with action research on how focusing on language development impacts achievement in reading and writing in various instructional settings. Language development, using data to inform instruction, and equity/advocacy for all students have been areas of emphasis in her career as an educator.  

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Since 2008, Hameray Publishing Group has developed literacy resources that help teachers inspire children in grades K–8 to become successful lifelong readers. We publish leveled informational and narrative texts on a wide variety of topics that meet the needs of budding readers, even the most reluctant ones. With fun and immersive stories from leading authors like Joy Cowley, and vividly beautiful artwork and photography, our books capture students’ imaginations and spark an interest in reading that will last a lifetime.