Hi %FIRSTNAME%,

Welcome to the May edition of Structured Literacy with Joy Allcock.

This month, we focus on structured literacy for older learners.

What about students who are not yet able to read and write at the expected level?

For many older learners, the challenge is not motivation or effort.

It is access.

As texts become longer and more complex, students need to decode unfamiliar, multisyllabic words across the curriculum.

When students do not have secure knowledge of the alphabetic code, these demands become harder to meet.

We begin with what learners bring—their spoken vocabulary.

Speech-to-sound-to-print attaches new code knowledge to what they already know.

In this month's edition

➤ In Conversation with Joy Allcock, 20 May

➤ Research spotlight, decoding and older learners

➤ Inside Code-Ed, Catch Up Your Code, Sort Out Your Syllables

➤ Sound Hunt /m/

In Conversation with Joy Allcock

Structured literacy for Years 7–10 | May 20th

Our first session brought together 68 educators for a rich discussion shaped by real classroom questions.

Educators asked about oral language, English learners, Tier 2 and Tier 3 support, classroom implementation, and students who are not yet progressing.

Each session begins with a structured literacy focus, then opens into the questions educators bring from their classrooms.

Looking Ahead

Transferring decoding strategies to authentic texts | June 24th

From practicing decoding to applying it in real reading.

Outside New Zealand?

Add your name, and we'll send you the recording.

Research Spotlight

This month's recommended reading

➤ One Reading Skill Might Be Responsible for Many Older Students' Struggles

Sarah Schwartz, Education Week

Foundational skills do not stop mattering after the early years.

Inside Code-Ed

Catch Up Your Code

Students need a conscious knowledge of the sounds of English and the different graphemes that represent them. Catch Up Your Code was developed for students in Year 4 (Grade 3) and beyond, to identify their depth of knowledge of the alphabetic code. A short assessment identifies what students already know and where there are gaps. Instruction is then targeted to teach the sounds and spelling patterns that are not well known.

Sound of the Month

Sound Hunt /m/

If you’re thinking about structured literacy for older learners, a Code-Ed Literacy Consultant can support you to consider what this could look like in your context.

In support of every learner,

Joy & The Code-Ed Team