RCLC
River City Literacy Consultants
Dedicated to Student Reading Success
OUR PURPOSE
COVID put a spotlight on what we know:
reading achievement is stagnant.
Student growth can be restored with comprehensive teacher training in how children learn to read and how teachers direct student learning.
Knowledgeable teachers are vital to reading achievement. RCLC provides the training, theory, instruction and coaching for teachers.
RCLC consultants can help your staff master and apply evidence based instruction for all students.
Our model supports the teachers in the classroom with knowledge and skill to teach their students. We know teachers make the difference.
Informed teachers are our best insurance against reading failure. While programs are helpful tools, programs don't teach, teachers do.
-Louisa Moats, 2019
Comprehensive Coaching in the Science of Reading
Reading achievement in the United States has hit a plateau and many districts across the country have hit a wall. National, state and local reading test scores have changed little in 20 years despite an endless series of new programs and initiatives.
It is not the programs that make the difference but the knowledge and skill of the teacher. The science of reading has for decades explicitly teach the alphabetic principles of English, phonemic awareness and phonics, especially to those children who struggle with reading. What is currently called structured literacy, or the science of reading is not new and since the 1960s there has been a repeated call for phonics instruction with that call drowned out by the whole language movement, basal publishers, and balanced literacy. The evidence of what to teach and how to teach beginning reading is quite clear, but what is missing is effective teacher training.
We now know that a knowledgeable teacher is vital to reading achievement.
RCLC provides educators with evidence based science of reading instruction and comprehensive coaching so they have the tools, knowledge, and action plan to close the literacy gap for their students. All students need systematic explicit instruction for reading success in the early elementary years. Our plans include data analysis, lesson planning, explicit and systematic instruction, extensive connected text to provide practice as well as vocabulary growth for students, and weekly coaching for immediate feedback. Our ultimate goal is to build the learning capacities in the science of reading for teachers that transfers to reading success for all students.
RCLC is committed to building teacher knowledge through comprehensive training and coaching in student learning.
A child's ability to read well is the primary gate way to deepening academic knowledge, opening the door to life skills that will give them a greater chance at reaching their full potential. Without it, students face falling further behind their peers, experiencing a diminished sense of self, which can lead to a lifetime of difficulty.
Defining Movement. (2021, February 21). The science of reading: A defining guide. https://www.whatisthescienceofreading.org/science-of-reading-guide
Our Expertise
We empower educators with evidence based instruction so they know how to support all students in their learning development.
Our teachers walk away knowing what to do to help their students become proficient readers.
Dr. Peter Dewitz
Dr. Peter Dewitz is our senior educational consultant and teacher researcher studying reading programs, reading assessment and reading comprehension. He has worked with teachers and children throughout the county. Peter has taught 4th and 5th grade students with diverse needs and backgrounds. Dr. Dewitz has taught at the University of Toledo, The University of Virginia, conducted research at the Harvard Graduate School of Education. He has also authored and written 5 books including The Essential Guided to Selecting and Using Core Reading Programs, Teaching Reading in the 21st Century, and Building Comprehension in Every Classroom. He is currently writing Translating the Science of Reading for Teachers and Administrators, due in August of 2021.
Sandra Koch
Sandra Koch is a reading specialist and coach with over 20 years of MTSS supporting colleagues with instructional models for successful student learning. Core instruction will have the greatest system impact within a school. Sandra's model of coaching builds relationships, and provides the following: what we want teachers to know, why it is important and how they will use the information for student success. As a coach, Sandra spends time with students, teachers, administration, local businesses, and collegial networks to meet the needs of our students and families. Sandra is Orton-Gillingham trained, LETRS I and II , as well as well versed and trained in Fundations, and coaching models for adult learning. Additionally, Sandra is trained in duFour's PLC model, PBIS, and Kagan.
- A child who is behind in reading at the end of first grade has an almost 90% chance of remaining a poor reader at the end of grade four.
- 75% of students who struggle with reading in 3rd grade continue to struggle in high school and beyond.
- In a longitudinal study of nearly 13,000 urban students, researchers found that 82% of 6th grade students who failed an English class did not go on to graduate from high school.