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Speech to Print : Third Edition
314 pages, Paperback
Published January 1, 2020
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Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews
June 4, 2022
Phew! This took me quite a long time to finish - not because it wasn’t good, but because there was so much in there and I needed time to process and try to connect to practice. I would highly suggest reading this with a colleague so you have someone to discuss it with as you’re going through each chapter.
December 27, 2023
Read this book for my grad class this summer. 10/10 on phonics instruction, relevant research & implementation strategies.
August 12, 2023
Comments the Science of Reading in general and this book in specific
The state of reading education in 2023
The Science of Reading is a major buzzword these days. It has largely been reduced to a marketing term. Every textbook manufacturer claims that their product is based on the SoR, just like every toothbrush claims that to be dentist-recommended.
The outcome in the classroom is your choice of cobbled-together curricula, whether it be Lucy Calkins' Units of Study with tacked-on phonics, Wilson Reading Systems with its tacked-on comprehension, or Wit & Wisdom and Expeditionary Learning with their tacked-on grammar. Many of these curricula contain pre-existing content that they continue to include by dubiously claiming Science of Reading as a justification.
My example, which many will find offensive, is Wilson and other companies who market phonics programs for upper grades and cite research conducted in lower grades as their scientific rationale. If anyone has evidence of phonics-based interventions that work above first grade, please link them in the comments. I have looked and I am unable to find it myself.
In addition, many older educators (myself included) feel a need to rekindle the reading wars with Science of Reading as the proxy for phonics and Balanced Literacy as the proxy for whole language. This discourse feels like a 2 AM argument between two drunks who think they're talking about the same thing when they're actually not. That's where this book comes in.
This book in particular
If you want to know what the Science of Reading actually is, then you need this book. It contains a vast amount of information in a relatively short amount of space. It begins with broad models of what reading actually is, then dives into a detailed explanation of all the fundamentals of reading from phonemic awareness through vocabulary and sentence structure.
I appreciated that this book:
1. Did not dumb down the content, but addressed me as a professional who is capable of understanding linguistic concepts.
2. Contained copious references so that I can fact-check anything that seems off.
3. Got right to the point and gave the necessary information without a lot of anecdotes and tangents.
4. Was clearly organized so that I can revisit for needed information.
A shocking number of books for educators fail all four of these items, resulting in 150 pages of unsourced fluff and pep talks. Way too many books on teaching are puffed-up nothing and a total waste of time.
This book does not contain:
1. Recommendations above about 6th grade.
2. Discussion of reading comprehension (That would have to be a whole other book.)
What about older grades?
As I mentioned above, a lot of Science of Reading proponents begin and end by using it as a proxy for phonics and prescribe Orton/Wilson/etc. for everyone from ages 4 through 99. These people have a strong profit incentive for their actions.
Refreshingly, Moats applies research rigorously and focuses on vocabulary and morphology for the older grades. I would argue that the chapter on syntax is also valuable for a teacher in the older grades.
One caveat
When I wrote my Master's thesis, I was not allowed to use any sources over 10 years old. This book, published in 2020, references mostly research from the 21st century, but also a decent number of studies from as far back as the 1970s. I would be cautious about any research from that long ago, because it might be a product of different research practices than we use today, and because the results would be compared to a status quo that is very different than the one we have today.
The state of reading education in 2023
The Science of Reading is a major buzzword these days. It has largely been reduced to a marketing term. Every textbook manufacturer claims that their product is based on the SoR, just like every toothbrush claims that to be dentist-recommended.
The outcome in the classroom is your choice of cobbled-together curricula, whether it be Lucy Calkins' Units of Study with tacked-on phonics, Wilson Reading Systems with its tacked-on comprehension, or Wit & Wisdom and Expeditionary Learning with their tacked-on grammar. Many of these curricula contain pre-existing content that they continue to include by dubiously claiming Science of Reading as a justification.
My example, which many will find offensive, is Wilson and other companies who market phonics programs for upper grades and cite research conducted in lower grades as their scientific rationale. If anyone has evidence of phonics-based interventions that work above first grade, please link them in the comments. I have looked and I am unable to find it myself.
In addition, many older educators (myself included) feel a need to rekindle the reading wars with Science of Reading as the proxy for phonics and Balanced Literacy as the proxy for whole language. This discourse feels like a 2 AM argument between two drunks who think they're talking about the same thing when they're actually not. That's where this book comes in.
This book in particular
If you want to know what the Science of Reading actually is, then you need this book. It contains a vast amount of information in a relatively short amount of space. It begins with broad models of what reading actually is, then dives into a detailed explanation of all the fundamentals of reading from phonemic awareness through vocabulary and sentence structure.
I appreciated that this book:
1. Did not dumb down the content, but addressed me as a professional who is capable of understanding linguistic concepts.
2. Contained copious references so that I can fact-check anything that seems off.
3. Got right to the point and gave the necessary information without a lot of anecdotes and tangents.
4. Was clearly organized so that I can revisit for needed information.
A shocking number of books for educators fail all four of these items, resulting in 150 pages of unsourced fluff and pep talks. Way too many books on teaching are puffed-up nothing and a total waste of time.
This book does not contain:
1. Recommendations above about 6th grade.
2. Discussion of reading comprehension (That would have to be a whole other book.)
What about older grades?
As I mentioned above, a lot of Science of Reading proponents begin and end by using it as a proxy for phonics and prescribe Orton/Wilson/etc. for everyone from ages 4 through 99. These people have a strong profit incentive for their actions.
Refreshingly, Moats applies research rigorously and focuses on vocabulary and morphology for the older grades. I would argue that the chapter on syntax is also valuable for a teacher in the older grades.
One caveat
When I wrote my Master's thesis, I was not allowed to use any sources over 10 years old. This book, published in 2020, references mostly research from the 21st century, but also a decent number of studies from as far back as the 1970s. I would be cautious about any research from that long ago, because it might be a product of different research practices than we use today, and because the results would be compared to a status quo that is very different than the one we have today.
October 11, 2023
A highly regarded text book and currently a professional learning guide in regards to science of reading. Good information by an author who is a leader in the field. Highly technical.
April 28, 2024
This book has a lot of information and great activities.
May 5, 2024
Outstanding! A must read...
May 24, 2024
Read for a grad class, this is a great read for anyone looking for a base of understanding of the Science of Reading. Great for the “why’s” of phonics instruction.
December 11, 2024
I READ IT COVER TO COVER AND IT TOOK UP ALL MY EXTRACURRICULAR READING TIME THIS SEMESTER SO IT GOES ON GOODREADS. Lowkey was 5 stars tho dense as hell but very informative
January 19, 2025
Amazing resource for diving deeper into language and how to teach reading explicitly.
May 4, 2025
A must read for elementary educatiors.
Read
May 22, 2025Incredible resource!
June 9, 2025
Great book filled with information but a challenging read. The workbook companion was very helpful!
July 1, 2025
a lot of this went over my head as a secondary math educator, but what I did get out of it was truly solid content. A must-read for elementary and literacy teachers. For. Sure.
Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews