1
Science of Reading: Syntactic Awareness
Experts suggest that syntax and sentence structure concepts, like phonics, should be taught in an explicit and systematic manner, as structured in the Colors of English. (Moats, 2020)
There is a clear connection between syntactic comprehension and awareness and reading comprehension. (MacKay and Lynch, 2021)
A study done by the United Kingdom Literacy Association found that adolescent students’ reading comprehension was both directly and indirectly impacted by their syntactic knowledge and syntactic awareness. (Brimo, Apel, and Fountain, 2015)
2
Reading & Writing Connection
Research shows proficiency in constructing simple sentences is an important and foundational skill for continued writing growth. (Datchuk & Kubina, 2017)
Sentence and spelling instruction had a moderately significant impact on improving word-reading skills. (Graham, 2020)
Sentence Construction is a crucial foundational skill to support students’ ability to read fluently and comprehend. (Datchuk and Kubina, 2017)
3
Metalinguistic Awareness
According to Louisa Moats, “metalinguistic or conscious knowledge of the structures of language is usually developed through formal study and reflection.” (Moats, 2020)
Metalinguistic awareness can be defined as the ability to manipulate language out of context. Semantic and syntactic awareness allows students to disambiguate larger concepts within texts, thus increasing students’ language comprehension. (Zipke, 2021)
Metacognition is acknowledged as being essential to reading comprehension; what may not be as widely recognized is how much of the metacognition that goes on during reading has a metalinguistic component - sensitivity to sentence structure is essential. (Nagey, 2007)
4
Multisensory Learning & Support of Neurodiverse Students
Research shows that multisensory exposure can result in superior recognition of objects compared to unisensory exposure. (Shams, L & Seitz, A., 2008)
Reading is a visual and mental phenomenon. In other words, the reading process is both a sensory process that depends on certain visual skills, such as the identification of symbols, and a perceptual process that involves the interpretation of what is sensed. (Ahuja & Ahuja, 2007)
Achievement scores of students who were taught with instructional resources that matched their preferred modalities were statistically higher than were the scores attained by students who were not taught with learning-styles methods. (Farkus, 2003)
