This workshop explores the root causes of literacy gaps in middle and high school, including interrupted instruction, unfinished learning, limited access to grade-level complex texts, vocabulary and background knowledge deficits, and student identity challenges.Participants examine how foundational skill gaps—such as decoding multisyllabic words and limited morphological awareness—continue to impact older students. The session provides practical, research-based classroom strategies to maintain rigor while increasing support, including explicit vocabulary instruction, text-dependent questioning, scaffolding techniques, and growth mindset practices. The workshop also outlines schoolwide systems and tiered interventions to ensure literacy is a shared responsibility across content areas.

• Interrupted instruction and unfinished foundational literacy skills (decoding, fluency, morphology)
• Limited access to grade-level, complex texts due to over-scaffolding or simplification
• Tier 2 and Tier 3 vocabulary deficits and background knowledge gaps
• Student disengagement, negative reader identity, and reduced academic confidence

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1. Diagnose and Address Specific Literacy Skill Gaps
   Participants learn how to identify whether student struggles stem from decoding, fluency, vocabulary, or comprehension gaps and match instruction to the need (e.g., morphology instruction for decoding gaps, repeated reading for fluency, Tier 2 and Tier 3 vocabulary instruction for access to content)
   
   
2. Maintain Rigor While Increasing Support
   Educators gain strategies to scaffold—not simplify—complex texts through purposeful chunking, text-dependent questioning, accountable talk stems, and vocabulary pre-teaching. Participants develop the ability to keep students engaged with grade-level content while reducing cognitive overload
   
   
3. Build Schoolwide Systems that Strengthen Literacy and Identity
   Participants learn how to align literacy practices across content areas, implement consistent vocabulary routines and writing expectations, use data strategically within an MTSS framework, and promote growth mindset practices that rebuild student motivation and academic confidence

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