Brain-Based Literacy Research

Reading is an unnatural act. We are not born with the ability to read. Reading is a unique human skill that we learn. Some students will struggle learning to read but not all of them have problems in the same areas.

Scientists have studied the science of reading for a long time. There is an abundance of research on how the brain learns to read and what specific skills are necessary to achieve reading comprehension. It is important to understand how humans learn to read in order to better help our adolescent readers. In order to read, students must have both strong language comprehension and word recognition skills.

In the primary grades, students work on phonemic awareness, phonics, vocabulary, comprehension, and fluency. In adolescence, students work on word study, fluency, vocabulary, comprehension, and motivation/engagement. Most of the research available on the reading brain will focus mostly on how young students learn to read or the phonics and phonological awareness pieces of the puzzle.

On this page, you will learn about the science behind reading from foundational literacy to adolescent literacy.