Online Courses for Teachers

Enhancing Comprehension in Grades 2-5 with Science of Reading

(Grades 2-5) / Flex Course

PDI Course Number: 162T02 / UCSD Course Number: EDUC42610

Course Description

Do you find yourself wondering how to harness the principles of reading science to help students more thoroughly engage in the reading process so that they can better comprehend what they are reading? While many students may first appear to be engaged in the reading process, the fact is that once you dig deeper, you may find that a good number of students fail to connect with the text. This online course for teachers takes a deep dive into a variety of best practices based on the science of reading to help educators in grades 2-5 guide their students to greater comprehension. The course begins with an in-depth overview of the science of reading — what it is (including an in-depth examination of Scarborough’s Reading Rope), the data behind it, and how it can be harnessed to get your readers on the path to greater comprehension. Teachers will explore the “Big 5” strategies of reading comprehension, taking a deep dive into main idea and details, sequencing, the 5Ws- and H framework, inferring and predicting, and vocabulary — all through a science of reading lens. Teachers will learn how to leverage the science of reading as they guide their students to use their critical-thinking skills to question and sequence text, sort through text structures, and tap into their background knowledge as they use robust vocabulary to make inferences and predictions across fiction and nonfiction texts. By the end of this continuing education course, teachers will feel more confident in their quest to leverage best science of reading practices as they guide their students to greater comprehension so that they can more easily make the transition from learning to read to reading to learn. This online professional development course is worth 3 ⅓ semester units/5 quarter units (50 hours of training) from University of California San Diego (UCSD) Division of Extended Studies. For detailed information on receiving university credit for your PDI professional development course, visit our credit page.

Need help? Kimya Nabavi, PDI Program Coordinator, is ready to assist.