Literacy in Color: A Science of Reading Aligned Podcast for Educators

Decodable texts are an important tool for helping readers apply their phonics knowledge, but are we squeezing everything we can out of them?
Dr. Wiley Blevins – longtime educator, researcher, author, and one of the most recognized voices in phonics instruction – shares all about choosing and using decodable texts.
When it comes to choosing decodable texts, Wiley shares the prevailing thinking around how decodable a text actually needs to be. We also tackle a question that doesn't always have a neat answer: When are students ready for less-controlled text? Wiley shares what he's currently exploring in his research, why that transition may look different from student to student, and why we shouldn't confuse being able to read a pattern with truly mastering it for spelling.
We also get into using decodable texts for all they’re worth. In fact, decodables certainly can go far beyond simply getting students to practice a target phonics pattern. Wiley shares how he uses decodable texts across multiple days and throughout the literacy block to build oral language, fluency, vocabulary, syntax, writing, knowledge-building, and of course, comprehension. He walks us through practical routines teachers can use and explains how decodables can support differentiation for students who need additional practice with previously taught skills.
Key Takeaways:
Why decodable texts are a practice tool, fluency-building tool, and support for spelling
What the research actually says (and doesn't say) about decodability percentages
What makes a high-quality decodable text & why natural language matters
How to scaffold grade-level decodables for students who need additional support
How to get more mileage from a decodable after the first read

Resources:
Book: Differentiating Phonics Instruction for Maximum Impact by Wiley Blevins
Book: Choosing and Using Decodable Text by Wiley Blevins
Book: A Fresh Look at Phonics by Wiley Blevins
Book: Phonics from A to Z by Wiley Blevins
Book: The Megabook of Spelling (K-2) by Wiley Blevins
Book: The Megabook of Spelling (3-5) by Wiley Blevins
Book: Teaching Phonics & Word Study in the Intermediate Grades by Wiley Blevins
Reycraft Books

This post may contain affiliate links, which means if you click on a link and make a purchase, I may earn a small commission at no additional cost to you. Thank you for supporting the podcast!
Connect with Dr. Wiley Blevins:
Website: http://www.wileyblevins.com/
LinkedIn
Twitter/X
Instagram

Connect with Michelle:
Visit: www.michelleandthecolorfulclassroom.com
Follow me on Instagram: @michelle_thecolorfulclassroom & @logosliteracyacademy
Join our Facebook Community
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Shop on TPT: The Colorful Classroom
For Phonics Resources, grab: The COLORFUL Phonics Toolkit

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Make a Donation to Support Production

Interested in Learning More about Morphology?
Logos Literacy Academy with Michelle Sullivan & Sarah Paul
Join: Beyond Phonics Club - our Membership Community

Mentioned in this episode:
SOR Fall Book Study
Join us: https://colorful-classroom.mykajabi.com/sor-fall-book-study-2026

Before we get into what the research currently says about teaching phonological awareness and the alphabet, this episode begins by breaking down some key terminology. What makes a practice evidence-based? What’s the difference between research-based and research-tested? What should we consider when implementing instruction aligned with the Science of Reading?
Dr. Shayne Piasta, Distinguished Professor at THE Ohio State University and Faculty Associate at the Crane Center for Early Childhood Research and Policy, helps unpack what we know, what we’re still learning, and how educators can make evidence-informed decisions.
We then dig into phonological and phonemic awareness. Dr. Piasta explains what research has established about the importance of PA, why phonemic awareness ultimately matters for reading and spelling, and where questions remain about exactly how PA should be taught. We discuss larger versus smaller units of sound, advanced tasks, group size, dosage, incorporating letters, and even differentiation.
Next, we turn to alphabet learning and instruction. Research increasingly supports teaching names and sounds simultaneously. We also discuss what makes certain letters easier (or harder) to learn, the acrophonic principle, letter sequence and pacing, and what effective alphabet instruction can look like in a kindergarten classroom.
Finally, Dr. Piasta shares trusted sources for evaluating evidence and reminds us why evidence-informed instruction requires research, professional expertise, and knowledge of the students sitting in front of us.
*Please Note: We experienced some audio issues toward the very end of the episode. We did our best to improve the audio quality and appreciate your understanding.
Key Takeaways:
Evidence-based vs. evidence-informed literacy instruction
The difference between research-based and research-tested practices
What we confidently know about phonological and phonemic awareness
What we still don’t know about the most effective way to teach PA
Information about Project OPAL and the questions researchers are currently testing
Whether letter names or letter sounds should be taught first
Alphabet scope, sequence, and pacing
What effective alphabet instruction can look like
Information about CREATE-EBP and teacher-researcher collaboration
How educators can become better consumers of literacy research

Resources Mentioned:
Project OPAL: Optimizing Phonological Awareness Learning
CREATE-EBP: Collaborating Researchers & Educators Apply Technology to Establish Evidence-Based Practices
Dr. Shayne Piasta's Early Literacy and Learning Lab, including research, current projects, opportunities to collaborate, and a newsletter
The Early Literacy and Learning Lab Research Interest Survey
Duke & Martin (2011) - 10 Things Every Literacy Educator Should Know About Research
National Reading Panel
Rice et al. (2022) - Phonemic Awareness: A Meta-Analysis for Planning Effective Instruction
Erbeli et al. (2024) - A Meta-Analysis on the Optimal Cumulative Dosage of Early Phonemic Awareness Instruction
Alphabet Learning & Instruction
What Works Clearinghouse & Institute of Education Sciences Practice Guides
Regional Educational Laboratories
Best Evidence Encyclopedia
Reading Rockets
National Center on Improving Literacy
The Reading League
Florida Center for Reading Research
Let's Know! / Let's Know! 2 - language-focused curriculum

Connect with Dr. Shayne Piasta
LinkedIn
Dr. Shayne Piasta's Early Literacy and Learning Lab

Connect with Michelle:
Visit: www.michelleandthecolorfulclassroom.com
Follow me on Instagram: @michelle_thecolorfulclassroom & @logosliteracyacademy
Join our Facebook Community
Sign up for my Newsletter
Shop on TPT: The Colorful Classroom
For Phonics Resources, grab: The COLORFUL Phonics Toolkit

Want to Support the Podcast?
Make a Donation to Support Production

Interested in Learning More about Morphology?
Logos Literacy Academy with Michelle Sullivan & Sarah Paul
Join: Beyond Phonics Club - our Membership Community

Mentioned in this episode:
SOR Fall Book Study
Join us: https://colorful-classroom.mykajabi.com/sor-fall-book-study-2026

What if one of the richest language opportunities in your literacy block is already hiding inside your phonics word list? Even the simplest decodable words can carry surprisingly rich meanings. A word like “cap” might be something you wear on your head, the top of a bottle, an action you perform when you cover something, or even part of the phrase “no cap.” Simple to decode doesn't necessarily mean simple in meaning. In this episode, I share a few simple ways to intentionally sprinkle meaning into the decoding and spelling practice you're already doing.
Key Takeaways:
Why multiple-meaning, or polysemous, words offer such rich opportunities for language development
Why a quick contextual sentence during decoding or dictation is so important
How "Word of the Day” and/or Multiple-Meaning Word Anchor Chart get students noticing interesting words across the school day
Even while sprinkling in meaning, it’s still essential to keep the pace and offer repetitions students need during phonics
It’s unnecessary to explore every potential meaning at once

We know explicit & systematic phonics helps students unlock the code, but meaning gives them something worth unlocking.
Want to go Beyond Phonics?
Join Beyond Phonics Club: A Membership Community with Michelle Sullivan & Sarah Paul (Logos Literacy Academy)
Inside the Beyond Phonics Club, Michelle Sullivan and Sarah Paul have created ready-to-use lessons and resources, including lessons targeting multiple-meaning words, that help you expand phonics into richer work with meaning, morphology, vocabulary, grammar, and comprehension in mind.
Go beyond phonics – without leaving phonics behind!
This podcast is brought to you by Reading Science Academy, where our friend Stephanie Stollar is giving Literacy in Color listeners an exclusive, free grouping resource bundle to help you turn fall screening data into skill-based groups that actually move students forward.
Get your FREE grouping resource bundle here.
Or, become a member of Reading Science Academy to learn in community and receive research-backed support alongside over 1,400 literacy educators.
Connect with Michelle:
Visit: www.michelleandthecolorfulclassroom.com
Follow me on Instagram: @michelle_thecolorfulclassroom & @logosliteracyacademy
Join our Facebook Community
Sign up for my Newsletter
Shop on TPT: The Colorful Classroom
For Phonics Resources, grab: The COLORFUL Phonics Toolkit

Want to Support the Podcast?
Make a Donation to Support Production

Interested in Learning More about Morphology?
Logos Literacy Academy with Michelle Sullivan & Sarah Paul
Join: Beyond Phonics Club - our Membership Community

Mentioned in this episode:
Reading Science Academy
Get your FREE grouping resource bundle here: https://www.stephaniestollarconsulting.com/groupingsheets?utm_source=podcast&utm_medium=show_notes&utm_campaign=podcast

Join The Reading Science Academy: https://www.stephaniestollarconsulting.com/register?utm_source=podcast&utm_medium=show-notes&utm_campaign=literacy-in-color
SOR Fall Book Study
Join us: https://colorful-classroom.mykajabi.com/sor-fall-book-study-2026

What happens after students master single-syllable words in phonics, but the words in their books keep getting longer?
Dr. Devin Kearns takes us for a deep dive into polysyllabic word reading and what the research tells us about helping students tackle increasingly complex words. He explains why the transition into longer words presents challenges that simply don't exist in single-syllable words, including the unpredictability of single-letter vowels, reduced vowels & schwa, and the growing prevalence of derivational suffixes. He also challenges some long-standing approaches to syllable division and explains why more rules and terminology aren't necessarily better for students.
You'll learn about ESHALOV ("Every Syllable Has At Least One Vowel") as well as the “peeling-off strategy” for recognizing affixes and accessing the base of polymorphemic words.
The conversation also explores lexical verification (i.e., set for variability): how readers adjust an initially decoded pronunciation until it connects with a word in their mental lexicon.
Key Takeaways:
What the research suggests about traditional syllable division rules
How to use the strategy: ESHALOV for polysyllabic words
How to use the “Peeling-off” strategy for polymorphemic words
How lexical verification helps students move from a plausible pronunciation to a known spoken word
What advanced decoding instruction might look like in the upper elementary classrooms

Resources Mentioned:
Phinder
High-Frequency Syllables & Morphemes (compiled by Dr. Devin Kearns)
The Word Complexity of Primary-Level Texts: Differences Between First and Third Grade in Widely Used Curricula by Devin Kearns & Elfrieda Hiebert
Helping Students With Dyslexia Read Long Words by Devin Kearns & Victoria Whaley
Building BRIDGES: A Design Experiment to Improve Reading and United States History Knowledge of Poor Readers in Eighth Grade - O’Connor, Beach, Sanchez, Bocian, & Flynn - ESHALOV principle (Every Syllable Has At Least One Vowel)
Components of effective remediation for developmental reading disabilities: Combining phonological and strategy-based instruction to improve outcomes - Lovett, M. et al. - “Peeling Off” Strategy

Connect with Dr. Devin Kearns:
Website: https://www.devinkearns.com/
LinkedIn
Instagram: @devin.kearns
X: @devin_kearns

This podcast is brought to you by Reading Science Academy, where our friend Stephanie Stollar is giving Literacy in Color listeners an exclusive, free grouping resource bundle to help you turn fall screening data into skill-based groups that actually move students forward.
Get your FREE grouping resource bundle here.
Or, become a member of Reading Science Academy to learn in community and receive research-backed support alongside over 1,400 literacy educators.
Connect with Michelle:
Visit: www.michelleandthecolorfulclassroom.com
Follow me on Instagram: @michelle_thecolorfulclassroom & @logosliteracyacademy
Join our Facebook Community
Sign up for my Newsletter
Shop on TPT: The Colorful Classroom
For Phonics Resources, grab: The COLORFUL Phonics Toolkit

Want to Support the Podcast?
Make a Donation to Support Production

Interested in Learning More about Morphology?
Logos Literacy Academy with Michelle Sullivan & Sarah Paul
Join: Beyond Phonics Club - our Membership Community

Mentioned in this episode:
Reading Science Academy
Get your FREE grouping resource bundle here: https://www.stephaniestollarconsulting.com/groupingsheets?utm_source=podcast&utm_medium=show_notes&utm_campaign=podcast

Join The Reading Science Academy: https://www.stephaniestollarconsulting.com/register?utm_source=podcast&utm_medium=show-notes&utm_campaign=literacy-in-color
SOR Fall Book Study
Join us: https://colorful-classroom.mykajabi.com/sor-fall-book-study-2026

What does it actually mean for a word to become "stored" in the brain – and how do we design instruction that helps that happen for every student?
In this episode, I'm joined by Dr. Katie Pace Miles, associate professor at Brooklyn College, founder of The Reading Institute, co-founder of CUNY Reading Fellows, and one of today's leading voices in reading science.
She not only shares about the cognitive process of orthographic mapping, but also why understanding how words become permanently stored in memory changes the way we think about reading instruction and intervention.
Dr. Miles also shares the fascinating origin story behind Reading Ready, the structured literacy intervention she originally created while teaching her own daughter to read during the pandemic, and explains how both Reading Ready and Reading Go have expanded to support thousands of students through The Reading Institute and CUNY Reading Fellows.
She shares the dramatic literacy shifts happening across New York City Public Schools: from increased use of structured literacy and decodable texts to high-impact tutoring, universal screening, and stronger teacher preparation – and what still lies ahead.
Key Takeaways:
What orthographic mapping really is
Why oral language is foundational for orthographic mapping
The origin behind Reading Ready and Reading Go
Why intervention dosage matters more than many educators realize
How The Reading Institute and CUNY Reading Fellows are expanding access to high-quality literacy intervention
The biggest shifts happening across New York City Public Schools
Why teacher preparation must include authentic practice, not just coursework

Resources Mentioned:
The Reading Institute
Reading Ready
Reading Go
10-hour Science of Reading Micro-Credential
CUNY Reading Fellows
Brooklyn College: Advanced Certificate in Reading Science
Book: Making Words Stick by Dr. Katie Pace Miles & Dr. Molly Ness
Publications written by Dr. Katie Pace Miles

This post may contain affiliate links, which means if you click on a link and make a purchase, I may earn a small commission at no additional cost to you. Thank you for supporting the podcast!
Connect with Dr. Katie Pace Miles:
Instagram: @thereadinginstitutenyc
LinkedIn: The Reading Institute
Facebook: The Reading Institute
Website: https://www.katiepacemilesphd.com/

This podcast is brought to you by Reading Science Academy, where our friend Stephanie Stollar is giving Literacy in Color listeners an exclusive, free grouping resource bundle to help you turn fall screening data into skill-based groups that actually move students forward.
Get your FREE grouping resource bundle here.
Or, become a member of Reading Science Academy to learn in community and receive research-backed support alongside over 1,400 literacy educators.
Connect with Michelle:
Visit: www.michelleandthecolorfulclassroom.com
Follow me on Instagram: @michelle_thecolorfulclassroom & @logosliteracyacademy
Join our Facebook Community
Sign up for my Newsletter
Shop on TPT: The Colorful Classroom
For Phonics Resources, grab: The COLORFUL Phonics Toolkit

Want to Support the Podcast?
Make a Donation to Support Production

Interested in Learning More about Morphology?
Logos Literacy Academy with Michelle Sullivan & Sarah Paul
Join: Beyond Phonics Club - our Membership Community

Mentioned in this episode:
Reading Science Academy
Get your FREE grouping resource bundle here: https://www.stephaniestollarconsulting.com/groupingsheets?utm_source=podcast&utm_medium=show_notes&utm_campaign=podcast

Join The Reading Science Academy: https://www.stephaniestollarconsulting.com/register?utm_source=podcast&utm_medium=show-notes&utm_campaign=literacy-in-color
SOR Fall Book Study
Join us: https://colorful-classroom.mykajabi.com/sor-fall-book-study-2026