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The first time I picked up Stanislas DeHaene’s book, Reading in the Brain: The New Science of How We Read (2010) I really struggled. I found myself reading and rereading sections of text, struggling to parse out the meaning of sentences. But I’m a skilled reader!!! I realized that I lacked some of the background knowledge and vocabulary I needed to access the text. I didn’t finish it. The next time I picked it up, I had over 80 hours of training and reading behind me and although the text was challenging, I had an easier time accessing it. What happened?

I’ve been reflecting lately on why teaching and assessing comprehension feels so complicated while teaching and assessing word recognition feels more straightforward. This led me down a road of looking at the difference between the two types of skills.

Constrained skills in reading are those that can be taught without a text; often our finite word recognition skills. We are able to teach and assess in a fairly straightforward manner, building in the complexity of skills in a scope and sequence. Constrained skills might include: print concepts, phonemic awareness, mapping sounds to letters, and decoding. It is because of foundational skills’ constrained nature that we have seen folks grasping the need for phonics in this science of reading movement - these skills are more tangible, they can be taught from simple to complex, and easily assessed. (For example, in the UFLI (2022) scope and sequence)

In contrast, unconstrained skills are those that “require deep conceptual development and can continue to develop for the rest of a person’s life.” (Tumner et al., 2018 as cited in this online visual resource). Unconstrained skills are those that can vary with the complexity or demands of the text. For example, background knowledge application, vocabulary, sentence comprehension, and more. Read “Unpacking the Science of Reading - teaching the unconstrained skills, linked in the citation. Citation: Rollo, G., & Picker, K. (2024, July 22). Unpacking the science of reading – teaching the unconstrained skills. Teacher Magazine. https://www.teachermagazine.com/au_en/articles/unpacking-the-science-of-reading-teaching-the-unconstrained-skills

Recently, I unpacked this skills concept with a school district (thank you Plymouth-Canton Community Schools) and a powerful activity was sorting our standards to explore where we could find constrained and unconstrained skills. Let’s do that with the Common Core State Standards. (Side-note: why the CCSS? Because although many states have adopted their own standards, we still see a common thread across states that echo the original CCSS or they are still in use. ‘Common’ pun intended.)

If we sort the third grade standards for Reading Literature (RL), Reading Information Text (RI), Language (L), and Foundational Skills (RF) what will we find? This is how I sorted them (possibly not how you would sort them either!):

Below is a picture of the standards sorted as unconstrained skills. Most of these standard descriptions mention a phrase such as “in a text” or the application of the standard requires a text. For example, it is challenging to “determine the meaning of words and phrases as they are used in a text” without a text.

I also identified constrained skills, shown below. When I considered how these standards were written, I looked carefully for whether these skills could be taught without a text in hand, knowing that connecting these skills to text would be an important part of a skills-based lesson.

And there are standards that encompass both constrained and unconstrained skills, shown below. Where there was language like “know and apply” or in the sub-bullets that sorting them into one category or another didn’t quite explain it.

You will see that for third grade, I’ve placed the foundational skill standards in the “both” category; because while foundational skills can often be taught in a stand-alone way, their application requires connected text. So yes, we can teach students how to decode multisyllable words, but for them to apply their skill, they need to practice decoding those words in text.

What are the instructional implications here? Often our standards work directs us to the RL and RI standards (also typically the most heavily tested). This is often where we spend our instructional efforts, working to help students “do” RI3.8. We keep trying to teach RI 3.8 as though it is a skill that can be applied to any text. But with the unconstrained/constrained lens, we better understand that “doing” RI3.8 will vary based on the texts we use. Let’s break this down further.

The RI3.8 standard states: “Describe the logical connection between particular sentences and paragraphs in a text (e.g., comparison, cause/effect, first/second/third in a sequence).” For students to be able to demonstrate this standard, it requires a text hence unconstrained. Without one, they are unable to determine the logical connection therein. If we unpack this standard further, is it possible that there are constrained skills we need to teach so that students are better equipped to demonstrate this standard? YES.

In The Reading Comprehension Blueprint Activity Book (Hennessy & Salamone, 2024) the authors provide sample lessons for instruction. Each sample lesson highlights the prerequisite skills students would need to engage with the lesson. And guess what? They are often constrained skills. So let’s apply that thinking with standard RI3.8 as well.

What constrained skills might we need to teach so that students can “Describe the logical connection between particular sentences and paragraphs in a text (e.g., comparison, cause/effect, first/second/third in a sequence).”

Here are some examples:

• Text structures (such as those listed in the parenthesis - comparison, cause/effect, sequence)
• How sentences work - simple, compound, and complex
• Cohesive devices and how they work - cohesive ties and connectives
• The use of pronouns in sentences

How I see it is that when we are teaching these constrained skills, we are teaching RI3.8 - because without these foundational understandings, our students won’t be ready to think critically about the text they are reading and make those logical connections we seek. When I tried reading DeHaene’s text the first time, the complexity of the text presented me with unconstrained reading challenges - I wasn’t yet ready to access the text. But I developed my own set of skills (background knowledge and vocabulary) that made the text more accessible the next time I tried it.

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Would you like to try sorting these yourself? Download a copy of my sorting activities here.

Leadership Moves:

1. Share your learning about constrained and unconstrained skills by engaging in discussion about them - can you make connections to the strands in The Reading Rope (Scarborough, 2001)?
2. Try the sorting activity with one of the grade levels teams you work with - what do you discover?
3. Consider unpacking your standards and thinking about the constrained skills needed to access the unconstrained standards.

What does this mean for me?

Leaders are often in charge of ensuring that their teachers are providing standards-aligned instruction. We see this in schools with learning objectives, lesson plans, and even assessment questions labeled with the standards. But if we aren’t shifting our thinking about how we are planning instruction, we might continue trying to teach students to “do RI3.8” with any text. Rather, I encourage us to think about how we might support our teachers with understanding the complexities of our standards in relation to the skills The Reading Rope (Scarborough, 2001) so plainly shows we need to become skilled readers.

Revolution Resources

​​Coaching System Assessment Download the PDF below ​LRC Coaching System Assessment PDF - Final.pdf​ Watch the February workshop about this resource! ​

Literacy System Assessment Download the PDF below ​LRC Literacy System Assessment PDF - Final.pdf​ Watch the webinar about this resource below! ​

Listen, Linda a new Spotify playlist I've collected all of my podcast guest appearances in one place. Make sure to follow along for new episodes as they come out! Listen here

Where have we been?

It's been a busy month! I attended and presented at multiple conferences both virtually and in-person. I also traveled to Michigan to work with Plymouth-Canton Community Schools!

Simply Coaching Summit Learn more here

Mind Your Coaching Institute Learn more here

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Region 13 Instructional Coaching Conference 2024 - Kickin' Up Capacity I connected with colleagues and friends, some for the first time in person. The learning with keynotes and breakout sessions got me thinking about my own practice and that of the coaches I support. There was tons of fun to be had throughout the conference with prizes and happy hour - and of course we made our own fun. ​ Thank you to the Region 13 team for planning a wonderful experience at a fantastic hotel. And thank you for the opportunity to be part of the presenter lineup! I shared my presentation titled "Stop Asking 'What Would I Do' and Coach More Effectively" Yeehaw!

Visiting Plymouth, Michigan I visited Plymouth-Canton Community Schools for two days of professional learning. It was a pleasure working with their curriculum team, teachers, coaches and leaders with a focus on formative assessment and comprehension instruction. We centered our work on texts using strategic discussion and coming to consensus on shared definitions. Teachers worked with The Reading Comprehension Blueprint Activity book by Nancy Hennessy and Julia Salamone, which will serve as a resource for reading comprehension instruction this coming year. ​ I look forward to our next day of professional learning and for continued partnership!

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New Podcast: How to Assess Your Coaching We often grapple with balancing the demands of supporting teacher growth while navigating limited resources and competing priorities. In conversation with Linda Rhyne, we explore these challenges and introduce a comprehensive framework for assessing coaching practices. This framework examines four key areas: people, process, product, and culture. By identifying strengths and weaknesses, coaches can optimize their impact on teacher development and student outcomes. Beyond the assessment, we delve into the broader context of coaching. Clear role expectations, strong administrative support, and dedicated coaching time are essential for creating a sustainable coaching culture. Remember, you're not alone in this coaching journey. With a little self-reflection and a dash of strategy, you can build your practice and make a real difference. Listen to the Podcast

SC Charter Schools Summer Webinar Series Mojdeh presented a session about Effective Classroom Walkthroughs to leaders who are members of the Public Charter Schools Alliance of South Carolina. Walkthroughs are an essential strategy for instructional leaders. ​ She shared how to effectively implement classroom walkthroughs to monitor instruction and coach teachers and shared resources and provided collaborative discussion time for participants. As a principal, she understands the positive impact walkthroughs can have when done well.

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Let's Work Together

I'm thrilled to be working with some new districts and continue with current clients in the upcoming year! Having the opportunity to expand my reach and continue this work brings me so much joy.

I have the capacity to offer professional development opportunities or smaller scale ongoing work next year. If literacy or coaching is part of your strategic plan or goals, let’s work together to design tailored support for Spring 2025 or the 2025-2026 school year. Click here to sync our calendars for a conversation.

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Mojdeh Harlan is moving into a new principal role at Smithfield Elementary in Charlotte, NC. She is living the phrase "walk the talk."

Learn more about our services for leaders at this link. Mojdeh meets with each applicant for a "gain clarity" call that allows you the space to share your needs. Apply now to set up this call.

Where can we connect? Bold font shows events at which I'm presenting. 7/9 - 7/10 - Get Engaged Coaching Con | Learn more here​ 10/8 - 10/10 The Reading League 9th Annual Conference | Learn more here​ ​ Check out my calendar