High Progress Literacy

Changing Learning. Changing Outcomes. Changing Lives.

Instructional Practice Based on Research

“High progress literacy” is the outcome that results from implementing instructional practices identified in the research on high progress classrooms and the research on engagement with text.

A Growth Mindset

High progress literacy depends on a growth mindset that recognizes a universal capacity to learn.

Learning with Text

The goal for classrooms is to have all students highly engaged with reading and writing text at least 75% of the time in order to learn content.

The Learner Space

High progress literacy requires learners to use multiple sources of information and learn how to be flexible in ill-structure domains that are increasingly complex.

A Focus on Outcomes

High progress literacy is not a program, but an outcome that itself leads to measurable achievement gains in all academic content areas.

Characteristics of High Progress Literacy Classrooms

  • Many, many fiction and nonfiction texts to read for every student that are both interesting and manageable
  • Much small group and individualized instruction
  • More instruction and support for struggling readers
  • Extremely positive environments
  • Teaching of self-regulation and decision-making
  • Engaging instruction: positive, low-risk, encouraging, accepting, conveying goals, self-selection, ownership of reading and writing topics

Attributes of Students Highly Engaged with Text

  • Fully engrossed in reading and writing for sustained periods of time
  • Talk about their interests as readers, writers, and researchers
  • Keep lists of questions, ideas, words, and phrases they want to remember and to use in their writing
  • Respond in writing to their reading
  • Keep a list of texts they have read as well as texts they want to read
  • Always have interesting, manageable texts at their fingertips
  • Appreciate and look forward to time to read and work independently

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Classroom Progress

Transforming Instruction

The research on what it takes to achieve high progress literacy is clear. Learners must spend most of their time engaged with reading and writing text. The role of the teacher becomes less about delivering content, and more about teaching learners how to read closely, to analyze, to synthesize, and to evaluate; all within content domains that are defined by standards. Teachers must teach learners how to learn.

Transforming instruction is difficult work. This site can help by providing professional learning experiences, resources, and a community of educators who are working together to bring high progress literacy to every classroom and every child.

High Progress Literacy is copyright (c) 2022 by High Progress Literacy Associates, LLC. The materials on this site are free for individual use and for educational purposes. Any commercial use is strictly forbidden. Materials may not be redistributed without the express written permission of High Progress Literacy Associates, LLC.