di: Recording of NIFDI’s first SOR Comp webinar dispels myths re: creativity and higher-order thinking

[Kurt Engelmann]

Dear DI Listmates:



You may have noticed that the latest issue of the NIFDI News has a link to
the recording of NIFDI’s first SOR comprehension webinar: *Explicit
Fundamental Language Instruction to Improve Reading Comprehension*.  In
this webinar, we dispel myths regarding the efficacy of Direct Instruction
(DI) in promoting creativity and higher-order thinking.  I hope it will be
useful to you if/when you need to refute false claims that DI only involves
rote, lower-order thinking.



Near the end of the webinar, we focus on the Absurdity Track, which is an
extension of the Opposites Track taught earlier in the Grade K level
of the *Reading
Mastery Signature Edition* (RMSE) language program.  Instead of the
opposite of an attribute, however, the Absurdity Track focuses on the
opposite of *reality*.  As such, it is an *imagination jump starter*.  In a
structured way, it prompts children to think out of the ordinary.  With
students who have been through the Absurdity Track, you can spark their
imagination by asking them to think about what would be absurd for a frog
or a sidewalk or a piano, and they’ll give you very creative answers.



Access the webinar recording here: https://lnkd.in/gM2bD4Uw .  It is 77
minutes long, but there’s no fluff – we cover A LOT of content that has to
do with explicit fundamental language instruction to improve reading
comprehension.



The webinar highlights *eight instructional design elements* as we
demonstrate how to teach specific higher-order concepts in Kindergarten (or
in higher grades for children who have yet learned these concepts).  These
instructional design elements ensure all students master essential skills
and concepts.  The elements complement the Science of Learning (SOL)
recommendations:

   1. Build in cumulative review.
   2. Teach only one new skill or concept at a time.
   3. Utilize known conventions to teach new skills or concepts.
   4. Leverage basic skills and concepts students master to demonstrate
   higher-order concepts.
   5. Model concepts using demonstrations or pictures when children don’t
   possess sufficient language comprehension.
   6. Teach the simplest form of a concept first, then refine the concept
   in subsequent lessons.
   7. Require simple responses when teaching verbal reasoning.  Require
   full sentences once students understand the logical reasoning.
   8. Provide open-ended questions so students apply concepts learned.



As you may know, Direct Instruction (DI) programs contain all of the
recommendations for instruction incorporated into what’s called the Science
of Learning, including:

•       Retrieval practice

•       Spaced practice, and

•       Interleaving



We are planning other webinars on how DI promotes reading comprehension,
and we’ll post info on them to this list.  In the meantime, here are some
ways you can get in touch with us (in addition to emailing me back):

Fill out our contact form: https://lnkd.in/gTzPwMrC

Or Email us: info at nifdi.org



Regards,
Kurt

Kurt E. Engelmann, Ph.D., President
The National Institute for Direct Instruction (NIFDI)

*
<https://www.nifdi.org/training-events/events-calendar/training-event/ca1-2023.html>
*

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Get the most comprehensive guide to implementing DI available –

*Direct Instruction: A Practitioner’s Handbook* (2024),

published by John Catt/Hodder Education

https://tinyurl.com/direct-instruction-handbook

*
<https://www.nifdi.org/training-events/events-calendar/training-event/ca1-2023.html>
*

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