At Storyshares, our mission is clear: to empower all readers. We understand that the journey to literacy doesn't always follow a straight line, and for older students still building foundational skills, the path can feel particularly challenging. That's why our dedicated team of writers, editors, phonics experts, and curriculum designers brings both expertise and urgency to the creation of tailored content and resources specifically designed to support and inspire older readers (grades 3-12) in strengthening their foundational literacy skills.
Our approach is rooted in a deep understanding of the Science of Reading. Our diverse global authors craft engaging new content, while skilled phonics and copy editors meticulously mold texts to align with a robust phonics-based scope and sequence. We're not just creating stories; we're building bridges to 21st-century knowledge through carefully constructed materials. Our education experts and curriculum designers possess a wealth of knowledge in phonics, syllabication, morphology, vocabulary, and reading comprehension, recognizing the crucial social-emotional factors that intertwine with the complex process of learning to read. Trained in a variety of effective literacy intervention programs, our nimble team is equipped to produce a vast library of engaging texts and aligned resources to directly support the students and educators who need them most.
Our Intervention Program Vision: A Cohesive Approach to Teen Literacy
Through our ongoing partnerships with schools and classrooms nationwide, a clear need emerged: a cohesive and integrated approach that seamlessly blends diverse and engaging texts, targeted classroom resources, and impactful professional learning opportunities. We firmly believe that a comprehensive intervention program tailored for older learners is not just needed – it is essential. By thoughtfully packaging and delivering these high-quality, research-based instructional materials and services, Storyshares aims to establish a unique path forward, making a profound and lasting impact on adolescent literacy on a large scale.
Introducing LIFT: The Storyshares Literacy Intervention for Teens
We're thrilled to introduce LIFT (Literacy Intervention for Teens), an engaging and culturally responsive literacy intervention program meticulously created for teens and the dedicated educators who guide them. This comprehensive curriculum provides all the materials necessary to deliver structured literacy instruction to small groups of students in grades 6-12 who are still developing foundational literacy skills.
The reality is, middle and high school teachers often navigate classrooms with a wide spectrum of literacy abilities. While some students are ready to tackle complex analyses, others grapple with the very building blocks of reading – phonics and decoding. This disparity can lead to immense frustration and disengagement for striving readers.
Consider the experience of Ms. Sullivan, a passionate middle school ELA teacher facing this exact challenge. In her class of 25, ten students are striving readers. Six struggle to decode even single-syllable words, while another four can decode but read without fluency. When searching for appropriate reading material, Ms. Sullivan finds her school library limited to grade-level texts and a few graphic novels. Determined, she unearths a selection of first-grade level books, targeting the specific phonics patterns her decoding intervention group needs.
Back in class, Ms. Sullivan delivers a focused mini-lesson on open syllables. She distributes the "My Fluffy Bunny" books, complete with illustrations clearly intended for much younger children. The result? Embarrassment. Her middle schoolers promptly return the books, feeling alienated by the childish content while their peers are engrossed in age-appropriate literature. Ms. Sullivan pivots, writing sentences on the whiteboard, but the lack of engaging text makes it difficult to maintain focus. The small group session ends with a disheartening sentiment echoing in the room: "There are no books for me."
The following day, Ms. Sullivan tries again, selecting excerpts from a popular young adult novel containing open-syllable words. Initial excitement flickers as the students receive the new books. However, this quickly fades as they stumble over the sheer volume of unfamiliar vocabulary, their decoding skills overwhelmed. Engagement plummets, reinforcing a damaging belief: "Maybe I'm just not a reader."
Ms. Sullivan’s experience is not unique. It reflects a widespread struggle faced by educators tirelessly working to bridge literacy gaps for older students. Despite utilizing every available resource, finding a comprehensive solution that truly works and seamlessly integrates into demanding schedules often feels like an insurmountable task. Storyshares LIFT is designed to be that solution. We're bringing a fresh perspective to structured literacy materials, specifically crafted to captivate older students, paired with targeted lesson plans for teachers, and grounded in evidence-based practices and professional development.
LIFT: Grounded in Evidence, Designed for Teens
The Storyshares Literacy Intervention for Teens curriculum is built upon evidence-based recommendations from the Institute for Education Sciences (IES) for effectively teaching literacy interventions to adolescents and multilingual learners. LIFT focuses on:
- Building robust decoding skills so students can confidently tackle complex multisyllabic words.
- Providing purposeful fluency-building activities to cultivate effortless and expressive reading.
- Routinely integrating comprehension- and knowledge-building practices to foster deep understanding of the text.
- Offering opportunities to practice making sense of stretch text (appropriately challenging text) that exposes them to complex ideas and information.
- Providing regular, structured opportunities to develop essential written language skills.
- Facilitating effective small-group instructional intervention for students struggling in key areas of literacy and English language development.
LIFT is the ideal program for:
- Special education teachers and literacy interventionists who provide small-group Tier 2 intervention and instruction to students in grade 6-12
- Instructional coaches who want to provide a comprehensive intervention curriculum for their grade 6-12 teachers
By centering high-interest decodable chapter books, implementing evidence-based instructional routines, and providing robust professional development, Storyshares LIFT empowers older striving readers to make significant and lasting gains in their decoding, fluency, comprehension, vocabulary, and writing skills. It's time to move beyond "My Fluffy Bunny” and provide your students with the engaging, effective intervention they deserve.