As a young child, Keyon Anderson knew that his brain didn’t work like other people’s. His peers were learning to read and he wasn’t. His teachers told him to try harder. His mother was told he would grow out of his reading difficulties. Keyon was diagnosed with a processing disorder and held back in the second grade, but he continued to struggle. When he reached high school he was reading at a second grade level. He wanted to be successful but didn’t have the skills. It wasn’t until 9th grade that he finally received effective intervention for dyslexia. A dedicated teacher worked with Keyon to teach him the fundamentals of reading and ways to learn that worked for him. By the end of his freshman year, Keyon was transformed from a failing student to one with a 4.0 GPA and a fierce desire to learn. Evidence-based practices that work easily in the classroom can be a challenge when teaching remotely. Pivot Learning’s Dr. Monica Ng and CORE’s Dr. Carrie Thomas Beck had a conversation over Zoom with Dr. Anita Archer — author and beloved teacher of teachers — about how to adapt explicit instruction for distance learning.
In this four-part video series, Dr. Archer:
- Shares tips for using hold ups to encourage active participation when students are online
- Demonstrates how choral response can still be used even when students aren’t in a classroom together
- Discusses how to use partner responses online
- Shares simple ways to strengthen bonds with students while engaging in explicit instruction virtually
