In our technological Information Age, we spend our time “speaking” primarily by text, email, eBooks, or online forums. Gone seem the days of deep, personal conversations; cursive, handwritten letters; and real-paper, printed books. We defend our choices with their efficient outcomes, but few of us stop to consider what we might be losing in the … Continue reading “Giving Life to Words”
Forgetting Information and Learning How to Remember
According to a paper published in the June 21, 2017 issue of the scientific journal Neuron, the brain is hard-wired to forget information. Neurobiologists Blake Richards and Paul Frankland, the authors of the study, challenge what has become the dominant theory of memory, which holds that forgetting involves the gradual loss of critical information. According … Continue reading “Forgetting Information and Learning How to Remember”
Reading Comprehension Not Limited to Humans
Most teachers and educators consider reading comprehension to be applicable to human students, usually starting in about the first grade. However, there is a fast-growing type of comprehension that has nothing to do with humans. It’s called “Machine Reading Comprehension (MRC),” and it reflects an artificial intelligence (AI’s) ability to understand specific knowledge found in … Continue reading “Reading Comprehension Not Limited to Humans”
AceReader Book Review – “Ms. Marvel: No Normal”
Today’s book review is a selection from the Montgomery County (MD) Public Library System. It’s a graphic novel, “Ms. Marvel: No Normal,” published by Marvel Now! and aimed at high school students. A while back, we discussed the potential benefits of using comics and graphic novels in the classroom as a way to aid reading … Continue reading “AceReader Book Review – “Ms. Marvel: No Normal””
Guest Blog: AceReader Teaching Tips by Mike Downey – Part 2
[Editor’s note and disclaimer: Mr. Downey is a classroom teacher and ACT prep instructor with extensive experience using AceReader. After being a customer for several years and seeing first-hand how much AceReader was helping his students, he now works part-time in AceReader sales. His original version of the Teaching Tips was too long to fit … Continue reading “Guest Blog: AceReader Teaching Tips by Mike Downey – Part 2”
Guest Blog: AceReader Teaching Tips by Mike Downey – Part 1
[Editor’s note and disclaimer: Mr. Downey is a classroom teacher and ACT prep instructor with extensive experience using AceReader. After being a customer for several years and seeing first-hand how much AceReader was helping his students, he now works part-time in AceReader sales. His original version of the Teaching Tips was too long to fit … Continue reading “Guest Blog: AceReader Teaching Tips by Mike Downey – Part 1”
Humans Hard-Wired for Speech but not for Reading and Writing
Humans communicate naturally by speech – that is to say, without any special training besides hearing individuals speak to each other. The reason is the structure of our brains. Researchers have shown that there are two specific centers in the human brain that oversee and control language acquisition; both are in the brain’s left hemisphere. … Continue reading “Humans Hard-Wired for Speech but not for Reading and Writing”
Guest Blog: Dr. David Bloch, Optometrist and Reading Specialist, on the AceReader Program
[Editor’s note and disclaimer: This is another in an occasional series of guest blogs from a variety of AceReader users. The content came from an interview conducted by Miriam Ruff, and it has been edited somewhat for length and fluency.] MR: What is your reading background (i.e. schooling, specialty, personal reading habits)? DB: I have … Continue reading “Guest Blog: Dr. David Bloch, Optometrist and Reading Specialist, on the AceReader Program”
AceReader Introduces Book Reviews
Starting today, we at the AceReader blog are going to be introducing a new feature – Book Reviews. The list of titles will come from area library systems and educational institutions and will represent a wide range of grade-appropriate fiction and non-fiction material. Sometimes, like today, we will be reviewing a book that we have … Continue reading “AceReader Introduces Book Reviews”
Conducting a Reading Evaluation – Part 2
Last week we discussed the necessity of conducting a reading evaluation for any child struggling with the reading process, and five of the eight elements that evaluation should contain to be effective. This week we will describe the remaining three elements – written expression, spelling, and reading comprehension – and how they impact the evaluation … Continue reading “Conducting a Reading Evaluation – Part 2”