My Reading Academy Español (MRAE) is a fully adaptive program that helps kindergarten through 2nd grade students build mastery of fundamental Spanish reading concepts and skills. MRAE features games and digital reading experiences that cover learning objectives addressing phonemic awareness, phonics, fluency, vocabulary, and comprehension. The program helps students achieve proficiency through individualized learning pathways, engaging characters and scenarios, and continuous assessment that is built into every level of every game.
Phonemic Awareness
Phonemic awareness, the ability to hear and manipulate individual sounds (phonemes) in spoken words, is crucial in learning to read any alphabetic language, including Spanish. The instruction provided by My Reading Academy Español in phonemic awareness can help Spanish-speaking students understand how sounds are represented by letters and letter combinations.
Phonics Instruction
Phonics involves teaching the relationships between sounds and their spellings. Spanish, with its relatively transparent orthography (consistent letter-sound correspondences), benefits significantly from the explicit phonics instruction offered by My Reading Academy Español. Students can quickly learn to decode words by sounding them out, reinforcing their reading skills.
Vocabulary Development
Vocabulary instruction is essential for reading comprehension. The teaching of Spanish vocabulary in My Reading Academy Español involves introducing students to a wide range of words, their meanings, and usage. This includes teaching cognates (words that look similar in Spanish and English) which can aid bilingual students.
Fluency
Reading fluency, the ability to read with speed, accuracy, and proper expression, is developed through practice and exposure to a variety of texts. In Spanish, fluency can be fostered by providing students with ample opportunities to read aloud, guided reading sessions, and repeated reading of familiar texts. Regular usage of My Reading Academy Español supports Spanish fluency.
Comprehension Strategies
Reading comprehension strategies are techniques that help students understand, remember, and communicate what they read. These include summarizing, predicting, questioning, and making inferences. Teaching these strategies in Spanish involves guiding students to apply them to Spanish texts, thus improving their overall understanding.
Differentiated Instruction
Not all students learn at the same pace or in the same way. Differentiated instruction, which is responsive to the varied needs of learners, is crucial. This might include using different types of texts, incorporating multimedia resources, or providing additional support for students who struggle. The adaptive nature of My Reading Academy Español means that each student’s activities are differentiated based on real-time evaluations of their skills and learning gaps.
Cultural Relevance
Incorporating culturally relevant materials and contexts can make reading instruction more engaging and meaningful for Spanish-speaking students. My Reading Academy Español includes stories, texts, and examples that reflect students' cultural backgrounds and experiences.
Assessment and Feedback
Ongoing assessment and feedback are critical to effective reading instruction. Teachers need to regularly assess students' reading skills and provide constructive feedback to guide their progress. This might include formative assessments, informal reading inventories, and standardized tests. Our Progress Dashboards can pinpoint students’ mastery of skills and areas that they need more help, in addition to providing resources targeting those areas.
Language Structure Awareness
Spanish has specific language structures, such as verb conjugations and gendered nouns, which can impact reading and writing. The teaching of these structures in My Reading Academy Español explicitly helps students navigate texts more efficiently and improves their overall language proficiency.