For Schools
Lead to Read: Structured Literacy Training
Lead to Read Schoolwide Structured Literacy Initiative
Studies in brain science over the past four decades confirm that explicit, structured literacy works well for all learners. Lead to Read gives educators the foundation, understanding, and support to implement structured literacy in their schools and meet the literacy needs of every student. A customizable Lead to Read partnership strengthens your school’s multi-tiered system of support for literacy instruction through:
Professional Learning
Job-embedded, online professional learning that supports teachers in ensuring every student’s right to read.
Effective Instruction
Foundational skills students need to become proficient readers and teachers need for successful literacy instruction.
Supportive Coaches
Coaching from structured literacy mentors who support teachers in a variety of roles—flexibly, thoughtfully, and in real time.
Informative Data
Data-informed discussions support instructional decisions and foster successful student outcomes.
Essential Literacy Knowledge
Participants in a Lead to Read school partnership learn about the evidence, building knowledge of how our brains actually learn to read. Through the MindPlay Comprehensive Reading Course, designed for elementary educators, or our Adolescent Literacy Course, designed for middle-level educators, teachers participate in synchronous and asynchronous activities that introduce and reinforce vital content.
Data-Informed Discussions
To improve literacy for their students, schools need valid and reliable assessment data, and informal measures of student performance, as these work together to inform plans and shape progress. We support schools that are focused on literacy gains by convening and facilitating discussions that get to the heart of what we can learn from student, cohort, and school-wide data.
Ongoing Support Through Literacy Coaching
Committed to respectful peer learning and skilled in fostering the strengths of dedicated teachers, our Lead to Read coaches use a partnership approach, providing tools, strategies, and feedback to help teachers apply new knowledge.
Meet the Lead to Read Literacy Coaches
What Teachers Have to Say
What Makes Our Approach Different
We specialize in working within a school’s existing culture and literacy curriculum to design a professional learning plan tailored to each school’s unique needs. The plan could, for example, help teachers develop a common vocabulary for literacy, update educators’ conceptual knowledge based on neuroscience research that is directly relevant to instruction, and refine teachers’ skills in interpreting assessment data, designing lessons, and delivering effective instruction.
Teachers trust our expertise and count on our support
Our team includes professionals with experience in school administration, Special Education, reading research, classroom literacy instruction, structured literacy, dyselxic readers, Orton-Gillingham, and social-emotional learning. This depth of experience supports the development of a customized model for each of our school and district partners.
We’re practical and flexible
The Stern Center’s Lead to Read partnerships are based on what works for educators in a specific setting: yours. Leaders appreciate the chance to think with us, plan with us, and evolve with us. For-profit, one-size-fits-all commitments don’t square with our values as educators, so you can be confident that our nonprofit mission and commitment to sustaining shared goals over the long-term guides everything we do.
Supporting Schools
Grants for Professional Learning
The Cynthia K. Hoehl Institute for Excellence awards grants to individual educators and school cohorts seeking better outcomes for students through our programs. Learn more about Cynthia K. Hoehl, whose vision as an educator inspired a powerful legacy.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I pick and choose Lead to Read elements?
Yes, Lead to Read is a highly customizable professional learning initiative. We do highly recommend our Coaching component since practice and feedback are so essential to instructional success and effective student support.
How does Lead to Read differ from Orton-Gillingham training?
The Stern Center’s Orton-Gillingham Institute and our Lead to Read initiative are both solidly based in the science of reading. Orton-Gillingham is generally considered a more intensive introduction to the structure of the English language and provides formal levels of certification. Lead to Read is a broad-based initiative to support school leaders and educators in implementing structured literacy in their schools.
Is Lead to Read based on the science of reading?
Yes, Lead to Read is a structured literacy program based on the science of reading.
Our Reach by the Numbers
1,800+
Teachers Served This Year
When a teacher takes one of our courses, the positive impact ripples beyond one life, spreading through an entire classroom, school, and community.
Our Reach by the Numbers
10,901+
Student Services Hours This Year
We offer one-on-one teaching that transforms lives, lifts up voices, and inspires learners to bring forth their unique gifts to a world that awaits them.
Our Reach by the Numbers
415+
Schools Served This Year
We celebrate the dedication of our school partners and share their commitment to a brighter future for all learners.
Our Reach by the Numbers
39
States and Counting
We’re a national leader in language and literacy. Our impact currently extends across 39 states and several countries through the thousands of educators we reach and students we serve.
Keep Learning
Resources for Schools
Explore evidence-based resources for teaching structured literacy, social-emotional learning, and more.
Schools Making Change
We celebrate the dedication of our fellow educators and share their commitment to helping every learner grow and thrive.
Course & Registration FAQs
Do you have questions about course registration, credits, grants, or anything else? Find your answers here!
