Doug Lemov's field notes

Reflections on teaching, literacy, coaching, and practice.

01.10.25 On Attention, ‘cognitive endurance’ and reading

  In our forthcoming book on the Science of Reading, Colleen Driggs, Erica Woolway and I discuss the importance of attention to reading.   Short version: if nothing else, the smartphone, having fractured the attention of millions, has taught us that attention is malleable. This is especially important in reading, which places such intense demands on…


11.11.24 What the Science of Reading Says “Post-Phonics” & Meeting Up in Nashville

Bringing the Book Back to Life It’s exciting times at TLAC Towers in terms of reading. Colleen Driggs, Erica Woolway and I are finishing the manuscript of a new book about translating the science of reading into classrooms. We’re really excited about it and will be sharing some of our new insights at our Reading Reconsidered…


09.25.24 Seven Details from Matthew Tipton’s use of Everybody Writes

  I’ve been posting a lot recently (here and here for example) about the power of writing to boost Ratio in the classroom- how writing among other things can cause every student to answer a question instead of just a few who volunteer to speak and how the desirable difficulty writing create facilitates learning and memory….