Doug Lemov's field notes

Reflections on teaching, literacy, coaching, and practice.

11.12.24 On Fluency: The Hidden Barrier to Comprehension

  Yesterday I shared an overview of the topics in the forthcoming book on reading I’m writing with Colleen Driggs and Erica Woolway: seven key principles of reading instruction that should inform what we do in k-12 classrooms. (Note we’ll be discussing these principles at our Nashville workshop Dec. 5  & 6) Today, I’m going to…


03.02.19 Learning to Emphasize Background Knowledge in My Own Reading

  I’ve been thinking a lot about reading lately, and not just students’–my own as well. This week EducationNext ran a  review I wrote of Maryanne Wolf’s Reader Come Home, it was a review about an immensely important book that was also one of the most soul-searching things I’ve written in some time. Here’s an excerpt…


02.01.17 Tucking In and Tucking Out

I am going to to use this post to share a parenting idea: something that enriches my daughter’s life and our relationship. I thought some others might want to steal it. I do not purport to be a parenting expert. This is recreational advice. Context: Tuck-in time at night is often the best time of the day…


01.06.17 Building Academic Vocabulary: A Postcard from Jo Facer’s Classroom

A few weeks ago we shot video at the Michaela School in London- truly a thought-provoking and inspirational place. I’ve just started in watching the footage, beginning with Jo Facer’s English class, and have already found a dozen moments I’m going to cut video of. But for now I just want to share a photo of…