A colleague introduced this podcast to me this morning. I’ve been listening to it all afternoon. I’ve been a teacher for 30 years, and I am a mother of 4. This report is EXACTLY what has been scratching at the back of my head about children’s literacy today. I am so thankful for this research and reporting that lays out exactly what I have been questioning for 30 years. Thank you!

It’s not often that you find a podcast that has a real impact on our lives, but Sold a Story does just that. It’s changed the way that schools teach reading through its in-depth reporting and analysis. One of the best podcasts on education I’ve ever heard.

You must listen to this podcast. Just do it. If you’re interested in learning, in how ideas spread, it is such groundbreaking important reporting. So well done you won’t regret it. I couldn’t stop listening.

As a mom of 3 adult kids - two of which are teachers, I think this should be in every parents podcast feed. I remember being so intimidated by school authorities if anyone questioned how reading was taught. Not so much from the teachers - but from administration. Just a nightmare. Stand up for your kids- don’t just accept the status quo. I spent thousands on reading specialists worked 2 jobs to pay for it. It shouldn’t have to be that way. Such an excellent podcast

I was trained in Reading Recovery in the late 90’s. I taught it for 7 years. I quit because I knew it wasn’t working but I didn’t know why. I agree with much of what is being said in the podcasts with one exception. I have tutored kids who know phonics and still struggle to read. They can make the correct sounds and still not come up with the word. To say phonics is the answer may also be misleading. The reason why phonics fell out of favor in education was that many children were struggling to read. Balanced literacy seemed to offer a solution to those children who couldn’t use phonics to decode. My experience as a reading teacher taught me that there is no “one size fits all” solution. One thing I think Maury got right was observing the child’s behavior while reading and tailoring instruction to what they are struggling with. That has worked well for me outside the confines of Reading Recovery.

I am Chinese and good at math. We notice that the way American schools teach math missed the foundation and practice. Students just learn very surface knowledge without the enough structure. This is the huge problem for kids that they cannot to go further (high school). Unfortunately, the government didn't’ plan to correct it. People may think math is not important. But as the world turns to AI and robotics, math is the key to success in this area.

I have a 2 year old , I’m 43 . I was gifted and talented in reading and science but now I’m learning that the way that school teaches kids to read now I know I will not be putting my daughter into a public school.

Powerful journalism! Makes you wonder about the state of education training. What is happening in education programs???

I’m late to the party on the science of reading but listening to this helped me understand what’s up in reading education. Thank you so much.

Can you please explain the reason why they changed how math is taught next!!!!

Incredibly interesting as a lifelong lover of reading who was born in 83.

During the first episode, when the publishers and curriculum writers go unnamed, I kept saying “this sounds exactly like Lucy.” When she finally said it, I felt SO validated. This is an excellent podcast that discusses an epidemic our students face in America.

This was a very interesting and intriguing podcast. I’m still in school and it’s sad knowing that other children and teens were unable to learn. It’s very unfortunate because they’re trying to learn but it’s hard to catch up because that’s a lot of time and missed education to make up for (if that makes sense).

The podcast “Sold a Story: How Teaching Kids to Read Went So Wrong” by Emily Hanford presents a critical examination of contemporary reading instruction methods, particularly the emphasis on guessing strategies over phonics-based approaches.  Hanford argues that many schools have adopted methods encouraging children to guess words using context clues or pictures, rather than teaching systematic phonics for decoding words. This critique is supported by cognitive scientists who have long debunked the theory that reading can be effectively taught without phonics.  Regarding educational attainment, data indicates that states like Massachusetts and Colorado have higher percentages of adults with bachelor’s degrees or higher, at 44.5% and 41.6% respectively. In contrast, states in the southern U.S. generally report lower educational attainment levels.  While the podcast sheds light on important issues in reading education, it has faced criticism for potentially oversimplifying complex pedagogical debates and not fully acknowledging the diversity of student needs and learning styles. Critics argue that a one-size-fits-all approach may not be effective for all students, and that a balanced literacy approach, which includes both phonics and whole language strategies, might be more beneficial. In summary, “Sold a Story” raises valid concerns about current reading instruction methods and highlights disparities in educational attainment across different regions. However, the podcast’s critique may benefit from a more nuanced discussion that considers the complexities of teaching reading to a diverse student population.

I’ve been a high school English teacher for 33 years, and I’ve been blaming the influx of struggling readers, the growing number of IEP’s, and the general decline in literacy skills on technology. I’ve just discovered our district’s elementary school uses the Whole Language approach. I’ve got some questions for our admin.

This Podcast is everything. All educators need to listen to this.

Reading and writing is a key to a wealth of knowledge and the base of learning. To know we’re failing so many of our children and sending them off into the world without this critical skill is heartbreaking knowing the adversity and challenges they will face. This reporting has changed the way I see our education system and has invigorated me into taking a more active role in the education of the children around me.

When blacks and or browns are intrigued to an extreme by someone or something, they or it is then placed into a song. Songs are created for various reasons, mostly to assist in celebration of positivity and or remembrance. As myself had attended schools for a total of about 3 decades(60’s to 80’s), I’d known of some that had been kept back, had to repeat, or worse … dropped out of school. Never in my wildest dreams or nightmares, I’d think I’d come to witness an adult or young-adult unable to read, or with difficulty reading, nor did I view it as such a mounting task. This to myself would classify as being border or actual to that of an ‘epidemic’ in society. Mostly for such a strong and powerful country, it’s nothing short of an ‘purposeful ‘dumbing-down’, a DEEP self-inflicted wound amongst ourselves. But we are strong for a reason, it’s never too late. And can be fixed. Never knew the first years were most crucial, and if missed become stigmatic. Need to help those that hide get over stigma to progress. No one is or should be unable. - s.jxn - ga

This podcast makes a lot of sense. Last year I had the shocking realization my 9 year old could barely read the cereal box graphics and hated reading, even though she was passing with A’s in school. She struggled to pronounce words, got frustrated quickly, was often not excited about it and hated when I would encourage her to read. I spent a lot of time working with her over the last year on pronunciation, reading and writing and phonics to catch her up.

I am a teacher who has always been skeptical of “whole language” approaches to reading and writing. I teach high school students who have learned through this method and it is still so challenging for many of them to read. This podcast has helped me understand why they struggle and how I might help them. As a parent, I will be keeping a close eye on my kids’ reading progress when it’s time for kindergarten.

I didn’t know any of this stuff. But, based on the fact that so many kids cannot read properly, I had a hunch something was wrong and just started looking for a podcast that talked about literacy. This one ended up explaining everything. Corporate pseudoscience and overthinking theorists who don’t even remember their First Grade years have gripped American schools when it comes to reading. There’s a lot of magical thinking involved with these anti-phonics theorists. This podcast addresses all the angles involved. This podcast isn’t ideological for the sake of an ideology. The conclusions made are based on massive evidence.

For years I have watched people around me and thought I didn’t know anything because I didn’t buy into what the teachers around me were preaching about. Thank you for reminding me to trust my gut.

No serious classroom teacher, instructional aide, admin, school board member, or parent can listen to this without being shocked and committed to improvement.

This podcast did not share any success of guided reading and balanced literacy. It only talked about the negative.

This is a must listen to if you are concerned about the state of education.

Every person should listen to this podcast. The future of our children depends on what we do to help them.

As a children’s librarian, I’m a little embarrassed it took two years for this podcast to get on my radar. About a year and a half/two years ago, we had a huge uptick of parents asking for “decodable books” for their early readers. This wasn’t a term we were familiar with but we do have a big collection of phonics books so a quick google helped us connect these parents with the right resources. This podcast has blown my mind. I cannot believe this was allowed to go on for so long and so many children suffered from it. I live in suburban IL and while my children’s school does teach phonics, they are still using the F&P leveled reading system. It’s made me that much more determined to build up my daughter’s phonics knowledge before we send her to Kindergarten—just to make sure she’s getting what she needs. I’m very grateful for this podcast as it gave me a lot to think about personally and professionally.

Eye opening. Great listen.

A must!

I didn’t know about any of this prior to listening to this podcast and I was blown away. I was also able to connect with many teachers in my life by mentioning this podcast and what it covers; it was really nice to be able to talk to them about something they know a lot more about and for them to feel more validated and understood. I really appreciate all the work that went into this podcast, and I really appreciated being able to learn more about this. Btw I listened to this all in one day; couldn’t stop!

Thank you for your reporting -- and for your directness and strength to stand up, ask essential questions, and insist on known facts. The fallout from generations of the reading curriculum advanced by Klay, Calkins, Fountas and Pinnell didn't affect just elementary school students, junior high and high school students -- of course, it affected and is still impacting students in college. I've taught university- and college-level writing and reading along with tutoring in writing labs, and have worked with lots of students who struggled at reading (therefore everything else). When working with them one-on-one, I would inevitably advise, "Sound it out" -- and they had no idea what I was talking about. At some point years ago, one of the Writing Lab directors I worked under explained why "sound it out" wasn't part of students' learning experience or vocabulary. It was painful to realize how these obviously smart and hard-working young people had been hobbled from childhood by a reading method so obviously flawed and wrong-headed. Middle- and upperclass families in some areas of the country are able to hire tutors for their kids as a way to bypass what they've (not) been taught in school, but in not so wealthy parts of the country, in small cities and less cosmopolitan regions, folks just don't have that kind of money. I wonder how many kids throughout the years have struggled terribly as a result of this. I'm further curious as to whether these curriculum failures and terrible student outcomes have had any implications over the past 15-20 years on the push for school vouchers, charter schools and the idea of allowing federal funding for private schools. Scary.

I might be 10 years old but, I still can’t believe some kids didn’t get to learn to read like I did! 📖📚📒

Fascinating reporting, sent me back to my now-college-grad kids to ask how they were taught to read. I also work in the Special Education universe where acceptance of the metrics discussed in this podcast is doubly concerning.

I am two episodes and can’t wait for my next commute to hear more. As a mother of two brand new readers (1st grade) and a 3 year old who is listening and watching the “magic” of her older sisters, it is so interesting!! They are doing great, but I’m hearing some of these “Clay” methods at home (as a child described to her twin how to figure out a word). Just yesterday. I’m now listening to ensure they slow down on their “heart words” which are memorized and focusing on the phonetics. Excellent reporting. Applicable to my inner circle and can’t wait to share with others.

I wish I would have known. My only hope is that the future generation of teachers will do better.

All these educated people, and they don’t know the difference between a “phonetic” alphabet and an “ideographic” alphabet? This would be great away to teach kids to read Chinese, but makes zero sense for an alphabet the entire point of which is that the letters make sounds.

This was so good I spent the entire day after Thanksgiving listening. I COULD NOT STOP!! This is what true journalism looks like. Hard hitting but very fair. Hanford is my new hero. God bless you for this!

While I agree that Lucy Clakins reading curriculum leaves much to be desired, this is far from unbiased reporting. I fear this will only contribute to another pendulum swing.

I do not have words to express the power of this podcast. The reporting is dispassionate and what they expose is stunning. You will want to tell all of your friends (-and your kids’ teachers) to listen to it. I can’t stop talking about and thinking about it. This is investigative reporting at its best. Please, please listen to it.

This is so well done. Thank you for all of the work and research you have done.

I’m not a huge podcast person, but one day I came across this one and it was incredibly captivating, right away. I’m teaching my 4 year old to read now (we homeschool) and I can’t get enough of how our poor kids are not truly being taught in public schools. I would continue to list to a thousand more podcast like this.

I have my masters degree in teaching reading, but unfortunately earned it during the “whole language” era of education. I could tell it wasn’t working for all students and wondered how students could just “put it all together” without phonics. So as time went on, Guided Reading became the new way to teach reading. Still not much emphasis on how to sound out words. I am now retired and am thrilled to learn that brain research has been done on what goes on in our brains when learning to read. We were wrong! Learning to sound out words can help students go further in their reading! I do hope this science reaches curriculum committees in every school district. I haven’t finished this podcast series yet but look forward to learning more! Thank you!

This is well done and touches on things that nobody want to talk about . I am so glad someone is because we have so ma y kids that can’t read .

I have little kids and this has absolutely changed how I view their teachers and how I've been teaching them to read. I'm so impressed with this podcast and recommend it to EVERYONE! I would binge 10 more seasons if they existed. Thank you for shining a light on this topic and I look forward to more.

Every parent and every teacher needs to listen to this podcast. I’m sitting here listening to Sold A Story and my blood is boiling. In 2017 I went back to San Jose State University, in my mid-fifties, to get an elementary teaching credential. In our reading instruction classes we were taught the cueing theory, Fountas and Pinnell, Guided Reading, Caulkins, and all that these systems entailed. When some of us older students mentioned helping students learn to sound out words, we were told no, don’t do that. Phonics was totally downplayed. Open Court, the phonics-based system used by my daughter’s elementary school in the late 90s, was explicitly denigrated. My child was so lucky to be in a school that used a phonics system, but my heart breaks for all the kids who are in schools that don’t. Almost worse, new teachers are STILL being trained to use disproven methods. “Professors” of education sit righteously on their high horses promoting garbage while children suffer.

Very biased, only telling about one side of reading instruction. Does not consider the fact that children learn to read in many different ways so teachers must use many different techniques to meet all those needs. This person is selling only ONE method. No balance at all. Proceed with caution.

This is an amazingly well done podcast. A great listen on an incredibly shocking topic - why kids can’t read. I hope this changes how we teach future children 🙏 I can’t wait for the next podcast done by this crew!

Well reported and easy to understand. This show is not only compelling to the kid, it has become a real force of change for reading education in America.

Thank you so much for bringing this issue to light. I truly believe this is one of the most important podcasts that have been made about the field of education. It really does seem like the methods of teaching reading should be common sense and it’s so unfortunate how wrong things have gone.

This podcast is spectacular. Teachers often don’t have the research. They need to be better teachers. They are limited with time and financial resources. Districts choose the easiest paths. Often district leaders are too strapped with time to also do research. As a young teacher, I also did the Lucy Calkins. I went to her workshops. But we also taught phonics along with the writing and reading workshop. It’s about the blend. Giving kids lots of books and teaching them to sound out words. After more than 30 years of teaching, I never understood the foundations of the FNP books. I am sharing this with six of my school districts. Big thanks. This sounds like a class action lawsuit against the publisher.