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Sold a Story

APM Reports

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5.0

(4)

Millions of kids can't read well. Scientists have known for decades how children learn to read but many schools are ignoring the research. They buy teacher training and books that are rooted in a disproven idea. Emily Hanford investigates four authors and a publishing company that have made millions selling this idea.
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10 Listeners

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5.0

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Best episodes

Top 10 Sold a Story Episodes

Best episodes ranked by Goodpods Users most listened

1: The Problem

Sold a Story

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10/20/22 • 32 min

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5.0

Corinne Adams watches her son's lessons during Zoom school and discovers a dismaying truth: He can't read. Little Charlie isn't the only one. Sixty-five percent of fourth graders in the United States are not proficient readers. Kids need to learn specific skills to become good readers, and in many schools, those skills are not being taught.


Read: Emily Hanford’s reading list
Read: Transcript of this episode
Support: Donate to APM
More: soldastory.org

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10/20/22 • 32 min

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8 Listeners

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1 Comment

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2: The Idea

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10/20/22 • 51 min

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5.0

Sixty years ago, Marie Clay developed a way to teach reading she said would help kids who were falling behind. They’d catch up and never need help again. Today, her program remains popular and her theory about how people read is at the root of a lot of reading instruction in schools. But Marie Clay was wrong.


Read: Emily Hanford’s reading list
Read: Transcript of this episode
Support: Donate to APM
More: soldastory.org

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10/20/22 • 51 min

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7 Listeners

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3: The Battle

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10/27/22 • 41 min

President George W. Bush made improving reading instruction a priority. He got Congress to provide money to schools that used reading programs supported by scientific research. But backers of Marie Clay’s cueing idea saw Bush’s Reading First initiative as a threat.


Read: Transcript of this episode
Support: Donate to APM
More: soldastory.org

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10/27/22 • 41 min

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5 Listeners

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6: The Reckoning

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11/17/22 • 41 min

Lucy Calkins says she has learned from the science of reading. She's revised her materials. Fountas and Pinnell have not revised theirs. Their publisher, Heinemann, is still selling some products to teach reading that contain debunked practices. Parents, teachers and lawmakers want answers. In our final episode, we try to get some answers.


Map: How states approach reading instruction
Organize: Sold a Story discussion guide
Read: Transcript of this episode
Support: Donate to APM
More: soldastory.org

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11/17/22 • 41 min

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4 Listeners

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4: The Superstar

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11/03/22 • 33 min

Teachers sing songs about Teachers College Columbia professor Lucy Calkins. She’s one of the most influential people in American elementary education today. Her admirers call her books bibles. Why didn't she know that scientific research contradicted reading strategies she promoted?


Read: Transcript of this episode
Support: Donate to APM
More: soldastory.org

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11/03/22 • 33 min

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5: The Company

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11/10/22 • 47 min

Teachers call books published by Heinemann their "bibles." The company's products are in schools all over the country. Some of the products used to teach reading are rooted in a debunked idea about how children learn to read. But they've made the company and some of its authors millions.


Map: Heinemann’s national reach
Read: Transcript of this episode
Support: Donate to APM
More: soldastory.org

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11/10/22 • 47 min

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3 Listeners

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05/18/23 • 24 min

Across the country, school districts are dropping textbooks, state legislatures are going so far as to ban teaching methods, and everyone, it seems, is talking about "the science of reading." Things have been changing since Sold a Story was released. In this bonus episode, we tell you about some of the changes and what we think about them.


Read: Legislators look to change reading instruction
More: soldastory.org


Donate to support Sold a Story and other reporting from APM.


EXTENDED READING


Blog: Seidenberg on translating research into practice
Article: Goldenberg, Goldberg on premortem (paywall) | Excerpt

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05/18/23 • 24 min

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This week we have an episode of a show called Brains On. It’s a science podcast for kids from our colleagues at APM. In this episode, Emily joins the Brains On hosts to talk about how people learn to read. Grab the kids in your life and listen to this special episode made for kids and curious adults.


More: brainson.org


Support our show: Donate to APM Reports

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04/11/23 • 38 min

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10/13/22 • 2 min

Sold a Story is a six-part series beginning with two episodes on October 20.


More: soldastory.org

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10/13/22 • 2 min

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05/11/23 • 25 min

Messages poured in: voicemails, emails, tweets. We got a lot of messages from people after they heard Sold a Story. In this bonus episode, we bring you some of their voices. A 10-year-old figures out why he has struggled to read. A mom stays up late to binge the podcast. A teacher confirms what he's suspected for years — he's not really teaching kids how to read.


Read: Messages from our listeners
More: soldastory.org


Donate to support Sold a Story and other reporting from APM.

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05/11/23 • 25 min

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FAQ

How many episodes does Sold a Story have?

Sold a Story currently has 14 episodes available.

What topics does Sold a Story cover?

The podcast is about Society & Culture, Documentary and Podcasts.

What is the most popular episode on Sold a Story?

The episode title '1: The Problem' is the most popular.

What is the average episode length on Sold a Story?

The average episode length on Sold a Story is 39 minutes.

How often are episodes of Sold a Story released?

Episodes of Sold a Story are typically released every 7 days.

When was the first episode of Sold a Story?

The first episode of Sold a Story was released on Oct 13, 2022.

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5.0

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4 Ratings

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Kelsey

@ksearles

Jul 28

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Miranda

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Jul 21

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