Ep.27: The One About ...Missy Purcell talks about Rebranding Balanced Literacy

Dyslexia mom and former Balanced Literacy teacher, Missy Purcell, saw the Science of Reading light and now advocates for evidence-based literacy so that every child can learn to read.We asked Missy to speak with us and share thoughts about an infographic posted on the Reading Recovery website describing how Reading Recovery aligns to the Science of Reading (SoR) and Scarsborough’s Reading Rope. Missy’s youngest son, now eleven-years-old, was given the RR intervention in first grade, so she has a lot to say as a parent advocating for Structured Literacy.

Judy Boksner, a co-host on The Literacy View, has been in the education field for over 25 years. She is still very active in her field and in the trenches on a daily basis. Judy was trained in Reading Recovery back in 2013.  She recognizes the inherent problems but also values certain aspects of her former training. She has devoted the last seven years diving deep into structured literacy and explicit instruction. Judy is trained in Orton Gillingham, Fundations, and additional  structured literacy programs and interventions.

Faith Borkowsky taught first grade and has tutored Reading Recovery “graduates” who still needed intensive intervention.

The focus of tonight's episode is based on the infographic: https://readingrecovery.org/scarboroughs-rope-and-reading-recovery/
About Missy Purcell:
Missy Purcell is the co-founder of Gwinnett Advocates for Dyslexia, a grassroots organization that advocates for evidenced based instruction in Gwinnett County. Additionally, she serves as the Education Chair with Decoding Dyslexia Georgia, DDGA, which advocates for change at the state level. Missy holds a degree in middle school education with 10+ years of experience in the classroom, grades 3rd-8th. She had stayed current in education practices by tutoring K-5 students in reading and writing using evidenced based instruction. Missy is married to Mark,
the mother of three boys, Harrison, William, and Matthew and one furbaby, named Comet. When she’s not working or advocating, she can be found with coffee in hand at the tennis courts or the baseball fields cheering on her boys!