Epidsode 1: Why this podcast exists

Episode 1: Why Reading Feels So Hard (and Why It Doesn’t Have to)

Welcome to the first episode of The Reading Symphony Podcast. I’m your host, Katie Megrian—educator, literacy leader, and mom to two very different readers.

In this episode, I break down the current state of reading in the U.S., why so many children struggle, and the hopeful truth that at least 95% of kids can learn to read with the right instruction. You’ll learn why reading isn’t natural, how it actually develops in the brain, and why all parts of reading—phonics, vocabulary, knowledge, and comprehension—must work together.

New episodes drop every Wednesday morning. Starting with Episode 2, I’m joined by leading literacy experts who help translate the science of reading into clear, practical guidance for parents and educators.

If you’ve ever felt unsure about your child’s reading, you’re in the right place.

Transcript

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Welcome to the Reading Symphony Podcast, the place where clarity meets compassion. This is where families and caregivers get evidence-based trustworthy information about how reading develops, how to understand reading progress, and how to turn overwhelming information into simple, actionable steps that help every child thrive. I'm your host, Katie Megrian educator, parent, and relentless advocate for helping every child become a joyful, confident reader. Let's get started. Hi everyone, and welcome to the very first episode of the Reading Symphony Podcast. I'm so genuinely glad you're here. My name is Katie Merian. I've spent the last 22 years working in education as a classroom teacher, a school leader, and most recently as a K to 12 director of English Language Arts in a high performing public charter district in Boston. I've coached teachers, designed curriculum, built systems, and LED schools. But the role that has shaped me the most is being a mom to two very different readers. And I want to say this right from the start, even though I know a lot about teaching, reading, figuring out how to support my own child's reading when she struggled was really hard, emotional, confusing, and honestly frustrating at times. That experience combined with two decades of working with readers across every grade level and ability shaped my mission to give parents and educators clarity to help you see reading for what it truly is to make the science simple and the next steps doable. But before we talk about solutions, we need to understand the state of reading in our country. In 2024, the National Assessment of Educational Progress, often called the Nation's Report Card, released its latest reading results. Here's what they show. In the simplest possible terms, the percentage of students not meeting the proficient benchmark. Fourth grade, 69% of the nation's fourth graders were not proficient. Eighth grade, 70% were not proficient. 12th grade, 65% were not proficient. These numbers represent actual children who are struggling to read at the level needed for long-term academic success. But here's the part I want us to hold onto. Decades of research tell us that at least 95% of children can learn to read with the right instruction and the right support, and that includes students with dyslexia. The problem is that we have not consistently taught reading in ways that align with how the brain actually learns to read. Reading, like learning to play a musical instrument, is not natural. It must be orchestrated. The human brain is hardwired for spoken language, but reading is different. It requires the brain to build entirely new neural pathways. Reading develops when it is taught systematically and explicitly. Second, reading only works when all of its parts work together like a symphony. Phonics alone is not enough. Vocabulary alone is not enough. Knowledge alone is not enough. Each part matters. And that brings us to one of the clearest models we have for understanding how reading works. Many reading experts use an image called the reading rope to explain skilled reading. Picture a strong braided rope in your hands. Now imagine splitting it into two sections, one in your right hand and one in your left. Let's start with the one in the right hand. These strands in your right hand represent word recognition skills. They're comprised of phonological awareness. Which means hearing and playing with sounds like rhymes and counting syllables and words, phonemic awareness. This is the strongest early predictor of reading success, by the way. And this includes isolating, blending, and manipulating individual sounds in words. So for example, with a word like cat phonemic awareness would allow a reader to identify/c/ as the first sound,/a/ as the middle sound, and/t/ as the final sound in the word. Phonics involves connecting sounds to letters and learning spelling patterns. And when you put the skills of phonological awareness, phonemic awareness and phonics together, you are setting students up to be able to decode words. Now, let's look at the rope in your left hand. This represents language comprehension. These strands are what make reading meaningful. The first strand is background knowledge. Understanding depends on what kids already know. And the more students know about a topic, the more readily they'll be able to read complex texts about that topic. Vocabulary is closely related to background knowledge. These are the words kids learn through repeated exposure to meaningful topics and other texts. Language structures are syntax and grammar- how sentences work together and how the ideas within them relate. Verbal reasoning means making text and knowledge based inferences, connecting ideas and analyzing meanings. And then, finally, we have literacy knowledge, which is understanding genres like fiction or nonfiction. When both halves of the rope strengthen together, skilled reading emerges. If you're a parent who has ever felt unsure about your child's reading, or worried that something feels off, you're not alone. You're in absolutely the right place. And this work isn't just about our own children, it's about the 60 to 70% of children nationwide who are not reading proficiently. It brings to mind the words of educator and activist, Lila Watson."If you've come here to help me, you're wasting my time. But if you've come because your liberation is bound up with mine, then let us work together." Thank you so much for listening to the Reading Symphony Podcast. My hope is that each episode leaves you with more clarity about what actually helps children become skilled, joyful readers. If today's conversation was helpful, I'd be so grateful if you would follow the show. Leave a quick five star rating or review and share this episode with a friend or teacher or another parent who cares deeply about kids. Those small actions make a big difference in helping this work reach more families. You can also find resources, deep dives and practical tools for families by subscribing to my free weekly substack newsletter at katiemegrian.substack.com And you can connect with me on Instagram thereadingsymphony Until next time, take care. And remember, reading doesn't happen by accident. It develops when the right parts come together.