Marilee B. Sprenger 
Wiring the Brain for Reading [EPUB ebook] 
Brain-Based Strategies for Teaching Literacy

Acknowledgments ix
About the Author xi
About the Book xiii
Chapter 1 Language Development 1
From Neural Sensitivity to Neural Commitment 2
The Right Way to Babble 4
Encouraging Speech 5
Windows of Opportunity 8
Experience and Brain Development 9
Ages and Stages in Language Development 11
An Enriched Environment for Language Development 13
Language and Gender 16
Speaking Out of Both Sides of the Brain 18
Activities 20
Summary 23
Chapter 2 Imaging and Imagining the Brain 25
The Structure of the Brain 26
How We See the Brain 29
Brain Cells 32
How Cells Communicate 35
What We Thought We Knew 37
What We Found Out Along the Way 38
Two Diverging Roads 40
Learning and Memory: A Definition 43
Summary 46
Chapter 3 The Body-Brain Connection 47
Food, Glorious Food! 48
The Learning Brain’s Diet 54
To Sleep; Perchance to Remember 57
Making the Right Moves 62
Sunshine Came Softly Through My Window 64
Brain-Body Basics 65
Stress Can Hurt the Body and the Brain 68
What Does Bullying Do to the Brain? 71
Summary 72
Chapter 4 Breaking the Code 75
Phonemic Awareness 78
The ABCs of the ABCs 82
Mirror, Mirror 82
Neurons That Fire Together 83
Dr. Seuss and Mother Goose? 84
Getting to the Core 85
Teaching Phonemic Awareness 87
Activities 87
Summary 95
Chapter 5 Patterns and Programs and Phonics! Oh, My! 97
Patterns and Programs 98
The Alphabetic Principle 102
One to One? Not Exactly 103
The Common Core: Where Do We Stand with the Standards? 103
Decoding Development in the Brain 104
Phonics Instruction 107
Factors That Lead to Learning 108
Eenie, Meenie, Minee, Moe. Or Is It Eeny, Meany, Miny, Mo? 109
Activities 111
Summary 113
Chapter 6 The Fluent Reader 115
What Fluency Means 117
The Brain’s Pathway to Fluency 119
Reading Is Pleasure 120
High-Frequency and Sight Words 121
Some Steps to Fluency 122
Activities 125
Summary 127
Chapter 7 Building Vocabulary 129
Two Types of Vocabulary 130
Vocabulary Development 131
The Common Core State Standards and Vocabulary 132
The Common Core College and Career Readiness Anchor Standards for Language 134
Choosing Our Words Carefully 135
Activities 139
Summary 143
Chapter 8 Comprehension 145
Modeling Comprehension 147
Comprehension Strategies 149
Before, During, and After Reading: What These Strategies Have to Do with the Brain 158
Activities 161
Summary 186
Chapter 9 Putting It All Together 187
For Parents 187
For Teachers 188
Keep Learning About the Brain 189
References 191
Index 201

Marilee Sprenger is an independent educational
consultant. She consults and presents nationally on topics of
learning, memory, differentiated instruction, and brain-based
teaching practices. A former teacher, she is an adjunct professor
at Aurora University. Often known as the ‘Brainlady, ‘ she is
affiliated with both the American Academy of Neurology and the
Learning and the Brain Society and is the author of several books
on the brain and learning.