Traci Tague

After a school conference, many Chicago parents leave with the same unsettled feeling. They heard something like "your child is below grade level" or "we're monitoring their progress", and they're not quite sure what to do with that information. The words sound serious, but the explanation often stops there. Here's what those phrases actually mean, and how to think about your child's reading development within Chicago Public Schools. CPS doesn't use one universal reading level system This...

Most parents assume that learning to read is mainly about memorizing words and getting through enough books. Practice makes perfect, right? That's part of it. But fluent reading rests on something more fundamental: understanding how written language is actually structured. English can look chaotic - full of silent letters, unexpected spellings, and apparent exceptions. But underneath that surface, it follows consistent patterns rooted in sound, meaning, and history. Once children learn to see...

There's a pattern that many Chicago parents know well. Their child tries hard, does the homework, shows up every day, and still comes home with a reading log that feels like a battle. Spelling tests end in tears. Reading aloud is something to dread, not do. If that sounds like your family, you're not imagining things, and you're not alone. Reading difficulties are common, have identifiable causes, and respond well to intervention with the right kind of support. The first step is...