Learning Unboxed

In this episode of Learning Unboxed, we dive into reading skills development with Tim Waldron, CEO of Readable English. We explore why so many students—especially in upper elementary, middle, and high school—are still reading below grade level and what it takes to close that gap quickly. The stakes are high: student confidence, classroom participation, and long-term success in college, career, and beyond.Tim explains how English’s irregular spelling makes decoding harder than in phonetic languages. Readable English offers a research-backed approach—adding syllable breaks, grayed-out silent letters, and 21 glyphs tied to English phonemes—to reduce cognitive load and speed fluency and comprehension. This method supports the science of reading and Scarborough’s Rope by freeing up brainpower for meaning-making.We also look at implementation: browser-based tools that mark up any digital text, short daily “reading power-ups” aligned to CTE pathways, and a light lift for teachers through two virtual trainings. Tim s