When designing instruction aligned with Standard 1, what is a core component of scaffolding for struggling readers?

• A. Rely on independent reading at the student's frustration level.
• B. Focusing exclusively on vocabulary lists.
• C. Explicit, systematic instruction in phonemic awareness and phonics, combined with guided practice, gradual release of responsibility, and explicit modeling of comprehension strategies.
• D. Waiting for students to discover strategies on their own.

Answer: (C)

Scaffolding for struggling readers relies on explicit, systematic instruction that builds decoding skills and comprehension with structured support and a clear path to independence. Focusing on phonemic awareness and phonics provides the essential tools for decoding, while guided practice with feedback helps students apply these skills accurately. Gradual release of responsibility moves students from teacher modeling to guided practice to independent application, so they gain confidence and autonomy over time. Explicit modeling of comprehension strategies—like predicting, clarifying, summarizing, and questioning—helps students approach texts strategically rather than guessing or guessing at vocabulary alone. This combined approach gives learners the scaffold they need to read more fluently and understand what they read, rather than relying on reading at a frustrating level, isolated vocabulary work, or discovery-based methods that lack guided support.