MONTANA STATE LITERACY ASSOCIATION

International Literacy Association Affiliate

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Literacy Voices

Letter From the Editor
September 2025
Special Collection: Early Literacy

Dear Literacy Colleagues,
A new school year is underway with new opportunities and challenges; it is such an exciting and busy time of year. Amid all the planning, organizing, and meetings, I’ve reflected on a simple but powerful quote that frames the theme of this special collection, “reading is fundamental” (R. Paul, 2025). As we gear up for the MSLA conference in October, I invite all of you to take some time and enjoy reading the work of your peers. 

This special collection of the Literacy Voices Journal explores the early foundations of education, specifically, early childhood education in Montana, reading, and spelling. In our first article, Heigis (2025) suggests that expanding access to early childhood education while “ensuring that the programs offered are of high quality, culturally responsive, and adaptable to meet the diverse needs of children across the state” is critical undertaking (p.20).

Examining past practices can help inform current and future approaches, especially in the context of reading intervention and instruction methods as they develop over time. The next article in this special collection is titled, “Learning to Read: Recollections and Reflections” and examines an evolution of reading practices through a narrative exploration of one father’s journey with reading and school. Similar to Heigis’ (2025) assertions concerning high quality and culturally responsive pedagogy central to reading instruction, Lywandowsky and Ellsworth (2025) “advocate for student-centered pedagogy that champions learners’ identity as readers” (p. 9).

The final article in this special collection is also a reflection on reading instruction and spelling. Morales and Ellsworth (2025) examine English orthography and offer recommendations drawn from the sciences of reading on spelling instruction in the classroom. This article touches on similar themes in the work of Dr. Julie Washington on how dialect and language interplay with literacy acquisition (Brooke & Washington, 2024). Morales and Ellsworth remind us that “a robust spelling curriculum teaches students how to spell and use strategies, rather than how to memorize” and that developing word consciousness in students is an important goal of expert spelling instructional practices.

Happy reading!
Dr. Kari Dahle-Huff
Professor of Literacy, Montana State University Billings
Editor of Literacy Voices Journal

References

Brooke., L. (host) & Washington, J. (interviewee). (6 Aug 2024). A Reading Revolution and Language Variations with Dr. Julie Washington. In All For Literacy.
https://www.lexialearning.com/resources/all-for-literacy-podcasts/a-reading-revolution-and-language-variations-with-dr-julie-washington

Charles, R., & Charles, R. (2010, March 1). The Snatch Game (Season 2, Episode 5) In R. Charles, RuPaul's Drag Race. World of Wonder.

Hiegis, R., (2025). Addressing Age, Gender, and Socioeconomic Factors in Montana's Early Childhood Education: Policy Options for Improving Reading Literacy and School
Readiness. Literacy Voices Journal. https://www.montanareads.org/literacy-voices

Lywandowsky, K., & Ellsworth, A., (2025). Learning to Read: Recollections and Reflections.  Literacy Voices Journal. https://www.montanareads.org/literacy-voices

Morales, A., & Ellsworth, A. (2025). The S-Word Revisited: A Case for Spelling as Foundational Literacy Knowledge. Literacy Voices Journal.
https://www.montanareads.org/literacy-voices

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