The Knowledge Matters Podcast

Social studies is an essential component of literacy, because it allows students to build the knowledge and vocabulary they’ll need to comprehend increasingly complex texts. In this episode, host Kyair Butts is joined by guest Melissa Loftus, a former teacher, curriculum developer, and co-host of the Melissa & Lori Love Literacy podcast. She explains why phonics alone is essential but not enough, and that even very young children can “read to learn” through content-rich children’s books and read-alouds of more complex texts. 
“What they know about the world is going to help them comprehend what they read,” Melissa says. “Social studies is learning about the world. It's the exact knowledge, vocabulary that complex texts are going to assume that they know.”
Reading comprehension depends not only on decoding words but also on knowing enough about the world to make sense of what authors assume readers already understand. Effective literacy instruction balances foundational reading skills with opportunities to build knowledge through rich content. Social studies content is especially potent, because it builds vocabulary, knowledge, and familiarity with important information and ideas, and also nurtures students' natural curiosity about the world. Research shows that spending more time on social studies accelerates literacy more than extra time in English language arts. 
Melissa compares the role of content knowledge in reading with being in a familiar environment. Walking through your hometown, you can notice details, ask questions, and pick up on nuances. In a completely unfamiliar place, your brain is working hard just to get from point A to point B. She and Kyair discuss how history, geography, and civics also build confidence, encourage participation, and help create more equitable learning opportunities by giving all students access to shared knowledge. They conclude that history should not be sacrificed due to scheduling pressures, but instead integrated throughout the school day, helping students become stronger readers, informed citizens, and lifelong learners.
This podcast is produced by Knowledge Matters on behalf of the History Matters Campaign. Follow Knowledge Matters on Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter/X. Search #historymatters to join the conversation.
Production by Tressa Versteeg. Original music and sound engineering by Aidan Shea.
Resources:
Adam Tyner and Sarah Kabourek. Social Studies Instruction and Reading Comprehension: Evidence from the Early Childhood Longitudinal Study. Washington D.C.: Thomas B. Fordham Institute (September 2020).
Loftus, Melissa, and Lori Sappington. The Literacy 50–A Q&A Handbook for Teachers: Real-World Answers to Questions About Reading That Keep You Up at Night. Scholastic Teaching Solutions, 2024.
Melissa & Lori Love Literacy Podcast

Season 2 of the History Matters Podcast begins with a fascinating conversation between a cognitive scientist and middle-school teacher about the powerful connection between social studies, literacy, and learning.
Today’s guest is Dr. Cynthia Nebel, the Director of Learning Services and an Associate Professor of Psychiatry and Behavioral Neuroscience at St. Louis University School of Medicine. She’s also an active collaborator with The Learning Scientists, which is dedicated to bridging research and practice to improve educational and organizational outcomes. The episode is hosted by Kyair Butts, an award-winning Baltimore middle-school teacher, former Goyen Fellow, curriculum coach, and contributor to Knowledge Matters.
Cindy explains that background knowledge is one of the strongest predictors of reading comprehension. She highlights classic studies on baseball and chess, showing that readers with relevant knowledge process information more efficiently because they can organize and connect new ideas rather than treating them as isolated facts.
She argues that reading comprehension is not simply a matter of decoding or general reading ability; it also depends on having the context necessary to make sense of what is being read. History, geography, civics, and other content-rich subjects provide the knowledge and vocabulary students need to understand increasingly complex texts. Kyair reflects on how familiarity with historical events enriches experiences with books, films, and cultural references, illustrating how background knowledge deepens engagement.
The discussion also explores the reciprocal relationship between literacy and content learning. Reading strengthens students’ understanding of academic subjects, while subject-area instruction makes reading more meaningful and accessible. This connection is often overlooked because literacy researchers and social studies educators tend to work in separate fields, despite their shared goals.
Educators have an ethical responsibility to intentionally build students’ background knowledge. By providing all students with rich content and historical context, schools enable them to think critically, participate fully in civic life, and engage confidently with complex texts and ideas.
This podcast is produced by Knowledge Matters on behalf of the History Matters Campaign. Follow Knowledge Matters on Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter/X. Search #historymatters to join the conversation.
Production by Tressa Versteeg. Original music and sound engineering by Aidan Shea.
Resources:
The Learning Scientists
Chase, W. G., & Simon, H. A. (1973). Perception in chess. Cognitive psychology, 4(1), 55-81.

What kinds of history instruction build content knowledge and civic awareness? Why is social studies content such a power player when it comes to literacy? How can schools make time for these critical learning opportunities? 
In Season 2 of the History Matters Podcast, hosts Kyair Butts, Barbara Davidson, and Ebony McKiver explore these questions in dynamic conversations with educators, experts, and leaders working to bring rich history lessons into the classroom. 
In six fast-paced episodes, “Connecting History to the Classroom” examines why strong history instruction is uniquely well-suited to support literacy and civic engagement and how schools and systems are implementing content-rich history right now. Join Kyair, Barbara, and Ebony as they bring listeners inside the classroom and the brain, with insights from literacy experts, cognitive scientists, education leaders, and curriculum writers.
This podcast is produced by Knowledge Matters on behalf of the History Matters Campaign. Follow Knowledge Matters on Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter/X. Search #historymatters to join the conversation.
Production by Tressa Versteeg. Original music and sound engineering by Aidan Shea.

Welcome to a special edition of the Knowledge Matters Podcast. 
This episode is a special bonus—an audio recording of our recent webinar, Literacy and the Science of Learning. It is a dynamic, hourlong conversation between three exciting experts in the field: Dylan Wiliam, Doug Lemov, and Natalie Wexler, facilitated by Kristen McQuillan of StandardsWork.
In this webinar, the panel responds to listener questions based on the podcast season that shares the same title. They explore what happens in the brain when students read and write and why that matters for teaching and learning. We found the conversation so fascinating, we wanted to make it available in as many formats as possible.
Nearly 800 people joined the original webinar, representing more than 45 states and 40 countries. Listeners praised a “brilliant discussion” by “my edu-heroes” and described it as “excellent virtual PD.”
Resources mentioned in this webinar:
Knowledge Matters Review Tool: A Guide for Evaluating K-8 Curriculum
Knowledge Matters Season 3 Podcast
“Reading Whole Books and Miracles in Education” by Natalie Wexler
You can watch this webinar as a video recording, as well as the rest of our webinars on our website. 
In addition, new “Literacy and the Science of Learning” study guides are available for download. In these user-friendly guides, Dylan goes deep on cognitive load and how to boost long-term memory, Doug discusses fluency and the value in reading whole books, and Natalie dives into the power of writing to support comprehension, knowledge retention, and critical thinking. These guides ask big questions while also addressing practical concerns, with clear takeaways for teachers.
Stay in the loop! Sign up for our newsletter to find out about the next webinar.
Original music and sound engineering by Aidan Shea.

Thirteen colonies rose up, rebelled against an Empire, and won their independence. These unlikely victors built a new nation on democratic principles that inspired similar movements around the world.
How should we tell the story of our nation’s founding? Guests Sarah Botstein and David Schmidt, who co-directed The American Revolution with Ken Burns, explain how chronology and characters shape their longform PBS documentaries and accompanying curriculum materials, in a bonus episode of the History Matters Podcast.
“We always work chronologically. We don’t work thematically. And I think when teaching history, I have been fairly convinced that that’s the way to do it,” says Botstein. “When you teach thematically, you silo things. When you work chronologically, you show the complexity, the nuance, unbelievable heroism, the ways people do great things and terrible things all at once, particularly in the story of a war.”
Children are “capable of understanding these complex stories,” Schmidt says. “I think you can trust children’s intelligence a little more than we often do.”
The filmmakers describe the important role that characters play in keeping learners and viewers engaged. Their series follows George Washington and other leaders, as well as a native community in the Shenandoah Valley, young soldiers who volunteered for the fight, and Betsy Ambler of Yorktown, Virginia, who ages from 10 to 18 during the war.
“She lived much of her life as a refugee and her town was completely destroyed by that war. She never witnessed a battle, but she was impacted by the war every day,” Schmidt says. “These are people who are not dissimilar from you and me.”
“If you are following stories of these other people, you’re worried about what George Washington might do, because you are worried about them,” Botstein says. “It makes students understand why history matters. We’re all impacted by decisions that leaders make and by world events—small, medium, and large.”
They also discuss how visual artifacts like paintings and maps are especially engaging for young students and can help them understand a history story from different points of view.
“It’s really important when teaching history to show a variety of perspectives,” Botstein says. “To have empathy and openness and generosity, to try to understand why people did good things and why people did bad things, and how we can be optimistic in learning about history to make a better future, and make better on the promises that the revolution tried to inspire.”
This podcast is produced by the Knowledge Matters and StandardsWork, on behalf of the History Matters Campaign. Follow the History Matters Campaign on Instagram, Facebook and Twitter/X. Search #historymatters to join the conversation.
Production by Tressa Versteeg. Original music and sound engineering by Aidan Shea.