Relational Organizing and the Science of Reading

Over the weekend, science of reading goddess Emily Hanford shared a blog of mine. The results were predictably positive: website traffic went way up, other people shared and commented on the post, and I added Twitter followers. At first, I was excited. “You’ve made it!” a friend texted me.

But the excitement was temporary. When I looked at who had liked the post, who had reached out, who had retweeted and commented, I realized I was preaching to the choir. The people who shared my work didn’t need convincing. Ironically, the post that I had written about expanding the science of reading movement reinforced the challenges we face in doing just that. 

In today’s post, I’m going to explore how this (or really any) movement can become more outward-looking and growth-oriented through a political tactic called relational organizing.

First, a quick explainer about relational organizing. Relational organizing means using the strength of your personal relationships to get your friends and family to do something: vote, sign a petition, volunteer, come to a meeting, attend a protest, that sort of thing. The theory is that instead of getting a text message or phone call or a home visit from a stranger encouraging you to do something, it’s more effective to hear from a trusted friend or family member. If you’re interested in reading more, this primer, from former Jon Ossoff campaign staffers, is a good place to start. 

So what does relational organizing have to do with growing the science of reading movement? 

The next time you go to retweet something from Nadine Gaab or turn on the latest Amplify podcast or watch the sessions you missed from last weekend’s ​​Aldine ISD’s #LiteracyMatters Conference, I want you to become a relational organizer.

First, make a friendmap. Identify the people in your life who might be interested in the science of reading. They could be educator friends. They could be the parents of young children. They could have political connections. They could be itching for something to do in retirement. They might just have a lot of connections.

Your friendmap might look something like this:

Insert “science of reading joke about my first-grade teacher not teaching handwriting” here. 

Second, pick one person from your map who has a reason to care.

Third, plan out a conversation and an action to complete together. Your conversation should be about why this work is so personal and important to you, and how it relates to your friend (more on this later). Your action could be any number of things. For example:

• You could invite your educator friend to the next relevant conference or webinar you attend.

• You could recruit your parent friend to volunteer with you at your local elementary school, so you can both observe students reading firsthand. 

• You could ask your well-connected friend to host a conversation between you and someone who is running for the school board.

These are just a few ideas. I’m sure you’ll have better ones. The key is to make your friend aware of the science of reading movement first, and then include them in meaningful, useful action, so they feel like they’re part of the movement. Then, repeat!

This is not easy work. It’s way more comfortable to trade compliments and share ideas amongst ourselves online. But this is important work. We can wait for the movement to grow on its own. Or we can intentionally, systematically convert and mobilize our friends and family members to join us in changing the system. And the cool thing about relational organizing is that once you get your friends and family onboard, you can teach them how to become relational organizers too.