Scarborough's Reading Rope helps bridge the gap between proficient and struggling readers by emphasizing the interplay between word recognition and language comprehension and guiding instruction.

• A. True
• B. False
• C. It focuses only on decoding
• D. It ignores comprehension

Answer: (A)

Scarborough's Reading Rope shows skilled reading as two intertwined strands: word recognition and language comprehension. Word recognition involves decoding and recognizing words automatically, while language comprehension covers vocabulary, background knowledge, syntax, and the ability to reason with text. The strength of a reader comes from both strands being solid and from how well decoding and meaning-making work together as the reader processes text. This is why the model guides instruction to address both areas at once—teaching systematic phonics and fluency alongside rich vocabulary development, background knowledge, and explicit comprehension strategies. When decoding is strong but understanding is weak, comprehension still suffers; conversely, strong language skills without solid decoding can leave a reader unable to access the text. Emphasizing the interplay and using that as a guide for instruction exactly mirrors what Scarborough’s Rope advocates, making the statement true.