|
RECENT BEST PRACTICES' MESSAGES
Table of Contents
SEDL
(Southwest Educational Development Laboratory) Two New Articles Added to Website
Put Reading First
Improving
Literary Understanding Through Classroom Conversation
"Why Children Succeed or Fail at Reading"
"30
Years of Research: What We Now Know About How Children Learn to Read"
A Guide for Parents & Ready to Read, Ready to Learn
Every Child
Reading: A Professional Development Guide
"Best Practices: Reading" Website is now active
Report of the
National Reading Panel: Teaching Children
Phonemic
Awareness and Conference Opportunity
SEDL
(Southwest Educational Development Laboratory) Two New Articles Added to Website
SEDL has recently added two new articles to the list of "topics"articles
available on their website
http://www.sedl.org/reading/.
The first is a description of "myths" about
reading instruction, and the second is a description of
various different assessment approaches that can be used
for monitoring development of early reading in various domains such
as phoneme awareness, semantics, and decoding.
Each of these articles is available in two formats -- you can
either read the text "live" on the web, or you
can download a free PDF version of each of the documents.
The PDF versions provide a nice resource that can be used
for teacher study groups or professional development
sessions.
As with all of SEDL's web resources, you are free to download,
copy and share these articles. The only stipulation is
that the articles not be altered, and that SEDL be given
appropriate citation for the articles.
I hope you enjoy reading these articles -- I've shared them with
teachers in professional development sessions, and they have been
very well received. I've found that both of these articles are
excellent for stimulating conversation and thought in study
groups, and they help people to articulate their thoughts
around issues in reading instruction more clearly.
Go to
http://www.sedl.org/reading/,
download, and enjoy. And while you are there, click
on the "Our Work: Reading" link in the upper
right hand corner and see what other resources SEDL has available
for people interested in reading and reading instruction.
Put Reading First
We have added "Put Reading First" on the Best Practice: Reading web
page. It is easy to read, gives clear suggestions for applications to classroom
instruction and is accompanied by a guide for parents. It will make a great
guide for study groups or grade level groups of teachers in your school. Enjoy
http://www.nifl.gov/partnershipforreading/publications/reading_first2.html
Improving
Literary Understanding Through Classroom Conversation
This is the first new link we have put on the Best Practice:
Reading
list serve this school year. I hope the year is going well for
you. The publication, Improving Literary Understanding
Through Classroom Conversation, http://cela.albany.edu/env.pdf
gives some excellent strategies for helping
children think about and comprehend what they are reading.
Some of the strategies seem fairly sophisticated for primary children,
and yet many of them can be used to support the development of their
comprehension skills. Have fun with the ideas and try them with your
students if you are not already doing them.
"Why Children Succeed or Fail at Reading"
We have added "Why Children Succeed or Fail at Reading"
http://www.completelearningcenter.com/whychildren.shtml
to the Best Practice: Reading web page. The article
summarizes research from NICHD's program in learning
disabilities.
"30
Years of Research: What We Now Know About How Children Learn to Read"
We have just added "30 Years of Research: What We Now Know About How
Children Learn to Read" to the Best Practice: Reading web page. It is a
synthesis of research from the National Institute of Child Health and Human
Development. It includes implications for instruction, especially in the early
years of school.
http://theroadtoemmaus.org/RdLb/21PbAr/Ed/30yr_phn.htm
A Guide for Parents & Ready to Read, Ready to Learn
FIRST LADY Laura Bush recently issued "A Guide for
Parents:
How Do I Know a Good Early Reading Program When I See
One?" & "Ready to Read, Ready to Learn." She also announced
her plans to focus America's attention on recruiting the
best & brightest to the teaching profession & ensuring
that all young children are ready to read & learn when
they enter the classroom. The full text of the guide for
parents is below. It is also available on the US
Department of Education's website, along with the 5-page
"Ready to Read, Ready to Learn":
http://www.ed.gov/parents/read/resources/goodprogram.html
http://www.ed.gov/teachers/how/read/rrrl/part_pg6.html
A GUIDE FOR PARENTS: How Do I Know a Good
Early Reading
Program When I See One?
February 26, 2001
* Every teacher is excited about reading & promotes the value &
fun of reading to students.
* All students are carefully evaluated, beginning in Kindergarten,
to see what they know & what they need to become good
readers.
* Reading instruction & practice lasts 90 minutes or more a day
in first, second & third grades & 60 minutes a day in Kindergarten.
* All students in first, second & third grades who are behind in
reading get special instruction & practice. These students
receive, throughout the day, a total of 60 extra minutes
of instruction.
* Before- or after-school help is given to all students beyond first
grade who need extra instruction or who need to review skills.
Summer school is available for students who are behind at
the end of the year.
* Reading instruction & practice includes work on letters, sounds
& blending sounds. Students learn to blend letters & sounds
to form new words.
* Learning new words & their meaning is an important part of instruction.
* Students have daily spelling practice & weekly spelling tests.
* The connection between reading & writing is taught on a daily
basis. Students write daily. Papers are corrected & returned
to the students. By the end of second grade, students
write final copies of corrected papers. Corrected papers
are sent home for parents to see.
* All students are read to each day from different kinds of books.
Students discuss what they read with teachers & other
students.
* All students have a chance to read both silently & aloud in school
each day & at home every night.
* Every classroom has a library of books that children want to read.
This includes easy books & books that are more difficult.
* The school library is used often & has many books. Students may
check books out during the summer & over holidays.
Every
Child Reading: A Professional Development Guide
We have just added Every Child Reading: A Professional Development Guide to
the Best Practice: Reading web page.
http://www.dese.mo.gov/divimprove/fedprog/Bestpractices/index.html.
This guide to professional development is focused on providing improved
instruction in reading.
http://learningfirst.org/publications/reading/guide/index.html
"Best Practices: Reading" Website is now active
The "Best Practices: Reading" website
is now active. It contains some of the best sources we
could find for understanding the latest research in reading. Reading is a
major emphasis of the State Board of Education's recent "Meeting
the Challenge". The Board created a goal that "every child in Missouri
will finish elementary school with a solid foundation of reading and
math skills". The common standard is to have every child reading at least
at the proficient level by the end of third grade. Best Practices: Reading
will help districts decide how best to use their resources to help with
reading instruction. To find the "Best Practices: Reading" website click on
http://dese.mo.gov/divimprove/fedprog/index.html
Report of the
National Reading Panel: Teaching Children
We have added the Report of the National Reading Panel: Teaching Children To
Read to the Best Practice: Reading page.
http://clem.mscd.edu/~nicholsc/literacy/NationalReadingPanel.htm
This publication is a review of the scientific research literature on reading
and implications for reading instruction. It explains key components of research
based reading including alphabetics, fluency comprehension, and breaks them down
into topics that teachers can study and implement in their classrooms. It also
asks the important questions about each topic of whether or not instruction in
the topic improves reading and if so, how is the instruction best provided. This
is a must read for those of you who are working to improve reading instruction
in your classrooms.
(Instructions to download pdf http://www.dese.state.mo.us/pdfnote.html)
Phonemic Awareness and
Conference Opportunity
*Phonemic Awareness and the Teaching of Reading
*New Literacies for New Times: Integrating Technology and the
Internet Into the Curriculum
Phonemic Awareness and the Teaching of Reading
This position paper is written by the Board of Directors of
the International Reading Association in the hope of clarifying some of the
issues surrounding phonemic awareness and whether or not it can be taught. Since
phonemic awareness is one of the best predictors of reading success, it needs to
be understood.
Much has been written and researched about the importance of
the acquisition of phonemic awareness. This paper defines phonemic awareness,
discusses the research and its implications for instruction, especially in the
primary grades.
http://www.reading.org/resources/issues/positions_phonemic.html
(Instructions to download pdf http://www.dese.state.mo.us/pdfnote.html)
|
