Literacy

Reading Overview

Classroom communities value the excitement of reading, writing and critical thinking. Positive support is a crucial factor for children who are unraveling the important skills of reading, writing and critical thinking. Teachers and families play the most important role in helping students to master these skills. Teachers know that students come to school with great knowledge and capabilities, and that students do their best when they receive encouragement and support. We model enthusiasm and excitement when it comes to books, reading and writing.

Reading Skills

Readers become great readers by practicing the skills of reading. Teachers organize brief instructional lessons, which guide students to identify, name and practice skills for decoding. These are important skills, which enable students to independently monitor their reading.

Reading Comprehension Strategies

Teachers also offer lessons, which focus on reading comprehension strategies. These are skills, which go far beyond the old standard of “sounding out” or recalling arbitrary details. These strategies help students to think about their thinking as they read. They are metacognitive skills that allow students to create deep understandings and grasp greater meaning of texts. These skills are modeled, talked about and practiced throughout the year.

To maintain and build on these skills, teachers at Heatherwood use the same language across grades when referring to these reading comprehension strategies. This reinforces the utilization and mastery of these deep thinking skills.

Great Readers

Readers also become great readers because they fall in love with books. We use great, authentic literature as the medium for teaching how to be a great reader. At Heatherwood, the teaching of reading skills is embedded in the presentation of great classic literature, both old and new.

Guided and Independent Reading Time

We offer students guided reading time and more importantly, we teach students how to choose books independently. This allows students to match their individual interests, passions and abilities to books of their own choosing. No two readers are alike, and independent reading makes room for this. We know that developing readers at every grade level need large blocks of daily reading time to connect with their books. Research continues to show that the more time kids spend reading, the more their reading skills progress.

Book Discussions

Heatherwood readers also respond to their reading each day by talking, writing in a journal, drawing, painting, or even acting. Communicating creatively about great books expands their importance.

•  Writing Overview

Writing and reading are naturally connected and Heatherwood teachers guide students to read like writers. What choices did this author make as they wrote this book? Why did the author make these choices? What choices will YOU makes as you write your piece today.

•  Writing Forms

We start with brief lessons using authentic literature as a model for the teaching focus. Sometimes teachers use their own writing or student writings as a model. Lessons focus on a variety of writing forms such as narratives, reports, procedures, persuasive, poetry, letters and more.

Writing Traits

Lessons also focus on the use of the traits of great writing. We guide students to create ideas for their writing, how to develop and organize their ideas, utilize great word choice and voice, revise for form and edit for spelling, punctuation and grammar.

Writing Topics

Students often choose their individual writing topics. Choice allows for passions, interests, a lively voice, and background knowledge to come forth. Students are also expected to write on specific topics, as related to their social studies, math or science curriculum.

Daily Writing Workshops

Each day, students in all grades are given large periods of time to write. As students write, teachers confer with individuals or small groups. Teachers assess what individual students need to continue the development of their writing piece.

We end each day's writing workshop with a time for students to share their writing with one another. This is a time to celebrate and support our writing community. Students thrive on the opportunity to share their work with their peers and results in inspiration and motivation for the next day.

Literacy Teachers

Literacy teachers help to reduce class size during reading and/or writing blocks. Teachers are then able to work with smaller groups and continually assess each child's needs so that students are supported to progress as rapidly as possible. Research shows that smaller class size is one of the most significant factors in academic success.

Teacher Collaboration

Classroom and literacy teachers meet weekly to discuss curriculum and instruction, assessment and individual student needs. These in-depth sessions allow a professional climate to develop and foster the sharing of information, ideas and understandings.