‘Parents as Partners’ November 3, 2008
Posted by Morna McDonald in : Additional Support, Literacy, Resources, SFL, reading , 1 comment so far‘Excellent!’ “A really enjoyable afternoon,” “It’s great to see what our children do”
These were some of the many very positive comments made by parents who attended our “Parents as Partners: Supporting Learners at Law” open afternoon last week. Our aims for the session were simple - to introduce parents to the Support for Learing team (in the wider sense), to share some of the games and activities we use, to look at the displays and resources and to encourage pupils and parents to play together. A bonus was to meet parents informally in a relaxed setting.
The room was soon buzzing with chatter and laughter as parents had a go at some games, tried ACE dictionaries, looked at some reading resources and enjoyed the displays of children working together. Laptops were set up with a range of web-based games and activities which proved to be extremely popular. The children joined their parents when classes finished and were soon sharing favourite games and websites with their families - it was delightful to see parents and children having fun together!
The focus was on literacy and Support for Learning teachers had prepared a range of handouts covering reading, spelling, writing, websites and internet safety. Parents helped themselves to these and had an opportunity to ask staff about mind mapping, strategies to support reluctant readers, paired reading and a host of other questions.
The children themselves were very involved in planning this successful event. They enjoyed using mindmaps to make the invitations, choosing their favourite games, acting as guides and having their photos taken for displays. Our in-house ‘paperazzi’ photographers came along too so there’s a lovely record of the afternoon.
Parents and childen were so busy in fact that they didn’t have time for coffee and juice!
Literacy - Reading in pairs October 24, 2008
Posted by Hilery Williams in : Additional Support, Literacy, Resources, SFL, Training, reading , add a commenthttp://www.tes.co.uk/article.aspx?storycode=6004293
Local authorities looking to use paired reading to improve literacy can now access tutor and trainer manuals and a parents’ leaflet on line.
From 2005 to 2008, Learning and Teaching Scotland worked with youth volunteering organisation ProjectScotland and pilot authorities to place young volunteers aged 16-25 in schools to support the development of literacy skills through paired reading.
Reading has become a fun activity by Elizabeth Buie October 10, 2008
Posted by Hilery Williams in : Early Intervention, Literacy, reading , add a commenthttp://www.tes.co.uk/article.aspx?storycode=6003593
TESS reports that North Lanarkshire’s literacy strategy is continuing to make significant gains for all pupils, but particularly the least able, an evaluation published last week has shown.
‘A group reading assessment of P3 children showed that those who had been taught by the “active literacy” methodology were significantly ahead of those taught using more traditional methods, thus maintaining the progress observed in the first phase of the programme.
In the P3 control group, 52 per cent of pupils were performing above the expected average age level while 13 per cent of the below average group had a reading age of only around six years. By comparison, in the active literacy group, 72 per cent exceeded the expected average reading level and of the 28 per cent below average, only 2 per cent had a reading age of around six years…’
English is too hard to read for children June 10, 2008
Posted by Hilery Williams in : reading , 2commentshttp://education.guardian.co.uk/schools/story/0,,2284503,00.html
The Observer reports on recent research that claims that the English spelling system is ‘absolutely, unspeakably awful’. That is the conclusion of new research that has found that children face 800 words by the age of 11 that hinder their reading because of the way they are spelt.
Monkey, asparagus, spinach, caterpillar, dwarf, banana, handkerchief, pliers, soldiers, stomach, petal and telescope have all been included on the long list of words that baffle children because they contain letter combinations that are more commonly pronounced in a different way.
The words have all been identified as problematic for reading, as opposed to writing, because of their ‘phonic unreliability’, according to the study The Most Costly English Spellings. It was presented at the weekend at the conference of the Spelling Society, held at Coventry University.
Expert says txt is gr8 4 language May 21, 2008
Posted by Hilery Williams in : ICT, reading , add a commenthttp://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/wales/north_west/7410201.stm
The BBC reports that a linguistics expert has rejected claims that texting by mobile phone is bad for language and literacy skills. Professor David Crystal argues that such condensed messages enhance and enrich language skills. He called it an “urban myth” that school work was riddled with text speech, and said in fact students knew when to use it in the right context. The honorary professor of linguistics at Bangor University said texting was widespread across all age groups. Prof Crystal said that texting had had a bad press, and it was merely another way to use language.
Whilst researching his book - Txtng: the Gr8 Db8 - Prof Crystal said the oldest example of texter he had found was an 86-year-old grandmother in the United States.
It was also a misconception that text messages were all made up of abbreviated words, he said.
Start children reading early and they’ll keep turning the page May 16, 2008
Posted by Hilery Williams in : Early Intervention, reading , add a commenthttp://news.scotsman.com/education/Start-children-reading-early-and.4085968.jp
Caroline McLeod, Bookstart national development manager for Scotland, says Bookstart can help to tackle falling literacy levels.
‘With Scotland currently occupying 26th place on The International Reading League table, and frequent reports in the press about the country’s falling literacy levels, it is becoming increasingly clear that the main answer to the problem is pre-school intervention.
It has been proven by Bookstart, a UK-wide programme administrated by the national independent charity Booktrust, funded by the Scottish Government and supported by more than 25 children’s publishers, that babies and toddlers who are exposed to books on a regular basis are further ahead in reading, writing, numeracy and listening skills when they reach school.
This is because the first three years are crucial in providing the foundations for learning throughout our lives. This is when we learn to talk and it is during this time that our brains develop at a tremendous rate.
Bookstart In Scotland Day gives the gift of free books to all children at around eight weeks, 18 months and three years, along with guidance materials for parents and carers’
Better access to learning resources for people with visual impairments May 12, 2008
Posted by Hilery Williams in : Access, Resources, reading , 2commentshttp://www.scotland.gov.uk/News/Releases/2008/05/09141804
The Scottish Government has announced that young people with visual impairments, or other print disabilities, in Scotland will have access to the best educational material available from next term.
From August, they will be able to use the Scottish Books for All database powered by SCRAN, one of the largest educational online services, to access learning materials.
The database will contain a list of adapted materials which teachers can access to ensure that all pupils with additional support needs receive curriculum materials at the same time as their classmates in a format that meets their needs.
Adam Ingram, Minister for Children and Early Years, announced the move during a debate around a call by RNIB Scotland for a national transcription service for young people.
He said:
“RNIB have been very helpful in drawing this issue to our attention but we believe that with the steps we have taken there is no need for the type of national transcription service they propose. We are totally committed to ensuring that all our pupils can access the curriculum. The Books for All report has enabled us to identify gaps in provision and take positive steps to ensure that we can achieve this aim.”
Scheme helps bad readers catch up May 9, 2008
Posted by Hilery Williams in : Additional Support, reading , 1 comment so farhttp://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/education/7390143.stm
The BBC reports that a study suggests that struggling young readers make lasting progress on a scheme that offers one-to-one support. Reading Recovery provides six-year-olds with tailored coaching from specially trained teachers for half an hour a day for between 12 and 20 weeks. A study of 500 pupils found those on the programme not only caught up with their age-group but were out-performing the national average within two years.
Problem readers on other catch-up schemes remained a year or more behind. The Institute of Education study assessed the progress of 500 of the poorest young readers at 42 schools in 10 inner London boroughs.
Graphic novels draw in reluctant readers May 2, 2008
Posted by Hilery Williams in : Access, Curriculum, Dyslexia, Resources, reading , 2commentsTESS reports on a recent continuing professional development session on using comics in the classroom by Dr Mel Gibson.
Ever considered using Viz’s Fat Slags to spark a class debate about gender representation? What about using Jackie to teach history? Or juxtaposing Japanese manga and Shakespeare? No?
In all likelihood, neither had teachers gathered at the National Library of Scotland, in Edinburgh, until they attended a recent continuing professional development session on using comics in the classroom by Dr Mel Gibson – or Dr Mel Comics, “because there’s no point in doing a Google search for Mel Gibson”.
Nat Edwards, head of education at the library, introduces Dr Gibson as a leading scholar on comics and graphic novels. Her job, she says, is to “enthuse” the assembled teachers, but she also wants to dispel any idea that such literature is “mostly violent and full of awfulness”.
Comics are, she argues, a means of developing literacy. There is, for example, the Classical Comics range which includes Shakespeare’s Henry V and Macbeth; there’s Persepolis, an autobiographical novel by Marjane Satrapi depicting her childhood in Iran after the revolution; and The Tale of One Bad Rat by Bryan Talbot about a girl who has suffered sexual abuse. “It’s a book about the power of literature and art to make life worth living again,” Dr Gibson says.
Barrington Stoke April 30, 2008
Posted by Hilery Williams in : Dyslexia, Resources, reading , add a commentTo celebrate the publisher’s 10th birthday, Barrington Stoke’s Primary Titles pack of 12 books is now half price at £25 and the downloads to accompany it are now £20 + VAT. The gr8reads download is now £30 + VAT.
Many schools in East Lothian use these books, written by established authors on dyslexia friendly paper and in accessible formats, for their more reluctant readers successfully.
Novels and non-fiction books with a reading age of 6 and 6.5 will be published soon under the ‘Solo’ banner. Many BS titles are consistent with the Accelerated Reader resource.
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