Artifact #6
Writing Professional Development for Colleagues
ED 971-BL ST: Balanced Literacy in the 21st Century
ED 917 Detection, Analysis, and Remediation of Reading Difficulties in the Middle and Upper Grades
Overview
Competency 10: Child and adolescent development and the timing of formal reading instruction
Creating a wealth of reading resources is a huge part of reading development, especially having a well stocked reading library within the classroom. This helps contribute to a literacy rich environment that students can succeed in their own way. Having a knowledge of what curriculum is expected to be taught should help shape what is within the classroom library. The books should support and help learning. Having knowledge of the developmental stages help teachers plan instruction, incorporating phonemic awareness, phonics, fluency, vocabulary, and comprehension instruction at developmentally appropriate times. After direct instruction for the students to engage in, they need to have the opportunity to practice the skills independently. There should be a balance between instruction being solely a teacher focused aspect and having students take the reigns by combining direct instruction and students practice with the incorporation of literary materials and resources, geared towards the various student's learning levels.
Competency 13: Methods to support classroom teachers and tutors in the improvement of reading instruction, including consultation techniques and professional development
Writing is an essential part of literacy. Without writing, students cannot prove their comprehension of the given reading. They need to be able to effectively communicate their knowledge to others. Being directly taught the essential pieces of writing can assist in reading as well. Knowing the writing process allows students to have knowledge as to how writers and authors created their own pieces of writing.