On the Balanced Literacy Diet website there is a section titled "Food Groups" although it automatically makes you think of the Food Groups we should all be eating every day this section of the website focuses on the overarching concepts of literacy. Here is what the website has to say about using food terms and why it creates an impact:
"The Balanced Literacy Diet is a framework that presents literacy concepts using the familiar terminology of a healthy diet. Everyone knows that in order to grow and develop there are certain food groups we need on a daily basis. We also know it’s important to consume foods from these groups in balance and that some foods are more important at certain stages of development. Finally, we know that flavor and presentation are what make foods appealing and therefore more likely to be consumed.
"The Balanced Literacy Diet is a framework that presents literacy concepts using the familiar terminology of a healthy diet. Everyone knows that in order to grow and develop there are certain food groups we need on a daily basis. We also know it’s important to consume foods from these groups in balance and that some foods are more important at certain stages of development. Finally, we know that flavor and presentation are what make foods appealing and therefore more likely to be consumed.
Like great cooks, teachers create nourishing and enticing literacy lessons by drawing on their knowledge of the ingredients, their knowledge of the development of reading and writing skills (that is, which processes are most needed at which stage of development), and their creativity and imagination."
This section offers educators a chance to immerse themselves in the core concepts of literacy. More often than not, teacher's college was an overwhelming experience that left many scrambling to finish assignments and burned out. New teachers often feel overwhelmed when handed a body of students and expected to have them reading and writing (especially in the primary grades) and many concepts were not dived into deep enough throughout their training. The Food Groups section offers details of concepts as well as "recipes" lessons that can be implemented in the classroom. This section addresses holistic education because:
- It educates the teacher about the theory behind the concept
- It provides the teacher with a lesson plan that can be executed in the classroom
- It can be leveraged for mentoring purposes - old and new teachers can collaborate on extending lessons, tweaking lessons to certain student bodies, etc.
- The section of the site provides information in a friendly tone with limited jargon making it easy to understand and easier to implement.
- Not only does the teacher feel equipped to use these concepts and lessons in their classroom but students in the end will receive instruction that is proven through research to make an impact and therefore set them up for success.
- Lessons and concepts utilize the whole brain - body, mind, hands, eyes, creativity, physicality, etc. to create engaging and memorable lessons to have an end goal of impact on student learning.
- This section looks at the concept of print, what is it and how to teach it.
- The page offers a quick overview of the concept and why students need to learn it.
- It offers a sample lesson for how to teach the concept of print
- Provides a brief review of how to assess knowledge of concepts of print
- Includes a variety of videos of lessons being used in a real classroom that relate to the concept of print.
Sample Video - How to use a Morning Message
No comments:
Post a Comment