What does balanced literacy really mean?
- Balanced literacy is a flexible framework that is useful in conceptualizing the curriculum for teaching reading and writing in the classroom (Fountas & Pinnell, 1995).
- Reading instruction focuses on individual learning needs (not on programs, lesson plans, instructional strategies). When teachers are able to diagnose student reading skills and use such information with focused, deliberate instruction then literacy development is made available to all children.
- Teachers must know the knowledge and skills that students must acquire to learn how to read. The National Reading Panel reviewed over 100,000 reading studies and revealed five main components for effective reading instruction:
- Phonemic awareness
- Phonics (study of language)
- Vocabulary
- Text Comprehension
- Fluency
- Reading requires decoding ability and text comprehension. Reading is not a natural process. Sebastian Wren (2002) stated, “If we are ever to come close to teaching all children to read, it will require the most knowledgeable and skilled teachers.”
Why do we need a balanced literacy framework?
- Curriculum development is not enough. Having a well-defined curriculum is only part of balanced literacy. Clearly, what is taught is important, but we cannot leave out what is learned in the classroom. The other half of balanced literacy is the teacher. The quality, strength, knowledge, and level of expertise of the teacher is the other half in helping students become proficient readers and writers.
- Professional development is paramount. The balanced literacy framework provides teachers a tool to determine professional development needs to be an expert in reading instruction.
What does this mean for teachers?
- Participate and implement professional development learning and strategies immediately.
- Balanced Literacy will be an on-going process:
- Literacy Stations – Teacher sets up rich, literate classroom environment.
- Interim and Formative Assessments – Teacher uses assessment to support student learning
- Shared Reading/Reading Alouds – Teacher scaffolds instruction by providing effective whole group instruction
- Guided Reading – Teacher scaffolds instruction by providing effective small group instruction
- Workshop – Teacher scaffolds instruction by providing opportunities for independent practice and self- regulation.
- Metacognition – Teacher promotes student thinking and processing utilizing high impact instructional strategies.
- Schedule time daily for literacy including in the content areas
- ELAR – 120 minutes
- Math – 90 minutes
- Science/Health – 30 minutes
- Social Studies – 30 minutes
- Fine Arts/PE – 55 minutes
- Balanced Literacy will be an on-going process:
- When communicating with parents, focus conversations on student reading behaviors and needs rather than instructional strategies. For example, share with parents reading icons
- Use balanced literacy rubrics to provide cues on what to focus on to improve instruction.
- Focus on the data.
- Become an expert in reading research and best practice.
Resources
Fountas, I. & Pinnell, G. (1995). Guided reading. Good first teaching for all children. Portsmouth, NH: Heinemann.
National Reading Panel. (2000). Teaching children to read: An evidence-based assessment of the scientific research literature on reading and its implications for reading instruction. Washington, DC: National Institute for Child Health and Human Development.
Snow, C.E., Burns, M.S., & Griffin, P. (1998). Preventing reading difficulties in young children. Washington, DC: National Academy Press.
Wren, S. (2002). Ten Myths of Reading Instruction. Southwest Educational Development Laboratory, Austin TX.