Creating a Literate Classroom Environment

Monica DanielsWalden University

Instructor Amy SummersThe Beginning Reader, Pre K-3, EDUC-6706

October 12, 2013

Components of a Literate Classroom Environment

Educators understand the importance of reading and writing as being critical to a student’s success in school and beyond. “But the ability to read and write does not develop naturally, without careful planning and instruction” (National Association for the Education of Young Children, 1998, p. 33).

As presented by Dr. Hartman, the Framework for Literacy Instruction (Laureate Education, 2012d) acts as a planning guide that addresses the three topics of learners, texts, and instructional practices intertwined with three subtopics (interactive, critical, and response).

Framework for Literacy Instruction (Laureate Education, 2012d)

Understanding Literacy Learners

Every student brings different skill levels and different interests into the classroom.

To create a literate environment that reflects the learners of the classroom, you must first get to know the students as individuals.

• What are their skill levels as readers and writers?• What are their interests?• How do they feel about reading and writing?

Understanding Skill Levels

Students enter the classroom at different developmental stages of reading and writing.

Cognitive reading assessments provide information to help better understand students’ literacy skills and strategies to determine the next steps for instruction (Afflerbach, 2012). 

Examples of Cognitive Assessments

• Standardized tests such as Curriculum Based Measurements (CBMs) that measure skills such as Oral Reading Fluency (ORF), Nonsense Word Fluency (NWF) and Phoneme Segmentation Fluency (PSF).

• Reading placement inventories (which include alphabet/sound recognition, word lists, and reading passages).

“A key feature of most inventories is the means to identify a student’s independent, instructional, and frustration reading levels” (Afflerbach, 2012, p. 28). 

Understanding Student Reading Interests and Attitudes

Students enter the classroom with different literacy interests and experiences that shape who they are as a reader and writer.

Non-cognitive reading assessments provide insight to a student’s motivation and interest in reading (McKenna & Kear, 1990).

Examples of Non-Cognitive Assessments

• The Elementary Reading Attitude Survey, or ERAS (McKenna & Kear, 1990)

• Classroom activities such as “Me Stew” (Laureate Education, 2012c) in which students bring in meaningful show-and-tell objects that provide insight to personal interests, cultural influences, and individual identities.

Non-cognitive reading assessments help us understand students in terms of “motivation to read and willingness to persevere, self-concept as a reader, reading interests, and attributions for reading successes and failures” (Afflerbach, 2012, p. 187).

How Understanding Literacy Learners Shapes My Classroom

Using cognitive and non-cognitive assessments has helped me create a literate environment by understanding the developmental levels and interests of each student in my classroom.

I use the information from assessments to place students into leveled reading groups and to plan for whole-group, small-group, and individual literacy activities that meet the needs and interests of my students.

Selecting Texts:Balanced Text Exposure

It is important for young children to have experience with a variety of texts (narrative, informational, poetry, textbooks, and internet literacy) and to be taught to understand what the text factors are in each type of text.

“Many experts agree that by including a wide variety of books (with equal emphasis given to informational texts) a smoother transition may occur between the stages of elementary school reading and intermediate-level content reading” (Stephens, 2008, p. 488).

Selecting Texts:Considering a Continuum

As presented by Dr. Hartman and Dr. Almasi (Laureate Education, 2012a) a continuum that considers text in terms of narrative/informational factors, linguistic/semiotic factors, and hard/easy dimensions of difficulty can be used to offer students a variety of literacy experiences in the classroom.

By considering each individual text in respect to the continuum, areas that may need to be offered more/less often can be addressed.

How Text SelectionShapes My Classroom

• Using the text-selection continuum has helped to increase the integration of informational text into my classroom reading and writing lessons, creating a balance between narrative and non-fiction experiences.

• I have started to pair narrative texts with same topic informational texts to increase student interest.

• Technology has become a routine part of our classroom literacy block through accessing on-line stories. “Online stories are engaging and interactive literacy tools that motivate readers to explore the world of books while using online tools” (Castek et al., 2006, p. 717).

Perspectives on Literacy Learning

Interactive Perspective

Critical Perspective

Responsive PerspectiveThe Framework for Literacy Instruction (Laureate Education, 2012d) includes three different perspectives to consider when planning for literacy instruction. • The interactive perspective involves students being strategic and

thoughtful readers and writers. • The critical perspective involves students being critical readers and writers,

considering the author’s perspective and background. • The responsive perspective involves students’ reactions to the texts in

meaningful ways.

As stated by Dr. Almasi (Laureate Education, 2010d), depending on the students, the texts, and the circumstances, we need to change the perspective that we are using so that we can create capable readers, motivated readers, and critical readers.

Supporting theInteractive Perspective

Interactive Read-Alouds

“The focus is on enhancing students’ comprehension by engaging them in the reading process before, during, and after reading” (Tomkins, 2010, p. 439).

Interactive Writing

“Interactive writing is used to demonstrate how writing works ands show students how to construct words using their knowledge of sound-symbol correspondences and spelling patterns” (Tomkins, 2010, p. 439).

Teaching Reading Strategies

“Good readers deliberately use specific strategies to aid comprehension, particularly with regard to challenging text” (Marcell, 2007, p. 779).

How the Interactive Perspective Shapes My Classroom

• I offer students the opportunity to be interactive readers through whole group read-alouds. I use strategies including choral reading and interactive read-alouds.

• I have integrated strategy lessons with read-alouds focused on teaching comprehension strategies including background knowledge and making connections (text-to-self, text-to-text, text-to world).

• Interactive reading also occurs daily during small group reading instruction. Each student is placed in a homogenous group of 6-9 students where guided reading instruction takes place for 40 minutes each day.

• Interactive writing activities occur on a daily basis through routines such as “Morning Message” and spelling practice.

Supporting theCritical Perspective

"Critical literacy has the potential to give students the opportunity to read the word so that they can read the world" (Molden, 2007, p. 56).

• Encourage students to think deeply about the author’s motives and reasoning.

• Have students evaluate and judge source reliability (Laureate Education, 2012b).

• Engage students in activities that look at stories through different characters’ perspectives (Laureate Education, 2012b).

• Include stories that offer the opportunity to explore social justice issues to allow students to become “thoughtful and active citizens” (Tompkins, 2010, p. 10).

How the Critical Perspective Shapes My Classroom

• During read-alouds I pause to ask questions that relate to genre, meaning, connections, and language.

• During read-alouds we focus on identifying the author and illustrator, and the role that each serves.

• We discuss the text to make connections to the author’s style and/or purpose (such as identifying rhyming books and stories written to entertain).

• I integrate read-alouds with character perspectives by having students imagine that they are the character of a story as a means to connect to the character’s thoughts and feelings.

As students read from a critical perspective “text becomes an interactive tool to discover hidden meanings and agendas” (Molden, 2007, p. 52).

Supporting theResponsive Perspective

Activities to support responding include discussions, think-pair-square-share, graphic organizers, learning logs, double-entry journals, and quickwriting (Tomkins, 2010).

Other ideas include responding to text through character journals, dramatizing, singing, and illustrating (Clyde, 2003; Laureate Education, 2012e).

“Teachers help students develop and refine their comprehension in this stage as they think, talk, and write about the information they’ve read” (Tomkins, 2010, p. 408).

How the Responsive Perspective Shapes My Classroom

• Response journals are used on a regular basis in my classroom as a way to explore both narrative and expository text.

• K-W-L charts, webbing, and brainstorming lists are used to respond to read-alouds during group discussions.

• We have now began exploring character perspectives through using a character journal and responding to a story as a character (Clyde, 2003).

Final Thoughts

In considering Framework for Literacy Instruction (Laureate Education, 2012d), creating a literate environment involves understanding the students as learners (needs/strengths, ideas, and individual interests), selecting appropriate texts (suitable levels, genres, and personal interests), and using developmentally appropriate practices that promote literacy development. Additionally, each of the components need to be considered through the interactive, critical, and responsive perspectives to offer students balanced literacy experiences.

Questions to Consider• What insights did you gain about literacy and literacy instruction from

viewing this presentation? • How might the information presented change your literacy practices

and/or your literacy interactions with students? • In what ways can I support you in the literacy development of your

students or children? How might you support me in my work with students or your children?

• What questions do you have?

References

Afflerbach, P. (2012). Understanding and using reading assessment, K–12 (2nd ed). Newark,

DE: International Reading Association.

Castek, J., Bevans-Mangelson, J., & Goldstone, B. (2006). Reading adventures online: Five ways

to introduce the new literacies of the Internet through children's literature. Reading Teacher, 59(7), 714–728.

Clyde, J. A. (2003). Stepping inside the story world: The subtext strategy—a tool for connecting

and comprehending. The Reading Teacher, 57(2), 150–160.

Laureate Education, Inc. (2012a). Analyzing and selecting text [Video webcast]. In The

Beginning Reader, Pre K-3. Retrieved from https://class.waldenu.edu/webapps/portal/frameset.jsp?

tab_tab_group_id=_2_1&url=%2Fwebapps%2Fblackboard%2Fexecute%2Flauncher%3Ftype%3DCourse

%26id%3D_3467456_1%26url%3D

Laureate Education, Inc. (2012b). Critical perspective [Video webcast]. In The Beginning

Reader, Pre K-3. Retrieved from https://class.waldenu.edu/webapps/portal/frameset.jsp?

tab_tab_group_id=_2_1&url=%2Fwebapps%2Fblackboard%2Fexecute%2Flauncher%3Ftype%3DCourse

%26id%3D_3467456_1%26url%3D

References (cont.)

Laureate Education, Inc. (2012c). Getting to know your students [Video webcast]. In The

Beginning Reader, Pre K-3. Retrieved from https://class.waldenu.edu/webapps/portal/frameset.jsp?

tab_tab_group_id=_2_1&url=%2Fwebapps%2Fblackboard%2Fexecute%2Flauncher%3Ftype%3DCourse

%26id%3D_3467456_1%26url%3D

Laureate Education, Inc. (2012d). Perspectives on literacy learning [Video webcast]. In The

Beginning Reader, Pre K-3. Retrieved from https://class.waldenu.edu/webapps/portal/frameset.jsp?

tab_tab_group_id=_2_1&url=%2Fwebapps%2Fblackboard%2Fexecute%2Flauncher%3Ftype%3DCourse

%26id%3D_3467456_1%26url%3D

Laureate Education, Inc. (2012e). Responsive perspective: Reading-writing connection [Video

webcast]. In The Beginning Reader, Pre K-3. Retrieved from

https://class.waldenu.edu/webapps/portal/frameset.jsp?tab_tab_group_id=_2_1&url=%2Fwebapps

%2Fblackboard%2Fexecute%2Flauncher%3Ftype%3DCourse%26id%3D_3467456_1%26url%3D

Marcell, B. (2007). Traffic light reading: Fostering the independent use of comprehension

strategies with informational text. Reading Teacher, 60(8), 778–781

References (cont.)

McKenna, M. C., & Kear, D. J. (1990). Measuring attitude toward reading: A new tool for

teachers. The Reading Teacher, 43(9), 626--639.

Molden, K. (2007). Critical literacy, the right answer for the reading classroom: Strategies to

move beyond comprehension for reading improvement. Reading Improvement, 44(1), 50–56.

National Association for the Education of Young Children. (1998). Learning to read and write:

Developmentally appropriate practices for young children. Washington, DC: Author.

Stephens, K. E. (2008). A quick guide to selecting great informational books for young

children. Reading Teacher, 61(6), 488–490.

Tompkins, G. E. (2010). Literacy for the 21st century: A balanced approach (5th ed.). Boston:

Allyn & Bacon.