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Grade Level Literacy Action Plan
Briana Jenkins
Grand Caynon University
Dr. Lisa Trait
Wednesday 21 December 2022
Grade Level Literacy Action Plan
Eighth-grade instructors will be prepared to use this literacy action plan to benefit their learners through cooperation and dedication to promoting literacy skills. The plan will also go over how to encourage, set up, and maintain collaboration between grade-level groups throughout this action plan. It will additionally cover the roles of a student advocate and the interactions and duties of the district, school, and community representatives in encouraging reading and writing throughout the curriculum.
Curricular Focus
Teachers must employ standards that could be applied to a range of texts, particularly informative ones, because Sciences and History Classes significantly depend on them to reach all students across many curriculum areas. The literacy guidelines used in this action plan include RI.4.2 and RI 4.3 because they emphasize core concepts, key information, and summary. It also requests that certain historic, technical, scientific, or texts’ ideas, events, procedures, or concepts be examined to clarify certain details regarding a certain subject (Common Core State Standards, 2020). These standards are ideal for assisting teachers in providing flexible literacy education. Teachers of all subject areas can include responsive literacy instruction. According to Callins, utilizing active teaching techniques increases student involvement and emphasizes the need to include students in the selection of the learning and curriculum processes (2006, p. 63). It is crucial to do this in order to use a variety of resources “to create and structure engaging learning opportunities, monitor student progress formatively, change instruction as necessary, and evaluate learning using a variety of sources of data” (Krasnoff, 2007, p.3).
Collaboration
Education should emphasize collaboration, which in a Professional Learning Committee (PLC) refers to a systematic procedure whereby teachers cooperate to influence their classroom practices. This is carried out in a manner that will benefit their learners, team, and institution while also producing greater results. The PLC’s core purpose is to concentrate on and strive toward every student’s ongoing commitment to education.
The beauty of cooperation is the capacity to draw on multiple viewpoints and ideas and the opportunity to share accountability for a student’s development. PLCs are successful when participants care about a student’s education. This increases the likelihood that the student will succeed. Learning becomes even more affordable and efficient due to peers exchanging ideas, resources, information, and expertise. The school board, school leadership, and superintendent can establish clear goals and guidelines for what is anticipated in the district rather than micromanaging instructors and then grant teachers the freedom to instruct their students as they see fit.
Assessments Designing Best Practices
Goals or anticipated outcomes must be thoroughly assessed before creating any evaluation or assessment tool. Identifying the required knowledge, skills, abilities, and attitudes is part of this process (SKA). The organization, task, individuals, and team will all be thoroughly examined (Guimond, Sole, & Salas, 2011).
Data Interpretation Best Practice for Decision-Making Regarding Instruction
The school’s current evaluation methodology should be reviewed as the subsequent phase in the implementation phase. This analysis will assist in determining whether the methodology in use is a rating scale or a rubric and whether instructors concur with the descriptors. Because there is much variation in how teachers grade and evaluate student work (Gibson, 2011), it is believed that constancy in grading students’ work is most beneficial when multiple teachers are engaged in grading the same task. Additionally, this lessens the degree of diversity in students’ performance and formative assessment. The results will likely be identical regardless of who grades the assignments. If the present evaluation tool fails to satisfy the rubric standards, it ought to be revised following the consensus of the faculty to ensure that it contains precise descriptions and scores. The broad architecture of the rubric was agreed upon as a result of these conversations and reflections. Getting a high degree of reliability in a writing evaluation takes time and effort.
The success of any curriculum modification or the incorporation of new teaching techniques must be assessed, as well as the achievement of program and learner objectives (Schneider-Sarver, Senczakowicz, & Murphy-Slovensky, 2010). Faculty and learners will be asked for their opinions on the project as part of the evaluation method, and this information will be used to improve how rubrics are used in the future.
Intervention Designing Best Practice for Individuals and Student Groups
Students that would benefit from assistance frequently exhibit distinctive characteristics in the classroom, such as poor memory, shorter attention span, and trouble following instructions. A pupil who has trouble reading can struggle to distinguish between phonological awareness or reversing the letters. They most likely lack phonological awareness and other language abilities. The amount, severity, and persistence of these behaviors cause issues in school for learners with learning disabilities, even when a student may struggle with certain behaviors while succeeding in the class. The “big idea” of intervention across all content categories is to draw attention to the shared elements of a unifying notion. A succinct assertion, guiding idea, or generalization encourages in-depth comprehension. The following three “major topics” will be covered in the grade 8 classrooms:
1. Where should an idea start?
2. What is required to execute a plan?
3. What kind of encounters can result in novel discoveries?
Following each of the three “major ideas” are crucial questions. The purpose of the key questions is to guide pupils in independently uncovering the main concept. Standard-based lessons in phonics, comprehension, grammar, vocabulary, fluency, and writing are taught to establish the background. The incorporation of technologies and Interactive Notebooks are two modifications that might be introduced to learning to make it more convenient for the “great ideas” in language arts. Technology allows pupils to play engaging games that help them practice their abilities while expanding their vocabulary. E-books and interactive texts can also be read and heard by students. Students learning is personalized using interactive notebooks. They aid in the comprehension of lectures and taking notes. Interactive notebooks give learners the tools they really ought to process new knowledge and abilities. The Interactive Notebook aids behaviorally and struggling-challenged learners to remain involved in the classroom processes by keeping students’ attention on the work at hand. When engaged in “hands-on” doing-style instruction, learners are much less inclined to interrupt classes or “check out.”
Parent Involvement
Without parental involvement, classes and schools cannot run well. By setting a good example, parents can keep motivating their kids to read and widen their reading tastes at home. Additionally, they should motivate their kids to participate in events that honor their culture and individuality. Children pick up social cues from their family and home communities through continuous exposure, interaction, and observation (Zacarian, AlvarezOrtiz, & Haynes, 2017, para. 28). It will require some time, but involving the parents is essential. Ensuring contact between the home and the school is one method to engage the parents. Teachers must see that parents are informed about classroom and school activities.
Additionally, teachers must make sure that parents are in touch with them about any problems their children may be experiencing in school or in case their living situation changes. The eighth-grade team will use Class Dojo as a part of their resources to interact with families constructively. For instance, a kid and her parents, who have been classified as a FIT family, are qualified for several services. This implies that the teachers, the school counselors, and the management team can guarantee that the family is directed to the appropriate resources through effective teamwork and communication.
Student Advocacy
Being an advocate for students is essential. All teachers should work to ensure and advocate for universal access for all students to opportunities and resources. “The quest for equity will lead to the highest level of perfection (Blankstein & Noguera, 2015, p. 5).” Teachers can accomplish this by granting access to programs, field trips, and locations for students to attend that they might not otherwise be exposed to through these resources. Teachers should make an effort to make these tools available to as many learners as they can. They can also accomplish this by speaking up for kids during PLC sessions with school administration and the local educational authority. Educators can submit grant applications that enable new and updated applications, personal computers, and instruction aids to assist learners with individualized instruction and responses to instruct more using digital media and literacy and to provide a wide range of educational approaches for learners.
Conclusion
Educators can establish a collaborative community to guarantee the success of their learners. Additionally, a pupil succeeds when parents and teachers collaborate. The academic system’s and partners’ main objectives ought to be to design effective school systems that fairly accommodate all society members of school age and achieve their objectives. Good teachers, administrators, and approaches that encourage learning, accessibility to opportunities, and support for children are the best way to accomplish this goal. This plan explained how instructors in an eighth-grade team might achieve this aim by effectively collaborating across curricular borders while utilizing literacy best practices and standards.
References
American Federation of Teachers. (2007). Building parent-teacher relationships. Retrieved from Reading Rockets:
https://www.readingrockets.org/article/building-parent-teacherrelationships
Blankstein, A. M., Noguera, P., & Kelly, L. (2016). Excellence through equity: Five principles of courageous leadership to guide achievement for every student. Alexandria, VA: Association for Supervision & Curriculum Development.
Callins, T. (2006). Culturally responsive literacy instruction. Retrieved from Idaho Training Clearinghouse:
https://idahotc.com/Portals/0/Resources/466/Callins %202006%20Culturally%20Responsive%20Literacy%20Instruction
Common Core State Standards. (2020). English language arts standards. Retrieved from
http://www.corestandards.org/ELA-Literacy/RL/2/#CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RL.2.3
Common Core State Standards. (2020). English language arts standards. Retrieved from
http://www.corestandards.org/ELA-Literacy/RL/4/
Krasnoff, B. (2007, March). Culturally responsive teaching: A guide to evidence-based practices 9 for teaching all students equitably. Retrieved from Education Northwest:
https://educationnorthwest.org/sites/default/files/resources/culturally-responsiveteaching-508
Zacarian, D., Alvarez-Ortiz, L., & Haynes, J. (2017). Teaching to strengths: Chapter 1: The urgent need for a strengths-based approach. Retrieved from ASCD:
http://www.ascd.org/publications/books/117035/chapters/The_Urgent_Need_for_a_Stren gths-Based_Approach.aspx
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Implementing Content Area Literacy Activities
Briana Jenkins
Grand Canyon University
Dr. Lisa Trait
Wednesday 21 December 2022
Introduction
As a reading specialist or literacy specialist, it is essential to support teachers in providing additional support to struggling students in reading and writing. One way to do this is by working with small groups of students and providing specific feedback to teachers about their needs. In this reflection, I will describe my experience using an informational or narrative text and an aligned activity to support students in reading and writing and provide feedback to my mentor teacher about student progress and next steps. I will also discuss how this experience of modeling literacy as content area integration will guide my future professional practice.
Implementing the Text and Aligned Activity
I chose to use an informational text about the life cycle of a butterfly and an aligned activity that involved creating a timeline of the different stages of the butterfly’s life cycle. Before implementing the action with the whole class or small group of students, I shared it with my mentor teacher and made adjustments based on their feedback. I used questioning strategies, content area vocabulary, and text features during the reading and activity to support student understanding and engagement (Maryland State Department of Education, 2022). For example, I asked questions about the text’s central idea and used vocabulary related to the life cycle of butterflies. I pointed out text features such as headings and captions to help students better understand the content.
Providing Feedback to the Mentor Teacher
After implementing the activity, I provided my mentor teacher feedback about student progress and the next steps. I shared my observations about which students seemed to have a good understanding of the material and which students may need additional support. I also suggested some strategies that could be used to help these students better understand the content, such as providing further explanations or providing visual aids (CCSSO, 2019). I also identified English Language Arts standards and a content area topic for which I could develop a lesson in the future. I discussed these ideas with my mentor teacher, and we agreed that I could teach a lesson about the life cycle of plants to the same small group or whole class in a future field experience.
Reflection on Modeling Literacy as Content Area Integration
My experience modeling literacy as content area integration was enriching. It was satisfying to see the students engage with the text and activity and to be able to provide support and guidance as they worked through the material. This experience has also helped me better understand the importance of integrating literacy instruction into content-area lessons. By using texts and activities closely aligned with the content being taught, students can make connections between the language and concepts they are learning, which can lead to a deeper understanding of the material. In the future, I plan to continue incorporating literacy instruction into my content area lessons to better support my students’ needs. I will also continue to seek feedback from my mentor teacher and colleagues to improve my practice and better serve the needs of my students.
Conclusion
In conclusion, my experience using an informational or narrative text and an aligned activity to support students in reading and writing was very valuable. By providing feedback to my mentor teacher and identifying standards and content areas for future lessons, I further developed my skills as a reading specialist or literacy specialist. This experience has also helped me better understand the importance of integrating literacy instruction into content-area lessons. I plan to continue using this approach in my future professional practice.
References
CCSSO. (2019).
Grade 3» Measurement & Data | Common Core State Standards Initiative. Corestandards.org. http://www.corestandards.org/Math/Content/3/MD/
Maryland State Department of Education. (2022).
State Standards and Frameworks in Social Studies: Grade 1 Social Studies Framework. Marylandpublicschools.org. http://marylandpublicschools.org/about/Pages/DCAA/Social-Studies/MSSS.aspx
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