Literacy Now

As teachers, we are always looking for new, motivating ways to get our students to read, not only during the course of the school year, but during the summer when sun is high, the pools are open, and the kids are presented with the extra time in which they have to just lay around, play video games, and do a whole lot of “nothing.” That is how we created an engaging, creative way that goes beyond the teachers', tutors' and parents' summer reading "requirements," and the tireless read-a-thon programs that certainly motivate some with prizes and an award at the end (if the student happens to meet his/her goal without fuss and forcefulness).

Typically these programs only hit those with intrinsic motivation and/or those students whose parents sign them up to take the onus of being the “bad guys” when it comes to getting their kid to keep up their reading over the summer months and not lose everything they gained in the previous school year. Not to say these reading programs are not useful or successful, but participation can be even further rewarding and stimulating if fused with a kid-safe and friendly blog, as we started.

With this mission in mind a year ago we began our schools “Summer Blog” hoping the technology spin on things would draw student’s attention. Our blog is called “Catch the Wave of Summer Reading.” I brought each homeroom from grades 2-4 (16 homerooms) into the computer lab to explain how to log onto the blog and also set a purpose for the Blog with my students. Research was shared from Harvard about how to keep students from sliding backwards during their summer break. Based on this research, each student had a purpose to set a summer reading goal and entered it into the Blog. Students responded to each other and our journey began. Student models from the prior summer were also posted by utilizing the Smart Board and each class discussed what they noticed and what would be the expectation for their entries this summer. Students responded to each other and our journey began. The new blog called “What Are You Reading?” started off the summer and students began communicating with each other about reading.

Kidblog is a great site for this activity because each student has their own password and nothing gets posted unless approved by a teacher or administrator. Our literacy instructors run this program and we are fortunate to have very supportive administrators who also approve and communicate with our bloggers throughout the summer. Sending home a rules and safe blogging sheet helped to avoid any postings that were not appropriate.

There was at least a 25 percent increase in participation from the first summer to the second. Now that we have subscribed to Kidblog, our teachers have access to the blogging site year-round to help acclimate our students to utilizing the blog. One of the largest increases in posts has been from our special Ed population. It’s been great to see these students have the confidence to participate. Another great addition this summer was a parent who started a boy’s book club and used the Blog to report their activities. This summer blog is going to grow each summer and next year we are looking to partner up with the PTA, local library and Local Junior Women’s club to link the blog into their summer reading programs. Parents or guardians will also be invited to participate with the students as well. KidBlog has a parent piece to their site that can be added easily. Thus far a lot of the student entries are book recommendations and positive comments encouraging each other to read. Each year we are looking to build depth onto their entries by discussing characters, plots, genres, summaries and questioning the author. This will take practice throughout the year that we are hoping will be supported by the Language Arts teachers. Our Summer Blog project will be a “work in progress” every year in which our hopes are to watch our students grow in their responses and communication with each other about quality literature, keep them reading over the summer and most of all, excited about books!

Students come back in September to a Principals’ Bloggers’ Wall of Fame, in the front hallway. Here our principals choose their favorite blog posts from the summer and that student is recognized on the front bulletin board with their name in lights! Here are just a couple examples.

From a future third grader:

I started to go to the book club on July 31. We are reading this book called Wonder it is book about a boy whose face is deformed. His name is August (Auggie.) Even though his face is deformed he is very smart funny and brave. He has never been to a real school before he was always been home schooled. When his parents decided that he should go to school he is a little nervous. Auggie’s having a hard time fitting in with everyone. I’m in the middle of the book I’ll give you an update later!

From a future fourth grader:

Thumbs up for The Secret Language of Girls! I really liked this book. It is about the friendship of two girls going into middle school. You can find it in the Flocktown Library or on your Kindle. Happy blogging-Sophia G.

The blog stirred students across multiple grade levels in our school. The skills (interpersonal, verbal, visual-spatial, etc.) associated with blogging about reading and books touch upon several of the multiple intelligences and learning styles. Giving the students an appealing place in which they can 'make their own,' chat, present, pose, question, respond, encourage, discuss, and create has increased motivation to read, especially over summer. We hope with a little bit of continued training and increased expectations through the school year, we intend that our school blog will grow in popularity as the teachers utilize this space as they see fit to extend their lessons and encourage reading in their classrooms, both in conjunction with the curriculum, outside of class reading, and the new core standards.

Meg DeFrance teaches in the Washington Township Elementary Schools in Long Valley, NJ, with 14 years’ experience including with gifted and talented students, teaching all subjects in grades 3-5, and now as a literacy instructor for reading and writing in grades K-5. She holds a Master's degree in Critical Thinking in Reading from Montclair State University and is now enrolled in a second Master's program for a Reading Specialist Certificate and a Supervisory Certificate.

Nicole Jurgensen is a Literacy Instructor of reading and writing for grades 3-5 at Flocktown-Kossmann School in Long Valley, NJ. She has 12 years’ experience, including  second grade, fifth grade language arts and social studies education, and reading and writing support instruction in grades 1-5. She earned her Master’s in Teaching and Learning with a concentration in Literacy.

In the latest print edition of Reading Today, Timothy Shanahan presented a summary of his research address from the IRA 2014 Conference in New Orleans concerning the question of whether or not to teach students at their reading levels.

Shanahan, a distinguished professor emeritus at the University of Illinois at Chicago who serves on IRA’s Literacy Research Panel, cited what he referred to as misused research evidence, concluding that sticking only with student-text matching can result in a scenario in which the learner never really catches up. Instead, he suggested more emphasis on scaffolding to help students better grasp frustration text and not veer away from it.

He concluded by stating he has found more than 20 studies that used scaffolding to allow students to read frustration-level text as if it was at their instructional level. Here are those studies:

Bonfiglio, C. M., Daly, E. J., Persampieri, M., & Andersen, M. (2006). An experimental analysis of the effects of reading interventions in a small group reading instruction context. Journal of Behavioral Education, 15, 93-109. 

Burns, M. K. (2007).  Reading at the instructional level with children identified as learning disabled: Potential implications for Response-to-Intervention. School Psychology Quarterly, 22, 297-313.

Burns, M. K., Dean, V. J., & Foley, S. (2004). Preteaching unknown key words with incremental rehearsal to improve reading fluency and comprehension with children identified as reading disabled. Journal of School Psychology, 42, 303–314.

Carney, J.J., Anderson, D., Blackburn, C., & Blessing, D. (1984). Preteaching vocabulary and the comprehension of social studies materials by elementary school children. Social Education, 48(3), 195-196.

Daly, E., & Martens, B. (1994). A comparison of three interventions for increasing oral reading performance: Application of the instructional hierarchy. Journal of Applied Behavior Analysis, 27,459-469.

Eckert, T. L., Ardoin, S. P., Daisey, D. M., & Scarola, M. D. (2000). Empirically evaluating the effectiveness of reading interventions: The use of brief experimental analysis and single-case designs. Psychology in the Schools, 37, 463-474.

Faulkner, H. J., & Levy, B. A. (1999). Fluent and nonfluent forms of transfer in reading: Words and their message. Psychonomic Bulletin and Review, 6, 111-116.

Gickling, E. E., & Armstrong, D. L. (1978). Levels of instructional difficulty as related to on-task behavior, task completion, and comprehension. Journal of Learning Disabilities, 11,559-566.

Hall, K. M., Sabey, B. L., & McClellan, M. (2005). Expository text comprehension: Helping primary-grade teachers use expository texts to full advantage. Reading Psychology, 26,211-234.

Levy, B. A., Nicholls, A., & Kohen, D. (1993). Repeated readings: Process benefits for good and poor readers. Journal of Experimental Child Psychology, 56, 303-327.

McComas, J. J., Wacker, D. P. & Cooper, L. J. (1996). Experimental analysis of academic performance in an academic setting. Journal of Behavioral Education, 6,191-201.

Neill, K. (1979). Turn kids on with repeated reading. Teaching Exceptional Children, 12, 63-64.

O’Shea, L. J., Sindelar, P. T., & O’Shea, D. J. (1985). The effects of repeated readings and attentional cues on reading fluency and comprehension. Journal of Reading Behavior, 17, 129-142.

Pany, D., & McCoy, K. M. (1988). Effects of corrective feedback on word accuracy and reading comprehension of readers with learning disabilities. Journal of Learning Disabilities, 21, 546-550.

Rasinski, T. V. (1990). Effects of repeated reading and listening-while-reading on reading fluency. Journal of Educational Research, 83, 147-150.

Reitsma, P. (1988). Reading practice for beginners: Effects of guided reading, reading-while-listening, and independent reading with computer-based speech feedback. Reading Research Quarterly, 23, 219-235.

Rose, T. L., & Beattie, J. R. (1986). Relative effects of teacher-directed and taped previewing on oral reading. Learning Disability Quarterly, 9, 193-199.

Sanford, A. K., & Horner, R. H. (2013). Effects of matching instruction difficulty to students with escape-maintained problem behavior. Journal of Positive Behavior Interventions, 15,79-89.

Sindelar, P. T., Monda, L. E., & O’Shea, L. J. (1990). Effects of repeated readings on instructional- and mastery-level readers. Journal of Educational Research, 83,220-226.

Smith, D. D. (1979). The improvement of children’s oral reading through the use of teacher modeling. Journal of Learning Disabilities, 12 (3), 39-42.

Stoddard, K., Valcante, G., Sindelar, P., O’Shea, L., & Algozzine, B. (1993). Increasing reading rate and comprehension: The effects of repeated readings, sentence segmentation, and intonation training. Reading Research and Instruction, 32, 53-65.

Taylor, N. E., Wade, M. R., & Yekovich, F. R. (1985). The effects of text manipulation and multiple reading strategies on the reading performance of good and poor readers. Reading Research Quarterly, 20, 566-574.

Turpie, J. J., & Paratore, J. R. (1995). Using repeated reading to promote success in a heterogeneously grouped first grade. In K. A. Hinchman, D.J. Leu, & C.K. Kinzer (Eds.), Perspectives on literacy research and practice: Forty-fourth Yearbook of the National Reading Conference (pp. 255-263). Chicago: The National Reading Conference.

VanWagenen, M. A., Williams, R. L., & McLaughlin, T. F. (1994). Use of assisted reading to improve reading rate, word accuracy, and comprehension with ESL Spanish-speaking students. Perceptual and Motor Skills, 79, 227-230.

Weinstein, G., & Cooke, N. L. (1992). The effects of two repeated reading interventions on generalization of fluency. Learning Disability Quarterly, 15, 21–28.

Wixson, K.K. (1986). Vocabulary instruction and children’s comprehension of basal stories. Reading Research Quarterly, 21(3), 317-329.

IRA members can view the digital issue here to read Shanahan’s piece and more. If you aren’t an IRA member, information about how to join can be found here.

The What’s Hot in Literacy Survey has appeared annually in IRA publications for nearly two decades. Within that span of time, the results of the survey have been cited in numerous publications, translated into languages other than English, and replicated in other countries including Denmark, Romania, and the United Kingdom. The results of the survey have also been used to guide professional development within schools and to situate the timeliness of current research. In this brief overview, we share how the 2015 survey was created, in what manner this year’s respondents were selected, and how the results were interpreted.

Constructing the Survey

Each year, 25 literacy leaders complete the survey. The literacy leaders who responded to the 2014 survey played a key role in constructing this year’s survey. This is because they reviewed the items listed on the 2014 survey and made suggestions for revisions. From their suggestions, the 2015 survey was formed. This process resulted in a 30-item survey. The following five topics were new to the survey this year: genre knowledge, STEM literacy, summer reading, writing (argumentative & based on sources), and writing (creative).

Selecting the Literacy Leaders

The key criterion for respondents is that they have a national or international perspective on literacy. Many of those interviewed have served (or are serving) on boards of prominent literacy organizations or as editors of major journals. Together, the 25 leaders create a diverse group representing various ethnicities, ages, and job categories such as classroom teachers, administrators, reading specialists, and college professors, although college professors constitute the majority of those responding.

The number of literacy leaders interviewed from a region is determined by the percentage of IRA members in that given area. The areas as defined by IRA are: East, South, Great Lakes, Plains, Southwest, Rocky Mountains, West, Canada and Outside North America.

Conducting the Survey

The literacy leaders were interviewed by phone or in person during the spring and summer months. Each respondent was read a standard 178-word paragraph explaining that a rating of “hot” and “not hot” was not a measure of their personal interest in a topic, but instead would refer to the amount of attention the item was currently receiving. Next, each of the 30 items from the survey were read aloud to the respondent and they were asked to give a rating of “hot” or “not hot.” Then each respondent was asked if each item “should be hot” or “should not be hot.” The direct oral contact is used for a number of reasons. Many times, respondents will make informal comments which can be helpful in the written narrative. Also, we want respondents to give a relatively spontaneous answer.

Tallying and Interpreting the Results

The final step was analyzing the results. This involved tallying the collected ratings. Items receiving 100 percent consensus among the literacy leaders were reported as “extremely hot” or “extremely cold.” Items receiving 75 percent consensus were reported as “very hot” or “very cold,” while those receiving 50 percent consensus were reported as “hot” or “cold.”

The full 2015 What’s Hot in Literacy Survey results were published in the September/October 2014 issue of Reading Today. Members: Click here to login and access the issue. Nonmembers: Join IRA now!

Judith Hayn is a teacher’s teacher. Having spent 15 years in the classroom, she is now stationed at the University of Arkansas at Little Rock where she prepares graduate students to go into schools and spread the love of literature. As a member (and past chair) of the International Reading Association Special Interest Group-Network on Adolescent Literature, she focuses on teen lit and prepares practical applications of YA books with her students. In turn, those applications and ideas are run as “Putting Books to Work” features on Reading Today Online.

How did you begin your career, and what led you to your current position?

I began my teaching career in Omaha, NE, in an urban junior high where I taught what was called Unified Studies, both English and Social Studies in a block time period. Then I taught that subject in Topeka, KS, finally moving on to high school English to finish my 15-year public school career.  I came to the University of Arkansas at Little Rock in 2006 to help the English Education program maintain its NCTE accreditation since I am a long-time program reviewer, lead reviewer, and auditor.  

What’s the mission of the Special Interest Group-Network on Adolescent Literature (SIGNAL)?

Our current mission is increasing membership, however our organization is committed to helping middle and high school teachers incorporate young adult literature into their classrooms.  We focus on practical implications of including YAL in curriculum and offer strategies for doing so. We also encourage classroom-based research teachers can adapt for their own use. Our website offers information about membership and our SIGNAL Journal.  Please visit the site to join and examine the calls for manuscripts. We celebrate, research, and promote YAL!

What are you reading (personal, professional, or even children's/YA)?

Right now I am reading two books for the continuing research I am doing with my colleague, Dr. Karina Clemmons (who is also the secretary of SIGNAL), and our graduate students.  We give pre-service teachers a survey on a social justice issue and they read a young adult book centered on that theme.  A post-survey lets us look at changes in attitudes that may have occurred through this encounter with text.  This fall, the book is In the Name of God by Paula Jolin, the spring selection is Moon at Nine by Deborah Ellis.

How has YA literature changed since you started teaching?

When I took my first young adult literature class in the ‘80s at the University of Kansas, I was awe-struck by the genre's power.  Now I am more than astounded at the burgeoning proliferation of YAL.  Since Harry Potter first wielded his wand and Bella emerged out of the twilight, the race has been on.  Who can write the highest quality book and get it made into a well-crafted movie seems to be the goal.  YA bookshelves are filled in big box and neighborhood bookstores.  E-readers entice teens to enter texts with a swipe of the finger.  This growth is phenomenal and creates a whole new niche for literacy.

How long have you been a member of IRA? How has membership influenced your career?

I have been an IRA member for many years, but I let my membership lapse, primarily because the emphasis on YAL was somewhat limited. I returned to the fold when I came to Little Rock and was asked to chair SIGNAL.  I also began submitting as many program proposals as I could handle that featured some aspect of YAL. These have been accepted, and interest at the conference is high; our sessions are well-attended, and I even have those who tell me they come every year to see what I am doing now with YAL.

What do you consider to be your proudest career moment?

 My proudest career moments occur when I hear from graduates who tell me what they are doing and where. When they can tell me they are implementing YAL despite the barriers, which are myriad, I just smile inside. The joy of a long teaching career is knowing what I say and do does indeed have an impact that only I can truly know.

What lessons do you share with teachers you train that seem to resonate year after year?

I think students remember me as the one who taught them that the important things they teach do not come out of textbooks or assignments, but rather, out of commitment, care, and dedication for students.  If teachers keep that at the center of teaching, students will accomplish all of those standards others impose on them in the most relevant way possible.

Do you want to suggest an IRA member for the Member of the Month feature interview? E-mail readingtoday@/.

April Hall is the editor of Reading Today Online. She can be reached at ahall@/.

photo credit: sleepyneko via photopin cc

A few years ago while on vacation in Scotland, I had a serendipitous meeting with a fellow educator. We were all waiting with our families at the train station, he was heading further north to Perthshire and we were heading back to London. We struck up a conversation about what else—teaching—and compared notes about the similarities and differences between our teaching cultures. As our respective trains arrived, we exchanged contact information with hopes of continuing a dialogue. Our future conversations evolved into something we never expected. Our students developed wonderful friendships via old fashioned pen and paper letters. Thus began the Pen Pal Project.

With the new school year comes the anticipation of all the new lessons that goes with it. We always like to start off with something new, exciting, and a little bit different but still meet all the requirements of the Common Core. The Pen Pal Project my Scotland friend and I collaborated on will help you cover many facets of literacy and you’ll have a piece of work or two for your students’ portfolios. As an extra bonus, if you start now, your students will have the continuity of writing to their pen pals over the entire year. The letters are a beautiful way to develop both friendships and literacy that can last a lifetime.

The Art of Letter Writing

If you have not already touched on the mechanics and format of writing a friendly letter, now is the perfect time. I used a poster-sized sheet of lined notebook paper and tacked it on the wall. With my students’ help, we wrote a letter to our principal asking about her recent holiday. That served as our model example for their future letter writing.

The key ingredients to a friendly letter are:

• Heading: September 1, 2014. I like to stress writing out the month. It’s more formal, but a good habit to get into as your students progress through school and enter the business world.
• Salutation: Dear (pen pal’s name):
• Body: I suggest starting by asking about the person to whom you are writing. Then go into talking about yourself. Keep in mind how we generally greet people—we ask how they are doing. A written letter works the same way.
• Closing: “Your new pen pal” is one suggestion. Ask your students to brainstorm other suggestions they might use.
• Signature: Aahhhh! An especially perfect time to use cursive. However, if your students do not yet know how to form the cursive letters, legibly printed letters are perfectly fine.

As your students engage in the art of writing letters, it is a wonderful opportunity for them to learn and practice penmanship. Occasionally, I overhear conversations between adults commiserating about how their adult children do not know how to sign their names in cursive. Or, worse yet, they don’t know how to read cursive. Yes, so much communication today is done via technology, but there are still important situations where “going old school” with handwritten correspondence is necessary or desired.

Getting Started

My friend in Scotland and I exchanged student lists. Since I was the primary in the exchange, I assigned my students to his students. We didn’t have an equal number, so we doubled-up one or two students.

Finally, the day arrived when my students had the names of their new friends-to-be. Immediately, they started their first letters. There are not many occasions when students look forward to writing. It’s always a daunting task to fill a blank page with witty prose and retellings of exciting events, but not so with the Pen Pal Project! Using what they learned in our mini-lesson on writing friendly letters, my students were happy to actually put pencil to paper. They had a purpose with meaning.

As an adult I’ve mastered being able to write a letter in one draft. But I can remember a time when I would write and rewrite a letter to my grandma. Either I hadn’t organized my thoughts so they jumped all over the page, or my pencil erasers had caused too many unsightly smudges. Not that letters need to be perfect, but they should at least make the reader feel like some thought and care was put into the act of writing. As a child, this helps instill pride in one’s work.

Once all my students had written their letters and they were presentable, I gave each student a letter-sized envelope to address to their pen pal. Then I gathered all the letters into one large envelope to mail to their teacher.

The Art of Patience

The letters were in the mail and the waiting began. Each day, starting nearly from the day I mailed the letters, my students asked if they had mail. It took about a month before I could finally wave the big envelope from Scotland! The cost of the paper: nominal. The cost of the envelopes: $2.99. The cost of postage: $4.87. The cost of my students’ expressions when they opened their individual letters: PRICELESS! They were each engaged in reading like never before. And they wanted to write letters back to their new friends that day. Who was I to say “No” to writing?! And so the process began and continued throughout the school year and into the summer.

These days, we all have email addresses and we hear little pings to tell us “you’ve got mail.” That’s all fine and dandy, but there is something more authentic, grounded, almost comforting about receiving a letter in the mail box from the postman. To sit in a comfy chair, carefully unseal the envelope, and read a note from a friend—it’s the next best thing to having that friend in the room with you. And when that friend is thousands of miles away, well, that letter is priceless, too.

I asked my friend if he knows other schools in Scotland that would be interested in a Pen Pal Project of their own. Here are a couple of schools he passed along to me:

• Oakbank – a large school in Perth, Scotland. Emails can be sent to the deputy Headteacher JHManson@pkc.gov.uk 
• Also St. Pious in Dundee, Scotland. Emails can be sent to Michelle at mickey_w79@hotmail.com.

Happy Writing!

Kathleen A. Hunter, MS is a literacy tutor and aspiring children's book author. You can visit her online at www.KathleenHunterWrites.com.