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TEACH READING & WRITING
CHRISTINE CHEN
and
LINDSAY PICKTON
are primary education advisors in Kingston upon Thames
C
ontrary to the perception ofmany children, we
teachers know that reading andwriting is not just for
‘English’ or ‘Literacy lessons’. Both skills are golden
tickets to success across the curriculum.
Even in the
absence of thewrittenword, there is no lesson inwhich
language is not important. In fact, poor literacy skills can underpin
some of the biggest problems that face us teachers: frustrated
behaviour, non-completion of work, lowself-esteem, poor
attendance and, ultimately, poor results. So howdowemake sure
children are developing their reading, writing or language skills in
every lesson – regardless of the subject or topic?
To help in thismonumental mission, here are 18 ofmy
favouriteways to boost literacy skillswherever you are and
whatever you’re teaching.
2Addsomestructure
Many boys respondwell to structure; 10 ormoreminutes of
independent readingmay, for some, be too open-ended. Highly-
structured sessions that require specific activities every few
minutesmay help. Try readingwith a 3-5minute timer. When the
time is up, take oneminute to record, drawor discuss a summary
of the content, then repeat thewhole process until the end of
the lesson. Ensuring discussion is themajor feature of reading
sessions is vital.
Don’t just sling them a Roy of the
Rovers annual and think it’s job done
– a more versatile set of resources is
needed to turn boys on to reading...
3
Fine-tune
progression
Graded progression through a high-quality
reading scheme can instil confidence. It
enables struggling readers to succeed daily
– crucial in building enthusiasmfor reading.
But it is equally important that any such
books are content appropriate; investment
in ‘high-interest, low-ability’ texts is amust.
And always promote progress in relation to a
child’s personal best, discouraging comparison
with others.
1
Whatmakes
themtick?
Some boyswant to read about space, dinosaurs,
cars and sharks…but some don’t. If children are
reluctant or struggling, prioritisefinding out where
their passions lie, andfind readingmaterial that
engages them. Without this, their chances of
committing to reading are slim. And the reading
materialsmay not be books, of course.
THE
MULTI-PRONGED
APPROACH
