Literacy in all its forms is a skill that continues to be built upon and developed throughout life. At Warburton Primary School, we believe that every student should be immersed in a world of rich and engaging texts, inspiring them to develop complex vocabularies and use this in their own writing. This is often taught in 'units' that focus on one genre or text type at a time. 

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Students at Warburton Primary School: 

• read, listen to, and/or view many examples of the genre/text type being studied

• discuss how these texts are constructed and why

• look for common patterns (e.g. the use of false clues in mystery)

• build criteria for genres/text types

• support their thinking about the way the text type works with evidence from the text

• talk about audience and purpose

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The Reader's Workshop

The Reader's Workshop is a model of instruction that focuses on the work of the reader. Teachers model and directly teach the skills and strategies that proficient readers use. Students are taught that these strategies can be applied to many types of reading; therefore, students have the opportunity to self-select books and read a wide variety of text.

Daily, students engage in a mini-lesson, independent reading, small-group instruction, and conferring. A child also has ample opportunities to discuss and write about his/her reading.

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The Writer's Workshop

Writing workshop is a student-centered framework for teaching writing that is based on the idea that students learn to write best when they write frequently, for extended periods of time, on topics of their own choosing. 

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To develop skills as a writer, students need three things:

• ownership of their own writing

• guidance from an experienced writer

• and support from a community of fellow learners.

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The writing workshop framework meets these needs and streamlines instruction in order to meet the most important objective: giving kids time to write. The workshop setting supports children in taking their writing seriously and viewing themselves as writers. 

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​How can I help my child develop as a reader at home? 

• Talk about books as a family. 

• Read with your child every day. 

• Ask your child to share with you what he or she is reading.

• Ask questions such as, 'What was your favorite part?' 'Why?' 'Tell me one thing you learned about your topic that you are reading about.' 

• Make reading a priority. Young readers can reread old favorites, read the pictures, and tell stories and nursery rhymes with the adult reader. Older readers can benefit from reading a series or many books by the same author. Adults can read the same book and discuss it with the child. 

• Trust your child’s teacher to match the reader with the right text for learning – each book is essential!

 

'Literacy' related words to know: 

Comprehension: Understanding what is read. 

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Fluency: The ability to read at an appropriate rate, with accuracy and proper expression. 

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Stamina: The ability to slowly increase the amount of time spent reading independently with focus and engagement.  

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Good-Fit Book: A book at an independent level that a child can read with understanding for practice of skills being taught. 

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Instructional-Level Text: A text read with teacher guidance to assist the reader in advancing levels with direct teaching. 

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Reading Log: A place to record book titles, pages read, and time spent reading, and used to monitor and understand the child as a reader. 

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MacqLit Intervention 
MacqLit is an explicit and systematic reading intervention program for small groups of older low-progress readers. It provides teachers with a comprehensive sequence of lessons that includes all the key components necessary for effective reading instruction: phonemic awareness, phonics, fluency, vocabulary and comprehension.