Content Area Literacy

I thrive on core knowledge base from within our field and evaluate our effectiveness. It gives us a framework within which to work and serves as springboard for improvement. I believe that as Early Childhood Educators we must be able to understand child development and demonstrate the implication of this knowledge in practice; provide an environment that is safe, healthy and nurturing and is trustworthy, consistent and secure for all. We must also plan, implement and evaluate developmentally appropriate curriculum to enhance all areas of children’s learning and development including physical, intellectual, creative, and language, emotional and social. As a Teacher Educator, we are guides for student-teachers , who in turn guides our children and should model and facilitate supportive relationships by utilizing developmentally appropriate techniques. As early childhood educators it is indicative that we support the development of individual children, recognizing that children are best understood in the context of family, culture and

Content area teachers can implement strategies and scaffold learning when planning and designing instruction so that students will actively engage in literacy. According to Dobbs, content area reading instruction includes: the information present in the text, and the instructional plan teachers use to help students understand the content (2003, p.3). Vacca, Vacca, & Mraz explain that in order to plan instruction effectively, teachers must be aware of the explicit and functional dimensions of content literacy. The explicit aspect of content literacy involves the development of skills and strategies that enable students to comprehend what they are reading. Functional instruction focuses more on the application of strategies needed to derive knowledge from a variety of sources of information.” (2014, p. 134). Forget defined literacy as “listening, thinking, reading, and speaking in such a way that information and ideas are processed and communicated to the benefit of self and society” (2003, p. 5). Content area teachers need to plan and design lessons so that students will actively engage in literacy. Forget goes on to discuss that poor performance in schools can be do to a lack of basic literacy skills. Therefore, teachers need to implement the skills and strategies found to be successful in literacy to ensure

Another way I plan to develop students’ critical thinking skills is by including more information-based texts in my curriculum. An article in the Early Childhood Education Journal discusses how two second grade teachers incorporate this into their classrooms (Calo, 2011). My favorite way that the teachers used informational texts was by choosing readings related to what was going on in the students’ lives. In one classroom, they had weekly visits from service dogs, so the teacher chose texts about dogs. For elementary students, this is a great way to get them engaged, ask deeper questions, and promote critical thinking.

To assist students to “read with purpose and anticipation,” Vacca et al. (2014, p. 173) suggests, in their book Content Area Reading: Literacy and Learning Across the Curriculum, that teachers need to “create an instructional context” that activates their students’ “prior knowledge” and helps them to become interested in a lesson. Throughout chapter six, “Activating Prior Knowledge and Interest,” Vacca et al. (2014, pp. 172-173) explain instructional strategies that can lead students to “read with purpose and anticipation.” This chapter presents the reader with a plethora of instructional strategies and means for applying them, along with example for real educators. As I journeyed through this chapter, I discovered many instructional strategies,

DiCarlo and Lujan state: “The curriculum is packed with so much content that teachers resort to telling students what they know and students simply commit facts to memory” (17). While students commit facts to memory, they are not truly learning the information. Memorizing information is not learning because students can recall facts but have no understanding of the concepts. DiCarlo and Lujan state: “Learning is…the ability to use resources to find, evaluate, and apply information” (17). The abilities outlined by DiCarlo and Lujan are skills associated with independent learning.

Starting from the moment you step into kindergarten you are learning the basics. From reading to writing, to adding and dividing, you learn it all. There is so much to learn so you have to start early. You need to learn the iconic stories like Susan B. Anthony, Rosa Parks, and Ronald Reagan. Teaching them all of this knowledge at this stage of their life is essential. They think learning is cool and want to impress you by what they know and if you have the right teachers, learning is fun.

Any student can learn the mere content that is lectured by teachers; however, it takes a truly determined individual- a student who is striving for success- to understand the deeper meaning of the material: the ability to “think critically”. It takes a great level of maturity to apply an education to one’s daily life, which is a characteristic I can truly say that I obtain. To me, balance and discipline are two key factors in life. Whether this is academics, sports, or extracurricular activities, I ensure that I give 100% in everything I do. I know there is a much greater impact on my life when I give every ounce of effort I

Firstly, I learned how important it is to think critically and be able to solve problems. Dr. Clayton mentions the importance of teaching people to think rather than directly giving answers. This is crucial because the value of learning is not the answers, but it is the process that leads to those answers. For example, many parents overwhelm their children with resource, money and other materials, without teaching

When I was a child, I had a need for perfection in my academic pursuits - I focused on getting every question on my tests right. My father would shake his head disapprovingly at this strategy. He told me, “education is not only what you learn, but also how you will put what you learned into use.” At the time, I couldn’t understand what he meant, but as I grew older, realizing that it’s impossible to memorize every detail I read, I understood the importance of making my knowledge practical.

Voltaire once said, “No problem can withstand the assault of sustained thinking” (“Voltaire Quotes”) What Voltaire intended to convey was that extensive and critical thinking can allow people to arrive at rational solutions to problems. This is one of the reasons why the significance of thinking critically has become a popular issue that is discussed about in educational systems nowadays. It is imperative that students develop critical thinking skills and not just blindly be taught what to think, but rather how to think. Pure memorization will not lead to authentic learning; instead, encouraging critical thinking is what will help students evaluate problems and make reasonable decisions. As humans are susceptible to emotions, critical

Emily, I enjoyed reading your response. I am very new to the concept of Content Area Literacy (CAL) so I totally understand why you (and I) might think that literacy across the board of content area is not important. Perhaps none of us can really “feel” the integration of CAL until we have actually experienced it. As I read chapter 1 and 2 of Harvey and Goudvis Strategies that Work, I consistently came back to the thought, higher level thinking skills. It is true, each area of content has specific needs (documents, charts, latin terminology), and that all needs require some form of comprehension. My curiosity comes into play when I ask myself, “Is CAL simply a way to implement higher level thinking skills into the instructional design?”

Just like Cathy Davidson announced that in his essay “Project Classroom Makeover”: That is glistening paradox of great education: It is not about answering test questions. It is about knowing that, when tested by the most grueling challenges ahead, you have the capacity to learn what is required to succeed.” (67) Learning is a skill. It is the power of people to evolve and develop variety of things.

Understanding cognition and how we learn is essential in the developmental stages of children. Not all students learn in the same way, understanding the cognitive process will assist in the development of the students. By modifying my approach when giving instructions I have noticed growth in current students that I am working with. Using concrete materials and giving the opportunity for students to be involved in hands-on activities on a daily basis, is essential in making new material meaningful to learners.. The knowledge gained from this topic has increased my understanding and is benefiting the children I am currently

In the world we are living in, children are inundated by information. We as teachers need to teach them strategies to process all the information they are taking in. It also helps children prepare themselves for the real world.

When defining the term “critical thinking” it can seem overwhelming and daunting, especially for young learners. In laments terms, you are teaching your student how to think for him or herself when it comes to problem solving. Instead of giving the student the answer, you give them the tools to discover the answer him/herself. Critical thinking is an important component of any classroom. No matter the age group, these skills stay with a child for the rest of his or her life. As a teacher, it is important to understand what critical thinking pertains to and how to structure part of your lesson plan around developing critical thinking skills.