Trade Your Job For a Fulfilling Career as an Elementary Teacher
For people who love to see the spark of understanding in a young person’s eyes, a degree as an elementary teacher can lead to the perfect lifelong career. An online masters in education is a fast, flexible way to learn the skills necessary to assist young learners in the development process. You will learn tactics for supporting students emotionally, mentally, and physically in a school setting, as well as managing vital paperwork and eliciting help from parents and administrators.
Individuals who are most successful as elementary school teachers are patient, energetic, and organized. They have the ability to multitask and manage many different types of people at once. In addition, they have an inherent desire to learn and to teach, and continue to gain knowledge throughout their teaching career. Finally, they must be aware and accepting of differences in race, gender, culture, and socioeconomic status, as they will deal with a variety of students and parents. read more »
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Elementary Teacher Roles and Responsibilities
Elementary teachers have the responsibility to teach and provide a safe environment for their students. This includes preparing lesson plans that allow students to learn in a variety of ways, such as visually, aurally, and kinesthetically. It also includes being aware of students’ individual personal and emotional needs in addition to educational ones. Elementary teachers are responsible for alerting authorities in the case of suspected abuse or neglect, and often must refer students for outside assistance from counselors, administrators, and behavior specialists. In addition, they must maintain grade and individualized education plan (IEP) records as required by state and federal laws.
Elementary Teacher Environment
Usually, elementary teachers work on school campuses between the hours of 8am and 3pm. They do a lot of walking, standing, and sitting, and often lead physical activities for their students. Although many elementary teachers have their own classroom that can reflect their personal style of teaching, co-teaching is becoming more popular. This means that teachers often share their space with assistants and Special Education providers. Sometimes, an elementary teacher works with students who are home-bound, and provide learning experiences outside of the school campus. In recent years, many elementary teachers have turned to online schools, which allow them to teach students from the comfort of their own homes.
Elementary Teacher Pay and Career Outlook
Elementary teachers are a vital part of the school system, and will likely maintain their current rate of employment over the next six years, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. In 2012, there were over 1.5 million elementary school teachers employed, with an average salary of $53,000 per year. In the
In the teaching community, education is the key determinant of leadership opportunities and promotion. For teachers that gain only an early childhood education degree or elementary education degree at the undergraduate level, jobs are limited and can be very competitive. In order to get the highest paying jobs, additional education is required. For teachers who gain a masters degree in elementary education in an area of emphasis like administration, policy-making, or special education, wages can range between $60,000 and $83,000 per year.
Benefits of Getting an Elementary Education Degree Online
Online teaching degrees are an excellent choice for those who already have other work and personal responsibilities. Since the online degree allows you to work at your own pace, it is possible to continue working at your current job while you gain the necessary skills to move into your teaching career. In addition, online education programs are just as viable as on-campus degrees, and are offered by very reputable colleges. Many of these schools provide practicum experiences in collaboration with local cohorts, and prepare you to become licensed in your home state. Online elementary education degrees are one of the fastest, most flexible ways to attain your goal of becoming an elementary teacher.


|The EFA 2000 Assessment: Country Reports|
11. Major Trends of Development of the Primary Education in Georgia
In compliance with the Law on Education of Georgia, "the State announces priority of the education field and on this basis leads public education policy". Elementary education is the first stage of general education according to the reform program. The research and analysis identified several problems, which are crucial for the successful completion of the reorganization of basic and secondary education levels.
The majority of primary education teachers is of the pension age and should be replaced by young qualified specialists. The reform implies the reorganization of higher pedagogical institutions and improvement their efficiency in research and methodological activity.
The Ministry of Education and Teacher Training Institutes should ensure the following:
Definition of the content for elementary education, optimization of standards and creation of new curricula and textbooks on the basis of new methodology and technology.
Provision of children from disadvantaged families with free textbooks; The Presidents Foundation delivered textbooks free of charge to schoolchildren throughout Georgia.
According to the Law on Education, "education is equally guaranteed to all". Nevertheless, a number of children are left out of school. They come from the most disadvantaged families and homeless children. The State should ensure the equal right of education for all children of the school age despite their social background. The expenditure should be allocated in the state budget. Allocation of 10% of the budget intended for the education reforms has still not been executed.
The reform should have a scientific and methodological support. Transformation of the education system and its orientation, based on the human, cultural and general education values of the modern world, requires creation of new methodologies in pedagogical sciences and practice, conduction of fundamental research in this direction. Need to renew the education contents requires the formation of the contents of subjects based on systemic, synchronic, didactic and other generally established human principles, conduction of research for creation text-books, methodological systems and etc.
The conception of moral, aesthetic, physical and labor education should be elaborated. The training process methodology and content should be harmonized with elaboration of education ways and methods. Teaching and education complex technological system should be based on unified principles of pedagogical process.


7:45 - 8:30 Teacher preparation of environment and discussion
8:30 - 9:00 Children's Arrival/Discovery Time
Teachers walk children into school and help them start the day. Children choose activities in the front of the room: art, sensory table, playdough or clay, science center, library, writing center, puzzles, games, building sets, blocks, or the "caves."
9:00 - 9:15 Morning Meeting/Large Group Time
The whole class comes together to share music, movement, puppets and literature as well as new information relating to class activities, interests and projects.
9:15 - 9:30 Focus activities and Gym
The teachers will divide the children into groups to facilitate an activity at a learning center or in the gym. The activities and groupings are chosen based on curriculum goals as well as the individual goals and interests of the children. Teachers may bring an open ended question to the group to spark curiosity and encourage exploration and inquiry related to the activity. At times a specific skill will be addressed through play based activities. One group will start in the gym before their focus activity, and others will rotate in throughout free play after their focus groups. Large motor skill development is facilitated by teachers through encouragement and engagement in motor challenges and games.
9:30 - 10:15 Free Play
Children and teachers play together in learning centers throughout the classroom. Teachers observe, facilitate and support children's play and interactions.
10:15 - 10:25 Clean up, bathroom, and handwashing
10:25 - 10:45 Whole group snack and dress for outdoor play
10:45 -11:15 Outdoor play on the playground
The teachers intentionally set up the outdoor environment and plan activities that incorporate the children's play preferences while providing motor challenges. Specific large motor skills are addressed through group games.
11:15 -11:30 Pick-up time/End of day story reading
Teachers wait with children and read stories until parents arrive. Children are brought to their cars for departure.
11:30 -1:00 Teacher clean up and discussion
When small groups begin, they will meet from 9:15 to 9:35 on Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays.


Literacy: The Writer
Learning Care Group
When my niece was six years old, she spent a week with me. Her favorite game was to write random letters in a line, push them in front of me, and ask, “What does this say, Aunt Shelle?” I would string the sounds together into a nonsense word that would send her into fits of laughter. For Kylee, this was an indication of an important developmental step: she was a writer. She understood that the symbols she was writing on paper had meaning and could be interpreted and read by another person.
A lot of learning and development comes together to help young children reach this stage in their literacy development. Writing calls for physical control and coordination as well as a foundational understanding of the interconnection of speech and writing. Both of these develop as children interact with writing tools and have opportunities to explore writing.
Before children can write anything, they must be able to grasp a writing tool and hold it firmly while controlling its movement. When you watch toddlers first use crayons or markers, you might notice them making large loops or scribbles by moving their whole arms. As preschoolers, those toddlers will develop more fine muscle control and these movements become more controlled and intentional.
Children strengthen their fine muscles when they squeeze playdough and join in fingerplays. They learn to control and coordinate their movements as they paint at an easel and pour water from one cup into another. All of these seemingly innocent childhood pastimes help your child develop the physical skills needed for writing.
In a previous post about reading, I discussed the importance of symbolism, which is the idea that one object can stand for another. This understanding is an important factor in both reading and writing. As children develop this understanding, they move from the idea that the spoken word “ball” stands for that round object we can play with to the idea that a picture they draw of a ball can also stand for the object in question. Finally, they arrive at the realization that the letters “b-a-l-l” also represent this idea. When your child draws pictures to tell stories or communicate ideas, it is an important precursor to the understanding needed for writing.
As they mature in their understanding, young children begin to differentiate between drawing and writing. When they first start to write, it often looks like a squiggly line along the page. With support, practice, and exposure to print, these early attempts evolve into individual squiggles that look more letter-like. As children learn about the letters, they begin to mix in actual letters with the squiggles. Finally, children begin to write in only letters, although the letters might not be the correct ones or may be backwards. Giving children opportunities to experiment with writing and letting them see writing in action helps them move through these stages.
As for my niece, five years later, Kylee continues to be a writer, although now she combines that basic understanding with the ability to connect the symbols she writes with the sounds they represent. She writes answers on tests, papers to show understanding, texts to touch base with friends, and online postings to connect with others near and far (including me). She has reached the goal that we would like for most children: to use writing as a means of communicating her thoughts, opinions, and ideas to a world eager to read them.
In my next posting, we will look at what families can do to support young children in becoming strong readers and writers.


This is a guest blog post from Marc Sirkin, Autism Speaks VP Social Marketing and Online Fundraising.
I first found out about David Chesney's software engineering class at dinner with Donald Brinkman from Microsoft. We were talking about different ways technology is impacting autism, and introduced us via e-mail. I was intrigued by the idea of students spending an entire semester, hacking and developing games for autism therapies using Microsoft Kinect devices. As a geek, this was just too good to be true!
As it turns out, students in EECS481 Software Engineering class worked hard all semester to develop games for kids with autism spectrum disorder in cooperation with Dr. Jackie Kaufman and Mr. Joe Kryza from Mott Children's Hospital.
Chesney and his class started with 15 "pitches" and narrowed the class down into teams, each focused on a stand-alone game. They worked closely with Mott Children's Hospital and autism experts to identify therapeutic benefits like gross motor skills, facial recognition skills, communications and language skills, tools for caregivers and even analytics. Most importantly they "play-tested" each game at various times with children and people on the spectrum and got real time feedback on what was fun, what worked and what needed improvement.
I had a front row seat as the students demo'd games like "Tickle Monster", a game that allows players to quickly recognize facial expressions. There was a "Flying Objects" game designed to help players improve gross motor skills and recognize facial expressions while playing a fast moving and exciting game.
"Hide & Seek" was designed for facial recognition as well as memory, concentration and recognizing positive and negative emotions. The player assumes the role of the "seeker" and walks through a randomly generated 3D "map" to get clues and to find what they are looking for.
"Path" is a game focused on motor skill development and allows players to follow an on-screen "path" with their hands, legs, and head. The game allows for caregivers to adjust the complexity of the "path" and is designed to be used in both the home and in therapy.
The platform team integrated all the games into one, seamless "main menu" that allowed for players to view their stats, earn rewards and badges and was the interface for the analytics and data generated by game players. The team felt that a rewards mechanism was critical to engaging people on the spectrum to provide motivation and to bring together all the various achievements earned by playing the different games.
There was a lot about the day that really blew me away - in particular the overall collaboration and the smart way they approached building useful games for different targeted therapies. Over time, I hope to see these games fleshed out even further and to perhaps even see them become commercialized and available on the XBox/Kinect platforms and into the hands of game players looking for fun, and therapies to help them manage some parts of their autism.
To learn more about autism and technology, get connected to "Hacking Autism" www.hackingautism.org.


The Power of Music
Discover the importance of music and find out how you can advocate for music in the classroom. From tips to unlocking your child's talents to making music at home to ways to lobby for music education, we've got everything you need to help you celebrate the power of music.
Why Music Is Important
Learn about all the ways music can benefit your child.
Have Fun with Music at Home
Find great ways to bring music into your home.
- Kindergarten Sight Words List
- First Grade Sight Words List
- 10 Fun Activities for Children with Autism
- Child Development Theories
- Social Cognitive Theory
- Why is Play Important? Social and Emotional Development, Physical Development, Creative Development
- A Teacher's Guide to Differentiating Instruction
- Definitions of Social Studies
- Theories of Learning
- Signs Your Child Might Have Asperger's Syndrome


Drawing together as inclusive practice in early years learning
Knight, Linda M (2010) Drawing together as inclusive practice in early years learning. Australian Art Education, 33(2), pp. 62-73.
Contemporary critiques on early years education highlight a call for the need to implement teaching and learning strategies that are less managing, that emerge from equity and inclusivity agendas, and that recognise diversity and plurality in early years learning contexts. Such critiques raise a need to reconsider the ways we engage as adults with children, and to rethink how we might review these relational subjectivities in respect to teaching and learning. This paper focuses on some aspects of a pilot research study into collaborative drawing in order to discuss ideas about socially inclusive early childhood pedagogies.
Impact and interest:
Citation countsare sourced monthly fromand citation databases.
These databases contain citations from different subsets of available publications and different time periods and thus the citation count from each is usually different. Some works are not in either database and no count is displayed. Scopus includes citations from articles published in 1996 onwards, and Web of Science® generally from 1980 onwards.
Citations counts from theindexing service can be viewed at the linked Google Scholar™ search.
|Item Type:||Journal Article|
|Keywords:||early years learning, inclusive practice|
|Subjects:||Australian and New Zealand Standard Research Classification > EDUCATION (130000) > SPECIALIST STUDIES IN EDUCATION (130300)|
|Divisions:||Current > QUT Faculties and Divisions > Faculty of Education|
Current > Schools > School of Early Childhood
|Deposited On:||04 Jul 2011 14:28|
|Last Modified:||01 Mar 2012 00:35|
Repository Staff Only: item control page


Anyone with a child knows that smart devices are highly addictive. It seems as though children (especially mine) have this inbuilt antenna/radar thing that sends signals every time an iPhone or iPad is within a two metre radius, and they’ll move the earth just to get their pea-covered hands on it. Any parent would also know, that denying them such device is a futile experience. So, instead of preventing the use of technology, you can make their usage time a productive one with one of these educational apps.
Designed for three to six year olds, Little Digits is an entertaining app that combines finger counting with technology. Confused? Little Digits displays a series of numbers, which each one requiring your little one to place down the corresponding number of fingers onto the touch pad. It’s not just about finger counting though, there are games that start to introduce basic addition/subtraction calculations and others that require a collaborative effort from you to work together to calculate a series of mathematical concepts. Coupled with cool graphics and animations, this app puts a great twist on regular ol’ finger counting.
Dexteria – Fine Motor Skill Development
Many occupational therapists have praised Dexteria for helping young children or kids with special needs develop their fine motor skills. Recommended for use in short periods of time, this app stresses that it’s three therapeutic modes – writing, tapping and pinching – are designed to be exercises to improve finger dexterity, hand strength, and finger control. The inbuilt tracking system is just one of the valuable features for parents and teachers that tracks your child’s performance when using the app.
Foster your child’s inner artist and writer while teaching them key storytelling concepts with the Toontastic app. Promoting creativity from a young age, Toontastic allows the little ones to bring their story to life through drawing and animating their own cartoons to then share with family and friends. We all know that kids are naturally full of wild ideas, so why not let them project that energy and spark their imagination into a world full of virtual pirates, princesses, and far away galaxies.
More than just a pairing game, The Opposites challenges children to understand the concept of word context and how words they use in day-to-day life oppose other words. Consisting of ten different levels, ranging from easy to difficult; this app spits out a series of words which then need to be paired with the corresponding antonym. Also offering an inbuilt dictionary, your child can learn the definition of the words they have just paired in a kid-friendly context.
To put a fun spin on developing your child’s reading comprehension and cognitive reading skills, why not send them on a riveting journey to complete the story in Aesop’s Quest. Young readers must follow the clues and remember important parts of the Aesop’s tale to help him progress through to the next level. Each completed level is rewarded with a puzzle piece, and once the puzzle is solved, your child can continue on to the next story in the series.
If you are one of the special few hoping to tap into the educational mobile app market, it can be tough getting your app to the top of the pile. We recommend companies like Brus Media who pretty much do all the heavy lifting when boosting your app in the online sphere, you can check out their site at www.brusmedia.com/ .
Do you have an educational learning app you’d like to share? Let us know in the comments below.


BIG RAPIDS – Why does Johnny struggle with reading? Maybe it’s because of eye problems – or maybe not. A new initiative involving Ferris State University’s Michigan College of Optometry and College of Education and Human Services is helping students and parents in West Michigan answer that question.
The collaboration began in 2007. Dr. Mark Swan of the MCO discovered that many of the elementary-age students getting eye exams also had reading problems.
“Optometry is unique in that so much of learning and academics is dependent upon vision,” Swan said. “Optometrists work to optimize the visual system and teachers work to inform and teach children to learn, but in the past we have not worked together to help make sure the different systems are being effectively integrated.”
To help make these systems work more closely together, Swan contacted COEHS Dean Michelle Johnston and Interim Associate Dean Paul Blake, which has resulted in students receiving both eye examinations and evaluations of slow progress in learning to read. Whether or not the problem requires corrective eye care, finding out what is hindering the learning process is often a great relief.
“What we’re getting is a bunch of bright kids and a lot of scared parents who don’t need to be scared, necessarily,” Blake said. “Some of the kids are doing all the right things and they just need validation of that. A lot of it has been teaching parents what they need to do at home.”
Such problems as misalignment of the eyes, which can make a patient’s peripheral vision dominant, or eyes that don’t properly “track” a line of text can cause reading ability to lag. One particular student that Blake has worked with has benefited by having both the cause of his eye problem addressed, and being taught new reading strategies.
“As Optometry continues to work with his tracking problem, this student is learning to read in bigger and bigger chunks,” Blake said. “His problem is directly related to short-term memory, because if he comes across a sight word he doesn’t know by the time he gets that word sounded out, he’s forgotten everything he had read up to that point. So, reading becomes really slow, laborious and frustrating.”
For the inaugural year of the program, Blake has worked directly with these young learners. Starting this fall, however, students from Ferris’ Elementary Education program will act as tutors under the supervision of Blake and Marlene Braunius, assistant professor School of Education.
In addition to helping young readers, Blake sees Ferris Education students preparing to head their own classrooms gaining a broader understanding of some of the barriers to reading. Like Blake, Swan also believes there is a value to his students.
“The College of Optometry has taught about this integration between vision and learning for years. This is an opportunity to develop a deeper relationship with the School of Education and expand the level of care that we can provide, while at the same time demonstrating to our students how to successfully integrate optometric care with other professions,” he said.
Information about the MCO’s clinics is available at www.ferris.edu/mco.
09 April, 2008


2013 Summer ABA Workshops
Participation in the introduction session is strongly encouraged for anyone new to ABA or working with students with autism.
Monday August 19, 2013
8:30 a.m. - 3:30 p.m.
Educating Students with Autism: An Introduction
This introductory training provides participants with the foundational skills to work effectively with students with autism. Topics include an overview of diagnostic criteria and learning characteristics of Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD). Reviews the general principles of Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA) and the importance of incorporating reinforcement systems and data collection into programming to ensure success. This session will also cover the general classroom and instructional characteristics needed for this population to make effective progress.
For more details and information about how to register please click here


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Downloads Curriculum and Instructional Methods for the Elementary and Middle School (5th Edition)
April 27, 2013
Johanna Kasin Lemlech 7th Edition, by John A. Elementary and Middle School. . th Grade Utah Core State Standards Mathematics Curriculum Map. Elementary and Middle School Mathematics:. . The 2nd Edition includes extensive curriculum content on. Elementary Schools. Science in Elementary Education: Methods, Concepts, and Inquiries, 11/e. > Schools & Teaching > Instruction Methods; Pearson - Science Methods (Elementary) Curriculum & Instruction; General Methods; General Methods. strategies are being introduced. Granite School District policy requires elementary mathematics instruction. Science Methods for Elementary and Middle School Teachers / Edition 3. Science Methods (Elementary) Curriculum & Instruction | MyEducationLab Curriculum & Instruction. Texas Edition of Elementary and Middle School Mathematics (7th Edition). Social Studies Methods (Middle School) Drama Methods. Curriculum and Instructional Methods for the Elementary and Middle. Shelby County Elementary Reading Instruction Plan (SCRIP) provide the instructional context to differentiate reading instruction
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What is Art? Book
"Why are some works of art so incredibly expensive?", "Is graffiti art?", and "Why is the Mona Lisa so famous?"
Anyone who tries to come to grips with art knows that it opens up new horizons. Art enables us to see the world and ourselves with fresh eyes. But how do we gain access to art? What do we have to know to understand modern and contemporary art? In fact, what is art?
This book poses questions and gives answers – in words and pictures. Conceived in close cooperation with young people and specialists, it explains various aspects of art in plain and simple English.
In this volume, the Fondation Beyeler, one of the best-known art museums in Switzerland, has drawn on its many years of experience in art education. As a long-time and committed patron of the arts and sponsor of the Department of Art Education, UBS has made the publication and distribution of this book possible. Together, we hope that our efforts will encourage many, especially young, people to discover art for themselves – and that "What is Art?" is a joy to read!
The products, services, information and/or materials contained within these web pages may not be available for residents of certain jurisdictions. Please consult the sales restrictions relating to the products or services in question for further information.
© UBS 1998 - 2015. All rights reserved.


thanks for information, have more information of nonformal education? please send me..http://han i.centerblog.
Par Hani, le 17.07.2012
thanks for sharing with urgent information! :)
Par Ilze, le 21.10.2011
what is information technology? wh at are the advantages and disadvantages of it in schools? what are the chal
Par mugenyi david, le 18.02.2010
keep on like this.
Par adil , le 09.02.2010
hi safae, well done, go on. this is a great article. thank s a lot
Par Anonyme, le 09.02.2010
Abonnement au blog
Date de création : 02.02.2010
Dernière mise à jour : 10.02.2010
Definition of formal, non-formal and informal learning
• Formal learningtakes place in education and training institutions, leading to recognised diplomas and qualifications.
• Non-formallearning takes place alongside the mainstream systems of education and training and does not typically lead to formalised certificates. Non-formal learning may be provided in the workplace and through the activities of civil society organisations and groups (such as in youth organisations, trades unions and political parties). lt can also be provided through organisations or services that have been set up to complement formal systems (such as arts, music and sports classes or private tutoring to prepare for examinations).
• Informal learningis a natural accompaniment to everyday life. Unlike formal and non-formal learning, informal learning is not necessarily intentional learning, and so may well not be recognised even by individuals themselves as contributing to their knowledge and skills.
Until now, formal learning has dominated policy thinking, shaping the ways in which education and training are provided and colouring people‘s understandings of what counts as learning. The continuum of lifelong learning brings non-formal and informal learning more fully into the picture. Non-formal learning, by definition, stands outside schools, colleges, training centres and universities. lt is not usually seen as ‘real‘ learning, and nor do its outcomes have much currency value on the labour market. Non-formal learning is therefore typically undervalued.
But informal learning is likely to be missed out of the picture altogether, although it is the oldest form of learning and remains the mainstay of early childhood learning. The fact that microcomputer technology has established itself in homes before it has done so in schools underlines the importance of informal learning. Informal contexts provide an enormous learning reservoir and could be an important source of innovation for teaching and learning methods.


Girls and women in Iraq are often denied educational opportunities due to a variety of factors, ranging from cultural and economic constraints to violence and insecurity in their communities. In southern Iraq, Mercy Corps is changing those dynamics — providing an opportunity, despite these challenges, for girls and women to develop literacy and numeracy skills, and ultimately, a greater sense of independence.
Since 2005, the Women’s Awareness and Inclusion Program has been implemented through the USAID-funded Community Action Program. And in the last six years, more than 25,000 women and girls in southern Iraq have participated in the one-year literacy program that gives them the skills to read and write, and the confidence to participate fully in their communities.
The students are varied: girls who are responsible for caring for their younger siblings and can’t attend formal school; women who want to learn to read the Qu’ran; mothers who want to be able to read the signs and prices at the market; grandmothers who have never stepped into a classroom. And inevitably, these girls and women take away more from the program than the ability to read and write.
Like Shayma'a and her mother, Samira.
Shayma’a is eight years old, but she seems wise beyond her years. She has been coming with her mother Samira to a literacy center in Basra since last year.
“Ten months ago, my classmate told me that there will be a literacy center in our school building and a chance for a hundred women to learn. I went to my mother and told her to join this program, but she was feeling embarrassed. I convinced her to go and promised to go with her.”
Shayma’a used to accompany her mother everywhere because Samira needed her to read signs and help her. “But now she is able to do all these things by herself,” Shayma’a said, smiling.
Indeed, Samira, 52, is very proud of her and her daughter’s accomplishments. “This program gave me the opportunity to learn reading, writing, calculating, and improving myself in my community as a woman.” She is very grateful to the literacy center — but more than anything, to her daughter Shayma’a for opening the door to education.
Update: Hear the latest from women in the WAI program, who last month told Mercy Corps staff member Ali Hadi how the classes are changing their lives. (April 9, 2012)


I’m on a quest for instructional strategies that will support teachers who are trying to increase and improve the types of student talk happening in their classrooms. At least one Avon Maitland Secondary School inquiry group (an English department) will be experimenting with learning conversations. That’s what we’re calling talking for learning.
There are a growing number of resources that outline the importance of classroom talk and the different types of classroom talk. The information below was extracted from David Booth’s work with Me Read, No Way and with the Literacy and Numeracy Secretariat. To improve and increase learning conversations in our classrooms:
Monitor the ratio of teacher talk versus student talk to ensure as much of the latter as possible.
- Traditionally, the teacher talks for 95% of classroom time. Try timing teacher talk versus organized, purposeful, student talk. Booth recommends that we pay attention to who talks and when.
Model and encourage the use of purposeful and accountable talk.
- David Booth notes that the teacher is modelling talk right from the beginning. We learn the culture of the classroom through demonstration. The teacher might ask: What did you notice about the way I talked? Or the question I asked? Think back to the best question you heard everybody.
- Booth also explains that accountable talk is ‘on task’ talk. The teacher will need to redirect often. No voice dominates. No voice is omitted. No voice bullies. The talk is accountable to the learning community and accountable to rigorous thinking.
Explore different modes of talk with students. Here are a few to consider:
- Social talk (in the halls and at the beginning of class)
- Interactive/dialogic talk
- Accountable talk (there is a right to talk, listen and disagree)
- Role talk (voice is stronger because it isn’t you)
- Digital talk (texting, chatting, etc)
What do classroom learning conversations look like at the most granular level? In the classroom? As part of a lesson? What are the foundational skills students need? What are the barriers we face? Who are the experts among us when it comes to accountable talk? That is where the experimentation begins.
For our teachers, the emphasis is on the classroom as a learning lab where we experiment with instruction, because we can’t possibly know all of the pieces that need to be in place until we try. All we have is theory and research, until we try. We need to learn it for ourselves. We need to learn by doing. And when we do, I’ll share our learning with you. Please share your learning with us.
More Resources on Classroom Talk
Me Read And How: Ontario Teachers Report on How to Improve Boys’ Literacy Skills
Discovering Voice (Video)
Grand Conversations in the Junior Classroom
Let’s Talk About Listening
Year 7 Speaking and Listening Bank (England)
Photo by WaderRead More


|About the Program | 10 Yr Anniv Exhibit | Current Units/Lessons | Reading Room | Gallery | Contact Us!|
Promoting equity, diversity and access to art experiences for all children
Community Message Mural by 2nd Grade Art Partners
Art Partners brings college students and faculty, school teachers and children together every week throughout the school year for learning experiences that are grounded in the activities of viewing, discussing, interpreting, valuing, preserving and making works of art. Through carefully designed activities drawn from the disciplines of art history, art criticism, aesthetics and art production, the Art Partners curriculum supports learning in many areas of the children's school experience, including language arts, social studies, cognitive development, socializations skills and emotional intelligence.
are invited to learn about our program and share in the ideas offered
for addressing the needs of diverse learners through art. It is our hope
that this effort will inspire others to create similar programs in their
own area of the world.
Art Partners is a collaborative
fieldwork program involving faculty and students from Buffalo State College
(BSC), Buffalo, NY, with teachers and students in Buffalo Public Schools.
The program was founded in 1994 by its coordinator, Professor Lucy Andrus,
a member of the Art Education Department. Each semester, Professor Andrus
and a team of students enrolled in her course, Art for Children with Special
Needs, bring the Art Partners program to two designated school sites in
the city of Buffalo.
Art Partners focuses on urban students attending inner city schools who have special learning needs. This includes students with identified disabilities as well as students considered at risk due to social, economic, environmental and/or other life circumstances that negatively affect their ability to succeed in school and society.
Art Partners is especially
important for those children who do not receive art education taught by
art specialists, as well as those children who can better express themselves
and demonstrate their diverse capabilities through a program that differentiates
instruction and takes a learning through the arts approach. In collaboration
with the children's classroom teachers, the art experiences the children
receive are designed to promote established goals and objectives in children's
Individualized Education programs (IEPs) and/or regular classroom curriculum.
The program's commitment to supporting equity and diversity assures that curriculum and instructional methodology are culturally competent. In addition to the general multicultural perspective practiced by the program, Art Partners also teaches about the peoples, traditions, and aesthetic productions of various cultures, including the Americas. The Art Partners curriculum is comprised of thematic units of study with sequential lessons that build upon each other in promoting goals, objectives, and New York State Standards for the Arts.
Following each session, the Art Partners teaching team meets together for purposes of supervision, assessment of outcomes, and curriculum planning. This time also provides the student teacher members a chance to express and process their personal subjective response to working with the children, and an opportunity for their professor to gain greater insight into the experience of teachers-in-training.
To date, the Art Partners program has worked with the students and teachers at Buffalo's BUILD Academy, Broadway Village School 57, and the Community-Based Special Education program at McKinley High School. Financial support for the program has been a combination of out-of-pocket donations and grants obtained from the Center for Development of Human Services, the Resurgent City Center, and the Erie County Legislature through the office of Legislator Crystal Peoples.
This is a non-commercial website and is to be used for educational or research purposes only. No commercial use of these images is permitted without the consent of Art Partners. "Fair use" is claimed under U.S. copyright law, sections 107 and 108
For questions contact:Art Partners ©2002 Art Partners Program | All Rights Reserved All Material Written by Lucy Andrus unless otherwise specified. Site Developed and Maintained by Lucy Andrus. Technical assistance courtesy of Tom Rowan. Special thanks to Deb Sterner. all


This issue is focused on SIOP in the elementary education setting.
Professional Development Services
The CAL SIOP team collaborates with schools, states, and districts to design and conduct SIOP Model professional development programs to meet their particular needs. Based on requests by districts and schools, CAL has developed SIOP workshops designed for specific grade level and/or content areas with a recent focus on delivering professional development services to PK-5 teachers.
We can also complement SIOP teacher workshops with coaching and lesson study services to assist teachers as they learn to incorporate the features of the SIOP Model into their lesson design and delivery.
Learn more about the range of services available.
Contact us to learn more about customizing workshops in your school or school district.
Lesson Plans and Activities
Check out the latest SIOP Model lesson plan that was added to our collection. This first grade literacy lesson on dragonflies addresses the Common Core State Standards: Reading for Grade 1 and can be implemented in a classroom with a variety of language proficiency levels (beginning through advanced). It also demonstrates how the Four Corner Graphic organizer (a technique recently demonstrated in CAL SIOP Model workshops), can be incorporated into elementary reading classrooms. View and download the lesson.
A new elementary-level Predict-O-Gram activity based on the story Peppe the Lamplighter by Elisa Bartone is now available and can be used in contexts of Social Studies or Language Arts. The introductory page provides an overview of language and content objectives that support this learner activity, instructions for use, and benefits this activity provides for English learners. A "Story Map" Predict-O-Gram sample follows and includes two versions that address high and low levels of scaffolding. This Predict-O-Gram showcases how multiple SIOP Model features can be incorporated into a single learner activity. Download the activity.
CAL Digest: Working With Young English Language Learners: Some Considerations
Elementary-age English learners face unique challenges and issues as they become proficient in an additional language. This digest provides an overview of characteristics of young English language learners in the U.S. preschool and elementary grade settings. The digest also describes best instructional practices that can promote young English learner language development and educational progress. Read the digest.
Language Objectives: The Key to Effective Content Area Instruction for English Learners
In this article prepared for the Colorín Colorado! website, Jennifer Himmel, CAL SIOP Manager, provides an overview of how to use language objectives in content-area instruction for English learners. Read the article.
Preparing Teachers to Use the SIOP Model
At the recent TESOL 2012 convention, SIOP Manager, Jennifer Himmel, conducted a session focused on CAL’s enhanced resource, Using the SIOP Model: Professional Development Manual for Sheltered Instruction, which is designed for educators who plan to teach others to use the SIOP Model in their classrooms. She highlighted key resources from the manual and other SIOP tools for teachers. Download the PPT presentation and handout.
SIOP Comprehensive Package
This package of materials was assembled to provide educators the resources they need to teach others to use the SIOP Model in their classrooms through workshops, coaching, analysis of SIOP instruction, and discussion of relevant readings. Each component of the package is also
- An Insider’s Guide to SIOP Coaching
- Helping English Learners Succeed: An Overview of the SIOP Model (video)
- The SIOP Model: Sheltered Instruction for Academic Achievement (video)
- SIOP Model Digest Series
- Using the SIOP Model: Professional Development Manual for Sheltered Instruction New!
- Making Content Comprehensible for English Learners: The SIOP® Model
Learn more about the SIOP comprehensive package.
Share the SIOP Bulletin
Our electronic newsletter provides periodic updates about CAL SIOP including new publications, resources, and services.
Encourage friends and colleagues to sign up to receive the SIOP Bulletin by sharing the link to our Join Our List form.
We hope you will enjoy future issues of SIOP Bulletin. If you do not wish to receive SIOP Bulletin, email us and request to unsubscribe.


Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA) is a systematic, one-on-one intervention, based on behavioral principles, that focuses on skill development. BTS of MN work with children and families to further develop skills in communication, socialization, and behavior regulation. Specifically, ABA therapy has been an effective intervention for teaching children to talk and to interact more effectively with peers and adults. Treatment objectives will be developed to help increase positive behaviors and skills, maintain and generalize behaviors, and reduce repetitive and restricted behaviors.
Treatment is individualized and is based on a comprehensive skills assessment. Services are provided in the child’s home, as well as in community and school settings to encourage generalization of skills. Early ABA researchers found that children with autism were not learning from their environment as effectively typically developing children. Therefore, it is up to ABA therapists, caregivers and teachers to develop a therapeutic environment in which children can learn most effectively. Our ultimate goal is to help each child develop skills that will enable him or her to be as independent and successful as possible.
In order to establish a consistent therapeutic environment for your child, we require on-going parent involvement, including weekly family skills session participation. Parents will learn how to facilitate the use of their child’s newly acquired skills at home and in the community.
ABA services are conducted within the home. Our program options include:
The Supervising Psychologist will work together with the family to determine which program will best suit each child’s individualized needs.
This program provides comprehensive one-to-one treatment for young children who have been diagnosed with an Autism Spectrum Disorder. Intensive Early Intervention Behavior Therapy Services (IEIBTS) are strongly supported by research as being the most effective treatment currently available for children diagnosed with an autism spectrum disorder (ASD). Research strongly indicates that best outcomes are accomplished when a child’s program is intensive. Therefore, we require a commitment of at least 30 to 40 hours per week of therapy to help your child reach their fullest potential. The number of therapy hours recommended for each child is based on the results of a comprehensive assessment.
Early programming typically focuses on the development of foundational skills, including the following: Establishing a broader range of reinforcing items and activities, responding to basic instructions, imitation skills, matching and sorting, communication skills (e.g. requesting, receptive labeling, expressive labeling), social interaction skills (e.g. responding name, eye contact, physical play), play skills, and reduction of restricted and repetitive behaviors.
Intensive behavior therapy services are provided to school-aged children on the autism spectrum. This service typically focuses on treating children who attend school on a ½ day basis. The level of service intensity will depend on the needs of the child and family. As with IEIBTS, services are provided in home, community, and school settings. Programming often focuses on further developing communication and socialization skills, as well as the reduction of repetitive or other problematic behaviors. The skills to be targeted depend on the need areas of the child. Therapeutic needs are identified through the assessment process.
If you are interested in ABA services, please contact our office to schedule an assessment to determine if your child would benefit from one of our programs.
*Funding: We are CTSS providers and accept medical assistance and Medica. Other plans may pay for services as well.


The Yamaha Method
Principles Fundamental to the Yamaha Method
From "Yamaha Music Education System: celebrating 50 years of growth." American Music Teacher | August 1, 2005| Kathy Anzis
Group Lessons: Teacher + Children + Parents
"I believe that music should not be competitive, but should be a means of fostering friendships. Music provides a context in which goodwill may be exchanged..." Kawakami, Genichi. Reflections on Music Popularization. (Tokyo: Yamaha Music Foundation, 1987): 6
Lessons are taught to a group of students (typically 8 to 10 per class) and, in the case of the Junior Music Course, one parent attends with each child. This format motivates children and provides an opportunity to develop ensemble skills and cooperation within a supportive community of friends and parents. With their peers, children become part of a musical team making music together. With their teacher and parents, the group becomes a musical community.
The group format, in conjunction with the musical content, brings joy and fun to the learning process. Students who attend class with their friends have extra-musical reasons to return every week. The camaraderie that grows contributes to tight, expressive ensemble performances at advanced levels and promotes long-term involvement in music.
Parental attendance facilitates accelerated growth. The parent/child partnership is active, not passive. Each partnership develops into a mini-ensemble, where co-learning, co-practicing and co-discovering can be enjoyed in class and at home. The entire family hears music shared between two members and often is motivated to join in the fun. In fact, when younger siblings of students become students themselves, we often find their sense of pitch is more developed than that of other entering students. They have heard the language of music at home and already have begun to absorb it.
Comprehensive Music Education
The JMC curriculum is broad compared to typical private piano lessons. Children sing solfège, play the keyboard, sing songs with lyrics, move to music, play rhythm and keyboard ensembles and participate in "music appreciation" activities (initially a non-analytical experience). They develop diverse musical skills without prematurely focusing on one instrument or style. This approach allows students to choose their future musical path when they are more physically and mentally mature.
Music is a Language
The method assumes music is a language children can learn naturally in the same way they learn their spoken and written language: we hear, we imitate, we speak and we read. You will find a parallel sequence played out in JMC classes throughout the world-children hear a melody or harmony, sing it in solfège, play it on the keyboard and then learn to read it.
The aural awareness of four- and five-year-olds is more developed than their manual dexterity and visual skills. Therefore, the Yamaha approach for this age group focuses on aural training versus emphasizing piano technique and reading. While early lessons cover the basics of keyboard technique, technical study is more actively undertaken in upper- level courses when students are developmentally ready. Likewise, the introduction of reading and theory takes place gradually in a timely and contextual manner. When students are intellectually ready, it is explained in academic terms what they have sensed and experienced musically at a young age.
The Yamaha Method employs "Fixed-Do" solfège (without altered syllables) in both ear training and keyboard activities. Fixed-Do enables a child to connect a specific pitch and syllable, such as middle Do (middle C), with a specific key on the keyboard. Aural training using Fixed-Do helps children internalize pitch, resulting in a strong relative pitch sense and, in many cases, perfect pitch. Consequently, in JMC classes one will observe students singing solfège by ear and eventually playing keyboard by ear.
Solfège is the core of the Yamaha Method; students absorb this musical vocabulary and use it in both beginning and advanced courses. Solfège becomes each student's first musical voice. In every class, teachers sing melodic patterns and chords that children imitate. Solfège sessions at the teacher's piano account for approximately 15 to 20 minutes of a 60minute class. Through singing solfège, students begin to acquire a sense of pitch, rhythm, meter, harmony, form, phrase structure, key, articulation, dynamics and mood.
By the end of two years in JMC, students have built a substantial vocabulary of solfège, having sung 50 melodies and numerous chord progressions using the I, IV and V7 chords in the keys of C major, G major, F major, D minor and A minor. Aside from developing musicianship, these solfège experiences prepare children to play in these five keys. In fact, children experience singing in a key for approximately one semester prior to playing in that key.


Guest Post by Ashley of Me and Marie Learning
Winter is here! With the cold temperature and falling snow, winter sometimes means no outdoor play for our children. Which in turn leads to our children having higher energy levels! So, why not make your own motor activities out of simple supplies you might have on hand? There are many ways to differentiate each activity for multiple age groups.
Fine Motor DIY Activity: Puff Ball Pinch
Puff Balls: Use larger balls for those beginning to work on fine motor skills and smaller balls for those who are advanced in fine motor skills.
Tongs: As you can see in the picture below, there are many different types of tongs/pinchers. Please select tongs that are the appropriate size for your child’s hand to minimize frustration.
Cups: I only use 2 cups when working with 2 year olds. You could add more cups for older children. I also make this activity a color sorting activity by only using two colors of balls and matching colored cups.
There are many ways to use this game. Try pinching balls from the table and dropping into the cup. Sort them as you pinch and drop them. You can also count the balls as you drop them in the cup. Or, you can pinch balls already inside of the cup to get them out. Pinching helps to strengthen the muscles in the hands needed for writing and cutting.
Gross Motor DIY Activity: Loofah Hit
Loofah: You can find these cheap at your local drug store or dollar store. Loofahs are great indoor alternatives to balls because they are soft and are not as likely to break something!
Yarn/String: Attach the loofah to a piece of string or yarn. Tape up to the top of a door frame or use a push pin in a low ceiling. Make sure the loofah is hanging low enough for your child to easily see and hit it.
Paddle (optional): We use a plastic paddle from a outdoor play set. The paddle is optional as you can just use your hands as well.
This Loofah Hit game encourage Eye and Hand Coordination. Strengthening your child’s hand-eye coordination will help your child when learning to write or tying shoes. The Loofah Hit game can even be played with two players, hitting the loofah back and forth.
Try making your own motor games and beat some of those indoor winter blues!
Ashley is the owner of Me & Marie Learning, a blog all about early learning. She has taken some time off teaching in a traditional setting to be at home with her young children. Ashley is now an in-home childcare provider, teaching her own and other children in her preschool room. Ashley has a degree in Elementary Education and Early Childhood Education with a Master’s Degree in Reading and Literacy.


|Carl Orff: Musical humanist
||Beyond the obvious knowledge and skills imparted, education respects and enables students in ways that training does not. Composer Carl Orff articulated a central theme of his approach to education also known as Orff-Schulwerk, or schooling in music ...
|Creating meaningful music listening experiences with active music making
||Of all musical activities, music listening is the
most ubiquitous and essential to all other
musical endeavors. In practice, however,
music listening is often over-looked as a
passive and prescribed activity. This article
has a three-fold purpos...
|The effect of critical thinking instruction on verbal descriptions of music
||The purpose of this study was to determine the effect of critical thinking instruction on
music listening skills of fifth-grade students as measured by written responses to music
listening. The researcher compared instruction that included opportun...
|Exploring views from university faculty and cooperating teachers on general music teacher preparation
||The purpose of this exploratory study was to examine perspectives of experienced university
faculty and cooperating teachers in general music education. The co-authors’ four guiding
research questions were: (a) What are the ideal components of pr...
|Fifth-grade instrumentalists' descriptions of music
||The purpose of this study was to investigate how elementary-aged students with instrumental experience listen to unfamiliar music. My two research questions were: how do elementary
instrumentalists categorize unfamiliar music? and, how much attentio...
|Listening and thinking: A pilot study
||The two purposes of this pilot study were: to classify fifth-grade students’ verbal responses as
either Musical Term or Affective/Associative, and to determine if there was a significant difference
between subjects’ verbal responses in written and ...
|Music listening and critical thinking: Teaching using a constructivist paradigm
||Music, a universal human endeavor, offers a unique perspective on studying the humanities. Studying music combines the intellectual and emotional meaning listeners make from music, engaging them in aesthetically
focused-activities. In this article, ...
|Shape note singing: An American tradition with Kodaly applications
||The article discusses the history and development of shape note singing in the U.S. Shape-note singing is recognized as one of the original style of American music. Shape-note singing derives its name from the use of shaped note-heads during 18th-19t...
|Special challenges of assessing undergraduate research in the arts and humanities
||Departments in the arts and humanities are often inhospitable environments for assessment of learning outcomes. For one thing, student learning in these disciplines is not easily quantified. Also, department chairs and faculty members, having survive...
|Thinking critically about assessing online learning
||Despite the proliferation of technology designed to increase efficiency and connectivity, students’ understanding
and comprehension of course content often lags behind the latest advances in e-learning. Critical thinking in the form of
|Where wild flowers grow: a Costa Rican adventure
||Costa Rica does not have a strong tradition for music education other than the teaching of classical music performance. In order to promote music education, Dr. Daniel C. Johnson, an associate professor of music education at the University of North ...


Global Art Creative course syllabus is considered a ‘Disciplined Based’ Art Education (DBAE). The syllabus starts by teaching children the basics of colouring and drawing things that are related to what they actually observe in their surroundings and daily life.
DBAE provides the art foundation for children to apply what they have learned directly to their school art work and assignments. Because Global Art Creative course syllabus is geared towards ‘commercial’ application, it has received the endorsement of LimKokWing University as well as IACT College (www.iact.edu.my); both institute of higher learning that specialized in creative communication.
There is a big difference between Global Art Creative programs and other art programs which has no specific syllabus but based on the personal feelings, emotions or interest of the child. One can see that the artwork of children who draw and color based on their feelings and emotions is different when compared to children who learned ‘Disciplined Based’ Art Education (DBAE) as taught by Global Art. DBAE is more grounded on art techniques like expansion of theme, composition, sizes, shapes, cropping, overlapping , shadows, depth, perspective and etc.
Global Art Creative course syllabus consists of the following :
Foundation Level 1 & 2 Art Lessons :
Drawing through dotted lines, Pencil colouring, Origami/Cut & paste
Foundation Level 3 & 4 Art Lessons:
Drawing through Dotted lines, Pencil & oil pastel colouring
Basic Level – Level 1, 2 & 3 Art Lessons:
Development of ideas, basic composition, drawing through shapes & references, oil pastels colouring
Intermediate Level – Level 4, 5 & 6 Art Lessons :
Development of ideas, intermediate composition, drawing through shapes & references, oil pastels & poster colouring
Drawing and Sketching Art Lessons :
Introduction to drawing through observation/references; basic pencil shading techniques
Painting Creative Works :
Introduction to painting & colouring knowledge/materials (Wet medias); Poster & Water colouring
Illustration Creative Works :
Introduction to development of ideas, advanced composition (creation of poster / illustration), drawing through shapes & references, poster & water colouring


Here's some information I often give to young oboists and music education students learning how to teach oboe for the first time. If you want to use this as a handout for your students, please go to the www.oboeforeveryone.com site, click on the scroll to the bottom of the page and download as a PDF document.
Reed Care 101
1. Always brush your teeth before playing. Food and plaque can clog up reeds and make your key pads sticky.
2. Always store reeds in a case that holds reeds securely in place.
- Go to this post to learn how to make an inexpensive reed case
- The plastic 3-reed cases sold by Fox are also an affordable option
- Clear plastic tubes and "coffin" cases that commercial reeds are purchased are not study enough for long-term use
4. Soak reeds in water for 2-3 minutes in FRESH water, not saliva. Our saliva has enzymes in it that will over time break down reed fibers. If you want your reeds to last as long as possible, soak them in water!
- Only soak the cane part of the reed in water, not the thread or cork
- Try dipping your reeds in water and setting them on your music stand or in your case to hydrate. This way they won't over-soak
- Reeds soaked longer than 5 minutes will become over-soaked and be more difficult to play
- If possible, quickly rinse out reeds in water and let dry for a few minutes before storing in a reed case. This will remove some of the lip skin cells, etc, that can collect on reeds and help your reeds last longer.
3 Signs That It's Time to Buy a New Reed
A reed can last anywhere from 2-3 or much longer, depending on how much it is played on and how well it is cared for.
1. If your reed is cracked:
Very small cracks in the tip of the reed will usually be OK to play on. If the crack extends beyond 1 millimeter and it is difficult to articulate notes and/or have sudden flatness or unstable pitch, then it's time to buy a new reed.
2. If the tip of your reed resembles Bart Simpson's haircut, has poor response (especially in the low range), and articulation is difficult, then it is time for a new reed.
3. If the reed looks OK, but doesn't make any (or only very little) sound when you blow through it, try these tests:
- Soak it an extra 3 minutes in WARM WATER
- Run water through the reed to clean it out (hold the reed upside-down with the water from the faucet running into the cork section first)
- Pull a small pipe cleaner (Dill's brand is best) from the bottom of the tube through the top of a well soaked reed to clean out an accumulated gunk
Try your reed after each stage. If all three suggestions don't help, consider the reed "dead" and purchase a new one.
|"Don't have a cow, man! Just take care of your reeds!"|
Ok, that's all I've got for now. I bet you never believed I could work in Bart Simpson to a blog post about reeds, did you? :)
Oboe and out,


Health, Physical Education And Recreation | Movement Performance of the Exceptional Child (3 cr)
K551 | 6516 | Staff
A graduate course designed to provide students with a thorough understanding
of the factors that contribute to the motor behavior characteristics of
children with developmental disabilities. The emphasis will be placed on
developmental and empirical literature to derive instructional models for
this population. Application of this knowledge to planning, assessing,
prescribing, and evaluating physical activity programs will be made.
Instructional strategies related to applied behavior analysis will be
presented for educating young children with development disabilities.
GENERAL COURSE OBJECTIVES
1. Demonstrate knowledge of basic theories of development.
2. Demonstrate knowledge of the motor behavior characteristics associated
with developmental disabilities.
3. Demonstrate knowledge of factors that contribute to atypical motor
4. Demonstrate knowledge of the diagnostic-prescriptive approach to
delivering quality physical education services.
5. Demonstrate knowledge of basic principles and procedures for
physical activity programs for children with severe developmental
6. Demonstrate knowledge of applied behavior analysis strategies to
facilitate acquisition, maintenance, and generalization of motor
7. Demonstrate knowledge of the best practices to promote integration of
children with disabilities into regular programs.
Wolery, M., Bailey, D.B., & Sugai, G.M. (1988). Effective Teaching:
Principles and Procedures of Applied Behavior Analysis with Exceptional
Block, M. (1994). A Teacher's Guide to Including Students with Disabilities
in Regular Physical Education.
1. Exam I (35%)
2. Exam II (25%)
3. Term Project (30%)
4. Class Participation (10%)
TERM PROJECT (Due December 1)
Students will develop, implement, and evaluate a motor skill development
program employing the Achievement-Based Curriculum (ABC) model with students
with a disability. The project will require completion of the following 5
1. Develop a program plan including three functional, age-appropriate
for at least one student. As part of this component, students should
present a rationale for why a specific skill was chosen as functional.
2. Complete an assessment of current level of performance on the three
for one student and write a statement of current level of performance.
3. Develop a prescriptive plan including three instructional objectives for
one student. The plan should include a minimum of three lesson plans
detailing the specific activities, drills, and games that will be
help the child acquire the three instructional objectives. Specific
management procedures should be presented as part of the plan.
4. Implement the prescriptive plan (e.g. teach) and self-evaluate the
weaknesses of your teaching.
5. Evaluate student progress on the three skills and determine what
decisions should be made based on the results. This component requires
the current level of performance of the three skills be updated.
Projects will be graded on the following 100 point system:
Planning 20 pts
Assessment 25 pts
Prescription 25 pts
Teaching 10 pts
Evaluation 20 pts
Final grades will be based on the total accumulated points, out of 100,
based on the individual weight of each assignment and calculated on the
A 94 - 100 B- 79 - 81.5
A- 90 - 93.5 C+ 76 - 78.5
B+ 86 - 89.5 C 72 - 75.5
B 82 - 85.5


£1.49 for iPad
Call me old fashioned, but when I was learning the basics of music as a child, I remember lots of staring at manuscript paper while reciting “All Cows Eat Grass” and “F A C E” to learn musical notation, and not so much in the way of interactive storytelling. The mnemonic for remembering sharps and flats in key signatures – “Father Charles Goes Down And Ends Battle” – was also drilled into my memory.
So how does SymbolSmash, one of a whole host of apps emerging which cater to early music education, stack compared to my rote learning?
The first point to make is that SymbolSmash, which teaches the basics through love story of “Voyage to the Moon”, an opera by the German-born French composer Jacques Offenbach, does not focus purely on musical notation. Through the story of Prince Caprice, who is bored of palace life and embarks on a journey to the moon to find his princess, the app introduces children to the main instruments of the orchestra as they take centre stage at different points in the music.
You are introduced to Freddy French Horn, Olive Oboe, Feredrik Forte, Crescendo Croc, and so on, as the story develops. The app, which is the brainchild Marion Musry, a pianist who has been teaching classical music appreciation classes for the last 15 years in London, also features a series of short games designed to help you identify and begin to recognise different instruments. There is also a rather nice portion at the end of the storybook where an animated version of Jacques Offenbach tells you about his life and compositions.
To SymbolSmash’s credit, the main portion of the app - the story of Prince Caprice’s protestations against his father’s wishes, and his catapulting to the moon – is well put together, informative and certainly child-friendly. The various instruments or musical directions flash when they have a prominent place in the music, which should help young children to associate different sounds and features with the relevant instrument.
However, as the main event and best part of the app, it is a bit disappointing to find it only lasts just a few minutes, particularly considering the cost for the app is £1.49. That would be perfectly reasonable and compensated for if the other games on offer were useful from an educational point of view, but sadly, they come up short.
The games on offer include: tapping instruments falling from the sky; join the dots around the edge of an instrument; and clicking on cards with instruments or musical symbols on as they appear. These are all perfectly good, standard quick play game fodder for iPad.
But the educational value in this context? Almost nil. You find yourself just mashing the screen as you would with any other game without particularly registering what you are doing. There is a button at the top of the screen – a cello, violin or French horn for example – which you get bonus points for tapping when you hear it in the music as you are playing the other games. But amidst all the clicking and dot-joining it is very easy to forget that this even exists.
Steadily more and more educational music apps are becoming available, alongside more advanced apps, such as Tonara, which can follow a player’s tempo and shows their location in the interactive score, even turning pages automatically. But for SymbolSmash, while the idea and presentation are nice enough, there is definitely more potential from an educational point of view.
Perhaps what this app is best for then is finding a novel way of fostering children’s interest in classical music. As Musry says: “It’s an extremely important step for parents who can bring a love and understanding of classical music to the home”. But as far as the basics of music go, I’ll be sticking with All Cows Eat Grass.


The village of Belmont had its origins in the early years of the C19 with the establishment of a “Calico Printshop” By 1850, in addition to the printshop, there was a cotton mill, a paper mill and there had also been an undertaking to establish a water supply.
Workers’ houses for the printshop were built on Maria Square and the adjoining stretch of High Street, and for the cotton mill, on South View (Top Row), Naylor’s Terrace (Middle Row) and Ryecroft Lane (Bottom Row). Paper Mill cottages were built for the workers in the industry. Independent landlords also built small terraces on High Street, Ward Street and Deakin’s Terrace. A workers’ building club put up waterfall Terrace (Club Row).
At first, elementary education for both children and adults was provided by the Church of England and Independent Chapel (Congregational) Sunday Schools. The aim was limited to enabling pupils to read the Bible for themselves. Dedicated buildings were erected in 1832 and 1841.
From 1833 Government grants were available for full time education of children. It seems likely that early advantage was taken of this since the census reveals that there was a schoolteacher living in the village. By 1851 over 200 children were in attendance from the age of three to twelve. School most certainly met in the Anglican Sunday School building on the site of the present “Black Dog” car park.
During the 1860’s the village declined, the population falling from 1500 to 300 and the school was temporarily closed. The fortunes of the village improved when Edward Deakin converted the cotton mill and print shop for his bleaching and dyeing enterprise. The population rose to over 1000 and the school was re-opened in1875 in the Anglican Sunday School.


Important People in Monet's Life
Louise-Justine Aubre Monet
Monet’s mother. She was a singer and the two of them were very close. He was upset when she passed away. It could be that her love of art helped push him into art himself.
Monet’s aunt. She financed his art education in Paris after buying him out of the army.
Camille Doncieux (1847-1879)
Monet’s first wife. She was originally his model and mistress, but in 1867 she bore him a son. They were married 3 years later, but his family would not accept her. She died one year after giving birth to another baby boy.
Monet’s second wife. They may have been having an affair before Camille was dead. He painted her picture occasionally. They had no children together, but he gained step children by her.
Blanche Hoschedé Monet
Monet’s step-daughter and daughter-in-law. She took care of Monet after Jean and Alice died, abandoning her activities as an artist.
Monet’s first son. Jean Monet was frequently a subject of his father’s paintings. He eventually married his father’s favorite of Alice Hoschedé’s daughters.
Monet’s second son. Fought in World War I.
Friend from the studio of Charles Gleyre. Worked with Monet on the painting of La Grenouillére. They both discovered at the same time that shadows are neither black nor brown, but are colored by their surroundings.
Friend from the studio of Charles Gleyre. He often bailed Monet out of financial situations (giving him space in his studio and materials to paint with). He fought and died in the Franco-Prussian War.
Friend from the studio of Charles Gleyre.
Monet’s dealer who held exhibitions of Impressionism and other works at his galleries. He even exhibited at New York, bringing the Impressionist movement to the U.S.
Waterlilies at Giverny
Sketch of Woman and Umbrella
Women in the Garden
The Artist's Garden at Vetheuil with Boy
"It took me time to understand my water lilies. I had planted them for the pleasure of it; I grew them without ever thinking of painting them." Claude Monet Quotes


Research has shown a relationship between mothers’ beliefs about literacy, their educational and socioeconomic backgrounds, and their children’s emergent literacy awareness. Many Australian Indigenous children experience educational disadvantage, as do children whose parents are manual workers. One recommendation that is frequently made is for parents to be encouraged to participate in their children’s literacy development. Yet little is known about the implicit beliefs about literacy held by mothers from Indigenous-Australian and Anglo-Australian backgrounds. Such beliefs need to be taken into account in early childhood literacy programs. Eleven Indigenous and nine Anglo-Australian mothers from varied educational backgrounds were interviewed about how children learn to read and literacy in general. The findings indicate that the tertiary educated mothers, whether Indigenous or Anglo-Australian, held views that were mostly compatible with an emergent literacy perspective. The early school-leaving mothers focused more on the role of memory and repetition of specific skills in learning to read. These findings have implications for teachers, researchers, and family literacy programs.


Storylords features reading comprehension strategies in a basic reading program for first- through fourth-graders as well as Chapter I remedial reading classes. The series will capture students’ attention with fantasy carefully interwoven with strategies designed to help students better understand printed materials. The lessons will provide an appealing and understandable initial introduction to a new abstract idea.
1. Activating Prior Knowledge Before Reading — Norbert meets Lexor and takes on his first challenge: Helping a dancer solve a riddle.
2. Connecting What You Know With What’s On The Page — Stumped by Thorzuul’s riddle, Norbert finds Mrs. Framish’s lesson on making inferences about a wordless picture book helpful.
3. Knowing When You Don’t Know (In Your Head) — Norbert uses Mrs. Framish’s STRARO strategy (Stop, Think, Reread, Ask, and Read Over) to help an artist paint.
4. Knowing When You Don’t Know (On The Page) — Mandy’s portrayal of a pterodactyl suffers because the word is not explained at the beginning of the script she is reading.
5. Directed Reading-Thinking Activity — Mandy follows Norbert to Mojuste, where Thorzuul has turned ten children to stone for failing his reading test.
6. Question-Answer Relationships — The apprentice storylords show the Gwynn twins how to combine ideas from two letters to find one answer.
7. Decoding Words In Context — Norbert leads Mandy through strategies to decode the word “envelope.” Mandy helps Zandro pronounce and understand “dandelion.”
8. Inferring Word Meaning In Context — When Norbert becomes ill, Jason tells him about the word detective game the class played. Mandy guides Caroma through contextual clues for painting a magical picture.
9. Story Mapping — Magical picture.
10. Pronoun Anaphora — With Norbert zapped motionless, Mandy must infer links between pronouns and their antecedents to free her brother.
11. Identifying Main Idea And Details — The apprentices must read and organize a set of sentence strips into a paragraph that makes sense.
12. Integrating Comprehension Strategies — Thorzuul startles Norbert and Mandy by threatening them after school. If they can’t make a sensible paragraph out of his four sentences, he’ll turn them into permanent statues. Applying several reading strategies, they succeed.
A Million Thanks
Instructional Video Resources
Use our classroom videos for every curriculum and every grade level.
Lending LibraryAccess our lending library and order form for video titles for all grade levels and subject areas.
Find Us at the Following Events:
Jan. 26: ND Assoc. of School Administrators, Bismarck.
Feb. 4-6: ND Assoc. of Elementary School Principals, Bismarck.
Feb. 19-22: ND Counseling Assoc., Bismarck.
March 26, 30, 31: Family Literacy Events, Northeast Education Services Co-op.
March 20-21: ND Council of Teachers of Mathematics and ND Science Teachers Assoc., Bismarck.
March 25-28: ND Assoc. of Secondary School Principals, Bismarck.
March 26-28: ND Music Educators Assoc., Bismarck.
April 20, 21, 30: Family Literacy Events, Northeast Education Services Co-op.
April 23-25: NDRA Reading Conference, Minot.
May 29-31: Family Literacy Event at Devils Run, Devils Lake.
JUNE 6: SHARE-A-STORY LITERACY EVENT, Rheault Farm, Fargo.


Her Majesty's Inspectorate of Education
Her Majesty's Inspectorate of Education (HMIe) was an executive agency of the Scottish Government, responsible for the inspection of public and independent, primary and secondary schools, as well as further education colleges, community learning, Local Authority Education Departments and teacher education.
The first HM Inspector of Schools (HMI) was appointed in 1840. The rationale for the first appointments of HMI linked inspection to “the improvement of elementary education” and charged HMI to say “what improvements in the apparatus and internal management of schools, in school management and discipline, and in the methods of teaching have been sanctioned by the most extensive experience”. The particular focus in Scotland on combining inspection with self-evaluation has been central to the drive to raise educational standards.
HMIe was headed by Her Majesty's Senior Chief Inspector of Education. Its remit was far wider than its English counterpart, the Office for Standards in Education. HMIe's equivalent in Wales, Estyn, had a similar remit, including adult education.
Following the Scotland Act 1998 the Inspectorate was made an Executive Agency of the Scottish Government, and HMIe was answerable to the Scottish Ministers for the running of the Inspectorate and the whole inspection system in Scotland.
In 2003 they employed 178 staff who were based in Edinburgh, Inverness, Glasgow and Dundee. A policy to disperse public sector jobs then led to the relocation of the headquarters from Edinburgh to Livingston, West Lothian along with the opening of new offices in Dunbartonshire and Ayrshire.
On 14 October 2010, Cabinet Secretary for Education, announced that HMIe would be subsumed, along with Learning and Teaching Scotland, into a new body named the Scottish Education Quality and Improvement Agency. This was later renamed to Education Scotland.
HMIe was dissolved on 30 June 2011, then joined with Learning and Teaching Scotland to form a new executive agency of the Scottish Government, called Education Scotland.
HMIe was charged with inspecting the quality of education in pre-school centres, primary schools, secondary schools, special schools, community learning and development, further education colleges, initial teacher education, residential educational provision and the education functions of local authorities and services for children.
Following the passing of the Standards in Scotland’s Schools etc. 2000 Act the focus of HMIe shifted to how this legislation is being implemented. It brought new statutory powers to inspect the education functions of local authorities.
- "Inspectorate jobs to leave capital". The Scotsman. 8 November 2003. Retrieved 4 September 2014.
- "School inspectors' HQ to move west". The Scotsman. 8 November 2003. Retrieved 4 September 2014.
- "Her Majesty’s Inspectorate of Education. Annual Report on the 2010/11 audit". Audit Scotland. 31 March 2011. Retrieved 4 September 2014.


Making a difference : 10 essential steps to building a preK-3 system
- Sullivan-Dudzic, Linda.
- Thousand Oaks, Calif. : Corwin, c2010.
- Physical description
- xvi, 162 p. : ill. ; 26 cm.
LB1139.23 .S85 2010
- Unknown LB1139.23 .S85 2010
- Includes bibliographical references (p. 151-155) and index.
- Foreword by Ruby Takanishi Acknowledgments About the Authors Introduction Step 1. Establishing Need and Common Interests Connecting to Your Preschool Community Connecting the Early Childhood Community and K-12 Public School Establishing the Need and Prioritizing Your Efforts PreK-3 Your First Early Childhood and K-3 Meeting Step 2. Locate and Connect With Your Early Childhood Learning Environments Locating Your Community Preschool Partners Identifying and Locating Key People in Your School District Planning for Your "Kick off" PreK-3d Meeting Step 3. Develop a Leadership Group Your Leadership Group Vision Plus Action Quality Preschool Step 4. High Quality Professional Development How to Provide Professional Development Aligned to Your Goals Target Professional Development to the Needs of Your Community Establish Your Professional Development System Information to Refine Your Work and Strive for Excellence Step 5. Connect and Align Quality PreK to Kindergarten Connect Your Community Preschool and Kindergarten Programs Develop an Assessment and Information Loop Align Curriculum and Instructional Practices Step 6. Maximize the Benefits of Full-Day Kindergarten Advantages National Trends How to Design a Full-day Kindergarten Developing a Planning and Implementation Team Developing Goals for the Program Using Research to Drive the Process Core Curriculum Selection Process for Your Kindergarten (PreK-3rd Grade) System Low-to-No-Cost Options Developing Daily Schedule Expectations Data Sharing "Friendly Accountability" Step 7. Align and Connect Full-Day Kindergarten With Grades 1-3 Connect Your FDK to Grades 1-3 Align Your K-3 Standards Align Your Assessment and Information Loop Align Curriculum and Instructional Practices That Support Children's Learning and Development K-3 (PreK-3rd) Tiered Systems Connect and Align Resources to Focus on Your Goals Step 8. Conquer the Fade Out Teach the Conventional Reading Skills That Are Developed Birth to Age 5 Horizontal Alignment Vertical Alignment Temporal Alignment Step 9. Create a Sustainable System of Support Broad Base Support and Financing Your Goals Celebrate and Publicize Your Efforts Continuous Engagement Step 10. Review, Revise, and Extend Next Step: Looking Ahead and Planning Review Your Goals Are We Making a Significant Difference? Your Leadership Group (ECCE Group) Looking Ahead References Resource A: Books and Web Sites Resource B: Steps for Your First Leadership Meeting Resource C: Leadership Guide Resource D: Curriculum Adoption Form Resource E: Glow and Grow Self-Reflection Form Resource F: Look Fors in Early Childhood Programs Resource G: Four Key Components to Sustainability Guide Index.
- (source: Nielsen Book Data)
- Publisher's Summary
- The national push for early learning is no longer about preschool alone, but rather about strategic planning to increase achievement by working with communities to establish a strong Key Stages 1 and 2 foundation. This book provides the essential steps for carrying out this important work, including how to reach out to community early childhood education providers to establish quality instruction and build bridges to Key Stages 1 and 2. Drawing on their success in building a PreK - 3 system in the Bremerton, WA school district and their work with schools across the USA, the authors provide education professionals with a field-tested, step-by-step road map that can be adapted for your own community and school district. Essential topics in this book include: identifying the needs of families and children; aligning resources, curriculum, instruction, and assessment; establishing key players; training staff; developing a plan for implementation; instituting professional learning communities; anticipating potential challenges; and celebrating successes. This book shows head teachers and early childhood professionals, as well as county officials, Education Officers, Head Start programmes, and Title I directors, how to provide all children with access to high-quality educational experiences in and before Reception and link early childhood standards and goals to the Key Stages 1 and 2 systems.
(source: Nielsen Book Data)
- Early childhood education.
- Publication date
- Linda Sullivan-Dudzic, Donna K. Gearns, Kelli Leavell ; foreword by Ruby Takanishi.


This December, after four months and 11 public hearings, the Education Reform Commission — some of New York's smartest education policy experts — will submit preliminary recommendations to Gov. Andrew Cuomo on how to improve student success. Those recommendations must include strategies for closing the "achievement gap."
That phrase is a euphemism for the uncomfortable fact that poor children, regardless of race, tend to struggle in school and, consequently, in life. While it's unrealistic to suggest that we can fix poverty, we do know how to address the educational deficiencies poverty creates. Fixing this achievement gap at its source must be the priority of any education reform measure undertaken by the state.
Brain science and child development research support one unassailable conclusion: The gap arises in the first five years of life, when the brain is growing dramatically and craves stimulation and nurturing. Too many poor children receive too little of either. As a result, the disparity in their ability to learn is fixed before they ever set foot in a classroom. And, worse, that disparity will only increase over time.
One rather simple solution is to mandate and fully fund universal pre-kindergarten. Data show that participation in pre-K is a significant predictor of readiness, and results are demonstrably better for children starting at age 3 than those starting at age 4. The Harlem Children's Zone begins even earlier, working with parents before children are born and preparing kids to be ready for school before they even arrive.
Similarly, in upstate New York, we have developed another proven program for eliminating the gap. The Chemung County School Readiness Project began in 2006 as a collaboration between the Community Foundation of Elmira-Corning and Chemung County, with critical support from County Executive Tom Santulli, all three county school districts, the health community and several social service and human service agencies.
Our strategy relies on coordinating existing services and resources that were historically delivered in isolation — resulting in an impact that is truly greater than the sum of its parts. Every mother of a newborn is visited in the hospital and later at home by an SRP nurse who assists in helping them locate, access and navigate important community resources and enhancing their parenting skills. We make sure every family is working with a pediatrician to protect the child's health and development. Literacy development is emphasized at every stage.
The results have been electrifying. According to research by the Center for Human Services Research at the University at Albany, since the program's inception, the percentage of students who were school ready at kindergarten rose from 47.5 percent in 2007 to 68.6 percent in 2011 — an increase of nearly 50 percent in just five years. Dr. Kenneth Robin, who led the study, said the results he measured were "a remarkable finding, one of the more remarkable that I've seen."
Regardless of the strategy, achieving those goals will cost money — but no more than what we already spend on less effective interventions. New York taxpayers pour more than $100 million into K-12 remediation every year. Many of the students who do not drop out — and more than 40 percent do — will exit 12th grade with eighth-grade skills. As a consequence, SUNY and CUNY community colleges jointly spend another $100 million on remediation, and with lackluster results. SRP is comparatively cost effective — $400 per child in Chemung County — since it is largely funded by revenue streams that already exist.
Whatever direction public education reform goes, it must be replicable and allow for local variability. Unlike the hotly debated issues of achievement tests and teacher evaluations, these solutions also carry the promise of significant reductions in expenditures on remediation, Medicaid and incarceration, among others. Most importantly, by closing the achievement gap, we give every child a fighting chance at success.


Picasso was born in 1881 in Spain. Picasso’s father was a painter and sculptor and began Picasso’s art education at an early age. Picasso lived in Paris for much of his life where he lived passionately until his death in 1973. His art grew and changed throughout his life and he was key in forming several important artistic movements. I could and will write posts on each of Picasso’s “periods,” as they are called.
Music influenced many of Picasso’s pieces, including his collages. Today’s post will be on these musical collages.
Picasso used wallpaper, cloth, and sheet music in his musical collages as well as paint. He used wallpaper most often to create the background and then cut the sheet music, cloth, paper scraps, and newspaper into the shape of guitars or pieces of guitars. Then he combined the shapes on the collage to represent a guitar.
Look at the collages shown below and think about what you might want to use in your own collage. Tomorrow I’ll post a Picasso inspired collage project.
Glass of Vieux Marc, Glass, Guitar, and Newspaper:
Guitar, Sheet Music, and Wine Glass:
Guitar and Sheet Music:
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Other Policy and Resource Documents
The Ministry of Education administers the system of publicly funded elementary and secondary school education in Ontario, in accordance with and under the authority of the Education Act.
The Minister of Education, through the ministry, issues curricula, sets diploma requirements and sets policy for student assessment.
Curriculum documents define what children are taught in Ontario public schools. They detail the knowledge and skills that students are expected to develop in each subject at each grade level. By developing and publishing curriculum documents for use by all Ontario teachers, the Ministry of Education sets standards for the entire province.
Policy documents set government standards. Resource documents support implementation of policy.
In the case of education, Language, Grades 1-8 is an example of a curriculum policy document. It sets out what the public can expect children to learn in Ontario's elementary Language program.
On the other hand, the publication The Ontario Curriculum, Grades 1–8: English As a Second Language and English Literacy Development – A Resource Guide is a resource that supports the Language policy. It helps teachers ensure that students from other backgrounds meet the curriculum expectations.
In 2003, the Ministry of Education established a schedule for ongoing curriculum review. Each year, a number of subject areas enter the review process, to ensure they are kept current, relevant and age-appropriate.
Because so much is at stake, reviews are conducted with great care. Comprehensive information-gathering includes:
These sources of information form the basis of recommended revisions to the curriculum. Writing teams drawn from school boards across the province then develop revised English and French documents.
The following revised curricula are being implemented in September 2005:
Mathematics, Grades 11 and 12 and Mathématiques, 11e et 12e année have also been revised and will be implemented in September 2006.


The BBC recently published the findings of a report run by publisher Pearson, in which 410 UK teachers were asked about their student's attitudes to reading for pleasure. More than two-fifths of the teachers polled felt that children had lost interest in reading by the time they had finished primary school, and 94% thought that students preferred to spend time online.
Low literacy in young people is one of the crucial issues that IntoUniversity tackles, and we support children from the age of seven throughout their school years to the age of 18. We believe that children need to be inspired from a young age, and recognise that a child developing a love of reading means they do better overall at school.
Our local learning centres provide after-school academic support for primary and secondary school students, and students are supported with their literacy and numeracy skills as well as their homework, revision and support with applications to higher education. We also run a mentoring scheme and a specially-tailored FOCUS programme that we deliver in partnership with schools, universities and businesses. Our focus is on raising the aspirations of young people and inspiring them to achieve.
We have a library at each of our centres, and we encourage our students to read during after-school academic support sessions and to take books home with them to read on their own. Each of our centres runs initiatives to encourage young people to read. For example, primary academic support at our Haringey centre always begins with a reading session where children choose a book to read with the support of staff and volunteers, and students at our North Kensington centre enjoy writing reading logs and book reviews.
A particularly inspiring success story took place at our centre in Hackney. Jeanice started attending academic support sessions at the centre in Year 5, and her confidence in reading was very low. She refused to read in class and had no interest in reading on her own. But after being matched with a mentor who encouraged her to read and supported her as she learned, Jeanice has experienced a remarkable change. She now reads freely during academic support at the centre, and regularly takes books home from the centre's library. The students were recently taken on an Extending Horizons weekend trip to Blaxhall in Surrey, and Richard Watson, the centre leader at IntoUniversity's Hackney centre, was delighted to find Jeanice reading a Judy Blume book out loud to the other children. It shows how far she has come.
"Encouraging children to read for pleasure from an early age is so important," says Richard. "It means they become more confident and comfortable with reading, and inspires them to read in other areas, which sets them on track to do well at school. Jeanice's teacher has told us how much her new-found love of reading has enthused her learning and raised her academic levels in all her subjects."
While the Pearson survey has highlighted the need to inspire a love of reading in children, it is encouraging to know that with the right support, young people can make huge improvements in their literacy level. At IntoUniversity, we recognise the potential in every child and we are proud to be part of a solution to a problem that doesn't need to exist.
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