0 Building and Contributing to a Rich Literacy Community

Posted by Atsumori. Category:

This morning's #satchat challenged me to think more deeply about the literacy community I develop and contribute to. As the chat demonstrated, literacy expands to all disciplines and carries implications for all staff.  When we model rich literacy behaviors, it's more likely that the staff and students around us will do the same.

What are rich literacy behaviors, and how do we make the time for those?

• Reading books, blogs, tweets, articles online and off and sharing our learning, ideas, questions, and revelations.  
• Writing stories, thoughts, questions, ideas, and snapshots, and sharing our writing regularly.
• Creating projects and solving problems.
• Speaking aloud and engaging in conversation and debate. 
• Research.

Some ways that our school currently models and develops these behaviors include the following:

• A school-wide blog for professional share. Some share, but many don't.  Many educators remain shy about sharing their professional work, thoughts, and questions.
• PLC meetings and faculty meetings.  Some share occurs here, and we are building toward more dynamic models for these events.
• Book Study Groups: This has been a powerful professional development model in my school system. The books have served as starting points for terrific discussion, new ideas, and invigorated practice.
• Presentation: Many teachers in my system present to one another and to educators outside of our system as a way of sharing their craft. 
• Informal share and collaboration.  This is a powerful medium in my school--a venue that is a mainstay for the professional work we do.

I'll take the following steps to activate this morning's #satchat discussion:

• Careful attention to the classroom setup by way of making all literacy tools and spaces accessible and inviting.
• Time to discuss literacy routines, tools, and questions with families at curriculum night.
• Time to start the year with literacy discussions with students--"How can we make this a reading, writing, speaking rich environment?"
• Reading everyday.
• Writing everyday.
• Creating the class "Edmodo" account and fostering daily Edmodo conversations and share.
• Making our writer's books online and offline.
• Great students-centered projects.

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