LMNOP: A Few Thoughts About Letters and Words

 

 

Instructor:  Sharon MacDonald, M.Ed.

                    Early Childhood Consultant

                    15215 Chalet Drive

                    San Antonio, TX 78232

                    Home phone: 210 490-4066

                    Fax: 210 490-2989

                    E-mail: gsmacdee@aol.com

 

Credit Available: 2 Credits or 20 clock hours (CEUs)

 

Course Meets: Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday, August 15, 16 and

                          17, 2000 from 8:30 to 4:00

 

Course Objectives:

The objectives of this course are to...

·        Establish an understanding of effective reading readiness skills to emergent readers;

·        Develop practical classroom applications from current brain research, including new insights on how children learn literacy skills;

·        Create beginning reading activities that are fun, exciting, and natural for young readers;

·        Implement flexible grouping strategies for large group, small group, and independent learning;

·        Apply specific strategies to help children develop skills throughout the day;

·        Look at way to blend literacy across the curriculum in the classroom;

·        Examine a way of assessing children while they are working with literacy building materials;

·        Learn how to create a library center.

 

Expected Outcomes:

 

Learners/Teachers will:

·        Develop an understanding of how young children learn literacy skills;

·        Be able to level activities for easy, medium and difficulty;  

·        Be able to design a library center;

·        Be able to tie literacy into whole curriculum;

·        Be able to assess children working with literacy materials.

 

 

 


 


Course Activities and Expectations

 

Attendance and Participation:

Your attendance and interaction all three days are mandatory for course credit.  The sharing of your experiences, your questions, and your active participation is part of the grading process.

  

Activities for grades:

    (Turned in during class hours)

·        Identify three activities that teach literacy to young children;

·        Level three activities;

·        Work in a small group to design literature circle activities;

·        Create materials to take back to the classroom.

 

Extra activity for those getting credit:

    (Mailed to the above address postmarked no later than August 23th)

    The students will generate, describe, give objectives for five literacy activities and

     Level them by ability.

 

Methods of Instruction:

    Cooperative learning activities, group discussions, interaction with

    the environment, direct instruction, and demonstrations.

 

Topics to be covered:

·        Brain research;

·        How young children learn;

·        Environmental print, music, poetry and storytelling as teaching tools;

·        Assessment;

·        Literacy in all areas of the curriculum;

·        Literature Circles;

·        Quick fixes for small problems;

·        Creating a library center;

·        Leveling activities.

 

Text for the course:

LMNOP: A Few Thoughts about Literacy by Sharon MacDonald