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NICHCY Connections...to Literacy

NCLB and Reading

• The law speaks to reading improvement.
  www.NoChildLeftBehind.gov/
  This Web site includes an easy-to-read overview of the No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB), tips for helping children learn to read, school reform news, lists of state education contacts, FAQs on reading, testing, accountability, safe schools and much more.
• Find helpful materials on the NCLB Web site.
  www.ed.gov/parents/landing.jhtml
  Parents, caregivers, teachers, and others will find useful publications on the NCLB Web site. Check out: School-Home Links Reading Kit, A Compact for Reading Guide, the READ*WRITE*NOW series, Helping Your Child Become a Reader, and many, many more! Some are available in Spanish, too.

Teaching Reading--Is it Rocket Science?

• Yes, it is! See why in this report.
  www.aft.org/edissues/rocketscience.htm
  Teaching Reading IS Rocket Science: What Expert Teachers of Reading Should Know and Be Able To Do reviews the reading research. It also describes the knowledge base essential for teacher candidates and practicing teachers to master if they are to be successful in teaching all children to read well. Finally, the report makes recommendations for improving the system of teacher education and professional development.
• Interested in an online workshop?
  www.cec.sped.org/pd/reading.html
  The Council for Exceptional Children offers this online workshop in Beginning Reading Instruction. Educators, paraeducators, administrators, and teachers-in-training can take the online course whenever it best fits their schedule. The workshop focuses on research-based strategies to strengthen students' phonemic awareness, decoding, fluency, word recognition, and comprehension skills.
• To the point: A quick read.
  www.sedl.org/pubs/sedl-letter/v14n03/welcome.html
  The Southwest Educational Development Laboratory (SEDL) focuses an edition of its SEDL Letter on Putting Reading First. Find out about 10 myths of reading instruction, the importance of phoneme awareness, and activities teachers can use in their classrooms.
• What teaching strategies help?
  www.vanderbilt.edu/CASL/outreach.html
  Teachers! You'll find reports on teaching strategies on this Web site of the Center on Accelerating Student Learning (CASL). Topics include reading, writing, handwriting, math, spelling, phonological awareness, and reading comprehension. Also available are CASL newsletters, manuals, and videotapes.
• Looking for instructional materials?
  www.teachers.net/4blocks/
  The Four Blocks Literacy Center provides information and support to teachers and parents based upon the Four Blocks Literacy program. You can find instructional materials, books and information on training seminars on this site.
• More on teaching strategies.
  cela.albany.edu/publication/ilu.htm
  Visit the site Improving Literary Understanding Through Classroom Conversation. Teachers will find their publications on literacy and teaching strategies very useful.
• NCITE is the National Center to Improve the Tools of Educators.
  idea.uoregon.edu/~ncite/programs/read.html
  Visit NCITE's site to get an information kit, principles for learning to read, tips for teaching reading to children with learning disabilities, and tips for parents on how to strengthen reading skills.
• Attend a teacher prep and professional development conference virtually.
  www.connectlive.com/events/learningsummit/
  Watch the video from the 1999 conference, the National Summit Revealing Keys to Learning Success for All Children. Focusing on teacher preparation and ongoing professional development, this conference highlighted successful examples of teachers incorporating research into practice---in particular, taking learning disability research findings and applying them to teaching methods for all students.
• Useful information if you're training teachers
  www.texasreading.org/utcrla/default.asp
  Anyone who is involved with training teachers will find lots of useful information at the site of the Texas Center for Reading and Language Arts (TCRLA). Read about research efforts, get a booklet on co-teaching, and access a series of professional development guides. TCRLA is developing a national training model for kindergarten through second-grade teachers in effective early reading instruction.
• Read, write, think: Free standards-based lesson plans and online resources.
  www.readwritethink.org/
  The Read-Write-Think Web site connects theory to practice and was developed by the International Reading Association in partnership with NCTE (the National Council of Teachers of English). A wide range of lessons are available to help teachers work with students to learn language, learn about language, and learn through language.

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