From Our Assistant Elementary Principal

At SBEC we use Foundations & Frameworks (F&F) as our elementary reading program.  A recent article in the March issue of Educational Leadership by Richard Allington and Rachael Gabriel outline six essentials of reading instruction that a program needs to be effective.  A comparison between these elements and F&F was revealing.

ü  Every child reads something he or she chooses.  In our reading program, there are book choices of as many as three per unit.  Students are given choices after the teacher gives the class a summary of each book.  The children love the “unveiling” day, when they find out what their book is.
 
ü  Every child reads accurately.  Through small group times, the teacher hears every child read aloud.  This ensures they are reading the text of the chapter book or novel correctly, and unknown vocabulary words are explained as they explore the unit.
 
ü  Every child reads something he or she understands. Teachers oversee the children’s choices to make sure a student is in the correct book level.  Occasionally students can be placed in a book that is difficult for them if they desire a challenge.
 
ü  Every child writes about something personally meaningful.  In SPECS (Space for Extending Comprehension Skills) Logs, students write about what they have read that day, extend that learning into various visual tools, or summarize the reading.
 
ü  Every child talks with peers about reading and writing.  Daily discussion in small groups forms the backbone of F&F.
 
ü  Every child listens to a fluent adult read aloud. Through the read-aloud books used to introduce each unit, students are treated to different types of stories read aloud by the teacher.

We are encouraged at the individual and group success we have seen with Foundations & Frameworks and are thrilled with the strength of its elements.
 

Cathy Laster

Assistant Elementary Principal