Written by: Kathy Klenk
PART 1:
Did you know that the Ontario Human Rights Commission has recently released a report on its public inquiry into the right to read. The right to read applies to ALL students, not just students with reading disabilities. This inquiry found that Ontario is not fulfilling its obligations to meet students’ right to read. You can read the report right here…
What’s happening in the rest of our country? What about right here in Manitoba?
Manitoba schools have long been using a whole-language approach to literacy instruction based on the ideas and work of Kenneth S. Goodman. This method of teaching reading and writing emphasizes learning whole words and phrases by encountering them in meaningful contexts rather than by phonics exercises.
(https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/whole%20language)
But what I did not realize in my first 18 years of teaching was that his work was not based on research at all. Since moving into a Later Literacy Teacher role 6 years ago, working with struggling readers and writers in Grades 3 – 8, I quickly realized that this whole-language approach wasn’t working for many of our students…almost 20% of them! I learned that I quickly needed to find another way to teach them the essential skills of reading and writing.
I met Valdine Bjornson through my connection with MAME as they brought her and her colleagues in to speak as a Keynote at our MTS PD Day Conference about learning disabilities and Dyslexia. From there, my personal learning journey continued as I explored more about the Science of Reading and a Structured Literacy approach. And now, as I enter my 6th year as a K-8 Literacy Support Teacher, I have been working closely with the LRSD Early Years Literacy Team to bring a structured literacy approach to reading and writing instruction in Kindergarten and Grade 1. I am excited to share that the work has begun here in Manitoba!
Stay tuned for part 2 of my post to see some of that work!
