Last weekend, I had the pleasure of travelling to Toronto (yes, I saw my grandkids) to attend the Ontario Branch of the International Dyslexia Association’s (ONBIDA) annual convention.
It was fabulous!
Not only did I enjoy a laugh- and info-filled keynote address by Dr. Gordon Sherman, “Welcome to the Future: Where Dyslexic Brains Thrive,” but I also got to spend the day enjoying Dee Ledet-Rosenberg’s take on how to provide effective in-class reading instruction.
Many teachers in the room had not heard of some of the reading programmes Dee described, nor about some of the research about reading development and reading disability.
Am I surprised by that? Not at all. Canadian teacher education institutes do not subscribe to a common curriculum about practices that encourage emergent reading, and many pre-service schools spend a lot more time talking about balanced literacy and reading circles than they do about literacy development, phonological awareness, phonics instruction, and the importance of vocabulary and comprehending skills.
That’s not just sad ~ it’s a travesty.
The research is pretty clear about what kids who are at risk for reading disability need. And while some students can learn to read without a structured, sequential research-based approach, not all can. If we’re only implementing one curriculum in an early elementary classroom, shouldn’t it be one that can enrich the language learning of those for whom reading is not an issue, while it catches those kids who are at-risk and keeps them from becoming statistics?
As teachers, we all know that we get what “they” offer for pre-service training. But we also know, we get to choose what we learn after we graduate.
For those among us who did not benefit from a research-based reading strategies curriculum, and who have not yet had the time (goodness knows there is a lot to read and learn) to ferret out all the information ourselves, good solid PD is available.
This summer ONBIDA is offering a three-day summer workshop entitled “Un-lock-ing Language: Teaching Structured Language.” I hope they’ll forgive me for cutting and pasting from the list of skills teachers can learn from this professional development opportunity:
- Understand how the languages of Anglo-Saxon, Latin and Greek influence English spelling patterns.
- Accurately match speech sounds with their written forms in English words.
- Recognize and explain common rules and patterns in English.
- Differentiate between ‘high frequency’ and ‘irregular’ words.
- Identify, explain, and categorize six basic syllable types in English spelling.
- Identify and categorize common morphemes in English.
Why not check it out? ONBIDA PD BROCHURE Psst. Early registration ends June 4th
If you see me there, come on over and introduce yourself, will you?
Until next time,
Diane
BTW: Professional development can be costly. ONBIDA knows that. So they’re providing three scholarships to this PD opportunity (through the Oliver Martin Trust Fund). But, visit www.idaontario.com quickly if you’re interested in learning for free. Applications for scholarships close on May 14th at noon.
Diane Duff, B. Ed., is a literacy consultant who works with families, schools, and literacy coaches/tutors. Diane conducts assessments for reading/writing skills and dyslexia; provides workshops for parent groups; leads reading and language curriculum review for private schools, Montessori schools and homeschooling parents; and conducts teacher training in language and literacy development. For more information, visit www.aldridgeduff.ca