How to Reach and Teach All Children Through Balanced Literacy

Book excerpt: How to Reach and Teach All Children Through Balanced Literacy offers you a handbook for teaching literacy to diverse students in grades 3-8. The balanced literacy method combines the best practices of phonics and other skill-based language instruction with the holistic, literature-based approach in order to help you teach reading, writing, and speaking in a clear and approachable format. This dynamic resource offers an easily accessible research-based approach to balanced literacy that is grounded in the innovative ideas developed by authors Sandra F. Rief and Julie A. Heimburge. The book includes detailed descriptions of what a balanced literacy classroom looks like and shows how to create a program from the ground up or give your existing program a boost. The book can be used across content areas and is filled with reproducible worksheets, activities, and other handy classroom tools. Some topics covered include: Shared book experiences Reading aloud Oral language and vocabulary development Guided reading for comprehension Modeled writing Reading and writing conferences Book clubs Content area reading and writing Ongoing assessments Enhancing literacy through technology