By Michelle Wolf, Educational Director, Schoolwide, Inc.
We understand the importance of community. That is why we spend a lot of time in the fall on community-building activities and establishing classroom rules and structures. This is important work and is critical to the success of the year to come. Another critical part of building community, that we often don’t spend enough time on, is establishing community values.
What do we want our students to believe about literacy? What do we want our students to believe about learning? These are important questions we need to consider and start teaching as foundations for our learning communities.
In order for our students to learn to be strong successful readers and writers, they need to become a community that uses and values reading and writing. They need to make sense of their reading and writing experiences and make connections between their literacy learning and their lives. Establishing community values about literacy is one way to meet these needs.
How do we establish community values? The first step is to be clear about what we want our students to believe about literacy and learning. Make a list of what you want your students to believe about literacy. The next step is to teach, talk, and act in ways that support these beliefs. Think of ways you can show your beliefs about literacy by establishing consistent structures, practices, and talk.
Here are some ideas to get you started:
|
