SIMON FRASER UNIVERSITY

S

Summer Semester 2002

EDUC 473 - 4

Louise Towill

Designs for Learning: Reading

Office:

TBA

Phone: 291-3395 / 430-1539

D02.00

E-mail: louise_towill@sfu.ca

Friday 8:30-12:20 in EDB 7610

PREREQUISITE

Educ 401/402

TOPICS

• How children learn language: a socio-cultural process

• Literacy learning: Where reading fits in the big picture

• Reading as the active construction of knowledge

• Emergent readers and writers

• Creating a classroom for readers

• The teacher's role: Reading aloud, conferencing, teaching skills and strategies

• Selecting reading materials

• Teaching reading: decoding to comprehension

• Reading and writing connections

• Reading for information/ reading in the content areas

• Literacy instruction for special populations

• Assessment and evaluation: Analyzing readers and reading programs

OBJECTIVES

The course will focus on developing knowledge, skills and strategies to create a rich and stimulating

balanced reading program in the classroom. Issues in literacy learning, and reading in particular, will

be examined through current theory and teaching practice. The framework provided will enable you

to examine and reflect on your understandings about learning and teaching of reading, and your role

as teacher.

The course will comprise a broad range of experiences. These will include professional readings,

discussion and written response, seminars, demonstrations, individualized tasks and small-group

work.

REQUIREMENTS

1.

Completion of short oral and written assignments to be shared in class:

quote summaries, preparation for discussion - 25%

2.

Observing and assessing reading behavior -25%

3.

Reflections on course readings (term paper) - 25%

4.

Designing a reading program - 25%

No Scheduled final exam.

REQUIRED TEXTS

Cooper, J.D. Literacy: Helping Children Construct Meaning, 4th edition. Houghton Mifflin.

Province of B.C. Performance Standards: Reading. Victoria, BC: Ministry of Education.

Daniels, H. Literature Circles. Pembroke.

RECOMMENDED TEXTS

Peterson, R. & Eeds. M. Grand Conversations: Literature Groups in Action. Scholastic.

Walker, B. Supporting Struggling Readers. Pippin.

You will also be required to purchase one children's novel. These novels will be available in class.