Brandi J. Clark

We are living in unprecedented times.  

All learners had their education interrupted, especially our youngest readers.

Do we despair, or repair?

To despair is to blame everything.

To repair is to move forward.

Moving forward means considering the context of our current situation and our hopeful future when it’s safer to be together.

What can work, is not absolute.

“… when it comes to reading instruction, absolutes pose more problems than solutions. Most teachers learn early on in their careers that what works with one child does not always work with another. If the path I prefer isn’t successful with a student, my preference becomes irrelevant, and it’s time to seek an alternative that will get the desired results. So I fit the program to the child, not the other way around.” Sam Bommarito*

We need to look at the Science of Reading with a keen eye and an open heart.  Approach reading research with the intention to discover what might crack the case in your circumstance not to confirm a hard and fast reading stance. 

Be a centrist as Sam Bommarito suggests in his article,

“I consider myself a centrist, one who doesn’t fit neatly into a category. I like to follow the research and use what I learn to guide my instruction.” p.21

So, try that, be a centrist, one that looks at all possibilities.

Repairing and perhaps forging new roads as we dive into the reading research together. 

Until Next Time,

Coach Clark

*Article reference: “Argue Less, Talk More: Engaging in productive conversations on social media” September/October 2020 | LITERACY TODAY (p. 20-22)

Talking moistly, it happens.

True story.

I was talking to a friend outside, socially distant. I took a slurp of my latte, begin talking, and to my horror, spoke moistly.  I, like most of Canada, had a chuckle when our Prime Minister Trudeau mentioned “speaking moistly”. As we move back into classrooms, speaking moistly, is a real obstacle, and a threat to safety.  In our province, students in Grades 4 to 12 will have masks, the students in grades K to 3 will not.

                Yet, I have a moistly solution!

Pulled from my teacher toolbox, back in the old days.

Ready for it?

                SIGN LANGUAGE

                I took sign language, level 1, right out of university. My friend and I had minored in special education and figured that this skill would be good to have.

                Flash forward, several years later, I was teaching grade 2 and decided that basic signs, legitimate ones and signs co-invented as a class, would help to reduce the amount of unnecessary talking and assist with learning flow. Using signs helped to manage students’ conversations during independent work time, whole group instruction and larger assemblies.

                The first signs, were yes and no. The class also created signs for, fill water bottle (pretending to drink out of hand), bathroom (hand with one finger pointing, straight up)  get a book (both hands moving together and apart, like a book opening and closing), We also had signs for question (a hooked finger) and  a give me five hand open for “answer the question.”

                These signs worked great, and many other signs developed over the year to limit interrupting conversations and increase independent working flow. For example, if we were sitting at the classroom meeting rug and I asked a question. If a student had to use the bathroom and indicated this (1 finger pointing straight up). I could quietly use my hand signals for yes or no. Quick, easy, no interrupted thinking or flow that happens with the usual “Can I go to the bathroom?” At assemblies’ this worked well too, as the students and I could communicate without anyone leaving their spots.

                The privacy that signs lend themselves to, also help with instruction, assessment and feedback. A student can hold their hand close to their chest to sign no or yes and their peers won’t see. For example, “is everyone ready to start writing?” A child can quietly let you know or “Does everyone understand the steps to the math problem, I just showed you?”

                 Now that we are returning to school during Covid, your class might want to come up with their own signs for new safety reminders like, “too close” or “stay on the circle or line”.  I was thinking maybe there will be a need for wellness signs, like “I am feeling stressed” or “I feel sick”.

                Give it a try! Make some fun ones up. Whatever works, just remember, speaking moistly, it can happen to you, it’s the sign of the times. (Do you get what I did there?)

Until Next Time,

Love Coach Clark