The Huron Expositor, 1979-04-19, Page 7TH
HURON .EXPOSITOR. APRIL 11 1*'
STORYTINIE---Janson Muir and Andrea Ribey are taking part in a
readiness activity program with teacher's aide Doreen Brightrall.. The
teachers'. aides, are a valuable addition ta the school's progr tris,
encouraging students to: read, (Expositor photo)
LEARNING THE SKILLS—These pre-schoolers andtheir the school situation before they start kindergarten,
mothers meet in the library of the Seaforth Public School every :- (Expositor photo)-
week sp the children are introduced to books, the library and
Johnnie can't read?
BY PAUL.CARROLL
Principal, Seaforth Public
School
An examination, of the last
150 years of reading instruct-
ion in North America and
Europe will reveal that the
pedagogy of reading has
remained essentially un-
changed) How then can we
explain why so many people
feel that children today can-
not read properly? Maybe.
the answer can be found in
the forces at work in this
changing society. Maybe we
need something more basic
than the "basics to guide
schobls into the future?.,
—paraphrased from Joyce.
Johnson .in "Back to. Bas-
ics? We've been there '150
years" in The Reading
-Teacher, 1979 March:
What is reading 'all about
then? :M ost authorities agree
thata basic reading program
offers word attack skills. (in-
cluding oro re
cludin phonics), c p
g
hension studies and literary
appreciation. The so-called
"new" reading program in..
Huron County schools offer.
these. So did the McGuffey •
in the.1
readers 830's as did
the Dewey Adaptations
a a tations
through the early half of the ..
�Oth Century! Attention has
always focused on how to
teach word skills, to develop
understanding, and to foster
enjoyment and appreciation..
There have been periods of
time where the emphasis on
one ;particular strand has
changed, but essentially, the
instructional' content , has
remainedthe same,
The package
dressed up
Over the last five gener-
ations, the "packages" have
been dressed up. The most
recent editions - a result of
technological miracles with
• the•4•colour printing ptocess.
- are dazzling collections;.
vibrant reading texts,pimag
inative workbooks, splashy
spellers and garish grammar'
books in clever disguise. But
the content? What ,has
changed/
However, two significant
things have changed;
Schools have been directed.
to recognize that each child is'
an individual. Teachers are
beginning to acquire tient
insight into the process• of
language development how
language is learned, how
reading fluency grows.
: lrlcmeetary y schools o er-.
• ..
',ate under four broad • guide-
lines or Mieistty goals: "to
P
rOvide opportunities for
each child hto the limit of
his/her potential), to acquire
basic skills, to develop self
worth, to gain knowledge, to
develop moral and aesthetic
sensitivity,"
Teachers are charged with
meeting these' goals in a
number of responsible ways,
High • on the • list is the
arse $$hent of "e*ch child's
It's
learning on - a continuous
basis to ensure learning at a
level and rate' that are in
keeping with individual Mail -
hies, and, where warranted,
diagnosing difficulties and -
making appropriatechanges
in the program or teaching-
learntng. strategies.'` Coup-
led with this is. the directive
to ensure "that' each child:
experiences a measure of
success .le his or ,her en-
deavours, so that each may
needed
the "self-confidence
needed for further learn-.
ing.
, QVE
Children?,'. are unique -
individuals. To deny this fact
is to deny the reality of life.
Not to accommodate this in
the classroom is a further
eniai.of
reality.
Schools must
face realities
Schools must tace these
realities! In any given class- ,
room, at any given grade
level, for parents or teachers
to expect that the 30 different
children arriving' at the door-
way have the same physical, '
intchectual, social . and ..
emotional needs is unreal-
istic.
To open a grade three
reader and expect: successful
results, with each of the. 30.
"grade three" children, for
example, is akin to gener-
ating disaster. The age range
of the children will vary by
two years, the, social ability'.
by :three, and the . reading
level, most .likely, by four.
Por the child who, scraped
through ,grade :two, you as
much as guarantee failure;
for the child . beyond his
years, you eliminate chal-
lenge and hamper his growth.
Schools are beginning to
recognize individual differ-
ences. They are beginning to
modify programs to recog-
nize 'individual needs.
The second component 'of
change is a new Understand-
ing of the process of lang-
uage itself. For ;years we
have examined instruction,. -
re -Organized learning pack-
ages, and. ' shuffled the
e mphasis. bf ..skills. Only
tcccntly - in fact, only in the
last ten_ .years, have we'
begun to understand the
learning process itself.
. We have tended to look; at
o urselves and our teaching
Methods, We should have
been looking id the direction'
of the child -recognizing that
We cab teach, so to -speak,,.
until we are "blue in the
face", but little •growth
Occurs if "learning" does trot
take place.
•
We're just
learning •
Learning language in.•
Velvet listening, reading,
maa
speaking and, writing., We
are merely at step one .in
Understanding how they
inter -relate. But we 'have.
learned some things about
-reading. It is not a simple
matter of identifying words;
it is not a simple matter of
attaching meaning to a word.
Reading is a complex mix
of letter/phonetic signs..
grammatical structures and
semantic/meaning clues.
And before we can, experi-
ence genuine success in our
reading programs we must.
P g
understand the process of
reading ,itself. It is that.
"process" , that we have
tended to ignore.
So, two things have
changed: our recognition of
children as individuals,and
c
our understanding of the
reading process, itself. What
next? n`.'
WHAT NEXT?
What are • we . doing in
reading.;,instructions in the
schools? : From , the . first
weeks of Kindergarten, to
the final months of grade
thirteens we are obliged to
examine our motives, our
methods and our results. We
have a responsibility to an
increasingly critical public a
public who pays the bills - to
strengthen wherever
ards seem to have fallen. At
the same .time,, the public
we parents "- must examine
our motives and our goals in
this changing society. Will
the school be the scapegoat?
Or will we sit down together
arid examine those "basics"
that we strive to maintain?'
for children entering. kinder.-
garten,
RECORDS,: BOOKS;
• In the next twogrades, a
publisher's program pro-
vides the base for. •formal
. reading.. Primers and. Read-
ers are supplemented with •
labs, read!,a-long .record.
books, :'tapes for assisted
reading- Many- of the child-
ren's own stories are made
into books.
Kindergarten
builds a base
The reading programs at
SPS take many different
forms. In Kindergarten,
there is no. formal basic
program, but the highly
sophisticated , curriculum
provides daily readiness
activities through games,
Conversations and activities
geared to build a base for
,formal instruction.
The teacher combines her
own ideas with those avail-
able from the publishing.
companies' to reinforce" the
learning ,of readiness skills.
A program for reading readi-
ness is flexible and the
emphasis can be shifted to
Suit the needs of each child.
Beginning this year, the
registration procedures. for
the new kindergarten class
will include some skill identi-
fication. The Ministry has
directed (and we agree) that
consideration be given to
"the child's learning needs
and abilities when the child.
is first enrolled.. -."
This will enable pre -
reading programs to be coni
structed in a specialized way,
Patents will be directly
involved. In Scafotth, similar
"screening'" has been con -
(flicked by the Public Health
Unit' in its pre-scliiool efinies
Extra reading
i encouraged
5 E ncCu9 ed
The classrooms have.
special "library corners"
and much extra Leading
--activity- is ---encouraged::
Attempts are being made - in
spite of budgeting restrict-
ions
•- to inject much addit- •
tonal material in: Suppert of
reading into the classroom:
Thegrade threeclass is
using a highly individualized
program this year. Reading
• material is' matched with
.learner reading level.. Activ
ity sheets/cards, .publisher's
Workbooksand related -
rela teach-
ing
ah
ing aids are used to support.
,language development.
' Evaluation of -.student , pro-
gress is a time-consuming,
yet very worthwhile aspect of
this approach: It allowsthe
teacher to direct the pupils to.
material at a level that will
ensure continuous progress
be they reading at a grade
two or grade four :level.
CHALLENGING
The challenging aspect _of'
this program for parents is to
recognize that individual
needs are being met and that
the '.'reading process" is
uppermost in• the teacher's
mind. It should also be noted`
that professional] develop-
ment courses with one of . .
the most -respected reading
specialists -in North America
(Dr. Vette Goodman - Uni-
versity of Arizona) have been
part of the i -s rviee work for
n e rk f r
.this teacher, '
In the primary division,
the parent volunteer pro -
grain • a recent addition to
SPS operations is being
used in part as support for
the grade one to three read-
ing curriculum:
In the junior grades (4.5-6)
the basic reader program is.
.resumed. • in.
the words of Frank Smith,:
authot of a number of teach-
er education and post-
graduate teats, ."Learning to
read is a complex and deli-
cate task in which almost all
the rules, -all the cues, and all
the feedback can be obtained
only through the process of
reading itself."
And that, precisely, is the
direction the junior programs
take. - .-
The bask program`s :' are
supported by some work-
books, labs and novel collect
.ions- The teachers read,
daily, to the children. Lang.
Mtge development activities 4
are Spread throughout other'
subject areas:
is part of
the classroom timetable.
(U.S.S.R. Lin -.interrupted
Sustained Silent Reading,.
For the first term this year,
this was promoted as a
schoolwide activity for five.
:minutes at the beginning of
each day.)
in further support 'of;read
ing, the. Library Resource
Centre is used regularly •by
all, classes and . is, available
daily at noon hour and after
school for student Use.
In the Intermediate grades
et
READING AND: COMPREHENSION—Reading is a pointless exercise; :if
you donl fully :understand, what you've read. Here Grade .8 students
Larry McNichol.,. John Dale;_.andJah'n Braecker,demonstrate the: lab or
• t
work kit used, in their class at Seaforth Public. School to help h,. em learn
• comprehension skills aswell as written competence in arammar•.
All local schools are 'inviting
(7-8) the approachto reading:
�vsifiars for education week -
involves a combination ' of
short stories, poems, novels, April 23-27
and the periodic use of two'•P.
basic readers. The approach
_.is_sometimesintegrated"_..-___
combining. reading, writing,
listening and speakingactiv-
ities. Aood example i the .
g e mp ,is
hog
reading -related..,- study of
"Victorian England", grade
b
eight which related directlyi+
p.
to: the school operetta nowi
n
l�
t HU e•
preparation by grades six, .
seven and eight.
Periodic use is made of
film studies. An example.
would be the comparison of
the •dasscfilm "Shane" and
the novel• of the same title.
Reading at SPS
has always
been basic.
The `intermediate years
(7-10) are, in the words of the'
Ministry, .years, of con-
solidation, expansion and
further `discovery... " That's
the objective of the grade
• seven and eight: reading pro-
gram.
SOPHISTICATED
in summary, ' reading
instruction has Suddenly
become sophisticated! Read-
ing
ing at SPS has always been
basic" and will continue to
receive similar' emphasis.
With the cooperation and
understanding.stipport of the
parent and target community
SPS ;staff can provide the
educational climate de-
scribed by Edgar Faure in
"learning to Be", UNESCO;
`Toronto, 1973,
"Education has the dual
power to cultivate and to
stifle creativity. (The edit-
eatioital).,.taliks may be
described as preserving each
individual's originality and
creative ingenuity without
.
giving up theneed to ;place
Win in :real life, transmitting
without giving up the need to
culture without over-
whelming him...enceurag•
ing him to make use Of his
gifts, aptitudes and personal
forms of expression without
cultivating his egotists, .pay=
ing, teen attention fo etick
person's specific traits With-
out overlooking the fact. that
Creation is also' a tollective
activity,"
On. Wed. r
A il ; the band •
P , will be. grades 1 and 2, 3, 4,
and choir from Clinton High
School came to our school"
andledassembly .
an as rnbl for us.
Y
The assembly began ` with.
three songs., played by the
grade 7 students of our
school on their recorders..
Then the,Clinton' band play-
ed a few numbersthat; were
very enjoyable. Following •
the band came the choir and:
• to end the assembly the band
played two,,,more numbers:
The ,,band ' was . 'under the
direction of last year's Hull -
eft music director, Mr. Black-
well. The assembly was enjoy,
ed by all. ,
SPRING CONCERT NOTICE •
On Wed April 25 •the
annual Spring Concert for
Our school will lie held. Itwill:
start at approximately 8:15'
p.m. The grades that will be
participating in the concert
Look at all the dirt
RINSENVAC got out
' of our carpet!
You'll be amazed when you see
how really deep down clean your
carpets can be. RINSENVA0
rinses and vacuums out dirt and
theCleans
grime ay professionalsade-but at
a fraction of the cost!
for pro6'ssionaf carpet clesniog
you eau tlo yourself only
RENT RINSENVAC $1200
a ay
. CROWN ,
HARDWARE
r1�
Phone 527.1420
SedfOrth
from the Junior side and
grades Power. Learning,. 6, 8;
from the Senior side:. The•.
band will also be participa-
ting in the, concert. . The main
production will be the Operet-
ta
peretto put on by grades 6 and 8
entitled '`Going West."
CI
mons
The .star .and students .at
St. lames: School have a
number of activities planned.
for ;next tyeek which is
Education, `fleck, Parents
and interested citizens are
welcome at the school for the
,following events:
Moaday, ,April.23rd 9.05
Mass at: 'St, James
Church involving the school
children. The Mass Will show
that religionis the central,
focus: of the child'$;
education,
Tuesday, Ap�tl 241h -'131f ?i,
Hot l,og Sale:
Ween erdlay', 4441.25th i p=
m. Parents and interested
citizens are invited to visit
the various classrooms, At
the same time, .the Grades 7'
Nc $ class will .host a
Senior
Citizens' Card Party in the
gymnasium. Prizes will be
awarded. Senior Citizens
may contact the school for a
• ride over..
Thuroday, 'April 26th '9,15
a.m. Two films pertaining to
the therpe of this year's;
: Education Week New ;.
'Realities?
Friday, April, 37th 1:15 p.rn.
School; Assembly, Each class
will have a short pre-
sentation,
Also, during the week,
there wa y at the
Seaforthill PublibecdisplaLibrary of
children's art and written
work.
Everyone isencouraged to
attend these activities at St:
James xt week..
ue w
attention
�eteraris
z-Ser!1ce' Men
and .; Women
Tim 'Roya1Canadian eglop'ServiceBareaaO$icer.
CLARE WALL
Provincial Service Officer of London
' will be visiting in thearea
Anyone wishin ` `inforriiatlo ` ad Ice' of assGtuee
S ns a
regarding:
lal War<Disabiilty Pension,
[bl Treatment'for entitled veterans;
[el Application for Benevolent. Funds;
[di Appeals against adverse original application for ,
Veterans W
War andWidows 1 Allowance!'
s
is requested to contact, the Service Officer of Seaforth
Branch. 156 Royal Canadian Legion .. whotge,, name
appears below, prior to.
ril
To Arrange an inter** Contact CLEAVE'COOMBS
• Service Offlcer,.Seaforth,Branch 156,
• Royal Canadian Legion'
Phone 527-1155
CONTINUING 'EDUCATION COURSES
J UMNtER �"�.
CLiNTON. CA.I PUS•
- - - fe 'Sg
The following courses .are beino
g f red: this P rin9!Summer
. Students are alreadyenrolling. To ensure, yourself; a
semester
lace in the course of your choice, please telephone 482-3458
P
Monday and Tuesday from 630 to 9:30 p.m
. or visit ourcampus
at Vanastra Road, Clinton, Ontario
HumeStudy [Mathernatlt s and' Englleh).
Office Practice for the Receptionist
Basic BOtikkeepfng
Advanced Bookkebpiing
Driver Training
Bartending, Techniques
`Basic Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation
Manufacturing Procossetts
$35.00
$23.00
$23,00:•
S23"00
$27.00.
$33.00,
$22.78
$33.00'
.Plan UP ONE POUR' SPRING/SUMMER " 1979 1ABLOIIDS+
FROOUR' CLINTON NT ON CAMPUS.
wefroiot*too**