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Recipes for Effective Literacy Instruction

HS Literacy Instruction Handbook

This page presents an outline for a high school literacy instruction handbook.  The process of creating a handbook that your teachers can agree on is just as important as the product itself: in fact, it’s an important step toward ensuring that your school provides high-quality literacy instruction to EVERY student.

If you have any questions, comments, or suggestions (or materials to donate to the cause!), please contact me at literacycookbook@gmail.com


POLICIES, PROCEDURES, PRACTICES:

Generally Accepted Policies, Procedures, and Practices for Teachers

  • Lesson Plans (See sample templates in “Templates for Lessons & Units.”)
  • Unit Plans (See sample template, sample overview, and sample unit in “Templates for Lessons & Units.”)
  • Sample Classroom Management Plan
  • Humanities Dept. Grading Policies (An opportunity to meet and come to consensus)
  • Sample Introduction Letter to Parents re: class rules and policies (in the Download Zone below.)
  • The “Visible Curriculum”: suggestions for use of wall space, e.g., word walls, student work with rubrics and descriptions of assessments, class rules, inspirational quotes….
     

CURRICULUM:

Grades 9-12 Scope and Sequence for Literacy (2-3 pages per grade, including essential questions, key unit topics, texts, objectives, assessments, and grammar points emphasized)

Information on Common Core Standards (See "Standards.")

See the HS English Lessons & Units page for practical resources.

 

HOW WE TEACH READING:

Provide an overview with reference to “Analyzing Literature, “Comprehension 101,” and “Connecting Reading, Writing, Test Prep.”  See also this TLC Blog post, "Essential Literacy Work Before You Begin Test Prep."

How We Teach Annotation: See “Analyzing Literature” and Nonfiction Reading Strategies.”

  • Sample Rubrics
  • Sample Annotated Texts

How We Teach Vocabulary

Recommended Reading--See “Recommended Reading” for the following:

Independent Reading (See "Independent Reading.")

  • Rationale
  • Explanation of Logistics (e.g., HW, Strategic Reading Time, etc.)
  • Sample Reading Log

Summer Reading (See "Independent Reading.")

  • Rationale
  • Explanation of Logistics
  • Summer Reading Lists
  • Sample Summer Reading Assignments (in the Download Zone below).


HOW WE TEACH ORAL PRESENTATIONS:

How We Use Socratic Seminars

 
How We Teach Public Speaking


HOW WE TEACH WRITING:

How We Teach Writing

How We Teach Grammar (See "Grammar.")


Sample Major Writing Assessments in Each Grade


HOW WE TEACH TEST PREP:

How We Use Benchmarks/Interim Assessments/DDI

  • Philosophy (See “DDI 101.”)
  • Logistics: Implementation and Follow-through (For suggestions, see DDI 101.”)

How We Prepare for PARCC


IN THE DOWNLOAD ZONE for HS Lit Handbook:

 

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