Supporting Literacy for Students with Developmental Disabilities Literacy – what is it?

Making a difference – Believing KnowingDoing 2

Getting connected Give your name and O a book you have liked as a movie OR O your favourite book OR O your favourite place to read OR O your children’s favourite book 3

What is Literacy? 4

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What did we believe about literacy development? O Students need to be at a certain “developmental” level before literacy instruction could be introduced O If a student didn’t have prerequisite skills s/he had to master them before being considered “ready” to really read and write O These skills to be mastered had to be taught in a hierarchy, without missing any of the steps 6

Now what do we believe about literacy development? O Learning to read and write begins early in life O Occurs years before formal educational opportunities begin O Begins to develop with early communication and interaction skills O The ability to read is acquired in much the same as spoken language – during the thousands of hours of meaningful interaction with others (often before entering school ) 7

Also we know … O Many students with significant (developmental) disabilities CAN learn academic skills and knowledge that was previously not expected O Literacy and numeracy skills, as well as content knowledge, will increase students with disabilities opportunities with employment and every day living 8

Also, Least Dangerous Assumption, says… 9 To assume students with significant disabilities to be competent and able to learn, because to do otherwise would result in harm such as fewer educational opportunities, inferior instruction, segregation and fewer choices / options as an adult (Ann Donnellan, 1984).

Balanced Literacy 10 O Involves words skills, reading comprehension reading and writing O Uses the best from phonics and whole language O No singe intervention works for all O Students need to read and write about “real” things

Word Skills 11 O Sight words O Decoding skills O Phonics O Unknown word attack strategies O Vocabulary meanin g

Reading 12 O Daily opportunities to read O Self-selected books O Talk about & share O Guide students in selecting easy materials O Enjoyment of reading O Read-alouds

Reading Comprehension 13 O Reading is thinking O Making meaning from text O Comprehension strategies O Connecting background knowledge O Study skills O Variety of books and print types

Writing 14 O Write to read better O Daily opportunities to write O Write a variety of text O Support writing with pictures O Model conventions O Copying and learning to print letters is not writing

Physical Aspects of Literacy Participation 15 O Literacy or story manipulatives O Paper books O Electronic books O Portable writing aids O Computer access to writing tools

Cognitive Aspects of Literacy Participation 16 O Concepts of print O Phonemic awareness O Sight word recognition O Phonic/decoding O Vocabulary understanding O Memory O Understanding / connecting O Writing – sentence construction, spelling