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Linguistics
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Nov 24, 2024
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Uploaded by reaganmumo
As an educator, selecting appropriate texts for reading and writing instruction for our literacy learners is paramount. Within our classroom, students exhibit a diverse range of abilities, which has led us to focus on two specific categories of literacy learners in recent weeks: emergent and beginning literacy learners. Dr. Hartman introduced the literacy matrix, a valuable tool designed to aid teachers in choosing texts that cater to the needs of all their students. This matrix comprises four quadrants, divided into two continuums. One continuum helps assess whether a text leans more towards being narrative or informational, while the other evaluates whether a text is more linguistic or semiotic (Walden University,
2014). This essay will delve into a narrative, an informational, and a digital text, all chosen to support emergent and beginning literacy learners.
In my selection of texts, I chose to focus on the theme of pigs. The first text I picked for my emergent and
beginning literacy learners is the narrative "The Three Little Pigs" by Parragon Books (Parragon Books, 2014). Positioned within the narrative-semiotic category in the literacy matrix (Walden University, 2014), this story recounts the tale of three pigs constructing homes out of straw, wood, and brick. I opted for this story as a read-aloud for both emergent and beginning literacy learners due to its repetitive nature and rhyming words, enhancing its readability (Walden University, 2014). This text not only piqued the interest of my students in pigs but also facilitated their comprehension of complex sentences, identification of letters/words, and improvement of reading fluency. Furthermore, it aligns with the Common Core State Standards, fostering the development of print concepts, word recognition, key detail
identification, and fluency (CCSS, 2021). "The Three Little Pigs" also serves as an excellent prompt for student writing, encouraging emergent and beginning literacy learners to illustrate and document the story's beginning, middle, and end.
For my emergent literacy learner, I incorporated a digital text titled "Case of the Lost Pig" by Cecilia Minden, sourced from the Epic for Educators website (Epic! Creations Inc, n.d.) This narrative, falling under the narrative-semiotic category, follows Jack and Meg as they unravel the mystery of a lost pig (Minden, 2019). Utilizing digital resources like Epic fosters familiarity with the digital realm, enhancing not only reading comprehension but also communication skills (Oakley et al., 2020). This text, chosen for
its simplicity and repetitiveness, aids my emergent literacy learner in refining grammar in speech and articulating specific sounds through echo reading, as indicated by the results of the Oral Language Checklist (Reutzel & Cooter, 2019). Moreover, it aligns with the Common Core State Standards, supporting print concept understanding, phonological awareness, word recognition, and fluency (CCSS, 2021).
Additionally, I introduced an informational text titled "Pigs" by Christina Leighton (Leighton, 2018) for my
beginning literacy learner. Positioned within the informational-linguistic category, this text provides information about pigs through photos, labels, and vocabulary words (Leighton, 2018). The content, featuring multiple sentences with diverse vocabulary, enables my beginning literacy learner to practice reading with prosody and appropriate intonation, in line with the Components of Fluency Assessment (Reutzel & Cooter, 2019). Moreover, it aligns with the Common Core State Standards, promoting phonics and word recognition, fluency, and understanding factual details about the subject (CCSS, 2021). "Pigs" also serves as an excellent foundation for student writing, encouraging my beginning literacy learner to craft an informational piece based on the knowledge acquired.
Employing the literacy matrix to guide my choice of narrative, informational, and digital texts for emergent and beginning literacy learners has been invaluable. It has reinforced the significance of
selecting engaging texts that not only captivate students but also cater to their educational needs. Understanding our students is key to kindling their reading interest, and this coming school year, I eagerly anticipate utilizing the literacy matrix to ensure my instructional choices align seamlessly with my
students' requirements.
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