Snippets of Literacy
By Dawn Grant-Skiba
Literacy is the foundation of any and all types of education. It is a basic human right, but how can we achieve it for everyone? Join the discussion once per month on a Thursday here and also check out our Facebook page.
Snippets of LiteracyNov 19, 2021
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13:01
Ep.29 Equity in literacy education
Equal access to literacy education, access to quality resources and quality instruction are the beginning steps towards equity in literacy education. Let's babble about it!
Nov 19, 202113:01
Ep.28 Media Literacy in the Time of Covid-19
Have you ever considered how the young and elderly are coping in this age of digitisation when a pandemic is raging the world? What lessons can we learn? What things should we be doing to ensure digital literacy for all?
Aug 31, 202110:53
Ep. 27 Interview with Judge Sahai Whittingham Maxwell on Literacy and Justice
An illiterate child or youth might not have the literacy skills to participate in their own defense. What systems are in place to protect them from self-incrimination and the threat of justice denied? This episode will provide you with insights into literacy and justice.
Jul 15, 202129:55
Ep. 26 Literacy and the school to prison pipeline
Keeping the youth out of prison could be as simple as providing them with their first book, telling them their first story, encouraging them to go to and stay in school. We can sit on the sidelines and complain or we can start today to disrupt the school to prison pathway. What are you going to do?
Jun 14, 202112:00
Ep. 25 Can a person be educated and illiterate at the same time?
There is a positive correlation between being educated and the eradication of illiteracy. Find out more in this episode.
May 12, 202134:08
Ep. 24 How discipline affects literacy development
Have you ever considered what happens to a child's learning when they are constantly suspended or expelled from school?
Apr 07, 202111:39
Ep. 23 Interview with Cheree: Home-schooling and Literacy
Primary teacher-come-homeschool-parent, Cheree, shares some insights into how she has created an engaging, fun, and rich learning space for her twin boys at home since taking the decision to remove them from mainstream school. Her insights will inspire you and may even empower you to take that risky decision and try something new if you are also home-schooling your children.
Mar 11, 202142:27
Ep. 22 Is punctuation a part of literacy?
The way we punctuate can significantly affect the message of a text, so watch your commas, colons, and other punctuation marks.
Feb 04, 202115:12
Ep.21 Disciplinary Literacy
If you want students to speak, write, read and understand like an expert, you have to teach them the literacy of their subject area.
Jan 19, 202113:18
Ep. 20 Poetry is valuable to literacy learning
Whether you read or write poems, don't neglect the capacity to improve one's literacy while bringing enjoyment and engagement.
Dec 02, 202015:14
Ep.19 Critical literacy - literacy as power practice
Have you ever thought about the role power plays in literacy development? This episode explores critical literacy and discusses how to decentralise the focus on the dominant culture so that meaning is constructed by every participant in literacy development process and not just the elite or privileged ones.
Nov 19, 202012:15
Ep.18 Why nursery rhymes help to develop literacy skills
Phonemic awareness, an enlarged vocabulary and the development of listening and social skills are just some of the reasons to include nursery rhymes in your child's pre-literacy learning.
Oct 29, 202012:38
Ep.17 New Literacy Studies (NLS) Theory
Literacy is more than cognitive ability; it is also social practice. When teachers understand this, they will be able to connect more with their students and become more effective teachers.
Oct 14, 202009:48
Ep.16 Interview with Eunice Fuchs: Dyslexia and Reading Ability
What if you found out your precious child - or even all your children - had a serious problem with reading? What if you then found out this problem had a name, dyslexia? Listen to Dr Eunice Santiago-Fuchs, a nurse and dyslexia expert, as she shares her experience and evidence-based knowledge about how and why she came to take charge of her children's learning.
Sep 16, 202038:05
Ep.15 Creating a literacy-rich environment at home
There are so many ways you can turn your home into a place where learning takes place without it becoming like a classroom. Take advantage of simple and affordable real-life ways to build your child's literacy ability and confidence before they even start school.
Aug 28, 202015:57
Ep.14 Building Vocabulary
Adults have an important role to play in building a child's vocabulary. Help them reach their literacy developmental milestones so they can communicate better. Don't stunt their growth. Listen up to learn why and how.
Aug 12, 202010:20
Ep.13 Interview with Cherie Forbes: picture books
Engage your children and youth in reading by introducing them to picture books now! Not only will they find joy in it, but they will also learn to read better and it will help them in later life with things like map and graph reading. Moreover, in this day and age of everything visual, let's ensure they are visually literate so they don't get conned by those who are more media-savvy. Join primary teacher and my great friend, Cherie Forbes, as we chat about her experiences with using picture books at home and at school.
Jul 30, 202020:52
Ep.12 Interview with Veronica McNaught
Have you ever wondered what it is like to work in literacy education? Join Veronica as she talks about her new role as Head Teacher of Literacy and Learning, the challenges she faces and what she hopes to achieve.
Jul 18, 202030:48
Ep.11 Literacy in the primary years
Find out the difference between learning to read and reading to learn, and the connection with literacy.
Jun 23, 202008:43
Ep.10 What's play got to do with literacy?
The title of this episode is a bow to the lovely legend, Miss Tina Turner, but the content has nothing to do with music. In fact, it is about the importance of play in the emergent literacy years and how play sets children up for a lifetime of literacy accomplishments in reading, writing and imagining.
Jun 10, 202010:42
Ep.9 Combatting racism through literacy
Someone wise once said that it is difficult to hate someone you truly know. Storytelling gives us a glance into each other's worlds that will ultimately show us that we are all the same. Being more literate helps us to interact with each other as equals, something the world is in need of now. Let's eradicate racism through literacy!
Jun 03, 202010:13
Ep.8 The role of literacy in domestic violence Part 1
There is a connection between literacy and social issues like domestic violence and the sooner we see the connection and take steps to address them, the better.
May 27, 202009:10
Ep.7 Nature vs Nurture - which determines literacy?
Both our genetics and our surroundings affect literacy acquisition, but one is said to be more influential than the other. Listen to find out which.
May 20, 202010:04
Ep.6 Recognising illiteracy in children
Speaking is a foundational skill that needs to be encouraged from an early age. If your child is having speaking difficulties, you must intervene so that they don't develop into literacy struggles later.
May 13, 202010:56
Ep.5 Literacy begins at home
As their first and best placed adults, parents are a child's best literacy teacher. Reading aloud to children is one way to start their literacy journey.
May 06, 202011:01
Ep. 4 The origins of Literacy: a partial history
The Old Deluded Satan Act and other ways education and literacy for all became a thing for the masses.
Apr 29, 202009:58
Ep.3 How does literacy affect your life?
Imagine not being able to read a map or a menu. Join me as we explore the everyday struggles of an illiterate person.
Apr 23, 202008:01
Ep. 2 Literacy as a human right
Education is a human right everyone would agree with. Literacy is the foundation of basic education and so is a basic human right. Or it should be.
Apr 15, 202011:13
Ep.1 Literacy and COVID-19
In our heightened state of health awareness, what can this pandemic teach us about the importance of literacy?
Apr 13, 202009:28