Hi! And welcome to my asynchronous presentation for the 2021 VIU Research Conference. On this post you will find a link to my blog, as well as a video summarizing my research question and method. Please start with the video first, then move to the blog for a bit more detailed information on my research.
As a new early-primary educator, I am interested to know how I can become the most effective literacy educator for my grade 1/2 students, with effective teaching strategies proven by research.
Please feel free to ask me anything, in regards to my research focus, the process, and/or my time in the MEDL program. I would love to provide any support that I can for 4th year students and individuals interested in similar topics.
Click the video below to hear a summary on my research focus and a brief introduction to my blog.
Blog Link: https://larissaandliteracy.wordpress.com/
Thanks for viewing!
– Larissa
Hi Larassia. Your research project topic is very interesting. I appreciate how you went into detail about your research findings in your video. It helped me understand your topic even more. I also really like your blog website and I am looking forward to looking at it in further detail. While I was looking at your blog it reminded me of a reading intervention that I have used with students who are having trouble learning their alphabet letters – Alphabet Yoga – see https://www.pinkoatmeal.com/alphabet-yoga. I like the idea of using movement to learn and this worked very well. Anyway, best wishes with your project.
Hi Melissa,
Thank you so much for the positive feedback! When designing my presentation, I found it challenging to decide which bits of research to include, since there is so much. I’m glad the information I included helped you to understand my topic.
I really appreciate you sharing that intervention! It looks like an excellent strategy to incorporate in the beginning of the school year, maybe as a morning warm-up, brain-break, or even a gym activity. As a learner, I connect well with hands-on activities, so I can only imagine this type of intervention benefitting struggling readers.
Thanks again!
Larissa
Hi Larissa, love how you are sharing your process so openly, I think self-study sometimes seems like a bit of a black box…so seeing yours in action will be very informative! It was a great idea to do it as a blog. I’m wondering if you’ve thought about how you will draw your final conclusions. Will you do an analysis of your blog posts?
Hi Rachel,
Thank you so much for your feedback. Self-study was something I didn’t even know was an option, prior to deciding on my research path and project. I’m so glad I stumbled upon a self-study example and decided to go that route. It has been an excellent learning experience for me. I’m planning to do an analysis of all of my blog posts, once I have completed focusing on my final goal. I’m still learning about this process, so I’m open to suggestions!
Larissa
Hi Larissa,
Early literacy just seems so fascinating. I remember feeling worried as a parent when my daughter struggled with reading. Both my kids entered kindergarten as non-readers with a little knowledge of the alphabet and that’s it. With almost no effort it seemed, my son picked up reading and was on to chapter books by the end of kindergarten. My daughter had the same amazing kindergarten teacher who had many years experience teaching reading, yet she struggled. By grade 3 she was still not reading at all. In grade 3 she entered an intensive reading program run by the learning support teacher. She spent 1/2 a day, every school day for the entire year with him and by then end of the year he had caught her up and she was reading at grade level. What accounts for this? Was she just not ready when she was younger? Was this learning support teacher that amazing? Was it just the intensive time that was put in? A combination? I’m not sure but I am forever grateful to that teacher. (It’s Mike Golder by the way, wordpress won’t let me change my profile for some reason so it only lets me post using my student number)
Hi Mike!
Thanks for the feedback and the connection to your daughter’s reading journey. What an interesting comparison between your son and daughter’s literacy abilities. Literacy is definitely fascinating and complex. I wish I could provide you with an explanation of “why” and “how” she caught up by the end of grade 3, but I would agree with what you’ve stated; it was most likely a combination and a mixture of the intensive support, the support teacher’s teaching style, and maybe being more ready as an older student. You’re right, some students just aren’t ready and don’t have all the tools they need to develop their reading skills, but through interventions and supports we, as teachers and support teachers, can get them there (or at least that’s the goal). I think it also depends on the delivery of the literacy instruction as well. Are they reading appropriately levelled texts? Are they receiving the necessary interventions? Are they engaging in hands-on/play-based activities to reinforce skills? SO many things come into play with literacy!
Larissa
Hi Larissa, I am thrilled to see you found a way to connect your MEDL work with your passion and goals to support early literacy. You were committed to this topic from the very start and it looks like you have really developed your own understanding, confidence and teaching practice. I hope you can share the benefits and challenges of self study with those just starting to find their path.
Hi Wendy,
Thank you! You really helped me guide this question in the beginning and I appreciate that. The question and focus have come a long way and it’s been a challenging process navigating it and deciding on a project, but I have learned so much about myself and the research process.
Larissa
Hi Larissa,
I am so interested in learning more about the Self Study method. As I gain more understanding of the method, I might reach out to ask for your insights. I recorded your email during the break out session.
Take care and thanks again!
Quincy
Hi Quincy,
Thank you for joining my session and watching my presentation! I would be more than happy to answer any questions you may have on the self-study method.
Good luck in your research journey!
Larissa
Hi Larissa,
Thank you for this presentation! I’m an early literacy teacher (Reading Recovery), and I loved hearing about the variety of strategies and intervention you are incorporating and exploring. It sounds like you have developed a really balanced and engaging learning environment for your students, and I love how reflective and open to change you seem to be 🙂
In terms of your research process, I’m curious about the decision to blog, rather than keep a more private journal. Are you noticing noticing that the public nature of the blog shapes your thinking and writing?
Robin
Hi Robin,
Thank you for viewing! It has been a learning process developing my instruction around literacy, but I feel that the more research I do and “experimentation” in my classroom, I am learning so much and figuring out what works best for me.
I made the decision to blog, as it was recommended to me by a former instruction as a way to track my self-study and it seemed like the most fitting method for me. I have a journal that I record jot notes in, then I transfer my notes to my blog. I chose to do this publicly because I’d love to help another teacher through my own process, if possible, or even another MEDL student navigating the process of self-study. Since it’s a self-study, I wanted to contribute to the profession one way or another, which the blog seemed to make more possible.
Hope that answers your question!
Larissa