WELCOME !!!

Comprehensive Literacy for Students with Disabilities

What’s Happening?

• Overview of our four days

• Expectations

• Agenda

• Lunch

• Concerns/Questions

Participant Responsibilities

• Honor the quiet signal

• Turn off phones/computers

• Listen respectfully

• Participate actively

CollaborationAbsence of threat

Enriched environment

Choice

Adequate time

FeedbackMeaningful content

Facilitator Responsibilities

Providing a Brain Based Environment

• Each participant will develop his or her own Change in Practice Plan after completing the training modules.

• The Change in Practice Plan:– begins with what you already know– details the aspects of literacy assessment and teaching

that you plan to change as a result of the training– lists resources required– specifies how the effects of this change will be

documented and measured

Define it…

• Comprehensive…– broad in scope – covering completely or broadly : inclusive

• Literacy…– the ability to read and write – the ability to use language effectively

A Bit of History…

Karen Erickson, Ph.D.Center for Literacy and Disability Studies, UNC

CARD Summer Institutes

Dr. Karen EricksonCenter for Literacy

Studies UNC-Chapel Hill

FDLRS Technology Coordinatin

gUnit (ATEN)

• Wikispace• Vodcasts• Website links• Connect

SPRINGS Miccosukee

PAEC WESTGATE

Pasco

Think-Write-Share

Important Conclusions of Literacy Research…

• The process of learning to read and write is a continuum that begins at birth and perhaps before

• Emergent literacy behaviors are fleeting and variable depending on text, task, and environment

Literacy in AAC Koppenhaver & Erickson June 24-June 29, 2007

Important Conclusions of Literacy Research…

• Children learn written language through active engagement with their world.

• Reading, writing, speaking (augmented communicating), and listening abilities develop concurrently and are interrelated rather than sequentially developed.

Literacy in AAC Koppenhaver & Erickson June 24-June 29, 2007

Important Conclusions of Literacy Research…

• Technologies, media, and materials can dramatically impact emergent literacy demonstrations.

• The functions of print are as integral to literacy as the forms

• Written language activities and experiences should not be withheld while speech, language, motor, or other skill(s) developing to an arbitrary prerequisite level.

Literacy in AAC Koppenhaver & Erickson June 24-June 29, 2007

Beliefs…

• Literacy is for everyone and has many different forms

• Federal mandates support literacy for everyone

• Several barriers can be overcome concerning literacy instruction for students with severe disabilities

• Literacy skills enhance ones quality of life in many ways.

• Literacy instruction is as important for students with significant disabilities as it is for everyone else

Again, a little history…

• National Early Literacy Panel (NELP)

Two Views…Readiness/Mastery View

•Literacy is learned in a predetermined, sequential manner that is linear, additive, and unitary•Literacy learning is school-based•Literacy learning requires mastery of certain pre-requisite skills•Some children will never learn to read

Current/Emergent View

•Literacy is learned through interaction with and exposure to all aspects of literacy (i.e. listening, speaking, reading, and writing)•Literacy is a process that begins at birth and perhaps before•Literacy abilities/skills develop concurrently and interrelatedly•All children can learn to use print meaningfully

Koppenhaver, Coleman, Kalman, Yoder. The Implications of Emergent Literacy Research for Children With Developmental Disabilities.

Typical Literacy Development

• Emergent Literacy

• Early Conventional Literacy

• Provides a structure for understanding where our students are in literacy development – Helps us identify appropriate goals &

activities

Recognizing what we do with typically developing children to support emergent

literacy development

Conditions of Literacy Learning (Cambourne, 1993, 2003)

• High expectations• Active engagement: Freedom to experiment & in order

to become problem-solvers• Attribute meaning to ALL attempts• Foster rich social interactions – lots of TALK & fun!• Approximations/errors are accepted & celebrated• Loads of models- 24/7 immersion • More knowledgeable other

In Summary...• Consider typical literacy development... emergent

literacy...conventional literacy...

• Support use of communication devices during reading & writing

• Call your student a communicator, a writer & a reader• Give students opportunities to experiment• Celebrate & attribute meaning to attempts• Observe for changes over time: they CAN do it

“Nobody is TOO anything...”

FRAMEWORK

http://www.four-blocks.com/

RESEARCH• Four Blocks Literacy Model

Website: http://www.four-blocks.com/research.htm

• Pat & Dottie’sWebsite: www.wfu.edu/fourblocks

• Children with Disabilities: Reading & Writing the Four-Blocks Way by Karen Erickson & David Koppenhaver

• Four Blocks Literacy Model Website: http://www.four-blocks.com/research.htm

• Pat & Dottie’sWebsite: www.wfu.edu/fourblocks

• Children with Disabilities: Reading & Writing the Four-Blocks Way by Karen Erickson & David Koppenhaver

PHILOSOPHYChildren are different in the way they learn, so

several different approaches are incorporated daily into reading/writing instruction.

Children enter our classes at varying language & literacy levels, so each instructional block is as multi-level as possible.

Children have different personalities/needs, so substantial instructional support is provided to students who struggle and who need challenge.

Children With Disabilities: Reading & Writing the Four

Blocks WayDeveloped by Karen Erickson &

David Koppenhaver

• Implemented at the Center for Literacy & Disability Studies, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill– Students with Communication

Disorders– Students with Moderate – Severe

Cognitive Impairments– Students with Learning Disabilities

Adapting the Four Block Model for Students with Disabilities

• Disability type or label does not provide instructional information

• Consider the areas of significant difference:– Communication– Cognition– Physical abilities– Senses (vision/hearing)– Affect– Attention

Adapting the Four Block Model

for Students with Disabilities• Adapt only in the areas of need.

• Try to develop adaptations that do not

significantly change the objective of the activity.

• Multi-level materials are available in

each block.

• Use assistive technology as a tool

to support students in Four Block activities.

So…let’s go explore our blocks!!

Assumptions / Conditions for Learning

• All learners have a means of communication & interaction.• Teachers hold the expectation that their students can learn.• Learning is supported across environments.• Teachers engage in ongoing reflection and problem solving.• Learners are cognitively engaged and supported in

achieving cognitive clarity.• Learners are presented with instruction that is intrinsically

motivating. • Learners have a personal connection with the curriculum.• Comprehensive instruction is offered every day (repetition

with variety) to help students move beyond skill acquisition to application.