Elementary English – Teaching & Learning

Oral language development is an essential component for the elementary instruction of reading and writing. Demonstrating comprehension of a variety of printed materials is a major component of reading instruction, along with using word analysis strategies and information resources. The teaching of writing provides student growth in learning how to plan, compose, revise, and edit in a variety of forms for a variety of purposes. Students are taught using the various reading programs in the elementary grades, being exposed to the Virginia Standards of Learning daily. The Scott Foresman Reading series is used in the elementary grades. It is a literature-based language arts program designed to foster and to enhance literacy skills. The stories used are unabridged, time-honored favorites organized in six units for each grade level. Skills are drawn directly from the literature and applied in lessons so that learning is authentic and meaningful to the learner. The principals of the Scott Foresman Reading series are:

Children learn best when reading authentic literature.
Children respond best when learning takes place in meaningful context.
Children grow in language development through an integrated curriculum.
Children participate actively as members of the community of readers and writers.
Children benefit from ongoing assessment that guides instruction.

The goal is to develop strong readers, writers, communicators, and thinkers based on these guiding principals. The Standards of Learning are taught while using the Scott Foresman Reading series and leveled books as the students read fiction and nonfiction literature and work on related skills. Best practices for teaching literacy are being incorporated in K-5 schools. It is based on the philosophy that students learn best when there is a balance between listening, speaking, reading and writing. Lessons are taught using a variety of integrated, hands-on activities, which support the English SOL. In the elementary classrooms you will find:

- Teachers emphasizing phonological awareness, phonics, vocabulary, comprehension and fluency.
- Teachers reading aloud to children modeling comprehension strategies, sharing excellent literature and using literary language.
- Students and teachers reading together from big books, poems, songs or stories.
- Teachers guiding students who have similar reading behaviors during small group reading instruction building on the students’ strengths.
- Teachers providing time for independent reading offering students the opportunity to select and enjoy literature that they can read on their own.
- Teachers providing mini-lessons for reading, individual conferences for support and opportunities to reflect on comprehension strategies.
- Teachers demonstrating and modeling thinking as they teach writing skills in whole group settings.
- Teachers and students sharing the pen as they create a piece of writing that becomes a collection of reading materials.
- Teachers providing mini-lessons for writing, individual conferences for support, and opportunities for reflection during writing workshop.
- Students having the opportunity to write independently while writing in journals or in response to literature.
- Teachers providing strategies for spelling and word study.
- Students using technology to publish their literary works.

Assessment informs instruction to meet student needs. Some of the assessment tools used are PALS screening, observation survey, unit tests, reading and writing benchmark tests, and the state assessments. Technology is an important tool in research, assessment, and enhancing student’s learning in all areas.