1. Creating a Literate
Environment
By: Lisette Vargas
Walden University
Dr. Bernice Gregory
EDUC6706-3: The Beginning Reader PreK-3rd

2. Getting to Know Your
Literacy Learners (P-3)
O In creating a literate environment there are three perspectives to
keep in mind: interactive, critical, and responsive.
O A better purpose for literacy education today would be to look at
implementing instruction with fidelity to making students better, “
readers, writers, thinkers, and speakers,” not teaching specific
program or text with fidelity(Laureate Education, Inc., 2010).
O As a professional teacher, or as I tell my children-a professional
learner, collaboration between families, colleagues, administration
and our community in order to make sure that my students achieve
the highest literacy potential (National Association for the
Education of Young Children, 1998).
O The more you know about your students, the better you will be able
to connect them with texts that can have a profound impact upon
them (Laureate Education, 2010b).
O Everyone has experiences that helped shape how they perceive
themselves as literate beings (Laureate Education, 2010a).
CREATE A SENSE OF ERGENCY FOR LEARNING AND READING!!

3. Getting to Know Your Literacy
Learners (P-3)
O Through non-cognitive assessments, teachers can learn about a
student’s motivations, self-concept, interests, and attitudes
(Afflerbach, 2007).
O
• Some Non-cognitive assessments include:
• Interest Surveys
• Elementary Reading Attitude Surveys or ERAS (McKenna
& Kear, 1990).
• Multiple Intelligence Survey
• Interest Games
• “Me Stew” (Laureate Education, 2010b).
• Student interviews and conferences
• Teacher Observations
• Literacy Autobiographies

4. Getting to Know Your Literacy
Learners (P-3)
O Cognitive assessments focus on the skills and strategies
used by a student as they develop as a reader
(Afflerbach, 2007).
O Some Cognitive assessments include:
• Reading inventories
• Developmental Reading Assessments (DRA)
• NWEA
• Dynamic Indicators of Basic Early Literary Skills tests
(DIBLES) or AIMS Web
• Running Records
• Checklists

5. Selecting Texts
From printed books to digital media, today’s texts come in a variety of
forms, all of which should reside in the literacy classroom (Laureate
Education, 2010c).
The Literary Matrix Linguistic Texts
(word orientated)
O The matrix is intended to help
educators ensure that they
have a balance among the
texts they use in the
classroom (Laureate
Education, 2010c).
Informational Texts
O As an instructional decision
maker, the matrix helps you to Narrative Texts
see the landscape of texts
that you are using in the
classroom … It gives you a “big
picture” that is often times
missed and helps keep goals
ever-present in your mind
(Laureate Education, 2010c).
Semiotic Texts
(picture orientated)

7. Literacy Lesson:
Interactive Perspective
O The primary goal of the Interactive Perspective is to teach children
how to be literate learners who can independently navigate through
the textual world (Laureate Education, 2010d).
O When approaching literacy instruction from the Interactive
Perspective, teachers are to help students become strategic
processors (Laureate Education, 2010d).
O Strategic processing should be threaded through all Five Pillars:
phonemic awareness, phonics, vocabulary, fluency, and comprehension
(Laureate Education, 2010d).

10. Feedback
• What insights did you gain about literacy and
literacy instruction from viewing this
presentation?
• How might the information presented change
your literacy practices and/or your literacy
interactions with students?
• In what ways can I support you in the literacy
development of your students or children?
How might you support me in my work with
students or your children?
• What questions do you have?

11. References
O Afflerbach, P. (2007). Understanding and using reading assessment. Newark,
DE: International Reading Association, Inc.
O Castek, J., Bevans-Mangelson, J., & Goldstone, B. (2006). Reading adventures
online: Five ways to introduce the new literacies of the Internet through
children's literature. Reading Teacher, 59(7), 714-728. doi:10.1598/RT.59.7.12
O Laureate Education, Inc. (Executive Producer). (2010b). Getting To Know Your
Students. [Webcast]. The Beginning Reader, PreK-3. Baltimore: Author
O Laureate Education, Inc. (Executive Producer). (2010a). Literacy
Autobiographies. [Webcast]. The Beginning Reader, PreK-3. Baltimore: Author.
O Laureate Education, Inc. (Executive Producer). (2010c). Analyzing and selecting
texts. [Webcast]. The Beginning Reader, PreK-3. Baltimore: Author.
O Laureate Education, Inc. (Executive Producer). (2010d). Strategic Processing.
[Webcast]. The Beginning Reader, PreK-3. Baltimore: Author.
O Laureate Education Inc., (Executive Producer). (2010e). Critical Perspective
{Webcast}. The beginning reader, PreK-3. Baltimore, MD: Author.
O Laureate Education Inc., (Executive Producer). (2010f). Response Perspective
{Webcast}. The beginning reader, PreK-3. Baltimore, MD: Author.
O Tompkins, G. (2010). Literacy for the 21st century: A balanced approach.
Boston, MA: Pearson Custom Publishing.