Category: Forth Valley, West Lothian Regional Collaborative

Literacy and Digital Tools Professional Learning Resources Now Available

Falkirk Literacy Team colleagues and Kerry Abercrombie, DigiLearn Falkirk Support Officer have been co-delivering professional learning about digital tools which support learners’ literacy skills since 2020. We responded to teachers’ requests for guidance on which digital tools might help remove literacy and/or curriculum barriers for their pupils. The training sessions shared digital tools which we felt could be vital to the learning of some children and young people but also valuable to all (helping to close gaps and improve equity). These training sessions have been very well attended and  evaluated by teachers, early years officers and senior leaders across our Forth Valley & West Lothian Regional Improvement Collaborative (FVWLRIC).

We are delighted to share Kerry’s one-stop-shop link (click on the picture above) and QR code below which leads to the support pages where she has collated the materials from each session . The landing page enables you to learn about digital tools for reading, writing, creating, presenting or for learners with English as an Additional Language.

Each page includes:

  • The Powerpoint slides from the session
  • A recording of the session
  • A description of the digital tools and how they support learners’ literacy
  • Demonstration videos
  • Ideas and suggestions for ways in which the tools can support literacy learning

 

 

Coming soon to our FVWL RIC – Alex Quigley talks Literacy

We are delighted to have Alex Quigley, a renowned literacy specialist, contributor to Educational Endowment Foundation (EEF) research and publications and author of several best-selling books (including Closing the Reading Gap and Closing the Vocabulary Gap) join us for three sessions in May and June. During these sessions Alex will share insights and evidence-informed approaches that teachers can employ in their practice. There will be a follow-up session on 15th June for attendees to discuss what they have taken from the sessions, as well as a platform to discuss how the RIC can best support you going into the 2022-2023 school year.

 Closing the Reading Gap with Alex Quigley

11th of May at 4pm – Alex explores the brilliantly complex act of reading in this session. He tackles practical issues, such as developing reading fluency, and how to support pupils to become strategic and knowledgeable readers. The session draws upon Alex’s best-selling book for teachers, and is research-informed but also packed with practical strategies every teacher can apply in the classroom.

Sign up via CPD Manager – course ID: 78388

Literacy across Learning with Alex Quigley

25th of May at 4pm – During this one-hour session Alex draws upon his classroom practice and a wealth of research evidence to explore the challenges pupils face when it comes to literacy in the classroom. In this session, he explores the importance of ‘disciplinary literacy’, focusing on how pupils develop as readers and writers across the curriculum. The session includes practical strategies to develop reading, writing and vocabulary approaches that unlock the curriculum for students and help ensure their success.

Sign up via CPD Manager – course ID: 78133

*This session is also part of the Forth Valley and West Lothian Regional Improvement Collaborative’s Futureproofing Pedagogy Series, which runs every Wednesday from 4pm from 26th April until 1st June.

Closing the Vocabulary Gap with Alex Quigley

7th of June at 4pm – Alex explores the phenomenon of the ‘vocabulary gap’ and its crucial impact on learning in the classroom. In this session, he explores how teachers can support vocabulary through rich academic talk, alongside applying vocabulary approaches to ensure pupils read and write with success. Alex holds a mirror up to word-rich classrooms and offers practical strategies that you can apply in your own classroom context.

Sign up via CPD Manager – course ID: 78389

Closing the Literacy Gap

15th of June at 4pm – This session is an opportunity for practitioners who attended Alex Quigley’s sessions to meet up and discuss the key messages covered in the sessions, as well as sharing ideas on what type of support they would like from the Forth Valley and West Lothian Regional Improvement Collaborative in the 2022-23 school year.

Sign up via CPD Manager – course ID: 78697

Literacy Remote Teaching Support Source Summary – January 2021

Falkirk Children’s Services Literacy Team would like to wish all colleagues a Happy New Year and heart-felt good wishes for 2021. This succinct post collates sources of support for remote literacy teaching and learning from local, regional collaborative and national sources. Please contact us using the email details at the end of this post for further support or to share other valuable sources with Falkirk colleagues.

Falkirk Children’s Services:

This blog is the main source of Falkirk literacy news and support – we use it alongside the Children’s Services Comminucations which are regularly emailed to all settings.

Click here to visit our Literacy Glow group and here to visit the Service Support & Improvement Hub where key literacy policies and documents (such as our Literacy and English Progression Pathways) are available to all Falkirk Glow users. Click here to see our Jack and the Beanstalk storyline Family Learning Pack and here for our Dream Holiday storyline Family Learning Pack. Both of these packs were designed to ease the practicalities and challenges of remote learning for all and to bring some fun and togetherness into family learning.

New Family Learning packs are planned and we will make these available asap.

Our December update has a resume of all upcoming professional learning opportunities for literacy – find it here.

Forth Valley and West Lothian Regional Collaborative:

FVWLRIC Blog – Literacy pages – click here

Wakelet of useful sources of support created by Dr Janet Adam – literacy lead officer – click here.

Education Scotland – National Remote Learning support one stop page for all teaching support click here – specific literacy support:

Literacy and English Scotland Learns page for practitioners (all levels) – click here

Literacy and English Scotland Learns page for parents/carers – click here 

This list of useful sources is linked to each of the literacy organisers and was created by Julie Jamieson, development officer for literacy and English Education Scotland.

Click here to visit the wakelet which was shared with the National LIteracy Network by Angela Noble who has responsibility for literacy in North Ayrshire. Angela collaborated with Lindsay Littleson, author of The Titanic Detective Agency to create a unit of work which fits well with remote/family learning and links well with social study of the Titanic and society/the world at that time.

Your Falkirk Literacy Team –

Carol Turnbull, Team Manager, carol.turnbull@falkirk.gov.uk

Yvonne Manning, Principal Librarian, yvonne.manning@falkirk.gov.uk

Yvonne McBlain, Education Support Officer, yvonne.mcblain@falkirk.gov.uk

Louise Amos and Judith Davies, Support Teachers for Specific Learning Differences louise.amos@falkirk.gov.uk judith.davies@falkirk.gov.uk

Literacy Support for Falkirk Practitioners Professional Learning During COVID 19

This post collates sources of professional learning for Literacy and English and was compiled by Yvonne McBlain, curriculum support officer with central team colleagues from Falkirk Children’s services. We hope these offer valuable support in these challenging times, but please email yvonne.mcblain@falkirk.gov.uk with comments or additional ideas.

This blog is our main Falkirk source of information about literacy and English in our establishments – you can browse examples of Falkirk practice as well as local and national updates. Our Falkirk Literacy and English Glow group  (login required) also stores hundreds of documents and ideas which we can’t share on this public platform.

Click on the text/images below to browse each site.

Education Scotland colleagues have collated a  links to online sources of materials for literacy in their Professional Learning Wakelet

These include sources such as BBC Bitesize, Scottish Booktrust, Education Scotland sites, etc.

This is a quick link to the early years Wakelet

This one takes you to the primary Wakelet

Secondary 1-S3 BGE is here and Senior Phase is available by clicking this link.

Our Forth Valley & West Lothian Regional Collaborative Literacy group have also created a blog which is full of sources and materials to extend professional knowledge and support the adaptations to practice currently required of us. These materials were designed to support all practitioners – whether teaching from home, or working in our hubs.

Yvonne Manning, principal librarian, Falkirk Children’s Services and her wonderful team have moved our Library Resource Service to its new home at our Bothkennar Hub. Click here to visit the Learning Resource Service blog and stay updated on developments including Borrowbox, reading for enjoyment and developing a reading culture.

Louise Amos and Jude Davies, Support Teachers for Specific Learning Differences can be contacted louise.amos@falkirk.gov.uk & judith.davies@falkirk.gov.uk  and have provided the following documents, materials and links to support your professional learning around specific literacy or language difficulties.

CLPL incorporating the Scottish context –

  • Click here to explore online course materials – An Introduction to Inclusive Education
  • Click here to explore Three Dyslexia online learning modules
  • Click here to explore Education Scotland professional learning

Other useful information, links and resources can be found in the Addressing Dyslexia website here.

 

Ursula Busch and Ann McPhilemy from our English as an Additional Language service has also provided the following links:

  • Click here to visit NALDIC – National subject association for EAL
  • Click here for British Council support and advice
  • This link leads to essential reading: Learning in 2+ languages – Guidance which promotes inclusion of bilingual pupils and identifies good practice in supporting bilingual pupils
  • This link leads to and Education Scotland professional learning tool – Supporting bilingualism and English as an additional language
  • Further links and information have been collated here in this document by Ursula – thanks to colleagues in Stirling and Glasgow Councils for the information shared.

Key Messages about Digital Literacy from the National Literacy Network Meeting – June 2019

James Miller, our FV & WL regional collaborative seconded development officer for Digital Skills presented key information and support at the June 2019 National Literacy Network meeting. The slide above captures facts which show the relevance of digital literacy for our young people as they grow. Key points are bulleted below along with useful links:

  • Experiences and Outcomes specific to Digital Literacy and Computing Science have been present in our Technologies curriculum area from the emergence of Curriculum for Excellence. Internet Safety and Cyber Resilience are sub-organisers/elements within Digital Literacy.
  • Since 2017 developments to Technologies  include a review and re-fresh of E & Os & creation of the Technologies Benchmarks
  • Key Digital Literacy documents include: HGIOS 4, Digital Strategy for Scotland refresh, Cyber Resilience Strategy for Scotland, STEM Strategy and…

  • Enhancing Learning and Teaching Through the Use of Digital Technology 2016 supports effective & appropriate use of technology across the curriculum for practitioners in all settings. It has four objectives/areas of focus: Educator Skills, Curriculum and Assessment, Access to Technology and Leadership. The document defines 40 national actions for these and sets out expectations for schools and local authorities.

James highlighted the variety of texts which are digital: emails, films, games, TV programmes, instructions, text messages, blogs, etc. He explored how literacy and digital literacy skills could be bundled or grouped in relevant ways within the broad general education (BGE),  suggesting that pupils could/should be inspired and encouraged to use digital technology in new ways to develop their literacy AND digital literacy skills i.e. naturally occurring interdisciplinary learning opportunities – see slide below with the success criteria.

Click here to view the extracts from his presentation which offer further advice about linking/progressing literacy across learning with digital literacy, including resource suggestions such as Immersive Reader – a Microsoft OneNote tool – click here – which can support development of reading comprehension, fluency and confidence in readers with English as a first or additional language.

 

News from the National Literacy Network Meeting June 2019

Colleagues from the Education Scotland literacy team shared a range of news and updates at the June 2019 National Literacy Network meeting. These are summarised below with links where further information is available. The whole presentation for this section of the meeting can be accessed by clicking here.

  • As part of “Our Corporate Plan”, Education Scotland colleagues will work in regional teams with practitioners and policy makers to “support the changing system within Scotland”. FV&WL regional collaborative senior advisor will be Jackie Halawi, and our senior education officer for literacy is Helen Fairlie. We will also have access to a named SCEL Lead Specialist from the core Professional Learning and Leadership team.
  • Knightsbridge PS, West Lothian won the Scottish Education Raising Attainment in Literacy Award 2019, Blackwood PS, South Lanarkshire and Greengables Nusery & Family Centre, City of Edinburgh were runners up.
  • Seminars specifically linked to raising attainment in literacy can be seen in the slide below for those attending the Scottish Learning Festival in September 2019.

  • The Scottish International Storytelling Festival Community programme runs between 2.9.19 & 2.12.19 . Wednesday 27th November is our nation-wide Story Exchange – schools are asked to dedicate the afternoon to sharing oral tales. What local legends and tales might we share across our authority area? Use this link  to find out more about subsidies to fund visits from storytellers, request free resources, and this link to keep the Scottish Storytelling Form informed of what you are up to as part of the festival or Book Week Scotland.
  • SQA revised English Advanced Higher Course Specification – valid from 2019-20 – is available here and Course Support Notes will be added soon.
  • The recommendations of the Scottish Parliament Education and Skills Committee report on SNSA in primary 1 can be found here (Practitioner Forum recommendations) and here (Scottish Government Review 2019).
  • The National Literacy Professional Learning Community is under construction in Glow. Consultation groups have informed revisions ready for the imminent launch of this valuable new site. Hopefully we will soon be able to access the professional learning, research, resource, support and policy documents it will bring together.
  • The National School Libraries Professional Learning Community is also due for launch very soon and will support school librarians and colleagues undertaking library development with their school – from ELC to secondary schools.