Building Capacity in Planning for Literacy and Numeracy Instruction
Helping students develop literacy and numeracy competencies
Helping students develop literacy and numeracy competencies
How can you support students with literacy and numeracy skills development? BC educators Stephan Biela and Nikki Lineham discuss considerations and strategies for planning competency-building learning opportunities and share their experiences and challenges with numeracy and literacy instruction. Their instructional examples, strategies, and planning considerations can be applied across learning areas and grade levels.
There are two ways to access the presentation:
Take a moment to read these two definitions from the Ministry of Education. Do you think of them as separate or connected abilities?
Numeracy is the ability to interpret information within a given situation, apply mathematical understanding to solve an identified problem, and to analyze and communicate a solution.
Literacy is the ability to critically analyze and make meaning from diverse texts and to communicate and express oneself in a variety of modes and for a variety of purposes in relevant contexts.
How could literacy and numeracy development look different for different students?
How do literacy and numeracy skills intertwine in your classroom or your school?
Are there any collaborative projects within your classroom or school you’d like to do? What numeracy/literacy components might they include?
In what ways do literacy and numeracy skills relate to the core competencies?
Think of ways your students can communicate understanding and meaning in non-written formats.
How much small group work do you use in your classroom? Are there ways you could do more?
Have a look at some of Peter Liljedahl’s numeracy tasks. Would any work well in your classroom?
What two or three words sum up your approach to working with students?
Nikki Lineham’s site on teaching math, Educating Now
Stephan Biela is usually found teaching senior social studies courses at GW Graham Secondary School in Chilliwack, BC. The highlight of his teaching assignment is helping students engage critically with the powerful and lasting narratives they encounter in Twentieth Century World History. He has worked extensively on Ministry of Education committees over the past two decades, including writing curriculum, developing provincial exams, and heading marking sessions. Currently, Stephan leads the development of the Grade 12 Literacy Assessment while on a partial secondment to the Ministry of Education. He is also actively involved with the British Columbia Social Studies Teachers’ Association, which has a core objective of improving the teaching of social studies through workshops, publications and conferences. Stephan and his wife have raised four children and numerous livestock on their off-grid farmstead in the backcountry of the beautiful Chilliwack River Valley.
Nikki Lineham is a math teacher, math education consultant, co-founder of Educating Now, and a PhD student. Nikki is passionate about making mathematics accessible for all people and strives to support teachers, students and parents in developing numeracy skills. She created Educating Now, an online resource for teachers, as a way to support teachers in learning to use manipulatives, visuals and language to help their students develop deeper math understanding. Nikki completed a postgraduate certificate in ethnomathematics at the University of Hawaii in 2019 and is currently working on her PhD at the University of Victoria focusing on spatial reasoning in math education.
Dean Shareski is an award-winning leader, teacher, speaker, coach and author. He has worked as a classroom teacher, district leader and built community throughout North America. He also has over 12 years of experience in online instructional design and teaching. Dean is a seasoned presenter who brings high energy, humour and isn’t afraid to challenge himself and others with provocative thinking and ideas.
Twitter: @shareski Blog: http://ideasandthoughts.org
This presentation originated as a recorded webinar from February 11, 2021, part of the Ministry of Education’s Teaching Tenaciously: A Webinar Series to Support Educators as They Navigate Through Times of Uncertainty and Change.