Identify 3 good examples of literacy work from people on your table
17 June 2010
Delegates were asked to write down 3 good examples of literacy work done with young people from people on their table. Below are some of the best suggestions from the day:
Method and skills
Name of project / What’s good about it / Contact for more informationFamily Intervention Project / Offers intensive support for families / Nikki Bradley ()
Fresh Start Phonetics / Scheme of work – progressive learning. Very good results! / Natalie Moreland () or Sarah Taylor ()
Unitas TextNow (on the Unitas website) / Based on mentor working on reading with young person daily for 20 mins for 10-12 weeks.
1.Evidence that programme improves young people’s reading ages significantly.
2.Very flexible.
3.Evidence that young people’s enjoyment of reading increases. / Martin Stephenson, Director (via Unitas website)
Shannon Trust Prisoner Mentor Scheme / Prisoners who can read teach those who struggle to read via peer mentoring. Plus there’s a specific Young Offenders Institution project linking those in custody to the community. / Susie O’Hagan ()
Southwark Book Award / Links Year 7 and 6 – transition project. Involves voting for 6 books they’ve all read. / Laura Taylor ()
Romsey Community Radio / Jane Connor-Winter ()
Photography/Front Page – The Photographer’s Gallery / Response to photographic exclusion involving The Photographer’s Gallery, The Guardian newspaper and a local primary school. Pupils produced a front page story from their photographs. / Brenda Valdes ()
Reading Challenge (adapted and including Reading Buddies) /
- Empowering for the challenge tutor and tutees.
- Builds self-esteem.
- Involves staff across the school.
- Training provided.
Phonics (Primary) /
- Rigorous focus on phonics, letters and sounds (meaningful, real contents).
- A focus on ‘playing’ with sounds.
Reading Connects /
- Develops enthusiasm for reading.
- Involves both primary and secondary schools.
- Cross-phase reading:
- Transition using the same text.
Inspire Rotherham (Rotherham Metropolitan Borough Council). One of many activities is ‘Reading Agents’, run by the library service. / Each school selects their reluctant readers and asks if they would like to be an agent within the school. They research within school what’s good to read, where to read, where’s good to speak and listen etc. They are then provided with a small budget to buy resources for the school, bringing in problem-solving and negotiation skills which allow the children to be stakeholders in their own school environment. / Helen Ramsay ()
Using Freshstart Synthetic Phonics with Year 7 groups with low reading ability. / Pupils love it and see real progress. Can map it with the national curriculum so still cover the basics. / Felicity Fagan ()
That Reading Thing / One-to-one, goes at students’ pace and uses ‘real’ text. / Sarah Warburton ()
The book that’s designed for those with not literacy. / Coaching students on sounds of the alphabet. If more than 3 mistakes are made they go back to the first page. / Hava Watkin ()
The Kipper Project / Using performing arts as a springboard to access literacy in different forms. / Anoushka Constantinescu ()
Parental Engagement Scheme (department within the borough). / Curriculum workshops for parents. Train with children and children transfer skills to school. Supported by parents, visits and trips. / Maureen Lajolie ()
Community Policing/Corner House Youth Project / PSHE-focused social issues, discussions and role-play. / Debbie Jones ()
WikiWar / Using a chat room or ‘WikiWar’ to ‘war’ over text/poem/article/image - argue via instant messaging. Using technology to engage, opportunity to ‘argue’, ‘war’ and motivate. / Unknown
My Town / Creative way of using photography with children ending with gallery and text relating to photos. / Unknown
Engagement / Using Year 10/11 students on work-related/engagement programmes to buddy read with Year 7/8 students in ‘nurture’ groups. / Unknown
Read, Write Inc. / Invite parents in to school to see demonstration of work and learn sounds for themselves if they have low literacy levels. Supports children’s learning from home, develops parents’ literacy (covertly). / Sarah Taylor ()
Write to Freedom / Writing project on personal and professional development of young offenders. Eligible candidates can take part in a writing weekend on Dartmoor after their release. / Marcel Celtel ()
BigBoy2 Project / Young offenders with children or younger siblings choose a book to read and send home. Library activity – they read and record story and make presentation box to send home with card. / Karin Crane ()
Elements of the Ruth Miskin approach (phonic sounds) built into activities that are accessible to students with moderate learning difficulties. / Personalised approach; flexible; can be built into other aspects of the national curriculum. /
We use comedy and theatre games to explore the use of language to express your unique humour. / Creative approach; non-directive form of learning; develops presentation skills and confidence. / Erica Sosna ()
ThatReadingThing / The young person will learn something they didn’t already know in the first 20 mins of the first session. ThatReadingThing is fast! / Tricia Millar ()
Doorstep libraries using trained volunteers. / Engagement with hard to reach young people, breaks down barriers. / Christine Heald ()
Organisations and partnerships
Name of project / What’s good about it / Contact for more informationEngaging hard to reach families. /
- Mobile library, locations flexible/relevant.
- Mixture of parent enthusiasts and less keen parents in target group.
- Focus on making reading activities relevant in everyday life, e.g. books for the bus stop.
Daily intervention on phonics / 3 strikes and out – return back to synthetic phonetics. / Unknown
RSA Academy, Director of Partnerships / Their role sees them seeking out partnerships with organisations which further enhance the learning of the students. / Unknown
The Regeneration Trust / As a faith-based organisation we often find a desire of people from within local communities who want to serve, looking for a mean through which to offer useful help to others. Perhaps it’s worth schools addressing them as it could help with accessing more people. / Leanne Baguley ()
School Literacy Partnership /
- Interaction – private schools and comprehensive schools.
- Buddying
- Literacy – reading and writing.