Glossary of terms used
in a Balanced Literacy Framework
ACTIVE ENGAGEMENT
Students are actively involved with the teacher and with each other in the lesson that is being taught. They may engage in turn and talk, stop and jot, a quick write or other means of sharing their thinking with the teacher and with each other.
CONFERRING
A strategy used by the teacher to meet with and conference with an individual student to assess that student’s understanding of the learning task and his/or ability to apply the skills or strategies in reading that have been taught. The teacher uses this information to formulate teaching points to model for students as s/he engages in the conference.
CONNECTION
A means of activating, or using students’ prior knowledge or experience, so they can successfully participate in the lesson that is being taught by the teacher.
COMPREHENSION
Refers to the reader’s ability to read and understand the text. The components of comprehension are vocabulary, strategies for reading, and text comprehension.
DAILY 5
A management structure which supports Readers Workshop and other components of balanced literacy.
FLUENCY
The rate or number of words a reader reads per minute, the accuracy of words read, and the expression used by the reader when reading text. Fluency is the ability to read accurately, quickly, expressively, with good phrasing, AND with good comprehension.
GUIDED READING
Teacher-directed instruction for a small group of students who are at the same instructional reading level
GRADUAL RELEASE OF RESPONSIBILITY
The shift that occurs when students acquire the skills and strategies taught by the teacher and are able to transfer these skills and strategies in their own learning independent of teacher instruction or direction. The students take ownership of their learning as the classroom becomes more focused on student-centered learning and less dependent on teacher control of the learning environment.
INDEPENDENT READING
The level at which students can read fluently and comprehend what is read without instruction
INTERACTIVE READ ALOUD
The teacher uses a single text to model fluent reading and comprehension strategies, through techniques such as “think alouds.” Students interact with the teacher and the text though guided questioning and opportunities to share their thinking with the teacher and each other. More than one teaching point may be addressed during the read-aloud session.
“JUST RIGHT” BOOKS
The level of text that a student reads independently
LINK
The connection, or bridge, between the work that students are currently doing and how this work can be applied throughout their learning
MINI-LESSON
Teachers convene students in the classroom meeting area to provide a short, concise lesson (10-15 min) on skills or strategies that proficient readers or writers use. The structure of the mini-lesson includes: A single clear teaching point, Connection, Modeling by the teacher, Active Engagement or Guided Practice and a Link.
PHONEMIC AWARENESS
An understanding about and attention to spoken language. It refers to the ability to recognize and manipulate speech sounds by segmenting (hat: /h/ /a/ /t/) and blending (/p/ /i/ /g/ - pig) and deleting the last sound in a word to make another word (barn – bar).
Phonemic awareness includes the skill of sound isolation, sound identification, categorization, blending, segmentation, deletion, addition and substitution. Phonemic awareness instruction is oral.
PHONICS
Knowing the relationships between printed letters and spoken sounds (Letter/Sound Correspondence) in order to tell which letter makes the initial sound in a word (bat) and which letter makes the final sound in a word (big) – the skills of Decoding (blending sounds to form words) and Encoding (segmenting words into sounds for spelling). Phonics instruction is visual. It must be integrated with other reading instruction to create a balanced reading program.
PHONOLOGICAL AWARENESS
An understanding of spoken words, syllables, and sounds. (Words, Syllables, Rhymes, Onsets and Rimes)
SHARED READING
The teacher shares a single text with students that all students in the class can see and follow along with the teacher. These may include a Big Book, charts, poems and any other reading material that can be shared using the document camera, or multiple copies of the text. Teachers use shared reading to teach concepts of print, word solving strategies, and ways to interpret information and build fluency.
WORD STUDY
Teacher-led instruction with word patterns that is explicit and systematic. Instruction includes phonological awareness, phonics, word and structural analysis (contractions, inflected endings, homophones, syllable types, prefixes, suffixes, and Greek and Latin roots).
Adapted from: Seattle Public Schools: Essentials for Quality Instruction in Literacy