information on our educational material
Our learning resources
As part of our aim to make teachers’ lives easier, three types of resources will be available through the website:
- The Smart Word, a bi-monthly eZine containing news, summaries of research and reports, reviews and practical teaching tips.
- Free samples of teaching strategies and resources for immediate download.
- Resources for sale, with a focus on practical, classroom materials. More about these will be posted on the website in January 2007.
Wordsmart Research
Research on literacy
This section contains links to research that underpins the work of Wordsmart consulting and, more specifically, Secondary English Teaching: A Survival Manual (Volumes One and Two).
‘Effective literacy instruction for adolescents’ by Donna E. Alvermann, University of Georgia.
A paper commissioned by the National Reading Conference, Alvermann focuses on ‘the importance of keeping adolscents’ interests and needs foremost in mind when designing literacy instruction at the middle and high school level.’
In her abstract, she continues,
if adolescent literacy instruction is to be effective, [it] must address issues of self-efficacy and student engagement with a variety of texts…in diverse settings. It must also attend to the literacy demands of subject area classes, to struggling readers, to issues of critical literacy, and to participatory instructional approaches that actively engage adolescents in their own reading.
More…
Teaching, speaking, listening and writing by Trudy Wallace, Winifred Stariha and Herbert Walberg Produced by the International Academy of Education (attached to UNESCO),
the authors of this paper have reviewed a wide range of literature in order to come up with advice on effective practices for teaching speaking, listening and writing.
Topics covered include:
- learning time
- variety of lessons
- speaking practice
- speaking skills
- reducing speaking fears
- improving listening skills
- frequent collaboration
- writing skills
- great writers.
More…
Teaching reading by Elizabeth Pang, Angaluki Muaka, Elizabeth Bernhardt and Michael Kamil Produced by the International Academy of Education (attached to UNESCO),
the authors of this paper have reviewed a wide range of literature in order to come up with advice on effective practices for teaching reading.
Topics covered include:
- oral language
- phonological and phonemic awareness
- fluency
- vocabulary
- prior knowledge
- comprehension
- motivation and purpose
- integrated reading and writing
- texts
- assessment
- cultural factors
- practice.
More…
Wordsmart Publication
Secondary English Teaching:
A Survival Manual
“A book that actually makes your life easier.”
Frequently asked questions
Wordsmart Consulting eZine
What is The Smart Word?
A bi-monthly eZine (electronic magazine), The Smart Word is designed to keep English and curriculum literacy teachers up to date with relevant news, research and theory, reviews, and practical teaching tips.
Keeping up to date with everything that’s happening can be time consuming and difficult. The Smart Word (along with this website) aims to do much of the hard work for you and make your life easier.
A free preview edition is available.
Click here if you want to find out more.
Free resource – For any subject
Making assignment expectations clear to students
Before starting work on any assignment, students need to be able to answer the questions below. These assume that the assignment is meant for a real life or life-like audience – that is, while students might be writing a report of an experiment for a teacher to mark, they are actually writing it as if it was for fellow scientists.
Click here if you want to find out more.
General
Getting to Know You Activities
The following two activities are great for the first few days with a new class. They assist the teacher to learn more about her students, and for students to learn more about each other. More importantly, they help to establish a positive, supportive environment in the class.
Click here if you want to find out more.
Free resource – Creative writing
Helping students generate ideas
Are your students having trouble coming up with good ideas for stories? Try out this activity. The bolded verbs indicate what students should do.
Click here if you want to find out more.
Reading
Reading Pedagogy, Three Level Guide & Thirty six books to read before finishing school
Three Reading modules to explore and download.
Click here if you want to find out more.
Writing
Literary Language for short story writing & Proofreading checklist and worksheet
Two Writing modules to explore and download.
Click here if you want to find out more.
Resources
Make your life easier and take advantage of wordsmart consulting’s professional, practical teaching and learning resources for English and curriculum literacy.
The Smart Word
Subscribe now to The Smart Word, our independent bi-monthly eZine for anyone interested in English and curriculum literacy.
Links
The internet is a vast library of information and ideas for English and curriculum literacy teachers. To help you use it more efficiently and effectively, wordsmart consulting will review sites on a continuing basis and add them to this page.
Articles
Critical Literacy, fairness and hope?’ (November 2005)
Discover what makes Critical Literacy worth fighting for, why it strengthens teaching of Standard Australian English and much more.