Mission: Literacy - salvationarmynj.org · Mission: Literacy Tutors offer plenty of help with...
Transcript of Mission: Literacy - salvationarmynj.org · Mission: Literacy Tutors offer plenty of help with...
Mission: Literacy
A Partnership Between
The Salvation Army’s NJ Division
& The American Bible Society
What is Mission: Literacy?
• It is a multicultural literacy curriculum for struggling readers
• Reading levels range from the beginning reader to about a 3rd grade reading level
A Beginning Reader: Knows the names of the letters of the alphabet Know the sounds of the letters of the alphabet
Can read short words
Who developed Mission: Literacy? • The American Bible Society
(vision, packaging, piloting, funding and a Mission: Manager who works with TSA only)
• The Bank Street College of Education (educational strategy, writing, training for pilot programs, revisions for reprint)
This partnership began about 1996
How did the New Jersey Division become owners of Mission: Literacy?
Copyright License Agreement
October, 2006
American Bible Society granted The Salvation Army’s NJ Division:
Sole ownership for 10 years
Right to print, use & distribute it among other
divisions of TSA across the United States
Royalty-free
Printed inventory was donated
Here are some facts:
35% of Children enter school academically at risk
The skills a child enters school with directly predicts later academic performance
Ø A poor 1st grade reader has a 90% probability of being a poor 4th grade reader
Ø A kindergartner with good alphabet knowledge will likely be a good reader in 10th grade
Words Heard Per Hour
• Children in poverty = 615
• Children in the middle class = 1,251
• Children of professionals = 2,153
By age 3, children from wealthier families typically have heard 30 million more words than children from low-income families.
Vocabulary is Vital
• The average 6 year-old has a vocabulary of about 8,000 words
• A child’s vocabulary in kindergarten and 1st grade is a significant predictor of her reading comprehension in the middle and secondary grades
and more facts:
School achievement vs. family income & social class
Alphabet books in the home:
► 97% of professional parents have alphabet books in the home ► only 53% of public aid parents have alphabet books in the home
Upon entering first grade:
► a middle-class child has 1,000-1,700 hours of one-on-one reading ► while a low-income child has just 25 hours of one-on-one reading
Yet another fact:
Teens who have significant reading problems .......
are 4 times more likely than their peers
to contemplate or attempt suicide
Children of low-income families… Are at risk for:
► Slower cognitive development ► Slower language development ► Poorer academic performance
Due To: ► Poverty ► Low parental education ► Limited English proficiency
Are Less Likely to have parents who: Ø Read to them Ø Help them with homework Ø Participate in school activities
Summer learning loss .....
Low-income children lose a significant amount of reading knowledge over the summer months while
Middle-income children make slight gains
Cumulative effect: By the end of 5th grade, low-income children are about 2½ years behind their more affluent peers - primarily due to summer learning loss
After-School Programs &
Summer Day Camps
Goals of Mission: Literacy
► To significantly increase the % of children able to read at grade level
► To help children discover the joy of reading God’s word
► To break the cycle of illiteracy
► To establish a relationship between a caring tutor and a child
► To have children embrace the conviction that reading is a useful and enjoyable activity
Texts of Mission: Literacy
30 Bible Stories
►30 stories from the Old & New Testaments
►Each story is in a 28-Page, beautifully illustrated & multi-ethnic book
►10 stories based on the life of Jesus
Once your corps has attended a training, This set of 30 story books can be ordered via Dawn Sharp, New Jersey Division – a free gift from the American Bible Society. You would just pay for shipping.
Lesson Plans on Website • User-friendly – you do not have to have an education degree to
understand the lesson plans.
• Gives guidance in how to use: Ø The Lessons Plans included for all 30 bible story texts Ø The Student Written Exercises included for all 30 bible story texts Ø The hands-on learning games, crafts, etc Ø The Alphabet and Phonics pages Ø The Reading Skills Pre and Post Tests
This digital format allows you to easily download lesson plans and activities and to make copies for multiple tutors.
Faithfulness to biblical texts vs. a controlled vocabulary
Challenging Biblical words are included but tutors are encouraged to pronounce them and to offer plenty of help so that the child does not struggle with the Biblical vocabulary – since many of the Biblical words are admittedly beyond the expected skills of even a good reader.
The Contemporary English Version (CEV) of the Bible is used
Supporting readers through Mission: Literacy
► Tutors offer plenty of help with biblical vocabulary
► Tutors pronounce all difficult words for students
► Illustrations are vivid to keep students motivated to continue reading to find out what happens next
► Predictability of text written into the earliest books
► Tutors tailor each reading session to the student’s individual needs
Format for Mission: Literacy
Each tutor works with 1 to 5 children
In 30 minute sessions
At least once a week
In cycles where each child has had a reasonable chance to have
had at least 16 lessons
Measurement of Impact .....
Pre & Post Tests
Sentences to Read in the Curriculum CD
Other informal measures Student Folders
School Report Cards Notes by Tutor, Parents, Teachers, Child
Reporting Timeline Send to your coordinator & to Dawn Sharp who
will report to American Bible Society • At Start: Registration form – send • Pre Test Scores – hold until end of cycle • Keep attendance – include children
even if only have been there for 1 week • Tutor for 16 weeks or 16 sessions over
at least 8 weeks • At End: Post Test Scores & Number of
tutoring sessions actually attended by each child - finish filling in the Sentences to Read Assessment Scores form & send
An Eligible Site Is One That:
• Has the facilities, equipment, resources • Can identify a Program Coordinator • Has a base of staff and/or volunteers • Has active relationships with schools • Can schedule 16+ Week Tutoring
Cycle(s) • Will complete reporting forms • Plans to have ongoing tutoring cycles
Getting Started At A Corps:
► Determine funding sources ► Designate a room ► Identify the most struggling readers
Pre-test children – Group by scores ► Assign 1 tutor per 5 or fewer children
Send registration form to Coordinator & Dawn ► Order Sets of Readers from Dawn ► Train tutors – send Roster to Coordinator & Dawn ► Schedule testing, tutoring & reporting in cycles of
at least 16 Weeks ► Introduce program to parents, teachers & children ► Launch Mission: Literacy
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