Promoting Reading to Learn through the English Language Education KLA Curriculum

25 October 2007

English Language Education Section

Curriculum Development Institute

Education Bureau

Foundation of Curriculum Leadership and Management Series (3) Role of the Primary School Curriculum Leader in Promoting Reading Culture across the Curriculum

Objectives of Reading to Learn

• Improve students’ language proficiency• Develop students’ thinking skills• Achieve a quality life through reading for

diverse interests, pleasure and needs• Cultivate an open mind towards different

opinions, ideas, values and cultures• Enrich students’ knowledge and

broaden their understanding of life

Basic Education Curriculum Guide: Building on Strengths (Primary 1 – Secondary 3) (CDC, 2002)

Promoting Reading to Learn through the English Language Education KLA

Implementing the Reading Workshops to develop students’ reading skills

Adopting a cross-curricular approach to curriculum planning

Creating a conducive environment in the school to facilitate learning to read and reading to learn

School-based English Language Curriculum

GE Programme• About 60% of the les

son time

Reading Workshops• About 40% of the lesson

time• Closely linked to the lear

ning and teaching in the GE Programme

Reading Workshops

Laying a good foundation for lifelong learning

• Helping learners develop and practise reading skills through reading ‘real books’

• Reading as a springboard for the development of higher order thinking skills, creativity and other language skills

• Developing in learners positive attitudes towards learning English

• Providing coherent and connected learning experiences for the children

• Providing opportunities for learners to take an active role in learning

• Using real books of a variety of text types• Adopting effective teaching strategies

Variety of Text Types

• Information texts• Narrative texts• Exchanges• Procedural texts• Explanatory texts• Persuasive texts

English Language Curriculum Guide (Primary 1-6), p.17

Reading Workshop

s

Storytelling

Reading Aloud

Shared Reading

Supported

Reading

Independent

Reading

Teaching Strategies for Reading

English Language Curriculum Guide (Primary 1-6), p. A29

Five Teaching Strategies for Reading

Sto

ryte

llin

g

Sh

are

d

Read

ing

Read

ing

A

loud

Su

pp

ort

ed

R

eadin

g

Ind

ep

en

den

t Read

ing

KS1KS1

KS2KS2

Developing Students’ Reading Skills

• Do you expose your students to a variety of text types?

• What do you usually do to help your students understand the meaning of difficult words - ask them to look up the dictionary, explain the meaning to them or guide them to use the clues in the text?

• Apart from locating specific information, what other reading skills should we help students to develop?

• Expose students to a variety of text types

• Guide students to use the pictorial clues and

contextual clues to work out the meaning of

difficult words

• Guide students to identify the main ideas, understand the connection between ideas by identifying the cohesive devices, etc.

• Ask open-ended questions to help students develop critical thinking skills and creativity

Planning the Reading Workshops

Theme: Wonderful Seasons and WeatherGE Programme

• One unit from the coursebook

The Seasons

Reading Workshops

• Three books:

Watching the Weather

Hot Sunny Days

Bird Hotel• One poem

Daisy Chain

English Language Curriculum Guide (Primary 1-6), pp. E12-16

Planning the Reading Workshops

Theme: Wonderful Seasons and Weather

Focus questions:• What is the weather like in different seasons?• What is fun to do in different seasons?• What is safe / dangerous to do?• Is it fun to be by ourselves? Why?• How can we enjoy the change of the seasons?

Wonderful Seasons and Weather

InformationText

InformationText

“Watching the

Weather”Supported

& Independent Reading

“Hot Sunny Days”

SupportedReading

“Daisy Chain”Shared Reading

“Bird Hotel”Supported Reading

“Hot Sunny Days”

SupportedReading

NarrativeText

NarrativeText

Cross-curricular Linkage in Curriculum Planning

• Decide on the themes or topics to establish meaningful cross-curricular links

• Draw up an overall plan of Learning Targets and Objectives, relevant learning activities and schedule of work

• Develop and evaluate the learning, teaching and assessment materials and activities

Organising modules of learning to establish meaningful links among concepts and ideas acquired in different KLAs and to help students construct and apply knowledge in the process

English Language Curriculum Guide (Primary 1-6), p.107

Cross-curricular Learning

Creating a Conducive Environment to Facilitate Learning to Read and Reading to Learn

• Set up a well-equipped library• Provide easy access to reading materials in

different parts of the school, e.g. in classrooms, special rooms, reading corners and student activity rooms

• Encourage students to read a wide range of materials with different subject content and text types

• Display English reading materials (e.g. posters, signs, notices) all around the school

• Arrange book exhibitions

Creating a Conducive Environment to Facilitate Learning to Read and Reading to Learn

• Help students develop the habit of reading by encouraging them to read outside class time, e.g. during morning assembly, recess and after school

• Set up Reading Award Schemes

• Organise Buddy Reading Programmes

• Nurture school reading culture through the role-modelling of teachers and the school head

• Enlist parents’ support in reading programmes, e.g. Story Mums/Dads, Parent-child Reading Scheme

Resources and Support

• English Extensive Reading Grant and the suggested booklists

• Resource packages produced by EDB

• Professional development programmes

• Community resources

Thank you