Literacy Center
Literacy
Center is the fifth
literacy website I would like to explore. The Literacy Center is an open and
free network where parents and teachers can find professionally designed
educational material to share with preschool-age children. The Literacy Center
was originally designed with a U.S. Department of Education Small Business
Innovation Research contract, but then became a 501 organization in 2004. They
have since served more than 150 million free online games and printable
activities to children in 220 countries.
Literacy Center’s mission is to
design inspiring and engaging learning activities for preschool-age children.
Through the learning activities, Literacy Center encourages playful learning of
home languages and English. Their goal is to empower parents and teachers of
Dual Language Learners (DLLs) and English Language Learners (ELLs) with free
education games, activities, and learning tools.
Literacy Center’s website contains
many tabs, such as Play and Learn, Print and Practice, Parents and Teachers,
and Resources. The Play and Learn tab contains games that are designed to
support young children as they learn basic kills. The games offered start off
easy and then progressively difficult. The Print and Practice tab provides
hands-on activities for coloring and writing that helps develop fine motor
skills and will eventually lead to mastery of the language. The printable
activities allow teachers and parents to assist the child in recognizing
letters, numbers and shapes more rapidly. The next tab, Parents and Teachers,
explains 3 components that is crucial to learning- (1) Play, (2) Practice and
(3) Make. Literacy Center explains how making learning fun is important for
learning to take place. Practice makes perfect. Parents and teachers must allow
students the opportunity to practice and learn the content. Let them explore
all there is to learn about the language and content. Lastly, parents and
teachers must allow students to put what they’ve learned to use. They must
allow students to do hands-on activities to actively demonstrate what they’ve
learned.
Guam’s classrooms are filled with
various nationalities, from Chuukese to Chamorro, to Filipino to Palauan. I’ve
learned to expect a classroom filled with students who are English Language
Learners (ELL), because of all the different nationalities on Guam.
During my first year of teaching, it
was difficult for me to understand or know what to expect and do with my
students who were English Language Learners. I had a difficult time
communicating with my students and parents, let alone teaching them the
different content areas. The language barrier was hard to overcome, but with
help from peer teachers and great leaders, I’ve overcame the barrier. I spoke
to various teachers, counselors and administration on effective ways to
communicate and educate my students.
As a teacher, I am constantly faced
with challenges in the classroom that I must overcome. The language barrier is
one of those challenges. I’ve learned to make a personal connection with my
students. Instill that learning is fun and enjoyable and that they can all
learn if they try. I’ve learned to allow them time to practice. They won’t get
it the first time they try, but they will eventually, and I must allow them
that ample time. I’ve learned to give them hands-on activities that will help
them implement what they’ve learned and apply it to their lives. I know I still
have much to learn about being a teacher, but I am determined to always try my
best, even if it’ll take time and hard work. My students deserve the best from
me- and not even a language barrier will stop me.
Information Source: http://www.literacycenter.net/
Thank you for your review on Literacy Center. I too struggle with the language barrier in my classroom so it was great to read your reflection and visit the website for some tips on strategies I can use in the classroom.
ReplyDelete