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Devon Clarke Literacy

Background Knowledge: An Essential Contributor to Reading Comprehension Part I

In the revised Grades 1 – 8 Language curriculum (2023), specific expectation C1.1, Using Foundational Knowledge and Skills to Comprehend Texts, calls educators to use many of the foundational language skills outlined in Strand B to support students in developing their ability to decode and comprehend texts. The knowledge and skills listed in specific expectation C1.1 includes using knowledge of words, grammar, cohesive ties, sentence structure, and background knowledge to comprehend texts. The only difference between expectations from grade to grade is the level of text complexity that educators should use with students.

In a previous post, I shared that this fall I’ll be returning to the classroom, assigned to teach students in grade 8 Language, History, and Geography. As I prepare for my return to the classroom, I’ve been reviewing the revised Language curriculum and thinking about the instructional strategies and texts that I’ll use to support my program. While reviewing the revised Language curriculum in general and carefully re-reading specific expectation C1.1, I began thinking about how I will support students in building their background knowledge so they can better comprehend the texts they read and the texts that I’ll use to further support their reading development. To guide my thinking, I asked myself four questions: What is background knowledge? Why is it important? How do I help students gain the background knowledge they need to comprehend the texts that I use to teach? How does background knowledge differ from prior knowledge?

In this and my next post, I’ll share what I’ve learned in response to the questions above. In this post, I’ll provide a definition of background knowledge and explain how it differs from prior knowledge. I’ll then offer evidence to inform why we as educators must work to help students develop the background knowledge they need to comprehend the texts we teach.

In the article, The Role of Background Knowledge in Reading Comprehension: A Critical Review, researchers Reid Smith, Pamela Snow, Tanya Serry, and Lorraine Hammond define background knowledge as all the world knowledge that the reader brings to the task of reading. This can include knowledge of events, facts, how-to do something, and vocabulary. This translates to mean that all readers need some level of background knowledge to support their comprehension of the texts they read.

In the book, Shifting the Balance: 6 Ways to Bring the Science of Reading into the Upper Elementary Classroom, authors Katie Cunningham, Jan Burkins and Kari Yates provide insight to the difference between background knowledge and prior knowledge. In the first chapter of their book, they share a similar definition of background knowledge as the one provided above, they then define prior knowledge as all the knowledge a student has accumulated over their lifetime and can be applied in any situation. They further go on to say that students build prior knowledge through personal, educational, and cultural experiences and that if students can apply their prior knowledge when reading a text, it then becomes background knowledge because it improves their reading comprehension.

From reading these and other books and research articles on background knowledge I now understand that part of an educators’ role is to help students develop the background knowledge they need to understand the texts educators use to teach because research has consistently found that higher levels of background knowledge enable children to better comprehend texts. In the Smith, Snow, Serry and Hammond article they write, “Readers who have strong knowledge of a particular topic, both in terms of quantity and quality of knowledge, are more able to comprehend a text […] This was evident for both skilled and low skilled readers”. Further, when students learn new vocabulary and information because of reading one text, it further expands the background knowledge they need to read other texts.

The insight I now have, and I believe to be worth sharing with other educators is that whether students are skilled or low-skilled readers all students positively benefit from receiving explicit instructions that helps them develop their background knowledge so they can engage with and make meaning when reading a variety of texts. In my next post, I’ll build on the idea of how to provide explicit instruction that supports students in building their background knowledge by sharing some resources and strategies I plan to use in the fall.

Sharon Ethier General

Teaching Magic

Growing up, I’d seen a lot of fun television shows about teaching.  At the risk of dating myself, there were some truly iconic shows in the 1970s and 1980s, such as  “Welcome Back, Kotter” and “Head of the Class”.  I watched them with my brothers, laughing together and loving the characters.  These shows made teaching seem fun and magical and even tough moments always wrapped up in a way that made sense. I knew that I wanted to be in those classrooms when I grew up to become a teacher. 

Back then, I did not yet know about tv magic – the amount of time, people, and unlimited energy it takes to create 22 minutes of seemingly easy fun. I didn’t necessarily connect this with my own classroom experiences which did not look so easy.  Even as a student watching my teachers, I could see how hard they were working. I knew that class conflicts existed amongst students, that life in schools wasn’t always perfect and easy and definitely did not include a well timed laugh track.  And yet, I still believed that schools could be beautiful places. 

And they can be.  Schools can be beautiful and magical places filled with fun and laughter – but it takes so much more than what we saw happening on a short sitcom. Just like in television, there are so many people who help to create those spaces where the magic happens.  From the classroom teacher to the designated early childhood educator to learning resource teachers to the educational assistants; it’s a whole cast of caring individuals who advocate for students daily.  It’s an entire team of educators who are working behind the scenes to try and make those 22 or 45 or 100 minutes of learning seem easy and magical. 

Sometimes the classroom laugh track is loud and fun and memorable, like when the classroom community comes together and students feel loved and experience joy.  Maybe it’s a funny joke someone shares or maybe it’s a moment where students see themselves and who they have the potential to be.  It’s also when we’ve worked hard on a concept, gone through a lot of emotions and tough learning before things finally start to make sense. 

It can happen during moments in the staffroom, too. It’s those moments at break time sharing treats or chatting about our lives when staff build a community of educators with one another. It’s truly special when colleagues lean on each other for support or rally around one another when sharing in celebrations. Though not always visible to students, that work is still meaningful to humanize one another as educators, push each other as learners, and build a staff that is a family. 

Creating this ‘magic’ isn’t easy. In fact, it’s a lot of consistent work and relationship building and intentionally making time for these important moments we can experience together.  Sometimes it’s making mistakes and forgiving them; other times it’s organically beautiful and just comes together with ease. While I now know about ‘tv magic’, I think about it differently these days.  Instead of framing those sitcoms as irrelevant because they’re fictional and fabricated, I see them as beautiful and idealistic.  Imagine a team of people who come together to bring a little joy, create some positive experiences, and help others learn about the world along the way.  It doesn’t sound so far off from what schools are, after all.

Preeti Deokharan General

Letting Go of “I Might Need It One Day”

As teachers, we are natural collectors. We save things “just in case”. A lesson plan, a folder of half-used stickers, a set of bent booklets, because we might need them one day. I recently found myself doing just that. While switching grades, I decided it was time to declutter my classroom. I filled six whole boxes for donation and felt proud of my progress. But then I looked around and realized… I still had six boxes of stuff I couldn’t part with. I told myself I’d go through them again at home, that I would definitely use some of it “one day.”

But when I got home, those six boxes went straight to the basement. And they stayed there. For months. Untouched. Collecting dust.

Then, life stepped in with a not-so-subtle lesson: a water leak. Yep, right where those boxes were stacked. Some things were ruined, others were salvageable, but honestly? The real surprise was how relieved I felt to finally let it all go. What I realized in that soggy, musty moment was that  I did not need to save all that stuff. I wasn’t using it. I wasn’t going to use it. And I definitely didn’t miss it.

The “I might need it one day” mindset comes from a good place. We save things because we want to be ready for the unexpected grade change, student, the last-minute lesson, the what-if moment. But if we’re keeping everything, we’re often using very little of it well. Clutter makes it harder to find what we do need. 

Now, when I pick something up and think, “I might need this,” I ask myself, Have I used it in the last year? Would I even notice if it disappeared? Is this helping my students today? If not, I let it go. However, decluttering doesn’t have to be an all-or-nothing job. Start with one drawer. Set a timer for fifteen minutes. Sort things into three piles: keep, donate, recycle. Be honest with yourself. If you forgot you had it, you probably don’t need it. Digitize what you can, let go of the guilt, and celebrate the space you reclaim.

Letting go of the “just in case” isn’t easy, but it’s freeing. So next time you’re tempted to keep something “just in case,” remember this, you are not throwing away your creativity or your effort.
You are choosing to carry less, so you can focus more on what truly supports your teaching today.

And if a box or two does make it home… maybe don’t store it near any pipes. 

Geeta Kumar General, Professional Judgement

No Perfect Resource!

There is NO PERFECT RESOURCE!

I repeat… THERE IS NO PERFECT RESOURCE!

In 2025, we are fortunate to have an incredible wealth of resources at our fingertips – from programs to books to digital tools! We are constantly looking for better resources, especially as the science of learning and the research behind teaching improves. 

However, something that I’ve come to learn quickly, is that every resource will have its limitations. No program, book, worksheet will meet the needs of every learner in your classroom. Teaching is too complex –  and our students are so wonderfully diverse – for any one-size-fits all approach to truly work.

This is where professional judgement comes in. As educators, it’s up to us to make the best decisions for the students in front of us – to adapt, scaffold and differentiate with intention and care.

When I engage in backwards design planning and explore new resources, I often find myself:

  • Adjusting a lesson to reflect students identities and lived experiences
  • Amplifying tasks to better support multilingual learners or neurodivergent students
  • Adding scaffolds or removing unnecessary barriers
  • And learning to  let go of something entirely, especially if it was previously considered appropriate (this can be hard!)

A good resource is just the starting point… how you choose to bring it into the classroom – keeping in mind your students, class culture and equity habits of mind – that is what makes it meaningful. 

Curious about Professional Judgement? The ETFO docuseries on Professional Judgement highlights the critical role of educators’ expertise in decision-making.

Devon Clarke General

The Importance of Teaching Students to Develop their Critical Consciousness: Part II

In my previous post, I shared a definition of critical consciousness, along with insights on how it is similar and different from critical thinking skills. I also shared why I think providing meaningful opportunities for students to develop their critical consciousness is important. In this post, I’ll provide an example of how I supported students in exercising their critical consciousness while also helping them to develop their writing skills.

Years ago, while living overseas, I worked as an English foreign language teacher. During that time, I recall working with a diverse group of adolescent students who helped me to understand the importance of providing meaningful opportunities for students to exercise their critical consciousness. While working with this group of students, I routinely began classes with what I called, chats and check-ins. Our chats and check-ins involved engaging students in conversations about how they spent the previous evening, their plans for the week, or current events. This served multiple functions. Some of them included establishing and nurturing relationships with and between students; helping me gain an understanding of student interests, experiences, cultures, and identities so I could create a program that supported their learning needs; nurturing a community of care, and providing meaningful opportunities for them to practice their oral communication skills.

During one of our morning chats and check-ins, some students began complaining about the school facilities which sparked a whole class discussion. Students complained that the WIFI and other computer technology rarely worked, the textbooks we used were dated, the facilities appeared old and shabby, the washrooms were unclean, and the list went on. Listening to their concerns I empathized with them because their concerns were valid. I also knew that many staff members shared similar complaints. I recall one student questioning how he and others were expected to learn within an environment that lacked essential resources or be expected to academically perform within such an uninviting physical space?

Recognizing the validity of their critiques and wanting to support them in exercising their agency, I suggested they write a formal letter of complaint to the school administration. I explained to them that within communities, formal letters of complaint to political leaders had the potential to effect change due to concerned citizens taking the time and effort to draw attention to a community issue and demanding the issue be resolved. I also explained that identifying or complaining about the issue is not enough; they needed to identify what they want to see changed and recommend solutions. I concluded by saying, if they wanted to write a letter of complaint to our school administration, they needed to identify the issues, explain why the issues are concerning then request what they want to see changed and offer possible solutions.

They liked the suggestion. Then for the next week we spent most of our class time drafting, revising, and editing their letters of complaint. To support students, I helped them to define the success criteria, modeled the letter writing process and format, and provided both oral and written constructive feedback at all stages of their writing process. When all students had completed their letters, I delivered them to the school administration.

Weeks later, one of the school administrators visited the class to thank the students for their letters and further discuss their concerns. At the end of the conversation, she committed to working with the school administration team to rectify the issues. In the proceeding months improvements were made to the school. The WIFI worked more consistently, new and updated textbooks were added to the school, and the washrooms were regularly cleaned.

In one of our morning chats and check-ins following these events, we had a discussion where students shared that they were both happy and surprised to see that their complaints were taken seriously and that their letters worked to effect change.

From the experience, I came to better understand that adolescent students are often engaged in serious thinking about their lives, communities, and the spaces where they live and learn. They are also thinking critically about the inequities and injustices present within their lives and communities. The experience also taught me that students need support in understanding that the inequities and injustice they witness and experience need not be tolerated because they possess a critical consciousness that can aid them in effecting change. I see my role as teacher and the role of other teachers is to help student develop their critical consciousness so they not only think critically about the status quo but understanding they can change it through intentional actions.

Devon Clarke agency, General

The Importance of Teaching Students to Develop their Critical Consciousness: Part I

This is the first of two posts where I’ll share insights related to helping students develop their critical consciousness. In this post, I’ll begin by providing some background information regarding how this topic emerged. I’ll then provide a definition of critical consciousness to ensure readers are familiar with the term, followed by some thoughts on how it is in some ways like critical thinking skills and in others different. I’ll conclude with a brief explanation of why I think students need to receive meaningful opportunities to practice developing their critical consciousness in schools.

At the start of the 2024/2025 school year, members of the central literacy team and I surveyed educators working with students in grades 4 and 5 on the type of professional learning they wanted to receive to support them in actioning the revised Language curriculum (Language curriculum). We chose to survey educators working with students in Grades 4 and 5 for one primary reason; due to a lack of human and financial resources available during the 2023/2024 school year, we recognized that educators working with these student populations received the least amount of professional learning from the central literacy team.

Wanting to ensure the professional learning offered best met educator needs, we conducted a brief survey to gain some insight to inform our planning. The survey included questions related to clarifying curriculum expectations, re-thinking assessment and evaluation practices, identifying and utilizing evidence-based instructional approaches, and support needed to apply culturally relevant pedagogical approaches to practice.

While reviewing the survey data, my colleagues and I found that over half of the educators indicated that they needed support in understanding how to apply culturally relevant pedagogical approaches to their practice. To be specific, educators indicated that they wanted support with understanding how to help students develop their critical consciousness.

As a quick reminder, culturally relevant pedagogy includes three big ideas. 1. Hold high academic expectations for students then put scaffolds in place to support them in meeting those expectations. 2. Encourage students to utilize and develop their cultural competence to engage and support their learning. 3. Support students in developing their critical consciousness. Gloria Ladson-Billings, the researcher who coined the term culturally relevant pedagogy in the 1990’s, defines critical consciousness in her article, But That’s Just Good Teaching! The Case for Culturally Relevant Pedagogy as helping students develop a broader sociopolitical consciousness that allows them to critique the cultural norms, values, moral attitudes, and institutions that produce and maintain social inequities. The other essential insight that is missing from Ladson-Billings definition yet captured in her work is that when students develop their critical consciousness, they come to realize that they can enter their reality to change it for themselves and others. Meaning they understand that they have the capacity to be agents of change, and they practice exercising that capacity in their daily lives.

In the glossary of the Language curriculum, critical thinking is defined as the process of thinking about ideas or situations to understand them fully, identify their implications, make a judgement, and/or guide decision making. Critical thinking includes skills such as questioning, predicting, analyzing, synthesizing, examining opinions, identifying values and issues, detecting bias, and distinguishing between alternatives.

When reading Ladson-Billings’ definition of critical consciousness in relation to the definition of critical thinking found in the glossary of the Language curriculum, I see some clear similarities. First, I recognize that they both call students to critique or strive to understand norms, values, and human issues. Second, they both include analysis and synthesis of concepts, information, and ideas.

Where they differ is that critical thinking alone may or may not lead to action whereas, understanding the importance of action and engaging in actions that effect change is an integral part of critical consciousness. Also, critical consciousness is very much connected to thinking about social justice issues that may or may not directly affect students yet are worthy of thought and actions to create more just and equitable local and global communities.

As a classroom teacher, I understand that a central part of my role in creating an effective program for students includes helping them understand how the learning they do in my classes adds value and meaning to their lives beyond the classroom and school. For me this means, supporting students in recognizing their capacity to effect positive change for self and others then providing meaningful opportunities for them to practice their agency by thinking critically about issues affecting their lives then working to nurture or change them.

In my next post, I’ll share an example of how I provided an opportunity for students to practice their critical consciousness along with insights I gained from the experience that may be useful to others.

Geeta Kumar Celebrating Success, wellness

3 Lessons this Year

This school year, I felt a lot. 

It was like bowling. I showed up each day and gave it my all. I aimed for that perfect strike each time. 

As I reflect on my experiences this year, I know not every bowling ball hit its mark. Some days felt like a solid spare. Others? A complete gutterball.

Still, I kept going –  frame by frame, day by day.

As I wrap up this year and reflect on what truly mattered, I’m walking away with three powerful lessons:

 

  1. Boundaries Matter … so I can be sustainable.  

With each year, I am getting better at setting boundaries between work and personal life. It is a practice I will continue to grow with. Setting boundaries allows me to be present for my students and team each day. 

2. Progress Matters … so I can keep being my best for students. 

Some mistakes were made. But the beauty of teaching is that there is always another frame, another day, to try again. Each “miss” forced me to learn how to better reach and support students.

3. The Arts Matters … so I can spark creativity in my students and myself. 

Whether it was planning a themed literacy day, facilitating student projects, or simply rethinking a lesson through an equity lens—those creative sparks made the hard days brighter.

 

No, this year was not a perfect game. 

But it was real, meaningful, and full of growth. 

And for me, that’s more than enough.

What are your three lessons from this year? What matters to you the most?

Colleen Elep wellness

Why You Need to Celebrate your Work as an Educator

As elementary educators, it can get easy to forget about the amazing things we achieve every year. Our work is cyclical: we finish the year in June and re-start in September, which can sometimes feel as though we are starting from the beginning every time. It doesn’t help that the days can feel like a blur, with the hectic rush of marking, lesson planning, setup, and classroom management.

I went to a meeting recently in which every staff member seemed to be recognized for an achievement except me. It was a difficult experience to endure – I felt embarrassed, as though a whole school year had slipped through my fingers.

When the emotions passed and I finally had a moment to reflect, I started to look back at the previous 7-8 months, and what I had been able to achieve in that time. I realized I had a lot to celebrate – even though it may not have been visible to the team that I work with. And without getting into the specifics, the biggest discovery I made was that I needed to celebrate my wins more.

Why? Let’s take a quick look at why our professional achievements – big and small – are important to celebrate.

1. If you don’t honour yourself, who will?

Being an educator entails a lot of “behind the scenes” work of planning, marking, researching, and connecting with families and colleagues. Few people will know how much of yourself and your own resources you have put into the job but you. You are in fact the best person to remind yourself about the great things you have done and are doing.

Self-love is something I tend to struggle with, but I believe it is the first step towards feeling more confident and empowered personally and professionally. Don’t wait for others to notice your hard work – you may never get the recognition you seek.

2. Celebrating Your Achievements Supports your Mental Wellness.

Simply stated, it feels GREAT to take stock of what you have done throughout the school year. Did you build strong relationships and connections? Did you show up for work on days you were tired or stressed and still manage to provide students with a great day of learning? Have you seen growth in yourself and the students you work with?

Take a moment to think about and write down the amazing things you have done. Chances are, you have done much more than you realize in the time between September and June. And take a good, long moment to soak up that feeling of accomplishment. That “pat on the back” can do wonders for your self-esteem and drive your sense of self-worth through the roof.

3. Build Resilience.

Teaching is demanding work: days can be hectic, and we spend hours listening to others, managing classroom dynamics, and taking on different roles throughout our schools and boards to support its success. Moments of recognition fuel your ability to bounce back and keep going, particularly when we start to feel drained and depleted. Celebrating what’s working reminds you of your strengths, and also helps us to hone in on areas of improvement.

4. Reinforce Your Sense of Purpose as an Educator.

In the rush of routines, expectation-setting, and responsibilities, it’s easy to forget the “why”. Celebrating reminds you of the value you bring and the lives you’re impacting in your day-to-day work.

When you reflect on your work and celebrate your achievements, try to also remember why you became a teacher in the first place, and how your sense of purpose has evolved in your years of service. Through your achievements, you are fulfilling that purpose and affirming your commitment to your “why”.

Devon Clarke General

Creating Safer Schools for 2SLGBTQ+ Educators: The Importance of Legislation and Policies

To better understand how to support the creation of safer schools for two-spirit, lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, questioning, and additional identities (2SLGBTQ+) educators, this past spring, I enrolled in a course titled Gender, Sexuality and Schooling. This twelve-week course consolidated into six-weeks focused on matters of equity, inclusion, and school reform in relation to sexual orientation, gender identity, and gender expression among students, families, and educators in Ontario elementary and secondary schools.

During the course, I intentionally chose to focus on learning ways to support 2SLGBTQ+ educators rather than students or families for two reasons. First, as a member of the community I understand that 2SLGBTQ+ educators working within publicly funded school boards do not receive the same or similar levels of support as 2SLGBTQ+ students or families; I believe this in large part may be due to the position that 2SLGBTQ+ educators occupy. Meaning, because they are university educated adults, employed by a publicly funded school board, and part of a union, some may think 2SLGBTQ+ educators already have the knowledge, skills, and support needed to navigate homophobic, biphobic, and transphobic school spaces. Others may see no need to offer support if there are no known 2SLGBTQ+ educators on staff.

Second, from personal and professional experiences in addition to reading the findings from a  2020 Ontario Ministry of Education Review of my school board and a 2023 Employment Systems Review also of my board, I knew that 2SLGBTQ+ educators within my school board were likely to experience forms of homophobia, biphobia, and/or transphobia that negatively impacted their working conditions. As a result, in general, 2SLGBTQ+ educators have deemed schools in my board to be unsafe spaces for them to be out.

In this post, I’ll share an insight that I gained from my course that focuses on the significance of a legislation and policies. I’ll also explain why legislation and policies alone are insufficient supports when it comes to creating safer schools for 2SLGBTQ+ educators. My hope is that the ideas contained in this,  post will aid others who strive to support the work of creating safer schools for 2SLGBTQ+ educator colleagues.

To begin, I’ll clarify the phrase safe schools. To support, I’ll draw on a definition of safe school planning from an article I read during my course titled, Safe, Positive, and Queering Moments in Teacher Education and Schooling: A Conceptual Framework by Tara Goldstein, Vanessa Russell, and Andrea Daley. In the article the authors share that, safe school planning is defined as systematic process to create and maintain a place where students can learn, and teachers can teach in a warm welcoming environment free from intimidation or fear. They further go on say that in the province of Ontario, the Safe Schools Act exemplifies this approach.

Thinking about the safe school planning definition above in collaboration with other institutional documents, I recognize that Ontario schools have the potential to be warm welcoming environments free from intimidation and fear for 2SLGBTQ+ educators due to the Safe Schools Act, ETFO policies, and the human right’s policies and procedures that are part of each school board’s operational guides. For example, under the School Rules: Provincial Code of Conduct section of the Education Act, it states that all students and community members must respect and treat others fairly regardless of their sex, gender identity, gender expression, or sexual orientation.

Policy 88.1 focused on the 2SLGBTQ+ community in ETFO’s Policy Statement document advocates that school boards update their current policy and procedures to ensure the safety and prosperity of 2SLGBTQ+ educators, students, parents, and guardians. ETFO’s policy 88.2 also advocates that members who are 2SLGBTQ+ have the right to an inclusive and respectful working environment that adheres to the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms and the Ontario Human Rights Code.

Within my school board, policy 51, focused on human rights, outlines the board’s commitment to providing an inclusive learning and working environment that is free from prejudice and discrimination, upholds the Ontario Human Rights Code, takes intentional steps to actively encourage and foster a culture of respect, dignity, and acknowledges the inherent worth and value of all people and communities.

If the legislation and/or policies I mentioned above are new or unfamiliar, you may consider reviewing them beginning with your board’s human right’s policy because every educator has a responsibility to know and uphold human rights. Your board’s policy should be easily accessible by doing a quick search in your board’s internal employee website. Your principal and/or superintendent should also be familiar with this document, and either be able to provide you with a copy or provide guidance on where you can obtain one.

The significance of this legislation and these policies is that they ensure the human rights of 2SLGBTQ+ educators are protected because they recognize the historical hurt and harm that educators from these communities have experienced in the absence of legislation and policies being in place within and beyond schools. Legislations and policies further remind all educational stakeholders that forms of homophobia, biphobia, transphobia, and an intolerance for diverse forms of gender identity and expression are intolerable within Ontario’s publicly funded schools.

Yet, while I recognize the inherent value and need for legislation and policies to be in place to protect 2SLGBTQ+ educators, I also understand that legislation and policies alone are insufficient without them being put into practice. Meaning, for legislation and policies to be effective, educators from within and beyond the 2SLGBTQ+ community must work to ensure that laws and rules become institutionalized through practices so that educators from these communities can work within schools in the absence of intimidation and fear.

Our union is committed to the work of creating warm, welcoming, and inclusive school spaces for  2SLGBTQ+ members and allies; this is evident from the spring 2SLGBTQ+ Members and Allies Conference, where ETFO leaders created an opportunity for ETFO members from across the province to come together to discuss 2SLGBTQ+ issues with the goal of removing barriers, challenging stereotypes, and addressing discrimination. ETFO leaders also facilitated a non-binary discussion group to support amplifying the voices and specific support needed for non-binary members who experience disproportionate amounts of discrimination and prejudice for not conforming to binary gender constructs and/or expressions.

I think it’s vital that we remain mindful that supporting 2SLGBTQ+ colleagues is an ongoing process that will change as social and political contexts change and that 2SLGBTQ+ educators are the primary group who can determine whether school spaces are warm welcoming environments free from intimidation and fear; therefore, any conversation regarding the cultivation and maintenance of safe schools for 2SLGBTQ+ educators must involve them in some capacity.

Sharon Ethier General

Layering Texts

Working with some fellow educators this month, we’ve been planning ahead to next year and some of the texts we will be using intentionally with students. We read a lot of different books by different authors and considered what we wanted to discuss.  We chose several different books to read aloud, some favourites, and also some new ones that we wanted to try with students.  It was a fun project!

While we did a lot of thinking and planning around the literacy block, our main focus was on how to layer texts.  Based on our book study of Cultivating Genius by Dr. Gholdy Muhammad, we were intentional about layering each read aloud with different experiences.  In her book, Dr Muhammad highlights the importance of “layering texts – teaching from multiple powerful and multimodal texts.” The addition of multimodal texts can enhance a child’s learning experience and deepen their understanding of themes and topics.  The experience can also help to scaffold knowledge to help students access the information in the book.  Layering texts also offers opportunities to integrate other subject areas with literacy classes and allows children to use a variety of skills in different contexts. While it takes a bit of planning, it is well worth it to cultivate a rich experience for students in literacy. 

While fun, it was also challenging!  Granted, we did plan for approximately 8 texts, so it took us a while to sort through our thinking, explore different options that would work, and develop a cohesive understanding of our goals.  If you are thinking about layering texts in your literacy classes, I hope some of these thoughts will help in your journey.

  • Identify the theme of the book.  Be sure to choose other texts that support the theme. Explore the author’s intent and message to ensure you are honouring their work. 
  • Consider the conversations you want to have with students. Do they need some scaffolding to enter the conversation or to deepen their understanding? 
  • Plan what type of written response you want students to engage in. Perhaps one of the texts you explore will be an example of this. This should also be inspired by the theme and conversations you’re identifying. 
  • Prepare a few different modalities, such as lists, illustrations, photos, designs, art, music, video clips, etc.  You may not know your students yet and having a few different ideas can help you to select how they learn best. 

An example might look like: 

         Focus Text

  • Eyes that Speak To the Stars
  • Author: Joanna Ho
  • Illustrator: Dung Ho

       Themes to Explore

  • Self-acceptance
  • Asian heritage and culture
  • Family

       Layered Texts

  • Non-Fiction: Biography/Fun Facts from the author’s website
  • Picture book: A Family is A Family is a Family (Author: Sara O’Leary Illustrator: Qin Leng), The Best Part of Me (Author & Illustrator: Wendy Ewald)
  • Visuals: Maps of Asia, Maps of the world
  • Music: Sesame Street: I Love My Family
  • Companion books in series: Eyes that Weave the World’s Wonders, Eyes that Kiss at the Corners

       Writing Extensions

  • Fun Facts Lists: All About Me or All About My Family
  • Illustrate: Family Tree
  • Journal: Where is your family from?  What is your heritage? 
  • Poster: Illustrate and describe what you love about yourself and why. 

In this example, you’ll notice I found several different texts to support the different themes through different modalities.  I’ve also brainstormed different writing experiences and my layered texts support student learning about the themes and the writing forms.  This type of plan provides space for responding to the students’ identities and learning styles.  As an educator, I would choose a few of these activities to take place over one week to help build your lesson. 

I’m so excited to see how these lessons work next school year.  It’s always exciting to try something new and even better when educators can collaborate together!