The compelling connection between the classroom and what happens in the world is the basis of Real Life Literacy. It shows teachers how to turn kids on to learning and build skills that will help them function more successfully in the real world. It fills in the gaps often missing from traditional language arts classes and offers a range of classroom tools that promote real-world reading and writing. Some of the basic literacy topics that are covered include: Writing and deciphering messages -- from notes and memos to invitations and advertisements; Taking the mystery out of labels -- from understanding labels on medicine bottles to making sense of food and clothing labels; Coping with everyday money management -- from completing order forms to writing cheques and balancing a bank book; Reading and interpreting specialized text -- from finding information in nonfiction books to effectively using phone books, entertainment guides, and bus schedules. This timely book makes a powerful case for linking genuine, purposeful, and functional in-school activities to the lives of students. It promotes using classroom learning to guide and support students as they strive to make meaning of their world.

This collection presents "more than 650 readings about daily life from present-day authors ..."--Inside jacket flap.

'Joanne Larson and Jackie Marsh's Literacy Learning is easily the most theoretically sophisticated and practically useful discussion of sociocultural and critical approaches to literacy learning that has appeared to date' - James Paul Gee, Tashia Morgidge Professor of Reading, University of Wisconsin-Madison Making Literacy Real is the essential reference text for primary education students at undergraduate and graduate level who want to understand literacy theory and successfully apply it in the classroom. Doctoral students will find this a useful resource in understanding the relationship of theory to practice. The authors explore the breadth of this complex and important field, orientating literacy as a social practice, grounded in social, cultural, historical and political contexts of use. They also present a detailed and accessible discussion of the theory and its application in the primary classroom.

It has become almost cliché to say that the world has changed. The pace of technology change, the increasing number of new businesses, and growing global workforce has made the world a more competitive place. Global economic events have delayed retirement for millions around the world and thinning margins are making employers more risk adverse to prevent any disruptions in business continuity. This major shift in the business world is the recipe for a perfect storm that could be nothing short of catastrophic for many organizations, nations, and people. Life Literacy is a cautionary tale, a forensic journey into what went wrong, a roadmap out of trouble, and a beacon for what life can be like. It is a timely, highly practical survival guide that will help the current and future generations create a better world where opportunities are abundant, success is achieved, and the pitfalls of predecessors are avoided. One-sided solutions never solve problems. Life Literacy provides both viewpoints highlighting the problems that aren’t very far downstream that will cripple companies and communities if left unaddressed, as well as solutions that show what life could be like if people learn from one another.

An award-winning journalist and literacy advocate provides a clear, step-by-step guide to helping your child thrive as a reader and a learner. When her child went off to school, Maya Smart was shocked to discover that a good education in America is a long shot, in ways that few parents fully appreciate. Our current approach to literacy offers too little, too late, and attempting to play catch-up when our kids get to kindergarten can no longer be our default strategy. We have to start at the top. The brain architecture for reading develops rapidly during infancy, and early language experiences are critical to building it. That means parents’ work as children’s first teachers begins from day one too—and we need deeper knowledge to play our positions. Reading for Our Lives challenges the bath-book-bed mantra and the idea that reading aloud to our kids is enough to ensure school readiness. Instead, it gives parents easy, immediate, and accessible ways to nurture language and literacy development from the start. Through personal stories, historical accounts, scholarly research, and practical tips, this book presents the life-and-death urgency of literacy, investigates inequity in reading achievement, and illuminates a path to a true, transformative education for all.

Provide engaging science-themed lessons! Everyday Literacy: Science helps young students learn key science concepts and vocabulary in just 15 to 20 minutes a day.