At Sacred Heart, we believe that being literate is the foundation of future success and that literacy is central to all learning. We have a whole school approach aimed at ensuring that all students make progress and achieve success in Literacy.
Our main aims for essential learning in literacy are for students to:
- read with understanding
- speak with fluency, expression and confidence
- develop their vocabulary
- communicate their ideas in writing
- develop their multimodal communication skills
In the Prep –Year 2, students participate in a two hour, daily Literacy block. Vocabulary development and oral language are a main focus and support the development of comprehension skills. Within each session the students are involved in whole class, small group activities and independent learning experiences. Group work includes independent tasks as well as focused learning with the teacher.
As students move into the Middle and Senior School, the development of literacy skills occurs not only during Literacy teaching and learning time but also through our Inquiry curriculum to ensure that students are applying literacy skills across all curriculum areas. This encompasses comprehension strategies, research skills and the development of a framework for critical analysis of reading material, enabling them to access more complex meaning in their learning.
The literacy programs are data driven, with teachers continuously monitoring and assessing their students’ progress in order to ensure that appropriate learning activities are organised.
The school runs a Reading Discovery program for early years students requiring additional support in reading. The Literacy and Learning Diversity Leaders work closely with the teachers to monitor and support students with specific needs through the Intervention Framework.