For term 4, we are continuing on with our BSLA reading groups!

Our reading lessons will be delivered through the Better Start Literacy Approach (BSLA). This approach has been developed in New Zealand by a team of experienced researchers from the University of Canterbury, following years of research on the best ways to support student's reading, spelling, writing and oral language success.

The Year 6 teachers have taken part in professional development for BSLA and will continue to do so as the year progresses. 

PROGRESSIONS

DECODING: 

• Decode multi-syllable words by applying their knowledge of the alphabetic code, morphology, and syllables.

• Develop reading stamina and read longer texts independently.

FLUENCY: 

• Read year-level texts accurately and expressively, reflecting understanding of the text while maintaining a natural pace of reading, at oral fluency rates appropriate for year 6 students.

VOCABULARY:

• Independently infer from context clues and use morphology to understand challenging words.

• Understand and use idioms and expressions from their own and others’ cultures.

TEXT FORMS & GENRE: 

• Compare and contrast different text forms and genres across a topic, including cultural texts from their own and others’ cultures, and discuss how they are written for different audiences.

TEXT STRUCTURE, STYLE & FEATURES:

• Compare and contrast the features and style of texts written for different purposes to explore the use of text, language, and visual features that are purposefully selected.

• Explore how language is used to effect within texts, including the use of figurative and literal language to convey meaning.

COMPREHENSION MONITORING: 

• Monitor and confirm their understanding across a range of texts and sources of information by annotating, rereading, adjusting their reading rate, asking and answering questions, and visualising.

SUMMARISING & DRAWING CONCLUSIONS: 

• Identify the central theme or main idea of a text, summarise how it is developed through the key details, and draw a supported conclusion.

INFERRING USING EVIDENCE:

•  Make inferences using explicit and implicit evidence, justify the inferences using evidence from the text, and compare their inferences with the interpretations of others.

MAKING CONNECTIONS & INTERPRETATIONS: 

• Share opinions about how topics are addressed in texts and how messages are conveyed, providing evidence from the text and their prior knowledge to support their opinions.

DEVELOPING READER IDENTITY:

• Identify their strengths and successes.

The majority of our writing programme for Term 4 will be taught through our Science Fair inquiry learning. See the Topic page for more information.