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Reading like a girl

By Bec Kavanagh

Issue 93, Term 2 2015

t girls, or with pink covers, or about love, because these are 'small' subjects.When we talk about and to girls, we tell them that although they like reading, they have to be more open to compromise and coming second. We tell them by fictional example that they will often have to settle as the sidek

Everyday ELLA ideas for reading

By ELLA

Issue 116, Term 1 2021

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The appropriateness of age-appropriate reading levels

By Eric Neuman

Issue 108, Term 1 2019

As an educator, especially one who works with books and literacy, it feels taboo to not use or appreciate the value of reading levels, but we have chosen not to apply them in our library. For those not familiar with what they are, reading levels are a measure used by teachers to see how well their s

Promoting reading for pleasure in school libraries

By Emma Suffield

Issue 108, Term 1 2019

I have been a school librarian for five years now and what a journey it has been. The reason I applied for this role was to promote reading for pleasure and share my love of reading with young learners; there is nothing more satisfying than turning a reluctant reader into an avid one. When I started

Fathers reading week: a case study for the Great School Libraries campaign

By Lucy Chambers, BAHons; DipLib; MSc; MCLIP

Issue 115, Term 4 2020

ate how their library contributes to teaching and learning in the school. I take you through the process of writing a new case study based on Fathers Reading Week. Note: the word ‘Fathers’ includes other male role models. Introduction The Great School Libraries Campaign (GSL) ‘Great School Libraries

Improving reading outcomes for students with dyslexia

By Anna Boyle

Issue 112, Term 1 2020

10 and 20 per cent of the population. Dyslexia does not affect intelligence. Research has demonstrated that while in typical readers intelligence and reading are dynamically linked, readers with dyslexia can have high intelligence, yet read at a comparatively much lower level (Shaywitz & Shaywit

Using technology to promote reading

By Bev Humphrey

Issue 110, Term 3 2019

ate gratification of Google search results and likes on social media? Tapping in to this fascination with screens can be very effective for promoting reading, however, and can assist you in helping your students discover the excitement of opening a new book. YouTube YouTube has replaced Google searc

Stopping the slide: improving reading rates in the middle school

By Narelle Keen

Issue 99, Term 4 2016

ok my findings to a meeting with the English department, and discussed them in my annual review with our principal. Anecdotal evidence suggested that reading rates were dropping as students progressed into higher grades, but this was the first time we had hard data to support this. After consulting

So, you have established a reading culture: now what?

By Catherine Barnes

Issue 108, Term 1 2019

ffect on students, with the majority of them being enthusiastic readers. For a secondary school, we have an amazing completion rate for the Premier’s Reading Challenge, with some classes achieving 100 per cent. We are well aware that in some areas of our community there is not so much good fortune.

Reading Australia: bringing Australian stories into the classroom

By Adam Suckling

Issue 116, Term 1 2021

Reading Australia was created by the Copyright Agency in 2013 to assist Australian teachers to teach books by Australian writers in the classroom. The Copyright Agency is a not-for-profit organisation with more than 37,000 members, who are mainly Australian writers, artists and publishers. We negoti

Promoting literature to students

By Bob Docherty

Issue 94, Term 3 2015

rience can surpass. Taking good literature to students in schools is not only essential but also the best way to get children interested in books and reading. They need to know what they can read and that reading is worthwhile. This is especially true for boys, but not exclusively as girls are dropp

Lending an ear for literacy

By Leah Sheldon, Janine Sigley

Issue 94, Term 3 2015

The mission of Story Dogs is 'To make reading fun for children, so they become confident lifelong readers. No child should be left behind in literacy.' Earlier this year Connections approached Janine and Leah to share how their organisation is helping to address the issue of literacy in Australian s

Reading the Future

By Dianne Hager

Issue 19, Term 4 1996

which to choose was vast, but I decided that those on Wednesday 9th October better suited my needs. The first session of the day, Australian Culture: Reading our Future in the Mirror of our Past Heritage, the speakers, Professor Marcia Langton and Professor Stuart McIntyre spoke of the role librarie

Let's talk about literacy

By John Parsons

Issue 95, Term 4 2015

s not teaching practices or the curriculum that should be under the spotlight. I firmly believe it is the levelling, nature, and quality of classroom reading resources we need to examine. Here's why. I'd like to share my watershed moment. Like most of my classmates, our school's traditional readers

Building a buzz with book snaps

By Susan Stephenson

Issue 104, Term 1 2018

from a book and creating a shareable image about it. Typically, people take a quick snap or screenshot (if the text is digital) of something they are reading. Once it is an image, they add to it other images and text, then save and share it. While Snapchat has often been used for the sharing aspect,

Exploring time and place through children's literature

By Tania McCartney

Issue 97, Term 2 2016

Books can enrich children’s lives beyond measure. Exposure to other people and cultures, whether directly or indirectly, does extraordinary things to children. It opens their heads and crams wonderful things inside. It relaxes their hearts, softens their emotional boundaries, and enriches their mind

Building a reading culture: A selection of articles from FYI and Synergy

By Pat Pledger

Issue 118, TERM 3 2021

mmended. When finishing this wonderful collection of articles published in FYI and Synergy, I found myself enthused about the importance of promoting reading in schools and really enjoyed the historical overview given by the articles, ranging from some written in 2000 to those written in 2020. The b

Dyslexia: can we read with our ears?

By Sarah Asome

Issue 106, Term 3 2018

yslexic students get lost in the sea of words, but it doesn’t have to be this way. The Five from Five website explains why the following five keys to reading are needed every day for all children from the age of five, and offers activities for parents and teachers, and resources for principals and p

A national celebration of storytime

By Brendan Eichholzer

Issue 105, Term 2 2018

ools, preschools, childcare centres, family homes, and bookshops. Now in its 18th year, NSS is a fun, vibrant event that aims to promote the value of reading and literacy, using an Australian children’s book that explores age-appropriate themes, and addresses key learning areas of the Australian Cur

Stories make us: in conversation with Morris Gleitzman

By Nicole Richardson

Issue 105, Term 2 2018

r 2018–19. As laureate, he will join his predecessors, Leigh Hobbs, Jackie French, Alison Lester and Boori Monty Pryor in promoting the importance of reading. Morris kindly shared his time with us to discuss the laureateship; why the need for stories is more important now than ever; how he will advo