Balanced Literacy in Elementary Science Classrooms

Description: Balanced Literacy in Elementary Science Classrooms (BLESC) is designed to improve teacher quality in the areas of science and reading/language arts. The goals of the project include the development of teacher understanding and use of balanced literacy approaches in science classrooms and the effective teaching of science content.

Using inquiry-based teaching and learning strategies, project participants will design action plans that incorporate balanced literacy and science in the elementary classrooms.

Teachers will also create action plans that develop school-based leadership skills that covey their learning in this project to colleagues in their building. The rationale for the project is based on information collected from grant planning meetings (sponsored by funds from the Wisconsin Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA Improving Teacher Quality Program).

The information that was used to aid in the design of the proposed project BLESC is based on local teacher needs, education standards, and research on improving the quality of science and balanced literacy instruction.

Goals: Project goals are based on seven needs identified during planning meetings conducted during 2002-03 with a cadre of MPS science teachers:

Teachers need to learn about and use balanced literacy approaches in content areas to ensure content subjects are taught regularly. Teachers need to learn how to teach science more effectively. Teachers need to learn and have experience with instructional strategies that link purpose and content in an integrated approach (such as a focus in inquiry-based teaching and learning). Teachers need to experience activities in the newly adopted MPS text and link those activities to other subjects. Teachers need to learn the science content embedeed in the MPS curriculum and use community based science education resources to be better able to teach science to their children. Teachers need to understand various forms of assessment that will provide them information about their instruction and accountability. Teachers need to plan instruction collaboratively and observe other effective teachers as they build skills to modify instruction. Teachers need to incorporate their learning about balanced literacy and science via inquiry-based teaching and learning into their daily instruction and to provide leadership or mentoring opportunities for other teachers undergoing a change process. Related to the MPS district's focus on literacy and increasing achievement scores in the core subjects, teachers identified needs of learning about a balanced literacy approach to instruction in content areas such as science. Teachers also called for a project that demonstrates strategies to integrate subjects using instructional themes such as inquiry-based teaching and learning. Lack of content knowledge in science was seen as a need to be met through providing science content that is aligned to the newly adopted MPS text activities.