Minutes of professional learning day at Cambridge Park HS
Tuesday 22 May 2012, Cambridge Park HS
Teacher Librarian: Alison Johnson & Library Assistant: Renae Wheeler
Welcome: Mr Tony Diaczok (Deputy Principal Cambridge Park HS)
• Thank you to everyone for attending
• Key focus on literacy
• Teacher Librarians drive the literacy agenda in their schools
• Acknowledgement of the valued work done by Alison and Renae in the Library
• Enjoy the day.
Welcome & General Business: Jenny Scheffers (Chairperson PMBW Committee)
• Acknowledgement of traditional custodians
• Thank you to everyone for attending
• Apologies from Colleen Foley (Team Leader, School Libraries and Information Literacy Unit)
• Housekeeping matters – Alison
• Welcome and thank you to our presenters and sponsors
• Special presentations – on behalf of the PMBW TL group to Ian McLean (Penrith PS) and Paul MacDonald (Children’s Bookshop) for recently receiving School Libraries Association of NSW awards:
Ian – John H Lee Memorial Award for excellence in leadership in innovative and collaborative teaching practice through the integration of learning technologies (See also Penrith City Star article.)
Paul – inaugural Maurice Saxby Award for excellence & passion in promoting reading to children & young adults
• Committee has organised a gift to pass on to Colleen Blancato – past-PMBW Secretary, now working at DEC CLIC
• Beginners OASIS Training course – see Julie Grazotis (TL @ Banks PS) if interested
• PRC update:
Thanks to Belinda Guymer (Emu Heights PS) and Ian McLean (Penrith PS) for their assistance in sending a letter to Alan Booth (DEC State Office) re changes to PRC certificates
PRC now run by one staff member
Open to feedback at the end of the year
DEC reviewing the situation
• Sydney International Storytelling Conference – June 1-3 @ Baulkham Hills – see Jenny for further information
• Folder contains the following documents:
Agenda
Term 3 Afternoon Tea flyer – Wednesday 29 August (week 7) at James Erskine PS, 3:30 – 5:00pm, Topics – Book Week activities and CBC update; no cost and no need to register on MyPL@EDU
Term 4 Literary Conference – Thursday 8 November 2012, Penrith Panthers 9 – 4pm, Cost: approx. $100
Evaluation Form
Flyer – CLIC
Flyer – Alison’s Children’s Books
• Badge draw at the end of the day – prizes donated by sponsors and Colleen Foley.
Guest Speaker: Paul MacDonald (The Children’s Bookshop)Review of the Shortlisted CBCA titles and What’s Hot
• Email Paul at staff@thechildrensbookshop.com.au
• Rise of visual literacy – picture books
• Rise of Teacher’s Notes – lot of support material available for books
• Book Trailers – Google the term “book trailers” – way of the future – using technology to bring kids back to books, eg:
The last Viking book trailer – Norman Jorgensen & James Foley
Rudie nudie book trailer – Emma Quay
• CBCA 2012 Theme – “Champions read”
• Provides a focus to be advocates for reading
• CBCA awards tend to reward the adjective over the verb – nothing wrong with page turners – action books
• Should be a CBCA category for debut authors
• Children and teen book market booming – authors for the adult market are now writing teen fiction
• Books on Muslim faith are popular
• Easy reads abound – Beast Quest, Bill B Brown, EJ12, Hey Jack!, Zac Power
• Kids love book series
• Diary of a wimpy kid – format is a hit, new book to be released later this year
• Dystopian teen fiction dominates
• Classic is cool! – The great Gatsby
• Graphic novels are popular
• Non fiction picture books – lighter on text.
* Download Paul’s presentation from HERE.
Guest Speaker: Jill Bruce (Author and NSW judge for the Children’s Book Council of Australia Literature Awards 2012-2013), Children’s Book Council of Australia
• Total of eight judges – one from each state
• Judges chosen from CBC members from each state – members apply or nominate for the position as judge
• 365 books read – every book read by every judge – report written
• Books can be entered in more than one category
• Attend Judges Conference – one award category dealt with per day – shortlist and honour books decided by secret ballot
• No category for books in a series – problem created when each book ends with a hook and the next in the series needs to be read
• Criteria for all categories:
Outstanding titles with literary merit
Language appropriate to the theme and style of the work with regard to the aesthetic qualities of language
Originality in the treatment of literary elements
Quality of illustrations, book design, production, printing and binding.
* Download Jill’s presentation from HERE.
Sponsor: Syba Signs (Jodie)
• Jodie is sharing conference visits with Phyl Williamson
• Involved with National Year of Reading – promotional products available eg. bookmarks, posters, floor mat
• Supporting the reading hour
• Professional Development program 2012 – available at venues beyond Sydney CBD
• Happy to visit schools to discuss your Library needs.
Guest Speakers: Cheryl Farkas (Literacy Consultant K-6 Western Sydney region), Caroline Hopwood (Middle Years Literacy Consultant Western Sydney Region), Julie Grazotis (Teacher Librarian, Banks PS)
Literacy Comprehension Strategies: Cheryl and Caroline – Introduction
• Literacy Continuum K-10
Provides clear and accessible representation of the development of the critical aspects of literacy across the seven years of primary education
Sound research based evidence to plan teaching to meet individual student needs at all levels
Explicit descriptions of the skill and knowledge involved in progressive development and achievement in literacy
Recognises and includes digital literacy across all levels of schooling
Covers 8 critical aspects – 3 constrained skills and 5 unconstrained skills
Constrained skills – Phonics, Phonemic Awareness and Concepts About Print
Unconstrained Skills – Reading Texts, comprehension, Aspects of Speaking, Vocabulary and Aspects of Writing
Each of the 8 critical aspects need to be unpacked:
One aspect at a time
Unpack the definition
Select the cluster most appropriate for your students
Unpack the cluster marker under the chosen cluster
Select the marker that needs to be explicitly taught
• Handouts – Literacy Continuum PowerPoint presentation & Teaching reading comprehension strategies.
* Download Cheryl and Caroline’s presentations from HERE (Introduction to the literacy continuum), HERE (interactive literacy continuum chart) and HERE (K-6 comprehension strategies).
• Contact Cheryl cheryl.farkas@det.nsw.edu.au
• Contact Caroline caroline.hopwood@det.nsw.edu.au
Primary Session: Julie Grazotis
• Super Six Strategies – how to use them in the Library
• Good readers – Read, Make Connections, Predict, Visualise, Question, Monitor and Summarise
• Books are like windows and mirrors:
Windows allow us to look through the book and see the lives of others. We can learn new ideas about people in the world
Mirrors reflect our own lives
• Predicting – use ‘See, Think, Wonder’ model
• Visualising – ‘See With Your Mind’
• Questioning – The 5Ws (Who? What? When? Where? Why?)
• Monitoring – ‘The Five Finger Test’, ‘Can It Be For Me?’ – steps to select suitable and interesting books
• Summarising – PMI chart.
* Download Julie’s presentations from HERE (strategies) and HERE (reading solutions).
Guest Speaker: Lisa Forrest (Author/Olympian) – ‘Making the Most of It’
• A varied career to date – author, actor, TV and radio presenter, interviewer, mother and Olympian
• Experiences as a swimmer representing Australia, in particular, her representation at the 1980 Olympic Games, have influenced and provided subject matter for her writing
• 2012 CBCA theme might use a sporting angle in this Olympic year: “Champions read”.
Next Committee meeting: 3.45pm, Wednesday 6 June at Penrith Panthers.
Meeting concluded: 3:30pm