Reading and Language Arts



All projects and expeditions at GCCS require extensive reading, writing, listening, and speaking. Students' reading, writing, and oral communication are often related to class expeditions or individual projects and are frequently processed through small group or class discussions. Children read and listen to historical fiction, nonfiction, biographies, diaries, poetry, and newspapers in order to find information related to their topic of study. Primary sources are used regularly by students in their research. Journals, daily documentation, note-taking, project work, field notes, letters, opinion pieces, reports, and poetry are a few of the many possibilities for daily student writing. Students develop their oral communication skills by interviewing, making presentations, questioning experts, debating, and dramatizing.

GCCS uses a balanced literacy approach, combining guided reading with leveled books, independent work, and literature circles.

GCCS also uses the 6+1 Traits of Writing (Culham, 2003) as a structure for teaching students elements of quality writing. Reading comprehension instruction is facilitated through use of the seven comprehension strategies (Miller, 2002; Harvey & Goudvis, 2000).