Teacher PLD

Literacy in the secondary science classroom

In this recorded professional learning session, Lyn Rogers and Andrea Soanes discuss how your students’ literacy skills can be deliberately fostered within your science programme. We explore some simple strategies to support literacy skills such as vocabulary development, comprehension, oral language and writing in the science classroom.

Love the opportunity to learn more ideas to support learners.

Teacher

Literacy in the secondary science classroom

Video recording of the PLD webinar: Literacy in the secondary science classroom.

Rights: University of Waikato

In the webinar, we explore how science and literacy can be integrated by:

  • discussing how literacy practice can be deliberately incorporated into your science programme

  • discussing how improving literacy skills can enhance science learning

  • sharing some simple strategies to support literacy skill building.

Literacy in the secondary science classroom

This slideshow, from the webinar Literacy in the secondary science classroom, provides additional support for the video tutorial.

Rights: The University of Waikato Te Whare Wānanga o Waikato

See links above to view the video of this professional development session and to the slideshow presentation. You may find it easier to download these.

Nature of science

The idea of developing scientific literacy is explored in this session – notably, its connection to the nature of science where, by fostering literacy skills, teachers can support their students to develop the ability to communicate their science understandings and apply these to the wider world.

Related content

These ideas are also explored in the related PLD sessions Science and literacy – making connections, Fostering literacy through primary science and Science through picture book.

A range of resources on the Science Learning Hub have been designed to support teachers fostering literacy skills in science contexts. These include a variety of articles, teacher PLD and activities. Some examples are: Reading aloud text with secondary students, Reading to learn about New Zealand birds and their conservation, Climate change – a wicked problem for classroom inquiry, Integrating numeracy and literacy using rockets and Easy care sheep traits – three level reading guide.

Infographics use images and text to promote science communication. This article explains how they are developed, and this activity helps students interpret the information in an infographic, discern its purpose and discuss how it gets the message across.

Useful links

Science Online and Literacy Online provide more information both about the nature of science and how to foster students’ literacy skills.

Published:10 October 2017