Structured Literacy Professional Learning – A Review of Sunshine Books’ Online Learning Modules

Writing this month’s blog post has provided me with a wonderful opportunity to reflect on my own professional learning journey and also how far we have come as a profession in our understanding and adoption of teaching reading through a structured literacy approach.

Way back in 2020 my interest in structured literacy was growing; however, there were very limited options in terms of professional learning. I was purchasing professional books from overseas, reading blog posts and entering into discussions with other professionals, but there was very little on offer in terms of recognised professional learning courses.

I was encouraged to sign up for LETRS training (Language Essentials for Teachers of Reading and Spelling) by a colleague who was in the same boat as me. This was an online course offered out of the United States written by Dr Louisa Moats and Carol A Tolman and it was an absolute game changer for me and my understanding of the Science of Reading and using a structured literacy approach to teaching literacy.

Fast forward six years and who could have predicted that the NZ curriculum would have gone through such immense change, and not only that, but teachers would now have access to so many high quality professional development opportunities.

Naturally, this brings me to the online learning modules that are offered for free (I know! Free!) by Sunshine Books. This series of seven online modules is hosted by the fabulous Jude Tabuteau who has a wealth of knowledge and experience in the structured literacy space.

Jude Tabuteau

The Seven Online Learning Modules

Module 1: Why must we change our approach to teaching reading?
Module 2: What must we change in how we teach reading?
Module 3: How do we bridge the gap from research to practice?
Module 4: Practical tips for teachers: Review and assessment
Module 5: Practical application: I know, I understand, I do (Part 1)
Module 6: Practical application: I know, I understand, I do (Part 2)
Module 7: Setting yourself up for success.

Who is this professional learning for?
I think this learning has something for everyone:

Beginning teachers and returning teachers
Curriculum co-ordinators
Parents and home schoolers
Learning assistants and learning specialists
Literacy leads
Learning support co-ordinators

Here's a preview of each module

In any professional development offering there is always a key take away or a piece of learning that is either completely new or for some teachers the benefit is in the information being reviewed and further embedded.

Handbooks
Each of the seven modules comes with a downloadable, printable teacher handbook. The handbooks provide space for note taking, and contain a series of teacher tasks to help reinforce what you are learning and help keep you engaged. Jude is an expert at giving clear instructions for the teacher tasks and the associated diagrams provide clear explanations for what are complex concepts.

Benefits of online modules
One of the most obvious benefits is that the modules are self-paced. You might decide to binge watch and work through a series of modules on a teacher-only day or, if you are like me, put Jude on x1.5 playback speed and whip through a module on a Sunday afternoon (sorry Jude). Any of the modules can be broken down into manageable chunks and surprisingly for a free offering, they are not dependent on schools using Sunshine Books. They are relevant to any decodable series your school is using.

For many teachers their isolated locations are a barrier to accessing face to face professional learning. Most providers won’t travel beyond the main centres. These high quality modules are accessible to anyone, anywhere in Aotearoa.

Videos
Lastly, I want to highlight the teaching videos which make up a high proportion within these modules. This is the opportunity for you to see Jude in action. She demonstrates a wide variety of strategies and shows how the theory translates into action. The demonstration lessons are clear and concise and cover a range of different aspects of structured literacy such as:

Sound level reading
Word level reading and spelling
Sentence level reading and spelling
Decodable book lessons

I recommend these online modules without hesitation, they are such a generous offering and valuable resource to come back to and review time and time again. So if you are looking to increase the knowledge you already have or are totally new to teaching reading through a structured literacy approach, these online modules are a must.

Johnna Alborn
Deputy Principal/Literacy Facilitator

Structured Literacy Professional Learning – A Review of Sunshine Books’ Online Learning Modules

Here's a preview of each module

Recent Posts