Library News
READING IS NOT JUST READING
Literacy at St. Peter's College addresses much more than ’just reading’. We approach literacy in two crucial ways; through reading often and widely to improve fluency and comprehension and through reading analytically to improve research and critical thinking skills.
READING SKILLS
“In the Australian Curriculum, students become literate as they develop the knowledge, skills and dispositions to interpret and use language confidently for learning and communicating in and out of school and for participating effectively in society” (ACARA, 2010).
Semester 2, saw the introduction of an online and interactive reading challenge program called Beanstack, which now hosts our Year 7 & 8 Reading Detective Program. Beanstack has enabled the setting up of reading ‘challenges’ that incentivise students to earn ‘badges’ for logging reading as well as responding to comprehension challenges. Beanstack has also enabled students to interact with each other and learn and grow in their reading habits from others.
The reaction to the following questions about Beanstack speak for themselves:
- Does it work for you?
- Do you like logging your books and time that you read?
- Do you like completing the badges and do they help you understand your reading?
“Beanstack for me, I think it's a great thing to have because I don't lose track of reading books and I can easily remember how long I have read.
I have no trouble logging in so it's an easy thing to do and the badges I earn encourage me to read more and more every time”
- Azaria Yr7
“For me personally, I really enjoy Beanstack. The badges and completing the activities is one of my favorites. The reason is because there are a range of activities and skills, and after we complete it we actually get something back as a sense of accomplishment, the badges. I like collecting the badges, as a sense of 'How much better can I do? What could be done better and what did I learn?'. Another feature I really like is how you can add friends. This allows you to add friends and see how much they've read, as well as be on a leaderboard with everyone's reading amount. Another helpful feature is the streaks. With the streaks, you don't want to break it, meaning you read more and more. You also get achievements and rewards/badges which I really like. Sorry for the long email, but this is how I see Beanstack”.
- Trisha Yr7
“I like Beanstack because I can track the time and the books that I have been reading and being able to log them in. I like completing the badges because I can feel like I have achieved things”
- Kyah Yr 7
RESEARCH SKILLS
“Literacy encompasses the knowledge and skills students need to access, understand, analyse and evaluate information, make meaning, express thoughts and emotions, present ideas and opinions, interact with others and participate in activities at school and in their lives beyond school”
- (ACARA, 2010)
At St. Peter's College we are continuing to promote the importance of digital and media literacy and the use of current, unbiased, interactive and content rich information for assignment and project research.
Semester 2 saw the introduction of Britannica School Online as a valuable research tool for students and teachers and a vital tool for remote schooling.
Why use Britannica School Online?
- LINKS & information are on the My Library - My Research page HERE see 'Britannica School' (no password is required if already in a St. Peter's College network account.
- AUSTRALIAN CONTENT: e.g. see Ashleigh Barty, Scott Morrison & Australian Mining
- DIFFERENTIATION: Every article can be accessed in three reading levels (plus translation tool). AUDIO is also available for all articles. 24/7 Access
- PERSONALISED ACCOUNTS for all St. Peter's College students and staff to gather, sort, and share all articles and related multimedia information. Lesson plans created for teachers.
- ACCOUNTABILITY/ MEDIA LITERACY: students use peer reviewed, objective resources and research for their assignments, with automated Citations in APA
All instructions on how to set up personalised My Britannica accounts can be found at:
LINK to Britannica Introduction video HERE
Contact Ms J Sendeckyj and the Library team:
References
Australian Curriculum, Assessment and Reporting Authority (ACARA) 2010. Literacy. Australian Curriculum. https://www.australiancurriculum.edu.au/f-10-curriculum/general-capabilities/literacy/ (Website) (accessed 13 Sept. 2021) and was not modified.
Ms Joyce Sendeckyj
Head of Library