From the 

Curriculum

AP Desk....

You may have heard on the news recently that the Grattan Institute has published a report into the teaching of Reading in Australia. This report is part of on-going research into the best way to teach Literacy skills and advises schools to use a ‘structured literacy’ approach which includes a focus on phonics from the early years. At MPS, we fully embrace this approach by using the THRASS system which stands for Teaching Handwriting, Reading and Spelling Skills. THRASS is an evidence-based phonetics teaching tool that is fun, systematic and explicit. Additionally, in Prep – Grade 2 we use the Heggerty Phonemic Awareness program. This is a systematic and explicit approach designed to develop foundational phonological awareness skills in early years classrooms. It focuses on activities to enhance students' abilities to identify and manipulate sounds, preparing them for future reading and writing success through engaging and structured lessons. 

Having said that, this extract from University of Newcastle research adds that, ‘history has shown that the teaching of reading is a complex process that relies on multiple elements to work together cooperatively. The process of reading has been likened to that of operating a car (Adams, 1990) in which we rely on many systems and parts operating simultaneously to get to our destination.’ This means that in addition to our THRASS phonics program and Heggerty Phonemic Awareness program, we also immerse students in rich and diverse literature types, and teach them comprehension skills to enable them to not only decode words but to get meaning from what they are reading. As we know, not every child learns in the same way or at the same rate and we have screening programs in place to monitor students’ progress, and an intervention program called MultiLit, run by our wonderful educator Trish Arblaster, to help students who need additional support. MultiLit is an evidence-based reading intervention program originating from Macquarie University, designed to improve reading skills in readers facing challenges.

We are very proud of our Reading program at Mitcham, and our NAPLAN results are a reflection of this. We are well above state results for both Year 3 and Year 5 student achievement in Reading which is a credit to the hard work our teachers and students put into their learning. 

Most importantly, the home support which parents give is crucial. Regular reading at home is another important part of the learning to read process. As writer, Emily Buchwald stated, ‘Children are made readers on the laps of their parents’. Happy reading!

Michelle Anderson

Assistant Principal