Lower Mainland Fieldworker Report
(Anne Knott) 604-263-6606
e-mail: laubach@intergate.bc.ca

I wish to thank all the volunteers that I have worked so closely with over the last 1.5 years. Laubach volunteers are truly a dedicated group. Literacy will continue to be an interest in my life, however a move to Calgary for the summer makes it impossible for me to continue my Field Worker commitment. Good luck to all the Lower Mainland councils! Remember, the work you do is so important - please keep up the good work!

Walk for Literacy

Carol Bossio and Ingrid Braathen are adult learners who have undertaken a major project. They want to expand the Walk for Literacy that they started in Parksville and Courtenay across Canada. To help other communities they have produced a "How-To Book", called "Walk for Literacy: a Step in the Right Direction."

Carol has also taken on a personal commitment to "Walk for Literacy" across Canada from St. John's, Newfoundland to Parksville, British Columbia in 1998. Along the way she would like groups involved in literacy to join her. To get a copy of the book, or for more information contact: Literacy BC at 1-800-663-1293, or visit the LBC web site: http://www.nald.ca/lbc.htm

Resources

Reader's Helper
Designed to assist learners in the study of literature, Reader's Helper tutorials contain lesson ideas that focus on the formal elements of fiction and poetry, such as subject and theme, style and tone, meter and rhyme. They are written at a fundamental level, unlike the previous sentence. If you would like copies of the tutorials, call Literacy BC.

Doing it for ourselves
Compiled by Literacy BC to help new student-tutor co-ordinators, "Doing it for ourselves" is full of ideas for council co-ordinators and presidents, tutors, student-tutor co-ordinators, and trainers. There is a good section on learning styles, which are being emphasized more and more in adult education. See "Learning Styles" article. Contact Literacy BC to get your own copy. 1-800-663-1293.

STAPLE

STAPLE (Supplemental Training for Practitioners in Literacy Education) is a training program for adult literacy co-ordinators and tutors available on CD-ROM.

STAPLE Volume 1 contains five modules entitled: Introduction to Assessment, Reading Assessment, Teaching Reading, Writing Assessment and Teaching Writing. Through interactive exercises, photographs, audio clips, animation and text displays you will learn how to administer, score and interpret an informal reading inventory. The reading and writing assessment tools described in STAPLE help you to identify a student's learning strengths and weaknesses. The reading and writing strategies' modules show you teaching strategies that relate back to the assessment you have completed. Volume 1 retails for $230 + GST + shipping.

STAPLE Volume 2 has just been released. It contains three new modules: Let's Talk About Literacy, Building a Foundation for Literacy and Math, and Lesson Planning. Let's Talk About Literacy introduces you to a variety of definitions of literacy, explores some of the myths of literacy and shows you how to deal with the media. It also includes a section on the support available to literacy practitioners and an in-depth segment on literacy statistics based on the International Adult Literacy Survey (IALS).

In Building a Foundation for Literacy and Math, you will learn how to assess students who are at very basic levels and learn about strategies that are most effective with this group of students. The Lesson Planning module introduces you to a wonderful Canadian tool that can help a student/tutor pair to set goals, plan instruction and evaluate progress during their lessons. You will also learn about selecting resources with students and explore some of the ethical dilemmas that confront student/tutor pairs. Volume 2 retails for $100 + GST + shipping.

For information and to order STAPLE CDS in Canada, contact:
Literacy Services of Canada Ltd.
P.O. Box 52192
Edmonton, Alberta T6G 2T5
Phone: (403) 413-6491, Fax: (403) 413-6582
E-mail: brokop@telusplanet.Net