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. Literacy involves students listening to, reading, viewing, speaking, writing and creating oral, print, visual and digital texts, and using and modifying language for different purposes in a range of contexts…

Becoming literate is not simply about knowledge and skills. Certain behaviours and dispositions assist students to become effective learners who are confident and motivated to use their literacy skills broadly. Many of these behaviours and dispositions are also identified and supported in other general capabilities. They include students managing their own learning to be self-sufficient; working harmoniously with others; being open to ideas, opinions and texts from and about diverse cultures; returning to tasks to improve and enhance their work; and being prepared to question the meanings and assumptions in texts.”

Reading

At Black Forest Primary School, developing student literacy is a fundamental priority. We have a strong focus on the development of the foundation skills in order to build powerful literacy learners into the future. We have embedded the Systematic Synthetic Phonics program ‘InitiaLIT’ into the everyday practices of our Junior Primary classes to ensure a rich understanding of phonological awareness. The Big 6 stages of development are evident throughout our classrooms with a strong focus on depth of understanding and application of skills across the learning areas.  We have also created our own R-6 Reading Approach, to ensure a consistent scope and sequence of reading instruction throughout your child’s time at school. 

Writing

Writing is big part of literacy at Black Forest Primary School.  We foster a love of writing from R-6, starting with a strong foundation of ‘Book Making’ in the early years. All teachers at Black Forest Primary School use the Brightpath Assessment tool to monitor student progress, as well as use worked examples to plan for “where to next” in each child’s writing development, ensuring a consistent approach to progressing student writing.