Language Arts Workshop: Purposeful Reading And Writing Instruction

Language Arts Workshop: Purposeful Reading and Writing Instruction presents a manageable way of organizing instruction by exploring a gradual release of responsibility from teacher to student. This is accomplished through meaningful experiences in all areas of need for literacy development, including oral language, spelling, vocabulary, word study, fluency, and comprehension. As in an apprenticeship, novice readers and writers learn a craft under the guidance of a skilled and knowledgeable teacher. Through the language arts workshop, students read and write every day, spending time working with their teacher, collaborating with peers, and working independently.

Douglas Fisher, Ph.D., is a Professor in the Department of Teacher Education at San Diego State University and the Director of Professional Development for the City Heights Educational Collaborative. He is the recipient of an International Reading Association Celebrate Literacy Award as well as a Christa McAuliffe award for excellence in teacher education. He has published numerous articles on reading and literacy, differentiated instruction, and curriculum design as well as books, such as Improving Adolescent Literacy: Strategies at Work and Responsive Curriculum Design in Secondary Schools: Meeting the Diverse Needs of Students. He has taught a variety of courses in SDSU¹s teacher-credentialing program as well as graduate-level courses on English language development and literacy. He has also taught classes in English, writing, and literacy development to secondary school students.

Nancy Frey, Ph.D., is an Associate Professor of Literacy in the School of Teacher Education at San Diego State University and the Coordinator of Professional Development Schools for the City Heights Educational Collaborative. Before joining the university faculty, Nancy was a teacher in the Broward County (FL) Public Schools, where she taught students at the elementary and middle school level. She later worked for the Florida Department of Education on a statewide project for supporting students with diverse learning needs in general education curriculum. She is a recipient of the Christa McAuliffe award for excellence in teacher education from the American Association of State Colleges and Universities. She research interests include reading and literacy, assessment, intervention, and curriculum design, and she was a finalist in for the International Reading Association’s Outstanding Dissertation Award. She has co-authored books on literacy such as Improving Adolescent Literacy: Strategies at Work and Language Arts Workshop: Purposeful Reading and Writing Instruction, both published by Pearson Merrill Prentice Hall. She teaches a variety of courses in SDSU’s teacher-credentialing program on elementary and secondary literacy in content area instruction and supporting students with diverse learning needs. Nancy continues to test her own understanding of literacy learning by teaching at the schools in City Heights.