Extended Literacy Learning (ExLL)

ExLL (Grades 3-8) training supports intermediate teachers in learning how to effectively teach reading and writing to students with a wide range of ability levels in the intermediate grades. It is aligned with the CELL framework and helps teachers learn how to integrate the individual elements into a seamless curriculum of classroom instruction. The active engagement of each child is stressed throughout the ExLL framework, with verbal interaction and reading and writing activities taught across the content fields. Knowledge of the structure of the language, new vocabulary and concepts are developed through literature and the study of genre across themes in the curriculum. Ongoing skills development at a higher level of phonological analysis is balanced with systematic, direct instruction of decoding and comprehension for struggling readers. These skills are acquired in the context of meaningful activities that motivate the gifted and reluctant reader alike. Students are given extensive practice by reading a wide range of fiction and non-fiction books and engaging in authentic writing activities in all content areas.