As part of a new literacy training being carried out in provinces and Honiara over this year, teachers are learning more about how to make language more dynamic and engaging for learners in the classroom.
One of the big five messages of the year is “Literacy is in students’ hands” which means that children must have books, pens, words, letters and paper in their hands every day if they are to learn language.
It is not enough just to have posters on walls or be copying from the blackboard as Children need time to work with language and be able to talk with their classmates about what they are learning.
Some creative and imaginative teachers in the Solomon Islands are making time in their classrooms every day for their students to work with materials, to look at sounds and letters, to re-construct words and sentences from their reading books and talk about the language they are making as part of their literacy acquisition.
Teachers are using flashcards made from cardboard where they can buy them locally as well as using other items they can find, such as shells and stones.
As part of the literacy training, Children are told to re-construct words, not only that but also can be encouraged to make words that they already know, words in English or in Pijin.
These are just some of the activities that teachers are using in classrooms and accordingly these are being taught as part of the Ministry of Education and Human Resource Development (MEHRD).
Putting literacy in children’s hands is part of their Literacy training for teachers in Years 1-3, managed by the Literacy Programme Management Unit (LPMU) and implemented in partnership with Education Authorities across the country.
By BIRIAU WILSON SAENI
