“Literacy Camp is So Much Fun!”
By Barb Wollak, M.S., CCC-SLP, Golden Valley, MN
The more that you read,
The more things you will know.
The more that you learn,
The more places you’ll go.
— I Can Read with My Eyes Shut by Dr. Seuss
Not all that long ago, conventional wisdom dictated that people with Down syndrome (DS) were unable to learn to read and, therefore, it was not necessary to try and teach them to do so. Unfortunately, even today, one would not have to look too far to find a medical or education professional who believes that lack of literacy skills is always about lack of ability rather than opportunity when it comes to learners with DS.
One issue in special education has been an emphasis on “functional literacy,” resulting in literacy instruction limited to the teaching of “functional” sight words. Dr. Penny Hatch, from the Center for Literacy and Disabilities Studies states, “According to the American Heritage College Dictionary (1997), functional is defined as “capable of performing” and literacy is defined as “the ability to read and write. Combining these definitions, functional literacy can be defined as the capability of reading and writing at a level proficient enough to conduct one’s daily affairs.” In other words, just learning sight words is not sufficient to function in today’s world.
For the past six years, under the direction of Dr. David Koppenhaver and Dr. Karen Erickson, Camp Courage in Maple Lake, MN, has offered a Literacy Camp for adolescents with developmental disabilities Dave and Karen are nationally known literacy experts and have written and presented extensively on topics related to literacy for individuals with disabilities.
Literacy Camp has multiple purposes and serves both campers and educators. Twenty educators receive intensive training on how to assess and provide appropriate literacy intervention to students with developmental disabilities. During “literacy times,” two campers are paired with each educator who immediately is able to apply information learned during the training time. Campers all receive a positive literacy experience and go home with an informal assessment and recommendations of where to begin when school resumes in the fall. Campers and educators both often say, “Literacy Camp is so much fun!”
Educators learn how to use the Whole to Part Assessment, which is based on the work of Dr. James Cunningham who is a well-known reading researcher from the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill. The premise of Cunningham’s Whole to Part Model is that the goal for reading is to be able to read silently with comprehension. The three parts of the model include word identification, language comprehension, and print processing beyond word identification. Word identification is comprised of being able to read words automatically (sight words) as well as being able to decode unfamiliar words. Language comprehension encompasses knowledge of the world and knowledge of how text works. Print processing is made up of the cognitive tasks of eye movements, making links from printed words directly to their meanings, using inner speech to monitor comprehension, projecting prosody, and integrating all four skills.
By using materials from an informal reading inventory, educators are able to determine which of the three is the area of greatest need and prevents that student from reading with comprehension one level higher. Educators then learn how to provide comprehensive instruction to target each camper’s area of greatest need.
Both educators and campers learn about the Tar Heel Reader, (www.tarheelreader.org) a free website with over 12,000 easy-to-read books designed for teens who are just learning how to read. Books can be read online or downloaded with optional speech feedback. The site is sponsored by the Center for Literacy and Disability Studies and the Department of Computer Science at the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill.
While the educators learn with Dave and Karen, the campers are supervised by trained counselors and experience a full range of camp activities, including horseback riding, tubing behind a boat, arts and crafts, and swimming at the beach or pool. It is an overnight camp experience, so counselors also plan special evening activities such as a camp dance. Many campers leave camp with new skills — including increased independence — new friends and many happy memories. The mom of a camper with DS who came all the way from North Carolina said,” I picked up a different girl than I dropped off at camp. Now, my daughter is so much more independent with her daily living skills. We loved Camp Courage and the experiences there.”
Literacy Camp Veteran Maggie Erickson, a young lady with DS who has learned to read with comprehension and write, says “Reading lets me learn new things.”
Maggie’s mom, Cathy, believes that doors opened for her daughter when Maggie learned how to read and understand connected text and not just sight words. Cathy is amazed by the words Maggie has learned to use through reading, which expand Maggie’s communication abilities and her independence. Maggie is able to write thank you notes and was able to write a letter requesting that her bank account be closed. Maggie is able to communicate by reading and writing emails and using social media sites, such as Facebook. Internet literacy definitely is socially appropriate for a teen! Cathy also described Maggie’s problem with auditory processing and following through with oral directions. Now that Maggie can read, Cathy writes down directions which Maggie can read repeatedly until she completes the tasks.
Maggie now loves to read and always carries a book with her. In fact, when Maggie attended Karen Erickson’s keynote at the NDSC Convention in Minneapolis, she told Karen, “If what you say is boring, I’m going to read my book.”
Karen and Dave’s message is far from boring. Instead, it’s a message of the importance of literacy and that ALL children need to be taught more than sight words. Being able to read silently with comprehension and being able to write one’s thoughts on paper is what is truly “functional.”
Editor’s note: Dr. Karen Erickson directs the Center for Literacy and Disability Studies at the University of North Carolina in Chapel Hill and was the 2004 recipient of the NDSC Educator Award. Dr. David Koppenhaver is a professor of reading at Appalachian State University in NC. Both Dr. Koppenhaver and Dr. Erickson have presented keynotes at NDSC conventions and they also present each year at the annual MDSC Conference offered in Massachusetts. For more information about literacy, visit Dave, Karen and Barb’s websites, http://faculty.rcoe.appstate.edu/koppenhaverd / http://www.med.unc.edu/ahs/clds/ and , https://sites.google.com/site/bawollak/
Tentative dates for next summer’s Literacy Camp are June 19-24, 2011. For more information, email Barb Wollak at bawollak@gmail.com or click on the “Camp” link at www.couragecenter.org.
