Now in its second edition, this popular text explores classrooms where technology and critical literacies are woven into childhood curricula and teaching. Using real-world stories, it addresses what ICTs afford critical literacy with young children, and how new technologies can be positioned to engage in meaningful and authentic learning. Concise but comprehensive, the text provides strategies, theoretical frameworks, demonstrations of practice, and resources for teachers. Updated with discussions of media literacy and new pedagogical tools, the second edition features new classroom examples and experiences that highlight the ways in which critical literacy, technology and media literacy come together in everyday life in the early childhood classroom. The inviting examples model how to use the interests and inquiry questions of young learners as a springboard for creating a critical curriculum. Each chapter includes Reflection Points, pedagogical invitations, and Resource Boxes to imagine new possibilities of working with students in engaging and supportive ways. The inspiring stories, guidance, and tools this book make it a great resource for pre-service teachers and students in Early Childhood Education and Literacy Education, and primary teachers and educators.

Through stories from kindergarten to sixth grade classrooms where students and teachers have attempted to put a critical edge on their teaching, this book shows critical literacy in action across the curriculum. Readers see students and teachers together using critical literacy discourse to frame conversations in ways that engage students in examining the meaning of the texts they read and acting on local and global social issues that emerge. Drawing on multiple perspectives such as cross-curricular explorations, multimedia, and child-centered inquiry pedagogies, the text features a theoretical toolkit; demonstrations from across the content areas including art, music, and media literacy; integration of technology; and attention to how critical literacy can inform decisions about standards and assessment. Annotated booklists, examples of students' work, Reflection Questions, Try This (practical classroom strategies), and Resource Boxes can be used to encourage and support engaging in critical literacy work in different areas of the curriculum.

Now in its second edition, this popular text explores classrooms where technology and critical literacies are woven into childhood curricula and teaching. Using real-world stories, it addresses what ICTs afford critical literacy with young children, and how new technologies can be positioned to engage in meaningful and authentic learning. Concise but comprehensive, the text provides strategies, theoretical frameworks, demonstrations of practice, and resources for teachers. Updated with discussions of media literacy and new pedagogical tools, the second edition features new classroom examples and experiences that highlight the ways in which critical literacy, technology and media literacy come together in everyday life in the early childhood classroom. The inviting examples model how to use the interests and inquiry questions of young learners as a springboard for creating a critical curriculum. Each chapter includes Reflection Points, pedagogical invitations, and Resource Boxes to imagine new possibilities of working with students in engaging and supportive ways. The inspiring stories, guidance, and tools this book make it a great resource for pre-service teachers and students in Early Childhood Education and Literacy Education, and primary teachers and educators.

In this innovative and engaging text, Vivian Maria Vasquez draws on her own classroom experience to demonstrate how issues raised from everyday conversations with pre-kindergarten children can be used to create an integrated critical literacy curriculum over the course of one school year. The strategies presented are solidly grounded in relevant theory and research. The author describes how she and her students negotiated a critical literacy curriculum; shows how they dealt with particular social and cultural issues and themes; and shares the insights she gained as she attempted to understand what it means to frame ones teaching from a critical literacy perspective. New in the 10th Anniversary Edition New section: "Getting Beyond Prescriptive Curricula, the Mandated Curriculum, and Core Standards" New feature: "Critical Reflections and Pedagogical Suggestions" at the end of the demonstration chaptesr New Appendices: "Resources for Negotiating Critical Literacies" and "Alternate Possibilities for Conducting an Audit Trail" Companion Website: narratives of ways in which the audit trail has been used as a tool for teaching and learning; resources on critical literacy including links to other websites and blogs; podcast focused on critical literacy and young children

How can teacher educators engage pre-service and in-service teachers in learning about and framing their teaching from a critical literacy perspective? What does this mean? Why is it important? To address these questions, this book offers a theoretical framework and detailed examples, pedagogical resources, and insights into ways to build critical literacies with teachers in and out of school. Its unique contribution is to bridge critical literacy theory and teacher education. Participants in teacher education programs and professional development settings are often reminded of the need to build curriculum using children's inquiry questions, passions and interests but generally this message is delivered only through telling (lectures) or showing (examples from other people's classrooms). This book advances critical literary by explaining and illustrating how teacher educators can do much more-by creating opportunities for pre-service and in-service teachers to "live critical literacies" through experiencing firsthand what it is like to be a learner where the curriculum is built around teachers' own inquiry questions, passions, and interests.

Because high-level comprehension cannot be divorced from wide-ranging texts To be literate is to think through multiple perspectives, exploring diverse texts, and using the power of story to give students the life skills to discuss just about anything with critical curiosity. Critical Comprehension transforms this vital work into an accessible, three-step lesson process. Using picture books, multimodal texts, and thoughtfully framed questions, each differentiated lesson expands students’ understanding of a text through: First read: the "movie read", during which the text is read without interruption Second read: The teacher poses questions that probe deeper meanings through interaction with the text to summarize, name and highlight issues, analyze and infer, to make more informed decisions about what to believe and what to question. Third read: Harnessing students’ curiosities, the class revisits the text to talk back to theme, symbols, central idea, or social, cultural, historical influences at work on author and audience Popular media, classic novels, breaking news — the world’s content is ready for students to absorb. But are we ready to help them read it well? Equipped with this resource, the answer is, Yes, we are.

How can teacher educators engage pre-service and in-service teachers in learning about and framing their teaching from a critical literacy perspective? What does this mean? Why is it important? To address these questions, this book offers a theoretical framework and detailed examples, pedagogical resources, and insights into ways to build critical literacies with teachers in and out of school. Its unique contribution is to bridge critical literacy theory and teacher education. Participants in teacher education programs and professional development settings are often reminded of the need to build curriculum using children's inquiry questions, passions and interests but generally this message is delivered only through telling (lectures) or showing (examples from other people's classrooms). This book advances critical literary by explaining and illustrating how teacher educators can do much more-by creating opportunities for pre-service and in-service teachers to "live critical literacies" through experiencing firsthand what it is like to be a learner where the curriculum is built around teachers' own inquiry questions, passions, and interests.

Through stories from kindergarten to sixth grade classrooms where students and teachers have attempted to put a critical edge on their teaching, this book shows critical literacy in action across the curriculum. Readers see students and teachers together using critical literacy discourse to frame conversations in ways that engage students in examining the meaning of the texts they read and acting on local and global social issues that emerge. Drawing on multiple perspectives such as cross-curricular explorations, multimedia, and child-centered inquiry pedagogies, the text features a theoretical toolkit; demonstrations from across the content areas including art, music, and media literacy; integration of technology; and attention to how critical literacy can inform decisions about standards and assessment. Annotated booklists, examples of students' work, Reflection Questions, Try This (practical classroom strategies), and Resource Boxes can be used to encourage and support engaging in critical literacy work in different areas of the curriculum.

In this innovative and engaging text, Vivian Maria Vasquez draws on her own classroom experience to demonstrate how issues raised from everyday conversations with pre-kindergarten children can be used to create an integrated critical literacy curriculum over the course of one school year. The strategies presented are solidly grounded in relevant theory and research. The author describes how she and her students negotiated a critical literacy curriculum; shows how they dealt with particular social and cultural issues and themes; and shares the insights she gained as she attempted to understand what it means to frame ones teaching from a critical literacy perspective. New in the 10th Anniversary Edition New section: "Getting Beyond Prescriptive Curricula, the Mandated Curriculum, and Core Standards" New feature: "Critical Reflections and Pedagogical Suggestions" at the end of the demonstration chaptesr New Appendices: "Resources for Negotiating Critical Literacies" and "Alternate Possibilities for Conducting an Audit Trail" Companion Website: narratives of ways in which the audit trail has been used as a tool for teaching and learning; resources on critical literacy including links to other websites and blogs; podcast focused on critical literacy and young children