Standard One: Literacy, Numeracy, and Interdisciplinary Teaching

Teaching literacy is the reason that I chose this profession. Coming from a family of

writers and readers, I witness constantly the importance of these skills. As I continued to move

through the licensure program at Colorado State, I also began to realize how crucial it is to

incorporate a variety of skillseven those not at all related to literacy. As I got comfortable in

my classroom during my student teaching experience, I was able to plan numerous cross-

disciplinary lesson plans, to build well-rounded instruction that met the needs of all students.

Incorporating literacy into my classroom was easy considering my content. In every

lesson, I attempted to allow student to practice multiple types of literacy: writing, reading and

speaking. I also incorporated a new skill into some lessons: digital literacy. Looking through

websites with students and analyzing credibility, the students were able to practice practical skills

that are becoming more and more important in todays world. Although I struggled with

incorporating numeracy into the classroom, as the semester progressed I began to seek out

opportunities to add this skill to my lessons. While reading Shakespeares The Merchant of

Venice, students completed an activity regarding usury, and calculating how much money would

be owed after specific periods of time and with what interest. This allowed the students to relate

better with the situation of the protagonist, all while getting an understanding of Venetian usury

culture and practicing numeracy. The students also gained a historical perspective through many

lessons in my classroom. Prior to reading The Merchant of Venice, students researched a variety

of subjects related to Venetian culture and presented in small groups to their peers. Becoming

familiar with the audience that Shakespeare had for his plays allowed the students to better

understand and appreciate them.

 As an educator, I feel a responsibility to create this multi-skill instruction for students.

Most students will be eventually entering career fields where they will need to preform several

different sets of skills. Integrating them into instruction is a realistic model to allow students to

make connections in their own minds. As an English teacher, I am passionate about literacy. I

believe, and research shows, that literacy is absolutely crucial to success. Having students

practice as much as possible and then seeing their tangible growth with these skills, was one of

the most rewarding aspects of my student teaching experience.