Content-Area Literacy

With the implementation of literacy standards within the content areas, teachers are more aware than ever of the importance of domain-specific reading and writing strategies. What used to be “writing across the curriculum” is now content-area or disciplinary literacy.

Content-area literacy allows students to think on paper—something everyone needs to do in order to grapple with information that is new or different. As William Zinsser put it so well: “Writing and learning and thinking are the same process.” Those who encourage subject-area writing value writing as a method for learning. They recognize the need for literacy within every subject area.

To help teachers across the disciplines, I’ve developed a cheat-sheet full of practical writing options. All provide opportunities for students to use domain-specific words in creative written formats. The Content-Area Literacy card can be purchased at The Literacy Store.