Story Based Literacy is one of my favorite things to teach! What is it? It’s exactly what it sounds like- using grade
level texts to teach literacy. Students without
disabilities need to be able to access age appropriate literature. This
increases reading interest, reading skills, and the understanding of literacy
components that are required by the state standards. Students with disabilities do not have the
same opportunities to access literature because their reading level is well
below their peers. SBL provides access to age appropriate literature, in turn
building on the all of the above skills.
Here are just a few of the skills you can teach through Story Based Literacy-
- Demonstrate print concepts (title, author, turning
page, following along, etc.)
- Answer WH questions
- Identify characters, setting and events (plot)
- Identify main idea of the chapter or text
- Summarize the chapter or text
- Compare print to video/ understand similarities
and differences
There are many components to literacy instruction. This is what it looks like in my classroom.
Day 1
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Introduce vocabulary and story elements, add story elements and vocab to interactive notebook or story board
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Day 2
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Review vocabulary, read chapter, test vocabulary
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Day 3
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Read chapter, ask comprehension & story element questions
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Day 4
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Complete interactive notebook summary, test vocabulary
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Day 5
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Assessment and activity
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I focus on the following components.
Vocabulary-
I choose 2-3 words per chapter. The words that I focus on are words that my
students will hear and come across on a regular basis. I like to choose words
that repeat themselves throughout the chapter or book. I explicitly teach the vocabulary, and then
my students complete a vocab activity on their level. Every 3-5 chapters, we do a vocabulary review,
like BINGO.

Comprehension- Because
we read the chapter several times throughout the week, I can really focus on
student comprehension. I set a monthly
comprehension focus for each student based on their instructional level. Some
students work on yes/no questions while others may be working on main idea questions. I create a chapter communication board with
characters, settings, vocabulary and answers to possible comprehension questions. For my students who need limited choices or
use eye gaze, I create flash cards with the same pictures that are on the
communication board. I record
comprehension data once weekly for each student.
Repeated Line- A
repeated line essentially tells the main idea of the chapter. It’s a way to get
all of my students involved in the reading. I use recordable buzzers (affiliate link) for my
non-verbal students and a visual for my verbal students. As we read, I signal to the students and they
say the repeated line.
Writing- Another
important component of literacy instruction is writing. It’s easy to implement a weekly writing prompt
related to the chapter. I’ve also done interactive
notebooks in the past, and each week students write a sentence, or paragraph,
that summarizes the chapter. For my
students who are unable to write, I use cut and paste sentences, or alternative
pencils.
Activity- My
favorite part of SBL is being able to integrate other subject areas through
weekly activities. Each week, I find a cooking,
science, or social studies activity that ties into the chapter.