Literacy Micro-courses
Note: Development of the Literacy Micro-courses is an ongoing process. Some of the micro-courses are fully available; more will be posted as they are finalized. Please keep checking back for more offerings.
User’s Guide to Literacy Micro-courses
The Literacy Micro-course collection is a professional learning tool developed by the Maine Department of Education as a resource to K-5 educators. The courses are designed specifically for teachers seeking to further their knowledge of research-based, literacy-related content and explore methods for applying that knowledge to their classroom practice. The Micro- courses combine on line reading with opportunities for discussion, video viewing, and exploration of additional web-based resources and tools.
Opportunities for Utilizing the Literacy Micro-courses
The design of the Literacy Micro-courses enables educators to use them in a variety of ways. Educators may:
- Engage in individual self-study on their own time schedule,
- Use them for group study during a workshop day or after school session,
- Form a professional learning community to engage in collective study, and/or
- Embed them as part of the content within a larger course of study.
Structure of Literacy Micro-courses
Each Literacy Micro- course is comprised of 2-4 sessions. Sessions can stand on their own, or be completed as part of the larger Micro- course. Each session is designed to take approximately 60-90 minutes to complete. The format of each session contains the following segments:
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Segment |
Purpose |
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Learning Objectives |
Identifies the content contained in the session. |
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Jumpstart Your Thinking |
Activates prior knowledge of the topic and prompt active thinking during the session |
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Exploring the Topic |
Presents the content being studied in the session |
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Applying to Practice |
Contains activities designed to help educators to learn more about the topic and to connect this learning to their practice |
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Reflections |
Provides prompts to spur reflection on personal learning that has occurred during the session. |
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Tips for Use
- Each Micro-course session can be read on-line, but can also be printed if the user prefers a hard copy.
- Web-links in the sessions are live, allowing user’s to quickly move from one activity or resource to another. If difficulty with a web-link occurs, please report it to: leeann.larsen@maine.gov or note it on the survey at the end of the session.
- A survey is provided at the end of each session and users are encouraged to complete the survey to provide feedback, to inform future Micro- course development, and to report any difficulties with web-links.
- Due to the on-line nature of the Micro-courses, and the intent for individuals and/or collective groups of educators to use them on their own time schedule, the Maine Department of Education can not monitor use to award contact hours. Educators are encouraged to work with their local certification committees to obtain pre-approval for completing Micro-course sessions in order to obtain contact hours.
Click here for a printable version of the User's Guide. (PDF)
Webinar: Introduction to the Literacy Micro-courses (Originally presented 1/11/12)
Audio/visual guide to the micro-courses, presented by Lee Anne Larsen, Literacy Specialist at the Maine Department of Education.
Click here to view this presentation. (Flash* / Approximately 51 minutes)
Tell us what you think. When you have completed each session, help us in our development of relevant, meaningful professional development materials by taking a brief online survey.
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4/9/12
