Teacher Books Transform Literacy Efforts

Even now as an adult, Elvis Gabriel Choc distinctly remembers first grade. 

Like most children in Guatemala, he had arrived at school with little to no preparation for the tasks ahead of him.

He was overwhelmed and scared. School — that almost myth-like place that everyone talked about — had the potential to be a miserable experience for him. 

If he had stayed in the first classroom he was placed in, that might have been the outcome. The teacher there has earned the not-so-affection title of “the dragon” in Elvis’ memories of those early school days. 

Fortunately, Elvis was able to get reassigned to a new classroom with a different teacher whom he now refers to as “the princess.” 

“I still remember (her) fondly for patiently helping me learn to read and write,” Elvis recently told us. 

Now a teacher who plans to use GLXi’s Open Books, Open Minds curriculum to reach scared younger versions of himself, Elvis is determined to help students find the same success that he did in school. 

That inner drive, propelled by childhood memories, comes to life in the book he wrote for his graduation project as part of GLXi’s 2022 teacher training cycle: “My Teacher is a Dragon.”

Inspiring Students Through Literacy

“The book, ‘Mi maestra es un dragón’ (My Teacher is a Dragon) is inspired by my experiences as a 7-year-old boy who didn’t have the opportunity to attend school before first grade, just like most children in Guatemala who arrived at school with little or no preparation,” Elvis told us.

“This book is a reminder for teachers on the importance of respecting the humanity of each of our students and understanding what it means for a child to arrive for the first time in a new environment, which often may appear hostile, and to consider how we view children's problems to help them with their learning.”

Elvis specifically designed his book for first-grade readers, to make it easier for them to identify with the message. It is a straightforward story, he says, but full of illustrations to help engage and explain the concepts to his young readers. 

His digital book was one of many that warmed our hearts and inspired us as we reviewed the teacher training projects submitted by this past year’s class of graduating teachers.

The project allowed the teachers to use the knowledge acquired during their training in creating the books, and will also expand upon a wide virtual library available to all of our GLXi teachers for use in the classroom.

The stories created by the teachers are unique, and cover a range of age-appropriate themes for 1st through 3rd graders. The digital format allows teachers to project them on the wall or a screen during guided reading, to arouse curiosity and emotions in their students. 

Virtual Training Leads to Virtual Learning

By the end of 2020, GLXi realized that it needed a fast but well-constructed shift in its teacher training program, along with a transformation in how the “Open Books, Open Minds” curriculum was delivered to students.

This was necessary to sustain the program not only through the pandemic, but beyond. The adapted “Open Books, Open Minds” Teaching Fellowship was piloted in 2021, and continued through 2022 with this latest teacher training cycle. 

Essential to the Teaching Fellowship model was providing the teachers with a continuous and collaborative support network, with weekly engagement that prepared teachers to instruct virtually, using tools such as PowerPoint, Google Classroom, and other educational apps.

The training showed the teachers how to prepare recorded, virtual lessons for their students, use digital content, write short stories around vocabulary words, and use apps creatively to engage their students. 

The culmination of this was the graduation project, which asked teachers to use all they had learned in creating a digital book for their students. The teachers used the Canva design program to design their short stories and illustrations. 

We asked the teachers to adhere to four important frameworks when creating their books: 

 1.      “Play is the golden rule”  In children's stories, it is necessary to play with their curiosity to promote learning effectively.

2.      “Age is important”  We need to use age-appropriate vocabulary and language in the story to make it easily comprehensible.

3.      "Define the world where the story takes place as creative thinking" This allows children to fantasize, rethink reality, and use their imagination.

4.      "Invite all the senses"  Use sensory verbs with the story and encourage students to use their imagination.

We can’t wait to share more of these teacher books in the weeks and months ahead. All, we can promise, are just as enjoyable and engaging as the one that Elvis wrote. 

And stay tuned for pictures and videos from our teacher graduation ceremony! All of this and more will be shared on our Inside GLXi blog, our GLXi Days newsletter, and our social media pages.