New Literacies My graphic organizer for new literacies is organized in a circular design with three layers.

The center of the chart includes 21st century literacy as well as ICT or information, communications, and technology, literacy. These two are very similar to each other in that they are very broad. I feel like all of the literacies on the chart are part of the skill set that is necessary for our students to have in todays society. Even though some of the literacies we still use were around before the 21st century, they are still a part of the skill set we teach today. On the next layer are digital literacy, media literacy, and information literacy. These three are not quite as expansive as 21st century literacy, but are still quite inclusive of other literacies. They are all connected in both directions because they all feed off of each other. For example, you can obtain better media literacy using skills from digital literacy, improve information literacy from both media and digital literacies, or work on digital literacy by using your information literacy skills, etc. From information literacy is a list of subject specific literacies including basic literacy, civic literacy, health literacy, environmental literacy, cultural literacy, scientific literacy, and mathematical literacy. These are all obtained by using the information literacy skills that are necessary to learn about each subject. Off of digital literacy, we have both social media literacy and computer literacy. Both of these are directly related to digital literacy. They are also connected in both directions as they relate to each other, as well. Visual literacy branches off of media literacy because an image is usually relayed by some sort of media. I also have arrows connecting the outside layer of literacies because they are also interconnected. Visual images can be seen on a computer or technology tool or on a social network. Any of the subject literacies can also have information in a visual format, social network connection, or computer. Overall, when I look at all the literacies on the list, they are truly all interconnected and are all necessary for our students to have an all encompassing knowledge of the world around them. 21st Century Literacy The ability to develop aptitude in the use of technological tools, share information in a global environment, manage multiple streams of information concurrently, and maintain ethical responsibility while doing so. *Students using technology like netbooks, iPads, iPod touches, ActivBoards, etc. to accentuate a lesson. A good Web 2.0 resource to use for accenting an art lesson would be Tate Learning. It is a site that has a ton of information that can be found by resource type, artist, keyword, or age group.

ICT (Information, Communications and Technology) Literacy The ability to use technology to research, organize, evaluate, and share information effectively. *Students using technology to research a project and sharing the project via email with their teacher or classmates. A great tool to use for sharing projects like documents, presentations, or graphs is Google Docs. It is very simple to use and has a lot of options. Digital Literacy The ability to locate, analyze, and then organize information using various forms of digital technology. *Students using multiple technology resources to complete research on a topic. A tool on the web that is a really neat resource for information is WatchKnowLearn. It has numerous videos that can be viewed by students to accent lessons. The range of topics that are covered on this site is vast. Students can also explore this site on their own. Media Literacy The ability to use critical thinking skills to evaluate and, in turn, create messages in a variety of media formats. *Students using various forms of media such as books and technology to formulate opinions and share them via writing, typing, podcast, or video. A great site that is simple to use is Animoto. Students could use photos and video clips and set them to music to create a video to go with writing. Information Literacy The ability to know when there is a need for information and to be able to identify, locate, evaluate, and effectively use that information for the matter at hand. *Students recognizing that they need more information on a subject and using materials and resources at hand to find the information needed. If students are overwhelmed by the amount of resources, a good tool for them to use is The Ultimate Research Assistant. It searches your topic using the internet or other filters like only educational sites or U.S. National Archives. This limits the amount of information that is not useful for your students.

Computer Literacy The ability to efficiently and effectively use computers and related technology for learning and communication purposes. *Students using various forms of technology for research and communication with other students and teachers to gain further knowledge on a subject. One of the tools that could be used for research is Xtimeline. It allows you to search for a timeline on a certain subject or person or create your own timeline and upload it. Social Media Literacy The ability to use social networks such as Facebook, Twitter, Google+, Instagram, etc. or create a blog to network and communicate information with others *Students using social networks for communicate with other students or teachers or using the networks to form groups for civic opportunities. Blogger is a great website to create a blog because it is very user friendly. Students would have no problem creating an education blog using this tool. Literacy The ability to gain knowledge and communicate through the written word. *Students reading from books, other students writings, or from a technological application for knowledge and additionally, writing or typing about the topic. Storybird is a super cool website that allows students to create their own picture book on the web. The site has artwork that students can choose from or they can create their own. They can then add stories to the books. Civic Literacy The act of participating in civic life and the opportunities that are available in local, state, national, and global governments and recognizing the effects of these actions and the decisions made. *Students participating and experiencing civic activities in the community in which they live. A nice introduction to government history is through the White House 101 website which is especially for kids! Health Literacy The ability to find and use quality information to make suitable health decisions, as well as, the ability to understand public health and safety issues. *Students learning about proper hygiene and maintaining healthy habits to ensure good health for themselves and those around them. Kids Health is a great site for kids to explore all things body and health related. There are many interactive

activities to get them interested in taking care of their health. Environmental Literacy The ability to seek knowledge and understanding of societys impact on the natural world and then taking action toward addressing the challenges found. *Students researching plants that would benefit the environment in their area and planting a garden to directly improve the atmosphere in which they live. Eco Kids is Earth Day Canadas website for kids to teach about the environment and nature. There are lots of activities, games, and articles to teach kids about how they can do their part. Cultural Literacy The ability to appreciate and understand the customs, values, and beliefs of various cultures throughout the world. *Students researching their own background as well as different cultures and analyzing similarities and differences. Addictomatic is a tool that can be used to get multiple resources on one culture. It searches and organizes the information by source. Scientific Literacy The ability to understand and process scientific concepts and processes and apply them to real life situations. *Students applying the scientific method to a theory they present and either proving or disproving it through the correct process. Brain Pop Science is a neat website that has short animated videos on many science topics. Brain Pop has many other subjects, as well. Mathematical Literacy The ability to apply mathematical knowledge, methods, and processes in ways that help solve problems in real world applications. *Students taking their mathematical knowledge learned in class and applying that knowledge to real world situations that they may encounter outside of school. Chartle is a website that could be used to graph or chart information found in mathematic tests. Visual Literacy The ability to interpret, evaluate, and make sense of information that has been conveyed in the form of an image.

*Students comparing and contrasting two works of art and interpreting the artists method and motivation for the artwork. Google Art Project is a really neat site that allows you to visit 17 different museums from around the world. The coolest part about this site is the zoom ability and the high resolution of the artwork. It is great for evaluating and comparing how different artists styles varied or were similar.

Resources: http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=endscreen&v=Wn0_H-kvxkU&NR=1 This video shows interviews with various teachers discussing what literacy means in the 21st Century. I found it very interesting because they all had different ideas of what that looks like. Some of them do not think that literacy needs to be redefined while others felt very strongly that it should be edited. I feel like after all of us have our graphic organizers posted, there will not be a single one that is the same as another because we all bring our own experiences to the table. We likely share some of the same viewpoints, but our views on what is the most basic or important literacy is surely different. http://www.p21.org/index.php This is a link for the Partnership for 21st Century Skills website. At Delaware, we have used this as a resource many times in constructing curriculum maps that work with Indianas State Standards, beginning to incorporate Core Standards, and integrating technology into our teaching. We also use the resources they provide on the site to help distinguish important literacies that we may not have thought of on our own. http://www.p21.org/storage/documents/P21_Framework_Definitions.pdf This is the Partnership for 21st Century Skills Definitions for the framework of the program. It includes many of the literacy types that are commonly heard of and a few that are not as familiar, such as civic, health and environmental literacy. It breaks down the format for 21st Century Skills that are exceptionally important for students today. This is a great document to look at to ensure that, as a teacher, you are truly preparing your students for all of the situations that they will likely encounter in the real world.