Creating literate children

PM Benchmark gives teachers the tools to assess and record students’ current reading and comprehension abilities. Once levels are established, resources can be selected to develop the following key literacy skills:

• Oral Literacy: PM Oral Literacy provides essential skills and strategies needed to become confident speakers and effective listeners; PM Sounds in Words, PM Alphabet Starters and PM Alphabet Blends unlock phonological awareness
• Reading: PM Starters, PM Stars, PM Gems, PM Photo Stories, PM Science Facts, PM Early Chapters, PM Shared, PM Plus and PM Library provide levelled fiction and non-fiction texts to develop children’s reading and comprehension skills over a gentle progression of finely graded levels.
• Writing: PM Writing explicitly links reading to writing.

Also supporting successful literacy development:

• PM Big Books encourage shared reading and class discussion
• PM Teachers’ Guides for all PM series to assist teachers in maximising the potential of classroom resources
• PM Software to add digital interactivity to developing literacy skills and provide teachers with options in lesson delivery.

The Digital Classroom

The award-winning PM eCollection has arrived in the digital classroom to re-imagine guided and independent reading for the digital age. Young digital learners will recognise recurring characters and discover all-time favourite PM titles in a format that employs interactive educational tools to enhance their learning experience. It comprises:

• PM eCollection app, a free download specially designed to store the PM eBooks and guide students through the reading experience; features functions such as audio, recording, editing, drawing and adding notes
• PM eCollection eBooks, a selection of levelled PM readers redesigned for digital compatibility, while retaining the same pedagogical underpinnings and scaffolded support as the print books
• PM eCollection website, a unique tool for teachers that allows planning, management and assessment functionality.

The PM eCollection was the joint winner in the Primary Student Resource: English category in the Educational Publishing Awards in 2014.

The PM Philosophy

Every book in each PM series has been shaped to support these twin tenets:

• Children learn to read well if they are encouraged to use a variety of skills, processes and behaviours, rather than one particular method or approach.
• When children are learning to read they should be given materials that have been carefully crafted to meet their needs – books that give them, from their earliest experiences with the printed word, success, enjoyment and understanding.

The particular needs of young children are uppermost in the minds of authors, editors, designers, illustrators and publishers when contributing to the PM series. As such, the PM philosophy is always a priority when developing PM resources. 

What makes the PMs the most successful levelled reading program?

• Careful levelling: all PMs have been meticulously levelled to ensure there is a gentle learning gradient.
• New word introduction: new high-frequency words are introduced slowly and are then reinforced in books at the same and succeeding levels.
• Close text and illustration match: the illustrations and photographs in the PMs help children to interpret the story and derive meaning from the text.
• Story structure: the PMs hook children into reading with child-centred stories and the classic story structure of character introduction, problem introduction, rising tension and a satisfactory resolution.
• High-interest non-fiction topics: designed to spark interest and enthusiasm in reading non-fiction, the PMs focus on topics that are child-centred with clear and logical presentation of facts with stunning illustrations and photography.

Extend your PM Library collection with the PM Orange, Turquoise, Purple, Gold, Silver, Emerald, Ruby and Sapphire levelled books and Guided Reading Card Box Sets.

Each colour level features 20 new titles – 10 at each numerical level – comprising a combination of fiction and non-fiction texts.

The PM Orange to Sapphire books:

• support the Australian Curriculum and can be used as resources for implementation
• represent all the standard text types: recount, narrative, information report, procedure, description, discussion, exposition and response, as well as poetry and plays
• contain a subtle thematic link to a Guided Reading Card (PM Orange to Silver) to reinforce and extend understanding of themes covered
• increase in word count and pages in line with progression of students' reading age, for appropriate literacy skill development.

The PM Guided Reading Card Box Sets with Digital Cards:

The PM Guided Reading Card Box Sets feature illustrated fiction and non-fiction texts including all the standard text types. Literal, inferential, comprehension and applied knowledge questions are presented on the back of each card. There are 6 copies of each card per box.

The PM Orange – Silver Guided Reading Card Box Sets contain 20 four-page cards – 10 at each numerical level – each exploring a thematic link to a guided reading book.

The PM Emerald – Sapphire Guided Reading Card Box sets contain 10 six-page cards– 5 at each numerical level.

Each card box set contains a CD-ROM with digital versions of each card for use on computers, tablets and interactive whiteboards.

To view our PM videos, please visit: www.nelsonprimary.com.au/videosonline