Webbing into Literacy (WIL) is a FREE, downloadable program.
Previously housed at the University of Virginia, WIL is used all over the English speaking world, by classroom teachers and home-schooling parents. WIL began in a "best practices" study conducted by Dr. Laura B. Smolkin, a University of Virginia literacy professor (now happily retired), serving at that time as a principal investigator in the national Center for the Improvement of Early Reading Achievement.
The web of Webbing into Literacy carries 3 distinct but related meanings.
1. Web refers to the World Wide Web, without which we would be unable to offer this program to so many teachers and parents.
2. As you can see when you come to the WIL site, web calls to mind Miss Muffett and her spider, reinforcing the important role that nursery rhymes play in WIL's Rhyme-A-Week program. Many teachers and parents consider A-Rhyme-A-Week to be the heart of the WIL curriculum.
3. Perhaps most important of all, we at WIL are committed to weaving a web to support children's school success. School success cannot be attributed to one single factor; instead, there are many fine threads that, when woven together, provide the support children need.
Threads that matter to us at WIL are: caring teachers, strong instruction, and involved, active families. WIL stresses a developmentally appropriate, balanced approach to literacy instruction; it provides teachers with guidance and suggestions for literacy development both in the classroom and at home.