Cross Curricular Literacy (K-12)

Literacy is the ability to understand, critically analyze, and create a variety of communication forms, including oral, written, visual, digital, and multimedia, to accomplish one’s goals.

Literate students can make meaning from text and express themselves in a variety of modes; they are able to comprehend, make connections, critically analyze, as well as create texts and communicate for a variety of purposes.

On this page:

K-12 Cross Curricular Literacy Learning Progressions

The K-12 Cross Curricular Learning Progressions outline a continuum of proficiency in Literacy from kindergarten to Grade 12. They describe proficient cross curricular skills linked to the Core Competencies (thinking, communication and personal social skills) which can be developed and practiced in all learning areas, and across all grade levels. In some cases, skill development occurs over multiple grades, although learning area content increases in complexity. 

The K-12 Cross Curricular Learning Progressions were developed in collaboration with a team of BC teachers from across the province. The teacher team members piloted the use of the K-12 Cross Curricular Learning Progressions in their own classrooms and documented their instruction, student work, and assessment in Teaching and Learning Stories found below. These Teaching and Learning Stories illustrate how the teachers purposefully incorporated the development of cross curricular literacy and numeracy thinking, in support of the curricular competencies:

K-12 Literacy Curricular Connections

The Curricular Connections are a collection of learning opportunities developed by K-12 teachers in various learning areas. They show how aspects of literacy connect and support students’ development of curricular competencies across different areas of learning. The Curricular Connections are intended to provided teachers with examples of how to incorporate literacy into their classroom teaching and learning opportunities. While teachers are not expected to implement the specific activities, they do provide examples and demonstrate how teachers across the province are working to develop their students’ literacy skills in support of the learning standards of the curriculum. 

View the curricular connections:

K-12 Cross Curricular Literacy Teaching and Learning Stories

Some of the most meaningful professional learning comes from connecting with colleagues. These Teaching and Learning Stories come from teachers from across British Columbia. Teachers from various learning areas and grades wanted to share examples of how they incorporated literacy into their planning, instruction, and classroom assessment processes, and show off their success.

The Teaching and Learning Stories were developed by teachers to share their experiences in using the K-12 Learning Progressions to support student growth in literacy through their planning, teaching, and assessment. The Teaching and Learning Stories also include examples of proficient student work and the teacher’s reflection as to why the work is assessed as proficient. Teachers have also included additional reflections on the learning opportunity and/or how they used the BC Learning Pathways to support their planning, teaching, and assessment processes.  

The stories here represent some of the wide variety of teaching and learning happening in BC schools: teaching styles such as inquiry, outdoor education, self-assessment and reflection, play- and game-based learning, place-based learning and community service. Teachers were able to assess and collect evidence of student learning and provide student-centered, strength-based feedback on competency and content development. We hope that these stories inspire personalization to your context.

We thank the teachers, students, and families who provided their stories and examples of teaching and learning in our province.

Teaching and Learning Stories

Kindergarten to Grade 3

Grades 4 - 9

Grades 10 – 12