Within the Common Core State Standards (CCSS) there is a powerful new lens and shift of awareness to language. This view incorporates language in a new and
different manner for the balanced literacy classroom. Language as action along with language and learning as social cognition
and discourse are the driving forces for classroom instruction. A rising challenge is the connection of language and language
development and the important role it plays in all aspects of literacy and literacy instruction. So much so that we believe the
lens of all literacy instruction must begin with language. Halliday’s (1993) language-based theory of learning captures the idea
of making meaning as a semiotic process, i.e., the resource for making meaning is language. From this perspective, his general
theory of learning is interpreted as “learning through language.” Most importantly, the shift of instruction is now centered on all
aspects of language to inform all literacy instruction. Taking the tenets of balanced literacy and refocusing them with the lens of
language and the influence this has on instruction can be critical to implementing the CCSS. The following represents the tenet
of balanced literacy through the lens of language and a strategy to implement it:
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Professional Development and Education Consultant