Balanced Literacy

What is balanced literacy? I have taken the first part of our course in Balanced Literacy since my school will be implementing it this year. Balanced Literacy reminds me alot of the way I taught 10 years ago; centers in my first grade classroom, along with small reading groups. After doing an extensive amount of research, I've come to realize that the term Balanced Literacy is being used most often with the Reading/Language Arts component of teaching and learning, but it is also a way to integrate content areas and reading. Balanced Literacy is a philosophy, a cohesive approach to teaching literacy. It combines language and literature-rich activities, and explicit teaching of skills. I am looking forward to our exploration into Balanced Literacy. Following are resources I've found useful throughout my research.
Metropolitan School District of Pike Township
wresa.org
methuen.k12.ma.us
busyteacherscafe.com