In this class we discussed the debates around invented spelling, and the whole language/phonics/phonemic awareness approach to teaching reading. We also watched a video,
What Children Need in Order to Read, narrated by Marilyn Jager Adams. Our lecture introduced the stages of reading after phonemic awareness: decoding/word identification, fluency and comprehension. We then got into groups to brainstorm some activities connected to teaching the various stages, although we found many activities can be multilevel. Then as a class we compiled a master list. Hopefully by linking activities with strategies everyone now has a better idea of the variety of choices available when teaching reading, especially understanding which ones may work well with visual, auditory, kinesthetic, etc. kinds of learners.
For our next class, please bring in (if possible) your favourite children's book (or YA/teen book). We will share authors and titles, and discuss why the book was so important to us and how we might use it in a classroom.
Have a great week. Go Canucks!
This class taught me a lot about the different stages of literacy, which I had taken for granted as someone who has read fluently for years. Teaching fluency can easily be cross-curricular. I would argue that any subject has resources that could be used to strengthen fluency. This could take a number of different forms. The teacher, for instance, can model fluency when he or she reads to the class, a small group, or an individual student. Repeated reading, moreover, is one way that fluency can be achieved. I would argue that fluency is a life skill since it not only allows students to grow into functional, literate citizens but because it is also bridges the gap between word identification and comprehension.
ReplyDeleteComprehension is perhaps the highest level of reading and thus incredibly important. Not surprisingly, its significance has cross-curricular implications. If students cannot interpret and make meaning from texts in subjects such as Social Studies or Science, they will be unable to succeed in an academic setting, particularly in the higher grades and secondary school. Comprehension, however, can be taught in a Language Arts setting before, during and after a lesson. There are a number of strategies that, if used properly, achieve this. These include KWL (Know-Wonder-Learnt), ERT (Everybody Read To..) and graphic organizers. The teacher's ability to ask meaningful questions and encourage critical thinking will also influence a student's comprehension of the text, particularly during the younger grades.
Holding Elementary Students Back
ReplyDeleteDuring our discussion on Tuesday we discussed the different rates in which children develop reading skills. We also discussed how some children may even have difficulties with literacy in highschool. My question is, when do we hold children back a grade? I noticed these days that teachers are more reluctant to hold elementary school children back a grade despite the fact that they may not be ready for the next level. Do teachers pass these children for fear that they will not be motivated and drop out? When volunteering in a classroom, I noticed that there was one student who was four years behind in his reading and writing skills. At the rate he was going, his chances of success in highschool were slim. How has this student managed to pass? This situation is quite difficult. First, the cost of a tutor is sometimes too expensive for families to afford, and second it is embarrassing and shameful for a young student to fail. There needs to be some intervention though. Students shouldn’t be slipping through the cracks and barely passing with a C- or D. Perhaps in these situations teachers make recommendations for summer school or place the student in a special program. Overall, I am of the opinion that achieving the bare minimum is not acceptable. I am of the belief that if a student is reading at a significantly lower level, he or she should be held back despite the current practice.
Making the Lesson Multi-level in Elementary
Adapting lessons is important for the purpose of catering to all our students’ needs. Our classes today are so diverse – ESL students, students with behavioural disorders, gifted students as well as struggling students. How do we adapt our lessons for the benefit of everyone? I understand that teachers can give more challenging assignments to the gifted students or organize peer groups, but I still feel that adapting lessons can be quite a challenge for the teacher. While presenting our lessons, we do not want the high achievers to get bored nor do we want the strugglers to fall behind. I noticed some schools separate their students into adapted and regular mathematics programs and I find this set up works well for the students. Would a system like this work for other subjects? Should we separate the students based on achievement for the sake of education? Imagine the outcome of placing gifted students in a more advanced class. Imagine the progress that struggling students will make in a revised program. Unfortunately, this setup could result in attaching labels to these students. Secondly, this set up will reduce the diversity in a classroom. Although some students may not be gifted in certain areas, they may have something to add and share in a classroom which a high achiever may not. So, is the answer multi-level lessons? I suppose at the elementary level adapting lessons is the best solution. Rich, gifted students have the option of being placed in special schools to enhance their abilities if necessary. Middle class or lower class students may not have this option, however there are usually advanced programs in highschool which they can attend.
Reading and Writing Process:
ReplyDeleteThe beginning of chapter four begins with a great quote by Kathy Chody that says, “Students need time to read, write, and talk to one another in order to process and consolidate their learning” (Tompkins et al., 2011, p. 113). This really resonated with me because before I started PDP I thought that talking was disruptive to the class and had to be managed. At times, it is still disruptive, but talking is such an important part of students’ learning. For example, in a “think, pair, share,” students can generate and share such great ideas with each other and they love the opportunity to talk out their thoughts. When students talk with each other, they can work through some ideas that might have been challenging them and they can expand upon their friends’ ideas. Talking is a great starting point for writing because when students discuss their plans for writing with each other then the creative juices begin to flow. This quote also reminded me of the ever-important idea of “wait time.” While I was teaching my 401/402 practicum I became acquainted with “wait time” and realized the importance of giving students the extra time to read, write, and discuss with each other before asking them questions because each child processes at a different speed. The extra few minutes a child gets to re-read something or spend time working on their writing or discussing something really solidifies the learning taking place.
Gender Differences in Reading and Writing:
The textbook discussed how boys read far less than girls, which I think is something that needs to be addressed. Boys’ interests need to be recognized and valued in the classroom and it is so important to have the class library stocked with books that cater to both boys’ and girls’ interests. In the writing process boys’ creative ideas can be encouraged by providing choice. I did a story writing unit with my grade three class and when we wrote about developing characters I provided a worksheet that got the boys excited to write. The boys in the class were very athletically inclined and loved hockey so one picture they could write about was of a hockey player. Most boys chose the hockey player to write about and generated some great character descriptions. Similarly during shared reading time the students were able to write their own little books and the boys got together to write hockey books all the time. They were engaged and excited about literacy. The girls’ interests were also valued and the classroom environment was very welcoming to reading and writing.
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ReplyDeleteIncreasing comprehension
ReplyDeleteDuring class on Tuesday we discussed the stages of reading, one of them being comprehension. As a teacher I think that it is important to guide the students reading in order to increase the comprehension of material. According to Tompkins et al. (2011) if teachers begin by stressing a purpose for reading student comprehension will increase. Teachers should provide motivation, offer strategies to monitor reading and guide students through reading to help them focus on relevant information and connect what they are reading to their previous knowledge. After setting a purpose I think that teachers should go over how to plan to read. This is a whole lesson on its own. Teaching students to look for titles, headings, illustrations, diagrams, charts and modeling how to identify key terms within their reading will help them comprehend the material much quicker than if they were not taught these skills. During my practical experience in a grade 6/7 class it was apparent that students lacked the skill of pulling out important information from text, which was concerning. After teaching identification and reading skills many of the students were relieved.
Reading
I appreciated the section in the textbook on reading as it gave examples of the five types of reading. I often used all of these reading types in my classroom during my practicum, but had never learned about the benefits of each. There are two points that I would like to share. First, I believe that students of any age enjoy being read to so I think that reading aloud should be included within each day. I often read mini-stories aloud if we had extra time in class. Furthermore, I used Adrienne Gear’s reading program that includes the teacher reading a book aloud to the class. Through the program students begin to understand and recognize the strategies that they are using while reading. Some of the strategies include making connections, visualizing, and predicting. It is a fun program and students really do begin to understand the strategies of reading. Second, I want to bring up the topic of independent reading. Tompkins et al. (2011) state that this is a great way for students to find a love for reading and that the material should be at the child’s reading level. During independent reading I allowed my students to choose their own reading material, but I often found that some students were choosing material either way above or below their reading level. When I addressed them their responses included “I like the pictures” or “what I can read from it is interesting”. I believe that they should be able to choose their reading material during this time, but is it ever appropriate to intervene?
Oral Language and Literacy
ReplyDeleteThe topic this week has got my mind taken up with a new recognition of how we teach people literacy. When it is the case of teaching kids reading and writing, we use the language they know, to support and teach the writing and reading. In the case of teaching students a new language (i.e. going to Japan to teach English), you use the students’ literacy—their knowledge that symbols represent sounds and in some cases, what sounds are represented by what symbols—to support and teach the new language. In either direction that you work in, oral language and reading/writing are intimately tied together in a relationship where one enables the other. The reason this fascinates me is because in the Fall, when I will be teaching both English and literacy to Sudanese children, the kids will have neither of these skills or sets of knowledge. Such a circumstance takes much of what you are able to do for teaching reading and writing normally and nullifies its usefulness. For example, using pictures of a ball, bear and baseball bat to prompt your students to identify the common first letter, requires the students to know the words for those pictures. I suppose you face the same struggles in the case with teaching kindergarten English language learners who have not yet learned reading and writing in their native tongue. It’s a curious idea of teaching language and literacy simultaneously; clearly language must come first. Any opinions or thoughts out there?
Teaching Fluency
The ways of promoting fluency that we discussed Tuesday—echo reading, choral reading, paired repeated readings, taped recordings etc.—are funny to me because as a fluent reader, they seem so repetitive and boring. My impromptu first thought is “how can we promote fluency if the means of doing so bores our students and turns them away from reading?” But of course when I consider it more, these repetitious strategies do anything but bore children; they empower, equip and encourage students to read more. It is a matter of giving kids an experience with reading where they are successful. If you’ve read a text aloud, then your students echoed you, followed by a choral reading and then paired repeated readings, those kids are going to be able to go home and feel quite confident and proud to read that text to their parents. They need the repetition—something unappealing for fluent readers—in order to be able to grow their reading skills, whether it be initial decoding or more developed expression of text.
Prewriting
ReplyDeleteThe textbook writes about the importance of prewriting in the writing process so that students can develop their ideas and topics; consider the purpose of the writing and the audience; and organize their ideas for how they want to actually write them. However, the textbook also says that prewriting is “the most neglected stage in the writing process” (page 137) and I disagree with this statement. During my practicum in a kindergarten / grade 1 class I taught writing in small groups and approximately half of each lesson was spent doing prewriting activities. For each writing activity, the students discussed their ideas and what specifically they wanted to write. We also reviewed on the board words they anticipated using and how they would organize their writing. Only after we did these things, did the students write their sentences. Because writing is such a new experience for primary students, prewriting is an integral part of the process. Because of this, I now assume that the previously mentioned statement refers to intermediate and secondary grades, and if that the case, the book should say that.
Balanced Approach
I agree with the textbook that a balanced approach to teaching reading and writing is important for students. Like with any subject, the book encourages a balance between teacher-directed instruction and learner-centered learning. It is interesting that the book includes learner-centered learning in this section because while I understand how it can be implemented in other subject areas, such as science or social studies, I have difficulty seeing how you could do a student-centered literacy lesson. Maybe an idea for this include literacy centers where the students can play with things, such as matching cards and magnetic letters, and develop their reading and writing skills independently from the teacher.
Technology improves traditional literacy?
ReplyDeleteIn our group we were discussing the merits and ills of technology: apparently, research found that texting improved some students’ writing and reading skills. We wondered why this might be – perhaps the immediacy and relevancy of the mode of communication engages the students and forces them to read and write (in abbreviated form), and this increases their interest and confidence in using traditional forms of text. Their success at communicating by texting can create the positive emotions that make them want to continue texting and might transfer to other non-oral forms of communication. The abbreviated spelling used in texting can be seen as a unique form of invented spelling or even a new language with its own conventions. Perhaps the process of abbreviating the text forces the writer to use or develop phonemic awareness (even though the vowel sounds are often dropped), and maybe this is what leads to improved reading and writing abilities. Who knows?
But automatic spelling correction technology can be another literacy helper. For myself, I prefer to use the predictive text mode, spelling words in full, as it takes less key strokes on my number pad. I do have to know how to spell the word, at least the first part, but seeing the word pop up can reinforce the correct spelling of it. Along this line, back in the days of online chat rooms and messaging, a friend commented that his spelling had really improved as he watched his message being automatically corrected on the screen in front of him – the way Word is doing to my typing right now. Maybe the automatic correct option in Word could help some students improve their spelling, (if watch the screen as they type), in contrast to the red underlining option that can slow down (or even shut down) some young writers’ creative flow.
Then there are high tech programs specifically designed to support students struggling with literacy or dealing with learning disabilities. We saw one program demonstrated in a Pro-D day that could transfer scanned text (textbooks, novels, etc.), to a digital text file (on screen) that could be spoken by the pleasant computerized voice while the corresponding text was highlighted by word or sentence. The program connected to dictionaries so any words could be looked up with a click, and allowed typed or recorded notes to be added in, etc. It was an amazing package that had most of us drooling with anticipation – but was only going to be implemented for students with significant learning disabilities, as it did have a significant cost, and was not “needed” by other students and not intended to replace the usual media of teaching and learning. (Oh right, it’s not really that healthy to be staring at a screen all day, is it?)
So who’s to say if technology is a bad thing or a good thing for developing literacy, or how?
PS - Is it just me, or does idea of having to go through the five stages of reading each time seem like it would kill the joy of reading? I can see it for improving comprehension in the classroom, and I might subconciously do some of the steps in my own reading, but it just seems really burdensome... Am I just being grumpy? Or lazy?
Re - Lin's comments & questions about combining language and literacy, for beginning ESL students:
ReplyDeleteI have the same questions for local ESL students starting Kindergarten, not already having literacy skills in their first language.
You can look into the French-Immersion programs for ideas, as that's sort of what you're dealing with. We in the China module who were in the Primary school dealt with similar issues, although we were teaching older students not in the initial learning stages. (Actually, the English immersion model used in China was based on Canada's French immersion program.)
As you said, the language has to be developed first, before literacy. We saw Grade One students learning (with TONNES of repetition) to say that when they get up in the morning, they brush their teeth, comb their hair, etc.. The students weren't writing at all from what I saw, but the appropriate text was presented. They used lots of visuals, powerpoints, songs, chants, actions while speaking, etc.
Obviously the English vocab presented has to be something they have equivalent vocabulary for in their own language and experience.
Hope those thoughts help - it will be very interesting to hear about your experiences teaching in Sudan!
Rachel wrote:
ReplyDeleteINVENTIVE SPELLING & THE USE OF COMPUTERS IN THE CLASSROOMS
I realize now how beneficial it is for early learners to let them use inventive spelling when writing simple words or sentences. As discussed in the previous class last week, inventive spelling allows children to grasp the idea of phonemic awareness such as how certain alphabets sound like and how the phonemic sounds differ when combining alphabets together to pronounce a word, for example.
In relation to the positive outcomes for implementing inventive spelling, I am curious of how teachers would promote it when using computer more and more in the future. I understand teachers are beginning to use computers more frequently in various subjects as computers provide unlimited access to useful sources that students can learn from in different curricular contents. However, if students were to write their own story on paper with invented spelling and then type the story on the word document, the computer will immediately recognize the incorrect spelling in a word or even sentence structures. Sometimes, the computer will even auto-correct the misspelled words which in turn forbids students to recognize their mistakes at all. When I was teaching grade 3 students language arts in my short practicum, for example, my students found it extremely annoying and stressful to see the red and green lines on their writing that indicated specific spelling mistakes. Does this immediate computer response help students at all for improving spelling? If I, as a teacher, were to approach to each student to help them make the red and green lines ‘disappear’, what will my students learn in spelling words ‘correctly’?
PHONEMIC AWARENESS VS. COMPREHENSION
We have been talking a lot about phonemic awareness in lectures these days which is simply about decoding words, spelling, as well as pronunciation in general. I’m aware of the significance of the phonemic awareness and how children acquire their language through reading, writing, listening, and speaking. Consequently, I am very curious about whether comprehension is something different to think about or whether comprehension occurs similarly as phonemic awareness in children. I believe children initially produce language orally but I wonder whether comprehension (understanding meaning of what has been produced) is happening at the same time when they recognize phonemic awareness or not. This is because young children may recognize the meaning of a particular object internally (cognitively) but as they actually see the written form later on in primary elementary classroom, they realize how it is represented in a combination of alphabets.
I really enjoyed discussing an analyzing the different activities and strategies that support reading skills and development. However, the reality that all educators face is that it is near impossible to effectively use each and every one of these strategies due to time constraints and our commitment to teach subjects other than Language Arts. However, one aspect of teaching that I would have liked to discuss is the intertwining of LA with other subjects. For a subject such as Science, science terms (depending on the topic studied) can be used in Word Walls, Science themed crosswords and word searches can be used and even Science themed games of Pictionary could be excellent in developing both LA and science skills. It may be impossible to use all the LA strategies discussed within a given year, but by combining these strategies with other topics, it is much more likely to be a plausible feat to accomplish.
ReplyDeleteI also wanted to briefly mention the different styles of reading discussed, Echo Reading, Choral Reading, Taped Reading and Cross Aged Tutoring. These are really significant effective approaches to fostering literary competence among students, yet they all target learning with different strategies. A student repeats dictated words in Echo Reading, Choral Reading lets student work on small pieces without being overwhelmed by large amounts of text, Taped Reading allows students to have a guide and even allow the ability to rewind and review. Finally, Cross Age tutoring allows students to articulate their thoughts and understandings. The combined use of these strategies reminds me of the phrase students learn 85% of what they see hear and Do. Therefore, I believe it is the responsibility of the teacher to ensure that students get equal exposure to each of these methods to equally develop their skills.
Reading comprehension:
ReplyDeleteI really enjoyed last week’s class as reading comprehension is so important and it is something that I have seen students struggle with at all grade levels. It was so great to brainstorm ideas that could essentially be adapted to any grade level. I do have to say that one thing that seems to be orchestrated much better in elementary school than in high school is theme-based units. I love the fact that literacy can be integrated into science, math, and socials units, especially when it comes to increasing comprehension and vocabulary in these subjects. I think the idea of “taking on a character/perspective” is one of those activities that can be used in any area of study. For example, a middle grade student could write about the habitat of an ant from the perspective of the ant, weaving in factual information about their habitat and using scientific vocabulary while using narrative. Younger students may be able to do something similar by composing a class poem or song with the teacher as scribe. I find doing things like this to be a challenge in high school; I can definitely have students write from the perspective of a character to improve comprehension in English, but literacy is cross curricular. The school where I did my practicum was so big that it was hard to have cross-departmental collaboration time, but given the chance, I think activities like the one I suggested above would be a great to help students improve their overall content comprehension in all subject areas.
Adam mentioned how Echo Reading, Choral Reading, Taped Reading and Cross Aged Tutoring all cater to different types of learners and I couldn’t agree more; all are very conducive to the concept of differentiated learning strategies. When I first began to learn about differentiated learning I felt a little overwhelmed – how could I possibly meet everyone’s needs every lesson? Well, I can’t BUT with the above strategies, as well as with others, I can meet the needs of each student at some point in the day or week and exposing them to different strategies likely won’t hinder their progress; continuous exposure and access to literacy materials and activities seems to be the most important aspect of improving literacy. I also think that it is very important to get students excited about literacy, it should not be something that students just “do” at school. We have talked a lot about how we can involve parents/guardians and make use of buddy time to improve literacy. I think it also important to expand to demonstrate to students that the whole school community is working on literacy. One way of doing this would be to have gallery walks of new exciting books in the library or gymnasium (maybe before an assembly), where the whole school takes part in examining books simultaneously. It may require a few volunteers to orchestrate but it emphasizes to students that everyone is working on literacy and that this is a community activity that goes beyond the classroom walls.
“I have always thought that the job of having a large group of kids to assess over numerous subjects would be difficult. I think it’s something that I almost fear because I remember getting those report cards in elementary school and never being totally happy; I don’t want the kids that I teach to feel upset when they see what their friend got or that they didn’t get a mark that they thought they would. But this is obviously part of the job. Part of the text that I found helpful, and will definitely use if I am teaching intermediate or higher grades, would be the section on rubrics. I think it’s important for the kids to know what is expected from their work and be able to keep track of what they have done or what marks they have gotten on their own. This is something that I didn’t really learn how to do until later in high school. It could also be beneficial to primary students to introduce them to a rubric and let them work with one for a few projects over the school year.
ReplyDeleteI found that talking about different reading and writing strategies with people focused on the same age group as me proved to be really useful. I found out about strategies that I’ve never heard of before and took in many ideas which I’m sure I will be able to use in September. This shows (again) that you gain a lot by working with others and sharing info and ideas. There are several activities that can be done that incorporate spelling, vocabulary, fluency, decoding and phonemic awareness into one activity or can incorporate just a few.”
Chapter 4
ReplyDeleteIn this post, I am responding to the Anecdotal Assessment Notes on Matthew’s theme unit, “Canada in the Early 1900’s” from page 160 in our Language Arts textbook.
For my initial response, I was:
• impressed by the teacher’s comprehensive observations over time
• struck by the treasure of what has been observed & assessed, ie. Mathew’s documented progress (this treasure value seems more obvious/evident to me since 405)
• intrigued by the overall picture painted of Mathew’s learning
- He’s excited and ‘fascinated’ to begin with, which is a big plus for motivation to persevere (especially when it comes to the mechanical editing & revising part, and the general assignment wrap up)
- He recognized some part of his ‘bio’ project that was ‘less developed’, an example of self assessment
Looking closely at these assessment notes, I became aware of the potential learning value of simulated journals. While doing his journal entries as Prime Minister Mackenzie King, Mathew took on the tones and expressions consistent with the style of the content being read, which indicates the depth of his involvement. It is also evident that this type of journal facilitates growth in language arts usage through an authentic learning task. ie. - the goal is to produce and share a meaningful historical biography as an artifact of his learning.
By following the trend in Matthew’s interest over the project’s course it is also clear that, in this case, both the content and process offer motivation for learning. He is excited with his own choice of topic at the beginning and continues to be engaged throughout; the teacher notes, late in the process, that he has been more ‘task-oriented’ here (rather than bieng motivated by an extrinsic grade).
Perhaps my strongest response to these notes was the realization that I would have loved to have documented more like this for Language Arts during my 405 term. A record of this nature would be invaluable in providing the rationale for learning activities used in class, and as a means to communicate with parents about real student achievement. The quality and detail of evidence of the student’s growth is a great asset to share with parents. In this instance, it is apparent that: Matthew is learning in fun and engaging ways, thus, the learning is likely to endure; he is exploring through multiple modes, ie. doing cluster drawings of his bio content, illustrating the journal entries, and writing from another’s point of view (in the role of King); as well as, learning to use self assessment. If parents are given these insights into their child’s learning, they may get a better sense of how they may help support this endeavour. For example, imagine if Matthew’s parents asked him what he learned about Canada today in his role “as” MacKenzie King - what an opportunity for their child to share his new knowledge as well as a genuine validation of the child’s efforts.
The film we watched in class had a lot of great reading strategies to use in the classroom. I can see my self using many of them, or versions of them if I ever teach emergent readers. The one aspect of the movie that I questioned was the way in which it put such an emphasis on how the success of early reading dictates the success of later reading and later life achievement. Though I am not an expert I find it hard to believe this entirely. I am sure that for a typically developing child a lot can be predicted by looking at their reading assessments in grade one. This, however, does not account for students that have learning disabilities, ESL children, or children from low socio-economic backgrounds. The movie seemed to be working within a homogenous model where all students if behind in their reading at grade one simply are and always will be low readers rather than the idea that they may be behind for a reason and once that reason is diagnosed and proper interventions put in place that child could very well excel in reading.
ReplyDeleteAnother aspect of the movie that I found problematic was the idealistic, middle class approach it took to reading to your children. This is a great idea and would no doubt give children a head start and greater prior knowledge for when they enter school. The only reservation I had about this part of the movie was it did not even entertain the idea that this is simply not realistic for all families. In doing this the movie made it seem like there are no excuses for not doing this, which may tie back to its larger thesis that children that aren’t reading by grade 1 never will so there is no excuse not to. There were such high stakes for reading to an infant that there was no room left for social or economic reasons for why a parent may not be able to read to their child. It also didn’t touch on how children that are not read to are not write offs, yes, they too will be able to learn to read. These kinds of pressures placed on parents and their children should not be presented as such a MUST for the child’s greater life success but as a recommendation if it is possible.
Sonja wrote:
ReplyDeleteI thoroughly enjoyed the chapter we had to read for today’s class. The ideas for making my classroom as language arts friendly as possible keep flooding in. I just wanted to comment on some of the reader response ideas in the chapter, namely the sketch-to-sketch. When I was doing my long practicum, I had the fortune to attend a workshop on writing non-fiction that was hosted by Adrienne Gear (Language Arts Guru Extraordinaire!). I can’t exactly recall specific names for the different exercises she did with us, but there was one that I implemented into my classroom which the children seemed to enjoy, and gave me an idea of their reading comprehension levels. They were to predict what the story was about by writing out their thoughts about it. I would give them the title only and they would predict what the story would be about. I would then read them the story but I wouldn’t show them any pictures. They would then draw out what they pictured in their head as I read the story, and then they would write a caption underneath the drawing. What fascinated me were the different levels of effort that each student would put into their drawing. Once we did this with a story about an Inuit woman who befriends a polar bear. I had drawings of women in regular clothing, women with fantastic hair styles, and then women who were dressed more appropriately. Through this process, I was also able to learn something about the Cantonese language that I didn’t know before. As I was sifting through the drawings, I noticed that several of them had drawings of a man and a polar bear. I would underline the world “she” and wondered if these students were paying very good attention. I realized later, after talking to my SA, that there is no word for “he” or “she” in Cantonese, and that the students really could not tell whether the person in the story was female or male so they were taking a guess. These were, of course, my ESL students who were still struggling to grasp the English Language. These sketch-to-sketch drawings taught me something and gave me an opportunity to work on this specific language barrier with the ESL children.
Courtney wrote:
ReplyDeleteSomething interesting I learned from the video is how important it is for parents to read to their children as early as when they are infants. Before the video, I recognized reading to children is important to the development of early literacy skills and children’s success in learning to read; however I did not realize parents should begin at such an early age. Some parents perceive reading to their young children as a way to calm them down before bed time and think the young one’s don’t even understand the words. However, looking into this topic a little more I learned after only a few months of reading to children at as infants they can recognize a parent’s mood by the sound of their voice. They can follow the mood of the story before they can even understand the meanings behind the words - I thought this was amazing! When it is finally time for children to start learning to read, they will have compiled a library of words associated with feelings from all of the hours spent hearing stories. I feel compelled to spread the word to all new parents! It has been said the single best way to help children build on knowledge for success is to read aloud to them. Thinking about today’s technology I think reading to infants may even be easier than ever before with the use of Electronic books. Parents can read to their children without having to stop them from grabbing and tearing any pages out. With E-books, parents can read with ease!
Video
ReplyDeleteI thought the video was very interesting and put up some good points about reading and comprehension. I have often heard that students that are unable to read by the end of Grade 1 will encounter difficulties for the rest of their lives. I both agree and disagree with this statement. I disagree in the fact that a lot of struggling readers in my own grade 1 class were ESL students. I think that the language barrier makes things more difficult and that even if these students cannot read by the end of grade 1 they still can pick it up if they continue to work at it at a later time. I also disagree because I don’t believe all people or children learn the same or long the same timeline. Just because a student doesn’t get something right away doesn’t mean they wont, it’s a confidence thing just as much as a skill thing and I believe students that truly want to read will be able to, even if they are not at level by grade 1. With that being said, I also agree that some students that are unable to read by the end of grade 1 will have problems long-term. I believe that the fundamentals are taught in kindergarten and grade 1, which means if a child is not at level by the end of this time they will most likely receive no further instruction in these fundamentals in their following grades. The class moves on and often children get left behind. So, I believe these students may have the ability to read or learn to read, but because teachers in second grade assume they already can read, these students fall farther and farther behind if there is no focus on them learning to read This affects their confidence as well and many students seem to give up trying or learn ways to “fake it” throughout the rest of their educational career.
What I loved about this week’s readings was all the different strategies and tips that were presented. I sometimes get caught up in wanting to know the right answer, to know the right way to be able to effectively teach reading and writing to ALL students. The thought of having a student simply slip through the cracks is something that is not even a consideration. The text book as well as the discussion in class has given me so many great tools and strategies to implement to reach as many different types of learners that I can. The 5 stages of Reading that are outlined in the text book are a concrete outline to be able to follow as a new teacher to allow students to engage and interact with reading not simply just reading for a learning objective. I hope to instil a love of reading for pleasure in my students. Being able to pique their curiosity and imagination about stories is something that I take seriously. The prompting questions that are in the textbook to start students to critically think about the texts that they are reading which I think allows students to create a lasting connection to reading. This coupled with the writing process fulfill many goals of the educational system.
ReplyDeleteThe discussion of spelling/phonics was especially interesting. I had always corrected invented spelling when marking students work. I did not think that it was possibly impeding their creative process. The strategies on writing in the textbook will allow me to be able to scaffold the writing process without stifling the student’s creative thoughts. I like the idea of letting them write a piece of work with all the invented spelling they want and then coming back to the piece after some time to have the students use their own work to learn and use their correction tools/skills.
I loved the group list that we created for phonemic awareness among different levels and ages! It was so great to really tap into the wealth of experience that we have within our classroom. Having the experiences from so many different grade levels and tips from different teachers on what has worked and what has not was fantastic! The movie showed so many activities in the classroom and how they worked for the learners. Connecting the what (activities) with the how (the students use and learn from it).
Looking forward to class tomorrow!
:)
Practice- Not Just For Soccer
ReplyDeleteThe one thing that really resonated with me from the last class was the soccer analogy from the video “What Children Need in Order to Read”. Equating learning to read with learning soccer skills really hit home for me. Most people would believe that just because a child has less than stellar soccer skills early on, that doesn’t mean that he won’t be a fantastic player if she/he practices enough, and in the proper manner. In the book “Talent is Overrated-What Really Separates World Class Performers From Everybody Else” by Geoff Colvin, he talks about “deliberate practice”, which is simply put (probably too simply put) dedicated practice with “expert” feedback. He speaks of how it is the time that is put in that really makes people achieve greatness, not their natural talent. I wonder if it is usually phrased to struggling students that reading is a skill, and the most important factor is honing this skill is practice. This might make a few less students feel like they are simply “stupid” because they are struggling with their reading. On this same note, if parents put the same focus on their children’s “deliberate practice” of reading as they do on their hockey and soccer skills, there would definitely be fewer struggling readers.
Stage 5 Reading: Extension
One interesting part of chapter 4 for me was “Stage 5: Extending (Through Fine Arts and Technology) and the corresponding Figure 4-3 (both on page 129). Last week we talked about how important it can be to let children follow their passion and interests with their reading choices, and Stage 5 is a further extension of this philosophy. On this page the authors talk about students building upon their reading through activities and projects. Figure 4.3 is a lengthy list of some fantastic ideas for a broad range of activities, and they state that usually the students choose their own projects. This is a great strategy to get kids to “buy in” to the activity, and to show what they know in a way that works best for them. While this might make it harder to assess, the opportunity for the creativity of each learner to shine through would make this a more than worthwhile endeavor.
Shared Reading:
ReplyDeleteI like the idea that in shared reading, the teacher models fluent reading and subsequently gives students’ the opportunity to practice reading out loud. When a strong class community is built, it helps struggling students to muster the enthusiasm and ‘take risks’ to read out loud. I recently had my first encounter with shared reading while volunteering in a grade 3 class. Before beginning shared reading, the teacher requested the students to not shout out words immediately should a classmate struggled with a word while reading. Rather, let the student try and sound it out. If the struggling student needed help, then the teacher would give hints at the appropriate time. Allowing students’ time to sound it out on their own helps in their learning as well as build their self-confidence! I realized that during my first practicum, if a student was struggling, my initial reaction was to help immediately, without allowing sufficient wait-time for the student to think and try. This experience has made me aware of the importance of allowing students time to think things through instead of rushing to give them help.
Activities that support reading strategies:
I found this in class activity (linking strategies to various activities) to be extremely useful and I look forward to using some of these creative ideas for my 405 practicum. I like the idea of making lessons interesting and fun using games/activities like Pictionary and Scatergories to help students with their spelling and vocabulary of new words. These reading strategies can also be used across curriculum to include science and/or social studies. Using books that interest students is a good way to encourage reading and writing as well as keep students interested through cross curriculum activities. I believe that active readers and writers can be encouraged by engaging students in authentic literacy tasks. As a suggestion, I thought of the book, Nim’s Island by Wendy Orr. I think that this book can be used as a novel study for Language arts (grade 3 -5 perhaps?) and cross curriculum to Science, Social Studies, Art and Math as well. By doing so, students would be able to connect and see how it relates to their lives (‘real life’). Students could read the book (do a novel study), write letters to a ‘pen pal’ and create a script for Reader’s Theatre as well. For Science, a unit study on Weather, Geographical features (volcanoes), sea creatures (sea turtles), etc. could be taught as well. Students could do science experiments and even create their own island (an art project). For math, the book can be used for measurement and distance as well.
Responding to student writing:
ReplyDeleteTeacher’s role, I strongly believe, is a facilitator and not of an evaluator alone. As the book writes, “they (teachers) are one of the worst audiences, because they read with a red pen in hand.” It is important for the teacher to help students to get better at writing and serve as guides through various writing process activities but the thought of evaluating the writing is something I do not believe in and as a requirement of a grading process, it is mandatory to give a mark for it. I am still struggling with these two trains of thoughts where on one side we are taught not to evaluate or assess students’ writing (p-151) but on the other hand, we are required to grade a writing assignment and also attach a mark to it. I do realize that prewriting, drafting and publishing is an ongoing process and required for students at all age levels to get successful in their writing but my question is why are we then stopping at a stage, close to June, and giving them a final mark and/or percentage?
Balanced Approach:
I totally believe this statement from the textbook, “[it is] our responsibility as teachers to discern the level and intensity of instruction required for individuals or small groups and modify our instructions accordingly.” I am of the firm belief that different students learn at different paces and the onus is on the teacher to make adjustments for these kinds of variables. I believe that certain lessons could be adapted for all kinds of students to give them genuine literacy experiences. Understandably, making our lesson plans and using teaching materials that complement a balanced approach for the students in the class is sought for but I think this can become a challenge if it needs to be incorporated in ‘every ’ lesson plan. Another challenge that I seek in this area is how the balance could be maintained if students are involved in reading activities. I can see that assigning students with different levels of books for reading and using different types of reading with them might work, but are there any other strategies that could be used? I think to maintain a balanced approach in writing is easier that one in reading, as for writing, I could give a different and easier question to write on or a different way to present the writing, but what to do with the reading activities?
Video:
ReplyDeleteI found the video that we watched in class extremely useful because it demonstrated lots of practical strategies for teaching students how to read. Also, it didn't just list the strategies it showed visual examples too. I have not had to teach children to read because I did both my practicums in intermediate grades, therefore the video helped to illustrate strategies I had heard of, but had not yet seen in practice.
Activities That Support Reading Strategies:
I really enjoyed this portion of the class because designing potential activities for reading strategies made me feel like a teacher again. Everyone had so many great ideas, and it was especially useful to see what the primary teachers had come up with because I did not have any idea how to plan for primary. Now I have a huge array of activities to use for all the grades.
Reading level at the end of grade one:
Some of the previous posters have commented that they do not agree with the video's notion that a student's level of reading at the end of grade one is a sufficient predictor of their academic achievment in the years to come. I too, do not agree with this statement. Not all children develop at the same rate, therefore just because a child is below the norm for reading at the end of grade one it does not mean that they are destined to be a failure. They may just need more time to reach that stage of development. In the beginning of grade two they may reach that stage, and even surpass some of their peers. Also, children are only indicated as reading below average because they are compared to their peers. A child's level of competency should be measured based on their own progress and not their classmates.
Sharon wrote:
ReplyDeleteShared Reading:
I like the idea that in shared reading, the teacher models fluent reading and subsequently gives students’ the opportunity to practice reading out loud. When a strong class community is built, it helps struggling students to muster the enthusiasm and ‘take risks’ to read out loud. I recently had my first encounter with shared reading while volunteering in a grade 3 class. Before beginning shared reading, the teacher requested the students to not shout out words immediately should a classmate struggled with a word while reading. Rather, let the student try and sound it out. If the struggling student needed help, then the teacher would give hints at the appropriate time. Allowing students’ time to sound it out on their own helps in their learning as well as build their self-confidence! I realized that during my first practicum, if a student was struggling, my initial reaction was to help immediately, without allowing sufficient wait-time for the student to think and try. This experience has made me aware of the importance of allowing students time to think things through instead of rushing to give them help.
Activities that support reading strategies:
I found this in class activity (linking strategies to various activities) to be extremely useful and I look forward to using some of these creative ideas for my 405 practicum. I like the idea of making lessons interesting and fun using games/activities like Pictionary and Scatergories to help students with their spelling and vocabulary of new words. These reading strategies can also be used across curriculum to include science and/or social studies. Using books that interest students is a good way to encourage reading and writing as well as keep students interested through cross curriculum activities. I believe that active readers and writers can be encouraged by engaging students in authentic literacy tasks. As a suggestion, I thought of the book, Nim’s Island by Wendy Orr. I think that this book can be used as a novel study for Language arts (grade 3 -5 perhaps?) and cross curriculum to Science, Social Studies, Art and Math as well. By doing so, students would be able to connect and see how it relates to their lives (‘real life’). Students could read the book (do a novel study), write letters to a ‘pen pal’ and create a script for Reader’s Theatre as well. For Science, a unit study on Weather, Geographical features (volcanoes), sea creatures (sea turtles), etc. could be taught as well. Students could do science experiments and even create their own island (an art project). For math, the book can be used for measurement and distance as well.
Class 4:
ReplyDeleteMaking reading meaningful:
While reading Chapter 4 of the textbook the importance of teaching reading processes within a meaningful context to students really stood out to me. I began to think of ways I could interest my future Grade 6/7 practicum students in learning and/or strengthening their reading comprehension skills. I also wanted to think about how I could tie reading into an overarching theme under which I could teach a unit of Health and Career Education, Language Arts, and perhaps Social Studies. The unit that I will be teaching in Health and Career Education is based on relationship building skills. Students will be taught about conflict and peer pressure and how to handle these situations. In Social Studies I will be teaching about the role of the United Nations; a relationship on a larger scale. As peer relationships are already a topic of natural interest for most children in grades six and seven, I thought I could gather a variety of novels from the school library that are based on characters who are learning to navigate through some difficult interpersonal relationships; for example, the concept of homelessness and the relationships that a character makes. While students would identify with some of the ideas in the novels their learning would be expanded in reading about social situations that they may have experienced before but in a different context from the one in the novel.
Portfolios:
In reading Chapter 4 of the text I plan on using portfolios as a form of assessment. I believe that if my students are able to choose which compositions they will include in their portfolios they will be motivated to do good work and to improve on this work. They will want to show me as well as their parents work that they have pride in and work which they are excited to show. The text makes clear that when assessing students, teachers should focus on improvement and strengths. Portfolios can communicate to students the idea that I am interested in seeing the pieces of work that my students believe is good and that their thoughts about themselves as learners is what is important to me (backed up by samples of relevant work). I will also be able to scaffold my students in becoming metacognitive thinkers. After teaching the process of self-reflection I will have my students write written reflections on the pieces of work in their portfolios. When a lot of emphasis is put on self-reflection (as will be done in student’s portfolios) I will be able to share the idea that learning is about making goals for improvement and then coming up with plans for achieving those goals. Above all I do not want my students to feel like I am the most important assessor of their learning; I want them to feel that they are in control of their own learning and that I am there to guide them.
Buddy Reading
ReplyDeleteIn discussing the development of reading and writing processes, the text distinguishes five types of reading that are used in the classroom. The types of reading include Shared Reading, Guided Reading, Independent Reading, Buddy Reading, and Reading Aloud to Students. Each type provides students with a unique opportunity to build on their reading aptitude. It is interesting to note the relative balance in teacher-lead activities and student-lead activities among the types of reading. Shared Reading, Guided Reading, and Reading Aloud to Students all directly involve participation of the teacher, while Independent and Buddy Reading include limited teacher participation. Of particular interest to me is the value of Buddy Reading. Through Buddy Reading students are given the opportunity to collaborate with their peers by reading together. In the event that this activity involves students from different age groups, older students take on the role of a tutor, assisting younger students with word recognition and fluency. During my practicum I experienced the value of having older students read with younger students. Under such circumstances older students build an ownership of reading. They grow an appreciation for the development of reading and take pleasure in sharing this experience with the younger students.
Reading Confidence
Through reading the text and participating in today’s class discussions, I have gained a great appreciation for the value of providing children with diverse opportunities to experience reading. By demonstrating reading in various subjects and contexts, students can explore the many functions of reading and build an understanding of its application in their own lives. Experiencing reading at home helps to further students’ appreciation of reading and provides various opportunities to practice privately with family members. Such experiences help to create a motivation for reading and build the confidence of young readers. I believe that confidence is a fundamental component of developing a student’s reading abilities. Confidence encourages students to pursue higher achievements and take risks. A student who lacks confidence is unlikely to voluntarily read in front of others and will lack the motivation to read on their own. As educators it is important to build confidence through establishing a safe learning environment that provides a supportive setting for struggling students and encourages risk taking. Whether it is reading aloud to another students or participating in a class reading, such activities that involve “risk taking” are important components for developing the reading capacity of students.