While I was reading Chapter 5 of the textbook, I was particularly interested in reading about the spelling development on page 168. It's interesting to think about the way that children learn a process that most people seem to take for granted a lot of the time. It's vital in our society to be able to read and write, but it's often something that I've found is not given as much thought as it should be. In my experience, it can be a rather difficult process for students and it can also be quite frustrating for them if handled incorrectly.
The children that I work with are very young, so the part of this process that I get to see is the "Emergent Spelling" step mentioned on pg. 168 of the textbook. Just learning how to hold the pen or pencil correctly can be difficult and this often seems to relate to their level of development, but the children are usually eager to learn. Clipboards, little moveable letters, dry erase boards, and chalkboards are, in my experience, excellent tools to use with younger children who are just taking their first steps into this venture because it makes the experience fun. If the experience is a frustrating chore then most children aren't going to want to bother with it when there are so many fun toys to play with, but make it into a fun activity when they get to write on something interesting and that makes them feel more grown up, then, in my experience, it seems like they might be more willing to forgo other sorts of games to play this fun interesting one that involves them learning more about the way that words function.
These early steps might seem basic to us, but to a young child, each step is a new challenge and, in my opinion, it's important that we approach it in the right way so that it's a welcome new challenge rather then a boring chore that is only getting in the way of their fun. Practice is a big part of learning to write, just as it is a big part in learning to read. If the students enjoy practicing, they are more likely to work harder in their lessons and even practice on their own. In the class that I worked in, there were several students who really liked to draw and it was not uncommon for them to practice their letters as well as writing things that they knew how to write like their name during these periods.
This website seems to have some good information on various activities that can be used to encourage writing at the various stages of development.
Saturday, September 25, 2010
Friday, September 17, 2010
Response to Chapters 3 and 4
While reading Chapter 3 of Literacy For the 21st Century: A Balanced Approach, I was struck by the information on page 76 about the different reading levels and choosing reading material appropriately, not because it was anything terribly new to me as I'd learned about those levels before, but because it reminded me of something that I learned in another class that I thought was really important information, so I wanted to share it here.
Not only is it important for teachers to be able to judge a book's reading level and how appropriate it is for a particular student or the class as a whole, but it's important to teach the students how to do this as well, so that they can also choose books that match their own interests and abilities. For example, if a student likes sharks, then they might well want to read a book on sharks, but it could be discouraging for them to pick up a book on sharks that is massively too difficult for the student, especially since they might be doing this on their own or with limited help if it isn't school reading. And, what I think is the most worrying part of that is if they don't feel as though they can read well on their own because they are discouraged by their book choices, then they might feel as though reading in itself is not a fun activity and lose their internal motivation to do read even when not being prompted by a teacher, which is the last thing that I think most teachers want to see happen. But if you teach your students what they should be looking for, then they will be less likely to end up frustrated because they will know when they look through the book that this is a book that they either should wait on or read with someone else.
The main method that I've learned about to teach students how best to choose their own books is by teaching them that before they begin to read a book, they should flip through the first few pages and identify the number of words that they can't decipher and understand. For example, if the student sees that on the first page alone that he/she counts between five-ten words that the student cannot identify at all, then perhaps that's a book to read with a parent or a teacher or a friend, rather then by the student alone. That's not to say that new vocabulary in itself should veto a book as it's wonderful to learn new vocabulary while reading, but if there seems to be too many words on a page that are above the student's level then perhaps the book is above the student's level and it's important that the student identifies that before he/she becomes frustrated and discouraged by trying to read the book. It's good for students to feel challenged, but too much challenge can lead to frustration and disappointment instead of pride of an accomplishment and students need to learn how to tell where that line is for them. While the students are learning how best to decide on books to read, it might be helpful for teachers to encourage the students to bring potential books to them, so that the students' can learn more about this process and become better at it.
This website is a fantastic one that was recommended by the teacher of the other class that I took and, while it has a great deal of value when it comes to teaching reading, I'm posting it here for the links to lists of books that can be recommended to students and used in the classroom as well as the articles about how best to evaluate reading levels. The first link is only the general link to the websites main page, but here is a more specific link so that you don't have to really search for it.
Not only is it important for teachers to be able to judge a book's reading level and how appropriate it is for a particular student or the class as a whole, but it's important to teach the students how to do this as well, so that they can also choose books that match their own interests and abilities. For example, if a student likes sharks, then they might well want to read a book on sharks, but it could be discouraging for them to pick up a book on sharks that is massively too difficult for the student, especially since they might be doing this on their own or with limited help if it isn't school reading. And, what I think is the most worrying part of that is if they don't feel as though they can read well on their own because they are discouraged by their book choices, then they might feel as though reading in itself is not a fun activity and lose their internal motivation to do read even when not being prompted by a teacher, which is the last thing that I think most teachers want to see happen. But if you teach your students what they should be looking for, then they will be less likely to end up frustrated because they will know when they look through the book that this is a book that they either should wait on or read with someone else.
The main method that I've learned about to teach students how best to choose their own books is by teaching them that before they begin to read a book, they should flip through the first few pages and identify the number of words that they can't decipher and understand. For example, if the student sees that on the first page alone that he/she counts between five-ten words that the student cannot identify at all, then perhaps that's a book to read with a parent or a teacher or a friend, rather then by the student alone. That's not to say that new vocabulary in itself should veto a book as it's wonderful to learn new vocabulary while reading, but if there seems to be too many words on a page that are above the student's level then perhaps the book is above the student's level and it's important that the student identifies that before he/she becomes frustrated and discouraged by trying to read the book. It's good for students to feel challenged, but too much challenge can lead to frustration and disappointment instead of pride of an accomplishment and students need to learn how to tell where that line is for them. While the students are learning how best to decide on books to read, it might be helpful for teachers to encourage the students to bring potential books to them, so that the students' can learn more about this process and become better at it.
This website is a fantastic one that was recommended by the teacher of the other class that I took and, while it has a great deal of value when it comes to teaching reading, I'm posting it here for the links to lists of books that can be recommended to students and used in the classroom as well as the articles about how best to evaluate reading levels. The first link is only the general link to the websites main page, but here is a more specific link so that you don't have to really search for it.
Sunday, September 12, 2010
Response to Chapters 1 and 2
While reading the assigned chapters for the week, I was struck by some of the stuff that was said about the importance of setting up the classroom environment, mostly because of how true it rang to the stuff that I've experienced in my own teaching experiences.
On page 16 of Literacy for the 21st Century: A Balanced Approach, the author discusses the importance of setting up a learning environment that is "safe and respectful" to help motivate the students to become involved and learn. This, in my experience, is vital. From what I've seen, when students are frightened or intimidated by the environment, they tend to stay quiet and hang back, participating as little as possible for fear of getting into trouble or getting teased, while students who are comfortable with their surroundings and their community are more willing to jump right into thing and experiment. Many children learn best when truly engaged in the material and, more importantly, when trying new things. A child who feels comfortable and safe is more likely to try and reach out to try things that they've never done before because they don't fear making mistakes as a child who feels uncomfortable with their environment. The issue, of course, is that the students who are likely to learn the most are the ones who are willing to take those risks. It's never wrong to take a risk and make a mistake because you can learn from that and perhaps succeed the next time or figure out a better way to approach their goal.
To put this in terms of reading instruction, since that is the point of this blog, a child who feels comfortable is probably going to feel more willing to try to tackle reading harder words and books as long as trying harder reading exercises, while a child who is not is not likely to want to stray outside of his or her comfort zone. And, in the end, leaving that comfort one really needs to be the child's choice, once they feel comfortable because if the teacher makes that choice instead of the student, then it is only likely to scare the already nervous student more.
Something else that is brought up in the book on this topic on page 18, is that teachers should make use of the first two weeks of class to put all this into motion (That is the book's suggestion for length of time. I'd have to imagine that length of time needed for this would vary depending on the class. For example, younger students who haven't had much school experience might need more time focused on this topic, whereas older students who have a large amount of time in school might need less time for this.). As is pointed out by the author, students need to be introduced to the classroom policies and rules as to what will be expected of them as it's unlikely that they will come in knowing what you want and expect of them. Even if they are coming from another classroom, each class's rules are a bit different and expectations can vary from teacher to teacher, so it's important to lay all this out right at the start. This is also important though because you want to make it clear to your new students that the classroom is a safe place and that our goal here is to learn. The earlier that this is all set into place, the more ingrained it will become. Plus, it can be difficult to put new stuff into place after the fact.
This matter might seen trivial on the surface, but I really think that it's something that should be taken very seriously. The tone of the classroom set at the start of the year will affect everyone throughout the year and, depending how the situation is handled, it can either affect the students' learning very positively or very negatively.
On page 16 of Literacy for the 21st Century: A Balanced Approach, the author discusses the importance of setting up a learning environment that is "safe and respectful" to help motivate the students to become involved and learn. This, in my experience, is vital. From what I've seen, when students are frightened or intimidated by the environment, they tend to stay quiet and hang back, participating as little as possible for fear of getting into trouble or getting teased, while students who are comfortable with their surroundings and their community are more willing to jump right into thing and experiment. Many children learn best when truly engaged in the material and, more importantly, when trying new things. A child who feels comfortable and safe is more likely to try and reach out to try things that they've never done before because they don't fear making mistakes as a child who feels uncomfortable with their environment. The issue, of course, is that the students who are likely to learn the most are the ones who are willing to take those risks. It's never wrong to take a risk and make a mistake because you can learn from that and perhaps succeed the next time or figure out a better way to approach their goal.
To put this in terms of reading instruction, since that is the point of this blog, a child who feels comfortable is probably going to feel more willing to try to tackle reading harder words and books as long as trying harder reading exercises, while a child who is not is not likely to want to stray outside of his or her comfort zone. And, in the end, leaving that comfort one really needs to be the child's choice, once they feel comfortable because if the teacher makes that choice instead of the student, then it is only likely to scare the already nervous student more.
Something else that is brought up in the book on this topic on page 18, is that teachers should make use of the first two weeks of class to put all this into motion (That is the book's suggestion for length of time. I'd have to imagine that length of time needed for this would vary depending on the class. For example, younger students who haven't had much school experience might need more time focused on this topic, whereas older students who have a large amount of time in school might need less time for this.). As is pointed out by the author, students need to be introduced to the classroom policies and rules as to what will be expected of them as it's unlikely that they will come in knowing what you want and expect of them. Even if they are coming from another classroom, each class's rules are a bit different and expectations can vary from teacher to teacher, so it's important to lay all this out right at the start. This is also important though because you want to make it clear to your new students that the classroom is a safe place and that our goal here is to learn. The earlier that this is all set into place, the more ingrained it will become. Plus, it can be difficult to put new stuff into place after the fact.
This matter might seen trivial on the surface, but I really think that it's something that should be taken very seriously. The tone of the classroom set at the start of the year will affect everyone throughout the year and, depending how the situation is handled, it can either affect the students' learning very positively or very negatively.
Wednesday, September 8, 2010
Welcome to my blog!
This blog will be used to reflect upon what we learn in class, so that I can better absorb the information from class and increase my knowledge of teaching strategies for the benefit of my students.
As a bit of an introduction into myself, I will say that I love to write and read. I look forward to getting further into the material for this course and I hope to become an elementary school teacher in the future!
As a bit of an introduction into myself, I will say that I love to write and read. I look forward to getting further into the material for this course and I hope to become an elementary school teacher in the future!
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