Week 9

Assignment 1:

How might small-group literature discussion groups fit into an overall literacy program, designed to help students experience the pleasures of becoming effective readers of literature?

Having small-group literature discussion groups is a great way to engage students in their reading. The positive atmosphere that is created in these groups ignites an enthusiasm for the story that is integral in becoming an effective reader. In these groups students are trained to analyze their reading on a whole new level. Through the questions asked and the topics discussed students' understanding becomes enriched with hearing what their teacher and classmates have to say.
These discussions are important to incorporate into a literacy program since it benefits both strong and struggling readers. If a student had a hard time understanding the story when reading it on his own, he will be able to compensate through participating in a discussion. Small group literature discussion groups can take place after the class was assigned to read on their own. Once students are read up and prepared to contribute their thoughts and logs to the discussion, the discussion will take place.

How does informal assessment such as that demonstrated by Mr. Thompson help a teacher design effective lessons?
Through Mr. Thompson's engaging questions during the small-group discussions, he was able to determine what each student gained and lacked from the story. In addition, the quality of the participation and the log entries were indicative of where the students were holding on their level of comprehension. Once Mr. Thompson, or any teacher for that matter, is made aware of the deficiencies, he can create lessons to fill in the holes.  For instance, lets say in the discussion it became clear that the students were unaware of the setting of  the story. The teacher can then guide the students to look for keywords that would tell them the setting.

What ideas from the video would you like to try in your own classroom? 
I feel that the small-group discussions  would be very beneficial in every classroom. As discussed above, these groups enhance all students' learning experiences immensely. Specifically I thought that the way that Mr. Thompson recorded the students' level of participation during the discussion with a point system was very smart. I could see how some students would take advantage of the free discussion setting by slacking off and not reading the material. Mr. Thompson prevented this behavior by creating a positive point system that motivated the students to cooperate fully.  

Assignment 2:

What are some ways this teacher helps students cope with the complexities of a new literary text?

Mr. Hoonan chose to adopt a post-it strategy where the students marked down their questions on post-it notes when they came across them while reading. This strategy was meant for students to move on with their reading and address their questions later.

As viewers, did you think the use of students to present mini-lessons to the class was an effective strategy? Why or why not?
I felt that the class did benefit by hearing mini-lessons given by other students. It is important for students to know that they are not the only ones with questions while reading. Furthermore, students can gain by hearing others' questions and see how they strategized to find a solution. People gain much more from those who speak from experience as opposed to hearing theoretical problem solving tips from a teacher.

Mr. Hoonan talks about the importance of considering context when assessing student performance, mentioning the example of allowing a normally quiet student an extended opportunity to share his views during the discussion. What examples of this can you share from your own classroom?
In general classroom discussions are safe places for shy students to express their opinion. In my experiences these students need to be prompted in order to perform. In these discussions when these students are given the opportunity to contribute they surpass everyone's expectations. I had a student who was extremely shy. She was shy both inside the classroom and out. To the common passerby this student would seem a bit unintelligent since she did not speak in public. As her teacher however, I knew that she had a lot of depth and many intelligent things to say. To get her to a comfortable place to express her ideas however was a challenge. I knew that her quiet and analytical nature enabled her to think deeply about literature. I desperately wanted her to share her thoughts with the class and therefore asked her to share during a class discussion. I was not sure what to expect her reaction to be. Much to my pleasure however, this student performed splendidly.

What ideas from the video would you like to try in your own classroom?

I thought that the group collaborating together to create a web  was a great way to organize the discussion. Everyone was able to contribute equally and follow the thought processes of their peers.  

 

Assignment 3:

 

"Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs"

Grade: 2nd

Standards:

Common Core State Standards (June 2010)
Subject: English Language Arts & Literacy in History/Social Studies, Science, and Technical Subjects
Grade : Grade 2 students:
Content Area:  Literature K–5
Strand:  Reading
Domain:  Key Ideas and Details
Standard:  1. Ask and answer such questions as who, what, where, when, why, and how to demonstrate understanding of key details in a text.
Standard:  2. Recount stories, including fables and folktales from diverse cultures, and determine their central message, lesson, or moral.
Standard:  3. Describe how characters in a story respond to major events and challenges.

Objectives: Students will know the characters, setting, and storyline of "Snow White" to meet the common core standards. Students will improve their literary and comprehension skills.  

 

Procedure: The teacher will begin by asking the class how they wake up in the morning as an introduction to the story "Snow White". During the discussion, the teacher will record the students' comments. Teacher will then ask students if they know the story about Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs. The teacher will then read story out loud to the class with occasional pauses to ask pointed questions to the class. Questions will include, "How do you think Snow White felt about having a mean step-mother?" "What do you think it was like to live with seven dwarfs?", "Why do you think that Snow White woke up from the prince's kiss?" etc.
After reading the book the students will be asked to summarize the story in their reading logs. Students will then be broken into groups to have a small-group discussion with the teacher to go over the storyline and what they thought about it. During this discussion, the teacher will ask the students to draw a picture of the sky during different parts of the book. For instance at the beginning of the story when Snow White is singing with the animals, the students will be asked what they think the sky and nature looked like. Likewise students will be asked the same thing when the prince was fighting the wicked witch, when Snow White was sleeping, when Snow White woke up etc. The purpose of this is to draw the students' attention to the setting of the book and link the setting to what happened in the story. Next students will be told that they are going to make a puppet show about the story of Snow White. Students will be assigned to make a puppet to represent each character in the story. Then students will be asked to write up a script for the puppet show to present to the class. The purpose of the puppet show is to have students identify the characters in the story and understand how they interact and relate to each other.
Assessments: The teacher will see the level of comprehension the student had based on his writing log, participation during the discussion, and the accuracy and completeness of the puppet show.

 

Running Record

Text:

Whoever heard Reb Shalom singing felt his heart grow happier.

Most importantly, Reb Shalom knew how to lead the town. He made sure that the widows and orphans were taken care of, that the poor were fed, and that the laws of the Torah were kept. The town of Keppel respected and loved their rabbi.

Rebbetzin Malka was his wife. And what a rebbetzin! Her hands didn’t just work-they danced through the day while sweeping, washing or serving bowls of soup to her three daughters. She was known all through the town for making the most mouth-watering food and for her special way of helping the sick.

Most importantly, she knew how to look at people with a kind, loving eye and see what they really needed. The town loved their rebbetzin.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Running Record Form – EDLI635

Student’s Name: Richard Smith (pseudo name)  Grade: 6^th (ESL student) Date:11/6/2013

Title:”The Marvelous Mix-Up” by Ruchama King Feuerman      

Difficulty Level of Text: for grades 2-4

Author: Ruchamaa King Feurman    

Running Words: 124   Accuracy Rate: 94%        Self Correction Rate: 1:5

                        Error Rate: 1:18

Comprehension: This student was able to retell what he read in his own words. He was able to identify the characters with a little bit of detail and their relationships with each other. He was also aware of the setting where the story took place. Since there are not a lot of details listed in the passage, his description is not very detailed. The student was able to recall in the correct order what he read. In the passage there was not a problem and a solution to identify. When retelling the student does use vocabulary from the text. Over all the student was able to retell the story in a complete fashion.

 
 

 

Miscue Analysis:

It is important to note that this student is an English Language learner. When he came across an unknown word he did tried his best to pronounce the word. Based on his pronunciation however, it was clear that he did not know what the real word meant. Therefore, when he said words that did not make sense it was because of his lack of familiarity with the language. This student did not appeal for help since he is confident in his reading abilities. With his great determination he would sound out the words sometimes repeating them. He did not use his own special cues to figure out the unknown words presumably because English is not his first language.

Since this student was an ESL learner, this leads me to believe that most of his mistakes were visual. I am not sure if he was familiar enough with the language for him to make a mistake based on the meaning of the words. This student was able to catch most of the word, pronouncing it closely to how it was meant to be said. This leads me to believe that those mistakes were structural since the basic skeleton of the body was there with the proper prefixes and suffixes, but the word itself was gone. Although grammatically speaking he got the word, he made a mistake because he was unaware of the meaning.

 

Lesson Plan:

Since the student’s mistakes were based on his lack of familiarity with the language, this lesson’s goal is to teach him the words that he fumbled with. The first step of the lesson is to ask the student to reread the passage and identify the words that are difficult to understand. When the student forms his list, the student will be asked to look up these words in a dictionary and copy down their definitions. The teacher will review these words and their definition with the student and come up with sentences that use these words. These sentences will be a part of the weekly vocabulary test that the student is responsible for. 

Word List: happier, importantly, widows, orphans, respected, bowls, daughters

 

 

 

 

 

 

Reflection:

After learning about how to conduct a running record, I feel much more equipped to assess my students’ progress. In my experience as a teacher, the most professional and effective way to convey information about students is through concrete test results. These figures are indicative of the student’s skills which are integral for teachers to know in order to proceed. As a teacher it is important to have a feel for where each child is holding academically. This “feeling” however is not enough to ensure that each student is progressing. Teachers need to base their lessons on solid data that can help guide them to further the student’s learning.

While working with an English learner, it was interesting to note his mistakes. This student hardly made mistakes on words that he knew. I would assume this would also be the case with students who are not English learners. Students tend to be familiar with words that they commonly use and therefore have not trouble reading them. With words that are a bit challenging students sometimes have to put in more effort to decode them. I wonder if teachers find this more with ESL students than with other students. Presumably ESL students will not know as many words as the other students in the class and will therefore have a harder time reading without mistakes. I am sure that this reality effects ESL test scores and overall school performance level. It is important for teachers to keep their students’ backgrounds and challenges on the front burner so that these struggles can be properly addressed.

Overall this student was very enthusiastic about reading and about the overall story. He has been attending English classes for the past three years and has progressed immensely over that time. He was very proud to have reached the point of being able to read short chapter books. I feel that his excitement for reading was the key behind this student’s success. It is important for teachers to develop positive feelings towards reading and writing in all of their students in order to produce the best results. For this student especially his positivity was the key ingredient behind his achievements.

Retelling Form

Student’s Name: Richard Smith
Date: 11/6/2013
Book Title: The Marvelous Mix-up
Score: 18, skilled

Sequence: 3
Setting: 3
Characters: 3
Problem: 3
Resolution: 3
Level of Prompting: 3
Total: 18, skilled

Notes: It is important to keep in mind that this reading sample was a page at the beginning of a short chapter book. Based on what was read before and the passage itself, this student scored the highest possible. However, this student did not read the whole book yet and therefore we did not discuss the main problem in the whole story.

 

 

 

week 8

Above is the picture I drew in Paint of what I think a Hoatzin looks like.

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This is a picture of what a Hoatzin really looks like. In this case I think the differences in the pictures speak for themselves!

 

 

 

After reading the paragraph I thought that a hoatzin was a bat like creature with reptile climbing attributes. Really a hoatzin is a bird that lives in the Amazon. The hoatzin eats leaves and lives in trees. Although the imagery in my mind was a little bit off, the basic idea of what I understood and what really was were not far off from each other.

 

  Assignment#2After reading, research further on each theory and describe how the following comprehension models and theories affect a leaner’s comprehension and strategies used to comprehend. (due on Blacboard Discussion Forum, Nov. 4, by midnight) 

 

Schema Theory: The schema theory dictates that all knowledge gained is based on previous knowledge and experiences. This affects reading comprehension because if a reader is able to link the text to a prior experience, he could understand what the text is saying. The process of activating these knowledge units can be done through providing students with as much background knowledge on the reading as possible. That way students will be able to associate something to the knowledge units that they already have thus improving their comprehension.

Situation Model Theory: Making a mental model or representation of textual information presents the information in a different way for students to relate to. This forces readers to think about the text in a new way and formulate questions to understand the text better. Students use this strategy to better understand the author’s motivations behind his writing.

Role of Reasoning: The role of reasoning connects students’ previous knowledge to the text that they are reading. Students are trained to use their analytical skills to better understand each aspect of the story. This increases comprehension because it enriches the meaning of the text being read.

Role of Attention: In order to comprehend students need to focus on the text that they are reading. For some students this is very challenging and they need to put forth a lot of effort towards only paying attention to the text in front of them. In addition, students need to be taught how to focus on the main ideas of what they are reading and not to get distracted by the smaller details. Students can practice summarizing information to sharpen the skills of picking out the important details.

 

Role of Surface Features: In order for students to improve their reading comprehension skill, their vocabulary and grammar skills need to be adequate. When students busy themselves with decoding the meaning of individual words they lose sight of the bigger picture of the passage. Therefore, it is important for students to have an extensive vocabulary and to train them how to pick over what they do not know. The goal is to minimize what they do not know in order to maximize their academic strength.

 

Assignment 3:

 

One of the things that I learned from the classroom in Montana is that it is important for teachers not to have an exact plan of where discussions should go. If teachers conduct discussions with an exact agenda, it impedes on their students' creativity. Furthermore, the students in this classroom were taught to write down different questions that they had during reading so that they can remember later and be able to answer those questions and contribute to the group discussion. This was a great learning tool because it is important for readers to always ask questions and dig deeper to gain more understanding of the material.

The post-it strategy and having the students make their own demonstrations seemed very beneficial. Student seemed to be engaged in the reading and extremely interested in the storyline. The teacher trained them to be eager to answer their questions about the text to enrich their reading. The small group discussions after with the webbing reminded me of what my teacher did in fifth grade. We did a lot of group discussions while being observed by our teacher. The teacher stepped back and let the students do the talking thus increasing the learning benefits for everyone. The teacher was there to guide the students, not mold their thoughts. I can also see how this can be  a way of boosting up students who would not normally participate in a regular class discussion. Since the group is smaller more people are willing to contribute.

Week 8-Assignment 1

 

To gain some insight into the process of comprehension, read the following paragraph, which has been divided into a series of sentences. Stop after reading each sentence and ask yourself, “What did the sentence say? How did I go about comprehending it? What does this paragraph seem to be about?”  

 

Assignment#1Share your comprehension processes (due on Blacboard Discussion Forum, Nov. 4, by midnight) 

Without searching on Google, read the paragraph, explain to us the processes you go through to comprehend this paragraph, draw a picture of “hoatzin,” then research on hoatzin to compare your understanding of the paragraph.  

 

A hoatzin has a clever way of escaping from its enemies. 

It generally builds its home in a branch that extends over a swamp or stream. 

If an enemy approaches, the hoatzin plunges into the water below. 

Once the coast is clear, it uses its fingerlike claws to climb back up the tree. 

Hoatzins are born with claws on their wings but lose the claws as they get older. 

 

The processes in which I comprehended this paragraph was by reading each sentence then imagining what the sentence said in my head. Since I did not know what context this paragraph was taken from, it was hard to relate it to other areas of previous knowledge. After I read the first sentence, I wasn't sure if a hoatzin was a soldier or an animal. As I read the next sentences however I gathered that a hoatzin is an animal.

 

Above is the picture I drew in Paint of what I think a Hoatzin looks like.

• 

This is a picture of what a Hoatzin really looks like. In this case I think the differences in the pictures speak for themselves!

 

 

 

After reading the paragraph I thought that a hoatzin was a bat like creature with reptile climbing attributes. Really a hoatzin is a bird that lives in the Amazon. The hoatzin eats leaves and lives in trees. Although the imagery in my mind was a little bit off, the basic idea of what I understood and what really was were not far off from each other.

Week 7, Assignment 3

1. Explain the three levels of words and how you can use word levels to decide which words to teach.

Vocabulary words do not have to be exclusively from exterior lists. Rather, vocabulary words can be taken from literature that students are already reading. There are different tiers of word levels. Some words are extremely complex and are only applicable to certain subjects such as chemistry and geometry. These types of words can be taught by the teachers of those subjects. Other types of words are uncommon but students should still know them. In the video the teacher decided to discuss the word "reassure". This word was above the students' grade level but since it is a word that is used the teacher chose to teach it. The next level of words are simple words that the students are familiar with. The key to know what to teach your students is based upon your students' backgrounds and needs. Every lifestyle comes along with a unique set of words that are practical and it is up to the teacher to chose which words are the most helpful for her students to know.

2. How do you teach your students to "chunk" words as a strategy for decoding unfamiliar words? When do you provide this instruction?

For beginner readers, students sound out each letter of the word. As their reading progresses, students should be trained to sound out larger units of the word. For an unfamiliar word students can just look at the middle of the word to see if he can pronounce it. If he is having trouble, he can look at the beginning of the word or the end to see if he can pronounce any of those parts. Eventually after dissecting the parts of the word the student should be able to sound out the entire word. Students can do this process through using their thumbs. Eventually the goal is for students to drop using the exterior reminders of chunking and for this process to become automatic thereby increasing fluency.

3. Based on Professor Allington's comments and the classroom examples, what are some ways you might foster word study in your classroom?

I really liked how one of the teachers spent a few minutes each day discussing new words. These words were taken from the students' reading and added to a word wall. The class discussed each word coming up with different synonyms for the word to increase their vocabulary. Encouraging students to describe things using paragraphs in stead of sentences will expand their understanding of words and their appreciation for the item being described. In my classroom what I could do is first ask the students to describe something using one sentence. Next I can ask them to describe the same thing using a paragraph. Next I can ask them to go even deeper and describe the item using an entire page. This would help expand their vocabulary and writing skills.

Week 7-Assignment 2

1. How can you ensure that your struggling readers have access to texts they can easily read?

As seen in the video, teachers need to make sure that their classroom library is fully equipped with books of all reading levels. Professor Allington pointed out that it costs the same to buy twenty-five different books as twenty-five of the same book. With this mindset, teachers should try their upmost to stock their classrooms with reading material that is reader friendly even to the struggling reader.
It is important though that struggling readers also have some challenge to stimulate their minds. A "just right" balance is the key to ensuring that all readers' needs are being addressed.

2. How can you foster a learning environment in which students have many opportunities to practice reading?

As mentioned before, having a classroom library is extremely important. Making the library a pleasant and welcoming place to be is also important. Allowing children to go to the library after classroom assignments are completed or as a treat for students are ways for students to practice reading. In addition, creating activities that incorporate reading is also a way of enabling students to review their reading skills.

3. Describe ways in which you can model fluent reading in your classroom throughout the day?

Students gain so much for hearing the teacher read out loud. In addition to the enjoyment of listening to an interesting story, students are exposed to fluent reading. Weak students who are grouped with other weak students hardly ever hear what fluent reading sounds like. Therefore, it is vital for teachers to model fluent reading to show their students the level they should be striving towards. In addition to reading books out  loud, teachers can read directions for activities out loud, signs, rules etc. out loud for their students to hear fluent reading.

Week 7-Assignment 1

 

What texts and materials do teachers have in their classrooms that support students' development of fluent reading?

I am apart of a group of teachers that teach English to children in Israel. We follow a curriculum written by a professional educator with a lot of experience in teaching ESL, especially to Israeli children with unique backgrounds. Since the students that we teach come from ultra-orthodox homes, what they are allowed to read is limited. Students are not allowed to read books with magic, secular concepts, social interactions between girls and boys etc. Despite the restrictions, the head of our program provides an array of books from religious sources. She has around four books per reading level. This is a good amount for the weak readers, but for strong readers, they run out of reading material quite rapidly. Easy novels as well as religious readers are used to support students development of fluent reading.

 

How do they select vocabulary to teach in all areas of your curriculum?

Since these teachers are teaching English as a second language to younger children, they focus the most on letter recognition, reading then writing. These teachers main priority is not necessarily that these students should be on the same grade level as children the same age in America. Rather these teachers job is to equip their students with the tools to read and write English on a basic level. Therefore, the teachers try to chose the most practical vocabulary to help their students gain a basic hold of the language.  However, with children who are more advanced, vocabulary building is done through writing activities. Teachers give students vocabulary lists to learn and build on these lists through exciting writing activities. In addition learning units in grammar such as synonyms and antonyms also build students vocabulary since they learn new ways to say words that they already know.

 

 

  How much time do they allocate to word study?

The English classes that I am discussing take place between once to twice a week for forty-five minute sessions. Of these forty-five minute sessions two thirds are dedicated to word study. First the students review their sight words. Next students study their vocabulary words that fall under different rules, for instance the long a rules etc.

 

What word study routines do they teach and encourage their students to use?

The word study routines as mentioned above is that each lesson begins with a sight word test. Next  students are tested on vocabulary learned in previous classes. Following learning a new set of vocabulary words students usually complete a writing assignment having to do with the new set of words. Finally, students read from a book selected by the teacher. While reading students are encouraged to identify words and the rule they fall under. This way students are applying previous knowledge and hopefully building their vocabulary.

 

How do they differentiate instruction and tasks based on their students' needs?

The level of the words are based on the learning level of each child as a way of catering to each individual student's needs. Furthermore, if a student is weak reader, the teacher will allocate more time for reading practice to improve his fluency. Students will also do more exercises to  review their vocabulary if needed.

Fluency and Word Study Chart

Reading Element	Instruction	Opportunities for Practice	Text/Materials
Fluency	Teacher read-aloud	Reader’s Theater	Plays, scripts
Vocabulary	Vocabulary word tests, learning “rules” in the English language i.e.-long a	At the beginning of every class, while reading	Vocabulary lists, rule lists, readers
Decoding	While reading students need to decode unknown words	At the end of every lesson, and for homework	Readers, books