Have you ever spent time with children while they were playing? Whether with your own children, relatives, or students in your class have you ever paid attention to the imagination that is being used and the story-telling going on during playtime? I have seen my niece and nephews while they play and sometimes just had to laugh in surprise at their creativity. Sadly however, play in schools has been starting to dwindle. As more pressure has been put on increasing test scores there has been more pencil/paper work and less play. As Dr. Karen Wohlwend stated in a podcast with Dr. Betsy Baker, play is looked at more as a nice thing to have, but not of enough value to keep around when push comes to shove with our time (2009).
In this podcast and her corresponding article, Dr. Wohlwend looks specifically at play with Disney princess dolls from popular media. Some teachers have felt that allowing students to write about these popular media themes would not encourage children to be creative and they would just be writing based on stories they knew. However, as Dr. Wohlwend points out, these themes are rich with literacy material.
Play provides a safe environment where mistakes are inconsequential and where they can practice and extend their literacy abilities. Children can practice language oral skills without fear. In interacting with others they can build those literacy skills together and develop their own strategies. I think most people recognize that school can be very draining. When all day long students are sitting at their desks working with pencil and paper it is bound to be mentally exhausting and become less effective. Children need some time to let their creativity out in a way they dictate. It is up to us as teachers to harness that imagination and creativity, not stomp it out.
Sunday, March 31, 2013
Saturday, March 23, 2013
Fun with Reading
We live in a culture where story telling is a big part of our conversations, whether we discuss our own life experiences or we are sharing our thoughts about a movie we just saw or book we just read. During my experiences in the classroom this semester I have come to really value the opportunity to do read-alouds with the students and really getting them involved with stories. I have had several opportunities to do read-alouds with my first graders. While their enthusiasm can sometimes be overwhelming with every student wanting to comment, I find it a valuable tool when it comes to building their comprehension of a book or story.
Some may have the misconception that a read aloud simply implies reading a book out loud to children; they sit and listen while the teacher reads through the story non-stop. If this were the case, I would not consider read-alouds quite as valuable as I do. A good read aloud gets the children interacting with the story, asking questions and making connections. In their book, Catching Readers, Johnson and Keier refer to a scenario where after reading the book the teacher asked the students to take some time to share their thoughts with a partner. This gives the students a chance to construct meaning, make connections and support one another (p.99). Not only does this help the students work on literacy skills, but it usually makes the story more enjoyable! So often we expect students to only talk about what we are learning in school. Read-alouds can give them a chance to bring in their life experiences and to just have a purposeful conversation that is not based on right or wrong answers.
Shared reading can also bring a lot to the table. We can use some of the same tips from read-alouds in letting students talk and build meaning while allowing each student to have the book in front of him or her. At my current school they use something called the Fab Four when doing shared or guided reading. The Fab Four are four different characters: Quincy the Questioner who asks who, what, when, where, why questions about the story, Paula the Predictor who predicts what is going to happen next in the story, Clara the Clarifier who stops to examine words we are not familiar with, and Sammy the Summarizer who gives a brief summary of the main points in the story. I have found these to be very effective in helping students build their comprehension.
There are many benefits in reading aloud to children AND allowing them to participate in the story. Finding a way that makes reading more enjoyable and more productive is a definite win.
Some may have the misconception that a read aloud simply implies reading a book out loud to children; they sit and listen while the teacher reads through the story non-stop. If this were the case, I would not consider read-alouds quite as valuable as I do. A good read aloud gets the children interacting with the story, asking questions and making connections. In their book, Catching Readers, Johnson and Keier refer to a scenario where after reading the book the teacher asked the students to take some time to share their thoughts with a partner. This gives the students a chance to construct meaning, make connections and support one another (p.99). Not only does this help the students work on literacy skills, but it usually makes the story more enjoyable! So often we expect students to only talk about what we are learning in school. Read-alouds can give them a chance to bring in their life experiences and to just have a purposeful conversation that is not based on right or wrong answers.
Shared reading can also bring a lot to the table. We can use some of the same tips from read-alouds in letting students talk and build meaning while allowing each student to have the book in front of him or her. At my current school they use something called the Fab Four when doing shared or guided reading. The Fab Four are four different characters: Quincy the Questioner who asks who, what, when, where, why questions about the story, Paula the Predictor who predicts what is going to happen next in the story, Clara the Clarifier who stops to examine words we are not familiar with, and Sammy the Summarizer who gives a brief summary of the main points in the story. I have found these to be very effective in helping students build their comprehension.
There are many benefits in reading aloud to children AND allowing them to participate in the story. Finding a way that makes reading more enjoyable and more productive is a definite win.
Sunday, March 3, 2013
The Looming Presence of Assessments
I remember test taking as always being part of school. By the time I got to high school one would think I would have mastered taking tests (which I still have not). Then during my undergraduate work I was exposed to different kinds of tests and assessments, which showed me that I am just not as strong in multiple choice or true/false tests as I am with tests that require reasoning and give me a chance to argue my claims. Having decided to enter the field of education I have seen that standardized testing in schools has become even critically tied to a student's performance than when I was in school. Obviously there does need to be some kind of assessment, but is constant testing (and the same kinds of tests at that) really the best way to evaluate performance, knowledge, or ability?
Just as I have my strengths and weaknesses when it comes to different forms of tests, I believe all students have a testing niche in which they are most successful. I completely agree with Dr. Caitlin Dooley who stated that a single test cannot tell the whole story and that we need to have different genres of assessments (2010). Tests should not be a measure of how gifted a student is at taking tests, but at assessing what they have learned and where improvements can be made. Assessments should be a means of helping teachers figure out how to be more effective in the classroom.
According to Johnson and Keier, authors of Catching Readers Before They Fall, other forms of assessment include informal conferences with our students, taking notes on students's performances throughout the day, or a more formal assessment like a running record or benchmark tests (2010). We as teachers are in the classroom to teach our students. What better way to assess how we as teachers are performing and how our students are doing than by watching them and taking note of their learning processes?
Just as I have my strengths and weaknesses when it comes to different forms of tests, I believe all students have a testing niche in which they are most successful. I completely agree with Dr. Caitlin Dooley who stated that a single test cannot tell the whole story and that we need to have different genres of assessments (2010). Tests should not be a measure of how gifted a student is at taking tests, but at assessing what they have learned and where improvements can be made. Assessments should be a means of helping teachers figure out how to be more effective in the classroom.
According to Johnson and Keier, authors of Catching Readers Before They Fall, other forms of assessment include informal conferences with our students, taking notes on students's performances throughout the day, or a more formal assessment like a running record or benchmark tests (2010). We as teachers are in the classroom to teach our students. What better way to assess how we as teachers are performing and how our students are doing than by watching them and taking note of their learning processes?
Saturday, February 23, 2013
Looking at Miscue Analysis
When we listen to children read out loud we can sometimes be too critical and focused on what words he or she is missing or just plain getting it wrong. The truth though is that children are using their own strategies on how to make sense of an unfamiliar text. A good miscue analysis provides a goal "to understand how flexibly and efficiently the reader is integrating all the cues to predict, confirm, or discard hypotheses while making meaning with a text (Wohlwend, 2012). This new view on the miscue analysis allows us to look at how a child reads a sentence as a whole rather than just narrowing our vision to single words.
Through our class discussion with Dr. Wohlwend, I have learned that there are three key questions in conducting a good miscue analysis, which are: does it sound like good English? (syntax), does it make sense? (semantics), and was there a meaning change? (comprehension). We have also been introduced to the spider chart, which helps put the information from our miscue analysis into a format to visualize the relationships between the three systems. If a good miscue analysis requires looking at the sentence as a whole and not just single words, it only makes sense that the information we get should also be looked at as a whole and not separate, unrelated parts of our analysis. The spider chart can help us visualize a child's strengths and weaknesses in regards to the three systems.
I admit that before I became familiar with children's techniques in reading an unfamiliar text I would have thought to myself after hearing a child read, "Where did that come from? That word doesn't even look the same or sound the same." Having some familiarity now though, I can better understand where kids are pulling their ideas. Just this past week I was helping out in a first grade math class. We were working on word problems and I was with a small group of about 4-5 students. One little boy was sitting next to me and he wanted to read the next problem out loud for our group. He could read some of the words by himself (many of these were part of the class's "word wall" of sight words) but with many he struggled. His reading though still made sense; he was reading sentences and not just words. Because we were in the middle of a group math lesson we had to keep moving. Afterwards, however, he was looking at that same problem and pointed out to me the words 'toy' and 'toys'. I recall that when he had been reading out loud he said something like car or another word that didn't seem very close. He did notice though that they were the same word but one had an 's' on the end. It just made me think of the connections kids make in the moment and the ones they can make when given some more time.
As current or future teachers, being able to recognize how a child reads and makes sense of a text can help us become better at choosing the right reading material for our students and what kinds of strategies or mini lessons we can work on. The point of anything we as teachers do in that capacity should always be to find out how best to help our students.
Through our class discussion with Dr. Wohlwend, I have learned that there are three key questions in conducting a good miscue analysis, which are: does it sound like good English? (syntax), does it make sense? (semantics), and was there a meaning change? (comprehension). We have also been introduced to the spider chart, which helps put the information from our miscue analysis into a format to visualize the relationships between the three systems. If a good miscue analysis requires looking at the sentence as a whole and not just single words, it only makes sense that the information we get should also be looked at as a whole and not separate, unrelated parts of our analysis. The spider chart can help us visualize a child's strengths and weaknesses in regards to the three systems.
I admit that before I became familiar with children's techniques in reading an unfamiliar text I would have thought to myself after hearing a child read, "Where did that come from? That word doesn't even look the same or sound the same." Having some familiarity now though, I can better understand where kids are pulling their ideas. Just this past week I was helping out in a first grade math class. We were working on word problems and I was with a small group of about 4-5 students. One little boy was sitting next to me and he wanted to read the next problem out loud for our group. He could read some of the words by himself (many of these were part of the class's "word wall" of sight words) but with many he struggled. His reading though still made sense; he was reading sentences and not just words. Because we were in the middle of a group math lesson we had to keep moving. Afterwards, however, he was looking at that same problem and pointed out to me the words 'toy' and 'toys'. I recall that when he had been reading out loud he said something like car or another word that didn't seem very close. He did notice though that they were the same word but one had an 's' on the end. It just made me think of the connections kids make in the moment and the ones they can make when given some more time.
As current or future teachers, being able to recognize how a child reads and makes sense of a text can help us become better at choosing the right reading material for our students and what kinds of strategies or mini lessons we can work on. The point of anything we as teachers do in that capacity should always be to find out how best to help our students.
Sunday, February 17, 2013
To Level or Not to Level?
As parents and teachers, what are our goals when we give kids a book to read? We may hear different answers including wanting kids to enjoy what they are reading, helping them build stamina, helping them develop their comprehension, and basically just giving kids an opportunity to build their literacy foundation. But how do we know what are the best books for our children or students?
As teachers, we have a responsibility to choose the best reading material for our students. According to Glasswell and Ford in their article Let's Start Leveling About Leveling, the reading material itself is not as important as how it is used and thus a teacher's judgment is critical for "planning and implementing successful reading instruction" (pg. 209). We could have a classroom full of books for students with different reading needs, but if we don't know how to use them they become a good idea gone bad.
First we need to recognize that the relationship between the reader and the text in a specific context is very complex. Dr. Heidi Anne Mesmer referred to this as text complexity, or "an interwoven series of various pieces that braid together to make [reading] more multi-faceted, complicated, and interesting" (2012). This complex interaction is oversimplified when we try to put kids into reading levels. If we were to always put kids into reading levels we would have to create many sub-levels in order to identify all the different needs of children. This goes back to the idea that teachers need to choose books that suit a student's needs rather than trying to get him or her to the next "level". Dr. Mesmer also mentioned how the material children read should help guide thinking, represent knowledge, and expose gaps and inconsistencies
Children need materials that they are actually interested in reading, are capable or reading, and are also challenging and stimulating. This ties in with Vygotsky's idea of ZPD. Children need to be able to accomplish some tasks (helping maintain confidence) while still needing just a little bit more help and guidance to challenge the student.
As teachers, we have a responsibility to choose the best reading material for our students. According to Glasswell and Ford in their article Let's Start Leveling About Leveling, the reading material itself is not as important as how it is used and thus a teacher's judgment is critical for "planning and implementing successful reading instruction" (pg. 209). We could have a classroom full of books for students with different reading needs, but if we don't know how to use them they become a good idea gone bad.
First we need to recognize that the relationship between the reader and the text in a specific context is very complex. Dr. Heidi Anne Mesmer referred to this as text complexity, or "an interwoven series of various pieces that braid together to make [reading] more multi-faceted, complicated, and interesting" (2012). This complex interaction is oversimplified when we try to put kids into reading levels. If we were to always put kids into reading levels we would have to create many sub-levels in order to identify all the different needs of children. This goes back to the idea that teachers need to choose books that suit a student's needs rather than trying to get him or her to the next "level". Dr. Mesmer also mentioned how the material children read should help guide thinking, represent knowledge, and expose gaps and inconsistencies
Children need materials that they are actually interested in reading, are capable or reading, and are also challenging and stimulating. This ties in with Vygotsky's idea of ZPD. Children need to be able to accomplish some tasks (helping maintain confidence) while still needing just a little bit more help and guidance to challenge the student.
Sunday, February 10, 2013
Improve Kid's Vocabulary Now
I have been helping out in a first grade classroom at an elementary school where they introduce two new vocabulary words each week. This past week the words were precise and ambiguous. I am sorry to say that when I first heard those were the words I thought to myself, "Oh those must apply more to the older grades." I have since discovered how unfortunate that kind of thinking can be. The teacher of this first grade class had no reservations about applying these new vocabulary words to their lessons and using them in different situations to help the kids grasp the definitions. Kids at that age are like sponges and deserve more credit in their ability to learn new things than we sometimes give them.
Dr. Susan Neuman did some research among young children and found that "oral language... is the foundation of early literacy development" (podcast 2011). Having a stronger vocabulary can build stronger literacy practices, which can also enhance a child's comprehension in content areas like science and social studies. I also think children like to learn bigger words so they can use them and show off what they know.
Vocabulary does not have to be a specified area where the teacher gives the student a lists of words to learn. In fact I would say that would be a bad idea and would not work very well, especially with the younger children. If we as teachers do not confine our vocabulary when we teach and interact with students, their vocabulary can increase as well. They may ask a lot of questions to have us explain to them what certain words mean, but what a great opportunity for teachers! As we continue using vocabulary that our kids may not know, I feel they will also be able to develop an ability to learn definitions through context. This is a higher level skill, but it still introduces them.
Introducing kids to learning vocabulary at a young age can help prepare them to be able to continually learn new words. As they get older and reach those grades in elementary school when testing becomes a large focus, they will have a stronger literacy foundation.
Dr. Susan Neuman did some research among young children and found that "oral language... is the foundation of early literacy development" (podcast 2011). Having a stronger vocabulary can build stronger literacy practices, which can also enhance a child's comprehension in content areas like science and social studies. I also think children like to learn bigger words so they can use them and show off what they know.
Vocabulary does not have to be a specified area where the teacher gives the student a lists of words to learn. In fact I would say that would be a bad idea and would not work very well, especially with the younger children. If we as teachers do not confine our vocabulary when we teach and interact with students, their vocabulary can increase as well. They may ask a lot of questions to have us explain to them what certain words mean, but what a great opportunity for teachers! As we continue using vocabulary that our kids may not know, I feel they will also be able to develop an ability to learn definitions through context. This is a higher level skill, but it still introduces them.
Introducing kids to learning vocabulary at a young age can help prepare them to be able to continually learn new words. As they get older and reach those grades in elementary school when testing becomes a large focus, they will have a stronger literacy foundation.
Sunday, February 3, 2013
What do you mean, 'Sound it out'?
'Sound it out' is a pretty common phrase when it comes to reading and learning new words. Most people will tell you that 'sounding out' a word means to sound out each letter of an unknown word and try to blend them together to figure out the word. We can hear of many parents and students using this phrase as a technique for reading, but just how helpful is it?
When I think about having to sound out a word, I am more inclined to think about the game Mad Gab than I am to think about a good reading strategy. Sounding out a word or phrase would be more helpful there in trying to figure out that "Thigh Sing Gone Thick Ache" is actually "the icing on the cake". However, it is not a very useful tool when it comes to reading. The English language is full of words with silent letters, multiple sounds for single letters, and other complicated letter relationships, which would make this method unhelpful almost half the time. Besides, simply telling a child to 'sound it out' over and over again does not seem very helpful at all. No wonder children can get easily frustrated when trying to figure a word out and the only guidance they are given is, "sound it out".
In her article, "Sounding Out": A Pervasive Cultural Model of Reading, Catherine Compton-Lilly identifies some of the strategies children actually use when trying to figure out a word. These strategies include, looking a pictures that may help identify the word, looking at the context of a story/sentence (what makes sense?), and visual features of words, or seeing if a child's pronunciation "looks like" the printed word. Based on Compton-Lilly's research, many children will say they learn by "sounding it out" when in reality they are using these other reading strategies. As adults we have become proficient readers and take for granted our ability to unconsciously figure out how to pronounce a word and understand it's meaning based on contextual clues. When I come across a new word in my readings I do not need to sound it out; I have become familiar enough with the sounds letters make in certain associations that it requires little effort to figure out a pronunciation. Children are still learning this skill.
As current or future teachers we can help children develop better reading strategies than just sounding out words. We can teach them to use "...meaningful information gained from the picture, sentence context, or story line. Or use "...structural knowledge as they think about what would sound right. Or use their knowledge of visual information "...as they think about what word looks right" (Catching Readers Before They Fall, Johnson pg. 54). While words are what make up a story, the story can also help our young readers figure out a word. It may not always be an easy road, but it will be more beneficial and frustrate the teacher/parent and child less.
When I think about having to sound out a word, I am more inclined to think about the game Mad Gab than I am to think about a good reading strategy. Sounding out a word or phrase would be more helpful there in trying to figure out that "Thigh Sing Gone Thick Ache" is actually "the icing on the cake". However, it is not a very useful tool when it comes to reading. The English language is full of words with silent letters, multiple sounds for single letters, and other complicated letter relationships, which would make this method unhelpful almost half the time. Besides, simply telling a child to 'sound it out' over and over again does not seem very helpful at all. No wonder children can get easily frustrated when trying to figure a word out and the only guidance they are given is, "sound it out".
In her article, "Sounding Out": A Pervasive Cultural Model of Reading, Catherine Compton-Lilly identifies some of the strategies children actually use when trying to figure out a word. These strategies include, looking a pictures that may help identify the word, looking at the context of a story/sentence (what makes sense?), and visual features of words, or seeing if a child's pronunciation "looks like" the printed word. Based on Compton-Lilly's research, many children will say they learn by "sounding it out" when in reality they are using these other reading strategies. As adults we have become proficient readers and take for granted our ability to unconsciously figure out how to pronounce a word and understand it's meaning based on contextual clues. When I come across a new word in my readings I do not need to sound it out; I have become familiar enough with the sounds letters make in certain associations that it requires little effort to figure out a pronunciation. Children are still learning this skill.
As current or future teachers we can help children develop better reading strategies than just sounding out words. We can teach them to use "...meaningful information gained from the picture, sentence context, or story line. Or use "...structural knowledge as they think about what would sound right. Or use their knowledge of visual information "...as they think about what word looks right" (Catching Readers Before They Fall, Johnson pg. 54). While words are what make up a story, the story can also help our young readers figure out a word. It may not always be an easy road, but it will be more beneficial and frustrate the teacher/parent and child less.
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