Veronica's Self-Assessment Noteblog Entry

I feel that my group's thinking and learning has grown a great amount since the beginning of the semester in making connections to what we are learning in class to what we are seeing in field placement. As we first blogged our entries, our entries were discussed in general terms but now I can say we included specific details and situations that coincide to our readings. Through our blogging, group members and I have contributed to one another's learning since we are able to "peek" into other second grade classrooms and discuss what's working and not working. We have also extended our learning by asking each other questions about comments we post. This allows for another point of view to be seen. Taking all these ideas into consideration, I recommend that my group members and I receive a letter grade of an A because our thinking and discussions have developed throughout the course of the semester.

Veronica's Week 11 Post

On page 235 of our course pack, I found great information that explained a Critical Literacy. It states that critical literacies "involve people using language to exercise power, to enhance everyday life in schools and communities, and to question practices of privilege and injustice". Within the two pages of our course pack, there are numerous examples that teachers can authentically use a critical literacy within their lessons. As I read the pages, I first thought of my class lesson on discussion. For my lesson, I read the book tittled The Story of Ruby Bridges (picture book), I also used the book Through My Eyes (autobiography) to add a real-life event connection from the picture book to the autobiography. During the Civil Rights Movement of the 1960s, Ruby Bridges was among one of the first African American students in Louisiana to attend a desegregated school. For our discussion, students were able to make text to self connections about challenges and difficulties they have experienced in their lives as did Ruby Bridges. During the school year, students in my field placement are learning 10 characteristic traits. For my lesson, students wrote a letter to Ruby Bridges about a time they had perseverance like her.

I think many grade levels can benefit from having centers used in their classrooms. This can be done not only for Literacy but for other subjects such as Math as the article suggested, and for Science and Social Studies as well. It is important to make center activities hands-on to provide students with opportunities for meaningful active involvment and not busy work. Activities should meet the needs and abilities of students within the classroom. To have centers, it must take a significant amount of planning from teachers and also maintain classroom norms for students to stay on task.

Jami's Week 11 Post

“Critical literacy is an active, reflective manner of reading texts in order to better understand power, inequality, and injustice in human relationships. For the purposes of critical literacy, text is defined as a “vehicle through which individuals communicate with one another using the codes and conventions of society”. Accordingly, songs, novels, conversations, pictures, movies, etc. are all considered texts.” 1 I think this would be a great way to teach students different tasks. It seems that children learn better through song or through pictures or movies. For example the ABC’s-is a song, the Magic School Bus series, which is shown in almost every elementary school. When students have conversations with each other about what they have learned they seem to grasp the concept much better, having talked about it with someone else. Students respond well to these types of “texts” and I have seen proof of this in my placement.

According to the Literacy for the 21st Century book, Basal Reading Programs are comprehensive core reading programs. They are scientifically-based reading programs. The Reading First legislation demands that reading programs in Kindergarten through 3rd grade are based on scientifically-based reading research. In my field placement the program that my students use I believe is Reading First. I have read through some of the books that they use and they seem to cover a wide variety of content and really touch on different aspects of fluency such as: phonemic awareness instruction, systematic explicit phonics instruction, fluency instruction, vocabulary instruction, and text comprehension instruction. When I taught my lesson I used the teachers guide to find a story for the students. In that guide there was a great deal of instruction and ideas that teachers could use based on fluency, vocabulary, comprehension, etc.. I thought this was great because it allows for the teacher to gain ideas from the book as well as use her own. It really guides you as a teacher which would be wonderful for first year teachers just getting the feel for this stuff. The basal reading programs have many different components and are very expensive. They are sold directly to school districts and the schools use them as they please. I think it is important that all districts use the same reading program so all of the students are on the same level. Once they get to middle school they will all be together and will all be expected to know the same information.

(1) Robinson, E., & Robinson, S. (2003). What does it mean? Discourse, Text, Culture: An Introduction. Sydney: McGraw-Hill Book Company, p. 3.

Jamis Week 10 Post

Roll of Thunder Hear My Cry-Mini Vocabulary Lesson

After presenting these vocabulary words to students, have them make a chart like the one shown below. Ask them to list each word in the first column. Then students should think about their familiarity with each word and make a check in the appropriatecolumn. If they can define the word, they should write the definition in the next column. Once the charts are completed, invite those who can define a word to do so for the rest of the class. Challenge these volunteers to use the words in sentences. Then direct students who did not previously check the second column to write the word's meaning in that column. After reviewing all the words, encourage students to go back and circle in red any words that they are still not sure of.

meticulously
penchant
verandah
morosely
dubious
obnoxious
raucous
fallow
careened
exasperation
despondently
chignon
acrid
ashen
malevolently
knell
amenities
subdued
emaciated
shroud
proprietor
disposition
temerity
snidely
concession
monotonous
reprimand
plantation
noncommittal
maverick
crescendo
boycott
languidly
flaunting
chiffonier
insolently
reverberated
adamantly
resiliency
feigned
lethargically
imperiously

Mini Vocab Lesson

Hi again :)

Story: The Ugly Garden by Grace Lin

Vocabulary Words: Garden, blooming, prickly, muscles, aroma, scent, trade

Using main vocabulary from the story (see above), I will have students look up these words using a dictionary. Once students record the definitions on a sheet of paper; they will use the words in sentences so I can make sure they understand the meanings. We will then read the story together and stop at the vocabulary words. When I stop, I will call on a student to share what the meaning is. Once we finish the story, we will talk about the vocabulary words in the context.

Veronica's comment: I think its so great you are using dictionary with young learners, second graders! It allows for a teaching opportunity for students to learn "how to" use the dictionary, alphabetical order or one word may have many definitions and students must decide which definition fits the context of the book they are reading. In addition to having students write their own sentences, they can also draw a picture representing the definition of the word. This will further extend their understanding of each word they are learning about. I like how you plan to stop at each vocabulary word and discuss its meaning in the book.

Veronica's Week 10 Post

Topic: Content Related Vocabulary Words
Grade: Second grade
Time: 45 minutes to 1 hour

Introduce the topic: Book- The Valentine Bears by Eve Bunting will be read the day before Valentine's Day. Before story is read, students will be asked to look at the cover and predict using context clues from the picture to tell what the story will be about.

Share Examples: Students and I will make a text to self connection that as bears need to hibernate and get their rest during the whole winter season. Humans need their daily rest of 6-8 hours of sleep everyday.

Provide Information: I can also provided additional information to students about bears and hibernating through informational text. There will also be information text at their reading level so the students can read on their own as well. Together, we will explain and determine the meaning of each words that pertain to bears and their environments.

Guided Practice: At centers, students will be able to use word sorts within the vocabulary presented. They can determine which word fits in the group based on their meaning. Students will also have a cut and paste of matching, this page will also include space to write a few words that describe the picture.

Assess Learning: Learning assessment will be done in students' writing journal. During the last day of the week or when the mini lesson on bears is over, students will have a morning journal message to write their Kindergarten reading buddy, everything they know about Bears. Students will be informed to include the vocabulary they learned. I will be assessing whether or not students used the vocabulary correctly and if they understood the definitions.

Jami's Comment:
First of all I love the idea of the bears and how you associated it with Valentines Day. Very cute! I really think that this is something that students really enjoy and from what I have witnessed they pay more attention when reading books that deal with a holiday or some event taking place. I did a lesson not too long ago that dealt with text to self connections. They seemed to do pretty well with this. It is very important for students to be able to see text to self connections. I also think when they see something in a character that has to do with themselves they comprehend the book much better. I think word sorts are a good idea when working with young children. This helps with vocabulary in your case, but also comprehension. If students are cutting and pasting words or phrases they have to have some sense in what they are doing. For comprehension the students could cut out words or themes from the book and place them in the correct order. This way students are being forced to think about the book and sequencing in a fun way. I also like the idea of having the Kindergarten reading buddies. I think it is very important for children to be able to talk through what they have learned. They may be able to write it out-or put words or phrases in order, but do they really understand it? By having them explain it to someone else it forces them to think about it and express what they have learned. This is great for both the Kindergartner and Second grader. I think this also forms a type of friendship between the two. Cute idea, I really like it!! :)

Veronica's Week 9 Post

Reading fluency can be taught in Book Club in various ways by allowing students to pick their favorite passages, quotes or paragraphs from the book they are reading and practice rereading it 3-5 times. This can improve students' reading speed, decrease the number of errors they make, allows for students to chunk words into meaningful phrases and read with more expression (175). It is also interesting to learn that researchers have found that through repeated reading, students will deepen their comprehension of the book they reread; in this case the book used in Book Club. In my field placement, the second grade students have kindergarten reading buddies which they will read to every Friday afternoon. They often choose books they have read before in their guided reading groups; this allows for an additional opportunity for students to practice words they are learning during their Language Arts instruction. Through guided reading, teachers can assess students' word identification and fluency or by asking them to think aloud and explain how they used decoding to spell a particular word.

In this chapter (Chap. 5- Literacy for the 21st Century), I also found very interesting that word walls are used not only in primary grades but in upper grades as well. This chapter states, second grade teachers often begin the year with the easier half of the high frequency words already on the word wall and they add 50 to 75 more words during the school year (158). Teachers in upper grades can create word walls of common words students need to learn as well as words that students often misspell or confuse with other words.