In response to these class reflections, I learned about so many things about literacy instruction for the classroom. There is information about “Good Reader” versus “Struggling Reader” and how both of those labels are based on the triangle of how a person reads. I also learned about the teacher’s and the students’ role during a read aloud. There are so many things to keep in mind during a read aloud. I just hope that I will remember them all! Mrs. Crawford also covered the National Reading Panel Study and how their program is broken down into five categories: vocabulary, phonemic awareness, phonics, fluency, and comprehension. All of those factors contribute to a well-rounded literacy program. I also learned how to model metacognition through The Wonderful Happens by Cynthia Rylant. I also got a chance to do some writing and I chose to talk about the “Song of Acadia” series by Janette Oke. Another big thing I learned was the “Writing Workshop” and how such writing system is a great set-up to help students succeed in all parts of the writing process.
Overall, I learned so much this semester! I really enjoyed my class. I hope to take all that I learned from this class and use it towards making my future class a success. I am very thankful that I took this class.
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
November 21, 2011: Guided Reading Observation
Reflection to Guided Reading Observation
Observation Date: Monday, 21 November 2011
Location: Ms. Woycheese’s 2nd grade class – Bingham Elementary School
In response to the observation, I learned so much about guided reading. For me, I learn better if I see the lesson actually being modeled in front of me and/or if I am going through on the spot training. Today’s observation was great because I was able to observe Mrs. Crawford model guided reading to different groups of students. Attached is a form of notes that I took when I observed but I would like to take a few minutes to reflect on my experience.
The book Mrs. Crawford read is titled Cork. The guided reading for this group is focused on word work for the word “ancestor”. For the word work, the group utilizes clap syllables, word-on using a whiteboard per student, underlining all syllables, and defining words. There are other strategies the group utilizes: visual cues, prior knowledge, and spelling assistance. I am amazed how Mrs. Crawford was able to make use of so many different strategies.
There are several other modeling exercises that do help the word work groups. Before reading, the group discusses the cover, they also flip through pictures and discuss the illustrations, and the group also focuses on the objective “Read to find out about adopting a horse”. During reading, the students utilize sticky notes to show and write unknown words, independent and whisper reading, and such strategies allow the students to read at their own pace. After reading, Mrs. Crawford and the students focus on the objective again which is “Read to find out about adopting a horse”. Besides going over the objective, the students are reminded to go back and reread this book sometime soon, and Mrs. Crawford finishes the lesson by giving praises to the students.
Besides Mrs. Crawford’s modeling for guided reading, I do take notice of the reading stations that is in use in this particular classroom. The back bulletin board does have a “Daily 5” chart with each of the students name in the farthest left column. The row heading states the choices for reading time and the students place a Popsicle in their own pocket attached to the bulletin board to note which activity the students chose. The “Daily 5” consists of: reading independently, work on writing, listen to reading, word work, and read to someone.
I absolutely love the idea of the “Daily 5”. I want to incorporate both Mrs. Crawford’s modeling and the “Daily 5” into my own classroom someday. I see so many benefits to having a “Daily 5” and it is obvious that such method for reading does enhance education. The students are totally focused on what they are doing and I think it helps that there are so many options. All options do support a proper reading time in the classroom. I am thankful for getting a chance to observe the classroom and I am thankful for Ms. Woycheese’s hospitality. I learned so much from this observation and I am very thankful to observe Mrs. Crawford model guided reading.
September 28, 2011: Work Study Lesson and Concepts About Print
Groupings for Work Study Lesson: (aligned with the grade level)
1. Emergent (Pre-K)
2. Letter Name (1st)
3. Within Word (1st-2nd)
4. Syllable/Affixes (3rd)
5. Derivational Relations (4th)
Concepts About Print:
- Early in literacy learning children must discover something about the arbitrary conventions we have for putting the language we speak into a printed form.
- What to do with a book.
- Directional rules
- Concepts about how print works.
- pg. 123-124, Gunning.
CAP Assessment:
- Helps teachers to observe young children's growing recognition of the characteristics of books and written language.
- Reveals what students are attending to... both appropriately and inappropriately.
- Use with children 5-7 years old during the 1st weeks of school.
- One-on-one assessing.
- Should NOT be used to predict who will learn to read and write easily and who will have difficulty
- Teachers should have understanding about the CAP of each child so that they can teach all children.
- Lowest achieving students can recieve specific support and careful monitoring.
- CAP should be used with a battery of assessments (letter ID, etc.).
____________________________________________________________________________
September 26, 2011 Class Handout for /th/ words categorization
Emergent Literacy
1. I noticed the five components of literacy standards: symbolic development, speaking/expressive language, listening/receptive language, reading, and writing.
A classmate noticed that she didn't realize that reading can be taught at such a young age.
2. I learned how children can express their feelings and ideas of literacy in ways I didn't ever know about; for example, through role playing and through their artwork.
A classmate learned that kids learn so well through personal development way before starting school.
3. I want to remember all of the teaching methods and suggestions for teaching literacy. There are so many great ideas that would do great in a classroom setting.
A classmate wanted to remember all of the teaching methods as well because she did not realize that there were so many different ways to instruct literacy.
In response to this class section, I learned about which set of /th/ words are voiced or unvoiced. I was so glad Mrs. Crawford covered this because I was struggling with this in the phonics workbook. Now I know that unvoiced doesn't make a vibration in my throat when I pronounce /th/ and that the sound is nothing but air when it is pronounced vocally. The voiced /th/ makes a vibration in my throat and it does make a sound when it is pronounced vocally. The reading assignment for this class section was the dese.mo.gov website that covers literacy standards set by the state of Missouri. I learned so many crucial information from the document because I must be able to accurately teach my students to succeed at each set standard. I will owe that to my future students some day. See, I am always learning something new!
ATTITUDE
A- Always making today my best day.
I really respond to this because it is something I can personally work on. I can find myself overwhelmed with homework and studying to the point that I forget to take time to enjoy the day. I should make everyday my best!
Mrs. Crawford quoted Proverbs 1:7 and 4:7 in class.
__________________________________________________________________
September 6, 2011 notes: Please see main blog page to view my response
Great work, Casey!
ReplyDelete