----- Original Message ----- From: "Cindy" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
> Hi Bill, > I'm not entering the whining discussion, but I was thrilled to see a > couple of your comments! You commented about children feeling they hadn't > learned anything before they got to your class! PLEASE share what is > different about your class! I teach in a school with many slow students > and though I am elementary rather than middle (as I believe you are) I > want to do the best that I can for these kids. I view it as MY fault when > they don't pass the test and I'd love to hear what you think makes the > difference. Thank you in advance. > Cindy/VA/2nd > _______________________________________________ > Hi Cindy, I don't think I'm doing anything different than most on this listserv, but the first day of school I have the students do an essay about themselves and their reading habits and opinions. In fact, I spend a lot of time the first few weeks of school getting an idea of where they are coming from. That's where I know many have such negative attitudes. I gather lots of data such as reading speeds, reading levels, word recognition levels, phonemic knowledge, etc. and that tells me a lot about what they know. I also have them fill out a personal intersts form which gives me ideas on books they might want to read. I also avoid stressing about the state test.....most are so tired of hearing about the state tests that they are burned out on it. I do confront them with their reading with such activities as: they'll read a selection for fluency then I'll ask them to tell me what they read....most can't even tell me the topic of the selection.....that's when we discuss ACTIVE reading. they read orally and are told to present it as dramatically or crazily as possible so they think of reading as fun (imagine GREEN EGGS AND HAM read by Shakespeare).... I will assign a story in the text and watch what happens when each reads. Many are lip readers or have other habits they need to correct.... I also watch to see how many actually read the assignment and how many just skip to the questions to answer them without reading the selection! I won't even assign the questions, but they are so conditioned to ANSWER QUESTIONS that they automatically do it. I'll stop them and ask how many were reading....and how many were answering questions. Most will be answering questions. I teach them that reading is NOT about answering the questions, but about reading and comprehending.... i emphasize reading for fun versus reading for AR points or scoring well on the state test or because they have to... i have them read different sizes of fonts and show them how larger fonts make for easier reading.... and even though they are 8th graders, we still read picture books and discuss them.... i have them read selections on different colored paper so they can see if they are sensitive to certain colors and if any particular hues can help them to read better.... i tell them it's okay to skip boring parts of a book..... i tell them it's okay to put down a book if it gets boring after a chapter or three.... i ask them about teachers who assign reading for homework, then ask them how many "read" the assignment....most say they did, but then we discuss how many of them could talk about what they read. Most can't because their previous teacher didn't stress comprehension and just told them to read the chapter. Most read the chapter because they don't see the difference between sounding out the words and comprehending.... most importantly, we TALK. We discuss making connections, purpose, inferring, etc. Admittedly, being 8th graders, they can often infer things that are questionable, but i allow it....within reason.... PLUS, I don't give tests. If a child reads a selection based on his or her background, they may have a different interpretation of the story. Are they wrong? Of course.......NOT! Reading is a synthesis of reader's schema and author's purpose. I use the example from "Night Before Christmas" where the narrator "threw up the sash" and ask the kids about the 2 possible meanings. Many will say he vomited 'sash' while others infer it's a curtain or screen. Is anyone wrong? No. So we discuss personal interpretation versus 'correct answers'... Because I don't give tests, we have goals and we check our growth. Year end goals are 150 wpm orally, 300 wpm mentally, and raising reading levels closer to grade level. If someone already reads at those goals, I give them higher ones. If someone is too low such as at 2nd grade level, I set their goals at 1 or 2 levels higher and we adjust through the year. If you notice, much of what I mentioned are attitudes about READING that are formed from previous teachers and classes. I've had many students who had a teacher (or even a parent!) tell them they were stupid back in 4th grade, but they still have it in their heads that they are stupid and refuse to try. Finally, many teachers just present the material and expect kids to learn. I spend part of my time showing them how to learn. We discuss making connections with information and how to learn. I ask them if when they were younger, did they ever ask their teachers, "WHY?" and most say yes. I ask them how many do it now and no one does. They tell me teachers often didn't answer their questions and we talk about how some teachers don't know the answers and are embarrassed so they avoid answering the questions or how they only know what's in the textbook so they are often unprepared for questions outside of the box. Then we talk about how we have to form our own answers and how reading helps prepare them to do so. I don't have all the answers and sometimes I feel as if I don't have ANY answers. I hope this helps.... Bill _______________________________________________ Mosaic mailing list [email protected] To unsubscribe or modify your membership please go to http://literacyworkshop.org/mailman/options/mosaic_literacyworkshop.org. Search the MOSAIC archives at http://snipurl.com/MosaicArchive.
