Hi, I have been reading all the posts and basically agreeing with what everyone has been saying - even when the posts were contradictory! I think that different readers require different types of instruction, and that our challenge is to understand the needs of our learners and teach accordingly. I think most readers learn best in context. However, some children need explicit skill work, and then need explicit instruction in how to apply the skills they are learning to the reading process. I have found that the more a student struggles, the more explicit I need to be. Some students who appear to be over phonicated, have actually not become automated enough so that they can leave the decoding stage. Lifting the words off the page requires so much cognitive energy that there is nothing left over for constructing meaning. My analogy is that I am athletically challenged. Immersing me in softball did not help me to improve my game, although most of my friends improved. I would have required much more specific instruction on how to catch and hit a ball in order to become barely adequate. Consequently, I can still not play softball. Sorry I rambled, Linda
On Jun 24, 2008, at 11:19 AM, Beverlee Paul wrote: > And I would add that Renee's comment about addressing phonics in a > meaningful way is one of the key reasons Don Holdaway "invented" > shared reading. Basically anything that can be done in isolated > phonics instruction can be "delivered" through quality shared > reading experiences, which laces phonics into meaning. That sends a > whole different message to a kid about what phonics is for. > >> From: [EMAIL PROTECTED]> Date: Tue, 24 Jun 2008 08:00:59 >> -0700> To: [email protected]> Subject: Re: [MOSAIC] >> phonemic awareness/segmentation help wanted> > > On Jun 23, 2008, >> at 8:21 PM, [EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote:> > I have been thinking about >> this post since it came up. When we are > > teaching phonological >> awareness and phonics, aren't we still teaching > > meaning? My >> interpretation of what we are doing with this instruction, > > is >> always based on meaning.> > No, I don't think so... not >> particularly. I just finished a year in a > Kindergarten in which >> the head teacher definitely did not include > meaning in >> practically any of her phonics/phonemic awareness > activities. It >> was nearly all isolated, without context. How much > meaning is >> there in DIBELS assessments that require students to bark > out >> nonsense syllables in record time? If the argument here is that > >> isolated phonics instruction LEADS to meaning, that it is a step in >> the > process of reading for meaning, then I would say it would be >> just as > easy to address phonics and phonemic awareness in a >> meaningful way, in > context, as PART OF the whole reason for >> reading in the first place.> > My two cents.> Renee> > "We are here >> to infiltrate space with ideas."> ~ Ramtha> > > > >> _______________________________________________> 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. > > _________________________________________________________________ > Watch “Cause Effect,” a show about real people making a real > difference. Learn more. > http://im.live.com/Messenger/IM/MTV/?source=text_watchcause > _______________________________________________ > 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. _______________________________________________ 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.
