Hey Kim... You have come to the crux of the issue and why I was asking you to read your chosen text as a reader and as a teacher. You are integrating social studies content with reading skills. You are teaching both. Check your entry...are you being assessed in this entry on curriculum integration? If so...that is an even better reason to go ahead... if not, it still doesn't hurt you to go ahead with the nonfiction, especially since you can justify that the kids have needs and interests in this area. We are in the midst of a content literacy initiative here in my district. As I help teachers plan, I ask them to do just what I asked you in my earlier post. Read the text as a reader...what do you learn? What is important for the kids to learn? Then read as a teacher... what reading strategies will help them achieve that? AND, NYC teacher has some great ideas for you. Think about the students you anticipate will find this lesson the most difficult and plan in advance to address their difficulties. Think too, about the kids who might find this pretty easy. What will you do to challenge them? When I taped discussions, I wore a wireless mike. As I stopped by to talk with pairs of students, the camera picked up their discussions easily even though there was background noise. You might want to play around with the camera and sound with another lesson before you do your taped one... Good luck, Jennifer In a message dated 11/27/2008 9:47:22 P.M. Eastern Standard Time, [EMAIL PROTECTED] writes:
Hi Jennifer and Suzie, Thank you, thank you! You have given me much to think about. After reading your posts, I do think the nonfiction is the way to go. The students are interested in the topic, they can connect to it, it includes visuals and features we've discussed. In fact, I have already typed up my reasons for creating this lesson for this particular class and I think my reasons sound logical and appropriate. I guess my concern is balancing discussing the content and the actual reading strategy I'm trying to teach (reading, thinking, and jotting down their ideas about the text). This class is fairly proficient at decoding words, but many struggle with comprehension. They are unfamilair with the idea of "listening to an inner voice" and interacting with the text. Thanks again! The National Board process is amazing! If you have any more advice...I'm all ears. Best, Kim **************Finally, one site has it all: your friends, your email, your favorite sites. Try the NEW AOL.com. (http://www.aol.com/?optin=new-dp&icid=aolcom40vanity&ncid=emlcntaolcom00000006) _______________________________________________ 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.
