All of this rich discussion leads me back to our upcoming examination of strategy instruction. One of the things I hope to garner from the discussion is the differentiation between strategy instruction say in K vs. 4th, or even HS.
Joy/NC/4 How children learn is as important as what they learn: process and content go hand in hand. http://www.responsiveclassroom.org ________________________________ From: "[email protected]" <[email protected]> To: [email protected] Sent: Saturday, June 13, 2009 7:34:25 AM Subject: Re: [MOSAIC] Do we really need to teach explicit strategies? I think sometimes our teaching context influences how we interpret each other's posts...and apparently I have misunderstood the direction this thread was taking. I am glad that the intent was not to dismiss strategy teaching. I do, respectfully, disagree with the thought that we do not need to give kids explicit language for strategies. I just feel that by doing so, I have elevated the levels of discussion with my students. I may have been teaching the kids to comprehend when I simply asked them what would happen next...but I did NOT get the rich discussion I do now. I think this is part of the push in our field now to teach academic vocabulary...we need to give kids the words to describe their thinking. I do agree that we don't need to teach strategies the same way, year after year. I do agree that we have gone overboard as a profession. I simply am arguing, as you are I think, that we need to closely watch our kids and give them what they need. SO...in answer to your last question, no...you weren't wrong. I would have done the same thing. Jennifer In a message dated 6/12/2009 10:19:25 P.M. Eastern Daylight Time, [email protected] writes: With all due respect, I don't think anyone in replying to this post about explicit strategies is saying not to teach them but rather how we are teaching them. The focus in the last number of posts has been about developing 'reader's thinking' and isn't that what teaching strategies is all about? I doubt very much that you did not teach comprehension strategies when you were teaching reading....anyone who has ever talked about what has been read with their students has been teaching comprehension strategies but just not giving all the 'elements' a name. Asking your two year old, 'what do you think is going to happen?' is teaching a strategy. It starts from the day we start reading to and with our kids. We just never thought to call it 'inference' or 'making connections' or identifying which 'megacognitive' strategy was being developed at a particular time. We never thought to teach a 'strategy' a week because we were using all strategies all the time. Tell me a teacher who has never said to a class with a picture story book, 'what do you think this is going to be about?' or, 'what is the picture telling you? Or have you ever felt like this, when and why? And I'm not talking about superficial questions and answers but when children are probed to explain their thinking and why. The questions that are coming up over and over about teaching strategies has to do with the 'contrived' nature of it that we are feeling now with teaching reading comprehension. I'll never forget one of my students saying to me this year when he was deeply engrossed in reading to please, please not talk about it or ask him to stop and think about it as he was so enjoying what he was doing? I didn't stop him. Was I wrong? **************A Good Credit Score is 700 or Above. See yours in just 2 easy steps! (http://pr.atwola.com/promoclk/100126575x1222377049x1201454365/aol?redir=http://www.freecreditreport.com/pm/default.aspx?sc=668072&hmpgID=62&bcd= JunestepsfooterNO62) _______________________________________________ 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.
