Evelia,
Sometimes when I am substituting, and there is some "leftover" time,
I have kids get out whatever book they are currently reading, and
then we do a little book chat. If the teacher is one who has kids'
names in a can, I draw names, otherwise, I just go around randomly,
asking questions about their book. One thing I ask is, "What is the
story MOSTLY about?" or "What is the story MAINLY about?" For some
kids this is a hard question and they start telling me a lot of
details, or retelling the story. I stop them, acknowledge that it's
great that they remember so much of the story, but what I want to
know is what it is mostly about, in just one or two sentences. It
really does seem to help, especially when there is time to ask
several students the question about their book. The student modeling
helps other students know what I am after.
Renee
On Feb 19, 2012, at 2:30 PM, evelia cadet wrote:
Maybe, instead of saying "author's main idea", I should've said the
standardized test maker main idea. This is the first year I am
teaching the comprehension strategies. In the past, my students
have struggled with main idea. I am wondering how determining
importance may help them with finding main idea. I hope I am
making sense. Thank you.
Evelia
Sent from my Windows Phone
-----Original Message-----
From: evelia cadet
Sent: Sunday, February 19, 2012 12:03 PM
To: Mosaic: A Reading Comprehension Strategies Email Group
Subject: Re: [MOSAIC] Determining Importance
Are determining importance and finding the author's main idea the
same thing? If they are not, are they related? How? HELP!
Evelia
Sent from my Windows Phone
-----Original Message-----
From: Palmer, Jennifer
Sent: Sunday, February 19, 2012 9:23 AM
To: Mosaic: A Reading Comprehension Strategies Email Group
Subject: Re: [MOSAIC] Determining Importance
It's the testing culture Renee. We test low level and that drives
instruction. Think about main idea ... And it's relationship to
what we are talking about. Determining importance becomes a game to
guess what test authors feel is important...
Sent from my iPhone
On Feb 19, 2012, at 12:01 PM, "Renee" <phoenix...@sbcglobal.net>
wrote:
I wonder what would happen if we just asked a student, "Why is
this important?" I'm thinking in a context, for example, of my own
lesson, when the student asked how Washington's face got on Mount
Rushmore. These were third graders. I can easily imagine a student
ansswering, "it isn't" and I could also easily imagine a student
giving a reason, maybe something like, "well, because he was so
important that they put him on a mountain so how did that happen?"
I think it's a good question: Why is this important? It has that
lovely open-endedness that helps us learn what's going on the mind
of a student.
And by the way.... in my substituting travels to various
classrooms, I am finding every year that it's harder and harder to
get kids to answer open-ended questions with any kind of
confidence. That frightens me.
Renee
On Feb 18, 2012, at 1:49 PM, Palmer, Jennifer wrote:
I agree Renee. What I often do is spend a little time talking
about our purpose for reading first and letting that guide the
discussion ... I think it was Kylie Beers that uses the example
of a text that is a description of a beautiful home. An interior
decorator, a real estate agent and a thief, all would find
different things in the text to be important because their
purposes for reading would be quite different.
It is possible to store the mind with a million facts and still be
entirely uneducated.
~ Alec Bourne
_______________________________________________
Mosaic mailing list
Mosaic@literacyworkshop.org
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
Mosaic@literacyworkshop.org
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
Mosaic@literacyworkshop.org
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
Mosaic@literacyworkshop.org
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
Mosaic@literacyworkshop.org
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
