Final Posting

I can not believe this semester is already coming to a close. I have really enjoyed this class this past semester and have learned a lot of information and tools to use in my future classroom. I found it particular beneficial that we went over the writing process and stages and then we created our own book going through each stage. I think that if I take the time in my other classes to create a graphic organizer to jot down my thoughts and ideas before actually writing the paper my paper will be much more thorough and well developed. I really enjoyed the read aloud we did each class. I think Sahara Special would be a great book to read aloud to the upper elementary grades. I think that many students could relate or know a student like Sahara or Darelle. I think that it is important to incorporate all different types of learning styles in the classroom with multiple ways of assessments .

Magic talk

In the previous EDU 300 class we got to watch a clip from Freedom Writers. The class got in a huge discussion over a note that was being passed around the room. The note was making fun of a boy in the front of the classroom with a big nose. The teacher got into a discussion that led to her talking about the Holocust. She asked the students if they had heard about the Holocust and only one white boy raised his hand. I found it extremely surprising how so many students can make it all the way to high school and have never heard of the Holocust. The teacher then asked the students about gangs and asked them questions that many of them could relate to. Such as, "Who has ever been shot at?" The majority had raised their hand and she was surprised to found out many things about her students that she might not have known if the note hadn't been passed around the room.

I think that a lot of time we do take listening for granted. I think that a lot of teachers assume that their students know how to listen. I think that it is important for teacher to actually teach their students how to listen. People make assumptions that because children can hear they are listening. However, most student probably lose focus and often day dream in class and do not gain the amount of comprehension their teacher intended. I think that all different types of listening are important.
I think that propaganda and persuasion is important and should be taught in the classroom. Often times we lose focus and don't actually realize what we are listening to and being tricked into buying. It is important to teach students how to distinguish between biased and unbiased. Children can often be naive. I really enjoyed the propaganda activity and I think it would be a good activity to do with my future students. However, there should be rules established before hand to eliminate inappropriate videos.

Field Experiences

I have really enjoyed my field experiences throughout this past semester. My teacher was very helpful and was always willing to give me advise or answer any questions that I had. She always made a point to explain everything that the students were working on.

My teacher has incorporated an economy system into her classroom. At the beginning of the year the students are assigned different jobs. They have to file out a resume and write an essay on why they would be good for that particular job. Throughout the year the children can earn money by completing different tasks. The students are required to pay rent each month with some of the money they have earned. Each student has a checkbook log and they are to record what they have spent. This teaches the student how to keep a log of their spending. Most fifth graders have never used a checkbook log or maybe even seen one. The children can also earn extra money that they can use at the classroom store. The teacher will bring in things around her house they she no longer wants. For example, one time she brought in a glass bowl that was full of candy. One student bought it and kept the candy and gave the glass bowl to his mom for Christmas. She brings in a variety of different things. I think the economy system is good to use in the classroom especially during a time of a recession. It helps the students learn they value of a dollar and how to wisely spend their money.

Planning for Reading and Writing Instruction

A book that I would like to use in 2nd grade is Amazing Grace by Mary Hoffman. I have also used this book for Meredith Reads and the student absolutely loved the book. There are a lot of different activities that can be done with this book. This is a thought provoking story that allows students the opportunity to to develop their comprehension and critical thinking skills. Children can work on whole group, small groups, partners, and independently activities. The first session would be used to introduce the story and have the students listen to me read it aloud. They can share their thoughts and ideas about the story after I have read it. I will also discuss the themes and main ideas of the story. After I have read the story I will ask my students questions such as, What did they think about the book? What surprised them about the book? What was their favorite part? What did they think about the main character? I will end the session by having the students write or draw their thoughts about the book in their composition notebook. The next lesson I will go back over the book and have the students retell me the story by looking at the different illustrations. The students will work in groups to discuss the story and answer guided questions. Then the students will come together as a big group and discuss their thoughts and answers. I could also allow the students to act out the different events in the story to allow them to show their creativity.
Another lesson could be used to discuss gender, diversity, courage, and family.

The students could even talk about different activities that they enjoy doing and that they are good at. Each students would have an opportunity to share with the class.

Spring Semester

I feel like everything gets crazy towards the end of the semester, trying to prepare for presentations, exams, and deciding which courses to take in the upcoming Fall. I sometimes feel like I don't even have time to sleep because I have so much work that I should be doing. I am meeting with my adviser tomorrow to figure out my summer courses and fall courses. After I have all of that figured out I feel like I will feel a huge sense of relief lifted. I can't believe how fast this semester has flown by and can't believe I am going to be a senior next year. It is excited and scary at the same time. I am looking forward to the upcoming weekend because I am going to first family reunion in South Carolina. It will be nice to catch up with old relatives and have fun with the whole family.

Stages of Spelling, Writing Process, and personal Writing

I have really enjoyed this class so far and I have learned a lot that I did not realize before and also regained knowledge that I forgot. I have found it very beneficial to work in classrooms and see the different stages that children go through. I have been able to see students working through the writing process. I have also seen how kindergartners start writing and using inventive spelling.

I have been enjoyed blogging this semester. It is a new experience and find it interesting to keep track of my thoughts and ideas. Blogging kind of reminds me when I was a child and I would write in my diary.

I am a little unsure about the book assignment. I know that we are supposed to make an adult book, kinnda like a children's book but for adults.

Social Skills and Language Arts

Sahara has a talent of writing and she hopes that one day she can become a writer. However, Sahara decides to not demonstrate her writing skills at school. She stopped writing anything at school, including her homework. The school feels that because of her lack of motivation and inability to complete her work that Sahara needs special education. Her mother feels that Sahara does not need to be in special education. Sahara is then sent back to the regular classroom where she continues to not complete her work because she does not see the point in working hard. She feels that if she does do her work it will just end up back in the counselor's office with the rest of the letters that she had written to her father where taken. Sahara is also having difficulties with her social life and home life. She often does not understand social cues from her peers. I think that instead of Sahara talking to others about her problems she keeps them inside which makes her quieter and keeps more to herself. I think that Sahara is lonely and longs to make friends but does not quiet have the social skills necessary. I also think that kids who do not complete their work and are often in trouble are less popular and have a harder time making friends with others. Even though Sahara has a talent for writing she does not feel worthy enough to share her abilities with others.

I think that in many situations students that are dealing with a disability or delay in reading or writing often have troubles with their social skills. Many students feel they are not as smart or capable as students that are not struggling like themselves. These students might act out to get attention or withdraw and go unnoticed.

I have been in many situations where I have seen kids that were struggling academically. In a lot of the situations I could tell that the students who did not complete their work or participate in the class often had socially issues and did not have have alot of friends in the class. But I also know personal friends of mine that have a learning disability and have a lot of friends and do well in school, but they just have to study a lot.

As a teacher I think that it is very important to have a variety of activities that require all the students to work in different groups. I feel that this will give the children an opportunity to work with each of their peers and get to know them better.

Reading Wars

Until now I did not realize how big of a debate there was between children learning phonics and whole language. I think that all children learn differently and one approach such as phonics might work better for one child but not for another. However, as a child I grew up learning phonics. I remember sounding out different letters and blends such as th, ch, and sh. If I notice a student that is struggling reading, because he is stuck on a word, I tel him or her to try and sound out the word. I feel that almost always the student will be able to figure out the word.

I believe that we naturally create sight words. There are just some words that people have trouble spelling because the word is not spelled the way it sounds. Just memorizing how to spell the word is easy for myself then trying to remember an exception. Once I spell the word over and over again I don't have trouble again.

I think that symbols impact literacy learning. There are symbols and letters everywhere. Especially for toddlers, learning symbols and letters are important early learning skills. It is important for young children to know different symbols and their meanings.

Writing

There are many reasons why writing is worth reading. Writing is important because it is a way for one to express themselves and allows others to know more about someone. Writing is an important communication tool that we use everyday to communicate with others, express our opinions, and find out new knowledge. Writing has forever changed history, defined communication, shaped our society, honored our ability to speak, and helped to shape the future (Kelley). If no one wrote think about how different our society would be. We would not know as much about the world and major historical events. Many major events have been recorded and written down for others to read. Billions of people all over the world read the newspaper to find out what is going on around the world. Before telephones, radios, and televisions people primarily communicated by print. Men in the war would write to their loved ones telling them how they were doing. Doctors write important things down on people's medical records so that they could look at them later on. Everyone can learn more by reading others writings.

The Reading Process

Another day in language arts...
There are two different types of reading, aesthetic and efferent reading. People read for pure enjoyment and also to gain specific information. I loved to read for entertainment. There is nothing better then cuddling up on the couch with a good book. Aesthetic reading is reading for entertainment and enjoyment. Readers respond to these with thoughts, images, feelings, and associations. I love the Emily Griffen books. They are about love, heartbreak, and starting over. They are books that you just don't want to put down. On the other hand, efferent reading is reading for information. I have to do a lot of efferent reading for my classes. Teachers assign books, chapters, or articles to read for class so that their students will gain some specific information.

THE READING PROCESS:
Stage 1: Prereading
This begins before the student even opens the book. Students get background knowledge, set purposes, and plan for reading. Students learn background information about the book before they actually begin reading it. For example, the teacher will explain the topic of the book, the title, the author, the genre, and cover illustration. The teacher might also address questions that the students might have about the book. It is very important for readers to have a purpose for reading the selection because they tend to be more successful. Having a purpose can increase better comprehension, provide motivation and direection, and students do a better job identifying important information as they read.
Stage 2: Reading
There are five different types of reading that can take place in the classroom. These include, shared reading, guided reading, independent reading, buddy reading, and reading aloud to students. Shared reading is when the teacher reads aloud to their students as they follow along using their own individual copy of the book. Guided reading is when the teacher supports students as they read books at their reading levels. Students are normally grouped homogeneously. Independent reading is when students read a book independently and normally choose the book. Buddy reading is when two students read or reread a book together. They often switch of every other paragraph or page. Reading aloud to students is when the teacher read aloud to students.
I think it is important for teachers to incorporate each of these 5 types of reading in their classroom because students like to do things differently. It would be rather boring if everytime a student had to read by themselves in the classroom. Students often have a better comprehension if they get to work with another person(s). It can also increase self-esteem among readers who do not feel so confident in their reading abilities.

Stage 3: Responding
"Readers respond to their reading and continue to negotiate meaning to deepen their comprehension" (78). Reading logs are good so that students can write and draw their thoughts and feelings about what they have read. Grand conversations are when the students talk abou the book with their classmates in discussions. Students can share their own thoughts and feelings about what they read. They can also explain what they did or did not like about the book. These conversations can be held with the whole class or in small groups. Children that are younger normally perfer to have discussions as a whole and older children prefer to have them in smaller groups.
Stage 4: Exploring
Exploring includes rereading the selection, examnining the author's craft, focusing on new vocabulary, and participing in minilessons. Students normally rereads texts that are brief. This allows for students to improve their comprehension and make deeper connections between what they read and their own personal experiences. Examining the author's craft is when the teacher plans activities that focus students' attention on the structure, genre, and literary language. Students often use storyboards to talk about the order in which events happened in the story. (Middle, beginning, and end)
Stage 5: Applying
Student apply what they read and learned to their own personal experiences. They can relate it to things that happen in the world. Students can do projects that involve reading, writing, talk and drama, visually representing, or research. For example, student could do a skit to act out event in the story.

Factors that are important in developing capable readers:
1. Word Identification: readers have a large word bank, use phonic analysis to read.
2. Fluency: Readers learn how to read quickly and with expression. Ex. (100 words per minute)
3. Vocabulary: Readers have large vocabulary, learn 7 to 10 new words a day. "Reading is the best way to increase vocabulary"
4. Comprehension: Readers use past experiences to understand the text.

The 6 Language Arts

Language arts is key for all learning. I had never thought about the different strands of language arts before taking this course. I used to think that language arts mostly consisted of just reading and writing. However, learning the significance of each of the 6 strands (Listening, reading, writing, viewing, and visually representing) I feel that they all fit well into language arts and are essential for learning. I think that all 6 strands are equally important and educators need to make a better effort to incorporate each of the 6 strands in their curriculum. I was surprised to find viewing and visually representing surprising because I had never thought of those when i thought of language arts. However, I think that they are very important and often educators have a hard time incorporating them into their curriculum because traditionally instruction in language arts have focused on reading and writing. I think that viewing and visually representing are important because it expands the role of language arts which is key because we live in such a technological society. It is important for teachers to know more about the new technology and use it in the classrooms. Technology plays a huge rule in all aspects in the lives of Americans today. I think that that viewing and visually representing are important and should be part of the 6 strands of language arts. It is important for teachers to use them in the classroom because technology will continue to become more and more important in the future.

Language arts in my life...

I have had a lot of experience with all the different strands of language arts. In my early years of school my teachers mainly focused on the first 4 strands, listening, talking, reading, and writing. As technology as expanded and become more and more important my teachers and professors have made an effort to use it in their curriculum. My favorite is viewing because i am a more visual person and I have found that I learn more from watching a movie or using the internet than just listening to someone lecture. The internet has played a huge role in my academic career. I would much rather search and find important information using my computer than going to the library. I also like visually representing. I would much rather make a poster or chart instead of writing a paper. I also feel that illustrations and charts are good ways to show key concepts and facts instead of reading a lot of words that say the same thing.


Sahara Special..
I am enjoying Sahara Special so far and am looking forward to reading more. I like how the author made Sahara a relatable character. Everyone has had a Sahara in their classroom and one point and will continue to have a Sahara in their own classroom. The author does a good job using plenty of detail so that the reader can paint their own picture of the story in their head.