Before I even read this chapter, I flipped through all of
the pages in it. Needless to say, I was a bit overwhelmed by it! The first idea
that struck me was from Mrs. James’s class. Her students were studying
nutrition, so she had set up a dramatic play area where the children could walk
around and interact with the food items while still being able to learn about
letter names and sound-symbol relationships. I enjoyed this idea because the
teacher was not just writing or explaining letter names or sound-symbol
relationships on a chalkboard- she was making the lesson interactive, and I
think teachers sometimes forget to make it interesting like that. “Children differ in their rates of literacy
achievement; they must not be pressured into accomplishing tasks or placed on a
predetermined time schedule.” I could not agree more with this statement. I
know that we have all heard that numerous times, but I do not think it sinks in
with everyone. Every child will be different and learn at a different pace.
This will greatly affect our teaching. What do you think about this statement?
Do you agree or disagree? Out of the teaching strategies for figuring out
words, which ones did you find most appealing? Unappealing? Who agrees that every
single one should be used? Or not used? My favorite strategy that was discussed
in this chapter was using environmental print. I liked this one because it
seems simple, but it proves to be successful in learning words, sounds, and
sights. “When very young children associate the McDonald’s logo with the word McDonald’s and try to read it, they are learning
that a group of letters makes up a word that can be read.” I believe it is important
for children to learn this way because it is all about their surroundings and
senses. I believe that once they learn
the words, they can associate those
words with other things around them. For those of you participating in the
child study project, which assessments have you done so far? Which ones will
you choose to do? What have your experiences been like so far with this
project?
Emily-
ReplyDeleteI was overwhelmed by the length of the chapter as well at first but the example from Mrs. Jame's class got my attention and I thought it sounded like the perfect activity for new readers! I totally agree with the quote about each student being different in their "literacy achievement". I mentioned this in another comment as well but I think it is so important to evaluate the teaching strategies used to teach language and reading every year because every class and every student is different so even if you found some strategies you loved the year before if your students' needs have changed you will have to change with them! I really liked the "Very Own Words" box strategy on page 148 I thought that was a cool way to get a variety of words with a variety of letters and letter combinations for the class to work with. There were so many strategies in this chapter it is hard to comment on all of them but some others that I really liked were the "morning message" and the "word wall" I think each of these are appealing because they allow you to work with your class verbally with sounds and letters to find mistakes and patterns with different letters. I also like the word wall because it can serve as a little dictionary whens students are working on writing and spelling! I think all of the strategies from this chapter can be used but they should be used if they are going to be beneficial to the students not just because this book says they should work. Again, it is important to evaluate student needs and then choose a strategy to work with.
Hi Emily! I also really enjoyed reading about Mrs. James’s classroom. It always the students have fun while also being an active participant in their learning. I believe that it is true that students differ in their learning, and they will learn at different rates, some quicker than others. However, teachers are often told what they need to accomplish, and so they make schedules with certain objectives that they need to teach the students, whether they are ready for it or not. And if the student isn’t ready for it, and does not understand the concept after it has been taught, the teacher must move on and cover more concepts. I fear as teachers, we will be told just to cover subjects, and move on, even though we should figure how each child will learn and spend more time making sure each child understands.
ReplyDeleteI think my favorite teaching strategy is the Morning Message, because the teacher can just write a short message, and students can find certain letters, parts of speech or mistakes. When I helped out at my elementary school’s Jump Start program, we did this every morning, and the students really enjoyed it. Another strategy I thought would be useful is the Language Experience Approach. It’s discussion based, and the teacher writes down what the student says. The teacher can explain concepts as he or she writes it. I think any of the strategies would be useful, and it would be good idea to implement each one and see how they work, and become confident in each of them.
I also really liked what Mrs. James did in her classroom and I agree with you that sometimes teachers forget to make subjects interesting for the children in the class. But I also know that there are some subjects that teachers just have to teach to children while sitting in a classroom because they cannot be made into a hands on activity. Therefore I believe it is very important for a teacher to include hands on activities in his or her teaching as often as possible to have a rich instruction.
ReplyDeleteI agree with the statement. I know that all children learn different and at a different time rate. But it is sometimes difficult to accommodate all of the children because teachers are under pressure to teach the children everything they have to in the short amount of time they are in their classroom. A school year can go by very fast.
I really like the teaching strategy of using environmental print. It is a great strategy to show children that words and symbols actually have meaning and there are many lessons that can be formed using environmental print. But I also really like the strategy to use the context and pictures to figure out words. I believe that this is a very simple way to help children figure out words with small hints in form of pictures. In my opinion every teacher is able to design a short and meaningful lesson using this strategy to figure out words. I believe that they all can be a part of classroom teaching so that the teaching does not become the same thing over and over again and it bores the children.
I have decided to complete the child study project, but I have yet to figure out which assessment strategies I will be using. I think that will depend on the situations I will be able to observe the child in.
Emily- I liked how you brought up Mrs. James' classroom. I think that dramatic play is a very good way to get the children to learn. Hands-on activities are so much better than just talking at the students as they sit in a chair. Children have a lot of energy at times and they want to get up and move, this is why we have recess. Having the opportunity to move and learn through activities where the children get up and move is probably one of the best ways to teach. I mean, even now I feel like I would rather actually do an activity then just having a teacher or professor lecture in front of the class. It is incredibly important to realize that every student is different, and that as a teacher you need to make your lesson plan around those differences. Children learn differently and you have to cater to their needs. I also strongly agree with that quote that you mentioned. I think that it is a good way to sum up students who might be in your classroom. The teaching strategy that I really liked was the morning message. I think that this strategy is very useful and can help in many different ways in your classroom. It is a good way to go over grammar, punctuation, or even spelling words.
ReplyDeleteI do believe that children learn at a different pace. As teachers we need to make things interesting for all students to become engaged and keep wanting to learn new things. I believe that the things that children see around them and connect them with other things in their life is the way that children learn best. For example, if a child learns his abc's he or she will be able to identify and know what a, b, and c is. If a person sees the big m they know that it is McDonalds. Kids learn fast and we as parents and teacher need to find ways to connect the things that they see everyday to the things that we are teaching them.
ReplyDelete