Got Me Thinking

Once again I'm joining Kimberley from First in Maine to talk about Catching Readers Before They Fall.  I wonder if we've convinced anyone yet to read this book?  You can visit Kimberley's convincing thoughts by clicking on the above graphic.

Chapter 7:  I Thought I Knew How to Teach Reading, but Whoa!

What got me thinking...

"When working with students in beginning-level texts, you may think there are not many things to discuss.  However, we encourage teachers to have conversations with children around these simple patterned texts."


I am guilty of simplifying my conversations with groups of students who are reading beginning level simple patterned texts.  "I am laughing.  I am running.  I am crying.  I am..."  You know the kinds of texts I'm talking about.  The above statement sure left me feeling convicted about my watered-down conversations.  I am doing children a great disservice by not inviting them into deeper levels of thinking and comprehending regardless of the simplicity of text that they need.  Mental note:  fix that.

"By the beginning of first grade, phonemic awareness instruction should only be targeting those children who still need it." 

This thought has me thinking too.  I like to naturally imbed phonemic awareness into reading and writing, but for the first month of school, I also spend ten to fifteen minutes almost every day practicing phonemic awareness skills in hands-on, fun ways.  Do all the kids need this?  It depends on the class, but the answer is typically no.  Mental note: think about this. 

Thanks Kimberley for letting me share how this book is making me think outside of my comfortable box.

Saturday Sayings: Practicing Mediocrity

I'm slightly embarrassed to admit that I'm mediocre at boiling eggs.  Every time I need hardboiled eggs, I google the directions, ask on Facebook, or text someone.  It's so simple.  Yet it's something my brain refuses to retain.  Even though it's a silly example, I understand mediocrity.  We all do in one way or another.  My young struggling readers do as well.  They might not know the word mediocrity or are able to verbalize their specific reading struggles, but surely they can tell that some classmates have a much easier time with words on a page than they do.  What would it feel like to go from one mediocre reading to another?  It must be a lot worse than going from one boiling egg moment to another, and because I'm so terrible at boiling eggs I try to avoid the act altogether.  We've all seen struggling readers do the same with books.

Rasinski talks a lot about repeated readings, and I believe in their power as well.  My struggling readers don't just need to reread, it's necessary.  Like the quotation says, their first readings are typically not good or at least not fluent.  When given the opportunity to reread, they actually begin to experience the benefits of what reading has to offer as far as strategy usage, word recognition, fluency, and comprehension, not to mention the fact that the process is much more enjoyable at that point as well.  I want to be certain that my readers experience all the benefits of reading instead of the disadvantages of practicing mediocrity.

Share and Compare

I'd like to recommend my latest summer read to any math teachers out there.  I first spotted it on my newest favorite math blog, The Elementary Math Maniac.  (She does some wonderfully amazing things in math.  You should check out her blog.)  The book looked like something I needed to read, and I was right.  I suppose one of the reasons why I enjoyed it so much is because it validated some math shifts I've made in the past few years, specifically with problem solving.  

In a nutshell, kids solve problems in their own ways, a handful of them are asked to display their strategies for all to see, then each of them explains their work to the rest of the class.  Click on the picture below of one child's work to see the post where I described the process in more detail.

The book explains this process and the reasons why it works so well.  The author also gave me several tips for how to improve what I'm already doing.  I'm excited to make some changes when the little problem solvers arrive in August.  

Here are a few foundational ideas from the book.  Believe me, it's full of plenty more!

Experts in Smartness

I found a little something at IKEA this last week that will come in so very handy in my classroom.  Check these out.

A few times last year I tried turning charts into small table versions that could sit at each group of desks.  It's a great strategy for getting essential ideas practically right into their hands.  It's kind of hard to ignore when it's sitting right in front of their noses.  (Interested in the idea and the book that gave it to me? Go here.)  Unfortunately, I struggled with execution.  My stands were a little too wobbly.  That's why IKEA's little frames are going to save the day.  

At the beginning of the year I won't have any charts to shrink, so I'm going to start the year off by making sure one of these is at each group.  As the year goes on, I'm looking forward to changing them out with those ideas from charts that really need to stick.    

Thanks to www.doodledotillustrations.blogspot.com for the dot paper.

Even though this might only be useful for someone who owns the IKEA frames and does blue in their classroom, click on the graphic for your own copy.  

By the way, you might want to know

• the words can be seen on both sides of the frame
• they're only 99 cents
• they come in a variety of colors
• if I'm not mistaken, they're soon to be discontinued
• better get yours now

Thanks Tara for letting me join you again for some Monday Made-It!

Saturday Sayings: It Makes Sense

First graders don't dabble too much in algorithms.  I suppose the double digit addition algorithm might be taught in some first grade classrooms towards the end of the year, but I've never been one to teach it that way.  In the past few years though, I've found that the quote above is true.  I don't have to teach to specific problem solving strategies or even algorithms for that matter.  When given the chance, kids can and do solve problems in ways that make sense to them.  They surprise me with the solutions they come up with, but most importantly, they understand what they're doing and can teach each other as well.  If math is supposed to make sense,  then allowing each individual to solve challenging problems in a way that makes sense to them, well, kind of makes sense.  

(By no means am I an expert, but I hear there's a place for algorithms in the upper elementary grades but only after the kids have first been allowed to explore and invent their own strategies.  Once they have done so, the algorithms are more likely to make sense.)

Sound It Out Schmound It Out

Kimberley from First in Maine is sharing her thoughts on a great book, Catching Readers Before They Fall.  Click on the graphic above to visit her.  I'm adding my reflections as well.  Here goes. 

Chapter 4: Beyond "Sound It Out"

What I loved...

This chapter took me back about 18 years ago to my Reading Recovery training when I learned about MSV, cues, prompts, and basically how to teach reading.  Why I didn't learn all that in college is still a mystery.  The tried and true strategy coming out of those four years was "sound it out."  What a shame.  I'm so relieved that it was only two years into my career that Reading Recovery enlightened me.  

How I connect this learning to my teaching...

One of my goals as a teacher of reading is to educate parents.  Like me coming out of college, their only strategy is "sound it out."  I don't expect them to sound like me, but I try to expand their view of how to effectively support their reader by providing them some prompts similar to what the kids would hear me say, and "sound it out" is not on that list.

Chapter 5:  A Comprehensive Literacy Framework

What I loved...

This chapter reminded me of Reading Recovery as well, when I learned what needed to take place throughout the school day in order to effectively support the readers and writers in my room.  

How I connect this learning to my teaching...

A comprehensive literacy framework has kept me stable over the past several years when trends, bandwagons, and mandates have come and gone.  The basic components of my daily routine have never wavered.  Shared reading, independent reading, writing workshop, etc. are permanent parts of the family.

Chapter 6:  Interactive Read-Aloud 

What I loved...

"An effective interactive read-aloud has children talking before, during, and after reading."  

How I connect this learning to my teaching...

Admittedly, my read-alouds aren't as effective as they could be.  I like my kids to interact with one another, but it's not as purposeful or as often as the quote says it should be.  I sure need to work on that!

Thanks again Kimberley for inviting me to share my thoughts about a great book on a great blog.

Details of Their Lives

The little details of their lives are so important.  Does anyone else struggle keeping track of them all or even struggle making time to hear about them?  Sometimes it seems like recess duty is my best chance to get filled in, and that's just not acceptable.  In an effort to improve upon this problem, I created a little something for my room.  I've no idea if it will work, but I'm ready to give it a shot.

First I found an inexpensive thrift store frame.  Then I taped free paint chips to a poster board.  

I used Mod Podge to add a title to the frame's glass.  I also wrote student names on the glass above each paint chip with a Vis a Vis, although a dry erase marker would have sufficed as well.

(I doubt Beverly has bugs in her house, but I do! Ugh.)

I'm going to invite my kids to use it as a tool to let me know what they want me to ask them about.  Their little post-it notes will be my clue that I've got some inquiring to do.  Once I've asked a student about their post-it and removed it from the frame, they can add a new one.  Of course, this doesn't mean that I'll only talk to kids about their lives if they've written something down.  That would be silly, but I do hope it makes me aware of more and more details of their lives.

Thanks Tara for another Monday Made-It!