Discussion 5

Chapter 10 - Determining Importance in Text: The Nonfiction Connection

As I began reading this chapter I could relate very well with Steph. Just like her I was told to highlight important parts of the text but up until my sophomore year in high school no teacher had ever taught me “how” to find the important parts when I was reading something. There are times I still find myself struggling to figure out which parts are important when I am reading a non-fiction piece of text. With common core in kindergarten standards pertaining to finding important details, etc in a text are all done with prompting and support. With this being said the majority of the time I am modeling these strategies with students.

To begin modeling I do a lot of overviewing with students. This consist of activating students prior knowledge and figuring out how it relates to the text. Also, I have students notice important heading, captions, etc. I model this with students when we do a close read with a non-fiction piece of text, as well as, in small group guided reading instruction.

One strategy that I have used from the book effectively during my small group guided reading is building background knowledge of nonfiction features. I used this last year towards the end of the school year students who were reading on a first grade reading level. Students were required to compile in a small book the features from non-fiction text. We included things like captions and comparisons. The students enjoyed doing this and it taught them how to look closely at different text features.

The strategy called coding important information on unfamiliar as well as familiar topics is one that I would like to try with my students together. I would not expect them to be able to do this independently at this time of the school year seeing as how many of them cannot read. I would use this strategy with my students and let them come up and put their sticky note in the book when they learn something new. As they come up to put their sticky notes in the book I would have them explain to us the new thing they learned.

Overall, I felt many of the strategies in the book were geared towards students who are in higher grades. As a teacher, I know I can always modify a strategy to use with my kindergarten students. A lot of what students learn at this level is through modeling, support, and guidance. With scaffolding I am sure some of my students would be able to complete some of the strategies on their own, while others may still need help. 

Discussion 4

Visualizing and inferring are something I use with my kindergarten students on a daily basis. I enjoyed reading this chapter and getting some new strategies to implement with my students. I like how the text explained that visualizing and inferring are written about in one chapter because when we visualizing we are inferring with mental images rather than words. They do not occur in isolation but instead together.

The first strategy I found I would like to use in my classroom is visualizing with wordless picture books. With this strategy you show students the picture book and then choose a page where students have to visualize what happened between the current page and the next. By having students do this a teacher can find where students have misconceptions. The goal is not to have students go too far afield because the purpose of visualizing is to help them better understand the actual text.

Another strategy I would like to try with my students is visualizing from a vivid piece of text. As a kindergarten teacher I would read students a piece of text and then have them draw a picture of what they were visualizing in their minds. I think this is great to use with kindergarten because all of the books we read them have pictures which go along with the story. This will allow students to visualize all on their own and tell the teacher whether the student is understanding the text or not.

Inferring feelings with kindergarteners was yet another of the many strategies I want to try! Here you give students feeling cards taped to the back of their shirt. Students have to go around and find someone to act out their feeling and they have to guess it. Students help by giving clues and then the student with the card on their back must infer what feeling is posted on their back. You could also use this with a variety of other cards, not just feeling cards.

Overall teacher in a classroom with the majority of students being ELL, using visualizing and inferring is essential to help students learn how to comprehend text. This goes right along with background knowledge and offers strategies to strengthen many areas in reading. By trying these strategies I will quickly know which students are lacking in background knowledge and still need more instruction. 

Discussion 3

Questioning: The Strategy The Propels Readers Forward

          According to Harvey and Goydvis questions are the master key to understanding. By asking questions readers can clarify their confusions, stimulate research efforts, and take us into deeper reading. I know as a teacher and avid reader I am always asking myself questions and modeling this for my kindergartners. Some of my students have caught on to this strategy and will ask questions as well! For many of my students who are ESOL students they still do not understand what a question is, but I know if I continue to model it for them during reading they will grasp the concept before first grade!

          As readers students need to know what questions matter. They also need to understand when we ask a question there is always an answer that goes along with it. As a teacher when we see students being to ask questions and search for answers we know they are monitoring their comprehension which is what we hope for!

          The first strategy I came across was “Share Your Questions About Your Own Reading.” I use this strategy all the time, across all subject areas when I am reading with my students. This is how I model questioning for my students. With this strategy you can show students with sticky notes how you ask a question and then when you find the answer later on you can write it down and move the sticky note to where you found the answer. I am always modeling how to ask questions with my students, but many times I do not go back and find the answer to the question. After reading through this strategy if I use the sticky notes I will then be able to go back with my students and find the answers with them.

          The next strategy that I found interesting was “Some Questions Are Answered, Others Are Not.” Reading with kindergarten students many of them can give you answers for the explicit questions where answers are found in the text, but they struggle with the implicit questions. When doing our FAIR testing at the beginning of the school year I only had 3 students who answered these 2 questions correctly after listening to the read-aloud story. I know this is an area I need to focus on with my instruction so using this strategy would be beneficial for the majority of my students!

          I enjoyed this chapter on questions but I found many of the strategies were geared toward students in a higher grade level. For many of the strategies there are ways that I could differentiate the strategy to connect to my kindergarten students. Most of the differentiation would involve a lot of teacher modeling, but with my higher students during guided reading I will start using some of the questioning strategies with them.

Discussion Sample 2

“The background knowledge we bring to our reading colors every aspect of our learning and understanding.” (Harvey/Goudvis pg. 92). I couldn’t agree more with this statement from the author. Teaching in a Title 1 school my students background knowledge varies immensely. Some of my students have had many life experiences while others have limited experiences. My job as their teacher is to give those experiences so they can begin to connect to the text being read to them, and the text they will begin to read.

“When we have a lot of background knowledge in a topic, we are much more likely to understand the text.” (Harvey/Goudvis pg. 92). Another statement from the text that is very true. The students in my classroom who have background knowledge comprehend the story better than the students who do not. “If readers have nothing to hook new information to, it’s pretty hard to construct meaning. But when we know little about a topic or are unfamiliar with the format, we often find ourselves mired in confusion.” (Harvey/Goudvis pg. 92).

One strategy I found that I would like to try with my students to build their background knowledge is Beginning to Make Connections: It Reminds Me of… With this strategy the purpose is to think aloud to introduce making connections. As you are reading the story you use think alouds like, it reminds me of…, and code the text R for reminds me of. Have students help you list things that particular piece of the text reminds them of. As students join in and share their connections you can list them on the board or on a chart. “Making connections to personal experiences facilitates understanding.” (Harvey/Goudvis pg. 92).

One strategy I found that I use with my students is Text-to-Self Connections: Relating the Characters to Ourselves. By doing this you are allowing students to link the text to their life. Many of the stories that go along with our core series have characters who are at a similar age to the students. “Stories close to their own lives and experiences are helpful for introducing new way of thinking about reading.” (Harvey/Goudvis pg. 92). Students can relate to the characters because many times they can relate to the problem the character in the story if having. “When kids make meaningful connections to the characters, problems, and events, they seem to gain some insight into the story as a whole.” (Harvey/Goudvis pg. 95).

“Once they read a wealth of stories and narratives, they begin to connect themes, characters, and issues from one book to another.” (Harvey/Goudvis pg. 92). One of my many goals as a teacher is to read aloud to my students as much as possible. By doing this I am hoping to expand their wealth of background knowledge so they can gain comprehension skills. I feel that background knowledge is an essential piece to my daily schedule because I have to help my students make connections to so many different areas they have not had any exposure to yet. 

Discussion Sample 1

When I first began reading the text book I was immediately draw to this quote; “If we connect to a book, we usually can’t put it down. Good readers make connections between the texts they read and their own lives.” (Harvey/Goudvis pg. 11) I never realized how important this was for my beginning readers but after I began teaching I found out very quickly! I was wondering why my students didn’t like my “reading corner.” After simply asking my students I found out they were bored with their 100 book challenge books and I needed to supplement them with more books that interested them. I spent time asking my students things they wanted to read about and checked out books from the library that they would enjoy. By doing this my students became engaged in the center and enjoyed reading.

As I continued reading I came across another quote that stuck out. When we read, thoughts fill our mind. We might make connections to our own life, we might have a question, or an inference. (Harvey/Goudvis pg. 12) This is a hard thing for a teacher to know if their students are doing or not. Teaching many ELL students at the beginning stages of reading I find when I read to them the majority of them cannot make connections from a story to their own life. As well, they do not understand what a question or an inference is. So I ask myself, how does one teach their students all of these skills?

For too long, we have been telling kids what to do rather than showing them how. Now the way we deliver effective instruction always involves modeling and/or guided practice in one form or another. We deliver instruction through the gradual release of responsibility framework. (Harvey/Goudvis  pg. 32) I learned this soon after I began teaching my guided reading instruction. I originally began teaching my students by choosing a target and talking to them about it and then reading the book with my students. I did not model or help guide them with practicing the new skills. I found out without doing this my instruction was not effective with the students. I had to teach them the new skill while allowing time for the students to practice the new skills with me.

Teaching kids to comprehend means we show them how to construct meaning when they read. Strategy instruction is all about teaching the reader not merely the reading. (Harvey/Goudvis  pg. 31) After reading this I now understand that this book is going to teach me different strategies to teach my readers comprehension. I am excited to continue reading and learn new strategies which will help guide my reading instruction. As a teacher I know I will always be learning new strategies and tools to use with my students. I will be growing and learning right along with my students. 

Reading Websites

The following is a list of wonderful websites I found this semester that go along with the book I am reading in class: 

· Regie Routman Website - http://regieroutman.org/

· Creating a Classroom Library - http://www.scholastic.com/teachers/article/creating-your-own-classroom-library-set

· Bonding with Your Students - http://www.nea.org/tools/29469.htm

· Teaching Comprehension - http://www.teachingcomprehension.org/

· Shared Reading with Storia - http://www.scholastic.com/teachers/article/whole-class-reading-instruction-shared-reading-and-storia

My Classroom Library

When I began teaching I was very fortunate because my mother had saved many of my childhood books for me. I took advantage of this and started using them in my classroom since I do not have any kids of my own yet! Teaching kindergarten I love having picture books for my students because many of them come into school not knowing how to read it. I teach them how to picture read and they enjoy having a variety of books to choose from.

Another special thing I did was create a reading corner for my students. This area of my class has changed every year since I started teaching, but I love watching it grown. It is also a center where you must teach and re-teach expectations multiple time with students. I have learned the books and authors 5 and 6 year olds love and have started my own personalized collection of books. I do this so my students will be interested in the books they have to choose from. Most of the books that I order are from the monthly Scholastic book orders. They always have great prices and free shipping too!