Lets take this to another level!

For this weeks reading about determining the level of reading that is appropriate for each individual student, it has pulled on everything we have focused on this past few months; from vocabulary, frequency words, word count, comprehension, phonemic awareness etc. In Rog and Burton's article they focus setting up criteria that can be used for any teacher at any grade level. Of course some wont agree with certain levels that certain books are placed on, but it is built to be adaptable and offer a guideline because many different publishers and systems have different levels for the same books. This article really brought all the individual concepts full circle and connected them all together with one goal, to get children reading on grade level..

This site offers explanations on and for Leveled reading and can be a great use for parents and teachers alike:

http://www.scholastic.com/resources/article/leveled-reading

Follow me through this revealing world of reading!



Guided reading is a widely practiced strategy. In my article Guided Reading: A research-based Response to the Challenges of Reading Instrustion by Anita Iaquinta, defines and describes guided reading as a teaching approach used with all readers, struggling or independent, that has 3 fundamental purposes : 1) to meet the varring instructional needs of all students, 2) to teach students to read increasingly difficult text with understand and fluency, and 3) to construct meaning while using problem solving strategies for unfamilar words. I can remember being in elementary school and being in reading groups, and that certain groups would be reading the same things while a couple others would be reading something different than my group. I can remember my teachers makingus all read some portion of the text aloud and working with each other on certain activities pertaining to the text we were reading. At first these groups were intimidating, but once I saw that my friends were in the same boat as me, having to read aloud and have the teacher work with you, then it became more of a hlepful safe environment for me to progress as a reader.

After doing our wikis this week and finding ideas that pertain to keeping your students focused with movement, I think that having the seats at your reading table is a great way to get the kids comfortable with small group and makes it more fun while learning!

This website is really helpful with activity ideas, scedule and lesson ideas as well!

http://www.tips-for-teachers.com/Guided%20Reading.htm

Word Study

Yopp and Yopp's article Ten Important Words Plus brought about something that was kind of familiar with, having to pull out certain number of words that I considered to be the most important for understanding the article. The only thing is, I was not introduced to it till late high school. I think this is a great thing to have younger elementary students do and get them in the habit of doing. If you can pick out the words that best represent a passage or portion of text then the more likely it is that you comprehend and understand what was being said. Even words you might not know are present and from context or asking someone, you are able to figure out what it was and the more you see it the more you can understand and use the word thus enhancing your vocabulary.

These are some other ways to incorporate word study/building into a center for kids:

This is for a kindergarten class using the alphabet, but this could also be adapted for higher grade levels

"Scoop and Spell"

This activity is great for almost any grade level. It works with spelling and on vocabulary!

To read or not to read?

While reading this weeks articles and chapter, one big idea that stuck out and impacted me was using poetry in for reading comprehension. In Gregory and Cahill's article, Ms. Hope had her kids write their poetry on half of a piece a paper leaving room to illustrate it. By using poetry, we can bring back a literary form that seems to be being used less and less while making it a fun and engaging activity while also promoting comprehension and pushing their minds' creativity. I also loved the encouragement to ask questions ALL the time. As a reader, and in anything I do, i always ask myself or others questions.

This website is a great example and resource for using poetry.

From Zookeeper to Animal Nutrition Specialist

In preparation for this weeks discussion, because I am one of the leaders, I read an article on vocabulary by Lane and Allen. In the very first part of the article they jump straight into how a kindergarten teacher uses circle time and classroom positions to build vocabulary on a strong foundation and to keep improving and adding to it as the year goes on. This got me thinking how can we as teachers/future teachers make learning news words more integrated into everyday lessons, conversations, and even games. So I got to looking around for some ideas and came across several things:

• Interactive Website:http:

http://www.vocabulary.co.il/vocabulary-learning-resources/

• An idea from another blog uses a new student every week to incorporate their vocabulary words into a paragraph about the student. This makes it more interesting for the children because it personalizes the activity.

• Take a look at this take on a word wall!!! They put pictures of things into a baggie that is attached to a certain word!!



Phonemic Awareness

To be a reader that has phonemic awareness you have to be able to recognize, hear, and manipulate phonemes (the smallest unit of sound).

Hooked on Phonics was a tool I used when I was a child to help with my progression through phonemic awareness. I struggled with my phonics, and my Kindergarten teacher would work with me as much as she could. Then at home I would practice with my parents and hooked on phonics. I would read books like Dr. Seuss and nursery rhymes and they would help my with identifying phonemes and syllables. In the articles by Clark and Yopp, they discuss other ways to help readers to develop phonemic awareness skills. They both emphasize activities that get kids interactive  with having them clap syllables or reading aloud. This got me thinking what are some other activities we could do as teachers for phonemic awareness?



The website Reading Rockets has become one of my favorite go-to websites for ideas. It offers ideas for both teachers and parents on phonemic awareness and other learning areas.



Reader's Theater

http://www.teachingheart.net/readerstheater.htm

Reading Fluency

Fluency a key skill that young readers need to develop to enhance their ability to understand and comprehend the text that they are reading. In the article on one-minute measures by Deeney, she states that it's important that we understand that readers struggle and to understand just why they struggle. I completely agree with her view; if we recognize just where or how a reader is struggling the better we, as teachers, can asses why that is and develop tools to improve certain skills. I know that when I was in fourth grade, my teacher told my parents that I struggled with fluency and suggested I go to a learning center to better concentrate on improving my reading skills. The whole experience did not do a thing for me as a reader because I didn't really need the help. My teacher had not properly measured my fluency, I was fast, accurate, understood what I was reading and did it all smoothly. I hated reading out loud cause it made me nervous and self conscious, and she would have been able to tell that if she had tested or looked at my endurance as a reader. Endurance is another key area which Deeney brings attention to that is key in determining a reader's fluency.

What would be some other ways to incorporate one-minute measures and endurance into testing fluency?

These are some pretty cool websites that deal with improving fluency and getting parents involved i the process!

http://www.aacrc.net/readerstheatre.htm

http://www.readingrockets.org/helping/target/fluency/

Anyone can read and write!

Reading and writing are two vital areas where children need to develop good skills, because they will stay with them the rest of their lives. Word walls and letter of the week have been popular methods of teaching children how to read. These methods, in the traditional sense, emphasize what kids don't know. In the article "Letting Go of Letter of the Week", it offers ideas on how to make reading and writing areas where it emphasized what kids already knew. One way Ms. Bell used a word wall was placing the picture of each kid in the class with their name on it under the letter the name started with.



As a lover of reading I want to instill that same love into the many children that I will teach. This can be a challenging task especially when kids are intimidated by reading. Providing the right tools and skills for young students essential in turning kids into confident readers as well as writers.

These images were creative ideas on how to teach reading and writing and make it interesting and fun for kids:

The tools above and below help with connecting similar groupings of letters and forming new words.

Tossing a pom pom into a cupcake pan to see what ending to add to a list of words and use the words in a story turns writing into a fun creative game.

Using different colored pens in editing and revising, like the article by Bell and Jarvis, allows for children to be active participants in learning the rules of words and writing.