Show, Not Tell

     The theme of Chapter 5 in Allen’s book was teaching students how to show, not tell, about characters as they write.  I liked the “Creat-A-Character” exercise that the author did with her students.  This helped the students become the experts of their topic and gave examples of how to add detail.  Many times we tell our students to “add detail” but providing examples of what we mean by adding detail is a great learning experience.  The author went on to further help her students learn how to make powerful verbs rather than the weak everyday verbs we tend to use in our writing.  I had the chance this week in our field experience to help a student add detail and strong verbs to a story he was writing.  The student became really involved with his story after I explained how to use detail to show, not tell about, his character, Jack O’Lantern, who lived on Spooky Street. 

     Chapter 7 of Allen’s book helped me understand how I can help students incorporate art into their writing to express themselves better.  I liked the way the author showed examples of previous student’s work so that the class could see the endless possibilities that they could create. Gone are the days of the boring research papers that students presented by simply reading them aloud.  We need to teach students how to write and present their findings in ways that will help prepare them for the demands that they will face in the workplace.

     Seedfolks is a great example of showing, not telling, about the charcters of a story.  I read Seedfolks with the perspective of Sam, the older Jewish man.  The author showed us what a caring personality he had. The author gave us examples of how Sam was a peacemaker and looked for the good in everyone, no matter their ethnicity.  He would strike up conversations in grocery stores among people trying to get them to put their diversity’s aside, even if for a moment.  Since he was 78, he knew that he was too old to plant in the community garden so he hired a Puerto Rican teenager to help him. Fleischman’s method of showing, not telling, about the characters in the story brings a true to life feeling for the story.

You're Invited

We have all heard of Writer’s Workshop in classrooms, but what is a literacy invitation?   Before reading VanSluy’s article I could not have answered that question.  I now understand the importance of planning, preparation, and shared vision.  Invitaions allow students to raise and pursue questions that are important to them.  We, as teachers, need to provide a supportive learning environment that enable students to ask and respond to those questions that are important to them.  Invitations allow students to understand that we value their perspectives and not just a right answer.

Come with Me

            Come with me

            To the quiet minute between two noisy minutes

            It’s always waiting ready to welcome us

            Tucked under the wing of the day

            I’ll be there

            Where will you be?

                                    —Naomi Shihab Nye

This poem, which is refrenced in Van Sluy’s book “What, If, and Why”, is about taking a moment from the everyday hustle and bustle of our lives.  I found this poem inspirational as we are all so busy with our classes and lives.  Before this class I probably would have read the poem and thought, oh that’s a nice poem, but after reading Van Sluy’s article and Chapter 4 in Allen’s book, I now realize how much a poem can teach us.   I can also appreciate what a poem is.  Before our readings for this week, I thought that a poem had to rhyme.  I had always steered away from poems as a way of expressive writing because I thought that every other line had to rhyme. I really liked how the book suggested that teachers can approach students who are reluctant to learning poetry can be connected by looking at the lyrics to their favorite songs.  When students can relate what they are learning to their everyday lives then it will be something that they will be interested in learning and they will even be more inticed to remember what they have learned. Poetry is not a genre that I remember learning much about in school.  Now, I can’t wait to share poetry with my future students!

MGRP Inspiration

Reading Ch.1-3 &Ch/ 6 of The MGRP really helped me understand the purpose for doing a Multigenre Research Paper. I never knew what the term MGRP meant before this class and it’s very exciting to actually be working on a such a paper.  I liked how the author focused on how the entire paper's topic and genres were up to the writer. This was interesting to me because I am use to being assigned a topic and researching information that I am not interested in. The skills and confidence that the writer gains through writing a MGRP are incredible. “If students choose topics they like, it will make the multigenre project good.  If students choose topics about which they are passionate, it will make the project great.” (p. 27).  This is great for me to think about because students can create their own boundaries while writing.  I really liked the example that the book showed about the student who wrote about the famous gorilla researcher.  She chose so many different types of genres to show her point of view, such as the 20/20 interview, diary entry, poems, and even a news article about the researcher’s death.  How intriguing for such a young student to display so much passion in her work.

   

The journal article by Powell and Davidson was inspiring to me because the teacher did not give up on her students.  She showed us how we can create a community in our own classrooms.  I liked how The Donut House project helped students understand that they could be part of something. Students were able to use verbal or written language while interacting with their classmates and community members. At the end of the project, the students felt a sense of accomplishment. Powell and Davidson stated that “tapping into students’ ‘funds of knowledge’ is inherently motivating, and hence children are more engaged in learning when they perceive an authentic purpose for their efforts” (254).

Not Your Average English Lesson

Stacey and I are researching multimodal resources for teaching reading and writing.  I am finding this research very interesting.  One area that we researching is how to encourage the various types of multimodal practices in the classroom.  The rest we will share in our presentation!

Crafting Writers, Ch. 10-12, and Wohlwend Dilemmas & Discourses

The first paragraph in Chapter 10 pretty much sums up a typical day of subbing! 

I found it a relief for that first year teacher that the principal first talked about her strengths and then moved on to what she needed to work on rather than dwell on her weaknesses.  The teacher stated that she is still working for this principal today because she appreciates how much she believed in her teaching potential from day one.  What a great comparison as to how we should treat our students - with respect for what they are doing well with and for encouraging them to rise to their potential.  Page 161 of Hale’s book states that, “the emotional aspect of teaching can either impede learning or cause it to flourish.”  Page 161-162 goes on further to state that, “if you are too busy noticing the gap between what students are doing and where they are ‘suppose’ to be, it will be harder to see strengths.”  These statements are very powerful and as a future educator I hope to always remember them and use them everyday with my instruction. 

            There are so many effective instruction techniques offered in Hale’s book.  But one that I particularly hope to use in my writing conferences is from figure 10.1.  This figure shows us how to record the teaching of a conference.  Listing the Working On, Strengths, Next Step, and Try-It next time at the back of the writing journals are great ways to reflect on each student’s progress.  As I read the last few chapters in Hale’s book I find myself very anxious to participate in my first conference. 

            The last chapter regarding Assessment really ties into the e-reserve article, Dilemmas & Discourses, that we read for this week.  We see how the importance of using grading rubrics relates to multi-level assessments.  As the article states, some assessments of scribbling circles on a folded paper could be considered “immature prewriting” or “off-task” behavior; whereas, other assessments could say that the scribbling is a very valued piece of literature called “approximated writing.”  Teachers are often caught up in this dilemma of conflicting assessment – while they are concerned about meeting the student’s developmental needs, they are also responsible to the school’s expectations and state standards.  We have learned in class to look for what the student is doing well and not to focus on mistakes.  I liked the example in the article about the student writing “Happy Birthday” as “APEBDD AH.”  Before this class I would have stated that this student had a long ways to go, but now I can look at the letters and the sounds that they make as potential for sounding out words.