After reading chapter three of the textbook and the article
on content-area literacy strategies, I am realizing even more how important
this course is for the future educator. Although I have learned about many
tools to use in my future classroom through my education classes at ODU, I have
never really known how to judge which tool or strategy would be best to use for
particular subjects and situations. I also was never comfortable making tools
such as anticipation guides, written previews and rewrites. My first inclination
before would have been to research the internet for ideas or an example I could
use instead of coming up with one on my own. I thought this way because I never
really knew how to create and incorporate these tools into the classroom.
While reading about rewrites, I felt as though it may be
more beneficial, if time allows, that the teacher and class rewrite the story
together. I understand the rewrite is to help the student comprehend the text
better when they read it for the first time, but I feel like they may not be as
interested in reading it if they already know what it is about. Does anyone
else share this feeling? Does anyone think that maybe students will find it
pointless to read the actual text if they already read an easier version of it?
Maybe someone can explain why they would still be interested.
While reading about graphic organizers and looking at the
examples, some ideas came to my mind. I think a great way to incorporate
graphic organizers such as a tree diagram into a lesson (once the class gets
acquainted with them) is to leave a few places blank so they students’
curiosity is peaked when looking at it before reading and while reading are
able to fill in the missing pieces. It is also a tool that can be created by
the student to check understanding after the story has been read. Students
could also use the tree diagram that is completed by the teacher as a writing
activity. Once the story has been read, the student can then write a summary
using the key concepts in the graphic organizer and linking them with complete
sentences.
This article and chapter is something I can continue to look
back on as a reference to make sure I am accessing my class’s prior knowledge
they best way I can and incorporating content-area literacy in the best way.
These tools and strategies described in the readings is something I can
continue to use even specific examples. I really loved the example of the
analogy on the revolutionary war and the teenager. What a great way to relate
history to present day teenage problems! When teachers think more like the
student, these connections between real life and content can be made in a relevant
way. Can anyone think of an analogy like this one that can be used in an
elementary classroom?
When you mention students being interested in reading if they already know what it is about, it reminded me of a class I took this past semester. It was about teaching literature with film. The class was very interesting as I learned different ways to incorporate film into the classroom in a constructive manner. We were all responsible to write a unit plan. I did my unit on The Lorax. Later, we had to present our unit. With there not being enough time to do one whole lesson, I made a modified version in which we looked at some parts of the movie that were not included in the book. My teacher told me that I would probably be better off not showing it to them until I let the students predict what could have happened on their own. I feel the same way about this situation, that students may feel like their creativity is taken away from them. What's the point if we already know the ending? What's the point if we can watch the movie?
ReplyDeleteThanks for the feedback! That's a great example of how I was thinking.
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