EDRD345 Jordan G.

Graphophonic System- 

Phonics: which sounds go with each letter to produce words

Holistic: begin with repeated reading of whole texts

It makes since to me that the holistic approach may be a better approach than the phonics approach, because the author even writes, "It's important, too, to realize that children begin school with almost complete control of the sounds of their native language" (p. 15). Yes, phonics are important to teach, but if children are already coming into school with an idea of sounds, to learn this new skill, they are going to need to be reading whole texts.

Syntactic System- (Patterns of words)

The order in which we place words can totally change the meaning of a sentence. Not only does the order of word, but the prefixes and suffixes that we put on words can alter the meaning. Without sentence structure, you have no meaning. 

This article talks about reading resources for literature circles. Teachers often start off with a small library of books available in the classroom, but still with choices. I remember when I was in third grade, my teacher had 5 different books that we could choose from, and we formed literature circles from whichever book that we chose. I remember thinking that it was really exciting that I got to choose my own chapter book to read for class, rather than having to read out of the textbook. I don't really remember anything else from the third grade regarding reading, other than that instance, because it was exciting and memorable for me. Yes, my teacher only had a few copies of each book, so I didn't get my first choice, but it was the fact that I still got to choose. 

What makes for a good book choice in literature circles?

-conflict, clash of values, character development, risk, growth, etc.

The purpose of literature circles is for students to discuss the book. Why waste that valuable time and pick a book with a very basic plot? Use the time wisely and carefully, so that we can get students talking and asking questions. We should be mindful of what books we are choosing specifically for the realm of literature circles. 

We, as teachers, also need to make sure that we are stocking our libraries with books of all reading levels. Going back to what Deb Miller said about reading levels, "just right" does not have to be a specific reading level, and it shouldn't be. There should be a variation of challenging and easier books available for all students, because some days we will want to push our students, and others are just going to call for some easy, leisurely reading. 

Most of this chapter covers the process of Book Selection. I love what Miller says about having students pick out books that are "just right."

I remember in school, we were only allowed to pick out books from our "level" bin. I recall a time of being completely broken when I wasn't allowed to take home the book with the rabbit on the front that my best friend got to take home, because it was above my level. But I loved rabbits! Fact of the matter is, I probably could have figured out the book. 

Miller says that "just right" for a student doesn't have to be "just right" of a reading level. "Just right" could be a little bit easier if a student is working on fluency, or "just right" could be a little bit more challenging if a student is particularly interested in a topic of a book. 

One of my favorite things that Deb Miller does in this chapter, is she brings in different types of reading in from her home. From her bedside table she brings in a catalog, poetry, novels, and a nonfiction text. She explains to her students that she has a variety of readings at different levels that are "just right." She explains the purpose of the easy catalog, and the challenging novels. Who knew that teachers were real people, too? 

Teachers get frustrated when their students seem uninterested or disengaged in lessons. Why? Because they are teaching uninteresting and disengaging lessons. Students are only going to buy into learning new information if it is relevant to them. We can easily adapt lessons and standards to fit topics that are interesting to children, such as pop culture. 

When students show interest in a TV show, video game, song, etc., we should take this as an opportunity to teach! Just like in the article about Inquiry and Iditarod, lessons can be totally formed around one area of pop culture that the class seems fascinated in. Once these children are hooked by this topic, they are so bought into learning! This is how learning is going to take place in the classroom, by taking time to relate to your students and showing them that you care about what they care about! 

Sherry and her students voted on a song as the focus of the unit. They chose "Who Let the Dogs Out?" She was able to form lessons all based around this song, such as reading the lyrics, learning about the artists, learning to dance la cumbia, and comparing/contrasting two songs. 

In this article, by Crafton, a teacher reads a fictional story to her class about a boy racing in the Iditarod to raise money for his grandfather. The students are loving the story until Ms. Sostrin reads a page about the dog's heart bursting and dying. (Children gasp!!). Emotions are high, questions arise, and answers are demanded by the children. 

Why would Ms. Sostrin choose a book like this, when she knows the ending of the story? Because she's a good teacher.

Marcia Sostrin encouraged the talk in the classroom. She knew that by reading this book, children were going to experience emotions and ask questions. She carefully selected the book in order for this to happen because she knew that it had the potential to lead them into a new area of inquiry. Coincidentally (but not), the actual Iditarod race was only a few weeks away. Ms. Sostrin encouraged her students to explore the topic further...Inquiry. 

The students made Iditarod journals and were encouraged to watch the race on TV with their parents. Each day they would research the race with their group, and root on their favorite mushers. One group found shocking information regarding the dogs who weren't strong enough to race; they were put down. This provided an opportunity for the class to take a stand and decide what they could do as a class to help this issue (integrating social studies). The students decided to write a letter to make their stance known (this is a way to once again integrate social justice, and even letter writing).

The article goes on and on of how Ms. Sostrin used inquiry to teach, and probably even meet the standards while doing so. Groundbreaking. 

Reading and writing workshop is a large block of time used for reading and writing experiences. This is not a time for filling out worksheets or working in workbooks, but really engaging in experiences that tend to individual interests and abilities. These workshops are very much student led. The student will come up with his or her own plan and the teacher records it. This gives students a sense of responsibility and ownership, which we want to encourage in our classroom! Since this is mostly a student-led time, the teacher is able to spend this time assessing students, taking running records, or doing miscue analyses. 

I hear about all of the assessments we should give and records we should take as an early childhood professional, but I've always wondered when I would find time to do these things. Here is a great option--workshop! 

To wrap up the time, workshop is often ended with a group share. 

Benefits of Workshop for students:

-Ownership and Choice 

-Response Opportunities 

We all wonder as early childhood undergrads, "So like, how do you even introduce reading? Is there a magic trick that helps them learn a few words first?" This is something that I often stress about. This is what this chapter is about. What I am so glad that Miller did, was she included her September schedule and calendar. I love hearing about teacher's theories and ideas on reading, but sometimes you just need a tangible schedule to see an example of how teaching reading is introduced, and the pace at which it is set. 

Why does reading matter? This is a question that I want my students to be able to answer. Is reading just something that we have to learn? No. There is empowerment behind reading, and purposes for it! Miller listed out reasons for her students to know why reading matters. 

Where to start...

After reading only a chapter of Debbie Miller's Reading With Meaning, I can already tell that I'm a huge fan of hers and how she values children. What I found to be interesting is that she went a whole chapter without even discussing reading methods. I love that she makes it clear what her purpose is, and that is to advocate for her students. This is the kind of teacher that I want to be. Yes, I want my students to become more critical thinkers, learn how to read fluently, and add numbers, but what I really want is to cultivate growth and instill hope and joy into my students. Almost anyone can figure out how to teach a child a skill, but only few can really raise up learners who love to learn. 

When Debbie did get into discussing her pedagogical practices, she talked about the environment that she creates for her students. She said that if she is talking and teaching more than her students are, she's doing it wrong. I love this idea. We, as teachers, should have hope and trust in our students that they are going to be able to learn from their own experiences. She says, "...over-scaffolding diminishes student energy, engagement, and motivation and increases student conformity and compliance." This is something that I need to work on as a becoming teacher. Often I will run to the beckoning call of the students that I've worked with, which may not always be the best answer. Yes, I want my students to know that I am available to them and willing to help them learn, but a lot of the times, children have to problem solve on their own! I don't want to spoon-feed my students, because eventually they will get frustrated when they do not know how to find a solution without my help. She goes on to say in the passage, "It's messier-- nurturing creativity and independence always is--but now the children are the ones digging in, figuring out, and working hard to read words and make sense of stories, content, and big ideas. And I get to be the one listening in, conferring with children, and supporting them as needed" (p. 12). 

I loved the section on "Building Relationships." Before you can even think about introducing reading methods, you have to build trusting relationships with your students, is what Miller harps on. It's important to just be a friend to your students. I feel like in my practicum sites that I've been to, I see many teachers just being the "teacher." What about being a friend? A person to talk to? This is a simple quality that many teachers simply lose sight of. It's noticing the new shoes that a student got, or the tooth that another one lost over the weekend. I want my students to know that I'm not only interested in their learning, but in their lives, too!! I want to know them as people. I need to know about their lives. I need to know their favorite things. I need to know what makes them sad. I need to know these things to know them as a learner.