Archive for February, 2006

Tagging

Wednesday, February 22nd, 2006

A new term on the web has been uncovered in my nightly forays into the forest of information.  Tagging!
Read about it and find some links
 http://www.eschoolnews.com/news/showStoryts.cfm?ArticleID=6126
Del.icio.us
http://del.icio.us
Flickr
http://www.flickr.com
Ed-Tech Insiders at eSN Online
http://www.eschoolnews.com/eti/index.php

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addthis_title = ‘Tagging’;
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Quote from Fountas and Pinnell Guiding Readers and Writers Grades 3-6

Monday, February 20th, 2006

I skimmed and read portions of this volume over the weekend and will share a few quotes that I found noteworthy.
In the introduction page vi
“Our goal was to write a book about teaching reading in upper elementary classrooms, but we quickly abandoned that idea.  The interconnectedness of reading and writing is profound and inescapable.  We [...]

Flexible Grouping

Tuesday, February 14th, 2006

Flexible Grouping Techniques

Grouping technique
How..
Use when ….
Example

Random
This is completely arbitrary: have students group themselves by like titles or by given colors.
Placement is primarily for management and forming groups of equal size.  Also good to use when you are trying to get students to know one another.
Students choose a title from a bag you circulate and group [...]

Reading/Teaching Strategies

Saturday, February 11th, 2006

Teaching Strategies from Michael Opitz handout at WSRA 2006
 
He refers you Yopp and Yopp 1996 for additional ideas.
 
Tip: when first introducing student to a new teaching strategy, use a familiar text so that you and the students can focus on the new strategy.
 
6 Before-reading Teaching strategies.
Anticipation guide – Students read statements before reading the text.
 
Brainstorming    [...]

Writing Across the Curriculum

Friday, February 10th, 2006

Writing across the Curriculum
Basic Principles of WAC
            As one response to students’ lack of writing practice throughout the curriculum, Writing Across the Curriculum (WAC) programs emerged in the 1980’s. The philosophies underlying these programs generally agree on certain basic principles:

That writing is the responsibility of the entire academic community.
That writing must be integrated across departmental [...]

Ideas for Integrating Writing Across the Curriculum

Tuesday, February 7th, 2006

Ideas for Integrating Writing Across the Curriculum
(Excerpts from the MPS Expository Prompt Books)
 
Science: Students may:
            Wirte a procedure for a science experiment
Write an informative essay about a scientist, invention, or other science-related topic
Illustrate and write captions for a scientific process
Social Studies: Students may:
            Write direcions for maps, gobes, graphs, tables, etc.
            Compare eras, presidents, regions, [...]

The Inner Conversation

Tuesday, February 7th, 2006

An interactive read aloud: the inner Conversation
A practice to notice thinking, monitor comprehension and enhance understading.
 
Reading comprehension is an ongoing process of evolving thinking.  When readers read they carry on an inner conversation with the text.  They hear a voice in their head speaking to them – a voice that questions, connects, laughs, cries.  The [...]

Stephanie’s handout2 – monitoring comprehension

Sunday, February 5th, 2006

Monitoring comprehension
Readers need explicit instruction to:
·        Become aware of their thinking as they read
·        Listen to their inner voice and notice when they veer away from an inner conversation with the text
·        Detect obstacles and confusions that derail understanding
·        Understanding how strategies can help repair meaning when it breaks down.
We explicitly teach readers to:
·        Track [...]

Stephanie’s handout – Active Literacy

Sunday, February 5th, 2006

The book is the greatest interactive medium of all time.  You can underline t, Write in the Margins, fold down a page, and skip ahead. And you can take it anywhere.
Michael Lynton
The Components of Active Literacy
Reading, writing, talking, listening and investigating to engage in the world of issues and ideas, to enhance understanding and to [...]

Notes from Stephanie Harvey

Sunday, February 5th, 2006

Stephanie Harvey – comprehension – notes from 2-5-06
 
Comprehension is having an inner conversation with yourself in your head while reading.
·        The number one way – talk about it
·        Active literacy
o       Readers need to be significantly more active
o       teachers are doing too much of the work in school
o       Students should be doing most of the work
Purposeful [...]