Karen James #6 Jan/Feb Plan for and Monitor Independent Reading

I tell my students that just like practicing math facts, sports, dance, etc. to become a better reader you have to "practice" read! Students don't improve on merely teaching them strategies.  They must have time to practice those strategies in an authentic way.  I have always made time for students to read independently.  Reading conferencing and journaling help me to monitor progress.  Although I always allow time for reading, I find my conferencing is focused on struggling readers the most.


I completely agree with the emphasis this chapter places on student choice.  During independent reading  students must choose what interest them.  As adults we want to read books that appeal to us in some way and students should get that opportunity too.  I do think it is important to guide students to different genres and authors, but ultimately it should be their choice.  Monitoring independent reading can be as simple as just talking to students.  More formal observations can come from reading conferences.  Reading logs are sometimes effective.  In my  experience, reading logs work and don't work.  Many times students and parents are not always truthful in filling out the log.  For some students though it helps them to keep track of their progress.


Choosing just right books is essential to any independent reading program.  If the books are to easy students to grow and if they are to difficult students are not really reading.  Our librarian does a great job of teaching how to choose books as well as helping student to select books. What I learned from this chapter is how important independent reading is but accountability and choice are crucial elements in reading instruction.  I loved the results from the middle school students.  They said choice and teacher read aloud is the factors that encouraged them to read.

Sharon Doyle's Jan/Feb. Blog #5 - Chapter 3 Share Your Reading Life

     As I thought about our essay and class in January about "This I Believe", I began to look at the first chapters of Routman once again. I read Chapter 3 about sharing your reading life and felt a feeling of nostalgia. I thought back to the teachers that I remember fondly and the times in my classroom when all seems to be working and recalled that in almost every incidence, there is an element of intimate sharing of stories from person to person.  Whether the story is true or given as an example of what could be, the level of engagement for all is greater when personal ties are attached. These moments confirm the need to know our students as people and the necessity of building a relationship with those we wish to influence or to teach.
     I was recently discussing what students were reading and found quite a variety.  Several students did not wish to share. I suspect they are not really reading, but merely checking out books and going through the motion. I did, however, get quite a reaction when I asked students to tell me what their definition of a book was and shared mine - "TV for smart people".  Immediately, the reaction was different.  I really believe that all students want to be recognized as smart and to think of a book in terms of the same media as TV requiring their active input really resonated with them.
     Like, Routman, I believe students should know that their teacher is reading books, also, and not just because it is a text. I have books in my room, some marked with bookmarks, as well as a stack of what will be next. I share with my students the number of times I search amazon for the next book on sale and my weekly trips to Barnes & Noble.  Students are aware of the books that are my favorites and they know I like scary books and mysteries just for fun. I take multiple opportunities to let students know about my love of reading, not a chore of reading. I love sharing Read Alouds in the classroom and I make sure they are read well.  I actually practice my reading aloud to permit students the optimum experience with the book. We share the language of the book read aloud and to hear it read well is important.  Many of my students come back after the fact to ask if the book I read came from our library so they can now read it on their own.
     Too often, I don't think we as teachers always model very well what we expect to be a natural occurrence for our students.  If we want all of our students to experience the love of reading, we have to demonstrate that love to our students.  Unfortunately, too often, we assume that students get their love of reading from home.  Wrong answer - we have to create the pleasure environment for them here at school and encourage them to become a commercial for the love of reading in their own homes.  Once they experience the true love of reading, we won't be able to stop them and we will see improvement for all of our students.  It's easier said than done in some cases so we must continue to seek to find that one special book that will motivate the next student to read on their own. Also, I realize that I won't reach all of the students, hopefully just like me with my favorite teachers from my childhood, our students will also develop their list.  Hopefully, on the list will be the teacher who motivated them to read for the sake of reading pleasure.

Caroline Josey- Routman chapter 5. December

"It really doesn't matter what kids read as long as they read and enjoy what they're reading. By gently nudging them to better literature - through reading aloud, co-reading, and putting book into their hands - their reading tastes will eventually grow to include more sophisticated materials." (Routman 65)

Routman states that classroom libraries and books improve reading achievement and that we need to expand access to struggling readers. We all know that this is true and we see children s love for reading grow by reading their favorite book in our libraries or borrowing books and taking them home and also falling in love with a series from our libraries. In this chapter Routman gives a lot of helpful ideas for teachers to use in their classrooms so students will know how to use a library and so they will be successful readers. I love when he suggests "light reading" for turning our struggling readers into competent readers. I have three struggling readers in my class and one them I cannot get to finish a book all by herself. Maybe starting her off with something she is totally interested in would help. I also went through the checklist of ways a classroom library would be and I think my library is easily accessible and students can quickly find a book they are interested in.

Rhonda Dickerson- January/February Blog

Routman: Chapters 6 & 7 “Plan for and Monitor Independent Reading/Make Assessment Instruction’s Working Partner”

     If only we had ALL day, every day to have a “carefully designed, structured reading program that includes demonstrating, teaching, guiding, monitoring, evaluating, and goal-setting with voluntary reading of books students choose.”  What a wonderful time would be had by all in the classroom!!

     The computerized program the district provides can enhance and benefit independent reading for all children if, and only if, it is closely monitored and implemented with fidelity.   Routman’s suggestions and Accelerated Reader can “play nicely in the sandbox together” when there is a complimentary blend.  AR was always meant to be a companion to the existing reading program- it was never meant to replace or take precedence.  Indeed, it does not teach strategies or skills.  It is only a practice component that assists the teacher and student in finding the child’s “just-right” zone so that the child is not reading too easy or too hard all the time.  I do allow flexibility when choosing a book.  Yes, each student has a ZPD, or reading range of books to choose from, but it is okay to read a book below (just because it will be fun or it is a favorite) and it is fantastic to challenge with a book that is above.  The kids just beam when they read a book with a level that is not listed on their index card and then do well.  The guidelines on page 85 are exactly in line with the best practices recommended when implementing AR.    

     I love that as a class the children can quickly settle into our independent reading time and I can immediately begin conferencing and providing feedback.  The components of an independent reading program listed on page 88 are wonderful guidelines.  I can see that I need to work on more time for sharing and book talks. I LOVE the Chatterbox idea…will be trying it soon!  And I have not incorporated partner reading into the daily time.  I have noticed that some children share and partner anyway, so it is time to include it in a more structured way.

 My one-to-one student conferences are improving, but I need to focus more on assessing and evaluating on the spot.  I agree that a whole book provides a better opportunity to check comprehension than a short, unrelated passage.   I am beginning to encourage students to set individualized goals such as “Go Back….Revise!”, “Slow Down the Zoom, Zoom, Zoom…Enjoy the Book!”, and “Pay Attention to the Ending Marks”.   I’ve created posters to remind them of these strategies.  They enjoy spending time with me  and discussing the books.  I take the time to again conference quickly with each student when an AR quiz is completed so together we can celebrate success or discuss how to be more successful with the next book.  The Child-Friendly Reading Goals on page 106 provide confirmation that I am on the right track.  We just used some of them last week!!

    Independent reading time is a favorite in my room.  If other activities interfere with the daily schedule, it is not a good idea to skip this as the students quickly voice their disappointment!  While I still have many improvements to make, we are on the road to becoming life-long readers!

Olivia Boykin Blog Post #5 Routman Chapter 4: Teach with a Sense of Urgency

     I felt relieved when I read, “We need to keep our expectations high.  I am constantly amazed at how little we require of students.” (Routman, p. 42)  I, too, am shocked and disappointed at how much I’ve changed certain things from year-to-year.  Most of my students used to be able to complete multi-step word problems independently by October.  It’s January and most of my students are still working on one-step word problems similar to the ones a beginning second grader might complete.  Across the grade levels and subject areas I see multiple-choice responses being offered more and open-response-type questions and problems being given less and less.  This is not just on assessments, either, but also on day-to-day practice.  I may have revised and rewritten my word problems and math practice sheets and assessments to include more basic problems but I still include 100% open-response problems.  Just because the majority of my students are performing at a lower ability level than I wish they were doesn’t mean I’m going to make it “easy” for them by providing possible answers.  Is it harder for me to grade?  Yes.  Have I thought about changing all that I use to multiple choice responses?  Yes, every week.  Do I feel like that is a cop-out on my part?  Yes, which is why I have yet to do it. L  We need to continue to expect our students to be able to think about, explain, and apply what they learn.  I don’t want them to just add the one’s column and choose the answer that contains that number in that place or ask the teacher on a daily basis how to complete problems they should already know how to answer with competence.       

     When I read about “a relaxed, collaborative, accepting environment that encourages and supports the learner in trying out what is being demonstrated, taking risks, monitoring himself or herself, and setting goals while moving toward independence” being inherent in the optimal learning model I smiled to myself.  I imagined Ms. Frizzle saying, “Take chances. Make mistakes.”  I then thought about what I find myself saying quite often in my own classroom which is, “Just do your best. Try. I won’t yell at you, you know.”  Again, this model encourages students moving toward independence which is something about which I feel strongly. 

     “To become dependent on being corrected by someone else is to remain at an inefficient level of learning and to be cheated of the opportunity for rapid independent self-improvement.” (Routman, p. 46)  The reason I love this sentence is because it states what I believe but does so in a much more succinct and professional way.  I know most people have an innate desire to help children and may think that “guiding” them to the answer is helping.  Some think that by pointing out which answer is wrong and allowing a student to correct it before turning in the paper is “helping” that student.  Some people say it’s okay to simply point out to students that some problems have been left blank and allow those students to go back and complete the work before turning it in to be checked or graded.  I disagree.  I think that if we give students the tools they need in order to answer a problem and give them time to revise their thinking they can do it on their own if properly prepared.  If we continue to walk students through the problems on which they are to be graded they don’t get a chance to feel excitement when they get it correct all on their own.  When we wink at them and point out a spot on the page they need to look at again we aren’t helping them learn to double-check work carefully to make sure it’s complete and correct.  The knowledge that adding is a great way to self-check subtraction and teaching motions and chants to help students remember a process in science are those important tools we need to give our students so they can be more independent in their learning.  They know their explanation and thinking is correct because they can prove it and show us the evidence to convince us of their knowledge.  “Students who remain dependent on a teacher or program for all their feedback are limited in how much they can learn.  When students have the strategies, confidence, and knowledge to continue learning on their own, not only does learning accelerate but also much of the responsibility for learning gradually (but actively) shifts from the teacher to student.” (Routman, p. 48)

     The self-correction of which students are capable and the feelings students experience when they complete an assignment independently and correctly segues nicely into my next several comments and highlighted areas of text.  “The learners are proud of their ability, aware of their progress, and involved in setting new learning goals for themselves.  Their reward for their successful learning is intrinsic, personal pride and pleasure in their accomplishments.” (Routman, p. 47)  So many of our students have forgotten (or may never have experienced) this feeling of an intrinsic reward.  I love the first time one of my students, glowing with pride, states, “I got them all right” or “I finally got the <insert skill (pattern, time, money, addition problem, etc.) here> right!”  Do I seem “mean” when I won’t “help” the student do the problem?  Maybe.  Is it for a good reason and worth it?  Totally!

     There are so many ideas from this chapter I’d like to discuss here but I know my posts are way too long already so I have to make a decision on what to include.  I suppose my last point will have to be what is the most relevant to my current teaching position and that is exactly the topic that next struck me so hard:  making the instruction meaning-oriented (p. 62).  I need to make a concerted effort to relate the instruction to what is relevant to my students’ lives.  The interest in Minecraft is but a few embers on a fire but I was able to fan those flickers into flames as we studied rocks and minerals this year.  Students could better understand Moh’s Hardness Scale when I brought up the diamond sword and the hardness level of the different blocks used in the building and crafting game.  Some students rushed up to tell me they already knew about obsidian because of the game and when we begin learning about resources I expect several of them to express similar knowledge based on their experiences with this game.  I’ve used an episode of “Odd Squad” to teach about patterns and episodes of “Curious George” to discuss the power of zero and standard units of measure.  “Wild Kratts” is a great way to show examples of animal adaptations and I’ve recently been using a Tinker Bell movie and an episode of “Avatar” to exemplify a point I wanted to make during our fossils unit.  There are numerous “Sophia the First” and “Berenstain Bear” episodes to which I refer when we talk about having good character and making good choices.  “Mythbusters” is an excellent show that allows children to experience the scientific method in a way that makes it so much fun and so, of course, I reference that, as well.  What I don’t feel comfortable using as “relevant” and “meaningful” connections are games like “Call of Duty,” “Assassin’s Creed,” and the show “1000 Ways to Die.”  Unfortunately, these are the games that my students play on their game systems at home and the shows I listed that I reference often are being watched by fewer and fewer of my students each year.  Those shows and movies that are being watched should never be used in a lesson at school, believe me. 

     Ultimately I enjoyed reading this chapter and found numerous ideas I can use this year and in future years no matter which grade or subject I teach.  As mentioned earlier, I do have some other thoughts and questions my reading prompted but those will have to wait for another day.

Blog Post 5: Angela Jackson's Routman Ch. 5

I wanted to revisit classroom library organization in hopes to get it right this time. I understand the importance of a diverse classroom library. This read made me more aware that I need to make my classroom library a top priority. When and how and I going to do this? I need an entire weekend to reorganize it! Every week, this very notion looms in the back of my mind that I have more books to get sorted and placed on the shelves of my classroom library. Moreover, I agree with the text as it states that it is difficult to maintain a strong independent reading program without and excellent classroom library.

I like the idea of a "Light reading" section for struggling readers, this would give them the ability to participate and not feel intimidated around their peers. One of these sources for boys are the National Geographic books where they have one animal versus another. I have noticed a lot of my struggling readers choosing those types of books during independent reading time.

Another point from this chapter that hit home with me was the fact that it is difficult for students to spend a lot of time reading if they cant easily find interesting materials. I take full responsibility for my classroom library, I just have to make time to get it completely straight and move on.

I am on the way to a better organized classroom library!

Anne Maddox Blog4- Routman Ch. 8 "Teach Comprehension"

This chapter title, "Teach Comprehension", especially appealed to me because comprehension is the basis for reading growth and understanding at the upper levels. I do begin teaching comprehension from the beginning of the year.  If my students are not successful with their AR tests, which is one useful tool for comprehension, or their answers to discussions and conferencing are somewhat skewed, I suggest that they spend time rereading their books, or read a book at a slightly lower level.  Children believe, falsely, that after they have read a book or assignment once that they know all there is to know!  That simply isn't the case, even for adults. I try to tell my students that sometimes books or articles are especially wordy that I have to reread sometimes up to 3 times before it makes sense to me.

Word study or understanding is key to the overall central idea about the passage they are reading.  Also choosing books that they enjoy and understand is an important part of reading growth.  One of my best readers had a teacher to suggest a favorite book for her to read, A Wrinkle in Time.  She just couldn't develop an interest in the book and was hesitant to not try to read it.  I talked with her and told her I had also tried to read it unsuccessfully.  That made her feel better and then decided to turn it back into the library.

I stress to my students that if there are many words that they don't understand, then the book is above their level.  I love it when students will come to me and ask me what a word is and I explain what it means.  That lets me know that they are coming to understand the right books to choose and that they are mature enough to ask for help, even if the word is an easy word like "pry". Many times they don't know the meanings because it is a word that isn't used frequently in day to day conversation.

The 80/20 rule is something I am using this year which gives lots of time for application.  But many students think they are reading enough at school and don't put forth effort to read additionally at home. Our mini lessons are important for their understanding.  However,  I do know that for me to be a better comprehension teacher I need to challenge my students in the areas of self questioning.

Carly Painter Blog # 6: Chapter 5: Routman “Organize and Outstanding Classroom Library”

My classroom library is often a challenge for me.  I organize one way, then add to, take away, and try another way, only to wonder if the final way is truly working (that's where I'm at right now). 

Routman states that, "It is difficult to maintain a strong independent reading program without an excellent classroom library."  I agree and after reading this chapter, I am already questioning my current library.  I do have some baskets with leveled texts along with baskets with different genres.  Students "shop" weekly for 3 new books from both leveled and genre baskets to go in their bag of books.  Routman points out that "some students identify themselves by their level."  After reading this, I think I need to re-visit choosing "just-right" books with my students and give them more freedom in choosing their books.

Although I have a lot of books in varied genres, I know my library can always be better.  I like the idea of displaying some books to help draw attention to them.  I'll continue with my "work in progress" library.

Dawn Mitchell's Share Your Reading Life Regie Routman's Chapter 2

During the month of January our application we are working on learning about Socio Cultural Learning theories and strategies that help support student talk.   In our required reading this month Richard Allington identifies student talk as one of the essential components that characterize the most effective teachers’ classrooms. 

In January’s blendspace you will find a variety of resources we’ve included for you including the four theories that we are sharing with you such as Owocki and Goodman’s kidwatching excerpts that focus on sociocultural learning and talk and Chorzerpa’s suggestions for utilizing Socratic Seminar to promote active student engagement in learning.  You will also find in our blendspace an example of an award-winning podcast in the link to NPR’s “This I Believe” podcast series as well as a link to try out a very user friendly podcasting tool for students called vocaroo (vocaroo.com) 

This month for my blog post, I have chosen to read chapter 3 “Share Your Reading Life” from Routman’s Reading Essentials for many reasons.  First of all, I believe that this directs to the importance of talk in our classroom.  How many of us love to read and love to talk about what we are reading?  I know that many times I have read a book that has deeply affected me as a reader and I have immediately wanted to share that experience with another human. 

When I was in the second grade and read, Charlotte’s Web I remember sitting beside my best friend at the time, Amanda Ravan just a crying over the loss of Charlotte and the heart warming knowledge that I at 8 had experienced the joy of friendship.  When I was in the fifth grade and read Where the Red Fern Grows I remember vividly having to re-read it at night to my twin brother because I wanted someone else to know those two coon dogs, Little Ann and Ole’ Dan that had stolen my heart and made me love the outdoors all over again.

I’m a little embarrassed to admit to you that in college when Greg and I first met I read Nicolas Spark’s The Notebook and was so smitten by the idea of a love like that I asked him would he please read because I hoped that the new love we had found might grow into a lasting life time love like the two characters based on the author’s grandparents had found.  I know cheesy right! 

As readers we connect to what we read and we are compelled to share our thoughts with others.  When Lily Grace figured out what Severus Snape’s heart was really about in Harry Potter she had to run downstairs and tell me that he wasn’t all bad and she couldn’t believe I had let her peg him wrong all this time when I knew he actually helped save Harry in the end!  I told her that I was waiting to see her reaction and I didn’t want to spoil the discovery of loyalty in his character for her.  We then both concurred that J.K. Rowling had magical writing abilities to draw out his character development.

Our students need time to talk about what they’ve read, to transact with others who may affirm their thoughts and more importantly, who may challenge them and open them up to a new way of thinking.  In my first summer of the Spartanburg Writing Project, my book club that read and wrote under the influence of Barbara Kingsolver’s work that summer challenged my thinking and my writing in ways that grew me. 

In this month’s article, Allington states,  "..if we want to increase substantially the amount of reading that children do (and would I argue that this is one absolutely crucial step toward enhancing reading proficiency), it is important to give children books they can read and choices regarding which books they will read. Likewise, crafting a supportive conversational environment in which students talk to their teachers and to their peers about the books they are reading is an important component for sustaining increased reading. And active teaching of useful reading strategies expands the array of books that children are able to read. Finally, shifting evaluation to focus on effort and improvement enhances students' motivation for reading."  (Allington, 2002 pg. 8)

One of the strategies that Routman made in this chapter is to share your now and your next book and to have a record of your reading.  In my writer’s notebook I have a running list of books I’ve read so I can remember them for mentor texts and for the memories.

Each month I visit Mr. K’s Used Book store in Greenville (in Verdae Shopping Center off the Motor Mile) and buy my stack for the month.  Below is my picture of my Now Book stack.  Every single book in this stack was recommended to me by a friend.  Keri Lyles from Arcadia recommended Outlander (she was right, it is full of adventure, history, suspense, and a little romance too!).  A friend of mine I met in Kentucky when Tasha Thomas and I presented at a Writing Conference there recommended The Goldfinch to me on facebook and The Martian was highly recommended to me by my parents. 

Here is a picture of my Next Book Stack and both books on this list made the list through talking with others.  The Rick Bragg book is on my next stack because he is an all-time favorite of mine and two friends, Susan Cox and Pam Ray recommended this one to me recently.  The ESV Bible was given to me for Christmas by my husband Greg because two friends of mine recommended this translation to me. 

Other take aways for me from this chapter include:

*Favorite Author Area – page 30

*Baskets of Recommended books – page 30

*Keeping a Simple Reading Record – page 35

*Demonstrating How You Read and Your Love For Reading – page 36

Routman says on page 24 that it is important that we share our love of reading with our students.  “I want students to know I am compelled to read.  It is almost impossible for me not to read.  It’s much more than enjoying a well-told story, increasing my knowledge about the world, following directions, or say, understanding philosophy.  Reading pervades my life and sustains me the same way friendship and love do.  Reading gives me joy, comfort, perspective, new ideas, questions to ponder, and connections to other lives.  I want nothing less for my students.” (Routman, page 24)

I agree whole-heartedly.  #readersareleaders

Sincerely,

Dawn

Elizabeth Graham's Post 5: Routman's Chapter 12 "You Only Have So Much Time"

As I read Chapter 12, "You Only Have So Much Time", several key points jumped out at me. As a newer teacher librarian, I have fallen for the cute/cool Pinterest lessons and centers that take some time to plan and create. Perhaps I should have read this chapter first, as Routman warns, "Continually ask yourself when planning work for students, How is this activity helping my students become more independent as readers, writers, and thinkers? If it's not, set it aside." Ouch, maybe I did spend too much time on the snowman ABC cards...

Another point that resonated was the mantra to "Keep Work Meaningful" AKA help students create authentic work. In the library, I aspire to share and publish the work that students create for the wider world to enjoy. If a student writes a poem on a piece of paper, then shoves it in their backpack never to be seen again, was the poem really written? How about publishing student work on school websites, class blogs, Twitter, or other social media sites? Students should work hard to create products that they are proud of and want to share with the school community, their parents, and the wider world of the internet. To me, that is authentic.

Finally, I love the section instructing us to, "Make Time for Personal and Professional Reading." No matter how busy my day, I almost always try to end the day with a chapter or two. As Dr. Pridgen reminds our students daily "have a book in your bookbag", we have to make sure that we have reading material - magazines, journal articles, eBooks, novels, blog posts - readily accessible.

Lisa Summey: Share Your Reading Life, Last Blog

This article would be great for a beginning teacher who has never been in a classroom before and of course a seasoned teacher who may have never shared her reading life with her class before. When I taught in a regular education classroom, I shared my reading a lot. Although I am not the type of reader I should be, I hoped to promote reading, so that the children in my class would develop a love of reading and learn to read for pleasure not because it was assigned to them. I tried to make reading fun with various projects. In my ESOL classes, this has been more of a challenge, since I have limited time with them. So far, I have shared with my classes what I like to read and have had them share the types of literature they enjoy too. We have discussed individual reading habits, started reading response logs, and a mini book club. Discussing the books has actually been great in meeting the ESOL Speaking standards, it addresses other standards too.

Stacy Crump- Routman Chapter 3 Share Your Reading life

     I liked this chapter as it talks about one's personal love for reading and the impact it can have on students.  Sharing what you are reading and your passion for reading may spark a student's interest.  He or she may want to emulate this quality themselves.  I used to be a reader before my life took over.  :)  This is something that I would like to get back to and not just reserve for summertime.  I feel like I need help in finding good books to read.  I loved Oprah's Book Club.  I read as many of those as I possibly could.  I read books that I would have never selected on my own.  It was nice to have someone guiding me.
     I believe this chapter is basically saying the same thing.  Our children need to be exposed to what books we think they will enjoy.  We need to be knowledgeable in various genres and aware of various titles that may peak their interests.  Our ultimate goal should be to inspire them to not only read but to LOVE to read.  We hope that this quality will continue the rest of their lives.  We need to invite them into our club.

Heather McCraw: Blog Post #5: Routman Chapter 4: Teach with a Sense of Urgency

Just reading the title of this chapter made me conjure up certain feelings. It seems that to a teacher there is always that "sense of urgency". You have 180 days to get kids from where they are to where they need to be...not always an easy task! During my first few years of teaching, I remember hearing folks complain about how there's no time to teach anything!! Although I always "run out of time" year after year myself, I decided early on to use this race against the clock and calendar as a way to keep focused. I decided way back then that I would just choose to make the most of the time that I do have instead of fussing about the time I don't have. That forced me to put in a lot of extra work outside of school. I spent many weekends early in my career writing the next science or social studies unit. All the while thinking, "What is it that I want kids to walk away with? What do I want them to remember?" I laid the textbook aside and merely began to use it as a resource. Although I still struggle to get through the curriculum, I feel like I make the most of the time I'm given. As Routman suggests when speaking on this sense of urgency, "[...] I'm not talking about  teaching prompted by anxiety but rather about making every moment in the classroom count, about ensuring that our instruction engages students and moves them ahead, about using daily evaluation and reflection to make wise teaching decisions."

Another thing that struck me in the chapter was the section about working toward independence. I feel like that's often a struggle of mine. Sometimes I am guilty of wanting to do too much for my students because it's easier and faster that way. If I want my kids to improve a math concept, I have them practice it. If I want kids to be better readers, they have to practice it. Therefore, if I want kids to be more independent thinkers, I have to give them opportunity to practice it! This is an area I'm continually trying to grow in!

Detra Stevens' December Post Chapter 8 Teach Comprehension

“If we want kids to wind up with comprehension, we have to begin with comprehension”.  One thing this chapter talks about is talks about is getting students to truly understand what they are reading.  We should not get caught up into getting students to recognize words.  We should focus on getting them to discuss big ideas of the story, discussion about characters and the author’s purpose.

I feel like I do a good job with this.  At the beginning of school I was the teacher who focused a lot on words and we have to know the words to be a good reader.  This is true, but it is more to being a good reader.  We have to develop and model how to go deeper than words.

I use a lot of the strategies identified in this chapter as being key for achieving full understanding when we read.  I need to work a lot on getting my students to apply these strategies to their reading.  This seems difficult for kindergarten students, but I think with a lot of modeling, we will get there!

“Students don’t automatically comprehend just because they can read the words.”  This is so true.  I have several students who are excellent readers.  When asked questions about what they have read, they have a hard time answering.

The most useful strategy is rereading.  This is so true!  Comprehension goes up when we allow a student to reread.  I can see a difference in comprehension when I reread a story to the class.  The children always comprehend more after the first reading.  So there is power behind rereading.

 

This was a very interesting chapter.  I will continue modeling and more modeling to help develop comprehension.

Blair Wright Blog #5: Chapter 8: Teach Comprehension

For my next blog post, I decided to read the chapter in Routman's book "Teach Comprehension". There were a few main points in the chapter that stood out to me. The first is that fluency is not understanding.  We can teach our students words,  how to pronounce them, sound them out, etc, but what good is all of that unless they can understand what they are reading? Simply recognizing words and reading them off a page gives us superficial readers. As teachers, it is important that students understand what they are reading. This leads me to my second point, students don't just need basic understanding of their text, but find the deeper meaning behind what they are reading. In a story, there are simple facts that need to be understood, but there are always underlying morals, themes, truths that they author has put in their story that students also need to grasp. For example, the story of the Three Little Pigs, it is a story about 3 pigs who battle with a big bad wolf, however there are morals and deeper meanings students can take away from the story as well. They need to look at the theme of the story, the big idea, or the purpose behind what is written. To  accomplish this with students, they need to be questioned and shown how to question as they read. Questioning students, teaching them to ask questions, and discussing can help them practice to find deeper meaning of text. The last point I took from this chapter is that all in all, we are wanting our students to use reading to develop problem solving skills and become critical thinkers. They need to ask why something happened, analyze characters, find the moral of the story, etc. to develop these skills, skills that will spill over into all aspects of their learning and life.

Margaret Tiller: Blog # 6: Chapter 5: Routman “Organize and Outstanding Classroom Library” Reading Essentials

For my sixth blog post, I chose to read Routman’s Chapter 5, “Organize an Outstanding Classroom Library.” Organizing my classroom library was one of the most time-consuming parts of preparing my room for the school year. Mountains of books covered my floor, and it was hard not to ask myself if spending this much time organizing books was worth it. However, when the first day of school finally arrived, I realized that all my hard work had paid off. It is not until you go to a room without an organized library system that you realize how important it is. If a classroom library is not organized, students tend to spend more time wandering around from book basket to book basket than do actually reading: “Until now, I never associated a successful independent reading program with a well-organized classroom library” (Monica Carrera-Wilburn, page 63). I was happy to read: “While levels can be a helpful guide for teaching students, we need to be careful to factor in the quality of the text and students’ interests” (Routman 69). My classroom library is organized by genre/interest and does not feature book baskets that are leveled. I also liked that Routman mentioned the importance of teaching students what “just right” books look like. If students develop the ability to differentiate between books that are too hard, too easy, and “just right,” they do not have to be bound by a strict book level.

Margaret Tiller: Blog # 5: Chapter 9: Routman “Emphasize Shared Reading” Reading Essentials

For my fifth blog post, I chose to read Routman’s Chapter 9, “Emphasize Shared Reading.” I believe that shared reading is such an integral part of the reading experience because it gives students a model to observe and emulate. Shared reading not only shows a variety of ways to read and interpret the text, but it further emphasizes the idea that reading is valuable at any age. I feel that shared reading is particularly important in Title I schools because often these children do not see reading being modeled in the home setting. These children are perfectly capable of becoming engaged learners who are enthusiastic about reading, but unless they are exposed to shared reading in the classroom setting, this interest in reading may never fully blossom. One of the biggest “pros” to using shared reading I have found in my own classroom is that I do not have to go purchase twenty copies of the same book in order for my class to learn: “[…] Shared reading is cost effective and works across the curriculum. When funds for materials are in short supply, all you need is one copy of a book” (Routman 132).

Kelly Anderson Blog Post #6 January

Routman's chapter 8 breathes new life into room 111 as we start our new year!

In Kindergarten we spend the first half of the year building a solid foundation in letter sounds and letter identification. We work countless hours on making sure that students show mastery of these skills before the end of the year so that when we return from the winter break (after a quick review) we are able to move on to bigger and better things.

This chapter was great because it is particularly applicable to kindergarten. The students (most of them anyways) come to us not only as a blank slate, but knowing less even that was is expected from most schools on the first day of kindergarten. However after a lot of work the first semester, we return in January with the hopes that we add on to the skills and knowledge that we have already built, and we do that by using several of the strategies that Routman talks about.

Since the first day of school we model several of the strategies including: rereading, surveying text, making connections, interact with peers, self-monitoring, and recall. These are things that we all do everyday! I did it even when reading this text for this blog, we use these strategies because they are what we have been taught to do while we read in order to comprehend what it is we are reading.

It is one of my favorite things to see when we return from break: the light that sparks when a child reads their first book or writes their first story. It is a fantastic time in a child's life...however as a teacher this moment is made better when we realize that they not only can read the story, but can understand what they have read! I look forward to this time with my students, we are so close!

Kelli Wolfe Blog #6 - Comprehension Leads to Critical Thinking

At the beginning of Routman’s Chapter 8 – Teaching Comprehension, she suggests that our current emphasis on word calling and fluency is keeping students from thinking and comprehending what they are reading.  We are creating students who sound like good readers and look like good readers, but they are unable to discuss what they have read on any deeper level.  I would say that I have seen this to be true over and over this semester as I have administered IRI’s with students from 2^nd-5^th grade.  MANY of them have very few miscues, but when we get to the comprehension portion of IRI, they show very little evidence that they took any meaning from the words they read so eloquently. 

  

Routman says that teaching comprehension strategies in isolation is valuable, but only if it is paired with teacher modeling.  She shares the 80/20 rule . . . 20% of our instructional time should be spent on instruction and 80% should be spent on application.  I need to remember this during the Inquiry Unit I am going to do with my small group over the next few weeks.  I need to make sure that my mini-lessons are in fact mini.  I need to be sure and model my own thinking while I am reading.   I need to give them the opportunity to apply what we have learned during the rest of our time together. 

Many times, as a classroom teacher, I would model my own thinking (and use of strategies) while I was reading a novel aloud: “That part reminds me of when . . . and it makes me wonder . . . “   I would ask students questions to give them an opportunity to share their thinking, too. However, sometimes DURING strategy instruction, I might have pushed them too hard to make connections or to come up with a question for a certain page instead of allowing it to happen naturally and encouraging them at that time.  

Finding the balance is sometimes hard, but I don’t want to just teach strategies. I want to teach students to THINK critically so they can talk about what they have read and find that words have meaning that can change us.  Reading is WAY more than word call, and helping students to comprehend what they are reading is just the beginning of growing students into adults who can evaluate and analyze and then make decisions based on their knowledge.