Creating Lifelong Writers

     One big idea that we have discussed in class and appears on several occasions in Andersen's text is through teacher writing we should be working toward the collective goal of helping the students become lifelong writers. To continue with their writing after we have had them in class and even after they finish their schooling experience. In order to do this Andersen highlights some key details that we need to focus on in our writing instruction and assessment. The importance of knowing your student, designing lessons that fit your class, and conferencing techniques are all essential pieces of Andersen's work that have been supported by other professional texts and our own discussions in the classroom.
     The importance of knowing who your student is on an academic and personal level is a necessary piece to the puzzle of creating lifelong writers out of your students. The influence a great teacher can live for decades and be a powerful motivator of your students. Andersen specifies that through active listening and having background knowledge of your students you will not only be a more effective at assessing writing, but you will also construct a well rounded relationship with your students that will have a lasting impression on their lives in and outside of school.
     Lessons designed to challenge, yet keep your students attention also go a long way towards creating lifelong writers. There are some units I remember from my own elementary experience over a decade ago because they included a perfect balance of academic stimulation and fun. Students who are challenged will often out perform your expectations because a challenge might have been exactly what they needed to focus in on improving their writing (Andersen). Designing a unit can be intimidating for new teachers as Andersen mentions, myself included, but having a unit that uniquely fits your classroom is much better than adopting a scripted design that does not fit.
     At the center of the carefully designed units keeping the kinds of students you have in mind is the writing conference. Andersen's text goes into great detail about tailoring these student teacher conferences to run smoothly and effectively as possible. Andersen not only writes about these conferencing techniques, but he also includes examples and tables of them in use which I thought was very helpful. Conferencing is an essential tool to make instruction flow smoothly and encourage your students to develop and inherent desire to write. I thought it was really awesome that he mentions that there is no right way to conduct writer's workshop, it depends on the classroom. This statement could not be more true and it resonated with me so much that I knew I had seen it somewhere before...
     In that quotation he cites Writers Workshops by Fletcher and Portalupi which rang a bell because this was one of my favorite texts from my Literacy Learning and Teaching I & II classes! Seeing how the professional teaching texts intermingle with one another is so interesting and highlights the most important aspects of teaching reading and writing. As I read more and more professional texts on teaching writing I will always keep in mind the goal of creating lifelong writers out of my future students.

-Assessing Writers Carl Andersen
-Writers Workshops Ralph Fletcher & JoAnn Portalupi

Think Aloud Reflective Summary

     The book I chose to do my think aloud on Little Louie the Baby Bloomer by Robert Kraus. I was actually able to do the think aloud with the same student I did my miscue with so she was already used to working one on one with me. I introduced the idea of think aloud as just saying what you are thinking in your head about the reading and dove right in from there!
     I approached my think aloud with a Talk-Through strategy, the student and I took turns reading aloud as we worked through the story. I would pause occasionally and share my own think aloud and encourage her to share hers as well. As we picked up speed the gradual release of responsibility began to kick in and by the end of the book I had to cut her off at certain points to get a word in! As we have learned in class through many of our readings, this release of responsibility will provide the best conditions for maximum comprehension and efficiency in reading. The book mentioned on our Think Aloud handout is where I got my strategy for the think aloud from. Out of the many choices I think that venue was the most efficient for the first grade level.
     Doing a think aloud with a first grade student revealed some incredible insights about how children of that age draw connections and piece literacy together. As we decided which of the many think aloud events we should record on the worksheet (above) I reminded her to choose an event that you can relate to and will help you remember the story better. She chose to record when Leo is trying to teach Louie how to do various things, specifically throw a ball. She related the illustration to how Tom and Jerry cartoons look, since the ball bounces off Leo's head. I asked her how this helps her remember and she told me that first Louie couldn't do anything, then he could do everything. She knew those parts so this think aloud reminds her of a part in the book that was more of a challenge to remember for her.
     Her rationale and explanation of this lines up exactly with the Miller text. Making meaning will help students retain the most information and improve retelling, since she made meaning of a part that she felt was a little harder to remember she is doing exactly what all readers should do whether she knows it or not!
     My think aloud experience also relates to the Tovani text in that the relation between text and real world context, Tom and Jerry, is one of the most powerful connection a reader can make. From my student I learned how think alouds really engage the student and having the ability to say your thoughts whenever during the story sometimes overexcites them. My student loved being able to say what she was thinking, which sometimes got us a little off track and was a little challenging to refocus her on the reading. Think alouds are definitely something I will use in my future classroom since they promote creativity, higher order thinking, drawing connections to the real world, and are practical in any subject area.


-Tovani's text
-Miller's text
-http://www.amazon.com/Improving-Comprehension-Think-Aloud-Strategies-Modeling/dp/0439218594/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1394401128&sr=8-3&keywords=think+aloud+books

Diversity in the classroom

     The topic Jackie and I chose for our area of inquiry is diversity in the classroom through literature in the context of culture, race, and ethnicity. The topic is very broad so by narrowing it down to the literature component will provide us with more specifics as we explore the topic. Whether it be through books for read aloud, more diverse options for individual reading, or through the media incorporating all kinds of diversity in the classroom is something Jackie and I thought is very important for students to be exposed to. Our country is growing more diverse everyday and if students in schools read only literature that doesn't explore other ways of life they are going to be in for a huge culture shock when they hit the real world. As I identified earlier the diversity will focus on culture, race, and ethnicity in order to provide a wide range of diverse subjects in the literature.
     The professionals with teaching expertise I will focus most of my research around are Debbie Miller and Rudolf Steiner (Waldorf Education). Having read many of Miller's books I really appreciate the directness of her writing and how she provides excellent tips for various aspects of the classroom. Knowing a lot about her I feel like her stance on include diverse literature in the classroom is one worth investigating. And another scholarly source I will do some research into is the Waldorf approach. Since that approach is centered on a learning by doing, I wonder what kind of information regarding diversity will be included. And being only the beginning of the inquiry project, I can say I will draw on more sources, but I'm not entirely sure who just yet.
     Real life classroom experience will be crucial for my own understanding and learning about this topic. Being in my first grade room for practicum I will use that as an opportunity to test the waters and see how students embrace me bringing diversity to their attention. Implementing this inquiry subject into the curriculum I use in my small group setting will be very easy and beneficial for the students. I also plan to let my cooperating teacher know about this inquiry project and see what advice or tips she has to offer regarding the subject.
     With the specific focus of diversity in classroom through literature, our topic directly relates to the big ideas we have been delving into about making meaning from reading and getting our students connected and engaged in the literature. With books specifically dealing with diversity I feel like the reading will be far more relatable than the boring reading from the basil readers. Having books that deal with this topic will also expand on the types of meanings that can be made while reading. The scripted books in the curriculum often have just one intended way the reader should make meaning of it, however with these different books reader interpretations can be endless. The importance of making meaning through reading is an idea we have had much discussion about and bringing in these kinds of books will help the students practice that skill.