New Literacies Blog

My New Literacies project is one that I tried to take in a different direction. I have used the technology that I am using before, but the way in which I am presenting it is completely different than what I did with it in the past. I am planning to do a digital book but use it to describe a story through a screenplay as well. I will take a film that was based off of a novel and show students the many types on literature that can be used to describe a story based on the same premise. One way is through the novel, which I will have read to students through a computer program. I will then show how a novel can be adapted into a screenplay, which is what a film uses to set up scenes, settings and moods for any shot or series of shots that make up a portion of the film. One aspect of screenplays that I like is that they allow the students to take the descriptions of s particular scene and use their imagination to picture what the story would look like on the big screen. In this way, I feel students will focus on the comprehension of understanding why a screenplay is set up the way it is and focus on the details and lines in a scene, and look to see how each of these coincide with one another. After this, if it were a lesson plan, I would have the students give their best illustration or vision of what the scene would look like. Maybe I would have them draw the scene to show how they picture it in their mind. Another option I may give is for those who prefer to work with technology. I could have them film their own depiction of the screenplay and show it to the rest of the students in the classroom. There are many other options I can choose from but I would be sure to vary these options for a variety of learners. The final step of the process in the project would provide a link too a film clip in which both the novel and the screenplay are based off of. This can be a culmination to the project and to the lesson plan/ unit. I feel all three parts of the process focus on numerous parts of literacies and would definitely cater to many different students and their multiple learning needs. After all, I think the main goal of this new literacies project is just that; focus on new and innovative ways to share material that is seemingly the future of learning and education in America and in the rest of the world as well.

Blog #10, Digital Literacy and Basal readers

My digital literacy is creating a website using Weebly.com. This week I have added a few pages to my website, adding for more variety. One of my concerns is being able to get other users to blog on my blog page. I think that I will have to look at the technicalities of it and unfortunately I might have to set up a link to a separate blog website (such as this one, I like blogger :). But it would be nice if students or parents could blog right on the website without having to navigate away. I also want to figure out how to add U-tube videos. I know there are a lot of good teacher friendly videos and I would love to be able to have a "video of the week" type of deal where students could go online and watch the fun educational video. My other idea is to add a homework page where I tell the work for the day/week/month. This way if students are absent they have an easy way to see what they missed and reminders of when tests are etc. I also would like a place online where I could post notes to lectures, I also haven't figured out if I can use web reader or add one to the page because that would be ideal. I want my web-page to be user friendly, disability friendly and completely accessible. Hopefully i will be able to figure out how to add these amenities because they are key to allowing my future students the ability to access the Internet and become digitally literate.

I have not finished the Tompkins reading (I plan on finishing it now) but I do have a huge concern with the basal readers I have seen in my placement. There are very simple texts that do not follow natural speech patterns or provide in depth plots. I hate the books that are "Sam likes bikes. Sam rides bikes. Sam falls off bike." They are ridiculous and do not teach children any normal form of fluency. If they don't know how to read they are told the first sentence and guess the rest because they know the words will be similar and they always go with the pictures. I have a problem with this because we have a huge number of students that only guess and do not even try to look at the words and they say that they are reading. (Not that it isn't a form of reading to be guessing and using context clues, but often the context clues that they pick up on are much more complex than the story actually provides.) They are trying to make up an elaborate story because that is what comes naturally. Even kindergarteners tell better stories than "We ride Bikes" so I think it is silly to have them read these context-lacking books.

Tompkins Chapter 10/New Lit Project

•How do teachers support reading skill and strategy development using a basal reading program?
I wanted to answer this question because I was curious about the reading because before now I did not know what a basal reading program was. Basal readers are a type of commercial reading program that has almost always been a part of literacy. Research shows that less control is better but there is a need to include less words, but then the words become more unique. Special characteristics that are new to the format of a text, features now include more in depth plots and stronger characters in a story. Also the predictability of a story has become easier and that is not necessarily a bad thing. Here, we want the students to succeed when it comes to literacy and giving them the stepping stones to figure out how to comprehend a story from start to finish is great. The main goal is to allow students to be successful by giving them the right components and tools. The components of basal reading programs was fairly simple and seems like something any teacher can consider and also it seems like it could really help out ELLs, which is a bonus in the program! I think the most important idea in all this is the management plan because if you know what you want to target with your students then it will help in making them successful.
My new literacies project is one where I will create a scrapblog encompassing emotional literacy. I was extremely interested to explore how my future students could use this tool. I feel as if there is no wrong way to approach this project and that it can be used be students of all ages! There are really no limitations to scrapblogs and I think that is what I like most about them. Using new programs/technologies is never very easy but I find that sometimes I get disappointed after I find out a better way to do something after I have already done it. I am hoping that does not happen in this case!

Response to Tina's Blog #9

Tina I also really like your idea about the personal dictionary. I have never seen this done before but I really do think that some of the students would be given the chance to be really creative! I think when students do certain projects like this they actually learn more because it is more memorable to them. I would have loved to do something like this in one of my classes because to be honest sometimes I read things now and have no clue what half the words in the book/article mean! When students are given the chance to explore and to be creative sometimes you'd be surprised who actually makes the effort!

Blog #10- New Literacies

For our new literacies project, Jess, Sarah and I have opted to explore cultural literacy, where we will be using the Digital Story program that Erik introduced us to last semester. I love this technological program because it gives the kids a chance to add their own pictures, voices and words to the creation through a virtual matter. I believe that this personalization is a wonderful tool to help students become more interested and motivated to complete a project! The three of us have been analyzing and taking individual notes at the libraries in our placements and explored the East Lansing Public Library together as a group. We plan to compare/contrast these libraries and their display of cultural diversity through literacy. At my placement (Winans Elementary in the Waverly District) I noticed a wide range of diverse literature through racial, cultural, and gender means. Because Winans has a diverse amount of students (with the dominant race being white), I noticed many of these diverse types of literature on display. There was a strong emphasis and large section display of the American Girl series of books. The library was very well-organized, clean and is centrally located in the school. I noticed that the lighting and overall theme to the library is colorful, fun and inviting and immediately draws my attention everytime I walk by it. The environment is definitely a warm and caring one that allows kids to feel comfortable and explore different kinds of literature. Aside from the many different types of books that were available, the library has a few computers to allow the kids to explore the internet and search for books. However, one thing that I did not notice was religious literature on display. In the ELPL, there were many types of literature on display regarding religion and races. A lot of this issue more than likely stems from the school setting that the library is located in. Because the ELPL is not a school-based library, they can draw religion to a greater focus because there are so many different ethnic and relgious backgrounds of people that visit. Overall, this project has really opened my eyes and helped me view cultural literacy in a different light and perspective. I had never paid attention before to the different kinds of diverse literature and it has been an interesting experience, thus far, to observe and interact with these literacies.

Blog #9

For a vocabulary lesson related to Roll of Thunder, I would have students create a personal dictionary. I have seen these used in classrooms for my 301 placement and I think they are really neat. Each student is given their own folder in which they keep words that they often spell wrong at the top. Then inside the folder on lined paper they keep track of new words and their definitions. I really like this idea for a few reasons. The most important thing being that it is individual to each student. When you have group vocabulary lessons some students might get bored, they may already know the word and use it in their everyday speech (I often had this happen to me and it was annoying to have to do worksheets becuase I knew the words already). I think it also helps lower level students because they are able to pick words that they don't understand. If they need to identify simple words, they do not feel singled out by the rest of the class because it would be in their personal vocabulary book. I also think this helps students have some ownership over what they are learning. They feel the power of being able to choose the words they want and need to learn. I think any time you give students a choice, you are making the activity more interesting more engaging.
I think that unit on Roll of Thunder would need a lesson on vernacular, although I don't know if this would necessarily be vocabulary. I know it would fall under fluency. Do you think it would be vocab too?

(sorry I posted late- I have been sick with Bronchitis all weekend thanks to my boyfriend who got it last week and gave it to me)

Blog #9

This week for a vocabulary lesson I have decided to use what Nicole and I had done for our mini lesson based on comprehension and vocabulary. The It Says, I Say, And So is perfect for this type of lesson. I say this because I think that it is a good way to incorporate having students observe vocabulary words in a text and then also they can include pictures. I know that Roll of Thunder does not have illustrations in it so therefore I would use another book for this vocabulary lesson. Then I could include student's interpretations of illustrations in the story to help their comprehension of certain vocab words. When using Roll of Thunder for this lesson I would have students pick a few misunderstood words in each chapter and make a It Says, I Say, And So chart for each word. This chart includes many ways a student can view the word and gather information about it using only themselves and the text. If I were to use another book that had pictures in it I would suggest that the students use what they can infer about the word by using the pictures and words around the vocab word.
There are many ways to include vocab into a classroom other than just creating lesson plans about vocab content. In chapter 6, examples of ways to expand student's knowledge of words were given and most of them seemed like things I could/would do in my classroom. On page 191 the levels of word knowledge seem important not only for the teacher to understand but also the student should understand the process in which they go about learning new words and why it is important. Being able to self-assess I think is a nice way to allow students to understand their own understandings (cannot remember the official name for that!) This way I think that students will realize why vocabulary knowledge is important and how it can help them in the long run.

Blog #9-Vocabulary Lesson

When thinking of ideas for vocabulary lessons, I first had to think what age would be reading a story such as Roll of Thunder. Keeping this in mind I came up with a lesson that incorporates working in groups and learning necessary skills such as looking up definitions or using context clues to figure out meanings of words. For the lesson, I would first split the groups and give them each an extended passage or chapter to work with. I would have the group read the passage out loud to incorporate some fluency skills into the lesson. Along the way, I would like the students to look for words that may be troubling or unfamiliar to the students. When they come across a word, have one person in the group record the word/s until they have compiled a list from the passage/chapter they have read. From here, the students would divide up the words and be sure that each of them seek to find a definition for each word. When finding a meaning, the kids will have the options of using context clues, a dictionary or thesaurus, and also a computer if it is available. When each group member has come up with their own definitions, the members will go around and share what they have found by giving the meaning of the word and also an example of the word by using it in a sentence that will make sense to the group. By doing this, I feel the students will gain a sense of responsibility for their words and be sure that each member of the group is able to understand the new vocabulary and recognize/comprehend them if they ever come across them in the future. After this part of the lesson is complete, I will assess the students by having them write out a short story using a certain number of their new found words. By doing this, I will truly be able to see if the vocabulary words are understood, and if the kids would be able to use them and incorporate them into their own writing in the future.

Blog #9- Vocabulary Lesson

When I began thinking about a vocabulary lesson that could be used with Roll of Thunder, I instantly thought that the mini lesson that Jess, Sarah and I had planned for the class before spring break would be a perfect vocabulary development lesson to coincide with Roll of Thunder Hear My Cry. The lesson teaches the students: vocabulary terms, comprehension skills, and also assesses their knowledge regarding verbs, nouns and adjectives. To begin this vocabulary lesson, I would have the students read a certain passage from the text (around 2-3 pages) silently at their desks. When they are finished reading, I will go over the three terms "verb, adjective and noun" with the class to ensure their understanding. Once we have gone over the terms, the class will be broken up into groups and assigned 3 terms (one noun, one verb and one adjective) for each table that will be written on a notecard by the teacher. The terms will be selected (by me) prior to the lesson and will be words that are not in their everyday vocabulary. The students will then decipher within the group to discover the meaning and the action of the word. They will choose one spokesperson to place the word on the board under the appropriate noun, verb or adjective column while I will ask each group to explain the meaning of the word and why they chose to place it in that column.
Overall, I really enjoy this lesson and had fun creating it for the class earlier in the semester because it seems fairly quick, easy, and straight-forward for the students to understand while assessing many different things from the teacher's stand point. The lesson is also simple for the teacher to prepare and incorporate into the classroom, while involving the rich and insightful vocabulary from Roll of Thunder. Obviously if adaptations need to be made for children with special needs I will be sure to properly assess those and group the students with the rest of the children to help guide one another and decode the meanins of each term. However, I think the lesson is pretty straight-forward and should not need many adaptations.

Blog #8

In a sense I think that fluency can be taught through vocabulary. It is important that students always feel comfortable with the text that they are reading and it will make reading much easier. In the beginning of chapter 5, the high frequency words that the teacher allows the students to explore and ask questions about is a great way for the students to be able to recognize these words. I like how the teacher made connections with the words to themes/units that were being taught in the class, I feel as if this is another way students can make connections with the words and what they are learning. In my classroom, my CT is always adding new words to the top-words list and the students then have to know these 'sight words'. The chart on page 155 was helpful for me to understand how the different components of fluency can fit into everyday literacy lessons. From the entire chart, I view oral language as one of the strongest ways a student can pick up on vocabulary, which is something I think ties into fluency. These components will only help a child while reading and it will help them comprehend other aspects in literacy, so that many aspects can tie together.
In chapter 9 many of the assessments in the beginning reminded me of some of the tests that we had to complete with our focal student in TE 301. That was neat to see that those assessments were things that I have done before. I do feel that assessments are very crucial to a class and to be honest I think that many of the assessments that I have completed in the past were not completely appropriate. Knowing what my students are able to do and what they know will only help my teaching. On page 299 the chart that describes how various assessments for literacy fit into a classroom is useful. I remember for example, that spelling bees or quizzes was one way that my elementary school teachers assessed us in vocabulary/spelling and it was fun (well maybe not the quizzes)! For writing I think that allowing students to assess their own work is one of the most powerful and challenging things to do.