Language and Literacy in the Elementary School

This entry on fluency is based off the article “Fluency: Bridge between decoding and reading comprehension.” This article discusses the importance of fluency on instruction for beginning readers and explains in depth Ehri’s theory of how readers progress in stages to achieve fluency. The article then discusses ways to help readers progress through those stages.

Fluency is sometimes considered the “neglected” aspect of reading by the National Reading Panel, but is now gaining more attention from researchers, possibly because of a report that identified fluency as one of five critical components of reading. Fluency is an essential part of the reading phenomenon. It encompasses more than just oral reading, but also as “the ability to read text quickly, accurately, and with proper expression.” (NICHD, 2000, p. 3-5).

Continue reading "One last thought on fluency" »

Posted by Elise McDermott at 07:54 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

The article “What every teacher needs to know about comprehension.” by Laura S. Pardo is an in depth discussion of what comprehension means and how teachers can support it in the classroom. There are two definitions of comprehension given in the opening paragraph: 1) the process of simultaneously extracting and constructing meaning through interactions and involvement with written language and 2) a process in which readers construct meaning by interacting with text through the combination of prior knowledge and previous experience, information in the text, and the stance the reader takes in relationship to the text. Both of these definitions can be summed up by saying comprehension is understanding what one is reading. The article then explains that there are four basic elements that contribute to comprehension: the reader, text, context, and transaction.

Continue reading "What teachers need to know about comprehension" »

Posted by Joseph Boedigheimer at 12:59 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Amy Balcome
December 10, 2007

The focus today was how to establish a 3rd-5th and 6th-8th grade reading program in our classroom. We began our discussion by reviewing what we know about K-2nd grade learning environments. The class response was that in these grades the classroom should include:
- materials at the students level so that they are accessible
- learning centers that are related to the instructional objectives
- learning centers that are authentic and purposeful
-a print rich environment
-a structured schedule
-anecdotal notes to be placed in individual folders
-books, expository text, narrative text, literature of all types
-all of Cambourne’s conditions for learning which include
-Immersion
-Demonstration
-Expectation
-Approximation
-Responsibility
-Use
-Response
-Engagement

In grades 3rd-5th the learning environment will:
-have no phonemic awareness material as this should be taught before the end of 2nd grade.
-promote student responsibility
-include more use of technology
-cooperative group work for reading, writing, and skill work
-newspapers and magazines
-books that are nonfiction as well as fiction
-desks arranged in pods for effective group work
-all of Cambourne’s conditions for learning

In grades 6th-8th the learners will
-want to be independent
-will be able to research information using multiple resources
-take on different roles in group work
-be given more responsibility for their learning
-at times become leaders in the class
-construct guidelines for their desired classroom environment

We then worked in collaborative groups and considered how students learn through language and learn about language based on Hallidays’ model of language. We designed graphic illustrations that displayed multiple concepts, strategies, and ideas of how to instruct students in different grade levels. The first group focused on grades 3rd-5th and how teachers can help students learn about language. Teachers include instruction on:
-strategies that guide fluency, vocabulary, and comprehension
-factual and creative writing with journal entries
-guided reading
-literacy centers that focus on objectives
-word study with vocabulary instruction, word of the day, root of the day
-a wider variety of books

We then considered differences in 6th-8th grade and how teachers help students learn about language. Some of the differences include:
-guided reading but in these higher grades it is referred to as book study
-graphic organizers used for expository text
-critical literacy and strategies to teach it like “in your head, in the book”
-strategy lessons for student motivation
-skimming and scanning
-compare and contrast
-peer teaching of strategies

Learning through language in grades 3-5 includes:
-literature discussion
-logs/journals
-writing their own stories
-author studies
-using the multiple sign systems for learning

Learning through language in grades 6-8 includes:
-the use of expository text
- multiple sign systems including art, writing, and drama
-literature discussions
-literature logs
-author studies
-genre studies

We then received a handout labeled, Using one textbook with “inclusion” that was about how at these higher grade levels teachers should have more groups not fewer groups in their classrooms. These groups can be designed to meet the students’ ability levels. Before reading a text the teacher sets the purpose for the reading and activates the students’ prior knowledge. The first group of students may only need to be given directions and then they are allowed to work. The second group of students may need more instruction and more background knowledge before they begin reading which the teacher provides for them. The third group may read the text with teacher as a guided reading lesson. The second page of the handout was a chart that teachers may use in class to take notes on students during instruction. The concept is of four quadrant readers and it allows the teacher to takes notes effectively on all students. Quadrant A would include students who can read, and do read, and who do understand what they are reading. This quadrant will usually include 60% of a class. Quadrant B includes students who can read, but don’t read. These students need motivation and include 50 to 60% of classroom students. Quadrant C includes students who can’t read, but do understand when they are being read to. These students need instruction on decoding and usually consist of less than 40% of students. Quadrant D includes the students who don’t read, can’t read, and don’t understand when they are read to. The Four Quadrant Readers design notes came from Dr. Mary Howard’s BER workshop.

Posted by Amy Balcome at 06:13 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Blog for 12/5/07

Wednesday, December 5th, 2007.
We had two main topics of discussion this day in class. One was building a K-2 reading program and the other was reading intervention programs, which could form a part of a K-2 reading program as most interventions start in the first grade.

The important points in building a K-2 reading program include: creating a classroom environment that helps the teacher be effective, using assessment effectively, recognizing essential elements of quality instruction, handling management and record-keeping, and using cultural diversity for positive gain. We read a quote from Juel (found on page 399 of our Harp and Brewer text book) that stated that poor readers at the end of first grade are still found to be poor readers at the end of fourth grade. This insight is bad news about the kinds of interventions that teachers are generally trying. Or neglecting to try, for that matter. It is important to begin interventions early because if bad habits are not corrected they will be practiced. This discussion created a segue into a video segment about the Success for All intervention program.

Continue reading "Building a K-2 Reading Program and continued discussion of Success for All" »

Posted by Emily Helgerson at 06:00 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Last Friday, November 30th our class we an article from Wednesday called “Multiple sign systems and reading.” The article had 6 parts to it: What is a sign system? How do we use signs? What do we know about sign systems from research? How do we incorporate multiple sign systems into the classroom? How do we recognize learning in a multiple sign systems context? The last part was final insights on multiple sign systems and reading.

What is a sign system? Sign systems are communication systems like music, art, drama, mathematics and language that we use to construct and express meaning, each uniquely different. We use sign systems in a variety of ways, such as drawing maps to explain directions; spoken language supplemented by gestures and expressions; songs and movies. We use sign systems in combinations because they are complimentary and they allow us to express things in many different ways.

Continue reading "Multiple Sign Systems and Reading" »

Posted by Elise McDermott at 04:28 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Pam started lecture today by stating that, “Teaching reading is kind of like rocket science or teaching something very complicated.” I think that this is a statement to ponder. I don’t believe that reading teachers are given much credit myself so this statement is quite interesting to me. Teachers have so much to handle all at once, and we need to know all sorts of strategies for all different kinds of reading abilities. I think this was a good way to impress upon us just how important what we are learning really is.

Continue reading "Text Leveling and Readability" »

Posted by Jacqulyn Zimmerman at 07:15 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

In the article Hooked on Thinking by Ann Paziotopoulos, there is great concern for students no being able to reach a higher level of thinking and she gives a strategy to help and make sure that not only can teachers present higher levels of thinking but they can also help their students to achieve at a higher level as well. The reason we are trying to get students to achieve this higher level is because of the job demand. If they have this edge to offer than they will have a better chance at being successful in their lifetime.
The organizer that is introduced was a graphic organizer of a skyscraper. In this model the floors of the building symbolize the effort that is need to be put forth to reach a particular floor. As you get closer to the top your view is going to be broadened and you will have a larger visual of the overall picture. This organizer can be used in all classrooms for all students. When introducing the model the teacher can talk about how you have to think harder and put more effort into your work as you get higher up in the building. This could mean moving form finding the answers to the question in the text to taking the question and applying your prior knowledge and then answering the question using that knowledge. You see when you start at the bottom it is ok to have to look up your answers and find them right there but as you move on and further develop your understanding and comprehension of what is taking place in the story and realty it to real life or other situations then you make a chance for your knowledge to grow. The bottom is the level to which you can look up your knowledge it is written for you in the story. As you use your skills you will be able to move up floor by floor and conquer the questions that each one brings about until you reach the top. On the top is where your thinking will be used to its full potential.
Using this tool as an assessment can also help teachers to find out how much the students can comprehend and then use. You can use it by having each level of questions worth a different weight. This way you can tell which students are going to the next level and not staying at the bottom level. I think this strategy will work well and I plan on using it someday.

Posted by Sara Steigauf at 10:05 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Amy Balcome

Today we focused on helping children understand how expository texts work. Students' comprehension of expository texts will be better achieved if we teach them how to identify the structure of the text along with strategies they can use to diagram the structures using graphic organizers to do so. As teachers we need to show our students how expository texts work to prevent them from becoming overwhelmed by the text.

Continue reading "Expository Text and Content Area Literacy" »

Posted by Amy Balcome at 10:09 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

This day was all about expository text and content area reading skills. Being able to access and use information for purposes outside of reading itself is very important, but is difficult to learn. We looked at different texts, tried out a strategy as students (Dictoglos) and learned a lot of new strategies for reading instruction outside of language arts time.

Continue reading "Expository Text and Content Matter Reading" »

Posted by Emily Helgerson at 03:03 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Today we had four groups present on their reading approaches that were assigned in class. The first group to talk was the Sight-based approach. Which was talked about in great detail. The Sight-Based approach to reading is the process in which it builds a large sight word vocabulary. This approach is a top-down view. In this approach the whole-word based approach is used most often. Strategies that can be used for this approach is a word wall, repeated readings, words rings, flash cards, and word lists. Materials that are needed for this approach would be flash cards, pocket charts, and word games. The assessment of the students would be oral reading, using the flash cards, and possibly word lists. The grouping of the students would be into partners, teams, individuals, and whole group instruction. The second group that presented was the Integrated Anthology Approach. Which is a commericially based approach. Positives of this approach would be that the enrichment activites are complete with almost every lesson; the step by step lesson plans are there. This approach also incorporates different genre's. Some negatives would be that this type of approach is teacher centered, it may take away from recreational reading, may not accomodate for all individuals, and that the level of the stories might not be right for all the students in the class. This approach is either a top-down or bottom-up. The Phonics Instruction Approach is presented next. There are two subsets in the phonics based approach which are either analytic or synthetic. Analytic instruction is the whole-word approach which is when you look at the whole word first. The synthetic approach it focuses on the individual letter sounds. The main strategy that was pointed out was the strategy of flip books which can be incorporated into any level of teaching. The last approach to be presented was the Balanced Approach. This approach is designed to get the best instruction for the children. Teachers using the balanced approach select methods from the other approaches that best meet the needs of students they work with. In addition, the balanced approach refers to a balance between read-aloud, shared reading, guided reading, and
independent reading. In this approach it is also to incorporate the four blocks program which is a two hour period. During that two hour period it is broken down into four groups of a half an hour each. The four groups are reading, writing, word work, and independent reading which is crucial in the classroom. Another point that is crucial in the classroom is the integration of language arts. There are six steps to the integration process which are reading, writing, speaking, listening, viewing, and visual representing.

Posted by Jessica Linman at 06:47 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Reciprocal Teaching is an instructional activity that involves students teaching each other. Research shows that when students teach something, they learn and remember it much better – because of this, Reciprocal Teaching is a very effective activity. In class we watched a video of a Reciprocal Teaching activity -- that used the Literature Based Approach -- for reading instruction. The students were grouped off into cooperative learning groups where they worked together and read a history book. The students took turns reading, and if they came to a tough word, they would follow certain steps to help them understand.
Steps the students followed:
1. Clarified unfamiliar words -- used decoding strategies such as context cues or a dictionary to help them.
2. Made predictions on what might happen next.
3.Questioned – asked and answered each other’s questions to help with comprehension of the text.
4.Summarized – summarized the text with who, what, where, when, why details
5.Vocalized – talked about the text amongst each other.

All of these steps that the students followed during this Reciprocal Teaching activity are strategies that good readers use when they are reading. The steps gave them good practice using these strategies while, at the same time, they were reading and working in cooperative groups.

This particular Reciprocal Teaching activity had some positive and negative components to it. The positive components to this activity were that it made the students responsible for their own learning (one of Cambourne’s conditions for learning), they worked with reading strategies (comprehending & decoding), it gave students practice with cooperative group work, and the teacher set high expectations for ALL of the students. Some negative components to this activity were that the lesson seemed rushed, the students didn’t use each other as resources, and all of the groups were at different parts of the text (some may have felt rushed and skipped some).

Reciprocal Teaching, if instructed correctly, is a great instructional activity to help students learn and retain new information better. It also provides them with experience working in cooperative groups, and helps them become responsible for their own learning.

After our discussion about Reciprocal Teaching, we discussed the importance of spelling and grammar instruction. Teachers are judged on the different spelling and grammar skills that their students have. Spelling instruction has been a continuous topic of discussion throughout the years. In the 1980s invented spelling became the recommended spelling strategy for students to learn in school. Invented spelling is when children spell words by how they hear them. They write the letter that is connected to the sound they hear. Invented spelling tells teachers a lot about what their students know. It also helps them identify what stages of spelling a particular student is in. For example, if a student spells camel as cml, we could assume that he or she understands how consonants sound, but hasn’t grasped the usage of vowels and how they work yet.

Researches have not found one best way to teach spelling to students, but all researchers agree that a balanced instruction is key.

Posted by Ashley Stott at 07:40 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Fluency is the ability to read quickly, accurately and with proper expressions. Using many effective strategies are important for a child as they learn how to read fluently. As teachers, it is important that one have the support by having a variety of books in the classroom and to model by reading to the students. When modeling, use teacher talk, so that children understand the steps of becoming a strategic reader. For example, when reading, one should stop and say, “Humm…I wonder what this word is? What can I do to understand it better?” Students will pick up on think out-loud such as this one, and use these strategies to accomplish their reading successfully.

Continue reading "Fluency is a combination of EVERYTHING!" »

Posted by Boua Xiong at 01:21 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Fluency is considered the bridge between vocabulary and comprehension. It encompasses many skills such as decoding and recognition. Prior to the No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB) being passes, there was very little heard about fluency. However, the NCLB Act pays overwhelming attention to fluency and stresses teaching students to read at a pace that supports reading comprehension.

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Posted by Jennifer Rygg at 07:32 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Fluency is often called the bridge between vocabulary and comprehension. Being a fluent reader means you can read with complete comprehension at an appropriate rate. It means that you have a strongly developed schema for sight words and can read orally and silently with language like expression. Essentially, being a fluent reader entails all of the characteristics of being a good reader, something that all students are striving for. One of the most important parts of being a fluent reader is comprehending what is being read. It’s one thing to be able to just read the words accurately but if you don’t understand what you’re reading, then all meaning is lost.

Continue reading "From fluency to comprehension" »

Posted by Joseph Boedigheimer at 12:29 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

“Building Effective Practice: Using Small Discoveries to Enhance Literacy Learning”
Article written by: Margaret Taylor Stewart

This article explains that one of the greatest ways to build effective literacy learning in a classroom is to examine the daily discoveries made when working with students. Some of these discoveries may seem inconsequential when compared to overall educational issues and theories, but many teachers have found that these discoveries help get to the heart of teaching--engaging students in learning.

Continue reading "“Building Effective Practice: Using Small Discoveries to Enhance Literacy Learning”" »

Posted by Heidi Knutson at 12:21 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)