Lestine Crow came into my class to observe my teaching by using RPI. Due to her being on the same journey as myself, it was great to exchange what was working, what was not working and the tweaks I have made to my practice.
What a lot to put in! So such learning, so much awesomeness.
Creating the MANA and excitement for the learners to WANT to learn and for them to pass on their knowledge to encourage peers, whanau and friends to want to learn, create and share. This is what i need to do as a teacher. Once i have that excitement and engagement, the rest is easy! Make the activities fun and extend the students thought process.
Having the tamariki share their blogs in class, school and homes will help create the confidence they need to know they are fabulous learners and they are great at it!. It will encourage the tamariki to want to create blogs because of the feedback they are receiving. These need to be looked at by other students more often, perhaps setting up a buddy system or draw a name out to create the feedback of peers. By having a name draw, it would encourage students to comment on other peers rather than just their friends.
Summer holiday programmes. I could (should), set up an area specifically for those that want to extend their learning during the holidays . Books, activities, recommendations. I can check back on this when possible (fortnightly?). I know that many students do not have internet access readily but it could even be a printout for something to do on rainy days.
Ideas for reading over summer holidays:
Borrow class books (that I have brought)
Library in town
OP shops
National library
Recommended books by peers (peer page on class website)
When sharing comments, it is important to give the appropriate feedback without assumption. Below is a link to descriptive feedback on a blog. We had discussed using our talking voices when reading text to help make the story sound interesting to other listeners.
I like to give feedback face to face but of course we run out of time, often! Creating a comment can be done at any time and can be a reminder to the students that we are actually checking up on work handed in. I would like to become more confident in using technology to record a voice comment and place this on the handed in work.
Making up a standard practice for giving feedback with the class may help with commenting ideas. This can be displayed on the wall for everyone to see and merge into students creating the comments independently.
This ties in well with Waitara East MANA values.
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Consistency through the whole year. Starting with the first pillar at the beginning of the year will set a strong foundation for the other pillars. I need to have a strong understanding with my new class as many of them would not have technology experience and/or chrome book experience. It will be starting fresh but with more understanding on my behalf.
Discussion is a big thing in the class at the moment using a touch of debate. Seeing this slide as one of the first (thank you to Dorothy), helps bring up the discussion and the debate of what we see in our own minds may be different to someone else’s…and to artificial intelligence! Hence the artificial!
Creating the mood with writing is so important! We need to be able to set the mood inside our minds to picture what is happening. I found this activity amazing as it was simple yet extremely affective. This is also reflective of previous experiences as well as illustrated books we have read. Reading like writers, Writing like readers.
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Encouraging the creativity in our classroom can cover all areas from art, movemement, and moving into video’s and selling their side of the story. I am looking forward to introducing more ideas like this into the classroom and even seeing others ideas on the register so I can maybe tweak them to adapt into my own.
This will be something I will share and use with my class to encourage them to sell the story they are reading. I want them to dress up, play, sell the story and feel confident!
Lets start creating and getting a more happier atmosphere! Can’t wait.
There are so many tools for us out there to “help” us make teaching easier but there are many we need to avoid. It can become confusing if many are introduced and out of those there could be some that could scam us into believing we are doing the right thing.
Thinking is a critical part of learning and if we can get our tamariki to think for themselves then that is win. When it comes to the text that they are reading, we need to link it to something they may have experienced or something that is being taught across the board…inquiry for example.
Literal level is simple. This is what I would respond to as an everyday level, simple questions, simple answers. Interpretive level is a bit more complex where you need to THINK a little more and try to understand what else the author is trying to say. What messages are hidden in the text? What sides do we need to look at and how is that going to change the way we may see the story? Evaluative level is looking above and beyond. Perhaps looking at information on the big world wide web that could back up their outside thinking.
I enjoy thinking out loud as a teacher. It sometimes can feel a bit weird but it does help the tamariki follow the steps and also to speak up and ask if they do not understand. Thinking out loud also models ho it should sound in your head.
After doing The Cave exercise with the group, I remembered that this is similar to the writing exercise that we did on Day 5. Read like writers, write like readers. If we read something that has been written out with great thought and detail, we can envision using previous experiences or even with images seen in tv, books or the internet.
Over the last 7 sessions, each one has been another step on the ladder but looking back now, its all intertwining with each other. The click has been made in my head! A big thanks to Aimee for helping with this, this afternoon! Although I do teach year 4, many of them are at year 3 level with some at year 2 level. Its been great to manipulate each activity to their abilities, and thinking levels. Extending the thinking is creating more work for them but in a way that they enjoy. It’s creating not only the thinking but also the discussion between peers. Students can take the stories home and discuss them with whanau. A more open window of opinions could be open!
Brain overload!
There is so much to vocabulary than just “words”. It’s setting a scene. Helping the reader feel the language, imagine the language, and reuse the the language in their own personal experiences.
This is what I have been using for the last term for vocab where the students find a word they don’t understand and then find the meaning. It has been a good start but not overly effective.
Seeing this before and after spotlight will be a big step up from this and will now be implemented into their hand it in activities. Having the tamariki fill it out before seeing me, looking a the text with me, then going thought he after part as an independent activity will be an interesting insight to what they know/don’t now and what they take on.
Vocabulary understanding can depend on many things like exposure to the word, how it is used, how the tamariki use it.
Rebus puzzles and the like, can help build abstract thinking. It is promoting the sounding out of the word and the spelling of SOME words. This could be introduced at the beginning of the day as students come in, or before specific learning times. can start off in groups/pairs and move to individual thinking. Having the tamariki explain how they came to their answers will be essential to see the understanding an thought process.
Everything in todays journey has been totally amazing, totally mind blowing, and totally making sense!
I would like to introduce the Magpie word wall – I think I’ll call in the Kea word wall though. This to me will not only help with reading but other curriculum areas, specifically inquiry.
Next week onwards I will try to focus on this plan, starting with the introduction of the word wall and better, more thought out activities. I could actually try all the goals but as usual it depends on time, class atmosphere, blah blah blah. This activity – Wētā – will be a good one to do with the groups as an introduction to new activities. I have a handful of students who click straight away and these ones will be able to help the others.
I’m a little excited to get this all started!
Adjusting my timetable has been a common practice each time I come away from RPI. I find it meaningful, and healthy to continuously change planning as we as teachers are trying to continuously change and develop tamariki thinking.
The first change I have made to my planning is more discussion in within the group. This is still very staged as around half my class are still very shy to speak their mind.
Slowly but surely, I am including more thought out, more information finding activities. I started off with same and different which is now a regular task. It is encouraging the tamariki to think about the photos, and use personal voice.
I have started up a page where the students can find 5 words they do not understand in the text and have to find the meaning of it. This will be used in group discussion so we can put the words in sentences that they understand. So far it has been a little tricky, but then all new tasks are.
Having the discussion this week of creating writing that sounds like reading was a tricky one. I did end up making it extremely simple by starting off with faces. creating simple sentences like ” their eyes are as blue as water”. This is to create the atmosphere of descriptions which will move onto settings, people, atmospheres, and leading into bigger stories. And also having the connection with the stories the tamariki are reading.
It’s always super exciting each time I attend an RPI day as there is so much inspiration!
Starting with Fiona’s wonderful kaupapa and the reminders of how to set up our class sites – the 3 clicks – has made me need to go back, check and redo my own class site. Tweaking. Nothing wrong with re-visiing.
Perhaps now, I need to go to a more daily plan (having a specific task for each day), for the site, rather than an overall plan. At the moment I have been updating weekly…something that I have been more comfortable doing rather than fortnightly. Updating fortnightly may mean less mahi for me and a more thoughtful, insightful, and intriguing. Also, are my task-boards easy to navigate. Have i made the instructions and plans easy for the tamariki to understand?
The Mahi tracker has been awesome. I have used it for a few weeks now and the students all understand how to link up their work. Everyone is still getting used to it of course and there is the odd time where they accidentally delete someones or put their own link in other peoples area but thats all part of the learning isn’t it? I have been tweaking this plan a bit and making my own one so that it may be easier for the kids, less for them to explore. The one I have made up
Such an amazing amount of resources that can be used on our class sites. I need to dive deeper into the websites that I use to support my learners, and use the activities more that come with the stories. Use the independent activities to lessen the load.
Creating writing to make is look how it sounds has been part of teaching/learning for a while. I first started when I was using first chance in the classroom. Implementing it into the classroom can be difficult sometimes, but that just means that I need to make it easier for the students. perhaps start off by describing facial features of someone…this could be an activity to describe themselves or someone else in the group/class. Moving on to bigger parts like settings etc can be down the track. Prior knowledge will work into this and for some prior experience. I like the brainstorm style that we did in order to put all the ideas together into a paragraph.
Imagine and write down:
So much discussion can be made with description through words, but also as you showed, through picture. Create the discussion…this is a lesson by itself. The right questions can lead to some very rich thoughts, ideas, and experiences.
One thing I wanted to share is I personally did a piece of writing with my class last year. It was a very personal day for me where a friend had passed away a few years earlier. As a class we discussed how I was feeling as it was showing though so I wrote a piece to share with the class. From this, they also wrote a piece about someone that is important to them – mum, dad, sister, koro, friends, alive, passed…their choice. This was a really amazing time as the tamariki had a heart felt moment for me and what i was going through that day, but they also got to share their important people and moments of time. Unfortunately I don’t have the copies of the children’s pieces (should have taken photos), to compare with but my example is below.
This is 6 lessons in itself!
As for endings…This is definitely and area that needs to be worked on. I know that many of my tamariki do ot know how to do this as it’s not touched on closely enough…my fault!
So much to do but so excited to want to do it and pull it all together.
WOW! What a day it’s been today. So much has been loaded to take in.
Dame Marie Clay has played a significant part in every New Zealand teachers career. It did not surprise me to see that she popped up in todays hui.
I have always felt guilty to plan lesson time with the more capable readers in my class but, with the tasks coming through today, I will be able to keep an eye on them, their learning, reading and movement by planning more individual tasks and have more one on one time with the less capable readers. Screen casting will definitely play a big part of this and I will be able to use the Multidimensional Fluency Scale to aid this. The digital Modelling book looks truely amazing and will save time – once that is mastered too.
This fluency scale is great for independent work and can be a great discussion point in one on one conferences, as a group, and even as a class. I can incorporate this into the tasks for each student to complete and it may help them to think about what they are doing and where they can go to next.
This has been great to learn about. It’s an “easy” diagram to follow nd keep checking up on as a teacher to cover all bases of teaching reading and to help the lesson flow.
I do feel it is important to activate and/or provide needed background knowledge to help students make relevant connections to knowledge of texts, content and/or experiences. As well as have students say and sometimes locate specific words in the text. It is also important to use new vocabulary words in conversation to reveal meaning. Encourage everyone to find a new word a day/ reading session maybe, and use that word often (reminds me of a 90’s movies).
The observational notes are going to be trailed with my top two groups so that I can get a feel of them. It will be good discussion points especially for comparing or even parring with probe notes.
It can be a bit overwhelming learning new tools to use in the classroom and to help with planning. Each tool learnt today, I can see is definitely worthwhile, but it will take me a littl while to get me head around it all…but then, all good things take time.
Homogenous Groups. That is how I have been grouping my learners for guided reading. Why do I do this? It’s the way I have been taught, the easiest way and to keep all the learners that are at the same level, together. Should I mix this up to heterogenous or flexible groups. Flexible groups would be great to use for a more specific approach and encourage those that are lower to learn from the higher students. These could be changed around throughout the term depending on learners needs.
“A window being a peep hole to other worlds” – Rudine Sims Bishop, Professor Emerita, Ohio State University. We are creating this window for our students! I need to create an excitement for my students to want to read and want to read different texts that I select and encourage them to select texts outside their own comfort zone. These don’t always need to be fiction, but non-fiction including animals, science, cooking.
The introduction of the coverage sheet was an interesting turn. Linking the texts to their interests then linking the texts with other texts will not only encourage the students to want to read but they will more easily understand how to get information and summarise the facts. The text that I initially chose, may not be one that I want to follow through with so I may change this before the next meeting. I am going to start by modelling specific paragraphs of items, and having the students “help” me find the right information. From there I can move into bigger pieces where the students can buddy up to summarise and then eventually do it independently.
There were some great linked ideas that had questions for the tamariki to think about when reading their texts (reading buddy bookmark). Although I do something similar in my class – book review, this is another, different way I can have the tamariki think about the text and understand it’s meaning.
I’m hoping through implementing todays learning, I can model to the class how to choose a text that is not only appealing because of the genre or topic, but also appealing because of the text, memorable because of the text and encouraging to find more reading because of the text.
Reading Practice Intensive
Day 2: Know your learners as readers
So much information!
After completing the class questionnaire, I was definitely taken back by how many students enjoy reading, but don’t show this in class. There is 35% of the class that don’t read for enjoyment. It will be interesting to delve deeper into this and find out the reasons behind this. Going through the information, I can incorporate texts that suit them rather than what I think suits them. Using the books and topics they have listed to find texts that suit may encourage them to read more outside of school.
sing the information from this as well as the different forms of assessment (PAT, E AsTTle, running records), I am looking at what the learners are doing/not doing, and how to the results as a where to next on the teacher workbook.
I absolutely LOVE the teacher workbook already. Having everything in one place instead of many different pages is going to be so much easier to find information! I am really looking forward to having more information on my one, and using it to compare and make easier choices of where to next. This is going to certainly increase my confidence in teaching reading as it all connects so fluently.
I enjoyed hearing about pod casting and the tamariki using this methods to hear stories and also to learn more in depth into stories. As a pod cast listener myself, There is so much to learn from others views on different topics. This could lead to the tamariki making their own podcasts!
It’s also absolutely awesome to get new and different resources that I can use, adapt and share around with colleagues. Using this task board technique has adapted well in my classroom and each student can navigate their way around them. They are excited to use technology. Having different activities and links has increased the excitement. Visual WALTs increase the understanding of what they are doing and learning.
I was a bit disappointed when I couldn’t get all the information I needed on NZCER assist. When I do get proper access I will be able to (hopefully) understand the AO’s and LI’s more clearly.