Good morning! I agree that many students are stuck at the application level...I would really appreciate seeing your units...Thanks!
Together in education, Teri Adams Cody's Reading Specialist (563-332-0210) [EMAIL PROTECTED] -----Original Message----- From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] Behalf Of stacy hall Sent: Tuesday, September 30, 2008 7:27 PM To: mosaic@literacyworkshop.org Subject: [MOSAIC] Help with Making Connections Hi All, In regards to making connections, here is what I do. First I spend some time introducing schema and how readers activate, grow and revise their schema when reading non-fiction. We I do turn it over to fiction reading, we talk about how we all of life stories. Our life stories would take up way to many pages to write them all down, so we keep them in our schema. (That's why it is important for students to understand what schema is first.) I tell them that sometimes authors tell stories that turn on or trigger my own life stories. I then model reading aloud and showing how I stop and recognize what life story was turned on. I model stopping and telling that life story. I believe that my calling it a life story instead of terming it connection at this point helps to avoid the standard "I have a connection, I've had a birthday part before; or I have a dog too." The following lesson I invite the children to listen to see if there life stories are turned on when we read (I try to purposely find a book they can connect to.) After we have had practice recognzing when a life story has been turned on, I demonstrate linking the "author's story' with my "life story" using puzzle pieces to represent each. I show them that when we connect the pieces, we have a better understanding of the whole picture or idea in the story. We call this making a connection, because we are connecting the two stories. Many of my ideas mentioned above have been altered from the book "REading Power." I have learned from my own failures and successes that expecting them to understand the concept of making a connection without the scaffolding of instruction was unfair. I had so many kids that could spit out the definition of "text to text" "text to self" and "text to world" but really didn't have an understanding about why, how or when good readers do that. I created a 3 week scaffolded unit on Schema/Connections based on a compilation of resources (strategies that work, Mosaic of Thought, Comprehension Connections, etc.) If you are interested in seeing it it, let me know and I will email it to you. Stacy Cervone http://www.teacherweb.com/FL/McDonaldElementary/MrsCervone _______________________________________________ Mosaic mailing list Mosaic@literacyworkshop.org To unsubscribe or modify your membership please go to http://literacyworkshop.org/mailman/options/mosaic_literacyworkshop.org. Search the MOSAIC archives at http://snipurl.com/MosaicArchive. _______________________________________________ Mosaic mailing list Mosaic@literacyworkshop.org To unsubscribe or modify your membership please go to http://literacyworkshop.org/mailman/options/mosaic_literacyworkshop.org. Search the MOSAIC archives at http://snipurl.com/MosaicArchive.
