Hi Deirdre, It was this line in your first post that initiated my response: "Don't abandon what the students need just because you don't like to teach it!" Thanks for clarifying your thinking. Elisa
Elisa Waingort Grade 2 Spanish Bilingual Dalhousie Elementary Calgary, Canada The best and most beautiful things in the world cannot be seen or even touched. They must be felt within the heart. —Helen Keller Visit my blog, A Teacher's Ruminations, and post a message. http://waingortgrade2spanishbilingual.blogspot.com/ Elisa, I'm sorry you inferred from my ramblings that I think teachers on this list don't want to teach phonics. As someone posted earlier, I believe we all agree that it needs to be taught, the vehicle for it's delivery is different. I am a huge advocate for direct instruction for those who are lagging behind. I also enjoy using guided discovery for those who are able to identify patterns within words presented. I am a long time user of Words Their Way and have witnessed the increase in spelling and vocabulary from this program. I am also trained in Multisensory Structured Language Instruction which gives me a different perspective on phonics, spelling, and language. In my work with students in K-3 I have always provided a balanced literacy program. I am glad we can agree on the importance of phonics in our schools. Perhaps our definition of phonics should include spelling patterns and language patterns as a natural extension of our phonics instruction. I have no plans to be contentious about this. I, like many others, am very passionate about this subject and hoped to interject some clarity into the postings. Perhaps I overdid it with the passion thing. My apologizes. Deidra Chandler MA Early Childhood Ed MA Reading MultiSensory Structured Language Intervention Tutor ----- Original Message ----- From: "Waingort Jimenez, Elisa" <elwaingor...@cbe.ab.ca> To: "Mosaic: A Reading Comprehension Strategies Email Group" <mosaic@literacyworkshop.org> Sent: Wednesday, July 29, 2009 6:10 PM Subject: Re: [MOSAIC] phonics instruction--long Deirdre, Where did you get the idea that teachers, especially on this list, don't want to teach phonics?? If anything can be said about teachers on this list, and other lists I belong to, is that we will do whatever we need to do in order to help our students not only improve as readers and writers but also create an environment that allows them to develop the intrinsic motivation to read and write. What I don't do is teach phonics to all my students regardless of need or teach phonics out of context. Otherwise, whatever I think my students need and want I will teach. Elisa Elisa Waingort Grade 2 Spanish Bilingual Dalhousie Elementary Calgary, Canada The best and most beautiful things in the world cannot be seen or even touched. They must be felt within the heart. -Helen Keller Visit my blog, A Teacher's Ruminations, and post a message. http://waingortgrade2spanishbilingual.blogspot.com/ Don't abandon what the students need just because you don't like to teach it! Or worse, don't think that because the phonics is imbedded in the lesson all children will internalize the information and transfer it to working knowledge. We do need to recognize all children's learning needs are different and accommodate accordingly. All children in your classroom may not need the same intensity of phonics instruction, but some children will. Isn't it our job as teachers to teach to and for our students? Deidra Chandler MA Early Childhood Ed MA Reading MultiSensory Structured Language Intervention Tutor -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- > _______________________________________________ > 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.
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