Re: [MOSAIC] reflections-grading
We need to teach our children to think and the mosaic strategies do that. This is true of all students from our GT students to our very low special needs students. This year I am spending a lot of time on procedures - how to do everything that needs to be done in my sixth grade resource room and the time is paying off in big dividends. I am seeing great things happening particularly in my reading response journals and partner reading. I am using some of the great ideas that I got from the book Bringing the Outside In to work with Vocabulary development. I completely agree with some of the past comments on leveled readers. They have their purpose but leveled readers do not give that struggling reader the desire to push on to strive to read that next word or line. That desire comes from the rich text that grabs and holds their attention and whets their appetite to know more and more. I pair a lot of fiction and non-fiction for my folks because at their level the non-fiction is much more appealing reading presented on a level that they can read more independently. I read Andie Cunningham's book last year - Starting With Comprehension and I have gleamed lots of ideas for working with my students. I use a lot of rubrics for grading. Students must successfully complete X number of tasks relating to a topic in a designated time frame. Not all work is written response. Some is oral, some is hands on, some is on the computer and some is showing what you know with drawing. This accommodates the needs of most of my students and levels the playing field considerably. I am constantly learning and attempting to improve my service delivery. This is my 33 year of teaching and some areas are definitely the best because of what I am learning from this and other online forums for teachers. Keep up the good work and glad to be back in operation on Mosaic. June 6th. Grade Resource KY ___ Mosaic mailing list Mosaic@literacyworkshop.org To unsubscribe or modify your membership please go to http://literacyworkshop.org/mailman/options/mosaic_literacyworkshop.org.
[MOSAIC] Nonfiction book comparison
Sorry about the cross post, but I thought those who are on this listserve might find this interesting: I did a lesson this week that compared and contrasted various nonfiction picture books. We looked at how the information was organized, what types of illustrations were used, how much of each page was text and how much was illustrations, what kind of text was used, and what were the features that made the book interesting? My goal was for the students to see that they could use these books as models for writing about how they use natural resources in their life. The books we looked at were: Penguins, An Eyes on Nature Book Emperor Penguins, by Kazue Mizumura (an older book c.1969) Digging up Dinosaurs, by Aliki Dinner at Aunt Connie's House, buy Faith Ringgold Diary of a Worm, by Doreen Cronin Cactus Hotel, by Brenda Z. Guiberson Dreaming of America, by Eve Bunting A Pirate's Life for Me! by Julie Thompson and Brownie Macintosh The students seemed genuinely excited about this, and came away with an I can do this! attitude. We'll see how this pans out over the next couple of weeks. Joy/NC/4 [EMAIL PROTECTED] How children learn is as important as what they learn: process and content go hand in hand. http://www.responsiveclassroom.org - Get your own web address for just $1.99/1st yr. We'll help. Yahoo! Small Business. ___ Mosaic mailing list Mosaic@literacyworkshop.org To unsubscribe or modify your membership please go to http://literacyworkshop.org/mailman/options/mosaic_literacyworkshop.org.
Re: [MOSAIC] OWL link for Cindy
In a message dated 9/16/2006 8:37:56 P.M. Eastern Daylight Time, [EMAIL PROTECTED] writes: this link and I thought it might be helpful to you. And to everyone else, when I clicked on it, all the Reading Lady site information came up. So, hopefully it is working. Hi. The site has now been moved to my new server. Each day more and more of it will be working. We are continuing to do our best to get everything going again. Thanks for hanging in there with us. I look forward to rebuilding the site once again and making it fresh and new. Laura readinglady.com ___ Mosaic mailing list Mosaic@literacyworkshop.org To unsubscribe or modify your membership please go to http://literacyworkshop.org/mailman/options/mosaic_literacyworkshop.org.
[MOSAIC] School wide struggle with strategies
I could really use some input here! My school has struggled to get out of the dark ages of reading for some time. We finally made the big move to strategies about three years ago. We even had a big group of us go to a conference with Ellin, Debbie Miller, etc. summer before last. The problem is that our specialist (who did not go to the conference, but is the one who started strategies school wide) has not really followed up with enough training, follow through, etc., and many of the teachers who should have been teaching strategies have not really been doing it. I just don't think that the teachers quite get it yet, and so they end up falling back on old ways. My incoming 5th graders this year didn't even know what schema is. Here is the problem. We have a new staff member who was a reading specialist at her old school. We were very excited about her coming. She has had lots of special training, etc. She is a teacher here. Long story short, even though I have not heard what she is expert in yet, I now strongly believe that she was doing guided reading in her old school. Guided reading seems like a totally different thing to me than Reading workshop. It is set up differently, the timing is different, etc. I only have a 110 minute block each day for Reading and Writing, and so where does that leave time for the truly independent reading that I want my readers doing each day? My fear is that because this is a strong personality coming in, who is confident in what she has been doing, and because some grade levels are struggling with Reading Workshop, that we will cave in to yet another system. I don't want that. I have seen the format that we are doing work too well at my grade level, where we have actually been doing it, albeit imperfectly. I was wondering if any, many, or a few of you have leveled groups during your independent reading time for Reading Workshop? Do the two mix, and I'm just not getting it? I'm feeling that what we really need here is more support in the school for strategy teaching in the reading workshop format. Opinions? Sherry ___ Mosaic mailing list Mosaic@literacyworkshop.org To unsubscribe or modify your membership please go to http://literacyworkshop.org/mailman/options/mosaic_literacyworkshop.org.
Re: [MOSAIC] Songs
Here is a new song for inferring that I wrote for my class of second graders. The Inferring Song Zip-a-dee-do-da, zip-a-dee-ay When I infer everything is okay. I use my schema plus clues from the text Then I infer---but what happens next! I comprehend more of the story, If it's fact or fiction Inferring brings satisfaction. Zip-a-dee-do-da, zip-a-dee-ay When I infer, everything is okay! Carey-NC ___ Mosaic mailing list Mosaic@literacyworkshop.org To unsubscribe or modify your membership please go to http://literacyworkshop.org/mailman/options/mosaic_literacyworkshop.org.
Re: [MOSAIC] School wide struggle with strategies
The way we approach this is through the balanced literacy framework which includes GR during our reading time. It's basically the gradual release of responsibility model so that reading begins each day with teacher read alouds (modeling thinking, strategies, etc), moving to some form of a small group or partner practice of that lesson (often this happens in the gR groups with the teacher), and works it's way into the expectation that students will use it in their independent reading during what you are calling reading workshop. Are you saying you have not supported learners in small groups before and this is the mix you're concerned about? I usually pull just one or 2 groups to work with each day and spend the rest of the time monitoring/conferencing individual learners. But it all happens during the reading workshop where students have chosen their own books to read and respond to.The difference is that in GR , teacher has chosen the text based on children's levels to help them with the strategies. Linda/2/OH On Sunday, September 17, 2006, at 07:35 AM, [EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote: I could really use some input here! My school has struggled to get out of the dark ages of reading for some time. We finally made the big move to strategies about three years ago. We even had a big group of us go to a conference with Ellin, Debbie Miller, etc. summer before last. The problem is that our specialist (who did not go to the conference, but is the one who started strategies school wide) has not really followed up with enough training, follow through, etc., and many of the teachers who should have been teaching strategies have not really been doing it. I just don't think that the teachers quite get it yet, and so they end up falling back on old ways. My incoming 5th graders this year didn't even know what schema is. Here is the problem. We have a new staff member who was a reading specialist at her old school. We were very excited about her coming. She has had lots of special training, etc. She is a teacher here. Long story short, even though I have not heard what she is expert in yet, I now strongly believe that she was doing guided reading in her old school. Guided reading seems like a totally different thing to me than Reading workshop. It is set up differently, the timing is different, etc. I only have a 110 minute block each day for Reading and Writing, and so where does that leave time for the truly independent reading that I want my readers doing each day? My fear is that because this is a strong personality coming in, who is confident in what she has been doing, and because some grade levels are struggling with Reading Workshop, that we will cave in to yet another system. I don't want that. I have seen the format that we are doing work too well at my grade level, where we have actually been doing it, albeit imperfectly. I was wondering if any, many, or a few of you have leveled groups during your independent reading time for Reading Workshop? Do the two mix, and I'm just not getting it? I'm feeling that what we really need here is more support in the school for strategy teaching in the reading workshop format. Opinions? Sherry ___ Mosaic mailing list Mosaic@literacyworkshop.org To unsubscribe or modify your membership please go to http://literacyworkshop.org/mailman/options/ mosaic_literacyworkshop.org. ___ Mosaic mailing list Mosaic@literacyworkshop.org To unsubscribe or modify your membership please go to http://literacyworkshop.org/mailman/options/mosaic_literacyworkshop.org.
Re: [MOSAIC] Songs
Carey - I love your song! Suzanne/4/NY ___ Mosaic mailing list Mosaic@literacyworkshop.org To unsubscribe or modify your membership please go to http://literacyworkshop.org/mailman/options/mosaic_literacyworkshop.org.
Re: [MOSAIC] grades and levels
Hi - I am unable to get this website. I have copied and pasted the 2nd line of the address but with no luck Cheers thanks Stef Rann HYPERLINK mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED][EMAIL PROTECTED] -Original Message- From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] [HYPERLINK mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] rkshop.org] On Behalf Of Michele Sent: Monday, September 18, 2006 10:25 AM To: 'Mosaic: A Reading Comprehension Strategies Listserv' Subject: Re: [MOSAIC] grades and levels Hello all, I think we should assess the strategies with a rubric and also know the reading level of every child. Why not? If you can provide this kind of information for yourself, parents, colleagues and his/her future teachers, you are providing a great service by monitoring the progress of each student so they can go forward. I have created rubrics on the strategies for students which can easily be tweaked for older grades. They are here: Planting http://polsellikindergarten.tripod.com/Comprehension%20Strategies/Planting% 20a%20Literacy%20Garden.htm A Literacy Garden I hope I have helped you! Michele Polselli PMS Literacy Coordinator Kindergarten Teacher [EMAIL PROTECTED] HYPERLINK http://polsellikindergarten.tripod.comhttp://polsellikindergarten.tripod.c om HYPERLINK http://comptoolbelt.tripod.comhttp://comptoolbelt.tripod.com -Original Message- From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] [HYPERLINK mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] rkshop.org] On Behalf Of jepilyn matthis Sent: Saturday, September 16, 2006 5:00 PM To: Mosaic: A Reading Comprehension Strategies Listserv Subject: Re: [MOSAIC] grades and levels We have this discussion at my school every year. To me, I think there should be a rubric for each strategy and a part of that rubric would be the level they are reading. Therefore, the overall grade would reflect both the level of the text they are reading AND their ability to utilize the strategy. Does this make sense? I would love to know what others do. Jepi - Original Message - From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] To: mosaic@literacyworkshop.org Sent: Saturday, September 16, 2006 1:14 PM Subject: Re: [MOSAIC] grades and levels Laura YES! I would have struggling readers that really have mastered say making connections but they can't do it in grade level text. They can do it when I read to them or in text that is below their grade level standards. So, what do I grade them? They are awesome thinkers at a second grade level but are in the fourth grade. SO, how do you make a grade reflect that? I am beginning to think that it comes down again to having a discussion. What should visualizing or inferring look like for, say, a third grader. Then once we have consensus on what the standard should be, then maybe we can grade fairly. Jennifer In a message dated 9/16/2006 1:39:53 P.M. Eastern Standard Time, [EMAIL PROTECTED] writes: On grades-we have been told in no uncertain terms that children in danger of failing our state test (TAKS-it's Texas) must have grades on their report card that reflect their struggle. They can be passing grades-but not A's if they are really off level or even B's. This is always hard at the beginning of the year when so much of my teaching is guided-and I don't want to assess things I haven't taught. Anyone else have this problem? I'm so glad this list is up and running again. Laura C ___ Mosaic mailing list Mosaic@literacyworkshop.org To unsubscribe or modify your membership please go to HYPERLINK http://literacyworkshop.org/mailman/options/mosaic_literacyworkshop.orghtt p://literacyworkshop.org/mailman/options/mosaic_literacyworkshop.org. ___ Mosaic mailing list Mosaic@literacyworkshop.org To unsubscribe or modify your membership please go to HYPERLINK http://literacyworkshop.org/mailman/options/mosaic_literacyworkshop.orghtt p://literacyworkshop.org/mailman/options/mosaic_literacyworkshop.org. ___ Mosaic mailing list Mosaic@literacyworkshop.org To unsubscribe or modify your membership please go to HYPERLINK http://literacyworkshop.org/mailman/options/mosaic_literacyworkshop.orghtt p://literacyworkshop.org/mailman/options/mosaic_literacyworkshop.org. -- No virus found in this incoming message. Checked by AVG Free Edition. Version: 7.1.394 / Virus Database: 268.12.4/448 - Release Date: 14/09/2006 -- No virus found in this outgoing message. Checked by AVG Free Edition. Version: 7.1.394 / Virus Database: 268.12.4/448 - Release Date: 14/09/2006 ___ Mosaic mailing list Mosaic@literacyworkshop.org To unsubscribe or modify your membership please go to http://literacyworkshop.org/mailman/options/mosaic_literacyworkshop.org.
Re: [MOSAIC] reflections-grading
Jepi, I saw the same thing for the past 2 years with my daughter. She took AP English her 9th and 10th grade year and had a very difficult time. Her teacher expected her to read the text and analyze it...it was very difficult for her and she didn't do as well as she wanted. She has ALWAYS been an A student in advanced classes...but, when she hit high school...well, let's say she had to work. My asst principal said to me yesterday, that a 2nd grade teacher said that she had never had a group of kids which could read and think through their reading like the first grade group we sent them this year. I went to 3rd this year and my class cannot think through their text. I am starting from the beginning. But, now I realize the pay off for he children. Veronica in Texas ___ Mosaic mailing list Mosaic@literacyworkshop.org To unsubscribe or modify your membership please go to http://literacyworkshop.org/mailman/options/mosaic_literacyworkshop.org.
Re: [MOSAIC] (mosaic) fitting it all in
We also have kids who can't read the HM below level books. Do you have a book room with leveled texts available for your use with small groups? Sounds like you need to drop down some levels in order to find their instructional level. STAR is really not a great indicator of their true reading level. It certainly doesn't allow you to hear what strategies they are using at point of difficulty or how fluent they sound. Do you have DRA kit or a Rigby Benchmark kit available? If so, I'd use that and take a running record on your strugglers. If not, I'd gather some leveled readers and take running records until you find the text reading level that is 90-94% accurate, with good comprehension and fluency and being instruction there. You are exposing them to grade level text thru the reading of the story in the basal, but to teach them to really read, you are going to have to get them into small groups where instruction is delivered at their instructional level. Kelli [EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote: In a message dated 9/16/2006 8:49:23 PM Eastern Standard Time, [EMAIL PROTECTED] writes: We realize that we have to supplement using other read alouds and much more thinking aloud of our thinking in order for students to grasp the comp. strategies. Also, we have to supplement with Guided Reading Groups because most students cannot read the story in the basal independently. (another quote by Dr. Cooper) We are using the basal to expose them to grade level text, but teaching them to read in GR I have students who can't read some of the leveled texts independently as well. Our district mandates a minimum of 30 whole group instruction-according to my district these are the activities that I am permitted to do during that time. 1. read aloud 2. shared reading 3. teach skills and strategies 4. phonemic awareness- K-2 5. phonics/spelling lesson 6. vocabulary 7. mini-handwriting lessons-builds fluency according to the district 8. mini interactive editing lessons Then I am required to have 60 minutes of small group instruction. I have divided my class into three groups based on reading ability-we use the STAR at the beginning of the year to help us decide where to put everyone. Students meet with me for 20 minutes-this is when we preview the vocab reader, read the leveled reader, discuss the reader, complete comprehension questions about the reader and continue to model the different reading strategies. Then studetns go to the thinking lab-for the low and middle group they continue with what ever they had done with me. They might read the leveled book with a partner, etc. Then they go to the By myslef station which is where the independent literacy stations are located. We have four stations per week, each student completes one station per day. We don't rotate on Fridays. That day is for spelling and reading comprehension test as well as conferencing about station activities completed. Also, those students who don't complete a particular station have time to do so. I too am rather frustrated, only about 3 or 4 of my 15 kids read at grade level, yet I am stuck with this basal filled with material they can't read independently. Rosie ___ Mosaic mailing list Mosaic@literacyworkshop.org To unsubscribe or modify your membership please go to http://literacyworkshop.org/mailman/options/mosaic_literacyworkshop.org. ___ Mosaic mailing list Mosaic@literacyworkshop.org To unsubscribe or modify your membership please go to http://literacyworkshop.org/mailman/options/mosaic_literacyworkshop.org.
Re: [MOSAIC] more grading
Jennifer said...Okay Susan and others...help me understand something. I can't see basing a reading grade on comprehension of a story. Aren't we teaching a process here???We really aren't teaching the story here right? We are teaching students how to read...so in the end, isn't what matters most the strategy knowledge the child takes away from your class? Why grade comprehension of a story when it doesn't matter 5 years from now whether or not the child knows the problem and solution of a particular story. There are some children who could read a story and fill in the answers to a comprehension test without our instruction...so how do we know what they have learned without looking at how they have come to comprehend or the processes?? Jennifer I love that you keep holding this up in different light. I have had a difficult time getting people to engage in this grading discussion, I think because it is so thorny as to be disturbing, and aren't our jobs tough enough already? But I believe that ease of assessing and confidence in a report card have a direct correlation with what we're willing to do in our teaching. Over and over I see teachers falling back on poor methods of teaching BECAUSE they offer easy methods of grading, and in today's world I find myself continuously faced with parents who expect me to explain my grading. (as they should) I am simply not sure any longer what my explanation is. Your comment below grading really comes down to our own personal philosophies of what reading is and what needs to be taught. caused me to really stop and think. I don't think a lot of us do grade according to our reading philosophies. I think we grade according to the constraints of time and the reporting system itself, i.e. ONE numbera percent to represent a process of thinking???!!! I think I am fairly intelligent, but this one has me over a barrel. And as passionate as I am about teaching reading is thinking, you should see the things I will do to get a number on that report card. Am I alone? I am not sure if I think scoring a process or the application is best. Deciding if a child is proficient at visualizing, or connecting is a slippery slope. But asking a child to understand a theme, or the importance of rising action by substantiating thoughts with strategies seems closer to our purpose. For me it is simply thinking of those activities that demand the right things from the readers. I would love to hear just a list of the kinds of application work some of you score to use as a grade. Is it process work scored with a rubric, or some finally analysis of comprehension? Thanks for all the good discussion, Gina ___ Mosaic mailing list Mosaic@literacyworkshop.org To unsubscribe or modify your membership please go to http://literacyworkshop.org/mailman/options/mosaic_literacyworkshop.org.
Re: [MOSAIC] School wide struggle with strategies
My school is making a strong push for FP guided reading and I have used MOT/Reading with Meaning as well as some Four Blocks stuff last year. I see that there are a lot of similar things across these ways of teaching. From my understanding MOT/RWM is more guided/group work then gradually move to independent and the guided reading is a lot more independent on their own with small groups pulled to teach the strategy indepth. I think that you really need to pick and choose what works for your STUDENTS not the school. Some students need the gradual release more than others. I found last year that the work together for a while then have them try it worked really well. This year we are doing lots of mini lessons they go to their desk and practice while I come around and circulate. I have not finished the first 20 days due to my having to IRI all students first. I planned to start this week but COGAT messed with that. I will see if this works better/the same/or no difference. My students this year are much different from last year where I had a lot of low students and a lot of high students (with 22). This year I have only 16 students with one low. The rest are on grade level (which is unusual). I think the more you do it and experiment with it you will find what works for YOU and not the grade level/school. There are no quick fixes and each person has their own spin on how to do it. It is nice to come to a concensus as a grade level but depending on how many are on your grade level personalities will clash and this may never occur. Tina 3rd/tx - Original Message From: RICHARD THEXTON [EMAIL PROTECTED] To: Mosaic: A Reading Comprehension Strategies Listserv mosaic@literacyworkshop.org Sent: Sunday, September 17, 2006 9:44:02 AM Subject: Re: [MOSAIC] School wide struggle with strategies I think the difference is this: In Guided Reading the children are learning to read. This would be using a book the teacher has selected at that groups instructional level. During this group you may work on decoding, fluency, the how to read strategies. During the Reader's Workshop (which GR could be a part of) the children are reading to learn. Children select their own texts, which are appropriate for them, because we've taught them how to select the just right book. During this block, students are applying the comprehension strategies you have modeled during your mini-lesson, in order to get a deeper and better understanding of what they have read, connect it and synthesize it to extend their own learning. If you have kids who aren't really reading, they definitely need a guided reading group, in order to be successful reading independently on a text they chose for themselves. Hope that helps to clarify the mix Kelli Thexton Literacy Coach Westside Elementary Rogers, AR USA Linda DeGreen [EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote: The way we approach this is through the balanced literacy framework which includes GR during our reading time. It's basically the gradual release of responsibility model so that reading begins each day with teacher read alouds (modeling thinking, strategies, etc), moving to some form of a small group or partner practice of that lesson (often this happens in the gR groups with the teacher), and works it's way into the expectation that students will use it in their independent reading during what you are calling reading workshop. Are you saying you have not supported learners in small groups before and this is the mix you're concerned about? I usually pull just one or 2 groups to work with each day and spend the rest of the time monitoring/conferencing individual learners. But it all happens during the reading workshop where students have chosen their own books to read and respond to.The difference is that in GR , teacher has chosen the text based on children's levels to help them with the strategies. Linda/2/OH On Sunday, September 17, 2006, at 07:35 AM, [EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote: I could really use some input here! My school has struggled to get out of the dark ages of reading for some time. We finally made the big move to strategies about three years ago. We even had a big group of us go to a conference with Ellin, Debbie Miller, etc. summer before last. The problem is that our specialist (who did not go to the conference, but is the one who started strategies school wide) has not really followed up with enough training, follow through, etc., and many of the teachers who should have been teaching strategies have not really been doing it. I just don't think that the teachers quite get it yet, and so they end up falling back on old ways. My incoming 5th graders this year didn't even know what schema is. Here is the problem. We have a new staff member who was a reading specialist at her old school. We were very excited about her coming. She has had lots of special training, etc. She is a teacher
Re: [MOSAIC] PS grading
PS So could strategy assessment with rubrics be a formative assessment which guides our instruction with individuals? And then do we ask ourselves WHY do we teach strategies (so that deep comprehension occurs?) and then do a summative assessment which gives an achievement picture at benchmark points in the year? So let's say I have taught visualizing and connecting and I then ask the kids to read a poem which has imagery and calls for connections to interpret meaning. I think ask the kids to respond with evidence of their thinking. I am not so interested in whether or not they understand the poem as I do, but that they can use imagery and personal connections to think and share their thinking. Gina ___ Mosaic mailing list Mosaic@literacyworkshop.org To unsubscribe or modify your membership please go to http://literacyworkshop.org/mailman/options/mosaic_literacyworkshop.org.
Re: [MOSAIC] reflections-grading--long post
My eldest daughter just graduated high school this year. She was always a terrific reader--loved books enormously--but was never pushed in school to use any sort of strategies that she did not come by naturally. Her lack of skill became most apparent during the reading of science texts, where she was unaccustomed to pulling apart passages for all of the linking and important data that is hidden in every sentence of science. I helped her a bit there and that was enough to get her to eleventh grade. In eleventh and twelfth she had an English teacher that demanded annotations of the text and when I saw what my daughter was doing it looked a whole lot like MOT--except it was often translated into some assignment that required processing the annotations in a formal way--debate, paper, oral report, etc. The first year she was introduced to this she wailed, This ruins reading for me, and I found myself questioning whether the forced use of strategies could in fact ruin reading for lovers of reading. Then, my daughter continued with this teacher (Mrs. Cubbage--if you are out there , you are wonderful)and by the end of her senior year announced to me that she had never had a more important teacher and the act of annotation has brought such depth to her understanding that she no longer chooses to read much without annotation--too funny. I see her buy books I find to be somewhat light reading and I still see her annotating in the margins. I add this anecdote to the discussions because my daughter taught me that even the most proficient readers, who are good at answering the comprehension questions, benefit from the depth that can occur when using formal comprehension strategies. I also add this anecdote to our discussion because I read Deeper Reading this summer and Gallagher, too, offers the idea that grading the reading should come out of the use of strategies, but be a separate application --like a debate, report, literary explanation, etc. HE does a beautiful job of providing examples of his assessments at the end and how he links those assessments to his instruction and the student use of reading strategies (I am so surprised a high school teacher has so much about reading instruction to offer to us elementary folks!) Now, I am examining this year how to bring such grading applications into my reading instruction. I want applications that are not based solely upon teacher or text based comprehension questions, but rather a formal way to integrate the outcome of strategy use into a project that IS turned in (in some form) and graded--perhaps the discussion the children have will itself be the project ( I am imagining the use of tape recordings and a checklist/rubric--still working on it at the elementary level). Last year we used wonderful projects with our reading, but often when grading the particular projects I felt it was unrelated to the actual reading--the projects were more about integration of subjects. I want to create more directed stuff like Gallagher does in his senior classroom. I will be happy to talk more about this if folks are interested in ways Gallagher does it and ways I am trying to do it. -- Sincerely, Bonita DeAmicis California, Grade 5 ___ Mosaic mailing list Mosaic@literacyworkshop.org To unsubscribe or modify your membership please go to http://literacyworkshop.org/mailman/options/mosaic_literacyworkshop.org.
Re: [MOSAIC] Reading Goals
I can't help with the reading or spelling, but the rubric for 6 traits of writing might help there. You can find the K-2 rubrics, 3-12 rubrics, teaching ideas for elementary grades, and K-2 anchor papers, on my website: http://www.cyberspaces.net/6traits/index.html Susan Nixon retired ___ Mosaic mailing list Mosaic@literacyworkshop.org To unsubscribe or modify your membership please go to http://literacyworkshop.org/mailman/options/mosaic_literacyworkshop.org.
Re: [MOSAIC] monitoring
Richard, I agree that the precursor to strategy instruction is monitoring meaning. We have a before, during, and after rap to guide us through reading a piece. The During reading is simple Read and Think to Understand Does it click or does it clunk? Use your strategies to fix it up. Before I focus on strategies I do a lot of click or clunk. We actualy celebrate identifying a clunk...an unkown word, a confusing sentence, a confusing event, character action, etc.I have been amazed at how many kids need to be led to metacognitively knowing that something is clunking. You know sometimes just that realization is all that needs to happen for them to do something to improve their own comprehension. Gina ___ Mosaic mailing list Mosaic@literacyworkshop.org To unsubscribe or modify your membership please go to http://literacyworkshop.org/mailman/options/mosaic_literacyworkshop.org.
Re: [MOSAIC] reflections-grading
As with any strategy, I like to start with a read aloud where I think outloud about my thinking. I always read the book ahead of time and mark a few spot where I will make a mistake. As good readers, we don't naturally make mistakes, so I have to mark those spots to remind myself:) As with any explicit instruction, I always explain to students what I am going to be teaching them thru my think aloud 1st. Another thing that I do that I read about in Reading with Meaning is to explain to children that when Im reading to them I will hold the book up, but when they see me lay the book on my lap, they will know I am thinking outloud about my thinking. Listening to that little me! As I make mistakes, I, first of all, NOTICE that that did not sound right, or make sense, or when I really look at that, it doesn't look right. (I love the clunk or chunk!) Then I think outloud about what I could try to fix it up I have cut and pasted the section from The Reading Lady about the explicit instruction for Fix Up Strategies This was what I actually used for my 1st Monitoring Comprehension lesson. · Read a chosen text. · Explain Fix-Up strategies (When I dont understand what I read, I do certain things to make sure that I understand before I continue reading.) · On a chart with Fix-Up Strategies at top, record what you do to monitor and repair comprehension during think alouds while reading various texts. (For example: notice when understanding is lost, stop and go back to clarify thinking, reread to enhance understanding, read ahead to clarify meaning, identify and talk about what is confusing about the text, recognize that all questions about a text have value, sound it out, speak to another reader, read the text aloud, go slow.) · Read and stop for 2-3 think alouds. (While I reading ___, I realized that I didnt understand_so I used the Fix-Up strategy _to help me understand. · Explain that the purpose of Fix-Up strategies is to monitor and repair comprehension while listening to and reading text. · Send students off to Independent Reading and remind them to use Fix-Up strategies. The thing that I do differently, especially if we are reading a story out of a basal, is to send off those who can read the story independently with a buddy. The other students who are below grade level, or English Language Learners, I keep with me and continue to read the passage aloud, letting them monitor my mistakes and help decide what I might try to fix it up. After we have read part of the passage, we always come back together discuss the story itself and then discuss how we applied the strategy. During familiar reading time, when students are practicing reading at their indepedent reading level, I always remind them to apply the strategy we've been learning. They hold onto their thinking by placing post-it's where they monitored, or record their monitoring in the reading response journal. Of course, I have modeled this MANY times prior to sending them off to do it on their own. Hope this is helpful! Kelli Thexton jepilyn matthis [EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote: Talk a little more about how you teach monitoring. I would love to hear your ideas. - Original Message - From: RICHARD THEXTON To: Mosaic: A Reading Comprehension Strategies Listserv Sent: Sunday, September 17, 2006 9:56 AM Subject: Re: [MOSAIC] reflections-grading I always like to start with Monitoring. If kids don't grasp what they are reading, then the rest of the strategies really won't help. I have way too many kids that read something that makes absolutely NO sense and just keep right on going! 1st and foremost I want them to learn to listen to what it is they are reading and make sure what they just read makes sense! I want them to notice when it doesn't make sense or sound right or look right! THEN we can move on to deeper understanding. Susan Walters wrote: Veronica in texas. When you say you are starting at the beginning do you mean with connections??? I am 3rd grade and am starting the 3rd week of school. My kids seem to have a good grasp of story elements and summary. I was going to begin connections this week. Explicitly showing my thinking and working through texts together. I was beginning with the pain and the great one or my rotten redheaded older brother. We have been talking about the inner voice but many of my kids have not heard of the strategies. We are focusing how it helps us understand - Original Message - From: To: Sent: Sunday, September 17, 2006 7:41 AM Subject: Re: [MOSAIC] reflections-grading Jepi, I saw the same thing for the past 2 years with my daughter. She took AP English her 9th and 10th grade year and had a very difficult time. Her teacher expected her to read the text and analyze it...it was very
Re: [MOSAIC] Long Links in email - use tinyurl.com
Another, arguably simpler, solution: Bracket your links -- long or otherwise -- using and . For example: http://www.sandwich.k12.ma.us/District%20Guided%20Reading%20Program.pdf#search=%22defining%20guided%20reading%22 and tell most (perhaps all -- not sure) email readers to keep the link intact across line breaks. Very easy. Just make sure any links you send are bracketed between and . That solves the broken link problem. Dave Middlebrook The Textmapping Project A resource for teachers improving reading comprehension skills instruction. www.textmapping.org | Please share this site with your colleagues! USA: (609) 771-1781 [EMAIL PROTECTED] - Original Message - From: Keith Mack [EMAIL PROTECTED] To: 'Mosaic: A Reading Comprehension Strategies Listserv' mosaic@literacyworkshop.org Sent: Sunday, September 17, 2006 12:22 PM Subject: [MOSAIC] Long Links in email - use tinyurl.com One thing to think about when posting URL or web links to a listserv is how will this link look to 1000+ people? We had several instances of broken links that have come across to the list. This happens when a really LONG URL looks fine when you paste it, but then is broken up in the translation of sending and then eventually to what the recipient sees. Example of broken link (this looked fine when I pasted it): http://www.sandwich.k12.ma.us/District%20Guided%20Reading%20Program. pdf#search=%22defining%20guided%20reading %22 SOLUTION - use http://www.tinyurl.com TinyURL takes a really long link and makes is into a link that is much friendlier in email. The long URL above becomes: http://tinyurl.com/k65tb. This is useable by our 1000+ member community where the long URL is not. REASONING 1. Communication - you want people on this list to be able to click and find the resource, not to spend time trying to trace what the URL really is. 2. Prevents the annoying The link you sent does work! message from being sent out to 1000's of members again and again. (Thankfully this hasn't happened yet - whew) Another one that I use is http://snipurl.com/. Does the same thing, but allows me to keep my own list of links. So, when you paste a great link in a message to this list, take a look at how it wraps. My rule is that if link is that half of a line of text is OK for a URL. Longer than half a line I use http://www.tinyurl.com. It just takes a few seconds and can save us all a lot of time and server resources. IF a link doesn't work, resist the urge to hit reply. Instead, contact the INDIVIDUAL not the entire list and let them know about the problem. Thanks, Keith Mack Web Administrator for Mosaic Listserv [EMAIL PROTECTED] Office 360.398.2479 Mobile 360.739.6477 Fax 360.398.2679 ___ Mosaic mailing list Mosaic@literacyworkshop.org To unsubscribe or modify your membership please go to http://literacyworkshop.org/mailman/options/mosaic_literacyworkshop.org. ___ Mosaic mailing list Mosaic@literacyworkshop.org To unsubscribe or modify your membership please go to http://literacyworkshop.org/mailman/options/mosaic_literacyworkshop.org.
Re: [MOSAIC] (mosaic) fitting it all in
Marie Clay has a book called Running Records for Teachers. My previous principal called it Running Records for Dummies, because it is very clear, very simple and very straight forward--like the Dummy series for technology. I highly recommend it as a place to start. Lori On Sun, 17 Sep 2006 12:53:53 EDT , [EMAIL PROTECTED] sent: Kelli, We do have a book room with leveled texts and I will certainly try to use some of those. I must admit that I have no idea how to do a running record-I know what one is -but it was just skimmed over in my undergrad program. Rosie ___ Mosaic mailing list Mosaic@literacyworkshop.org To unsubscribe or modify your membership please go to http://literacyworkshop.org/mailman/options/ mosaic_literacyworkshop.org. ___ Mosaic mailing list Mosaic@literacyworkshop.org To unsubscribe or modify your membership please go to http://literacyworkshop.org/mailman/options/mosaic_literacyworkshop.org.
Re: [MOSAIC] (mosaic) fitting it all in
Marie Clay has a book called Running Records for Teachers. My previous principal called it Running Records for Dummies, because it is very clear, very simple and very straight forward--like the Dummy series for technology. I highly recommend it as a place to start. Lori On Sun, 17 Sep 2006 12:53:53 EDT , [EMAIL PROTECTED] sent: Kelli, We do have a book room with leveled texts and I will certainly try to use some of those. I must admit that I have no idea how to do a running record-I know what one is -but it was just skimmed over in my undergrad program. Rosie ___ Mosaic mailing list Mosaic@literacyworkshop.org To unsubscribe or modify your membership please go to http://literacyworkshop.org/mailman/options/ mosaic_literacyworkshop.org. ___ Mosaic mailing list Mosaic@literacyworkshop.org To unsubscribe or modify your membership please go to http://literacyworkshop.org/mailman/options/mosaic_literacyworkshop.org.
Re: [MOSAIC] (mosaic) fitting it all in
Marie Clay has a book called Running Records for Teachers. My previous principal called it Running Records for Dummies, because it is very clear, very simple and very straight forward--like the Dummy series for technology. I highly recommend it as a place to start. Lori On Sun, 17 Sep 2006 12:53:53 EDT , [EMAIL PROTECTED] sent: Kelli, We do have a book room with leveled texts and I will certainly try to use some of those. I must admit that I have no idea how to do a running record-I know what one is -but it was just skimmed over in my undergrad program. Rosie ___ Mosaic mailing list Mosaic@literacyworkshop.org To unsubscribe or modify your membership please go to http://literacyworkshop.org/mailman/options/ mosaic_literacyworkshop.org. ___ Mosaic mailing list Mosaic@literacyworkshop.org To unsubscribe or modify your membership please go to http://literacyworkshop.org/mailman/options/mosaic_literacyworkshop.org.
Re: [MOSAIC] (mosaic) fitting it all in
Marie Clay has a book called Running Records for Teachers. My previous principal called it Running Records for Dummies, because it is very clear, very simple and very straight forward--like the Dummy series for technology. I highly recommend it as a place to start. Lori On Sun, 17 Sep 2006 12:53:53 EDT , [EMAIL PROTECTED] sent: Kelli, We do have a book room with leveled texts and I will certainly try to use some of those. I must admit that I have no idea how to do a running record-I know what one is -but it was just skimmed over in my undergrad program. Rosie ___ Mosaic mailing list Mosaic@literacyworkshop.org To unsubscribe or modify your membership please go to http://literacyworkshop.org/mailman/options/ mosaic_literacyworkshop.org. ___ Mosaic mailing list Mosaic@literacyworkshop.org To unsubscribe or modify your membership please go to http://literacyworkshop.org/mailman/options/mosaic_literacyworkshop.org.
Re: [MOSAIC] Long Links in email - use tinyurl.com
An added comment: I prefer the brackets ( and ) because at least I know what I'm sending. I have always been leary of tiny url. I don't know how they do this, except that they use javascript. And they have no privacy policy posted. And I don't know what's in a tiny url -- tracking code, for example? Something has to happen on their server -- your click has to go through them. So what's up here? When someone clicks on a tiny url link in an email, my understanding is that there is code running in the background. I assume that there is a trade-off here -- that tiny url is getting something from this transaction, and they aren't telling anyone what that is. Makes me nervous. Just my paranoid two cents. Dave Middlebrook The Textmapping Project A resource for teachers improving reading comprehension skills instruction. www.textmapping.org | Please share this site with your colleagues! USA: (609) 771-1781 [EMAIL PROTECTED] - Original Message - From: Keith Mack [EMAIL PROTECTED] To: 'Mosaic: A Reading Comprehension Strategies Listserv' mosaic@literacyworkshop.org Sent: Sunday, September 17, 2006 12:22 PM Subject: [MOSAIC] Long Links in email - use tinyurl.com One thing to think about when posting URL or web links to a listserv is how will this link look to 1000+ people? We had several instances of broken links that have come across to the list. This happens when a really LONG URL looks fine when you paste it, but then is broken up in the translation of sending and then eventually to what the recipient sees. Example of broken link (this looked fine when I pasted it): http://www.sandwich.k12.ma.us/District%20Guided%20Reading%20Program. pdf#search=%22defining%20guided%20reading %22 SOLUTION - use http://www.tinyurl.com TinyURL takes a really long link and makes is into a link that is much friendlier in email. The long URL above becomes: http://tinyurl.com/k65tb. This is useable by our 1000+ member community where the long URL is not. REASONING 1. Communication - you want people on this list to be able to click and find the resource, not to spend time trying to trace what the URL really is. 2. Prevents the annoying The link you sent does work! message from being sent out to 1000's of members again and again. (Thankfully this hasn't happened yet - whew) Another one that I use is http://snipurl.com/. Does the same thing, but allows me to keep my own list of links. So, when you paste a great link in a message to this list, take a look at how it wraps. My rule is that if link is that half of a line of text is OK for a URL. Longer than half a line I use http://www.tinyurl.com. It just takes a few seconds and can save us all a lot of time and server resources. IF a link doesn't work, resist the urge to hit reply. Instead, contact the INDIVIDUAL not the entire list and let them know about the problem. Thanks, Keith Mack Web Administrator for Mosaic Listserv [EMAIL PROTECTED] Office 360.398.2479 Mobile 360.739.6477 Fax 360.398.2679 ___ Mosaic mailing list Mosaic@literacyworkshop.org To unsubscribe or modify your membership please go to http://literacyworkshop.org/mailman/options/mosaic_literacyworkshop.org. ___ Mosaic mailing list Mosaic@literacyworkshop.org To unsubscribe or modify your membership please go to http://literacyworkshop.org/mailman/options/mosaic_literacyworkshop.org.
[MOSAIC] Bonita: Gallagher's Deeper Meaning
In a message dated 9/17/2006 12:17:36 P.M. Central Daylight Time, [EMAIL PROTECTED] writes: I will be happy to talk more about this if folks are interested in ways Gallagher does it and ways I am trying to do it. -- Bonita, I would love to hear more about Gallagher's ways of using strategies in a separate application. I looked him up, and it looks like I'm going to have to spend more money. His other book, Reading Reasons looks very worthwhile as well, giving 9 lessons on reasons WHY students need to use strategies. Sherry ___ Mosaic mailing list Mosaic@literacyworkshop.org To unsubscribe or modify your membership please go to http://literacyworkshop.org/mailman/options/mosaic_literacyworkshop.org.
Re: [MOSAIC] more grading
Gina I am going to respond to your email in parts because you have given me much to think about and react to... Gina writes: Jennifer I love that you keep holding this up in different light. I have had a difficult time getting people to engage in this grading discussion, I think because it is so thorny as to be disturbing, and aren't our jobs tough enough already? But I believe that ease of assessing and confidence in a report card have a direct correlation with what we're willing to do in our teaching. Over and over I see teachers falling back on poor methods of teaching BECAUSE they offer easy methods of grading, and in today's world I find myself continuously faced with parents who expect me to explain my grading. (as they should) I am simply not sure any longer what my explanation is. I so agree with you about people falling back on poor methods of teaching because they offer easy methods of grading... but I also think that very few of us have ever had training on effective ways to evaluate or grade! Most of us only really know how WE have been graded. Many of us have been questioned by parents so often that we seek the comfort of a numerical score on a test because they are easily understood by a parent and therefore gets them off our back. We don't REALLY know how to grade and I am willing to be there are very few schools where all teachers are in agreement about what a grade really means. That is one thing I like about Rick Wormeli's book...(Fair Isn't Always Equal: Assessing and Grading in a Differentiated Classroom) He attempts to define a grade as a representation of mastery of standards...therefore things like effort and practice muddle the picture and don't really show mastery. For example, if a child really knows how to visualize and has mastery of that, but failed to turn in a homework assignment and receives a zero for it, his grade will be less than an A, but that A tells more about his workhabits than his understanding of curricular content. Therefore, we don't give zeros for assignments that are not turned in. He also talks about the importance of teachers doing just what we are doing now...discussing grading and evaluation and coming to some sort of consensus within a building or district of what the grades actually mean. In the end, I guess, it comes down to student achievement...does our current method of grading motivate kids to achieve? Does it give them feedback so they know how they are doing? Definitely questions worth thinking about. Gina wrote: I don't think a lot of us do grade according to our reading philosophies. I think we grade according to the constraints of time and the reporting system itself, i.e. ONE numbera percent to represent a process of thinking???!!! I think I am fairly intelligent, but this one has me over a barrel. And as passionate as I am about teaching reading is thinking, you should see the things I will do to get a number on that report card. Am I alone? No, you are definitely not alone...me too. I am forced to have grades in my gradebook that are numerical and so rubric scores get converted...and other horrible travesties that I do because I don't know what else to do... We, at least, are struggling with this issue as 'thinking teachers.' I still believe, however, that the reason we are forced into this is because administrators and community members have a definition of reading and reading instruction that is far different from ours...that good readers are the ones that can read hard words and if they can read hard words, comprehension will automatically follow. It is this philosophy of testing and teaching what is measureable rather than what is important that puts us in a bind. Gina writes: I am not sure if I think scoring a process or the application is best. Deciding if a child is proficient at visualizing, or connecting is a slippery slope. But asking a child to understand a theme, or the importance of rising action by substantiating thoughts with strategies seems closer to our purpose. Gina, I am thinking that maybe this all comes down to Ellin's post again about providing challenging text. I think there is an important role for application...can students use strategies to understand text...yet I worry that if they already understand a text...the theme etc, without application of strategies then maybe they haven't learned anything at all. SO...if we are sure to provide rich, complex text then maybe assessing both the process of understanding (the strategy usage) and the application of strategies to find the theme, etc would give us the best of both worlds. For me it is simply thinking of those activities that demand the right things from the readers. I would love to hear just a list of the kinds of application work some of you score to use as a grade. Is it process work
Re: [MOSAIC] reflections-grading--long post
Bonita Could you give some examples of projects? This really intrigues me. Jennifer Maryland In a message dated 9/17/2006 1:17:36 P.M. Eastern Standard Time, [EMAIL PROTECTED] writes: Now, I am examining this year how to bring such grading applications into my reading instruction. I want applications that are not based solely upon teacher or text based comprehension questions, but rather a formal way to integrate the outcome of strategy use into a project that IS turned in (in some form) and graded--perhaps the discussion the children have will itself be the project ( I am imagining the use of tape recordings and a checklist/rubric--still working on it at the elementary level). Last year we used wonderful projects with our reading, but often when grading the particular projects I felt it was unrelated to the actual reading--the projects were more about integration of subjects. I want to create more directed stuff like Gallagher does in his senior classroom. I will be happy to talk more about this if folks are interested in ways Gallagher does it and ways I am trying to do it. -- Sincerely, Bonita DeAmicis ___ Mosaic mailing list Mosaic@literacyworkshop.org To unsubscribe or modify your membership please go to http://literacyworkshop.org/mailman/options/mosaic_literacyworkshop.org.
[MOSAIC] TEACHING TOOLS link
Remember to visit our TEACHING TOOLS webpage to find great resources for your teaching. www.readinglady.com/mosaic/tools/tools.htm Ginger moderator ___ Mosaic mailing list Mosaic@literacyworkshop.org To unsubscribe or modify your membership please go to http://literacyworkshop.org/mailman/options/mosaic_literacyworkshop.org.
Re: [MOSAIC] Portfolio Assessment
I, too, am interested in this. If you have something to share, please send it to me. I have been having the children self assess their reading tests (2nd grade) and have found that they are able to identify their area of need and just careless mistakes. I am using these self assessments to teach right there questions and think deeper questions. It is amazing to see the difference over a few weeks. I want to expand into more areas! Thanks, Julie/2nd/FL On Sep 16, 2006, at 6:49 PM, [EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote: Hi all, I'm interested in assessing using self-evaluations and portfolios as I saw used at Nancie Atwell's Center for Teaching and Learning. I feel this would be a great way to show kids' growth in using the strategies with literature. I'm trying to amass ideas on what to include in a reading workshop portfolio. Do any of you use them? Please share the particulars. Thanks! Kelly W Grade 6/CT ___ Mosaic mailing list Mosaic@literacyworkshop.org To unsubscribe or modify your membership please go to http:// literacyworkshop.org/mailman/options/mosaic_literacyworkshop.org. ___ Mosaic mailing list Mosaic@literacyworkshop.org To unsubscribe or modify your membership please go to http://literacyworkshop.org/mailman/options/mosaic_literacyworkshop.org.
Re: [MOSAIC] reflections-grading
Kelli, I'm just curious. What grade do you teach? - Original Message - From: RICHARD THEXTON [EMAIL PROTECTED] To: Mosaic: A Reading Comprehension Strategies Listserv mosaic@literacyworkshop.org Sent: Sunday, September 17, 2006 3:05 PM Subject: Re: [MOSAIC] reflections-grading As with any strategy, I like to start with a read aloud where I think outloud about my thinking. I always read the book ahead of time and mark a few spot where I will make a mistake. As good readers, we don't naturally make mistakes, so I have to mark those spots to remind myself:) As with any explicit instruction, I always explain to students what I am going to be teaching them thru my think aloud 1st. Another thing that I do that I read about in Reading with Meaning is to explain to children that when Im reading to them I will hold the book up, but when they see me lay the book on my lap, they will know I am thinking outloud about my thinking. Listening to that little me! As I make mistakes, I, first of all, NOTICE that that did not sound right, or make sense, or when I really look at that, it doesn't look right. (I love the clunk or chunk!) Then I think outloud about what I could try to fix it up I have cut and pasted the section from The Reading Lady about the explicit instruction for Fix Up Strategies This was what I actually used for my 1st Monitoring Comprehension lesson. · Read a chosen text. · Explain Fix-Up strategies (When I don't understand what I read, I do certain things to make sure that I understand before I continue reading.) · On a chart with Fix-Up Strategies at top, record what you do to monitor and repair comprehension during think alouds while reading various texts. (For example: notice when understanding is lost, stop and go back to clarify thinking, reread to enhance understanding, read ahead to clarify meaning, identify and talk about what is confusing about the text, recognize that all questions about a text have value, sound it out, speak to another reader, read the text aloud, go slow.) · Read and stop for 2-3 think alouds. (While I reading ___, I realized that I didn't understand_so I used the Fix-Up strategy _to help me understand. · Explain that the purpose of Fix-Up strategies is to monitor and repair comprehension while listening to and reading text. · Send students off to Independent Reading and remind them to use Fix-Up strategies. The thing that I do differently, especially if we are reading a story out of a basal, is to send off those who can read the story independently with a buddy. The other students who are below grade level, or English Language Learners, I keep with me and continue to read the passage aloud, letting them monitor my mistakes and help decide what I might try to fix it up. After we have read part of the passage, we always come back together discuss the story itself and then discuss how we applied the strategy. During familiar reading time, when students are practicing reading at their indepedent reading level, I always remind them to apply the strategy we've been learning. They hold onto their thinking by placing post-it's where they monitored, or record their monitoring in the reading response journal. Of course, I have modeled this MANY times prior to sending them off to do it on their own. Hope this is helpful! Kelli Thexton jepilyn matthis [EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote: Talk a little more about how you teach monitoring. I would love to hear your ideas. - Original Message - From: RICHARD THEXTON To: Mosaic: A Reading Comprehension Strategies Listserv Sent: Sunday, September 17, 2006 9:56 AM Subject: Re: [MOSAIC] reflections-grading I always like to start with Monitoring. If kids don't grasp what they are reading, then the rest of the strategies really won't help. I have way too many kids that read something that makes absolutely NO sense and just keep right on going! 1st and foremost I want them to learn to listen to what it is they are reading and make sure what they just read makes sense! I want them to notice when it doesn't make sense or sound right or look right! THEN we can move on to deeper understanding. Susan Walters wrote: Veronica in texas. When you say you are starting at the beginning do you mean with connections??? I am 3rd grade and am starting the 3rd week of school. My kids seem to have a good grasp of story elements and summary. I was going to begin connections this week. Explicitly showing my thinking and working through texts together. I was beginning with the pain and the great one or my rotten redheaded older brother. We have been talking about the inner voice but many of my kids have not heard of the strategies. We are focusing how it helps us understand - Original Message - From: To: Sent: Sunday, September 17, 2006 7:41 AM Subject:
Re: [MOSAIC] more grading
Gina and Jennifer, I love the discussion going on in regard to grading and assessment. Having just attended a conference on assessment, the speaker was very clear about not grading on participation, attendance, being prepared with materials and supplies, and homework done for practice. At times homework is unfinished class work, such as a writing being used for assessment. Gina made a comment Therefore, we don't give zeros for assignments that are not turned in. That is hard to swallow for those of us who need to prepare students. I explain this to my students every year to the fact that you won't ever be able to play the piano very well, if you don't practice. Some will have a natural talent, yet others will struggle just to move their fingers. The larger question in this issue is the one everyone is thinking.How do you motivate kids to turn in their work if they don't receive credit for it? Once they catch on to the fact that you won't give a zero for a missing assignment, why bother to do it? I struggle with that also. Ann ___ Mosaic mailing list Mosaic@literacyworkshop.org To unsubscribe or modify your membership please go to http://literacyworkshop.org/mailman/options/mosaic_literacyworkshop.org.
[MOSAIC] digest
Please change me to digest!!! Thankk you. - Yahoo! Messenger with Voice. Make PC-to-Phone Calls to the US (and 30+ countries) for 2¢/min or less. ___ Mosaic mailing list Mosaic@literacyworkshop.org To unsubscribe or modify your membership please go to http://literacyworkshop.org/mailman/options/mosaic_literacyworkshop.org.
Re: [MOSAIC] more grading
I certainly see that point Ann. I teach third--we don't grade homework--we check it together in class. But if a student doesn't turn it in they miss part of their recess to do it. This is to reinforce the concept being taught as well as the concept that work assigned needs to be done--and brought back. Grownups can be fired from their jobs if their boss asks them to do something and they don't do it. -Original Message- From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] On Behalf Of Ann Sent: Sunday, September 17, 2006 4:16 PM To: Mosaic: A Reading Comprehension Strategies Listserv Subject: Re: [MOSAIC] more grading Gina and Jennifer, I love the discussion going on in regard to grading and assessment. Having just attended a conference on assessment, the speaker was very clear about not grading on participation, attendance, being prepared with materials and supplies, and homework done for practice. At times homework is unfinished class work, such as a writing being used for assessment. Gina made a comment Therefore, we don't give zeros for assignments that are not turned in. That is hard to swallow for those of us who need to prepare students. I explain this to my students every year to the fact that you won't ever be able to play the piano very well, if you don't practice. Some will have a natural talent, yet others will struggle just to move their fingers. The larger question in this issue is the one everyone is thinking.How do you motivate kids to turn in their work if they don't receive credit for it? Once they catch on to the fact that you won't give a zero for a missing assignment, why bother to do it? I struggle with that also. Ann ___ Mosaic mailing list Mosaic@literacyworkshop.org To unsubscribe or modify your membership please go to http://literacyworkshop.org/mailman/options/mosaic_literacyworkshop.org. ___ Mosaic mailing list Mosaic@literacyworkshop.org To unsubscribe or modify your membership please go to http://literacyworkshop.org/mailman/options/mosaic_literacyworkshop.org.
Re: [MOSAIC] more on grading
I think I get what you are saying, Ann. Unfortunately, benchmarks and standards in reading in our state are not really written in a clear enough manner to determine what, exactly, constitutes an A, B or C especially in something so difficult to rank as qualities of reading at a particular grade level. Unfortunately, we do not have a standards checklist as a reporting method in our school district and there seems to be no interest in doing do. So our report card method and the standards as they are written provide little help to us in terms of providing an objective measure of evaluating a reader at a particular grade level, nor in terms of motivating students, nor in terms of communicating with parents. If California did turn the standards into a mastery checklist that would be one awfully extensive report card and it might still be too wiggly to use as measureable. The state would need to be much more defined in terms of what specific differences they are looking for at a given grade level (they look very similar from grade to grade in the reading arena). So I am left wondering what the purpose of our report card really is. We do have fluency benchmarks, but that seems an unfair way to determine an entire reading grade just because fluency happens to be so easy to put a number on. Instead grading could be a ranking system of what fifth graders are doing in my class--but this is also quite subjective and not exactly defining how a child is doing in reading. Hmmm, math is so much easier with all those percent grades (of course as soon as I consider math communication, math gets sticky, too). I guess I could just give comprehension quizzes and use reading comprehension grades--th at would make it much easier on me. But not much closer to the reality of a child's reading in my classroom. Plenty of children answer poorly on a written comprehension test that actually read quite proficiently. I decided, instead, to begin to include effort as part of the reading grade--though I do not use homework nor every reading assignment to determine effort--nor do I let effort determine the whole grade. I do use checklists and assignments and such that align with what I am trying to achieve in reading instruction. What I am looking for ALSO is effort at applying what I am teaching about strategies and reading. Students can get immediate feedback from me on this in most assignments and I see no reason to leave it out of their grade. I felt better about doing this after hearing/reading about the research on effective literacy teachers. In the research they talked about the effective teachers commonly include effort in their achievement grades. Then I felt a little better. If teachers of that caliber are doing it, perhaps I am not all wrong to do it as well (of course, perhaps I misread the research and someone on this list will quickly set me straight:)--I am always open to heari ng it differently). Ideally, I would probably prefer a standards-based mastery checklist to the traditional report cards that my district uses. Then effort could be more easily separated and I could understand why teachers would be comfortable with that separation. In my case, I think effort and achievement need not be so severely separated due to the equally amorphous nature of any alternative that I might choose when trying to grade reading with an A, B, C, N or U. -- Sincerely, Bonita DeAmicis California, Grade 5 I also forgot to add that effort should never be used in a grade. What state has a benchmark for effort Using your state benchmarks as a guide, you need to set up a checklist of skills/strategies, or lists of assignments that correlate. Teachers need to remember that we are assessing whether or not students meet our curricular standards which should align to state benchmarks. That will help make your classroom planning and assessing clearer. Ann ___ Mosaic mailing list Mosaic@literacyworkshop.org To unsubscribe or modify your membership please go to http://literacyworkshop.org/mailman/options/mosaic_literacyworkshop.org.
Re: [MOSAIC] more grading-Cooperative Literacy
I would love to hear more about cooperative literacy. Is there a book or website? How did you get trained? -- Sincerely, Bonita DeAmicis Highlands, Grade 5 -- Original message -- From: Mary Lou [EMAIL PROTECTED] Has anyone on the list heard of or are practitioners of Cooperative Literacy? Cooperative Literacy was developed by Ron Klemp. He uses both cooperative learning and literacy strategies. Groups, called pods, are formed for 5 weeks at a time. Social skills and responsibility toward learning are explicitly taught. Daily and weekly points are awarded for cooperative efforts in learning. These points translate into more tangible recognition each week. As such, one can help children recognize more natural consequences to missed assignments, or lack of responsibility during class. It is possible to grow students outside of the grading system. Would love to hear from anyone who knows of Cooperative Literacy-I love it and have practiced it for several years. Mary Lou Rhode Island ___ Mosaic mailing list Mosaic@literacyworkshop.org To unsubscribe or modify your membership please go to http://literacyworkshop.org/mailman/options/mosaic_literacyworkshop.org. ___ Mosaic mailing list Mosaic@literacyworkshop.org To unsubscribe or modify your membership please go to http://literacyworkshop.org/mailman/options/mosaic_literacyworkshop.org. ___ Mosaic mailing list Mosaic@literacyworkshop.org To unsubscribe or modify your membership please go to http://literacyworkshop.org/mailman/options/mosaic_literacyworkshop.org.
Re: [MOSAIC] more on grading
Bonita, I really liked what you said in your response. I think a completely standards based checklist would be very lengthy. I believe I've been determining each student's effort grade in a similar matter to you. Each student earns their academic way via tests, quizzes, post-it notes, etc. However, when I record a student's effort grade I look over the notes I've taken throughout the trimester and my gut feeling on whether or not that student is putting effort into that assignment. For example, I had a student last year who consistently earned Bs on each of her spelling assignments. Although she did not earn an A in the class, I put recorded her effort grade as a 1 (our highest effort grade) because she put so much effort into earning that B. She worked much harder than some of my students who breezed right through the spelling tests. Is this making sense to anyone? Sometimes I feel like I'm in no man's land with all of you smart teachers out there! I love it when you help a newbie (like me!) out! :) Lisa/IL/5th [EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote: I think I get what you are saying, Ann. Unfortunately, benchmarks and standards in reading in our state are not really written in a clear enough manner to determine what, exactly, constitutes an A, B or C especially in something so difficult to rank as qualities of reading at a particular grade level. Unfortunately, we do not have a standards checklist as a reporting method in our school district and there seems to be no interest in doing do. So our report card method and the standards as they are written provide little help to us in terms of providing an objective measure of evaluating a reader at a particular grade level, nor in terms of motivating students, nor in terms of communicating with parents. If California did turn the standards into a mastery checklist that would be one awfully extensive report card and it might still be too wiggly to use as measureable. The state would need to be much more defined in terms of what specific differences they are looking for at a given grade level (they look very similar from grade to grade in the reading arena). So I am left wondering what the purpose of our report card really is. We do have fluency benchmarks, but that seems an unfair way to determine an entire reading grade just because fluency happens to be so easy to put a number on. Instead grading could be a ranking system of what fifth graders are doing in my class--but this is also quite subjective and not exactly defining how a child is doing in reading. Hmmm, math is so much easier with all those percent grades (of course as soon as I consider math communication, math gets sticky, too). I guess I could just give comprehension quizzes and use reading comprehension grades--th at would make it much easier on me. But not much closer to the reality of a child's reading in my classroom. Plenty of children answer poorly on a written comprehension test that actually read quite proficiently. I decided, instead, to begin to include effort as part of the reading grade--though I do not use homework nor every reading assignment to determine effort--nor do I let effort determine the whole grade. I do use checklists and assignments and such that align with what I am trying to achieve in reading instruction. What I am looking for ALSO is effort at applying what I am teaching about strategies and reading. Students can get immediate feedback from me on this in most assignments and I see no reason to leave it out of their grade. I felt better about doing this after hearing/reading about the research on effective literacy teachers. In the research they talked about the effective teachers commonly include effort in their achievement grades. Then I felt a little better. If teachers of that caliber are doing it, perhaps I am not all wrong to do it as well (of course, perhaps I misread the research and someone on this list will quickly set me straight:)--I am always open to heari ng it differently). Ideally, I would probably prefer a standards-based mastery checklist to the traditional report cards that my district uses. Then effort could be more easily separated and I could understand why teachers would be comfortable with that separation. In my case, I think effort and achievement need not be so severely separated due to the equally amorphous nature of any alternative that I might choose when trying to grade reading with an A, B, C, N or U. -- Sincerely, Bonita DeAmicis California, Grade 5 I also forgot to add that effort should never be used in a grade. What state has a benchmark for effort Using your state benchmarks as a guide, you need to set up a checklist of skills/strategies, or lists of assignments that correlate. Teachers need to remember that we are assessing whether or not students meet our curricular standards which should align to state benchmarks. That will help make
Re: [MOSAIC] Bonita: Gallagher's Deeper Meaning
I must have missed the first post on this, but I would love to hear more about Gallagher's Deep Meaning and how you apply it in your classroom. Thanks Dollie ___ Mosaic mailing list Mosaic@literacyworkshop.org To unsubscribe or modify your membership please go to http://literacyworkshop.org/mailman/options/mosaic_literacyworkshop.org.
Re: [MOSAIC] short story collections
I am loving Guys Read by Jon Scieszka. I've only read a few of the stories so far, but I'm loving it. Dollie/5th/GA ___ Mosaic mailing list Mosaic@literacyworkshop.org To unsubscribe or modify your membership please go to http://literacyworkshop.org/mailman/options/mosaic_literacyworkshop.org.
[MOSAIC] (no subject)
I would like to go back to digest form!! Can't keep up! ___ Mosaic mailing list Mosaic@literacyworkshop.org To unsubscribe or modify your membership please go to http://literacyworkshop.org/mailman/options/mosaic_literacyworkshop.org.
Re: [MOSAIC] Teaching Strategy Instruction and OCR
Hi Tracy, Pat and anyone who wants to join in, I would love to continue this conversation on the listserv. As I grapple with the issue of OCR and Strategy Instruction I am wondering how to start. I feel like my kids do have somewhat of an idea that readers think about what they are reading (almost all of my kids have had OCR level K in kinder). I have a read a few of Kevin Henkes books and modeled my own thinking, primarily text to self and text to text connections. A few of the kids shared their connections. This has really led me to think that although OCR is focusing (for the most part) on visualizing in Unit 1 and then Asking Questions, that I may be better off really focusing on Schema through my read alouds and when appropriate in the OCR selection. I am also thinking I will set aside two days of workshop time to focus on comprehension strategies and the other 3 days on decoding, high frequency words and fluency. I am really torn as I know what makes sense and is good instruction and teaching but it is hard to a line that with what I have to do. Any thoughts? Does what I am thinking make sense or am I off track here? Michelle/1/CA ___ Mosaic mailing list Mosaic@literacyworkshop.org To unsubscribe or modify your membership please go to http://literacyworkshop.org/mailman/options/mosaic_literacyworkshop.org.
[MOSAIC] PowerPoints
Be sure to check out the PowerPoints that our members have shared with us on the TEACHING TOOLS page at: www.readinglady.com/mosaic/tools/tools.htm#powerpoint There is one called: Check Your Understanding that goes along with the current thread some of you are having on the list about teaching if you are understanding or not (monitoring). Ginger moderator ___ Mosaic mailing list Mosaic@literacyworkshop.org To unsubscribe or modify your membership please go to http://literacyworkshop.org/mailman/options/mosaic_literacyworkshop.org.
Re: [MOSAIC] reflections-grading
I was a CELL (California Early Literacy Learning ) Literacy Coordinator. I know they branched out to other states. Are you affiliated with CELL (which is now called the Comprehensive Lit. Learning, I believe.) ? Who are your trainers? Carol -- Original message -- From: RICHARD THEXTON [EMAIL PROTECTED] Currently I'm a literacy coach in a K-5 building. Previously, I taught Reading Recovery. I also teach a program called Early Literacy Learning for Arkansas (ELLA) to K-1 teachers in our district. It's a great, 2 year professional development opportunity for teachers that focuses on the Comprehensive Literacy Model. My classroom experiences range from Pre-school, K, 1st and 3rd. Felicia Barra [EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote: Kelli, I'm just curious. What grade do you teach? - Original Message - From: RICHARD THEXTON To: Mosaic: A Reading Comprehension Strategies Listserv Sent: Sunday, September 17, 2006 3:05 PM Subject: Re: [MOSAIC] reflections-grading As with any strategy, I like to start with a read aloud where I think outloud about my thinking. I always read the book ahead of time and mark a few spot where I will make a mistake. As good readers, we don't naturally make mistakes, so I have to mark those spots to remind myself:) As with any explicit instruction, I always explain to students what I am going to be teaching them thru my think aloud 1st. Another thing that I do that I read about in Reading with Meaning is to explain to children that when Im reading to them I will hold the book up, but when they see me lay the book on my lap, they will know I am thinking outloud about my thinking. Listening to that little me! As I make mistakes, I, first of all, NOTICE that that did not sound right, or make sense, or when I really look at that, it doesn't look right. (I love the clunk or chunk!) Then I think outloud about what I could try to fix it up I have cut and pasted the section from The Reading Lady about the explicit instruction for Fix Up Strategies This was what I actually used for my 1st Monitoring Comprehension lesson. · Read a chosen text. · Explain Fix-Up strategies (When I don't understand what I read, I do certain things to make sure that I understand before I continue reading.) · On a chart with Fix-Up Strategies at top, record what you do to monitor and repair comprehension during think alouds while reading various texts. (For example: notice when understanding is lost, stop and go back to clarify thinking, reread to enhance understanding, read ahead to clarify meaning, identify and talk about what is confusing about the text, recognize that all questions about a text have value, sound it out, speak to another reader, read the text aloud, go slow.) · Read and stop for 2-3 think alouds. (While I reading ___, I realized that I didn't understand_so I used the Fix-Up strategy _to help me understand. · Explain that the purpose of Fix-Up strategies is to monitor and repair comprehension while listening to and reading text. · Send students off to Independent Reading and remind them to use Fix-Up strategies. The thing that I do differently, especially if we are reading a story out of a basal, is to send off those who can read the story independently with a buddy. The other students who are below grade level, or English Language Learners, I keep with me and continue to read the passage aloud, letting them monitor my mistakes and help decide what I might try to fix it up. After we have read part of the passage, we always come back together discuss the story itself and then discuss how we applied the strategy. During familiar reading time, when students are practicing reading at their indepedent reading level, I always remind them to apply the strategy we've been learning. They hold onto their thinking by placing post-it's where they monitored, or record their monitoring in the reading response journal. Of course, I have modeled this MANY times prior to sending them off to do it on their own. Hope this is helpful! Kelli Thexton jepilyn matthis wrote: Talk a little more about how you teach monitoring. I would love to hear your ideas. - Original Message - From: RICHARD THEXTON To: Mosaic: A Reading Comprehension Strategies Listserv Sent: Sunday, September 17, 2006 9:56 AM Subject: Re: [MOSAIC] reflections-grading I always like to start with Monitoring. If kids don't grasp what they are reading, then the rest of the strategies really won't help. I have way too many kids that read something that makes absolutely NO sense and just keep right on going! 1st and foremost I want them to learn to listen to what it is they are reading and make sure what they just read makes sense! I want them to notice when it doesn't make sense or sound right or look right! THEN we can
Re: [MOSAIC] grades and levels
http://polsellikindergarten.tripod.com/Comprehension%20Strategies/Planting%2 0a%20Literacy%20Garden%20under%20construction.htm Try that, Stef. If it doesn't work, because the URL is too long, try shortening it to the main URL... http://polsellikindergarten.tripod.com then scroll down to Planting a Literacy Garden---on the right. Barbara/6th/FL -Original Message- Behalf Of Stef Rann Hi - I am unable to get this website. I have copied and pasted the 2nd line of the address but with no luck Cheers thanks Stef Rann ___ Mosaic mailing list Mosaic@literacyworkshop.org To unsubscribe or modify your membership please go to http://literacyworkshop.org/mailman/options/mosaic_literacyworkshop.org.
