This discussion couldn't have come at a better time for me. In our district, all new 1st year teachers meet montly to discuss Mosaic of Thought. They are given MOT2 the day they are hired. But in the past, these same teachers were pretty much then left on their own the next year, as the district focused on the next group of new hires.
I'm proud to say that this year, the group is still receiving extra professional development. They are now 2nd year teachers, and they will meet monthly as a group. I've been asked to moderate/facilitate their meetings (so exciting!) and my asst. superintendent has given them all a copy of To Understand. My initial reaction was that they are not ready for this. I've been teaching 8 years, and To Understand was an intense read for me my first time through. But after thinking about those teachers, I thought now is the perfect time for them to delve in! Now is the perfect time to take them deeper. Even though the ideas in To Understand are BIG ideas, shouldn't they be thinking BIG? Even if they are not quite ready to implement those ideas in their classrooms, shouldn't they at the very least be thinking about understanding and how to "get their kids there"? Sooo.... we are going to spend this year revisiting MOT while simultaneously discussing To Understand. A lofty agenda, I know. Our first meeting is tomorrow, so I'm sure I'll be back here with updates/questions/things to ponder..... Dana Murphy ----- Original Message ---- From: jan sanders <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> To: "Special Chat List for "To Understand: New Horizons in ReadingComprehension"" <understand@literacyworkshop.org> Sent: Sunday, September 28, 2008 3:12:02 PM Subject: Re: [Understand] Beginning with Chapter One I am thinking back to when I read Mosaic -I devoured it. I was in my 4th year of teaching. I'm not sure how I would have reacted year 1 or 2, but I was so ready when I did read it. I am the type of person who needs the background knowledge -I NEEDED to read the book before I tried it -even if a coach was showing me (and there was a coach). I was fortunate because my district then sent me to Denver to the PEBC week long workshop -with my coach! That being said, I was a coach the last 6 years (back in the classroom this year because of budget cuts) and whenever I was going to coach someone or model a technique or strategy, I had them read something about it -usually just 1 or 2 pages -and we had a discussion before and after the lesson. I think reading about it is so important. I realize teachers are busy, that is why I would give them just 1 or 2 pages to read. I have just begun reading to understand, but I feel that if I were still coaching, I would lead my teachers to this level of thinking. Think of the payout. Take it in little manageable chunks and build upon it. Mosaic was great, I am finding To Understand powerful. Jan We must view young people not as empty bottles to be filled, but as candles to be lit. -Robert Shaffer ----- Original Message ----- From: [EMAIL PROTECTED]<mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]> To: understand@literacyworkshop.org<mailto:understand@literacyworkshop.org> Sent: Sunday, September 28, 2008 11:50 AM Subject: Re: [Understand] Beginning with Chapter One Wow, Judy! When you say green, you mean GREEN. I didn't mean to insinuate that you are leaving these new teachers to their own devices...I know better! :-) I just thought you might kill two birds with one stone. If you study comprehension strategies WITH the newbies, they get the background knowledge and you get the professional development that comes from the discussion as well. You know how you learn more about something by talking about it with peers? Well...maybe they are not ready for all that yet. Maybe what is best is to find out what the newbies think they need and start there. I still think that the tenants of Ellin's new book, To Understand, could and should be shared with them when they start to learn about teaching comprehension. Suppose, when they are ready, they learn to teach visualizing...couldn't they learn to teach some of the dimensions of understanding at the same time? Couldn't it be integrated into the lesson? I really don't know these new teachers, and I can't say I have tried to teach these dimensions of understanding to many of my own staff yet...so maybe I am really off base. It just seems to me that what Ellin is arguing for is NOT an add on...it should be an integral part of strategy instruction to begin with, shouldn't it? I think that the What's Essential model would be the best place to start with new teachers since isn't that the biggest problem new teachers have??? They never know what to teach first.... Please understand, Judy, I didn't mean to offend you! When I post a response, I can only respond to the information you include in each post. From hundreds of miles away, all we know is what you have originally written. Thanks for clarifying...and good luck! Jennifer In a message dated 9/28/2008 2:25:19 P.M. Eastern Daylight Time, [EMAIL PROTECTED]<mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]> writes: LOL, well, I didn't want to mention it, but you're right...classroom management is the #1 challenge for these darling newbies right now (and one is being criticized by parents for lack of). The coach began modeling lessons for them last week with the intention of showing how we manage our kids. Of course they're teaching, but there are so many hurdles just on Step #1. For those who think we two vets aren't helping the newbies, LOL, my district has been a forerunner in Collaboration and the collaborative model. We meet as a grade level for 3 hours once a week (kids at art/music/PE) with one meeting a month coached (used to be 2 coached before this year's budget cuts). We do lesson study and read together and learn together, but, ladies, these new teachers are GREEN. I work in a WONDERFUL school--believe me I know I'm blessed--where all teachers are very very very hard-working and dedicated. The new teachers work long hours and are trying very hard, but they don't even know what priorities are yet because they're so busy pedaling. Are we helping them? You bet! In addition to Collaboration time, we meet once a week to help them...and they're in my room daily with questions. We had 175 applications for these 2 positions and we value our newbies; maybe I'm wrong in thinking we can only pile on so much, but we didn't want to have them start te aching comprehension strategies when they haven't read ONE text yet. My friend and I revere (and use daily) Keene, Miller, Harvey/Goudvis, and Fountas/Pinnell. Daily. How can we expect these new teachers to teach comprehension strategies WITH NO BACKGROUND KNOWLEDGE? Lest you think I'm not trying, we had our first Collaboration on Thursday and we came up with our first cycle's focus: How does shared reading deepen comprehension? We plan to work on it with them, but it's hard for all of us. Do you think we should just push them into comprehension strategy instruction when they have NO prior knowledge and have done NO reading? Do you think they'll learn better by doing? Thanks, Judy **************Looking for simple solutions to your real-life financial challenges? Check out WalletPop for the latest news and information, tips and calculators. (http://www.walletpop.com/?NCID=emlcntuswall00000001<http://www.walletpop.com/?NCID=emlcntuswall00000001>) _______________________________________________ Understand mailing list Understand@literacyworkshop.org<mailto:Understand@literacyworkshop.org> http://literacyworkshop.org/mailman/listinfo/understand_literacyworkshop.org<http://literacyworkshop.org/mailman/listinfo/understand_literacyworkshop.org> _______________________________________________ Understand mailing list Understand@literacyworkshop.org http://literacyworkshop.org/mailman/listinfo/understand_literacyworkshop.org _______________________________________________ Understand mailing list Understand@literacyworkshop.org http://literacyworkshop.org/mailman/listinfo/understand_literacyworkshop.org
