After Class Four

Great class yesterday! We are working well and getting through a lot of key ideas in teaching reading. Our list of activities is growing for each of the stages of learning to read. We put this list into practice and created a vocabulary lesson that allowed for differentiation -- we incorporated other stages of reading into the lesson without breaking the flow of the main lesson. In this way we could continue to teach struggling readers at their level as well as challenge advanced readers. We also read a case study on "Nathan" and how researchers involved him in his understanding of miscues, which helped advance his reading skills. Lastly, we heard about an online program RAZ Kids (image) that sounded interesting. Here is the link: http://www.raz-kids.com/

Keep working on those papers and feel free to send me outlines/drafts. Have a great weekend.

After Class Three

In this class we covered some of the most important strategies for teaching reading in the early stages. We applied some of this knowledge in looking at children's magazines and creating impromptu reading lessons. We discussed some aspects of designing a lesson and everyone was able to put together worthwhile activities that were multilevel and flexible. Great work everyone!

As promised, here's the Hinky Pinky website: http://www.beavton.k12.or.us/jacob_wismer/leahy/2001/hinkypinky/hinkypinky.htm You can also have a look at our class website for many more links to sites dedicated to particular areas of reading: http://www.sfu.ca/~smbarber/resource.htm

For homework, please read Chapter Five in CMCM and the handout, Chapter 13 in R&P. Please fill in the other handout, and match stages of reading with activities (front side of paper). You can look through the readings and fill in concrete activities. Next time we will share what we've found. Also, you can send me a rough description of your topic for your paper in the next couple of weeks. Lastly, please bring your textbook to class next time. Enjoy the great weather!

After Class Two

Hello,

In class yesterday we discussed Emergent Literacy and how children learn phonemic awareness, which prepares them for phonics. We also surveyed a variety of children's books and found out how they could be used in reading instruction. I was not able to borrow the book to the left from the library, but it is the "predictable big book" our textbook often mentions.
For homework, please read Chapter 4 in our textbook (CMCM) and the three chapters in the handout --Rasinski, Timothy and Padak, Nancy(2001). From Phonics to Fluency. (Chapters 4,5, & 6) Together these four chapters are critical for understanding how children begin to read. Especially note the activities that match each of the stages. We will be talking about this next class and making some charts. Please bring your textbook and the handout to class next time.
Have a great long weekend!

After Class One

Hello everyone,

Very nice to meet you yesterday and I feel like we're off to a great start. Today I'm sending the blog invitations, so please log in and try posting an introduction. Just tell us a bit about yourself, where you are in PDP, what you hope to teach and most importantly, what your plans are for the summer! We'll take a week to get used to using the blog and next week we'll begin our Reading postings.

Also for homework this week is to read Chapters 1 & 2 in our course textbook and have a look at the syllabus. See you next Thursday! (Happy Mother's Day to all the moms out there.)