Module 1: Powerpoint

After viewing the PowerPoint, I found it to be very beneficial for me because I wasn't familiar with some of the important terms listed. It is very useful to have the knowledge of what they are. Also, I now have a better understanding of the important terms with the descriptions of what they are. I've saved this PowerPoint  for future reference. Additionally,  it was helpful to have all the stages of reading development broken down with explanation of each stage.

I am familiar with RTI and would like to learn more about the process of RTI. Since I am not a classroom teacher, I have not had the chance to be involved in the process. I have sat in on a few RTI meetings at my school for some of my ESOL students. That brings me to consider more on the next topic on the PowerPoint on ELLs as struggling readers. I really like that it said it is important to know if the student struggled with literacy in their native language. I highly agree with this because I would consider many other factors before retaining the students in the same grade level because they struggle with reading. I would have someone to assess the students in their home language to be able to determine their area of weaknesses. It will help to know if the student also struggles with reading in their native language.

From my reading class in the summer semester I have gained a better understanding of the differences between a bottom up approach and a top down approach. This year I will implement the top down approach with reading instruction. I teach students phonics skills more in context rather in isolation. I know this top down approach will show an increase in students' learning.

Module 1: Watch & Learn: Assessing Reading Skills

This short video clip shows a teacher assessing a 10 year old student on her reading skills.  I think this video does a great job highlighting the most important part of reading instruction is assessing the students frequently to drive our  instruction. I believe that assessing the students can help us compile the data to see what the student is struggling with. Therefore, we can teach the reading strategy that will help the students tackle the  specific skill the student is struggling with. In the video, the teacher explains that the student is struggling with decoding the text, which hinder her comprehension skill. The teacher is unable to retell the story because she lacks fluency while reading the text. I think that the word list should be taught in context to help the students gain meaning to the words so that he/ she will be able to retain the word and its meaning. Recognizing and understanding the word meaning would help with gaining meaning of the text.

Module 6: Instructional Challenge

Next year, you will be teaching in a school where the vast majority of students did not meet standard on your state's criterion-referenced test and where more than 75% of the students are eligible for free and reduced-price meals. What are some specific universal literacy strategies you may implement to ensure students' success? Include both in-class examples and things you could do outside the classroom. 

I would implement the comprehensive literacy instruction in my classroom. Research has shown that comprehensive reading instruction benefits both proficient and less proficient readers and writers. Also, low-achieving children achieve more with comprehensive, whole-to parts instruction than with traditional, parts-to-whole reading instruction (Weaver, 2002, p.372). I would implement all components of a readers' workshop and writers' workshop. This program would offer students various opportunities to learn in whole-class, small-group, and individual settings. Students would have plenty of time to read books based on their interest and write stories on any topics. I believe allowing students time to practice reading is very important because they read to learn. Students would have opportunities to listen to stories during read-alouds and shared reading. Students would lead their own discussion about a book they read and share stories they have written with a partner,  in small group, or whole class. 

As well as incorporating the comprehensive literacy in my reading instruction, I would create a classroom library filled with multiple level books from all genres. I would set up a cozy library space for the students that includes things like pillows, bean bag chairs, and lamps. I would put posters up on the wall near the library to help students find just right books and strategies that would help them when they come to unfamiliar words when reading independently. In addition to the classroom library, I would set up literacy centers around the classroom. Some of the literacy centers could be listening center , writing center, word work, computer, SmartBoard, etc. 

To encourage students to read at home, I would send home printable books for students to keep at at home. Students would be allowed to check out books from the media center and classroom library. I would send home pamphlets that would have various activity ideas for both students and parents to do together. After a student reads a story, for instance they can create a script for readers' theater, make comic strips, act out a story, draw and write about the story. There are numerous interactive activities that goes beyond answering questions on a worksheet. If technology is available at home, parents and children can make movie, slideshows, digital books. 

Module 6: Reading Reflection

 Does any of the information presented in Chapter 15 influence your personal philosophy of reading? In what ways? How has your perspective changed since you took the DeFord TORP a few weeks ago?

I think the textbook Reading Process & Practice by Constance Weaver is an excellent book to help me become a more effective reading teacher. It was very enjoyable to read as well as informative for teacher development. It has influenced my personal philosophy of reading. I absolutely agree with Weaver that we have to have background knowledge about a topic in order for us to understanding the reading for about that topic. Having the background knowledge and experiences teaching in the classroom really helped make the reading from Weaver’s book more meaningful. Chapter 15 certainly summed it up for me with so many research based studied that compared the achievement in the comprehensive literacy approach versus the traditional reading instruction. The comprehensive literacy instruction is proven to be effective for proficient readers and less proficient readers.

After reading about the study done by Kucer (1985) in Chapter 15 on decodable text and predictable text. The study shows that the child reading with the predictable text had fewer oral reading miscues and better retelling of the story (as cited in Weaver,2002). While I was reading about decodable text versus predictable text, I thought about to the beginning of last school year. I started the out the year teaching with phonics lesson using decodable books with my kindergarteners. I used all the lesson plans provided by Reading a-z, which was very thorough. I thought it was the best approach for my struggling students that did not have the letter-sounds knowledge mastered yet. After a few weeks of implementing the phonics lesson plan, I noticed how bored the students were reading the decodable texts and how little improvement it had on their phonics skills. Therefore, I stopped using the decodable books because I myself found it to be boring and difficult to teach with them.  This make so much sense now after reading that decodable texts belong to the traditional, parts-to-whole approach. It is hard for the children to construct meaning when reading something that doesn’t make sense to them. This book was very influential in my teaching approach for this upcoming school year. 

When I first took the TORP, I was uncertain about several of the responses. Now, I can say that I can fill out all the responses with certainty and confidence after reading the book by Weaver.  I have learned so much from her book and I'm planning to refer back to her book for teaching strategies for effective reading instruction often during the school year. 

Personal Model of Reading Theory

Loan Le

EDRD 7715

7/17/2013

Personal Model of Reading Theory

            I believe children learn to read occurs even before they enter school. Children learn through life experiences, playing with peers, multimedia technology, and from adults.  Children’s first stage of literacy development is through reading environmental print in their daily lives. These are the first prints in their own environment that they are able to read by using the contextual clues from the environmental print. Besides learning from the world around them, they are exposed to technology at an early age. Technology is rapidly coming to every homes such as computer, mobile devices like iPad, Kindle, Tablet, Nook, and cell phones, etc. All these digital devices offer educational games/apps to help children learn to read. Also, parents or adults play a huge role in children’s first stage of literacy by reading to them daily and exposing them to multiple genres of literature. When parents read to their children orally, children are able to gain new vocabulary. Most importantly guiding the children to the understanding of why we need to learn to read and write. For instance, we learn to read so that we can read the menu at McDonald’s and order what we want to eat. When children know the purpose for learning reading, they are more motivated and have the desire to learn when they come to school.

 When students come to school, I think that it is vital for teachers to find innovated and effective strategies for reading instruction to teach all levels of learners. Children come in with diverse learning styles and cultural background. As teachers, we need to differentiate our reading instruction to meet the students’ individual needs. Make learning relevant to the children so that they are able to make connections and bring in their prior knowledge to help them learn to read.

The reading for this course was very insightful and I have gained so much from the reading which will enable me to be a more effective reading teacher. Constance Weaver’s text Reading Process & Practice was extremely beneficial in providing information about the reading process, research-based strategies for implementing literacy instruction to enable me to teach my students to become proficient and lifelong readers. I believe that the comprehensive literacy approach to teaching reading will help accomplish these goals. According to Weaver, “comprehensive literacy program is more integrative, with skills and strategies taught and used in context, and with emphasis upon the guided and sustained reading and writing of whole, meaningful texts, and emphasis that is sorely needed to help children become both functionally and joyfully literate”(2002,p.279). The comprehensive literacy approach has all of the components to help improve students’ literacy success with a balanced approach to teaching reading. A major component of comprehensive literacy is reading workshop which includes read-aloud, shared reading, guided reading, sustained reading, literature circles, individual reading, and inquiry or reading to learn. It offers a variety of opportunities for students to learn in whole group, small group, and individual instruction.

I believe phonics instruction is essential to teach children to read in the primary grade. In the past I have focused heavily on phonics for emergent readers. However, from the reading for this course I have learned that I should not teach phonics in isolation. It should be incorporated into the comprehensive literacy program. Students need to be taught phonics in context so that they are able to construct meaning from the text. I learned the importance of gaining meaning from the text rather than focusing on identifying all the words correctly.

In conclusion, I believe that it is important to allow time for students to read throughout the day rather than just limiting reading time to just a block of the day. Students need to be able to select their own books of interest and books on their independent reading level. I found that when students are focusing on identifying unfamiliar words, they are not able to construct meaning from the text. As teachers we should provide students with texts that are just right and teaching them the strategies to find just right books by themselves will give them the power of choice. They will be more motivated and enthusiastic about reading therefore will be lifelong readers.

Reference:

Weaver, C. (2002). Reading process and practice. Portsmouth, NH: Heinemann Educational Books.

Module 5: Instructional Challenge

Instructional Challenge:

As your school year starts, you realize that you have three ELLs who are newcomers to the United States. Discuss how a comprehensive literacy program addresses their needs, drawing attention to specific components of the framework that are particularly relevant. Then discuss any additional scaffolding you would offer to support these children's needs.

I think that it is absolutely essential to become familiar with the background profile of my new ELLs prior to classroom instruction. I think that learning about the students' unique cultures and languages of my ELLs will provide information about their previous educational history and the current literacy level in his or her first language. Knowing this biographical information will assist me in setting realistic expectations for academic performance. During instructional time, I would incorporate lots of visual support (pictures, diagrams, models, graphic organizers, video & computer-assisted instruction) review vocabulary, and multimedia technology. 

I think incorporating the comprehensive literacy program in my classroom will be tremendously beneficial especially for my ELL students. It would be a structural and organized block  that is implemented daily where the ELL students will know what to  expected daily. It would be difficult for ELLs who are newcomers to follow directions when in an unstructural classroom. All the components of readers' workshop and writer's workshop are important to ELL students' literacy success. I am able to provide the ELL students with multiple opportunities to learn in whole group, small group, work with a partner, and individual/one-on-one. For ELL newcomers, I would definitely spend more time with them in small group instruction and individual reading/writing conferences. In small group I can differentiate my lesson so that it will be appropriate to their levels and give them more support or assist when needed. I don't want to give them the same activity/task and expect them to complete the assignments. I have to look at what they are able to do because they have limited English and vocabulary. 

Module 5: Reading Reflection

After completing the reading for the week, consider these questions:
Where does phonics instruction fit within a comprehensive literacy program? When and how would you teach phonics?

I believe that phonics instruction is an important component to the comprehensive literacy program. Phonics should not be taught in isolation.  It  should be incorporated into readers' workshop and writers' workshop to promote students' success in reading and writing. I believe that it is important for primary grade students to learn the basic phonological skills to help them sound out unfamiliar words and blending letters together to make words. We should teach reading with the integration of phonics to help struggling readers decode words. Students need to be taught phonics in context so that they are able to make connections. Phonics instructions should be integrated into daily instruction. It should be taught during shared reading, mini-lessons, guided reading, individual reading/writing conferences, modeled writing, shared/interactive writing. I particularly like to teach phonics during guided reading because this is one step away from independent reading on the gradual release continuum. I would teach a mini-lesson on different reading strategies including  phonological, phonemic awareness, phonics, and decoding. Then I allow the students to apply the strategies during reading  with me present to scaffold and support them during the reading. I would observe and assess the students that are applying the strategy taught in the mini-lesson to help them figure out unknown words in the text. This will allow for me to determine who will need additional help with individual reading conference.