Chalk it up!

During my Introduction to Language Arts class, we explored the concept of a Chalk Talk, or Magic Talk, as we preferred. In a Chalk Talk, a word or phrase is written on the board; students respond to the word/phrase by writing or drawing. Students may “tag” their responses to other students, raise questions, or answer questions. Through these tags and connections, a web of ideas forms. The only rule? No talking!

Before this class, I had never experienced a Chalk Talk. As I quickly learned, Chalk Talks offer students a valuable form of communication. Although this activity is non-verbal, it is still incredibly interactive. Students respond to their peers and teachers and make connections. Chalk Talks are also a great way to differentiate for a variety of learners. The teacher can increase depth and complexity by having the students ask/answer higher-level questions and comments.

Just as a football coach amps up his players with a Chalk Talk of game play, Chalk Talks are incredibly beneficial in the classroom. Teachers can use Chalk Talks for brainstorming, introducing new topics, and/or closing a unit. Chalk Talks are a great way for students to state what they already know, what questions they still have, and how they see connections.

Listen UP!!

I definitely think that listening is an art. All too often, if a person is silent, we believe that they are listening. However, as any college student can attest, this is simply not always the case. At any given moment, a person has a million and one things running through her mind, and listening is not always one of them. Because of this fact, it is very important that teachers focusing on listening in the classroom. It is often not enough that students are merely quiet while the teacher is talking, more so, students should be actively engaged. Through active-learning activities, listening is entirely possible.

Before reading Language Arts: Patterns of Practice, I did not know that there are four distinct types of listening: discriminative, aesthetic, efferent, and critical. Much like the different types of reading, the different types of listening each serves a unique purpose. People use discriminative listening to distinguish sounds (phonemic awareness). People listen aesthetically when they’re listening for enjoyment, such as to read-alouds or music. Critical listening occurs when people listen in order to understand a message and remember important information. Lastly, critical listening is used to evaluate a message. With all of this in mind, how can teachers be sure to incorporate all types of listening in the classroom?

On this note, I really liked the “Sketch to Stretch” idea. As the popular saying goes, “a picture is worth a thousand words.” By having students respond to an auditory stimulus by drawing, the possibilities are endless. In fact, I am incorporating a “Sketch to Stretch” activity into my unit plan for Methods. In my unit, the students will respond to music by sketching. In this way, sketching is a great form of reflection.

I also found the propaganda and persuasion topics to be very information. A person cannot turn on the radio or television without being bombarded with commercials urging you to take action or purchase a product. For students this onslaught is made worse by peer pressure. Activities about propaganda and persuasion can lend themselves to so many topics: a historical study of WWII propaganda posters, presidential campaigns, school student council campaigns, commercials, etc. I found that our activities in class really brought together many of the language arts: listening, viewing, and visually representing. It would be great for students to take the driver’s seat and design their own commercial/campaign using the various styles of propaganda.

Literature Circle Discussion on Nancie Atwell's "In the Middle"

I found the literature circle to be very beneficial to my understanding of Atwell's In the Middle. By discussing teaching strategies in depth with a classmate, I was able to get a deeper understanding of the material. It is always interesting to see how another person interprets a reading; the collaboration and conversation that results from discussion is extremely valuable. Atwell's text had an abundance of brilliant teaching strategies, and through literature circles we were able to come up with even more real world applications. By teaching or explaining a concept to another person, you are making an even stronger connection to the idea.

For next time, my literature circle goals are:
- To discuss the logisitics of Atwell's schedule
- To direct assume the role of "Discussion Director" or "Connector"

Chart your Course for Differentiation

"Different Ships, Same Sea"
(qtd. by Dr. Kelly Roberts, Meredith College)

Captain's Glossary

"All Aboard": Differentiation is for ALL students; the curriculum differs it is not different.

Anchor: Keep all lessons deeply rooted in substance.

Buoy: Stay afloat! Be prepared to keep with the ebbs and flows of student achievement.

Crew: In order for differentiation to be effective, teamwork must be employed.

Crow's Nest: Teachers should stay on top of student progress; look ahead for success and challenges.

Doubloon: Offer genuine praise; give credit where credit is deserved.

League: Establish differentiation with depth and complexity; increase depth not breadth.

Treasure: Each student and team member has something to offer; use this to your advantage in this differentiated classroom.

What are my influences in teaching writing?

Technology: with instant messaging, emailing, and texting within an arm's reach, technology will have a large impact on teaching writing. Because of this digital age, Standard English is sometimes put on the back burner to make way for quick slang and abbreviations.

Prior knowledge: students will come to my classroom with conceptions and misconceptions about writing. It will be extremely important to do diagnostic screenings of my students' writing ability.

My Personal experience: it is often found that teachers teach the way they learn. My personal experience with writing will have a large impact on the manner in which I present the writing process to my students. My interactions with teachers and professors have given me numerous ideas.


MUSTS:
-conferencing with students about papers
-Writing to learn activities
-Reflection
-Connection b/w writing and reading
-Focused freewrite

I had a Lynne Truss moment...

I took the advice from Eats, Shoots and Leaves and edited a sign about upcoming fall courses. Incorrectly, the sign said "This course will examine legal and legal drug use..."

Food for Thought - Observations

For the past few weeks, the students in Mrs. Shirley’s class have been working on an out-of-class project entitled, Breakfast For Your Head: Cereal Box Book Report. For those of you unfamiliar with the cereal box project, here is project description:

Front: Design a front cover for the novel. Include the name of the book, the authors, and an original illustration.

Back: The top portion of the back needs to contain a blurb, giving information to entice and/or interest a reader to want to read the novel. This must be at least six sentences, but not vie away the whole story. The lower portion of the back must be a puzzle, activity, word game, etc which incorporate information from the book.

Side One: Make a list of “ingredients” that includes the following story elements:
- Introduction
- Rising action
- Climax
- Falling action
- Resolution

Side Two: Create a “Nutritional Facts Chart” that rate the book by giving the percentage of the RDA (Recommended Daily Allowance) in several categories:
- Humor
- Drama
- Suspense
- Educational value
- Vocabulary

This week, the students presented their cereal box project to the class. It was such a great experience! As I have mentioned in class, I think sharing writing helps to give students a feeling of accomplishment and ownership. I came to observe Mrs. Shirley’s class when the students were presenting a cereal box project, and I could literally feel the excitement in the room as each child went up to present. I could tell the students were very proud of their projects and were eager to share with the class. Not only were the students presenting their project, they were also reading the summary of the novel. As an observer, this helped me to see how the students respond to reading: some students gave a brief overview; some students focused on one event and glazed over the rest; others incorporated quotes from the novel. Tompkins states, “Sharing writing is a social activity that helps students develop sensitivity to audiences and confidence in themselves as authors” (95). After hearing the students share their writing, I agree wholeheartedly with that comment. As I said before, written assignments can sometime feel like a secret exchange between student and teacher – student turns it in, teacher grades it, not a word is said. By sharing writing, students can bond with other students and enhance the impact of their writing.