Yvonne


 * January, 2009

Frontloading for 3rd quarter (visualization intro)** This week I did the front loading activity in which kids look at pictures from the overhead and make observation, ask questions, and then infer what the picture is about. Since we are beginning a unit on historical fiction and non-fiction and trying to answer the question "How can one person make a difference?" I used pictures related to history or certain time periods. I first experienced this type of front loading in the inquiry class Diane Williams and Becky Morgan taught a in 2006. I found it extremely powerful when I experienced it myself for many reasons. The first reason it was effective for my own learning was because I found myself immediately engaged in the activity because I was forced to interact with it by listing what I observed and what questions I had. I also realized that I was not the only one who didn't know certain information. I realized that by being in groups and discussing the pictures together, that we all were working with different pieces of knowledge and could help figure it out or at least decide what we still needed to know to figure it out. I think I intuitively knew this before, but without experiencing it myself I would have never realized the power of it. I found that a picture of a battle in history, something I usually would have dismissed as something I was not very interested in, was something to ponder or wonder about. This is why I use it with my kids.
 * Reflection:**The strategy went extremely well in all my classes. I love how it is different in each class; it is truly a lesson that taps into students' prior knowledge and allows each of them to experience the activity at their own level. My modified class got so excited; they all had comments to share and questions that lead to better understanding. It was a great introduction to our historical studies.

Visualizing Activities**
 * January, 2009

I spent two days helping students improve and discuss their visualizing strategy. We began with objects. Each group had an object that they could look at for 1 minute, then I took it away. They then had to explain or draw the object from memory. Then I gave the object back to them, and students discussed how well they did and why. Next, I had students draw a picture of a familiar place from memory: their bedroom, a classroom, etc. We shared these and students compared their drawings to the real place. We discussed in class how well they could remember and why or why not. I emphasized that **everyone** can do this, we just have to work at it when we read. The next activity I used was a reading a story aloud. Students drew what they pictured as I set the scene. They compared and discussed it. Then I provided some new information that forced some studentst to change their original image. We talked about how they felt about that and that readers must do this or they will not get the full meaning. We also discussed their place in the story. Were they simply an observer or a participant? We discussed the importance of being aware of how reading works a little differently for each of us, but how the goal is the same: to become engaged with the story. Finally, I had them read sentences and discuss what they "see" in the sentence. Each sentence added more information so students had to modify their thinking and seeing.

In the future, I will do these activities at the beginning of the year as a way for students to begin talking about the reading process and how they need to be an active participant in every reading experience.
 * Reflection:** I was pleased at how much fun the students seemed to have with these activities. I also was excited to have students begin really sharing **how** they read and what they do well and what is hard. It has been a goal of mine to get kids involved in their own analysis of their reading processes. This activity helped us do this. Some students who have been very quiet in the classroom came alive, excited to share what they do and how they can improve these often invisible skills.

Frontloading for NightJohn**
 * January, 2009

During 3rd quarter I read aloud NightJohn by Gary Paulsen as part of our historical fiction unit. This year we are focusing on the question, "How can one person make a difference?" as we study different people in history, characters in story, and modern day heroes. I began with showing students illustrations of slaves being treated unkindly by their owners, since NightJohn is about slavery and the brutal conditions they often lived in. I had my students return to the observation-question-inference activity since we had just learned it the week before. It was an effective way to find out what students knew and didn't know about slavery. Instead of reading a text book summary of slavery (something I'm embarassed to say I have done in the past), students discusssed what they knew already and then began answering each other's questions. I had few picture books that explain conditions and reasons for slavery, so I placed those out during our silent reading time. Once we began the book, I felt like students had a basic understanding of the time period and were completely engaged, curious, and ready to learn more.


 * January, 2009**
 * Think-Aloud-Chapter 1 and 2 of NightJohn**

I created a think aloud worksheet for students as we read the first two chapters of NightJohn. I copied the text on one side and had lines for writing on the other. I modeled the think aloud process first while students watched and followed along. I focused mostly on making meaning through questions, connections, and visualizing. I also pointed out some important structural items such as repetition and short sentences that created emphasis and portrayed important information. After reading the first page or two, I continued to read aloud as students followed along and underlined or circled information that they wanted to comment on later. At the end of the next two pages, I had students go back through and make comments. Students then shared these outloud as I wrote them on my overhead copy. Students then read the rest of the selection and made comments independently. When they were done they shared these with their table groups. After students discussed their comments, I had them compile questions they still had about the story. During this time, I heard many group members clearing up confusion for their tablemates as they filled in the parts some students didn't understand. If students still had questions, they wrote them down and handed them in. I used the questions as a way of beginning the next day's class, before reading the next section of the story.


 * Reflection:** I felt this process not only helps students make meaning, but also helped students engage in the story right away. I like how at a glance I can see students who are able to "say" a lot about their reading and those who are struggling. I think I may use it as a way of pre-assessing students at the beginning of next year. It can be continued to be used as a learning tool and post assessment. Students can see their improvements immediately (and so can I) and reflect on what they can do and what they struggle with. Think alouds can be used to teach a very structured lesson on a specific strategy or can be used as a free thinking open-ended activity. This is one of the best activities I have found to encourage kids to be active readers.


 * February, 2009**
 * QAR - NightJohn

February, 2009 Tableau-NightJohn**

This was so fun! My kids loved it and so did I. When we finished //NightJohn//, I had students draw a picture of the one scene they thought was the most important/powerful of the book. Next, I had students meet in their groups and share what they had drawn and explain why they chose that scene. Then groups chose one scene from their group to act out for the class. I explained that the acting out should include only a moment of that scene and then they should freeze it.

When students presented, I began with the lights off and the actors on the "stage". I had one actor say "Action!" when everyone was ready. Actors began in a frozen position in role. When the lights were turned on, actors became alive in one quick movement or two to show the action of the scene (with no dialogue), then froze again. Then an actor would say "end scene" and the lights would go off again, signaling the time for applause. Afterwards we asked the audience which scene they thought this group showed and why.


 * Reflection:** This was a great way to review the major scenes of the book and find running themes. After I did it, I realized another way I could have set it up. I could have assigned students scenes so we would have actually "seen" the whole book in brief scenes. For this short book, I really liked the way I did it because I think the students chose appropriate scenes and all of the major parts were covered. With a longer novel, it might be good to assign or help students discover important, but less "exciting" scenes to show.

Another activity I did that I like and have done in the past is to have students choose quotes, themes, or topics from the novel and have them write them on an index card. Then, as we stand in a circle, each students says their chosen words. It's a great closure before the end of class bell rings so students leave with the images, themes, topics, and words of the novel in their head as they leave for the day.