What have you learned about your buddy’s needs, abilities and interests?
Interests
My fourth grade buddy loves to play football at recess. He also likes the Seahawks, soccer, scary and mystery books, fast cars (Ferrari, Lamborghini), and playing video games (World of War Craft). His favorite color is purple. One of his goals is to read more at home instead of playing video games. He said it is hard for him to find a book of interest at home and there is limited resources. My partner and I find our fourth grade buddy very sweet to work with; we are curious to know why his desk is right next to the his teacher's instead of with a group?
Abilities and Needs
- When my partner and I did the spelling assessment, he really enjoyed spelling. When we had time left in out next sessions, he would always want to wrap up with some spelling. Words ending in “ed,” long vowel, other vowel patterns, consonant doubling, inflected endings, and syllable junctures are learning targets of focus. I would place this writer in the Within Word Pattern and Syllables and Affixes spelling stages (Bear & Templeton, 2004).
- During the word bank exercise, this student did well, read the words fairly quickly, and finished all the words. He self-monitored when he did not know the word and attempted to sound out the letters. According to the assessment, he is able to read independent words at about a 5th grade level.
- Comprehension is the area that I would like to focus more on. When our buddy read from his own text book, he had a hard time retelling the story. It seemed he was more concerned with reading than comprehension. He had to go back to the text often and re-read to recall events. However, this student was aware of words that were unfamiliar to him. When we read a book of our choosing, Goosebumps, which is at about a fourth grade reading level, he said the text was too easy. And he was able to retell a good share of the details. When we read "Amelia Earhart", this student was able to recall some events in his own words; however, when we asked him the questions that were pre-written, our buddy had difficulty. From this assessment, he was at the frustration level and at the twenty-fifth percentile in fluency rate (2006 Hasbrouch & Tindal Oral Reading Fluency Data). This assessment was surprising to my partner and I because during our other sessions, his rate in regards to fluency was fine. Our buddy did not have any background knowledge on Earhart and did not seem to have an interest in the story.
As a result of this knowledge, what learning objectives and materials are you considering using for your lesson?
I would like to focus the next lesson on comprehension strategies. Is he making mental images in his head as he reads? Is he able to use background knowledge? Is he able to ask questions as he reads? Is he aware when things do not make sense when he reads? I think explicitly sharing one or two of these types of strategies will help in his reading comprehension because this student does have the ability to read fluently with out many miscues and self monitor. For materials, I would like to find a book he would enjoy reading about (i.e. fast cars, football) and a text that is still at fourth grade reading level. The learning objective would be focusing on one of these strategies to improve cognitive awareness of meaning in text.
Saturday, February 5, 2011
Friday, February 4, 2011
Geometry and Using Creative Writing in Mathematics
1. What did I learn?
In class this week I learned how to incorporate geometry understanding with a simple square piece of paper. With this paper we talked about the properties of squares, triangles, rectangles, lines, and angles. For example, how do you know a square is a square? This type of exercise forced us to use mathematical terms and use them to discuss geometry concepts aloud. Another layer of assessment is used when math terminology is used in conversation. Math terms like any subject is sort of like learning a new language, and is ofter best understood verbally. "Let kids experience geometry" is a big idea learned. In a similar fashion, the article we read "Using Creative Writing and Literature in Mathematics Classes" by Halpern $ Halpern showed great examples of students' writing using math vocabulary and creative writing. I was surprised with the creativity and had not thought of using creative writing and math as an interdisciplinary tool.
2. What are the implications for classroom practice?
Math should be discussed and talked about in a classroom. Kids should practice talking about math vocabulary in conversation and in print. Writing practice can be made relevant to student lives with their current learning in math. In order for students to do this successfully, teachers should also ground themselves in the same way and do the homework they assign their students. Teachers need to do this in order to teach beyond a visual or basic analysis level, and prepare them for deeper understandings in the next grade.
3. What do I have questions about?
What are other ways students can experience geometry?
In class this week I learned how to incorporate geometry understanding with a simple square piece of paper. With this paper we talked about the properties of squares, triangles, rectangles, lines, and angles. For example, how do you know a square is a square? This type of exercise forced us to use mathematical terms and use them to discuss geometry concepts aloud. Another layer of assessment is used when math terminology is used in conversation. Math terms like any subject is sort of like learning a new language, and is ofter best understood verbally. "Let kids experience geometry" is a big idea learned. In a similar fashion, the article we read "Using Creative Writing and Literature in Mathematics Classes" by Halpern $ Halpern showed great examples of students' writing using math vocabulary and creative writing. I was surprised with the creativity and had not thought of using creative writing and math as an interdisciplinary tool.
2. What are the implications for classroom practice?
Math should be discussed and talked about in a classroom. Kids should practice talking about math vocabulary in conversation and in print. Writing practice can be made relevant to student lives with their current learning in math. In order for students to do this successfully, teachers should also ground themselves in the same way and do the homework they assign their students. Teachers need to do this in order to teach beyond a visual or basic analysis level, and prepare them for deeper understandings in the next grade.
3. What do I have questions about?
What are other ways students can experience geometry?
Tuesday, January 25, 2011
Graphing Data and Group Work
This week in math, we had a gallery walk and looked at everyone's graph that told a different story from www.gapminder.org. It was interesting how people represented data and how different people interpreted the information. What was clear to some people was not always clear to others. "Graphs should stand on their own" was a big idea and reminder that was shared in class.
I like the idea of groups producing a finished project, showcasing their work with a gallery walk, and also using sticky notes to ask questions. By asking question in an anonymous way, it provided an avenue for more feedback and constructive criticism. This type of feedback could be incorporated easily in a classroom.
Group work and collaboration lessons are great if it is done well with roles and part of the classroom culture. It appears a lot of upfront work on the teacher is in dividing groups, establishing roles, and making sure everyone is accountable for their part. Once these norms are established, I like how the students can run with the project themselves and the teacher is now more of a facilitator. Can this be done with primary students too?
A relatable YouTube video to open up a discussion or in this case math group work is a great idea. I like this type of hook idea. It shows relevance, humor, and thinking. I would definitely like to incorporate something like this in my lesson plans. I have embedded the video below to keep as a reference.
I like the idea of groups producing a finished project, showcasing their work with a gallery walk, and also using sticky notes to ask questions. By asking question in an anonymous way, it provided an avenue for more feedback and constructive criticism. This type of feedback could be incorporated easily in a classroom.
Group work and collaboration lessons are great if it is done well with roles and part of the classroom culture. It appears a lot of upfront work on the teacher is in dividing groups, establishing roles, and making sure everyone is accountable for their part. Once these norms are established, I like how the students can run with the project themselves and the teacher is now more of a facilitator. Can this be done with primary students too?
A relatable YouTube video to open up a discussion or in this case math group work is a great idea. I like this type of hook idea. It shows relevance, humor, and thinking. I would definitely like to incorporate something like this in my lesson plans. I have embedded the video below to keep as a reference.
Sunday, January 23, 2011
Project 1 – Analysis of Student Writing and Lesson Plan, Comments from Peers, and Final Reflection
Overview
This student’s writing piece is in response to a prompt about finding a bottle with a rolled up piece of paper inside and then telling a story about what happens next. The student has put some thought and good detail in the story describing his feelings of enthusiasm when he finds the bottle and also adds his best friend’s name into the story showing a personal touch. There is an introductory setting of a very hot day on a sandy beach, and intrigue with the idea of a treasure map. Certain elements happen in the story leaving the reader wondering, why? However, with more additional clarity and build up in the middle section of the story, it is a great start to an eventual ending which includes discovering sixty grand and a purchase of a Lamborghini.
6 Trait Assessment (NWREL, 1992)
(1) Ideas: Support is attempted, but doesn’t go far enough yet in fleshing out the key issues or story line. The reader is left with questions. More information is needed to “fill in the blanks.” After the author and his friend discover a treasure map in the bottle, the author then writes, “then we got scared and whined like we were 2 months old…” The reader is left wondering what happened that they would be scared. The idea of feeling frightened was a great emotional addition but support was lacking. The treasure map was leading them to money, but details and the adventure in the journey was missing.
(2) Organization: The paper has a recognizable introduction and conclusion. Transitions sometime work, at other times, connections between ideas are unclear. Pacing is fairly well controlled, though the writer sometimes lunges ahead too quickly or spends too much time on details that did not seem pertinent to the story. “And” and “there was” is used frequently for transitions; however, the student does show awareness of organizational flow with the use of “then” and “next.” In the middle section, the student adds a paragraph about him and his best friend getting a bite, not feeling good, “drunk” some milk, and falling asleep. This detail could have been eliminated. Instead more aspects of what was on the treasure map could have been added.
(3 & 4) Voice/Word Choice: The writer does connect to the audience through the use of natural engaging language. The writer does take risk by the inclusion of personal detail that reveals the person behind the words. Striking words or phrases often catch the reader’s eye and linger in the reader’s mind. While the student can elaborate better on ideas and edit some sentences for print instead of talking, the voice of the author shows strong potential. Here are some examples:
- “…I wake up to find Im like burning hot like Id be in a oven at 200 degrese…”
- “…help me open this dum bottle…”
- “… whined like we were 2 months old.”
- “…lead me to 60 grand I was happy that I bought a lubergini and I still rember the day I found a bottle in the sandy beach.”
(5 & 6) Sentence Fluency and Conventions: More work will be needed in sentence fluency and conventions to make it easier on the reader to keep track of the message. Parts of the text invite expressive oral reading; but many sentences without proper conventions ramble on. Punctuation is often missing and the reader must read once to decode, then again for meaning. Commas, periods, and even exclamations will add to voice and fluency. Some word choice: “and” for transitions, “there was”, and “like” were repetitive. There were also some verb tense issues: “wake” instead of woke and “drunk” instead of drank.
Spelling
Misspelled words included: alomost, dwn, latter (later), roolled (rolled), peice, boottle (bottle), awesme, coul (cool), dwn, opend, dum (dumb), figuerd, fel, checkd, wonderd, and labergini. The writer is sounding out words to help aid in his spelling. Words ending in
“ed,” long vowel, other vowel patterns, consonant doubling, inflected endings, and syllable junctures are learning targets of focus. I would place this writer in the Within Word Pattern and Syllables and Affixes spelling stages (Bear & Templeton, 2004).
Summary
This writer has a clear introduction and conclusion. Elaboration of ideas in the middle will add to meat of the narrative. In addition, taking out some unnecessary detail will help the fluency for the reader. The writer shows potential for strong voice with the use of his descriptions and ideas. Lack of proper conventions is limiting the fluidity of this writing piece. More detail on the “why” part for sentence meaning will help the audience understand. I would recommend a conference discussing organization, elaboration and/or focus on ideas, sentence fluency, and conventions for learning and growth in writing.
Lesson Outline
Objective: Student will learn to organize, edit, and elaborate on ideas. We will be asking the questions: who, what, where, when, and why. A specific focus will be in answering the question, “Why is this happening in the story?”
Standards: GLE 1.3.1: Revises text, including changing words, sentences, paragraphs, and ideas.
Materials: Notebook paper and a pencil
Instructional Strategies:
This lesson will occur in a personal writing conference.
First I will ask the student to read his story aloud and tell me what he thinks so far.
I will then tell the student all the excellent ideas and thoughts on his paper already. (Celebrate student's writing from Routman, 2005)
Then I will remind him to keep his audience in mind and ask him if there is anything he thinks that will help the reader follow along with the story. I will also ask him if he thinks there is anything detail we should take out. I will take notes on the notebook paper of the ideas we discussed.
Then I will touch base on the elements of: who, what, where, when, and why. The focus will on the “why” part. For example, as a reader, I want to know what is scary, and why is it so hot, what is on the map, and why do you buy a Lamborghini?
After discussion, I will have this student work independently to make edits and add additional detail to add to his already wonderful start. The thoughts we discussed and notes taken will be given to him for reminders.
The next day, I will follow up with another conference. We will revisit his work to see if edits of elaboration were made and how he felt about his story now. Then together, we will discuss the next phase which if ready, will be a look at conventions.
Assessment:
I will compare first and second drafts and see if his ideas were expanded on and if as a reader I come away with fewer questions. I will also assess his new draft with the Six Traits Rubric with a focus on ideas.
This student’s writing piece is in response to a prompt about finding a bottle with a rolled up piece of paper inside and then telling a story about what happens next. The student has put some thought and good detail in the story describing his feelings of enthusiasm when he finds the bottle and also adds his best friend’s name into the story showing a personal touch. There is an introductory setting of a very hot day on a sandy beach, and intrigue with the idea of a treasure map. Certain elements happen in the story leaving the reader wondering, why? However, with more additional clarity and build up in the middle section of the story, it is a great start to an eventual ending which includes discovering sixty grand and a purchase of a Lamborghini.
6 Trait Assessment (NWREL, 1992)
(1) Ideas: Support is attempted, but doesn’t go far enough yet in fleshing out the key issues or story line. The reader is left with questions. More information is needed to “fill in the blanks.” After the author and his friend discover a treasure map in the bottle, the author then writes, “then we got scared and whined like we were 2 months old…” The reader is left wondering what happened that they would be scared. The idea of feeling frightened was a great emotional addition but support was lacking. The treasure map was leading them to money, but details and the adventure in the journey was missing.
(2) Organization: The paper has a recognizable introduction and conclusion. Transitions sometime work, at other times, connections between ideas are unclear. Pacing is fairly well controlled, though the writer sometimes lunges ahead too quickly or spends too much time on details that did not seem pertinent to the story. “And” and “there was” is used frequently for transitions; however, the student does show awareness of organizational flow with the use of “then” and “next.” In the middle section, the student adds a paragraph about him and his best friend getting a bite, not feeling good, “drunk” some milk, and falling asleep. This detail could have been eliminated. Instead more aspects of what was on the treasure map could have been added.
(3 & 4) Voice/Word Choice: The writer does connect to the audience through the use of natural engaging language. The writer does take risk by the inclusion of personal detail that reveals the person behind the words. Striking words or phrases often catch the reader’s eye and linger in the reader’s mind. While the student can elaborate better on ideas and edit some sentences for print instead of talking, the voice of the author shows strong potential. Here are some examples:
- “…I wake up to find Im like burning hot like Id be in a oven at 200 degrese…”
- “…help me open this dum bottle…”
- “… whined like we were 2 months old.”
- “…lead me to 60 grand I was happy that I bought a lubergini and I still rember the day I found a bottle in the sandy beach.”
(5 & 6) Sentence Fluency and Conventions: More work will be needed in sentence fluency and conventions to make it easier on the reader to keep track of the message. Parts of the text invite expressive oral reading; but many sentences without proper conventions ramble on. Punctuation is often missing and the reader must read once to decode, then again for meaning. Commas, periods, and even exclamations will add to voice and fluency. Some word choice: “and” for transitions, “there was”, and “like” were repetitive. There were also some verb tense issues: “wake” instead of woke and “drunk” instead of drank.
Spelling
Misspelled words included: alomost, dwn, latter (later), roolled (rolled), peice, boottle (bottle), awesme, coul (cool), dwn, opend, dum (dumb), figuerd, fel, checkd, wonderd, and labergini. The writer is sounding out words to help aid in his spelling. Words ending in
“ed,” long vowel, other vowel patterns, consonant doubling, inflected endings, and syllable junctures are learning targets of focus. I would place this writer in the Within Word Pattern and Syllables and Affixes spelling stages (Bear & Templeton, 2004).
Summary
This writer has a clear introduction and conclusion. Elaboration of ideas in the middle will add to meat of the narrative. In addition, taking out some unnecessary detail will help the fluency for the reader. The writer shows potential for strong voice with the use of his descriptions and ideas. Lack of proper conventions is limiting the fluidity of this writing piece. More detail on the “why” part for sentence meaning will help the audience understand. I would recommend a conference discussing organization, elaboration and/or focus on ideas, sentence fluency, and conventions for learning and growth in writing.
Lesson Outline
Objective: Student will learn to organize, edit, and elaborate on ideas. We will be asking the questions: who, what, where, when, and why. A specific focus will be in answering the question, “Why is this happening in the story?”
Standards: GLE 1.3.1: Revises text, including changing words, sentences, paragraphs, and ideas.
Materials: Notebook paper and a pencil
Instructional Strategies:
This lesson will occur in a personal writing conference.
First I will ask the student to read his story aloud and tell me what he thinks so far.
I will then tell the student all the excellent ideas and thoughts on his paper already. (Celebrate student's writing from Routman, 2005)
Then I will remind him to keep his audience in mind and ask him if there is anything he thinks that will help the reader follow along with the story. I will also ask him if he thinks there is anything detail we should take out. I will take notes on the notebook paper of the ideas we discussed.
Then I will touch base on the elements of: who, what, where, when, and why. The focus will on the “why” part. For example, as a reader, I want to know what is scary, and why is it so hot, what is on the map, and why do you buy a Lamborghini?
After discussion, I will have this student work independently to make edits and add additional detail to add to his already wonderful start. The thoughts we discussed and notes taken will be given to him for reminders.
The next day, I will follow up with another conference. We will revisit his work to see if edits of elaboration were made and how he felt about his story now. Then together, we will discuss the next phase which if ready, will be a look at conventions.
Assessment:
I will compare first and second drafts and see if his ideas were expanded on and if as a reader I come away with fewer questions. I will also assess his new draft with the Six Traits Rubric with a focus on ideas.
Sunday, January 16, 2011
iPod Touch Project: Differentiated Instruction
I can see using an iPod touch being beneficial for all students in a classroom. In my first grade, main placement, I have seen students using netbooks for reading e-books. It takes a little bit of time for students to learn how to properly get their netbooks, login, and put them back; but after the prep work is done and the technology is working, I have seen full engagement in the classroom and a first grade classroom quietly engaged and reading. Similarly, this can be done using the iPod Touch, and one of the benefits with the Touch is its portability and reading can happen anywhere. Some apps (i.e. Learning A-Z) provide a way for students to read books at their ability level which is a great way to differentiate instruction for differing reading abilities.
Blog prompt: How might the iPod touch support differentiated instruction for three students in my main placement? What are the limitations for each and what supports will be needed for each student?
First grade Students A and B: Both are very bright students; they are both in high levels in reading and math, however both are often off task. Student A wanders around a lot and has a hard time focusing. Student B talks often and also has a hard time focusing. With the use of a iPod Touch, and its interaction capabilities with sound, video, and interactive keyboard, I think the pure engagement and entertainment of the technology will help them stay focused. The iPod touch should be seen as a privileged and hopefully motivation to stay on task. These students often need more challenge and the different math levels available in some of the math apps can progress students to their next level. Making sure these students are using appropriate apps and using the learning tools suggested to them will be the extra support that is needed. For example, if they are playing a non-educational game instead of learning game then this would be a loss of the privileged.
First grade student C: Is a special needs students who is at a slower rate developmentally. Student C needs occupational therapy to help with fine motor skills, particularly with hand writing and is said to be below kindergarten level with academics. Using an app that reads stories aloud can help with reading. Using a phonics app can help with letter and sound recognition. Instead of a teacher writing ideas on a piece of paper for the student based on what the student says, perhaps the student can learn to use an app that records his ideas through his voice and then transcribes what he says. Then he can write what the app has transcribed. This would have to be modeled and a quiet area will need to be provided. But the benefits would be a move toward independence in writing. A stylus pen could help with handwriting and hand motor skills. Also with the iPod Touch, this student could practice his letter recognition with his finger. I also know learning visually would benefit this student a lot and it would be exciting to see how much technology can add to Student C's learning and growth.
Blog prompt: How might the iPod touch support differentiated instruction for three students in my main placement? What are the limitations for each and what supports will be needed for each student?
First grade Students A and B: Both are very bright students; they are both in high levels in reading and math, however both are often off task. Student A wanders around a lot and has a hard time focusing. Student B talks often and also has a hard time focusing. With the use of a iPod Touch, and its interaction capabilities with sound, video, and interactive keyboard, I think the pure engagement and entertainment of the technology will help them stay focused. The iPod touch should be seen as a privileged and hopefully motivation to stay on task. These students often need more challenge and the different math levels available in some of the math apps can progress students to their next level. Making sure these students are using appropriate apps and using the learning tools suggested to them will be the extra support that is needed. For example, if they are playing a non-educational game instead of learning game then this would be a loss of the privileged.
First grade student C: Is a special needs students who is at a slower rate developmentally. Student C needs occupational therapy to help with fine motor skills, particularly with hand writing and is said to be below kindergarten level with academics. Using an app that reads stories aloud can help with reading. Using a phonics app can help with letter and sound recognition. Instead of a teacher writing ideas on a piece of paper for the student based on what the student says, perhaps the student can learn to use an app that records his ideas through his voice and then transcribes what he says. Then he can write what the app has transcribed. This would have to be modeled and a quiet area will need to be provided. But the benefits would be a move toward independence in writing. A stylus pen could help with handwriting and hand motor skills. Also with the iPod Touch, this student could practice his letter recognition with his finger. I also know learning visually would benefit this student a lot and it would be exciting to see how much technology can add to Student C's learning and growth.
Multiple Representations
In class this week, I learned how to show students positive and negative integers in different ways: using beans and a large number line down the middle of a classroom. I like the idea of getting the students out of their seats and doing math. Moving from concrete to abstract was a big idea I learned. Another fundamental understanding I learned to associate is the definition of subtraction - which is addition of the opposite. I never used algebra tiles and now at least I know what they look like. I learned it is important for teachers to understand different strategies and present students with different multiple representations of the same math problem. Just because I learn best one way does not mean my students will see the solution the same way. Lastly, I am also starting to see how technology is changing math - for instance today we took a look at the website: www.gapminder.com.
Using math manipulatives, talking about your thinking, asking questions, drawing pictures, using a number line, etc. should all be a part of the classroom norm. I remember math class consisting of being my math book, notes, and homework from the book and a worksheet. There was hardly any talking or discussion with my classmates. As a new teacher, I am going to have to play with algebra tiles, geometric shapes, and beans for example to be comfortable showing students how to use them as a strategy and discover mathematical rules and properties.
Questions: It seems inquiry based approach and students being able to discover their own genearlizatinos are good foundations for students before given them the formula or the "how to" but are students really doing better in math with this type of inquiry based approach? Will the attitudes about math change?
Using math manipulatives, talking about your thinking, asking questions, drawing pictures, using a number line, etc. should all be a part of the classroom norm. I remember math class consisting of being my math book, notes, and homework from the book and a worksheet. There was hardly any talking or discussion with my classmates. As a new teacher, I am going to have to play with algebra tiles, geometric shapes, and beans for example to be comfortable showing students how to use them as a strategy and discover mathematical rules and properties.
Questions: It seems inquiry based approach and students being able to discover their own genearlizatinos are good foundations for students before given them the formula or the "how to" but are students really doing better in math with this type of inquiry based approach? Will the attitudes about math change?
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