Category Archives: literacy

Can Reading Comprehension be Taught?

academics, classroom teachers, education, literacy, schooling, , , , , ,

I (Clare) recently read in Teachers College Record a fascinating commentary about reading comprehension by Daniel T. Willingham & Gail Lovette – Can Reading Comprehension Be Taught? http://www.tcrecord.org/Content.asp?ContentId=17701Amelia1stDay

For those of you who teach literacy in elementary school or teach literacy methods courses in teacher education programs you might find their analysis of why teaching comprehension very interesting. In my local school districts teaching specific comprehension strategies seems to be the latest bandwagon. On one level I think direct instruction on how to comprehend/make sense of text can help struggling readers.

On the other hand, one of my issues is with the way these strategies are taught. These comprehension strategies are listed on a poster and students are expected to use those specific 8 strategies. They are drilled over and over and over on them. If a student does not “get them” the first ten times of drilling will they ever get them?

So I found Willingham and Lovette’s explanation informative on why this approach can work interesting:

The funny thing about reading comprehension strategy instruction is that it really shouldn’t work, but it does. This commentary seeks to provide insight into how it should work and guidance on effective strategies for implementation.

They provide reasons why teaching comprehension strategies work:phone1

Here’s our interpretation. The vague Ikea instructions aren’t bad advice. You’re better off taking an occasional look at the big picture as opposed to keeping your head down and your little hex wrench turning. Likewise, RCS encourage you to pause as you’re reading, evaluate the big picture, and think about where the text is going. And if the answer is unclear, RCS give students something concrete to try and a way to organize their cognitive resources when they recognize that they do not understand.

 RCS instruction may be at its best in telling students what reading is supposed to be. Reading is not just about decoding; you are meant to understand something. The purpose is communication. This message may be particularly powerful for struggling readers, whose criterion for “understanding” is often too low (Markman, 1979). One of us works extensively with struggling adolescent readers who frequently approach the task of reading as getting to the last word on the page.

I think one of the ways to go forward is to provide students with many comprehension strategies. I know that when I read I use many more than 8 strategies. If you want to read the entire commentary (which is not too long) here is the article. I will definitely use this article with my teacher education students.Can Reading Comprehension Be Taught

 

 

Working to Make a Difference

classroom teachers, literacy, , , , , ,

A GTA first grade teacher, Asa Schoondenbeek, is one of 35 recipients of the Prime Minister’s Awards for Teaching Excellence. Mr. Schoondenbeek began a lunchtime reading club for first and second grade boys at his school. During his lunch hour he dresses up as a superhero and reads to boys who choose to be in the club. One of the young boys in the club told CBC News that the reading program is fun because “you get to read and you get to pick any book we want to read.” Parents and the school’s community council nominated Schoondenbeek for the award because they appreciated his efforts and commitment to students.

Link to the CBC news story: http://www.cbc.ca/news/world/asa-schoonderbeek-wins-prime-minister-s-award-for-teaching-excellence-1.2798451

Walking in the Shoes of Democracy

critical literacy, education, literacy, , , , , , , , ,

When I returned from Greece this summer I noticed that my running shoes were very dusty.  Well, that’s an understatement.  They were no longer even white. I kept thinking I should wash them, but I simply couldn’t.  The last place we visited in Greece was the ancient Agora in Athens.   I spent the entire day in awe.  This was where the most influential political and philosophical minds of western civilization  waked, talked and puzzled.  The dirt on my shoes was from the same pathways and roads on which Aristotle, Plato and Socrates paced and argued. It was speculated that Aesop visited Athens and told his most famous fable, The Frogs who Desired a King, in this same Agora to  dissuade the citizens from attempting to depose Peisistratus for another ruler.   My shoes were coated with the dust of democracy!   Who was I to wash it away?  So left them dirty.

That is, until a friend of mine commented on how dirty my shoes were.  At that point I  finally relented and talked myself into washing them.  Into the washing machine they went.  But they came out just as dirty as they went in.  So I washed them again.  Still no change.  It became a challenge.  I took bleach and a toothbrush to them.  They remained a dull grey. Forever altered.  Baffled, I left my shoes to dry in the sun and like any good philosopher, contemplated my  dilemma.   Then it dawned on me.  The dust of democracy was embedded.  Democracy could not be washed away from my shoes any easier than it could from my consciousness.  For me, democracy is an honorable a way of life.    My shoes were a living representation of this precious philosophical and political stance.

As you may have guessed, I have stopped trying to clean my shoes.  I’ve decided they are perfect just the way they are.

agora 2957

What’s Up at the Public Library?

education, literacy, Teacher education, , , ,

The other day, Natasha a student teacher in the literacy methods course mentioned the Dial a Story program offered by the Toronto Public Library system. Her recommendation reminded us to stay in touch with the wonderful outreach programs offered by public libraries. Dial A Story is a free service that provides stories for younger children (7 and under) and for older children (up to 12) twenty-four hours a day.  Stories rotate on a daily basis and are currently available in 15 languages including: French, English, Cantonese, Gujarati, Italian, Korean, Mandarin, Polish, Portuguese, Russian, Somali, Spanish, Tamil, Tagalog, and Urdu. Occasionally, Dial A Story features special guest readers such as Toronto Blue Jays baseball players and dancers from the National Ballet of Canada.  A big thank-you to Natasha for reminding to check out the many resources our public libraries have to offer!

http://www.torontopubliclibrary.ca/services/dial-a-story.jsp

phone1phone2

Stephen King on Teaching Writing

curriculum; teachers, literacy, literacy, ,

In an interview with the Atlantic Stephen King discussed his time as a high school English teacher. As a teacher of writing King recalled, “it went best for me when I could communicate my own enthusiasm. I can remember teaching Dracula to sophomores and practically screaming, ‘Look at all the different voices in this book! Stoker’s a ventriloquist! I love that!’ I don’t have much use for teachers who “perform,” like they’re onstage, but kids respond to enthusiasm. You can’t command a kid to have fun, but you can make the classroom a place that feels safe, where interesting things happen.” The link to the article is provided below:

http://m.theatlantic.com/education/archive/2014/09/writing-secrets-with-stephen-king/379870/

‘H’ints and ‘H’appiness: Literacy learning in FDK

assessment, classroom teachers, curriculum; teachers, education, literacy, literacy, schooling, Uncategorized, ,

With the first month of school soon behind us I (Yiola) want to share some examples of my 4 year old daughter’s (Sylvia Clare) literacy learning in Full Day Kindergarten (FDK).

Example 1:  Phonemic awareness.  Sylvia Clare must be learning about the letter H.  On more than one occasion she has demonstrated her understanding of phonemes and phoneme isolation.  I said, “Sylvia Clare you must be hungry”. Sylvia Clare paused and responded, “Mommy, is hungry like Henry? huh huh huh.” I paused in surprise of her observation and connection and simply said, “Yes”.   Later in the evening I said, “Hendrix and Orion are going to visit soon” and Sylvia Clare responded, “Hendrix is like hungry and Henry, right mommy?”

Example 2:  Letter recognition.  One night earlier this week while tucking Sylvia Clare in bed I noticed she was curled in the most unusual position. I observed but said nothing. Just as I was about to pull the bed sheets up Sylvia Clare said, “Mommy, what letter do I look like?”   I respond, “hmmmm, interesting. I’m thinking you look like an I?”  Sylvia Clare laughs, “Noooooo. What letter do I look like mommy?”

She is also taking objects and forming letters. For example, while playing outside, she took two twigs and  placed them together to form the letter “V” and asked, “Does this look like a letter mommy? What letter is this?”

Example 3: Vocabulary development and comprehension.  More and more Sylvia Clare comes home with stories. Vivid stories. Curious stories.  Each day her stories grow in detail and description. The other day she explained she went on a trip to the forest in search of an oak tree. She shared,  “On the way to the forest, I held a boy’s hand [she paused and blushed]. His name is *Sam (changed) and he is in SK (senior kindergarten) so he is bigger.  I fell down on my way to the forest but I did not get hurt and the teacher gave me a bandaid. The forest close to the park mommy, you know the one we always go to.  We went into the forest just a little, not deep in the forest, only at the entrance. There we found a humungous oak tree. It had 4 trunks and they went out like this (uses her arms and points in four different directions). So it really looked like four trees stuck together. We looked at the bark”.  I asked if it was an angel oak tree. She was not sure but she continued to share news about her experience.

Example 4: Confidence.  Sylvia Clare drew a map of the world at home, wrapped it up and took it to school. I thought nothing of this as I dropped her off in the morning. Then I realized I left her lunch bag at home! I scrambled home and rushed back to the school to bring her  lunch.  By the time I returned to the school the children were engaged in outdoor play/education/inquiry.  I saw Sylvia Clare standing with one of her teachers, her map open and making reference to it. The teacher saw me and smiled, “Sylvia Clare is reading her map and we are now trying to find the treasure”.  How wonderful to see play and literacy in harmony. A reader is a person who reads. Sylvia Clare was demonstrating she is a reader. Then, at the end of the day when I went to pick her up she had another paper in hand. I asked, “What did you work on today?” and Sylvia Clare explained that she lost her map so she made another one – she developed a graphic organizer, a way to read, understand and appreciate the world. My thoughts:  thank you teachers, for providing the time and space for Sylvia Clare to engage in what interests her and thank you for appreciating those interests.

On her own, without probe, Sylvia Clare is offering hints of literacy teaching and learning.  With sly enthusiasm she is sharing her learning with me, in subtle, whimsical ways. She is sharing her achievements and understandings and I can tell she is proud that she is learning new things.  What excites me is that her learning is evident; in her sharing, practice and happiness. It is not coming home by way of worksheets or alphabet books.  I look forward to seeing and sharing what the upcoming months hold.

 

My Favorite Canadian Children’s Poet

literacy,

I llllooooovvee teaching poetry- especially Loris Lesynski style poetry. Her poems are often all over the page, graphically depicting how the poem should sound. My favorite collection of hers is Dirty Dog Boogie. Delightfully rhythmical.  She also has a wonderful sense of humor, both in her writing and in person. Even her facebook posts are funny. Here is what she wrote the other day…

I just got a call from The Humane Society — my cat is going to SUE me for posting her picture without permission and for the implication that I own the desk, not her. I didn’t even know she had a facebook page! I cannot keep up with technology!!!!

If young children in your life like tap dancing type funny- find a Loris book!

loris                                                                           Loris Lesynski

A Community Literacy Initiative

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On a recent walk I noticed the front lawn of a home in my neighborhood proudly exhibits a quaint little wooden structure perched a top a post, which at first glance looked like an oversized bird house, however, upon closer examination I noticed that the petite house is full of books and displays a sign that invites passersby to take a book and return a book. The small wooden house is part of the Little Free Library initiative, a not-for-profit organization that promotes literacy, a love of reading, and a sense of community. The project began in 2009 when Todd Bol of Hudson, Wisconsin, built a model of a one-room schoolhouse in honor of his mother, a former teacher who loved reading.  He filled the model schoolhouse with books and put it on a post in his front yard. According the website www.littlefreelibrary.org “a loyal cadre of volunteers made it possible to expand the organizational reach…. By January of 2014, the total number of registered Little Free Libraries in the world was conservatively estimated to be nearly 15,000, with thousands more being built.” Do you have a Little Free Library in your neighborhood or a community literacy initiative that you would like to share?

LittleFreeLibrary

How do teachers learn? Guest blog by Elizabeth Rosales

classroom teachers, education, schooling, Teacher education, , , , , , , ,

What are the ways teachers learn? What kinds of professional development activities do Elizabeth Rosalesteachers participate in during their careers? What are the main supports for teacher learning in Ontario? What are the professional learning activities teachers find more helpful? What are teachers’ critiques to the current professional development activities?

These questions were in my mind when I (Elizabeth) started my Master´s thesis research at the Ontario Institute for Studies in Education at the University of Toronto. Working with Clare Kosnik and Clive Beck in the longitudinal study of teachers (https://literacyteaching.net/projects/) has been a great opportunity to learn about teachers and teaching. My Master’s thesis research was a sub-study of this longitudinal study.

The experiences of Tanya and Anita – the two teachers who participated in my study – offered me a great opportunity to gain insight into their learning experiences. Drew on interviews that were held over their first eight years in the teaching profession, my aim was to:

  • identify the kinds of professional development opportunities that were available to the teachers, and
  • describe the teachers’ perceptions of the possibilities and limits of these opportunities.

The most relevant conclusions of my study are:

–        Mentoring can be very helpful provided the mentor is well-selected, the timing is precise, and the relationship is encouraging

The findings suggest that there are three key elements for a beneficial induction process: (i) the pairing process should consider a match in the teaching assignments of the mentor and mentee, (ii) the induction should start in the first year of teaching and early in the academic year, and (iii) the relationship should respond to the emotional needs of the new teacher.

–        Collaboration can significantly enhance teacher professional learning. However, the benefits can be constrained by educational policy pressures and different visions of teaching within the collaborating group.

The teachers participated in several formal and informal opportunities to collaborate with other teachers. They valued “bouncing ideas off each other” and “talking through” their pedagogical practices in these experiences.

Nevertheless, teachers critiqued the formal opportunities sponsored by the government since they focused on specific content that was not related to their needs. The research points to the necessity of teacher input and decision-making for the design and implementation of relevant professional development programs.

Also, teachers found it challenging when different vision of teaching emerge within the collaborating group. The findings suggest the importance of conducting a discussion of visions of teaching in order to establish common ground on which to build collaboration in a community of teachers.

–        University graduate degree work can be a valuable means of teacher professional learning through fostering connections between pedagogical theory and teaching practice.

The parallel work of teaching and part-time graduate studies presented one of the teachers with several opportunities to link theory and practice. There were reciprocal gains from participation in both spaces. For instance, the readings about new theories of literacy shaped her classroom practice, and also her teaching informed her research.

Further research is needed to understand the potential benefits of graduate studies as an alternative route for teacher professional development.

If you are interested in learning more about Tanya and Anita learning experiences, you can access the following link to download my full work (for FREE!)

https://tspace.library.utoronto.ca/handle/1807/65532

Your opinions and feedback are welcome!

How was your day? And more inspiring ways to ask Children about school

classroom teachers, education, schooling, Teacher education, Uncategorized, ,

We know that if we ask children, “How was your day?” Often we will hear the response “Fine”… or if we ask “What did you do at school today?” Often we will hear the ever so painful response “nothing”.

I (Yiola) came across this list of questions to ask children as a way to stimulate conversation about their schooling experience. I will be sharing this list with my student teachers this year as I find it to be a helpful tool to share with parents.

1) What was the best thing that happened at school today? (What was the worst thing that happened at school today?)

2. Tell me something that made you laugh today.

3. If you could choose, who would you like to sit by in class? (Who would you NOT want to sit by in class? Why?)

4. Where is the coolest place at the school?

5. Tell me a weird word that you heard today. (Or something weird that someone said.)

6. If I called your teacher tonight, what would she tell me about you?

7. How did you help somebody today?

8. How did somebody help you today?

9. Tell me one thing that you learned today.

10. When were you the happiest today?

11. When were you bored today?

12. If an alien spaceship came to your class and beamed someone up, who would you want them to take?

13. Who would you like to play with at recess that you’ve never played with before?

14. Tell me something good that happened today.

15. What word did your teacher say most today?

16. What do you think you should do/learn more of at school?

17. What do you think you should do/learn less of at school?

18. Who in your class do you think you could be nicer to?

19. Where do you play the most at recess?

20. Who is the funniest person in your class? Why is he/she so funny?

21. What was your favorite part of lunch?

22. If you got to be the teacher tomorrow, what would you do?

23. Is there anyone in your class who needs a time-out?

24. If you could switch seats with anyone in the class, who would you trade with? Why?

25. Tell me about three different times you used your pencil today at school.

*****

The list came from: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/liz-evans/25-ways-to-ask-your-kids-so-how-was-school-today-without-asking-them-so-how-was-school-today_b_5738338.html

Researchers in the area of parenting and parent involvement have offered the same advice to parents for speaking to their children about school.

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/life/parenting/back-to-school/how-to-help-your-kids-succeed-in-school-talk-talk-talk/article4524102/