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FLUENCY: IMPLICATIONS FOR CLASSROOM INSTRUCTION
Elizabeth Frye and Woodrow Trathen, ASU
We have been exposed to so many reading strategies either through our course here as grown adults or as a young student in the elementary school. We’ve experienced components and at times even implemented a few of them ourselves. So many names and “types” have been thrown at us, I’m gratified to see them brought to us in somewhat of a comparision–being all in one document. Something in this format is more likely trigger me to look deeper into the method behind it because it provides me a brief or an overview of what each particular fluency strategy’s target is.
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Peter and the Starcatchers
Must say, couldn’t put the book down! This was the book I lugged around with me in my over-sized purse. It laid next to me in bed, it sat in the passenger seat of my car, and kept me company. I was asking people if they would like me to read the book to them. That’s how much I wanted to share this story. *Funny story: I was reading the book over the phone to my boyfriend. I was on a roll! (At this point in the story, Peter and Molly are on the island and out looking for James and the others in the jungle. James leaves Thomas and Prentiss to back track for Tubby Ted.) The boyfriend was sleepy by now, but before he hung up, he was like, “Are you going to continue reading? Tell me what happens tomorrow ok? ok?” LOL, the story was too good to put it down this night!
By the end of the story, it was “Ah, so this is how so and so came to be like this or like that!”
Plus, I felt very proud of myself to have finished such a thick book!! 🙂
What’s next?
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Breaking Down Words to Build Meaning: Morphology, Vocabulary, and Reading Comprehension in the Urban Classroom Michael J Kieffer, Nonie K. Lesaux
Morphology=breaking down words.
Principle 1: multiple exposure to words, introduce the words in meaningful contexts, and involved students in deep processing of the words’ meanings.
Principle 2: Cognitive strategy to manipulate words; break a word down
Principle 3: Knowledge of prefixes and suffixes, knowledge of how words get transformed, knowledge of roots
Principle 4: Recognize and use cognates–words with similar spelling and meaning in two languages
“Understanding morphology may help students broaden their vocabularies, and vocabulary growth may improve students’ understanding of morphology.”
I can so easily relate to this article being an ELL student myself. As a young child in the public school, I’m pretty sure I lacked the vocabulary to comprehend much of the text. I think I am just catching up now with the strategies mentioned from this reading. At home, my parents mainly spoke Hmong to me, therefore not being able to be read to, spoken to or with English. I do have much a better understanding of both languages being one of the eldest in my family. I was exposed enough to writings in Hmong to pick out and read many of the words. Unlike my younger siblings, they struggle much more with comprehension of a word said in hmong because they don’t have that exposure.
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Shared Readings: Modeling Comprehension, Vocabulary, Text Structures, and Text Features for Older Readers
As I was reading through this, all I could think of was my 18-year-old sister that still struggles to read. It’s as if this could be a lesson taught in one school day, she was absent that day! Reading through the article, a lot of the modeling the teachers did were a given to me –I can see and understand the reasoning behind it. At the same time, I can see myself skipping over so many of the modeling the teachers portrayed BECAUSE I pick things up so quickly as a student. It’s so hard to put myself in that learning child’s shoes. I don’t remember if I was such a good reader or not, but I do depend greatly on context clues, connecting to the text, and etc. to comprend (a new word to me anyways). My teachers must done a pretty good job, maybe…
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Internet Workshop and Blog Publishing: Meeting Student (and Teacher) Learning Needs to Achieve Best Practice in the 21st Century
This article provided great ideas and examples of how to integrate technology into the classroom curriculum. We are getting first-hand “training” on these skills. I found that students should use technology meaningfully, or have meaningful engagements. Students are, for the most part, already familiar with the kinds of technology mentioned; and if not, introduce it to them. It’s not something so in-depth that the students can’t grasp. They will pick up on it way faster than an adult would.
By use of these techniclogial skills, students can learn to be critical and make informed decisions with the information at hand (online). It is true, when you know your work is for a much wider range of audience, you are motivated to do quality work.
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Swashbuckling Adventures on the High Seas: Historical Fiction, Informational Texts, and an Integrated Unit About Pirates and Pull-Out
It’s so exciting to see the writer’s notebook be integrated to a unit such as this, dealing with pirates. A lot of the time, we, as adults only consider what we think the students would like to learn, and not necessarily what the student would actually like to learn. There are so many misconceptions to what a pirate is and looks like. So this would be of definite interest to the kids. The KWL format is surely a way to clear up misconceptions and intrigue the students into what do they want to know, and then analysis their own learning. The Pull-Out is just an awesome way to compare and organize all the new information the students are learning themselves.
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Integrated Instructional-Level Social Studies Trade Books for Struggling Readers in Upper Elementary Grades
I am so glad to have been assigned this article to read. I find myself asking a lot of the questions that Dr. Frye addresses in this article. I agree with many things that were mentioned; like, reading material should be challenging to the students, not frustrating. When the reading material is too difficult, the reader is more focused on trying to decode the word instead of what the word actually means and how it plays in the text. I often observe low level readers being assigned “easy” books. These “easy” book shouldn’t be below their reading level, but at their instructional-level (hence the challenging not frustrating). Therefore, they should receive high literacy quality material at their instructional-level.
We are so focused at teaching at grade-level when data says that it doesn’t really show improvement for either readers (high or low). I just found this quote mentioned in the text to be very inspirational.
“…because learning the child must precede teaching him…” Betts (1946)
There is such an emphasis on tested subjects that all other subjects just get “touched-on.”
Thanks Dr. Frye for providing a great list of books as well!
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Poetry
Love That Dog
Even with the content in this poetry book, I would love to share it with students. Kids can easily relate to it. The thinking process of Jack in this book is tremendously true to the thinking process a young child may go through to understanding what and how to write poems.
Brown Angels
All these random words can give such percious meaning to a photo, and such a simple photo can give so great a meaning to words.
All the Same Poems and 14 More
Everyday material are seen in a new light. Things you never took notice of, thought as important are presented to you in a way that you start looking at everything as a possible poem to write about too! =)
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History of My Name
Surprisingly not, my name was not in either of the website provided. It was funny too, because according to the website howmanyofme.com there is at least 1 person or fewer with the exact same name as me. But if you were to do a search on myspace or a search engine, you’ll find multiple results for the name JOUA YANG. I find this statement hilarious:
There are fewer than1,537 people in the U.S. with the first name Joua.
The estimate for this name is not absolute. There may be fewer people with this name, or none at all.
To translate my name literally, it would mean green. So, if you were to say joua, it is the same as you would say the color green in the Hmong language. How my name came to be? Good question. It’s not a very common Hmong name, but typical. It was just a name my dad had picked out. He liked it and didn’t really consider other names when naming me.
Growing up, the name didn’t bother me much until middle school. This was when we moved from the west to the east. It became bothersome because people are constantly mispronouncing my name. I much rather have them ask me how to say it. I’ve come to terms with it 😀 I guess people like the ring of it in their ears because I get a lot of compliment that “it is a pretty name.”
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NOTEBOOK KNOW-HOW Strategies for the Writer’s Notebook
Aimee Buckner
My overall impression of the text, so far, is that it is easy to read. It generates ideas, and it answers a lot of “why not do the notebook” questions. I like the author’s presentation of how she introduces and uses the notebook in her classroom. Too often, we read textbooks that make it sound like this is the only method to get this done and to get it done right. Buckner suggests and allows the reader to participate and contribute his/her uniqueness to using the notebook.
It is clearly stated what the purpose of a Writer’s Notebook is, “the most important aspect of a notebook is that it allows students the practice of simply writing…in whatever form. Writing, writing, writing…” —FLUENCY, if we look up this word in a dictionary, we will get a definition along the lines of: spoken or written with ease; able to speak or write smoothly, easily, or readily; easy, graceful; flowing, as a stream; easily changed or adapted. Wouldn’t this have helped so many of us through our school years, even now?
I really like the idea of allowing the students time to write in their notebooks just to write. They can write here without the fear of being scrutinized for their grammar or topic/subject. (Of course, they should still be aware of all the rules that apply to writing.) Man! They can draw a picture if they want to!
The way the Writer’s Notebook was presented to us with Dr. Frye, making entries of our introductions on our initial meeting, is a great strategy I would like to use as well for my classroom. It does make the students feel special and that all the things they have said didn’t go to waste. The way the notebook will be organized is totally up to the students. I will entrust them with the responsibility of knowing themselves best to understand their own organization system. The important thing I would like them to keep up with is the date. Let’s get started!!!
edJOUAcate me! 
Amanda Phifer said,
September 8, 2009 at 11:59 pm
Joua- I can’t wait to hear about those objects…especially that ring!
Meredith said,
September 16, 2009 at 2:24 am
Joua,
Your piggy bank poem is so fun! I think your students will be able to relate with a piggy bank, or some form of a savings device. I know I can definitely relate to the 3rd stanza that talks about the piggy bank collecting dust by the bed!
Meredith 🙂
scogginaj said,
September 20, 2009 at 2:21 am
Love the piggy poem!! 🙂 It is great! SO creative!!! Just like you!