Course Reflection

Coming into this course I was honestly extremely apprehensive. I had very little experience using technology, and I barely even knew what a blog was, let alone how to manage one. But I jumped in feet first, and I can say now that I am so glad I did. I never realized before this class what an inadequate teacher I would have made with my previous technology knowledge. I was not prepared to provide my students with a good education because I was not capable of utilizing a fraction of the resources that are available to me. Having this blog and accessing the websites and resources we have used in this class has opened so many doors for me and I honestly feel now like I will make a good and efficient teacher.

One of my favorite things about this course was the realization that so many fellow teachers are willing to share their hard work on the Internet so that we may benefit in our own classrooms. I have gained so many amazing teaching strategies and lesson plans that I fully intend to use when I am a teacher. This course has benefited me so much because nothing has been “busy work”. Everything that I have researched and blogged about has been something that I can use in my actual classroom when I am teaching.

A couple of my favorite websites that I discovered during this course are SAS Curriculum Pathways and Read Write Think. These sites were so amazingly simple to use and absolutely chock full of helpful information. I feel like a regular pro accessing all this information and storing it away for when I am a teacher. I also learned how to utilize a few tried and true favorites like Google and YouTube. I never realized how much these websites could benefit me in my classroom, but they are rich with learning materials. All you have to do is know how to look for them!

I would absolutely love to keep my blog after this course ends and I hope that others feel the same. It is so great to have the regular comments from my peers about what I am posting. I also love having the opportunity to read what everyone else has to say and responding to them. I feel like (as cheesy as this may sound) we are a team and we are all helping one another become better and more effective teachers. This blog is something I can see myself keeping for a long time. I would love to stay connected with fellow teachers so that I may come to them for ideas and help when I need it, or to provide help when I can give it.

Unit 4 Lesson Plan 2: Robert Frost’s “Acquainted With the Night”

Name of Lesson Plan: Robert Frost’s “Acquainted With the Night”

Link to Site: http://www.brighthub.com/education/k-12/articles/18163.aspx

Overview from Site: Create a darkened atmosphere in your room by turning out at least some of the lights for when students come in. On either your multimedia projector or overhead projector, put a writing prompt for today: “How do you feel at night? Use a story from your personal experience to describe the way that night makes you feel.” Put some music on while students file in — something of a slow jazz piece, like “Harlem Nocturne.” Students should just come in and start writing. Give them about 10 minutes to finish their thoughts. Once it looks like everyone is done, read Robert Frost’s “Acquainted With the Night” aloud to your students.

Using this Lesson Plan: I love this lesson plan for several reasons. First, I love Robert Frost. Second, I love anything that helps students put themselves into what they are reading. I think that if my students come into a darkened classroom with soft music playing and are asked to write about how the night makes them feel they are much more likely to understand the meaning behind Frost’s words in his poem. The setting and the atmosphere the lesson plan provides is a simple way to turn what would be a boring activity for students into something new and exciting.

One way that I would modify this lesson plan would be perhaps to have my students write a poem about the night. It would be fun to ask them to write in the same style as Frost (using similar repetition and rhyme scheme, etc.) This would be good to do before we read the poem if the students were already familiar with the poet, but if not it would be a great activity to do after reading, which is something the website for the lesson plan suggests.

Unit 4 Lesson Plan 1: Spend A Day In My Shoes

Name of Lesson Plan: Spend a Day in My Shoes: Exploring the Role of Perspective in Narrative

Link to Site: http://www.readwritethink.org/lessons/lesson_view.asp?id=265

Overview from Site: In To Kill a Mockingbird, Atticus explains to Scout that “You never really understand a person until you consider things from his point of view…until you climb into his skin and walk around in it” (36). Make this advice more literal by inviting students to imagine spending a day in someone else’s shoes in this writing activity.

Using this Lesson Plan: I love the idea of this lesson plan. Since I intend to teach eleventh grade English, I am hoping To Kill a Mockingbird will be a novel I get to teach. It is one of my favorite novels, and I think this is one of the best quotes from it. I love this activity because it gives students an opportunity to see things from someone else’s perspective, like Atticus asks Scout to, by literally walking around in their shoes. Students can then imagine the kind of person who would wear those shoes and write a personal narrative from that person’s perspective. I think that creative writing is a great way to emphasize a theme within a text because it allows students to put themselves into the story.

The only way I would modify this lesson plan is by changing the use of shoes. I think it would be very difficult to find enough pairs of shoes to bring in so that each of my students may have a pair to write about. Rather, I think it would be a good idea to get pictures of shoes from a website. That way you can get pictures of many different kinds of shoes, and it is takes up less space, is less time consuming, and more financially reasonable.

Unit 4 Article 3: Vocabulary Instruction

This was a very interesting article about the importance of vocabulary instruction in all subject areas and the different teaching methods that can be used to enhance to student understanding.  Effective vocabulary instruction is crucial in every teacher’s classroom, because without a proper understanding of vocabulary students will fail to completely understand the relevant material in the course. This article described the use of literature circles, poetry, multigenre papers, visual representations, and many other teaching tools to promote effective vocabulary instruction.

I liked this article because it provided specific examples from real teachers’ classrooms. It even had copies of actual visual representations made by students, which I thought was great. I also liked that it used teachers from all different subject areas, from Earth science to English to geometry, to show the importance of vocabulary instruction for all, rather than simply focusing on one subject area. The article also stressed the importance of finding a type of vocabulary instruction that fit with each teacher’s preferred teaching style, which is something I really appreciated. This article even provided examples of the assessments teachers used, which I thought was very helpful. I found so much here that I can use in my classroom, and I love it because I already know that it really works because this stuff that was done by real teachers. The blog entries and comments from the teachers describing their experiences were also very helpful and interesting to read.

I visited the website of one of the teachers who were featured in the article, and I was happy to find some vocabulary instruction on his site. I went to his site for 9th grade English, and he had very helpful tables for students showing them all of the vocabulary words they would be studying, and where they came  from (for example, The Odyssey) Also, there were page numbers listed where the words could be found, and if the word’s etymology was going to be studied it was listed. I was excited to see some of this vocabulary instruction in action!

My thinking questions for this article would  be:

• What types of vocabulary instruction would fit with my preferred teaching strategy?
• What are the misconceptions I had about vocabulary instruction that this article corrected?
• What can I do in my classroom to ensure my students are grasping the vocabulary to the best of their abilities?

Unit 4 Article 2: The Multigenre Paper

Margaret Moulton’s article, “The Multigenre Paper: Increasing Interest, Motivation, and Functionality in Research” describes a creative alternative to the traditonal research paper: the multigenre paper. Multigenre papers give students the opportunity to research a topic without having to write the traditional impersonal research paper. Rather, they create a paper composed of many different genres. Whether is be a newspaper article, a poem, a letter, a poster, or any other type of text, the multigenre paper allows students to research and be creative at the same time.

I have had some experience with multigenre papers in the past and I loved them. In my opinion they are so much fun to make and much more interesting than writing a typical research paper. The article said that the traditional five paragraph essay and research paper are geared toward academics only, and I agree with this. In the real world the texts we are exposed to are magazines, letters, newspapers, greeting cards, etc. Multigenre papers utilize these “real world” texts.

This article was really interesting because it showed how a multigenre paper can be great to use but also really confusing. I believe that the main reason a lot of teachers do not use multigenre papers is because they do not know how or because they simply do not know what they are at all. The class in the article created the papers as an experiment, and while the process needed some work, they all agreed that the project itself was outstanding.

I think a great example of the use of a different genre is the link that shows the WANTED posters for the Great Depression. This activity is so much more enjoyable for students than simply writing a research paper about the Great Depression.

My thinking questions for this article were:

• How can I make clear guidelines for a multigenre paper in my classroom to eliminate confusion?
• What would be my method of evaluation for a multigenre paper?
• How could I use multigenre papers to incorporate other subject areas into my ELA lesson plan?

Unit 4 Article 1: “I” Poems

The article “”I” Poems: Invitations for Students to Deepen Literary Understandings” described an excellent poetry activity students can participate in that allows them to take the place of the narrator. The article emphasized the fact that students who are allowed to write about what they are reading are more likely to comprehend the text and walk away with a better understanding of the themes and ideas presented. The article presents many different ways the “I” poem can be used in a classroom and gives examples of “I” poems written by actual students.

I think that “I” poems are a great idea. I love any activity that gives students the opportunity to write, and I truly believe that allowing them to narrate a poem about what they are reading will help them deepen their literary knowledge. This activity allows students to be creative while reinforcing the main ideas of the text simultaneously and I think that is great. Furthermore, you can incorporate research into this lesson plan to help students understand what they are reading even more. I also think it is wonderful that this is an activity that can be done before reading, after reading, or during a read-aloud. No matter when it is used, this is a beneficial lesson plan.

I also really enjoyed this article because it provided so many different examples of “I” poems. It showed several different layouts for several  books used with several different age groups (even preservice teachers). I found this article to be really helpful for that reason, because it proves that students of all ages enjoy and learn from this activity. It also gave me a lot of great ideas and helped me figure out some ways I could use this activity in my classroom.

My thinking questions for this article would be:

• How could I use this activity for a high school classroom, specifically for the texts I would like to use in 11th grade English? (For example, To Kill a Mockingbird)
• Are there any other formats not listed in the article I could use when using this activity?
• What types of research could I incorporate into my lessons to help my students make their “I” poems even better?

Joni Russell

Unit 3 Strategy 5: Vocabulary Journal

Title your post: Unit 3 Strategy 5: Vocabulary Journal

Your Name: Joni Russell

Name of Strategy: Vocabulary Journal

Source (Where did this come from?): All America Reads

Link to the Strategy: http://www.allamericareads.org/lessonplan/wyw/vocab/journal.htm

 

Give a thorough description of the strategy and how it will be implemented. This should be a summary of the strategy according to the original source: This strategy should be used during reading. A vocabulary journal is a place where students can list vocabulary words that they find in their text that they do not understand or find confusing. The journal should have three columns, listing the word, the student’s perceived definition of the word, and the textual clues that led them to believe this was the definition.

Explain what part of the standard course of study is addressed by this activity. This activity addresses the following NCSCOS goals for English III:

• Competency Goal 4: The learner will critically analyze text to gain meaning, develop thematic connections, and synthesize ideas.
• Competency Goal 6: The learner will apply conventions of grammar and language usage.

Explain why you think this strategy will work. How does the strategy help your students learn?  I think that there are many students who have trouble with some of the vocabulary words within the the text they are reading, especially in high school English. Often times during high school English students are reading classic works that are beyond their reading level. They are coming across these words they do not understand, but they simply skip over them because it is too much of a hassle to get out the dictionary and look the word up. I think this strategy will work because it is a great way to make sure students are actually stopping and looking at the words that they do not understand within a text, rather than just skipping over them and moving on. So much understanding is lost when words are skipped over in a text, and requiring your students to keep one of these journals will make sure they are not missing out on anything within the text.

Unit 3 Strategy 4: Think-Pair-Share

Title your post: Unit 3 Strategy 4: Think-Pair-Share

Your Name: Joni Russell

Name of Strategy: Think-Pair-Share

Source (Where did this come from?): Pennsylvania Department of Education

Link to the Strategy: http://www.pde.state.pa.us/reading_writing/cwp/view.asp?a=196&q=98024

Give a thorough description of the strategy and how it will be implemented. This should be a summary of the strategy according to the original source: This strategy should be used after reading. During this activity, students are asked to brainstorm about a specific topic. Then, they are paired with another student to discuss their topics and form a general statement. This general idea about the topic is then shared with the rest of the class.

Explain what part of the standard course of study is addressed by this activity. This activity addresses NCSCOS for English III goals:

• Competency Goal 1: The learner will demonstrate increasing insight and reflection to print and non-print text through personal expression.
• Competency Goal 2: The learner will inform an audience by using a variety of media to research and explain insights into language and culture.
• Competency Goal 4: The learner will critically analyze text to gain meaning, develop thematic connections, and synthesize ideas.

Explain why you think this strategy will work. How does the strategy help your students learn? I like this strategy because it allows students to work together in forming ideas about a specific topic. I believe this is much more effective than simply requiring students to write a journal entry or response essay on their own. If they are working together to create a general statement or idea about the assigned topic then they are not only hearing their own ideas but the ideas of others, therefore expanding their knowledge about the topic. I think this would be great for use in the English classroom. Often books that are read in high school have very complex themes or ideas. This activity would be a great way to ensure comprehension while still keeping students entertained.

Unit 3 Strategy 3: RAFT

Title your post: Unit 3 Strategy 3: RAFT

Your Name: Joni Russell

Name of Strategy: RAFT

Source (Where did this come from?): Greece Central School District

Link to the Strategy: http://www.greece.k12.ny.us/instruction/ela/6-12/Reading/Reading%20Strategies/RAFT.htm

Give a thorough description of the strategy and how it will be implemented. This should be a summary of the strategy according to the original source: This is a strategy to be used after reading. RAFT stands for Role, Audience, Format and Topic. The idea of this exercise is to provide students with the guidelines for a writing exercise. They must choose the role they are playing, an audience, the format of what they will be writing, and the topic. Here is an example of some possible RAFT choices:

Role	Audience	Format	Topic
writer artist  character scientist  adventurer  inventor  juror  judge  historian  reporter rebel therapist journalist	self peer group government parents fictional character(s) committee jury judge activists immortality animals or objects	journal editorial brochure/booklet interview video song lyric cartoon game primary document critique biographical sketch newspaper article	issue relevant to the text or time period topic of personal interest or concern for the role or audience topic related to an essential question

Explain what part of the standard course of study is addressed by this activity. This activity addressed NCSCOS for English III:

• Competency Goal 1: The learner will demonstrate increasing insight and reflection to print and non-print text through personal expression.
• Competency Goal 2: The learner will inform an audience by using a variety of media to research and explain insights into language and culture.

Explain why you think this strategy will work. How does the strategy help your students learn? I love this strategy because of the flexibility. This truly allows students to show their creativity, while still ensuring that they have fully comprehended the text. I think this activity is so much better than just having students write a reflection paper or a research paper, because it is fun and allows them to be creative. I would love to use this in my classroom after we finish reading a novel. I was brainstorming some ideas, and I came up with these RAFT ideas after reading Harper Lee’s novel, To Kill A Mockingbird:

• Students could write a newspaper article for citizens describing the high profile trial Atticus was involved in.
• Students could write a journal from Scout’s perspective.
• Students could write a song about Boo Radley describing him to newcomers.

There are so many ways this could be used in an English classroom. It is such a creative and fun activity, and I am always looking for activities that will make my evaluation of what my students have learned more fun for everyone!

Unit 3 Strategy 2: Word Splash

Title your post: Unit 3 Strategy 2: Word Splash

Your Name: Joni Russell

Name of Strategy: Word Splash

Source (Where did this come from?): Pennsylvania Department of Education

Link to the Strategy: http://www.pde.state.pa.us/reading_writing/cwp/view.asp?a=196&q=97912

Give a thorough description of the strategy and how it will be implemented. This should be a summary of the strategy according to the original source: This strategy should be used before reading. The idea of the activity is to pick 7-10 important words from the text you are about to read. Students should be given these words, then asked to write a story in which the words are involved. Students should then share their stories with the rest of the class. Then, the text itself should be read, and it can be discussed if any students’ stories were similar to the story being read.

Explain what part of the standard course of study is addressed by this activity. For the NCSCOS for English III, this activity satisfies the following goals:

• Competency Goal 1: The learner will demonstrate increasing insight and reflection to print and non-print text through personal expression. 
• Competency Goal 4: The learner will critically analyze text to gain meaning, develop thematic connections, and synthesize ideas.
• Competency Goal 6: The learner will apply conventions of grammar and language usage.

Explain why you think this strategy will work. How does the strategy help your students learn? I had an experience with a strategy identical to this when I was in high school. We wrote a short story with key words from Shakespeare’s Macbeth. I remember loving that activity because it helped me understand the play so much better. I think that students will learn from this strategy because they are immediately given key words to a text. Therefore, they are able to be creative and design a story centering around this key words. I think that the simple fact of knowing some of the main words in a text will help students understand what they are about to read so much better. For example, I was thinking of some key words that could be used for an eleventh grade class getting ready to read The Scarlet Letter. Some of the words I thought of were:

• Puritan
• Affair
• Pregnancy
• Outcast
• Mother
• Love
• Pride

I feel like just listing these words helps to tell the story. If I provide my students with these words before we ever pick up the book and ask them to write a creative story, I think many of them would create a story similar to Nathaniel Hawthorne’s novel.