Why I Like to Read on PhotoPeach
Monday, February 15, 2010
It's Monday Again??
I don't know where the last week went. It flew by...well, a day of it did go to a super workshop on Word Walls by Dr. Rick Du Vall. It was the third workshop that a group of us attended that was tied into a Reading Grant. Workshop one was Reading Best Practices, An Overview. Number two was Assessment and RtI by Lexie Domaradzki. Who would have known that assessment could be so much fun?? It really was. We had so much fun marking up the Summary of Impact Reports. There were also quite a few "a-ha" moments that we will be sharing with the staff. Who would have known? We're on the right track with our screening, but need to also implement a quick diagnostic assessment, such as the phonics inventory, to pinpoint how to intervene with each individual child when they are low in fluency. You see, fluency is just an indicator of an underlying problem. Most of the time, it is with phonology, the ablility to hear the sounds. I am also looking forward to the fourth workshop on Friday, done by the same presenter as Word Walls, Dr. Rick Du Vall. It will be on Literacy Centers and Comprehension.
For me, another highlight will be when I get to attend a workshop by The Sisters in April. I can't wait! I have implemented the Daily 5 and CAFE for about a year now I thoroughly enjoy getting ideas and guidance from their web site. There is a fee, but I highly recommend it if you are using The Daily 5 and CAFE in your classroom.
The Daily 5 rotations are going very well in the classroom. I have started to let the students also use the computers for Word Work. Some choose to write out the words using Mimio Notebook, while others choose to go to Spelling City to practice and play games using their weekly spelling words. The interactive board is probably the biggest hit for practicing words for the Word Work rotation. I must admit, the kids are pretty tech savvy when it come to operating the Mimio!
This week also brings on the science fair! Mrs. N's class presented today, mine will present tomorrow, and Mrs. S's will present on Thursday. It's always interesting to watch the presentations. A lot of work is put into the process of the experiment and presentation. I am always amazed at how knowledgeable the second grade students are. They seem like little experts, or should I say, scientists.
For me, another highlight will be when I get to attend a workshop by The Sisters in April. I can't wait! I have implemented the Daily 5 and CAFE for about a year now I thoroughly enjoy getting ideas and guidance from their web site. There is a fee, but I highly recommend it if you are using The Daily 5 and CAFE in your classroom.
The Daily 5 rotations are going very well in the classroom. I have started to let the students also use the computers for Word Work. Some choose to write out the words using Mimio Notebook, while others choose to go to Spelling City to practice and play games using their weekly spelling words. The interactive board is probably the biggest hit for practicing words for the Word Work rotation. I must admit, the kids are pretty tech savvy when it come to operating the Mimio!
This week also brings on the science fair! Mrs. N's class presented today, mine will present tomorrow, and Mrs. S's will present on Thursday. It's always interesting to watch the presentations. A lot of work is put into the process of the experiment and presentation. I am always amazed at how knowledgeable the second grade students are. They seem like little experts, or should I say, scientists.
Monday, February 8, 2010
Day 101
Happy Monday! It has been a wonderful day today. I am so proud of my students. They are such hard workers and really put forth 100% effort.
After lunch, I usually read a literature selection to the students, and it is so refreshing to have all hands go up,so they can read the book after I am done reading it aloud.
Literature Bags started to go home a few weeks ago. Each bag has a collection of books that will hopefully expose children to many genres and continue to wet their reading appetites.
All in all, it comes down to how much a child is being supported and reading at home. Frequent library visits and reading support at home make all the difference in the world. It also helps tremendously if your home is filled with print-rich material.
Creating a home that discusses and exposes children to a rich vocabulary is also pertinent. Visits to the museum, zoo, and cultural events, along with exposure to historical landmarks, prepare students with the much needed background knowledge to support their reading experiences.
This is an ongoing process that is a continuum throughout their educational career.
After lunch, I usually read a literature selection to the students, and it is so refreshing to have all hands go up,so they can read the book after I am done reading it aloud.
Literature Bags started to go home a few weeks ago. Each bag has a collection of books that will hopefully expose children to many genres and continue to wet their reading appetites.
All in all, it comes down to how much a child is being supported and reading at home. Frequent library visits and reading support at home make all the difference in the world. It also helps tremendously if your home is filled with print-rich material.
Creating a home that discusses and exposes children to a rich vocabulary is also pertinent. Visits to the museum, zoo, and cultural events, along with exposure to historical landmarks, prepare students with the much needed background knowledge to support their reading experiences.
This is an ongoing process that is a continuum throughout their educational career.
Tuesday, February 2, 2010
Is There Enough Time?
Lately, there just doesn't seem to be enough time to take care of everything that needs to be done. This is where organization and priorities come into play. I must admit, I am very poor at prioritizing events. As a person who is quite middle brained, I am distracted often. lol Thank goodness I have a lovely husband who loves to organize.
Anyway, I have learned to appreciate myself for being middle-brained. For, I believe this allows me to be the best teacher I can be. It really helps bring out the creative side in me. I would like to go back to the title, "Learning is Messy." I can appreciate this. It doesn't literally mean "messy," but quite the intricate process...like a humongous jigsaw puzzle. I just had to use the word humongous, for we have recently learned about Word Choice and using colorful words. We created trash can thesaurus's where garbage can words (poor word choice) were put into the trash can and is posted as a constant reminder of what words to avoid. Then we brainstormed more colorful words to use in place of the trash can words.
I was able to import an outline of a trash can and use it interactively with our Mimio. The kids just loved it.
The next project I need to complete is to finish posting the kids' KidPix Snowmen and their descriptive paragraphs that were taped using the Flip Camera. Then we are going to try to guess which snowman picture belongs with the description. It should be a lot of fun!! I will be using the Voicethread platform to import the videos. Wish me luck! I am using Glogster to post all the pictures....I failed to mention that the kids actually saved their Kidpix Snowmen to the district drive!!!!!! Hurray. I am so impressed with their ability to try new things. Way to go my awesome students.
Anyway, I have learned to appreciate myself for being middle-brained. For, I believe this allows me to be the best teacher I can be. It really helps bring out the creative side in me. I would like to go back to the title, "Learning is Messy." I can appreciate this. It doesn't literally mean "messy," but quite the intricate process...like a humongous jigsaw puzzle. I just had to use the word humongous, for we have recently learned about Word Choice and using colorful words. We created trash can thesaurus's where garbage can words (poor word choice) were put into the trash can and is posted as a constant reminder of what words to avoid. Then we brainstormed more colorful words to use in place of the trash can words.
I was able to import an outline of a trash can and use it interactively with our Mimio. The kids just loved it.
The next project I need to complete is to finish posting the kids' KidPix Snowmen and their descriptive paragraphs that were taped using the Flip Camera. Then we are going to try to guess which snowman picture belongs with the description. It should be a lot of fun!! I will be using the Voicethread platform to import the videos. Wish me luck! I am using Glogster to post all the pictures....I failed to mention that the kids actually saved their Kidpix Snowmen to the district drive!!!!!! Hurray. I am so impressed with their ability to try new things. Way to go my awesome students.
Monday, February 1, 2010
Monday, Monday...
It really feels awesome to get back into the swing of things as a teacher. My student teacher's last day was about a week ago. I love interacting and learning alongside the students. They are so inquisitive and exciting. I love a fellow blogger's blog title: Learning is Messy. That just really says it all. Teaching is not an exact science at all. It takes a lot of tweaking each and every day. I love to watch the students' eyes light up when they learn something new...especially when they get exciting about reading. I truly believe that READING IS THE KEY! Many, many read-alouds are required to peak the kids' interests.
Time to become voracious readers is the other component, along with exposure and access to all sorts of books.
Unfortunately, much time is needed for reading in the classroom, for it isn't always done at home. We assume that is the case, but many times it isn't.
Until next time....
Time to become voracious readers is the other component, along with exposure and access to all sorts of books.
Unfortunately, much time is needed for reading in the classroom, for it isn't always done at home. We assume that is the case, but many times it isn't.
Until next time....
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