EDN340—Blog
6—Crystal Martinez
-As a reader yourself,
what parts of this book were the most meaningful to you? Drew you in the most?
Challenged your thinking as a teacher the most?
The pessimistic
attitude of Hollis Woods (being that she is a kid), was something I found
intriguing and sad. Obviously, the reason for her negative outlook was because
she had been growing up in the foster care system. She knew the process of the
fake cheerful social workers, being shuffled from family to family, and how
each stay eventually came to an end. I was also touched by her relations with
elder characters like Josie, the old man and Iggy. Even though she is young,
she picks up that Josie’s mind is going, and realizes eventually someone must
take care of her. My grandparents, whom
I were very close to have both passed away, and whenever I see or read about
elderly people I always think of them. I also really liked the writing style
with the photographs as flashbacks to farther increase reader’s knowledge of
the character. There were many good discussion points in this book and it could
be a great classroom read.
-What parts of this book might draw young readers in?
I’m not sure if all
kids feel this way, but even as a child, I have always enjoyed a good realistic
fiction about a character facing difficult circumstances. It is an inspiring
book because in the end she reunites with the one foster family she felt at
home with. I think everyone likes a happy ending. The first photograph
description of her “w” picture may be particularly intriguing to young readers,
who probably would think that’s so sad and emphasize with young character.
Having no family is one of the loneliest thoughts, and for most children an
unimaginable fear.
-In reflection, how do you see this book as a best fit in your teaching?
Whole or small group? ELA or other content area instruction? Cross curricular
connections?
I would probably do most
of the book as whole group instruction, because there are so many discussion
points it would be too much time to make sure I have discussed each part with
small groups. If I didn’t do the entire book as whole group instruction, I
would at least have to with the first two, and last chapter. Some of the less
detailed middle chapters, like the one describing her time with Josie, or
describing their time in the cabin house, could possibly be done in small
groups. Of course this would primarily be ELA lessons, but I thought of a fun
art integrated activity one might want to include. Students could draw some “photograph”,
of a particularly clear memory from earlier childhood in their mind. On the
back of their memory drawing they could write a couple paragraphs describing
this memory.
-In Chapter 17 of Pictures
of Hollis Woods (or other
chapters that you look back on), what tier 2 vocabulary would you focus on and
why? As you think about the book as a whole, what examples of vocabulary would
you explicitly teach?
Chapter 17 vocabulary words: agency(it is important they
understand what govt agencies are, and the specific agency discussed in this
book is child protective services), grim (not as in the grim reaper), recognition
(just because this is a fairly large word for elementary students), feisty,
bassinet (many children may not know this word and refer to it as
cradle)
Other vocabulary throughout book: What does it mean to call
someone a hotshot? Irritable, stucco house (because I had
to look that one up for myself), How does a person look if they are flushed.
Those are a few.
Flocabulary Reflections
When I was in elementary
school we often would have vocabulary words with a magazine article (like a
nonfiction article in a children’s magazine). We were supposed to find the
definitions in our reading. Oftentimes a chapter book would have a vocabulary
lists. Those were usually filled out as a class, as we came upon those terms in
our reading. In high school we would often have vocabulary lists to complete
along with our history or science chapter readings.
One important thing I
learned in this module, to remember when planning my own future lessons
(especially as an ELL teacher vocabulary will be an important part of my daily
teaching), is to only teach 8-10 new words per week so students will not get
overloaded and will thoroughly comprehend these words. I can introduce 3 words
in each category; important, useful, and difficult, for a total of 9 words. The
Flocabulary resources in this model could be very useful, as songs and rhymes
make learning words so much easier for children, and adults too. Flocabulary
not only makes it easier for students to remember difficult terms, but also
engages them, making learning new words a more enjoyable experience. Some
students, particularly those that like music, poetry, and rhyming may find it
especially more enjoyable, than the rote copying I have always associated with
vocabulary study.
“Graphics/Drawings” and “College
Talk” Reflections
I really liked the graphic
word wall video. The teacher has students draw a graphic that best represents
the word listed in their daily morning work. Asking them to draw a picture for
representation can be especially helpful for students who have trouble with
memorization and make the activity more enjoyable for everyone, which in turn
makes them more likely to remember the words. This would be especially helpful
for my daughter, as she does not like memorization and has gotten in trouble
for doodling during class time. Artistically inclined students like her, will
really enjoy this activity. It uses the tiered approach as the words are
building on each other, and getting increasingly more challenging.
In the “college talk”
video Ms. Kim incorporates vocabulary into constant classroom usage when giving
the class directions. For example, instead of saying “stop talking”, she says “stop
socializing”. She integrates vocabulary as a normal natural part of the classroom
daily routine. At first, the students would be confused about what she had just
said. But, over time, and with the help of synonym and visual reference cards
displayed in the classroom, students can reference the words meaning, and
practice using it themselves. I really liked this idea, perhaps even more than
the graphic word wall because the best way to improve one’s vocabulary is by
using new words on a daily basis, not just when studying the words, but in
normal conversation.
Vocabulary Example
Choice Video
The teacher in this
video uses Marzano’s six-step process for teaching vocabulary. One aspect I
liked is that he teaches the word in sign language too, to sort of appeal to kinesthetic
learners, this would also be differentiating instruction if he had deaf
students. He always plays a game on Friday as the last step to his process. One
thing I noticed, he did have a wall with the words listed on it, but there was
nothing else on the wall to show the meanings of the word. I think the point of
having a word wall in a classroom is so if students forget what a word means,
they can reference the wall, and by seeing what is on it, know the definition
of the word. I think if he made a more informative word wall he could increase
his 1-2 words a week to at least 3-4 words. I definitely understand his
reasoning, that he really wants students to sort of delve into a word and fully
understand and use it, but they could probably handle 3 or 4 words.
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