Tuesday, September 29, 2015

Sept. Blog Chapter 2 Teresa Knox


September 29, 2015
Laying the Foundations
           
            Sounding out words was interesting to me because that is what we teach our children to do as they read and learn words. Reading this article I noticed that if student's process the sources of information, the meaning, the language structure, and the visual cues they are gaining knowledge of what is going on in the story. Struggling readers may have difficulty maintaining  all three sources of information. Looking at the picture first and understanding the picture can help them figure out the words also. When students are looking for certain words in a text, he or she should be prompt to find cues instead of sounding out the letters. Finding the balance during reading is a great source of information. The teacher can help students in small group learn how to find words in a text by using the pictures.

            Planning effective instruction as a teacher can be accomplished by working with students in groups, performing a running record assessment, maintaining anecdotal records, and conferencing with the students. Every child is different, therefore we have to decide which strategy or network piece works better for that child. A balanced literacy approach can help the teacher and the student become successful in reading and progressing many ways. Children need time while reading to observe, participate, practice, and strengthen their abilities to become better readers. It is very important to have the four components of balance reading before you can think about letting a student read independently. These four components are read aloud, shared reading, guided reading, and independent reading. There must be an instruction piece, assessment piece, and an individual piece for each individual.

            Read-aloud are important because this helps builds the community of you and your students. During shared reading, the teacher may use this as instructional purpose once the students are comfortable with the story. Guided Reading is reading in smaller groups. The main focus here is to have that semi one-to-one with the students to see how far they have become as readers. Individual reading is when children have the time to put their strategies to work. This is a good time for the teacher to do a running record or individual conference with the student.
            
         Lastly, a perfect tool to track the students reading level is the comparison chart of leveled texts. This chart helps the teacher understand what reading level a child is on and where they are headed. I used this type of chart in my class from the past  to track students and observe their progress.


3 comments:

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  2. Teresa, I love what you wrote about every child being different and that we need to know which strategy works better for that child. That is so true! Some times that takes a bit of time to figure out which works best and many times we need to revisit trying out strategies as these little ones garner more background knowledge or grow a little more in their reading. I love that you used the chart in the past and would like to hear more about how that went that year.

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  3. Hi Teresa,
    You did an outstanding job of reading this chapter on the Foundations of Reading and really thinking about the author's suggestions for helping our students not only decode unfamiliar words, but to really understand what they are reading, building meaning as they go. I really liked how you explained how students need multiple opportunities for reading. You wrote, "It is very important to have the four components of balance reading before you can think about letting a student read independently. These four components are read aloud, shared reading, guided reading, and independent reading. There must be an instruction piece, assessment piece, and an individual piece for each individual" I agree! Thank you! Dawn

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