Teacher Only Day: Animate a Poem

To finish off a very informative day we had create workshops. In this time we shared ways in which we create with our student in Literacy and in responding to or engaging with texts. 

What I really enjoy about this time is have a chance to share practical examples of what we are actually doing in our classrooms. I love poems and it was great to share that with others. 

T-Shaped Literacy for Juniors Year 1-3

Today we have the please of hearing the amazing Rebecca Jesson. 

We have been working around T-Shaped literacy for a while we have not seem this implement as well with junior learners. 

Wide reading

Is the notion that to learn about the world, to learn to read you need to learn widely. The benefits of wide reading go beyond school. If you think about the number of words you can say you learned them by talking and reading. There are many words we never say orally that we can read because we have read them in context. 

You get better at reading by doing it more!

We want children to be so engaged in reading that they want to read more. 

Wide reading looks like 5+ a day books. Just like eating vegetables for keeping our bodies and brains healthy we need to read 5+ to extend our brains and learn more words. 

But that is not enough. 

We want to do deep reading as well unpacking the key ideas and engage with texts critically. 

T-Shape literacy encourages us to use text sets that build ideas together. This allows learners to build understand over time. 

There are lots of different ways to think about texts sets. 

So why? 

-Build vocabulary

-Maintain decoding

-Build local inference 

When we as adults engage with a new concept we engage with multiple texts to draw conclusion. Research suggest that if you know something about it (have prior knowledge) it is easy to read about it. 

When we use multiple texts:

-Main text

-Simpler texts

-Complementary texts

-Challenge texts

So what does this look like at a junior level?

What is the big idea in the books. This can be found by looking at what the character learners and how they change during the story. 

Working together. 

What is the relationship between the main character and the side kicks. 

Likeable and unlikeable characters. 

By really thinking about this with learners from the moment they start school we are creating readers who are connected with ideas that they will engage with as readers for the rest of the life. 

So when planning we must ask.  What does this set of texts teach us. We are pulling the texts that are a bit different from a them. This leads to a provocation, this is a question or statement that can be engaged with on both side. 

Rebecca used a set of images to start the learning and provocation. Have some questions that we can ask for each book, then a big question that can get use connecting across texts. When coming up with this go back to the curriculum and think what is the area that connects best with the theme in the text. Prior knowledge should also be at the level of theme. Bring children to the new texts with some prior thinking. 

Creating a modelling book at builds around the theme. 

insist on evidence of what they think? 

Tools the Measure

 Describe the tools/measures/approaches you plan to use to get a more detailed and accurate profile of students’ learning in relation to that challenge. Justify why you chose these approaches and tools.

The purpose of inquiry is to understand an issue in student learning and take considered and active steps to address the issue through intervention. 

As my focus in an issue on student learning in reading, I plan to use a range of reading assessments to understand the issues for student learning. 

First I will do a running record on all children in my target group. I will do this to get more qualitative data about their reading ability and comprehension. From the running records I will look closely at what is happening in the way of decoding, and comprehension. 

Second, I will look at standardised test data from STAR and PAT reading. I will look at this in comparison to their running record and note similarities and differences in achievement from one test to the next. I will also look to see if there are patterns within the group or outliers that suggest other areas of need. 

Third I will collect student voice about reading. Focusing on what they find challenging and what they enjoy about reading. This will provide some additional data to build my profile. 

Fourth: I will video my reading groups and note what I am seeing in the way or reading behaviours and  discussion behaviours. This will focus purely on what the students are doing. 

Finally: I will look back at reflection notes and note any interesting discovers I have had as a teacher this far in our learning. 

 

Early Reading

When children are first learning to read at Magenta, we gift them the pattern of the language. What you are focusing on is now that they know the pattern you expect them to say the pattern. They should be pointing to the word. 

Magenta- What you say you must see, What you see you must say.

You said the, do you see the? They are pointing to nothing or on top of the word. Hold their finger. 

You should be reducing what you are saying. Can you hear me tap, I want to hear you tap. 

Sometime children at these levels will add words. The prompt for this is cover and "Have you run out of words to see?"

If they don't read all the words "Have you run out of words to say?"

We are reinforcing high frequency words You said.......can you see? on correct words first before you check on words they get wrong. 

Developing and reinforcing letter sound knowledge. You said ....... What would you expect to see for......? Are you right?"

This is an important foundation for reading knowing, direction, orientation and sequence. 

Word work:

Making and breaking high frequency word, I want you to make the word come. Find it in the book and make it. break it make it many times. Write it, check, rewrite. 

Making word: Always go make to the word they known word. Not, spot, dot, hot. Ask one child to make the word and them everyone says it. This can be done in the text or at the end of the text. 

Once children have these skills you are giving them options to check from. This again reinforces letter sounds and what I say I must see. 

Sometimes it is best to gift the correct word especially if the words start with the same letter for example waves and water. You said She ran in the water. This says "she ran in the waves" We know it is waves because it had v in the middle. 

Every time you prompt and fix is a great time to get them to read it again with the prompt read it like they are talking. Fluency develops through practice. Try putting these three words together, "The boy went" Then the next part "up the hill." Then put it all together. 

We want children reading for meaning and a huge part of this is rereading the sentence after finding. 

When they are stuck: 

"Try again and think....."

"Try again and think who runs down the hill."

When a text is a bit of a struggle, you might choose to read the texts together at the end it unison. "We are going to read this again like speaking." 

Helen said when she has a group come to her, she gets them to read the book from the day before then. She marks off their homework book. Then she does flashcards of sight words before her orientation. 

Instructional reading Middle Levels

 

Looking at a modelled lesson by the wonderful Rebecca was great. 

She started with a great recap of what they covered last time and praised the skills they already have. We need to do a lesson on talking. 

Who is going to reply? You young people are going to reply to each other. 

Introduction: This is a nonfiction story, this is a text with information in it. do you know why authors write texts with information in it? 

It's not just about reading its about thinking about what we are reading. 

From watching the lesson we saw the value of the words "Add on..." 

How do we build their confidence and oral language skills to talk and engage in conversation through listening, sharing and adding to the discussion. 

We can use think, pair, share and get the children sharing the idea the buddy talked about. 

She is bring in a lot of vocabulary bring in the real and complexed words. We need to have high expectation around the vocabulary. 

Modelling, If I read something and don't find as many benefits, I read it again. 

 

Reading professional learning

This year has been very busy and different but that does not mean that our focus on accelerating learning specially for those learners who are struggling. Our area of focus has been reading as this is an area where the data shows us we need to make shift to help our children get to the norm or ideally accelerate past it. 

What we have seen is that there is not accelerated progress and high achievement. 

We started the day by discuss the Model of literacy development. Moving from basic literacy, intermediate literacy and disciplinary literacy.  We are able to get children reading but not being critical reader and this means they do not always have the skills to read in a disciplinary way need for high school and life reading. 

We recap the understanding the reading and the teaching of reading is complexed and we need to have a process around, providing feedback, carefully plan instructional reading and an in-depth knowledge of the subject. 

We are focuses on our instructional group teaching. 

Today we are looking at how we orient the children to the text and how this varies for at different reading levels. 

We also need to front load language to provide children with support for them as they read. 

early level: The orientation is short and limits the possibility of what they might encounter in the book. Example: This book is called Baby Panda, this story is about Baby Panda and Mother Panda, they are in the snow,  Mother Panda doesn't know where baby panda is and Baby Panda has tp be careful because it is dangerous in the snow. 

During the reading, having a children reading, listening to each child at different stages and supporting them in their decoding. 

Middle level and above: Orientation might be slightly lower and focuses a lot of prior knowledge and understanding of what they might encounter in the text. Planning the thoughtful questions throughout the text. Toni uses sticky notes throughout the book to link back to the learning intention throughout her reading. 

Hearing children reading is an important and tricky challenge for teachers. We know from research and for experience that the best way to understand how children decode is hearing them read. It has been noted well across the literature that round robin reading breaks up the way we read. Listening to children read can been done by everyone reading and listening in or tapping to get children to read aloud. In unison reading is still useful.  

We want to provide a safe, support environment for reading in which every child can tackle the book at their own pace. 

With a larger group it can be ideal to move around the groups, this means you can hear the children well and really see their decoding. 

Class Onair: Making Skittles

This is my most recent Class Onair Lesson.

This is a reading lesson with year 4 children reading at blue (level 11). The focus is on understand the purpose of a text and thinking about the decoding strategies they are using. Our learning intentions were:

• We are learning to re-read and read on to fix our mistakes. 
• We are learning to identify and discuss the main idea in a nonfiction text.  

To see the lesson click here

Reflection:

This group are amazing. They have a level of excitement, engagement and a positive attitude towards learning that not all groups have. I am also very lucky to know this group really well. They were all in my class last year, so I am aware of the strength they bring and the challenges they face. This group have been going great this year. They are behind where I would like them to be but they are constantly making progress which I am very happy about. This book was a little easy for them and did not provide enough challenge to tackle our decoding learning as I would have liked. However it did provide a great context to create and an opportunity to look at a style of text they were less familiar with. They have now moved up a reading level. 

Celebrating Accelerating Shift for One Learner in 2017

I am so proud of every learner in Room 14 for all they have achieved so far this year. This is one learners amazing shift. I am so proud of her and her achievement. 

Class Site

Teaching beginning readers using prompts effectively!

Today we had the wonderful Helen Squires. Help us to develop the best ways to support our developing readers. This session really helped me to think about which prompts I use regularly and the ones that I need to start using,

Teaching children who are at the stage of learning to read.

-We often forget the importance of reading to the children. This allows for development vocabulary and children will begin to use this language in their conversation with others.

-Observational drawing can also be a great way to develop language and the skills of noticing. Does the object look the same as you picture. What can you see.

When learner are focussed on decoding. You need to orientate the learners into the focus of the text. This is a short opening focussing on the Vocabulary in the text rather than opening up the topic by discussing the topic you sum up the main bit of the story. For example the little red hen: This is a story about a hen whose friends are too lazy to help her bake a cake.

Magenta- At this level the focus is not what you say you must see, what you see you must see. These book have the same phrasing across the pages. Again Orientate the book, this is a book about things we do at school. Children need to tap on each page. Children read in their own time not all together so you can catch each child as they read. Children will often point to space between words or after word. You stop them and say "you said cut can you see cut?"  If they don't know the word you tell them. Once they are one to one pointing less repetitive books are introduced. Once they have learnt the words get them checking "You said the can you see the." child "Yes I see the" They might point to the wrong word they can confirm they are wrong. "Tent" confirming cover word you said tent what would you expect to see for tent, t..t...t... Child T

Magenta is just getting the DOS-direction, orientation, sequence. This applies to arranging the magnetic letters. Then break it make multiple times then write it. This should be quick at the end of the book.

Red is where the text changes, this provides an opportunity to think. I go to school on is the pattern. On the last page it will change for example I go to school in. For this the child is likely to say "on" You say you said on do you see on. Then you tell them. Read the sentence with them. Confirming for changes. Have you still got more words to say. This is when the child changes to text but has not read all the word. The boy climbed up the mountain, The child say The boy climbed up the hill. You said hill do you see hill, h....h..hill. Then you tell them.

This is the level at which we try to lose the finger pointing, Then pointing is strong get it gone.
If children are struggling to stop finger pointing break it down into three words etc to build fluency.

The boy went to the supermarket... Child said the boy went to the shop. prompt: Try that again and think who went to the supermarket.

Still doing word work. Making or breaking. A word they know "Can" Get child to make can. give them m, r, t. Can you make Man. Can you make can, Can you make ran. Always go back to the word they know in between new words.

Yellow- This again build the stills of confirming and discounting. The sentence is the boy knocked on the door of the shack. The child say " They boy knocked on the door of the house" You said .... They could give them options. Cottage etc.

Word work adding endings, beginning, vowel sounds etc.