Professional Reading
Cocoa/Coffee Club:
The following paragraph could be used as an argument for purposeful professional development and reading for enjoyment for all educators.
“Unless we use them ourselves, we cannot expect to be able to teach these techniques for increasing the scope and depth of a child’s comprehension. It is through our own experience in reading – using these strategies very consciously at times – that we internalize and are able to teach them. By teaching the strategies, we give the children the tools they need to exercise their critical thinking faculties, to struggle with human confusions, and to embark on their own explorations fo the mystery and beauty of life.” Keene and Zimmerman-Mosaic of Thought (2007)
“Teachers know that students who struggle are often disengaged and don’t choose to read outside school (or within, for that matter!). Creating images can be the conduit to student engagement and is, therefore, especially important for students who struggle…they don’t realize they have the ultimate computer between their ears and enormous capacity to create their own images.” Keene and Zimmerman-Mosaic of Thought (2007)
Creating Images . . . I love the 1st grade student quotes from Debbie Miller’s book, Reading with Meaning! She uses these quotes as evidence of understanding and independence. Wow, do these kids “get” creating images!
“When my mom reads to me it’s like I have a paint set inside my brain. And I never run out of paint!”- Ben
“My dad always says I’m daydreaming, but that’s not the right word. I’m making mental images and connecting them together. I’m not daydreaming, I tell him, I’m thinking.”-Cory
I really enjoyed listening to what Mr. Irish had to say about PEBC and the pictures he sent showing the classrooms. For years I have been wanting to do more indepth thinking in math. We focus so much on memorization, instead of comprehension. Too much how not enough why. Time has always been a major issue for me. Math class is never long enough. I am looking forward to deciding what we really need to teach in math. If we can narrow the “field” down, we can spend more time problem solving and writing in math. I loved the idea of just math for the afternoon.
I am reading Ellin Keene’s book “Assessing Comprehension Thinking Strategies” . This book is like fitting another puzzle piece together (at least for me). The book has coded fiction and nonfiction passages a student reads (grades 1 – 8). Teachers have oral and written assessment available for the thinking strategies. There are even rubrics! I am wondering how could we use these as possible assessments in the classroom? Could they be pre and post tests for our kiddos? Thank goodness for Elly, I have the opportunity this week to explore the schema assessment. I will keep you posted on what we found out about schema in the 3rd grade.
I once did some work in a school at Chadron. There was a 20 minute block after lunch everyday where EVERYBODY (custodians, teachers, office personel, etc.) had to Drop Everything And Read (DEAR). This is not a new program by any means, but the commitment this school had to it was impressive. The only rules were: It had to be school appropriate and no textbooks (it couldn’t be used as a time to catch up on your homework).
“Certainly, much that children read in classrooms is never sculpted and shaped, discussed and writen about. Much of what we read passes through the lenses of our eyes to our brains, is comprehended superficially and never considered again. However, as teachers we need to make sure children have the cognitive agility to consider what is worth savoring, what portion of a text has the potential to change a life, what merits discussin, and what should be lingered over, argued about, and anchored in memory, because to comprehend only literally would be too great a loss.” Keene and Zimmerman- Mosaic of Thought, chapter 6
Man oh man, Matt, have you ever chosen some “juicy” pieces of text… Keene writes so well that it seems to make it clear (to me, at least) why we need to really explore the texts that we use with kids…Good engaging texts full of important ideas, interesting stories, and great images give kids a reason to read, and a reason to understand…
Just my thinking on an very early morning!
Best,
~kate
On January 21, 2010, I shared a paragraph about comprehension, which may explain why the Nebraska Department of Education decided to have 60% of the state reading test be comprehension questions. The paragraph is from chapter2 of “Mosaic of Thought,” by Keene and Zimmermann.
“…Many students read words well, but had little sense of the meaning of what they read, especially meaning that went beyond the literal. These children could decode well, but they weren’t becoming proficient, independent, critical readers. Because teachers and children lacked a clear language to describe the thinking used by proficient readers, thinking wasn’t adressed. Before comprehension strategy instruction, there was little consideration of what children thought about while they were reading.”
This week I’ve attended the PEBC Thinking Strategies Institute. In addition to my professional reading I’ve heard many thoughtful quotes. This week I’ve decided to share those quotes for you to ponder.
“What we actually do reflects our beliefs about teaching whether we articulate them or not.” Regie Routman
“It’s what we think we already know that prevents our learning.”
“I not only use all the brains I have, but all I can borrow.” Woodrow Wilson, 1912
“True understanding is a call to action.” Donald Graves
I am taking reading for the at-risk student this semester with my graduate studies. It has been an interesting journey so far. I loved watching my kids grow and learn first, how to talk and then how to read. I was fascinated by the process. I could actually “see” it happening. My boys have all been very different in their language acquisition and reading process. I can’t wait to learn more about so I can better help my kids at home and my students at school. Encouraging comprehension via thinking is a great concept. We think and process all the time while we read without realizing it. If we can somehow bottle that and teach kids what to think about or “how” to think while they are reading early on…it will be a great benefit for all in the long run.
Mosiac of Thought- (page 166), “much that children read in classrooms is never sculpted and shaped, discussed and written about. Much of what we read passes through the lenses of our eyes to our brains, is comprehended superficially, and never considered again.” We should linger over the words, argue about them, allow the text to change our lives! ( page 177) “Children don’t realize they have the ultimate computer between their ears and enormous capacity to create their own images!”
I also read in Mosaic of Thought that many of our past comprehension activities were actually assessments of comprehension. There are comprehension strategies that need to be taught. The comprehension assessment should then be used to inform instruction that is differentiated to meet the needs of each learner.
Hello, Matt!
I’m so encouraged and inspired by this on-line conversation about reading–about the importance of decoding coupled with the critical nature of understanding… Ultimately, I believe we can all help each one of our kids get really good at the whole process. I mean, when you think about it, it really is magic, isn’t it? Kids see black marks on a page, start to figure out they invite us to decode them, and eventually are taken away into worlds and into characters’ minds and hearts in a way that they never would have imagined! I’m inspired by the paragraphs you chose out of Mosaic, and I’m inspired by the responses you have received from our teachers. This makes my heart sing!
I’m now questioning if I’ve ever delved into the mind or heart of a character.
Your paragraph is exactly why as a 4th/5th grade teacher, I’ve felt very frustrated at times with Reading First. Yes, the students could read and read fluently, but many times they didn’t have a clue what they were reading. I’m so excited that we will begin using some Reading First strategies and some thinking strategies in the lower grades so when the students arrive in 4th/5th grade they will be fluent readers AND be able to understand what they are reading.
At Washington we’re amazed at some of the thoughts we are getting from students at all grade levels, from slavery to hippos. (Or was at a rhino?)
Wow, even I am learning things about slavery that I didn’t know before. The kids are so excited to share their findings at the end of the day. And their reflections and reactions to the text are amazing. We hope to conclude slavery next week and then we’re going to move onto wolves. I think the students will find this topic very interesting.
“Exciting!” Isn’t that one of our main battles and shouldn’t that be one of our main objectives- to get students excited about learning.
On January 14, 2010, I shared a paragraph that I felt said a lot about the vision of North Platte Public Schools. The paragraph was from chapter 1 of “Mosaic of Thought,” by Keene and Zimmermann.
“… Childtren need to learn letters, sounds, words, sentences, and how to comprehend what they read simultaneously. Children do not learn to read in a lock-step, linear fashion. Small children are building teh foundation for later reading when they listen toa nd respond to stories being read to them. When a child falls in love with a story, a hugestep has been taken. That child knows the power of words and understands that words on a page contain important meaning. Of course, children need to learn letters, sounds, and words, but simultaneously they must be learning about the meaning held in those symbols on the page….”
Sometimes in first grade I get to see the miracle happen when a child realizes they have figured out the code hidden in all those letters and sounds- they can read!! All the decoding has meaning! Sometimes it is an instant awareness! There is understanding!!! The excitement cannot be contained! The joy is pure! They grab every decodable text in sight!! My wish is that they never forget that joy!
Lynette
One challenge is getting all students to experience that and then when that window of opportunity pops up, as educators we need to cease the moment. My daughter is currently in that phase and I need to take advantage of it.
Matt
I think that “falling in love with a story” is important, but also just falling in love with reading time – a special time between teachers and students, or parents and children. Part of my love of reading comes from remembering the special times when my father would take time out of his busy schedule to read to me, and I had his attention, or in school, when we were allowed to be out of our seats and sit on the floor by our friends and take a break in our schedule, and later, when it was just me and my child reading together.
Sue
Reading to my children has been a wonderful way to build relationships with them and give some one-on-one time. It’s so valuable that all parents should experience it.
Matt