Story Time

Story time is extremely important in the growth of language, comprehension strategies, and the development of story structures (for writing or telling). In my class I read, react to the story, ask questions, ask students to make predictions, talk about the emotions inferred by pictures or text clues, etc.
At Columbia University, they call these "Read Alouds with Accountable Talk." Reading this way, is so much more than reading words on a page. See below for some information I have from the Teacher's College at Columbia University.

"Teachers use ‘think alouds’ as opportunities to model that strong readers don’t just read the words but also think about the story. For example, if you stop in the middle of a chapter and say, “I can’t believe the character is acting this way. I wonder why she’s being like this…” you demonstrate to your students that readers question the characters and wonder about their motivations. If you think aloud by saying, “I bet she’s going to lose the bracelet,” you model that readers make
predictions as they read. When you say to your class, “I want just to reread that part again. I was
daydreaming and lost the story,” you teach that rereading is a strategy, readers reread to regain
comprehension.
 Besides thinking aloud, you will provide opportunities throughout the book for children to turn
and talk to each other about the text. Prompt the class by saying something like, “Turn and tell your
neighbor what you think will happen next,” or “Let’s think about what’s going on here. Turn and talk to your neighbor about what you think (so and so) is thinking right now.”
To prepare for the interactive read aloud, reread the text in a really thoughtful way. Spy on yourself as you read in order to notice a few places in each chapter where your brain does a lot of reading-work. Note those sections. Later, review each one. Ask, “Was I doing a lot of thinking here because the text is written in such a way that lots of readers will be thinking at this section? (or was your response totally idiosyncratic?) If the section of the text seems to ask for a thoughtful response, you may decide use this as an opportunity to teach:
• You may “think aloud.” This means you’ll pause at this section of the text and be pensive aloud.
“Hmmm… something weird is going on. It’s giving me the creeps!” you might say. Or “Why’s
he so mad? I’m going to read to find out.” Don’t say a lot… a line or two is usually enough. "

I hope this gives you some ideas about how to make read alouds more fun at home :)

Here are some stories we've been reading lately

Writer's Workshop

 I am requesting that every student bring in at least 6 photos to glue/tape to their writing folder. Here is an example of mine (although I could have probably included a few more action photos). Also, there is no need for captions on the photos that they bring. Send photos by FRIDAY.

We decorate our writing folders with photos because photos often spark memories and stories that they can write about during writer's workshop.
Thank you!

After School Clubs

Smart with Art
Spanish - Monday and Thursday afternoons and Wednesday mornings too!
Running Club
Play with Purpose
Kids Yoga
TechSmartKids - 3 Sessions Wednesday and 2 on Thursday
Tiny Treks
Intermediate Choir - Grades 3-5
Musical Minds (Keyboarding)
Badminton Club

Homework Club

Math Club

Robotics

Sign up today! You may register for all of our classes now by following the registration links on the After-School Enrichment Page of the PTA website.

Fall classes will start the week of September 29th and will run through the week of December 15th. There will be no classes the week of October 13th and November 24th, additionally there will be Tuesday class on November 11 (Veteran's Day).

Come learn more about after-school classes at our vendor fair this Thursday, Sept. 25 at the Ice Cream Social.

Please let me know if your child is participating in a club, so I can be sure that they remember to go after school on their day. 

Welcome to our Writer's Workshop!

One of my most favorite things to teach in 1st grade is Writing Workshop! Today we launched the writing center, which is just the tip of the ice burg for us! There is so much new learning ahead. Below is a little blurb about the philosophy behind writing workshop.

"Writing Workshop is a method of writing instruction developed by Lucy Calkins and educators involved in the Reading and Writing Project at Columbia University in New York City, New York. (Calkins, L (2006). A Guide to The Writing Workshop, Grades 3-5. Portsmouth, NH: First Hand). This method of instruction focuses on the goal of fostering lifelong writers. It is based upon four principles; students will write about their own lives, they will use a consistent writing process, they will work in authentic ways and it will foster independence.

Writing Workshop is designed for use in all grade levels. Each grade level has specific units of study tailored to meet developmental and curricular needs. Students have a large amount of choice in their topic and style of writing. The teacher acts as a mentor author, modeling writing techniques and conferring with students as they move through the writing process. Direct writing instruction takes place in the form of a mini-lesson at the beginning of each workshop and is followed by a minimum of 45 minutes of active writing time. Each workshop ends with a sharing of student work."

Becoming Readers

We have been learning all about how to stay focused as a reader. We call this reading "stamina" which means we keep trying even when our brains are getting tired. Readers can only get better when they can really focus on their reading.

We have also learned all about using the class library and choosing "just right" books to read. 

A Note About Quick Checks

I know that there is still some confusion about points possible on math Quick Checks (the 3 question quizzes). The HIGHEST score you can get is a 3.5. The reason for this, is that the quizzes do not offer an opportunity to show "above grade level/ level 4" thinking. They are meant to be just a diagnostic tool to see if they understood the lesson. Each Quick Check I send home is mandatory by the district. On math tests, however, your child can score a 4. 

Unlocking they Mystery of Reading

This happens to all of us. We’re sitting beside a child listening to them read, when they come upon a difficult word. We listen to them struggle “mmm…ooo….uuu…  um, moon” they say doubtfully.

The word was “mouse,” from the sentence: “Run,” said the little gray mouse .   

Often times we don’t know how to constructively prompt our readers in situations like this. Saying “well …sound it out,” as a way to band-aid the problem.  However, attempting to “sound-it-out” can frustrate or confuse readers because sometimes, it’s not that simple. The last thing we ever want to do to a child is make reading a frustrating or confusing task.

Good news is that there are several strategies that can help readers tackle difficult words. The key is understanding which strategy will best fit the problem.

In order to tailor our responses to the need of the child, we first have to dive into the mind of the child as they work through the “tricky” word. So in the scenario above: What was happening in the brain during the “mmm…ooo….uuu,” and more importantly, why did the child settle with the word moon, instead of mouse?

At the core, reading is making meaning of symbols on a page. Cognitively, we tap into three domains in order to decipher each word: meaning (context), visual (graphophonic), and structural (syntax).

ü  Meaning: Does this word make sense in the story?

ü  Visual: Does the word look right?

ü  Structure: Could this word grammatically fit in the sentence?

When our brains are accessing the three domains perfectly, then we are reading successfully. When we read a word incorrectly, it means that one of the three domains is dominant, or perhaps we are ignoring a domain all together.

So back to the child trying to read “mouse:”

The brain has picked up on visual cues, acknowledging that the word begins with “m.” However the child’s brain is ignoring structural cues (since “moon” cannot take the place of “mouse” in the sentence. The brain is also ignoring meaning, because most likely the picture book is about a mouse, so saying “moon,” does not fit the storyline.

For this reader, you would want to prompt by asking them to reread the sentence, saying “Wait… did that make sense?”(Structure cue). Also, referencing the storyline, and pointing to the illustration (meaning cue) would be helpful. Usually you don’t need to cue all three domains, but if the child was still struggling, you could ask them to look closer at the ending of the word “mouse” (visual). Once the three domains are equally functioning, the reader can continue on!

 I hope you found this information to be useful in understanding your little reader.  I will give you more specific (visual-phonetic) “fix-up” strategies soon.  

Happy reading!

Great Books for Back to School

I know I can't wait for the new school year to begin... but for all those little guys who might be nervous about going back to school- reading some of these books together might help! Each of these books are available for purchase on amazon.com.

Know Your 1st Grader

Here is a great article that describes the cognitive, social and emotional norms of a 1st grader. Also, what they will learn in school and how you can support them at home.

http://school.familyeducation.com/first-grade/parenting/36064.html?detoured=1