Stephanie Henson- August blog - The Habit of Kidwatching

Observing students is something a teacher does every day, however, O’Keefe explains the difference between casual observations and Kidwatching.  When a teacher performs “direct, intentional and systematic observations” while taking observational data then this would be Kidwatching.  The data the teacher pulls from observations allow for analysis of student weaknesses to drive instruction.

Reading the article led me to think of many possible paths to take with data that observational data could provide.  I would like to utilize my Kidwatching data not only to aid my literacy instruction but also to contribute to possible self-advocacy lessons.  Hopefully, I can locate skills of my more shy students that would enable them to be an “expert” in a skills and assist others. Another thought that came to mind is to use my observational notes to assist my students in targeting their individual weaknesses and develop their own action plan. 

Sarah McClure - October Blog - Miller (2013), Section I-Not This But That: No More Independent Reading Without Support

Sarah McClure - October Blog - Miller (2013), Section I-Not This But That: No More Independent Reading Without Support

The title of the first section of this chapter is the story of a teacher's life, "Finding the Time".   Our days are packed full with a myriad of activities.  I am very grateful however, to be employed by a school and district that recognizes the importance of protecting a reading block within the school day.  On our grade level we have spent the last few years teaching reading class with a reading workshop model. Almost every day my students have at least 30 minutes of time to read during our block.  During this time they read books that they have chosen.  Some days the students are free to just read.  Other days they have a task to complete that is related to the mini lesson of the day.  This is a work in progress and our team is always sharing ideas of what is working well and what could have gone better.  This however, is one of the aspects of teaching that I love.  I love collaborating with my team all of whom I respect very much.  I love that each day I get another chance to build on what I did the day before.  I love that every day is different.  I love that each day is a new opportunity to improve on my methods of reaching my students.  I know that I can learn a lot more about how to use the reading block more effectively.  The last section of the chapter, "More Than Just DEAR or Sustained Silent Reading", struck a chord with me.  Just finding the time is not enough.  "For students to do more than race through lots of books, they need a teacher to show them what behaviors they need to practice as they read, and the teacher needs opportunities to monitor and give feedback on how students are using those behaviors." pg. 8 I look forward to learning more about the best and most effective ways to have the most purposeful  silent reading time possible.  

Stephanie Henson - October Blog - Miller (2013), Section I-Not This But That: No More Independent Reading Without Support

Reading this section, within the first two pages, had me visualizing my own third grade classroom, back in the early 1980s.  Remembering our “Quiet Reading” time brought back the feel of humidity to the skin in our cramped little portable that seemed to always have a lingering mildew smell from the attempts to clean the carpet over the summer.  I recall sitting in a hard, stiff, orange plastic chair, at my desk, holding a book that I had found inside the desk.  Of course the teacher had instructed us to read quietly until we were dismissed but at this time in life I had not found a love for reading.  So, trying to be an obedient student I had a book out but found myself peeping over the cover to stealthily observe what books others had out or just watch what my teacher might be doing.  Analyzing my behaviors now, I realize this time was nothing more than filler time and not productive to me as a reader.  The D.E.A.R. description Miller provided quickly transported back to this memory of my own reading instruction.

When I analyze by own teacher methods I found myself guilty of being the “guard” that has remained true to some past methods that may not be best practice but are instructional strategies that I feel confident using.  Expecting children to utilize independent reading time effectively, especially my struggling readers, without instruction that corresponds is not best practice.  Without feedback students do not understand how to build their skills or allow a teacher to connect with a student on another level.  Expecting students to read in order to improve and grow further as readers without intentional and systematic instruction is like handing an automobile key to a sixteen year old who has never been behind the wheel.  The child does not know what direction to take, how fast, or how to make use of any of the tools inside an automobile.  As a teacher, I need to empower my students by allowing them to choose meaningful text, but provide them instruction to guide them to becoming better readers.

Stephanie Henson - September Blog - Atwell (2007) The Pleasure Principle

Satisfaction in experiences results in the desire to further an individual’s desire to explore a given task, assignment, etc.  In reading “The Pleasure Principle” I found myself revisiting this theme.  Atwell states “…our primary goal as reading teachers is to eliminate – or at least reduce – frustration.” A student who is frustrated is not satisfied with their ability and unfortunately, I experience this emotion through my students daily during their special education services.

After contemplating the information from this particular article I find myself evaluating ways to implement Reading Workshop into my space and time with students.  The idea of empowering my students ties in with the self-advocacy lessons I am currently doing with my special education students.  Having brief instructional lessons plays into my students’ current desires and attention spans.  My goal is to provide a literacy rich environment that promotes my students’ ability to view themselves as readers holding a key which provides them access to many different worlds and experiences.  They need to experience the ownership of this key and what they could possibly unlock.  I would like my students no longer view reading as a chore or required task in which they find no pleasure or success but, rather as a tool that allows them to explore information of their choosing.

Kaylee Foster- December Blog- Routman (2003), Ch. 3: Share Your Reading Life

         In Chapter 3 of Regie Routman’s book titled Reading Essentials I became forced to take a deeper look into my personal reading life. Routman discusses the importance of being open with the students from day one about your passion to read and why reading is important. Routman makes a vaild point by stating that most students give answers like “I read to learn new words” or “I read to become smarter”, unfortunately no one normally states that they read for fun or because they like it. The teacher should be modeling, sharing, and convincing students that reading is fun and can be done out of personal liking. This is something that I personally need to work on. I have lacked in sharing my personal reading life with my students.

Routman also states, that a teacher should share their reading habits with the class. According to Routman, it is essential to let the students know that it is okay to be reading more than one book at a time and that you should be aware of what you want to read next. Routman also suggest, that teachers share with their students on how they chose to read a book, whether it be from a friend suggesting it, book reviews or best sellers. Another important point made, was to share with students a reading record and how it should be done. This also made me step back and think about my personal reading life. I am ashamed to say that I don’t currently have a reading record that I keep up with. This is something that I personally need to work on in order to be able to share with my class.

In providing the students with a teacher’s perspective on their personal reading habits this will hopefully motivate the students to emulate what they are doing.  My ultimate goal is for my students to enjoy reading and to find a love for it. I am realizing that in order for them to do this I should be doing the same.