Tuesday, September 14, 2010

Blog Week 2. Entries # 4,5

Blog week 2

Entry # 4 Choose a text in a language that you are not familiar with. Read it, find a way to make meaning.


After considering what language to choose, I decided to go along with the alphabets I know: Latin or Cyrillic. I would never be able to make head or tale of the text in Chinese, Japanese, or Arabic. One can only imagine how students, whose alphabet is not Romanic, feel when they are given a text in a different alphabet. Probably, this is where the saying “ It’s all Greek to me” comes from. My text is in German. It was a Russian textbook for German speakers. The directions are given in German.  I did not understand everything, but I understood some of the instructions, thanks to cognates and background knowledge.
Strategies to use in teaching ELA students:
•    Look for cognates
•    Background knowledge on the subject
•    Visual and audio prompts

My second choice was a text in Check. It was a tour of  Moscow Kremlin. Check is a Slavic language with Romanic alphabet. I felt much better reading it. I had an advantage of having a background knowledge about Moscow Kremlin, Romanic Alphabet and congnates in Russian and Check. After comparing these two texts one can have a better understanding of challenges the students are facing: those who can find cognates in their own language feel more secure and can learn vocabulary faster. Teacher will use a differentiated approach in teaching those whose language offers little linquistic support to learning English.

Resources: Textbook, Teaching Russian to German Speaking Students
                  Text "Moscow Kremlin" in Check

Entry # 5.  Gennifer Choldenko “ Al Capone does my shirts”.
 One of the characters in the book, Natalie, has autism. Her brother has to give up much of his childhood to accommodate to is sister’s needs. The problem of autism is not acknowledged in some countries and cultures. This is something that will need to be addressed and discussed in class, prior to reading the book.

    Alcatraz was a prison for most notorious prisoners. Discussion about crimes and various ways of punishment in different countries .  If ELA students are advanced, one can talk about capital punishment and student’s outlook on it.

    School system. Should all students be accepted at the same school and educated the same way? (  At first Natalie was rejected by her new school).

    Al Capone, a notorious criminal, helps Natalie to get into a school which rejected her at first. Al Capone uses his “connections”. In some countries and cultures knowing the right people can get someone a long way. Discuss this with students and find out if this is customary in their cultures too.

References: Gennifer Choldenco, Al Capone Does my Shirts

Cynthia Mercati, “The Secret Room”.
This book is about World War 2 and the discrimination of Jews during Nazi invasion.


Components in the book, which need to be addressed to help comprehension :

•    What is a discrimination?
•    Racial discrimination.
•    Religious discrimination.
•    “Everyone in the world is different.” Acceptance and the value of it in human relationships.

References: Cynthia Mercati, " The Secret Room".


  

Sunday, September 12, 2010

Blog Week 1/Entries#1,2,3

Blog week 1.
Entry # 1

An interview with Karen Eggebraten


Karen is a literacy and recovery specialist and works with K through 2 grade.

According to Karen, literacy should be a large block of the day with reading and writing . It's important to know the students' level. Instruction should be based on students' needs and strengths.Students should be given opportunities to read in small groups, large independent groups, with a partner.There should also be opportunities to talk and discuss stories, build language development.

Teacher should be assessing students with running records and monitor their growth and progress.
This information should be later applied to teacher's instruction.

Writing should be of multiple types: mini-lessons, dictations, interactive writing, independent writing.Writing should be child-centered. Students should be encouraged to share their work. Karen is convinced that it is the job of a teacher to provide a framework, secure environment and encourage students to write. A good teacher will help the students to see themselves as readers and writers.



Blog Week 1
Entry # 2

I grew up in Russia, the country of Pushkin, Tolstoy, Dostoevsky, where literature is loved and writers are respected. Thanks to Cyrill and Methody, Russian alphabet is phonetic and one can learn how to read in a week. Everybody reads; one can see people reading on a subway train, in the bus, at the bus stop.
I loved to read and Russian Language and Literature were my favorite subjects.
Looking back and reflecting on the writing instruction I see a lot of similarities. We had visual support in form of posters with spelling and punctuation rules. We had a great teacher who guided our discussions, allowed freedom of expression, and inspired independent thinking. These are the same things we are encouraging in our students.It is amazing how similar some of the teaching methods are: group work, discussion, sharing, writing a draft, editing and producing a final paper to submit to a teacher.
Resources: L.M.Marrow, Literacy Development in the Early Years

Blog Week 1
Entry # 3

Oral language and reading are intertwined. The more a child was read to at an early age, the better his oral speech is and the sooner he will be able to learn how to read. The more a person reads, the better his oral language is, the smoother his sentences are. Oral language of a well-read and a well-educated person differs greatly from the language of those who choose not to indulge in literature. Reading inspires thinking, thinking results in verbal expressions of one's thoughts and this very often leads to writing.


Resources: L.M.Morrow, Literacy Development in Early Years
                  Pualin Gibbons, Scaffolding Language, Scaffolding Learning

An interview with Karen Eggebraten

Blog week 1.Entry #1



An interview with Karen Eggebraten




Karen is a literacy and recovery specialist and works with K through 2 grade.


According to Karen, literacy should be a large block of the day with reading and writing . It's important to know the students' level. Instruction should be based on students' needs and strengths. Students should be given opportunities to read in small groups, large independent groups, with a partner.  There should also be opportunities to talk and discuss stories, build language development. 

Teacher should be assessing students with running records and monitor their growth and progress.
This information should be later applied to teacher's insturction.

Writing should be of multiple types: mini-lessons, dictations, interractive writing, indpendent writing.Writing should be child-centered. Students should be encouraged to share their work. Kareen is convinced that it is the job of a teacher to provide a framework, secure environment and encourage students to write. A good teache will help the studens to see themselves as readers and writers.


Reference: information obtained from Karen Eggebraten