alternate genres r0x0r my s0x0r

I really got into Chapter 9 of Deeper reading. In fact, our relationship bordered on love. We may have too much of a past to move forward any further than this gleaming moment, but hitherto I had neglected its attempts entirely.

No, but seriously. I thought this chapter was the best we've read so far. I've always wanted to teach lessons about critical reading in my class, and Gallagher provides some great activities to get me started. I'm definitely keeping this chapter of the book.

I also think his ideas would be well placed around a unit on persuasive writing. First students analyze how they are persuaded. Then we examine how we would like to be persuaded. Then we persuade in that fashion. For example, students would know that statistics can be misleading, so they would examine their information closely before telling someone else. Students would avoid using cheap propaganda tricks and rely on reasonable, logical argumentation.

That would be the goal, anyway.

Teaching the Full Class

On Monday, I presented a lesson plan on Lord of the Flies to my high school teacher and he asked if I would be comfortable doing it on Wednesday. I said sure and he stated that I could try to take the whole block and teach everything if I wanted. Nervously, I again replied with sure. Come Wednesday, I am shaken like a freight train over a tight bridge. Yet, I am prepared. I go in and find out that there's a sub.

Dejected, the sub asks me to make copies and puts on the movie Cast Away. When I return, she goes, "oh, are you supposed to teach today?" I brighten up as the kids go to lunch and prepare to set myself up to teach the remainder of the block and the entire next block.

The kids return and are upset that their movie has been replaced with what some of them saw as busy work. Teaching them when they just wanted to finish the film was about the most difficult thing I've ever experienced. Shame on the sub for making me seem like the bad guy. So, the class muddled through the lesson and, even though they did show signs that they enjoyed it, they were more anxious to watch the film.

The next class was handled a lot better. The kids took a quiz left by their teacher and then we did my lesson. It went a lot smoother than the previous class and the only problem that arose was the noise level (it was a group work project with discussion). Other than that, everything went off without a hitch. The lesson, which really can take up to 45 minutes, if there is a lot of conversation, took almost 52. The last 30 minutes were left to the great acting of Tom Hanks.

For the second class, I was much more relaxed and assured of myself and my lesson. It became very comforting standing in front of a class and running the whole thing. I loved it. Any worries I used to have about teaching have dwindled down to nearly nothing thanks to that day and the teacher I work with. It ended up being a very good day.

Media Literacy

I have to admit that I was not a huge fan of this particular chapter. I was expecting her to be full of practical ideas about how to connect media and the classroom, but instead she just gave us a very broad outline of what kinds of media are available. If we don't already know the benefits of a word processor......we may want to consider retaking our computer classes.

However, she did press one important issue: our students are engaged in media at all different levels and if we want to be relevant and exciting as teachers, we must allow them to incorporate that "hobby" into their studies. I have all kinds of ideas floating in my mind about what that can look like and the options are endless. I remember one assignment during my undergrad English class was to choose a movie (I chose Goodwill Hunting) and do a character analysis of one character. I had so much fun with it and learned so much about characterization - maybe more than I would have read by diving into a piece of literature. And of course we saw Valerie demonstrate a way to take current news and think critically about what we are learning/hearing.

However, the question that remains is how do we make this a reality if/when we find ourselves teaching in a rural, poor, underdeveloped school district? What if the only media commonality among our students is that they watch tv? What if computers are not accessible and not current? Or what if we find ourselves in a fairly diverse school district where some students know more about media than we do but others have limited access? How do we not bore the advanced students but not leave the others behind? I honestly don't know what this should look like, but I guess we are all going to have to encounter it on some level when we find ourselves with our own classrooms and our own students.

Conceptual Unit Plan....Mission Abort!

Am I the only one who is not clued in to how a Conceptual Unit Should be done? I've looked at the examples at the back of Smagorinsky's chapter, in his library, but these have almost all been written by two-three students, and are 50+ pages in length. I don't think this jives with what Dr. Franklin showed us in class that day. Anyone have any ideas. I wanted to get this done over the break, but...no such luck it seems.

~Stan

My spring break has been filled with flooded days. Thank you rain. I have recently become an avid reader of the "Daily American Reblic", Poplar Bluff's newspaper. Pictures and first hand accounts of flood damage fascinates readers like me, and pulls us into the misery. I gather that safety rests upon ownership of a boat and having plenty of floatation devices. In our class's reading I enjoyed finding that Gallagher speaks of the incorporation of newspapers in the classroom. Students, like myself, normally do not pick up a newspaper and enjoy skimming through all the pages. Sometimes students need more than a simple story to peak their interest. After reading engaging scenarios in class, the students are more likely to grab a newspaper and enjoy some of the important essays.

9/9/9

Gallagher's eight ways to get students to probe deeper into thier reading was awesome. When adding Christenbury's concept of media integration in the classroom, we get nine ways we can get students to infer from their reading out of both chapter nines from our books. It's late and I'm tired, but I thought the 9/9/9 was cute. Ok. I'll be a nerd, too!

I really liked Gallagher's "Literary Dominoes," and the "Flip Side Chart." This gives students a visual to work with, also. That really helps to reach all learning styles in the classroom. Deeper Comprehension is a biggie, I would agree also, to giving students insight on critical thinking about real life issues. When Gallagher points out that most students "come to me willing to accept whatever they read at face value," it worried me a little. That means that society, as a whole is not teaching kids to think critically about real life situations. When I talk to kids, I really don't get this same vibe though. It seems to me that kids are really in touch with "underlying inference" in the comedy they are exposed to, today. I agree with a lot of Gallagher's ideas, but I don't think he's giving kids enough credit on this. I think kids are very smart and read more into reading than he gives them credit for, upfront.

That's not to say that we can't help them delve even deeper in reading, though. Why not help them find deeper comprehension to the fullest extent? Push them more by the exercises discussed and other ways we've learned; literary comprehension is one of the greatest ways to help students gain intellectual stimulation.

I would definitely agree that teachers who teach in lower level schools should get bigger rewards, of course.

Using media to teach our students English is going to fun. Even if my school doesn't have the greatest access to computers or internet, I'm going to find ways to implement media into my teaching. I thought it would be fun to use the newspaper with lessons and their cheap. I'm going to bring several once a week and have students pick out articles they like and have them connect it to the classic lit we're reading in class somehow. That will help them connect real life to lit, and keep them up with the times.

Prisc

I really liked how Gallagher incorporates real life situations into his classroom to help students learn to read.  One thing I think is very important is that students learn how to read and that it is not something that is passed over for the next teacher to worry about.  Last year I worked as a teacher aide at Reed Middle School and there were multiple times I worked with students who had reading levels of second, third or fourth graders.  Somewhere down the line those kids were just passed over.  I don't understand why.  In elementary years it is so vital for students to learn how to read and if they are not getting it they should not just be passed on they need to have a teacher or tutor to help them so they can eventually understand how to read junk mail and know they are not getting ripped off.  

Christenbury's chapter on technology reminds me that I really hope that eventually I am in a classroom that has computers for students to use maybe not one for every student but enough that all students could take turns using them.  There is nothing worse than not being able to read a students handwriting it does not make them a bad writer but I want to be able to read there thoughts.  Having a computer for them to type on would be very nice.

Deeper Reading...Euphemism right?

I think this means...reading comprehension, right? I liked the critical methods that Gallagher has given for us to use with students. The ability to differentiate between polls, statistics, underlying meanings is invaluable to us as adults. I think this is a great chapter that could be used right from the book. You could make worksheets from the examples and talk through them with the students after they have had a chance to decide what they mean.

~Stan

Nerdtato...Nerd-tat-o..Potato...po-tat-o

I like Christenbury's book, of course, but thought this chapter could have been better. I thought that most of the information was common sense. I would have liked to seen more projects and assignments to integrate media into our curriculum, rather than what she gave us. But, one chapter I haven't been thrilled with isn't bad.

I loved the integration story on p.259. Kickapoo has a television in every room, and the poor integration in Christenbury's book made me think about my practicum. At ten minutes before the end of the day, the television abruptly pops on and starts roaring forth with the day's news and events. I asked my cooperating teacher what the deal was. She said the school wanted them to incorporate the broadcast into the curriculum. Out of the several times I been in this class, the television is either turned off, or tuned down, and class resumes as if a student had made a comment out of turn, corrected, and then quited by the teacher.

Mrs. Clark said that it is impossible to use the broadcast in her day's curriculum when the day is done. I have to agree. What is the point of doing this before going home? Why not first thing in the morning to stimulate the children's minds. Then, teachers and students alike, would have the opportunity to reference back to the clip/show throughout the day. It is ridiculous that administration can not see the flaw in this reasoning.

~Stan