Think Piece #9

Chapter 11 was about using the internet and technology to help instruction. I believe the internet has opened hundreds of doors to engage each and every student. It can offer support to students and adults of all ages. “Electronic text allows for the seamless incorporation of the audio-visual features. Graphics, audio and video can be inserted to add depth to text or to act as the text itself. The inclusion of these features can make the text interactive” (p 224). Personally, I am a visual learner so if I see words and pictures on a computer screen, I will be more apt to be engaged and interested.

Chapter 11 talked about Web Quests. I have had two experiences with Web Quests. First, during my student teaching experience at a Pittsford middle school, my cooperating teacher and I created a Web Quest for our eighth graders to practice their clothing vocabulary. They had to shop online at given French stores in Paris (we gave them the websites) and they had to describe what they bought. They were also given budget. Other activities included listening to an advertisement (in French), writing what they heard, and reading advertisements online and explaining what clothing is on sale. The students loved it! We met in the computer lab for three days and they had the freedom to complete the Web Quest on their own, at their own pace and in whatever order they wished.

My other experience with the Web Quests was when I created one for a technology class I took at St. John Fisher. I had my own website and linked the Web Quest to it. I had a lot of fun creating the website and the different activities. The theme of my Web Quest was that students were given a free trip France and there was some important information they should learn before they leave. They had to watch a video I put together from my pictures from my study abroad trip and then complete different activities based on the major monuments in Paris. I have yet to use this with students but I can’t wait to try it out soon. Check it out at:

http://keep3.sjfc.edu/students/lml09333/e-port/french.html

The chapter also talked about teachers having their own websites. I think technology has been extremely helpful to strengthen the home-school communication because so many families have computers and can easily check teacher’s websites. When I have a full-time job, I plan on creating a website and keeping up with it. I want to have somewhere my students can go to get the week’s agendas, homework, and helpful links. I also plan to post PowerPoint presentations or any notes I have for the week so if students are absent, they can stay up with the work. I think teacher websites are great to post pictures or videos of what students are doing in class as well. I think the students would feel proud and excited to show their parents their teacher’s websites display of their work.

Think Piece #8

I always enjoy reading about multicultural instruction and multilingual instruction because I can easily relate it to my French classes. “If young children’s new language writing develops in ways similar to that of native language speakers, then instructional contexts known to benefit early writing for native English speakers might also benefit children who are learning to write in English” (p 293). To me, this is common sense. If the student can write in their native language, the capability to write in the new language clearly exists. The student needs the instruction and guidance along the way. We all didn’t just “know” how to write, we were helped by our parents and teachers. ELL students need the same instruction.

Teachers must also have some basic knowledge of how a new language is learned. I can relate to this because I learned French as my second language. I understand how time consuming and difficult it is to do so. I tend to teach my students the same way I learned- a way I know worked for me. For example, I am very visual and always try to introduce vocabulary in a consistent way. For example, I want to try to incorporate reading, writing, listening and speaking as often as I can.

I really liked the different activities explained in Chapter 14. The activity “Daily News” is a great way to incorporate current events in the classroom and because it benefits all students, not just ELLs. Dialogue Journals are also a good idea to include because students get to choose any topic they want to write about. I believe some students express their ideas and emotions better in writing because they are not face to face with the teacher. ELL students also get to practice the days and dates of the week. Conversation between the teacher and student is extremely important. I also think teachers should make a point to ask/show interest about student’s lives outside of school. Lastly, the TREE Persuasive Essay was explained. I’ve never heard of this, but I really liked the acronym because it explains what should be included in the essay.

At the end of the chapter, Fitzgerald states that seeing through the student’s eyes is very important. Understanding your student’s culture and home life helps you get a better idea of who your students are as a whole. If something isn’t working with the instruction, the teacher must ask themselves, “How can I change my instruction, what can I do better?” not, “What is my student doing wrong?”. Language and culture effects each of us and all cultures must be acknowledged and respected.

Since I have yet to have my own classroom, I have had the opportunity to sub in dozens of different classrooms this year. In one of the elementary schools, students had created a wall with expressions of their identities. Each student created a coat of arms and drew what makes them who they are today. Each drawing included ideas such as family, friends, culture, language, interests and hobbies. I asked the students about the wall and they were very proud to show me and talk about their different characteristics of who they are.

Think Piece #7

For this week’s think piece, we were to read Gerald Campano’s Immigrant

Students and Literacy. I didn’t really enjoy this book.  It was not an easy read and although you learn best through experience, reading all of his experiences didn’t help me much.  I think the overall point of this book was to stress the importance of incorporating culture into the classroom and showing respect and acceptance for all cultures, especially those different than our own.

 One story from Campano’s book that I enjoyed was Ma-Lee’s Story of Migration: “I want to be part of both cultures.”  It was a story of a student who was extremely quiet in class and rarely spoke voluntarily.  She left an essay on Campano’s desk one day.  I really was impressed with her last words: “I feel about culture is difficult for me and maks me confused.  I don’t know what to be But think I want to be both cultures” (p66). 

Ma-Lee’s feelings towards the American culture may be like many other young immigrant students, but teachers are unaware of this because they don’t take the time to talk to them and figure and the student out.

I have not had much experience with immigrant students, growing up in my own school or as a teacher.  My main experience with incorporating culture into the classroom is through my teaching of my content area—French. I teach more than vocabulary and grammar, I incorporate the French culture—holidays, fashion, foods, traditions, etc. I think this shows my students that even though people live differently than us, it doesn’t make their views wrong.  All cultures should be embraced and respected.

One experience I did have with ELL students was when I subbed for an ELL teacher one day for 3^rd and 4^th grade students.  Each student had a booklet of his or her writing from Kindergarten up until this year.  At first, the “writing” was more drawings, but as time progressed, the students began to form sentences.  The stories were about the student’s personal lives—what they liked to do, what they had done the previous weekend, etc.  It is a great memoir of their lives and it has helped make the writing authentic.

Another point that I agreed with Campano on was: “From the very first moment we begin teaching, we bring our life histories to bear upon our practice. Our presence in the classroom is ineluctably animated by our own experiences as learners, our implicit and explicit notions of what constitutes knowledge, and what it means to be an educated person” (page 91). It is evident that our teaching styles reflect who we are as people and our past experiences.  I know I have learned a lot from my past teachers and tend to incorporate their techniques and beliefs into my own style.  It is also about more than teaching-- for example, the traditions my parents have taught me will be continued into the future because I have grown accustom to them and respect them.

Think Piece #6



For this week’s reading, one of the themes that stood out to me is that of handwriting. “There will continue to be many settings in which fluid, legible handwriting and correct spelling are essential” (p 179). I think the importance of handwriting has decreased over the years. Students today are so used to technology tools to help them write papers that they don’t realize they are missing out on an important aspect of writing.

Well developed penmanship used to be a requirement for professional work. Handwriting, mostly cursive, was once a large part of writing years ago. Now, it is a small part that is taught along with other aspects of ELA. People today, students and adults, do not write as much as we used to in the past. Less people write letters because of e-mails and fewer students write with a pen or pencil for school because of computers.

New York State still requires students to write handwritten essays for several standardized tests. If students do not get any practice of this during the year, they will not know what to expect on the day of the exam. Legible writing is a necessary and practical skill that students do not get enough practice of.  Poor handwriting can also help people form negative judgments about others. It may look like they do not care or didn’t take the time to put the effort in the writing.

There is controversy over the different types of handwriting and when they should be taught. There are millions of ways to form letters of the alphabet. A few questions raised are: “Should children be introduced to writing through a traditional manuscript alphabet and later bridged into cursive…? Should students begin with cursive to prevent the difficulties of learning a new way to write in later grades?” (p 195). I believe students should learn the traditional manuscript and then cursive, as most of us were. When students are in their first years of school, they are reading words in the traditional format, not cursive. Students would be confused because they would be taught to write one way but read letters that are formed differently. One of the few advantages of learning cursive first, in my opinion, is the fact the b and d in cursive will be less likely to be mixed up.

I know from experience that my two younger sisters have terrible handwriting. They are only 5 and 10 years younger than me, but this just shows how fast technology has advanced. I remember being told in elementary school that in middle school and high school teachers make you write only in cursive. The use of cursive was not to this extreme once I reached the higher grades. I sometimes found myself writing in cursive to take notes because it was faster and easier for me, but it wasn’t neater.

I have said on numerous occasions that I wish I had “teacher handwriting.” Since I grew out of writing in cursive in high school, my cursive is not as legible as I wish it to be. So many of my teachers have “pretty” and “flowy” handwriting and I am afraid when I have to write notes home to parents, it will look like a student wrote it (judgments!). I understand all people, including teachers, have their own style, I just have to accept mine. Writing on the board is also a problem for me! I really wish there was something I could do to learn how to write like a teacherJ. Practice makes perfect.

Think Piece #5

In this week’s reading, Chapter 7, in Best Practices in Writing Instruction, revising was the focus point. Revising is a very important step in the writing process and is beneficial for the student to participate in. “Revising is a way to learn about the craft of writing” (p. 141). It doesn’t only occur after the writing has been completed, but often throughout the writing process. Students are always looking to go back and change and edit their ideas. Not all students are excellent writers so the revising step can help them enhance what they have already written.

“Peer revising is a common feature of writing-process classrooms, and it is often recommended as a way of providing student writers with an audience of readers who can respond to their writing, identify strengths and problems and recommend improvements” (p 146). I always loved the peer editing step of the writing process because I need feedback from others to provide confidence as well as constructive criticism of my writing. I agree that peer revising is more efficient than group revising because more can be accomplished when two people are trading papers, as opposed to an entire group.

On page 151, steps to a peer revising strategy are as follows:

1.      Listen while the author reads the paper

2.      Tell what the paper was about and what you liked best about it

3.      Read the story and ask the evaluation questions

4.      Discuss the evaluation and ways to make the paper better

5.      Author makes changes.

I think these are great steps for students to follow. The students provide positive feedback about what they liked best and then they have the opportunity to give constructive criticism. I like how the students have the chance to discuss what they think, not just write it down or “grade” their papers and hand it back. Whenever students can talk and discuss their writing, ideas and processes, the better writer a student becomes. The author also has the final decision so if they completely disagree with their peer, there is no pressure to have to change what they have written.

This chapter also talked about the use of Word Processing. There are both advantages and disadvantages to using programs such as Microsoft Word to write. I think students, especially at the early levels, should practice writing first drafts by hand and editing and revising on their own or with a peer. When you sit down to type a paper, Word corrects spelling and grammar and I think students often take advantage of this. I believe computers are great for final drafts and it is much easier for the teacher to read something typed, but I think it also promotes laziness in young students’ writing motivation.

I think revising is very important for writers of all ages because they need the time to go back and reflect on what they have written. There are always changes that could be made, whether it adding more detail, changing sentence structures, or even making sure such things as capitalization and punctuation are correct. The writing process should be taught at a young age so students don’t think that they write something and then they are done with it right after. Even adults who write should still practice editing and revising. Adults make mistakes too and if you have a friend or colleague look over your work, they are most likely going to see something different than you, the writer.

Independent Reading Project

For the Independent Reading Project, I read Katharine Davies Samway's book, When English Language Learners Write: Connecting Research to Practice, K-8.

What is this book? When English Language Learners Write is a great resource for teachers working with ELLs as well as native English speaking students. She focuses on proving the several misconceptions many people have about ELLs, including that they can’t write and that they have writing problems.  She also provides a variety of writing research and strategies to help our students become effective writers.

Who should read this book? Any teacher working with ELLs should definitely have this book on their shelf in their classroom. It is a great resource explaining the way an ELL thinks and writes. There are many aspects that influence ELL writers including instruction, community and environment, which also have an impact on English speaking students. Teachers of writing should also use this book as a resource because many of the tips can also apply to enhancing the writing of native writers as well.

When should I read this book? If you are a teacher who is just starting out working with ELLs or a teacher who has been working with ELLs for years, it is not too late to read this book. It has so much helpful information that no matter what point in your career you’re at, it will still be beneficial.

Why should I read this book? You should read it to gain knowledge of what influences an ELL’s writing. You will learn how ELLs are stereotyped into being poor writers, when in reality, they often express their ideas and emotions better through writing as opposed to speaking.

How should I read this book? Go buy it and open it up! This book is a textbook, meant to be used as a resource. You won’t want to sit down in your favorite chair and have the expectation to sit for a few hours for an enjoyable read. It is a resource that you can turn to for writing guidelines and ideas to help ELLs become the best readers they can be.

**To read the complete review, please go to this link: Book Review

**To see my brochure for this book, please go to this link: Brochure

Think Piece #4

For this week’s reading, I chose to read Chapter Two: Best Practices in Implementing a Process Approach to Teaching Writing. A few different aspects of this chapter stuck with me. For example, “Students compose more text when they are members of a positive, nonthreatening social climate in which they write frequently” (p. 31). I agree with this statement, based on personal experience. Teachers should definitely address the emotional issues that surround writing. In my opinion, classrooms should have a fun, relaxed, and enjoyable environment. Students should feel comfortable in their surroundings and not be afraid to take risks and push themselves as learners. If writing is emphasized and fun for students, they will be much more apt to write well.

The second chapter I chose to read was Chapter 4: Best Practices in Developing a Writing across the Curriculum. The first thing that stood out to me was once again, foreign language was left out of the entire picture. English Language Arts was mentioned, as well as sciences, social studies, and even math, but not foreign language. Foreign language is often left out when it comes to “all content areas.” I think part of the reason is that all schools do not necessarily teach a foreign language, but I also think that many people still believe foreign language to not be as important as the other content areas.

During my student teaching and long term sub position, I incorporated writing as often as I could into my French class. When learning a language, reading, writing, listening and speaking must all be practiced in order to learn it. One example of writing in my classroom was that I had my students write letters to students in France to get to know them. They asked them questions and also wrote about themselves. The audience was real and my students knew they were writing for a purpose and had fun while doing it.

Writing gives students a chance to express themselves and I believe it is necessary in all content areas. Although it may seem hard to incorporate in classrooms such as science, page 83 has a list of different types of writing. “Writing” doesn’t necessarily mean writing narrative essays. Note-taking, reporting, summarizing, analyzing, journal writing and creative writing are just a few examples that could be used (p. 31). The more often students write, the better writers they will become. Especially in the older grades, only writing in English class is not good enough for our students.  Each teacher has to find ways and time to somehow include writing in their lessons, for the benefit of the students today.