In Chapter 15, Weaver
(2002) re-emphasized the differences of decodable and printable texts. I thought this was very interesting, even
after reading about the reading passages and the student’s responses for the
second time. I see so many decodable
texts in primary grade classrooms.
Should I admit that I use Bob Books with my daughter? Those things make
no sense to me (at least the first set), but she feels a sense of
accomplishment when she reads through them quickly. However, I also read predictable texts to her,
so she has a variety of literature exposure.
I agree completely with Weaver’s sentiment that children know much more
about spoken language than letter-sound correspondences. I think that is true for any learner in any
language. The focus of early reading
instruction in Chapter 15 is something I believe in wholeheartedly.
“Researchers
have shown that the more children know about a topic, the better they
understand text on that topic” (Weaver, 2002, p. 373). That is so true. When I tutored a 5th grader last
year, her teacher would give cold reading comprehension passages to the
class. My student would constantly get
DNM (Did Not Master) written on top of her paper for two reasons: she didn’t
understand how to maneuver reading comprehension passage using strategies, and
she had no schema to attach to the passage.
So each week before the passage administration on Friday, I would email
her teacher and ask about the topic so I could pull resources and introduce
them to my student. I also taught her
test taking strategies. As soon as I did
that, she was making 100’s on all the passages.
Regarding
the TORP, my scores changed drastically since the beginning of the course. I made a 68 the first time and moved up to a
106 the second time. Although both
scores are reflective of a Skills approach, I have moved closer toward a
Whole-language approach. This is very
exciting to me. It shows that I have
learned a lot about teaching literacy in relation to my own practices, and that
my beliefs are malleable rather than permanent.
Elizabeth,
ReplyDeleteYour comments really intrigue me, especially regarding decodable and printable texts. It's so true that we need to motivate our students and allow them to feel accomplishment and satisfaction from reading, yet we need to balance those decodable texts with other literature. My daughter is only two, but I constantly think about how I will help her become a great reader. As a high school teacher, I'll feel much more comfortable with strategies for comprehension instruction (e.g., predicting, judging, visualizing) than I will with phonics instruction, but Weaver has definitely helped me understand how I can help my daughter and son become better readers through embedded phonics instruction.
Elizabeth – I remember using decodable texts with some of my students who had lower reading levels in second grade. However, now I understand why they struggled with those texts. It is amazing how much new information I learned from this one textbook! I agree that all children should have a variety of literature exposure, especially early-on in life. I completely agree with Weaver that students should be interested in their texts and they will achieve better comprehension when engaged with the texts. Students need to have a schema or teachers need to build a schema before introducing a child to a brand new text. Great job with tutoring the child in 5th grade and I bet that child’s reading self-confidence also increased! I agree that my TORP has changed completely after six weeks with this class. However, I believe in a mixture of phonics, skills, and whole-language should be taught in the literacy classroom.
ReplyDeleteElizabeth,
ReplyDeleteMy TORP results came up with the same gains. I was more of a skills type and moved to wohle-part. I think this says alot about what we have learned through Weaver's text over this summer semester. I realized I was not looking at the big picture as to what we should want our students to get from reading. Having our students read every word correctly is not nearly as important as having them gain the meaning from the text with a few mistakes along the way. I make miscues when I read but that doesn't mean I'm not a good reader. I think your comments toward this chapter are very interesting and I like how you brought in what you do with your daughter in relation to what Weaver was talking about.
Elizabeth,
ReplyDeleteThat is very interesting when discussing the tutoring situation with the fifth grader. It is amazing what a difference it makes when students have background knowledge, and are familiar with the schema of the text. It is amazing that little (and big) things like that can make such a difference in an outcome. Test taking strategies turned my world around when I was taught a few basic strategies as a child and even as an adult! I remember in 4th grade I brought home my first nine weeks report card, and had two D's. I was mortified, but I failed because I had no idea how to take tests. I would stress myself out, and not even show my knowledge for a topic. After receiving some help from my mom, I gladly never received a D again. It is interesting that your scores changed so drastically, as I found mine to be almost the same. I also think, me being a new teacher, this year will change my opinions a lot as well, so maybe I should retake the test next summer to? :)