Annotated Bibliography
Rader, L. E. (2008). Help: Healthy early literacy program. TEACHING Exceptional Children Plus, 5(2), 3-8. Retrieved from http://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/EJ967738.pdf
What?
· “The act of reading depends on two types of information, visual and nonvisual.” (Rader, 2008, p. 3)
· “Reading requires us to use our knowledge of meaning, language structure, and letter-sound relationships to help us get meaning from print.” (Rader, 2008, p. 3)
· “Through interaction with others who model language functions, children learn to attend to language and to apply this knowledge to literacy situations.” (Rader, 2008, p. 3)
· “Because talking and reading are different processes and produce different outcomes, we cannot assume that children learn this equivalence solely by mapping their knowledge of oral language onto written language.” (Rader, 2008, p. 3)
· “Children varied in their ability to distinguish between oral conversation and a fairy tale or a news item when a researcher ‘read’ to them from a storybook or newspaper. Such failure to pick up on physical cues that differentiate written and spoken language can be problematic for beginning readers.” (Rader, 2008, p. 4)
· “American Speech and Hearing Association (ASHA) recommends early literacy intervention for all children with speech and language delays and/or disorders. Approximately 60 to 80 percent of these children will have difficulty in learning how to read.” (Rader, 2008, p. 4)
· “Once a child develops an awareness of the sounds of spoken words, he can then link the letters to these sounds and go on to sound out new words.” (Rader, 2008, p. 4)
· “Researchers claim that perhaps the greatest prognostic indicators of success in reading in the early grades are the frequency of being read to and the acquisition of a literate language style.” (Rader, 2008, p. 4)
· “Results from large and well-studied populations with reading disability confirm that in young school-age children and in adolescents, a weakness in accessing the sounds of spoken language represents the most robust and specific correlate of reading disability.” (Rader, 2008, p. 4)
· “Those who enter school with limited language (due to a language delay or disorder) are expected to have difficulty dealing with words as objects in and of themselves. Words which are taught in a more meaningful spoken or written context are likely to be learned more readily than words taught apart from such contexts.” (Rader, 2008, p. 4)
· “Associating new vocabulary with concepts that are already known is a powerful way to learn.” (Rader, 2008, p. 4)
· “Children who acquire a substantial vocabulary are often able to think more deeply, express themselves better and learn new things more quickly.” (Rader, 2008, p. 4)
· “Children who reach school age with smaller vocabularies, less in-depth prior knowledge and background experiences, and fewer experiences with hearing stories and exploring with print, are more likely to have significant problems in learning to read.” (Rader, 2008, p. 5)
· “Students need to learn between 2,000 and 4,000 new words per year - that is, approximately 40-50 new words per week.” (Rader, 2008, p. 5)
· “Rhyming is a prominent characteristic of many songs, it was thought that singing and listening to songs would help students attune to the phonemic nature of spoken language.” (Rader, 2008, p. 7)
· “Songs that engage students in the active manipulation of the sounds in words would be most effective in attuning students to the sound structure of language.” (Rader, 2008, p. 7)
So What?
When teaching students how to read, it is important to model reading as this will teach students the thought process of reading such as sounding out words and making meaning. For example, in the class I observe, my mentor teacher constantly sounded out words for her class as she read, pointed to the words as she read, and used “stretching” to sound out the syllables and to help students better hear the different parts of the word to aid them with invented spelling. Students should be given opportunities to read out loud as this helps them form connections between reading and what reading sounds like. It will also help students think about if what they have read has made sense or not. Not only is modeling important, but reading aloud frequently is important as well. Before reading text, unfamiliar vocabulary should be discussed. Teachers should expose students to many types of strategies for reading such as songs, rhyming, making connections, associating letters to words, etc., in order for students to reach success.
Now What?
I believe there are several good pieces of information from this article that will benefit my future teaching. I now have an understanding of the importance of making connections between language and literacy sounds. When planning future lessons, I will strive to incorporate activities that the program in this article used. I must first develop or find a word list that will be used for every activity so that my students can make connections. Developing activities that will allow students to make connections between the literacy intervention and language intervention is the most critical part if student success is to be achieved. I will also be sure to model at every possible moment, make connections between not only reading but also vocabulary, create songs to help with letter-sound association, etc.
Bear, D. R., Invernizzi, M., Templeton, S., & Johnston, F. (2008). Words their way: Word study for phonics, vocabulary, and spelling inventory. (4 ed., pp. 86-128). Upper Saddle River, New Jersey: Pearson.
What?
· “Early emergent students do not read or spell conventionally and they score 0 on spelling inventories because they have very tenuous understandings of how units of speech and units of print are related.” (Bear, Invernizzi, Templeton & Johnston, 2008, p. 86)
· “Learning to read and spell is a process of matching oral and written language structures at three different levels: (a) the global level, at which the text is organized into phrases and sentences, (b) the level of words within phrases, and (c) the level of sounds and letters within syllables.” (Bear, Invernizzi, Templeton & Johnston, 2008, p. 87)
· “The reading of the emergent child is actually pretend reading, or reading from memory. Pretend reading is basically a paraphrase or spontaneous retelling at the global level which children produce while turning the pages of a familiar book.” (Bear, Invernizzi, Templeton & Johnston, 2008, p. 89)
· “Memory reading involves an accurate recitation of the text accompanied by pointing to the print in some fashion. Reading from memory helps children coordinate spoken language with print at the level of words, sounds, and letters.” (Bear, Invernizzi, Templeton & Johnston, 2008, p. 89)
· “In the early emergent stage, children learn to hold a pencil, marker, or crayon, and to make marks on paper. These marks are best described as scribbles that lack directionality and may not serve a communicative function”. (Bear, Invernizzi, Templeton & Johnston, 2008, p. 91)
· “In the middle emergent stage, children begin to approximate the most global contours of the writing system: the top-to-bottom and linear arrangement. They experiment with letter-like forms that resemble the separate circles and lines of manuscript writing or the connected loops of cursive.” (Bear, Invernizzi, Templeton & Johnston, 2008, p.91)
· By the end of the emergent stage, children are beginning to use letters to represent speech sounds in a systematic way. “ (Bear, Invernizzi, Templeton & Johnston, 2008, p.91)
· “To invent a spelling, a child must have some degree of phonemic awareness and some knowledge of letter sounds.” (Bear, Invernizzi, Templeton & Johnston, 2008, p. 91)
· “If children are only able to put down the most salient, or outstanding, sound, then they usually will put down only one letter: D for dog, S for mouse, N for and, or N for mitten”. (Bear, Invernizzi, Templeton & Johnston, 2008, p. 91)
· “The most important condition for emergent literacy to blossom is the opportunity to practice, and children’s approximations must be encouraged and celebrated.” (Bear, Invernizzi, Templeton & Johnston, 2008, p. 93)
· “The reading materials best suited for emergent readers are simple predictable books, familiar nursery rhymes, poems, songs, jump rope jingles, and children’s own talk written down.” (Bear, Invernizzi, Templeton & Johnston, 2008, p.93)
· “Useful techniques for fostering early literacy development include rebuilding familiar rhymes and jingles with sentence strips in pocket charts and matching word cards to individual words on the sentence strips as an explicit way to direct attention to words in print. Sorting objects, pictures, and words by beginning sounds draws attention to letter-sound correspondences. But reading and rereading are the techniques of choice.” (Bear, Invernizzi, Templeton & Johnston, 2008, p. 93)
· “Instruction in alphabet recognition, letter sounds, and concept of word increases a child’s phonemic awareness” (Bear, Invernizzi, Templeton & Johnston, 2008, p.96)
· “Early emergent readers need to participate in phonological awareness activities that focus attention on syllabus and rhyming words while middle emergent readers learn alliteration by sorting pictures that begin with the same sound.” (Bear, Invernizzi, Templeton & Johnston, 2008, p. 96)
· “By the end of the emergent stage, children should learn to segment onsets and rimes.” (Bear, Invernizzi, Templeton & Johnston, 2008, p. 96)
· “Matching the onset to a letter of the alphabet enables emergent readers to locate words in context and to begin to spell” (Bear, Invernizzi, Templeton & Johnston, 2008, p.97)
· “Rhymes awareness activities are an easy, natural way for children to play with words and to begin to focus on speech sounds.” (Bear, Invernizzi, Templeton & Johnston, 2008, p. 97)
· “The research on the development of phonological awareness identifies two sound units significantly related to reading outcomes: (a) rhyme awareness, and (b) individual awareness.” (Bear, Invernizzi, Templeton & Johnston, 2008, p. 98)
· “Among the reading readiness skills that are traditionally studied, the one that appears to be the strongest predictor of later reading success on its own is letter naming.” (Bear, Invernizzi, Templeton & Johnston, 2008, p. 98)
· “The alphabet is learned the same way that concepts and words for concepts are learned – through active exploration of the relationships between letter names, the sounds of the letter names, their visual characteristics, and the motor movement involved in their formation.” (Bear, Invernizzi, Templeton & Johnston, 2008, p. 99)
· “Many alphabet activities begin with the child’s name, building it with letter tiles, cutting out of play dough, or matching it letter for letter with a second set. Writing or copying their own name and the names of other family members or friends is alluring to emergent writers and is a great introduction to the alphabet as well as to writing.” (Bear, Invernizzi, Templeton & Johnston, 2008, p. 99)
· “All the phonological awareness, alphabet, and letter-sound knowledge in the world will not help children learn to read if they cannot match what they say to the words on the page.” (Bear, Invernizzi, Templeton & Johnston, 2008, p. 102)
· “The best way for children to achieve a concept of word is to have them point to the words as they read familiar text and to draw their attention to letters and sounds when they get off track” (Bear, Invernizzi, Templeton & Johnston, 2008, p. 103)
· “Students in the letter name-alphabetic stage use their knowledge of the actual names of the letters of the alphabet to spell phonetically or alphabetically.” (Bear, Invernizzi, Templeton & Johnston, 2008, p. 135)
· “When they spell, letter-name alphabetic students rely not only on what they hear in the letter names, but also on how the letters are articulated, or formed in the mouth.” (Bear, Invernizzi, Templeton & Johnston, 2008, p. 135)
· “Because vowels are so closely wedded to the consonants around them, spellers in the early letter name-alphabetic stage have difficulty separating vowels from consonants." (Bear, Invernizzi, Templeton & Johnston, 2008, p.137)
· “Through word study, students in the letter name-alphabetic stage learn to spell short-vowel words correctly and they see that short vowels follow a specific pattern, a consonant-vowel-consonant pattern.” (Bear, Invernizzi, Templeton & Johnston, 2008, p.138)
· “Initially, students use beginning consonants in their writing, so this is the place to begin word study in the early letter name-alphabetic stage. As their ability to segment phonemes become more complete, they begin to confuse short vowels and consonant blends in the middle to late letter name stage. This is the time to study those features.” (Bear, Invernizzi, Templeton & Johnston, 2008, p. 140)
· “There is no particular order to the sequence of beginning sounds, but starting with frequently occurring initial consonants where the contrasts or differences are clear both visually and phonologically is recommended.” (Bear, Invernizzi, Templeton & Johnston, 2008, p.143)
· “After students know their beginning consonant sounds, they are ready to learn about initial consonant digraphs and blends. There are several things to consider when setting up sorting contrasts for digraphs. First, consider the confusions students show us in their invented spellings.” (Bear, Invernizzi, Templeton & Johnston, 2008, p.143)
· “The study of beginning consonant blends start by contrasting a single initial consonant with its blend because this is the problem students show us when they spell sled as SED.” (Bear, Invernizzi, Templeton & Johnston, 2008, p. 144)
· “Final blends are not studied with pictures due to a lack of examples, but should be included toward the end of the stage in the study of short-vowel words.” (Bear, Invernizzi, Templeton & Johnston, 2008, p. 144)
· “Once letter-name alphabetic spellers have a solid, if not complete, mastery of beginning and ending consonant sounds, they are ready for the study of medial short vowels. Word families offer an easy and appealing way to introduce the issue of vowels early on in this stage.” (Bear, Invernizzi, Templeton & Johnston, 2008, p.145)
· “There is no particular order to the study of word families, but starting with short –a families seems to be a good choice because these words abound in early reading materials, and students are likely to already know several words from these families by sight.” (Bear, Invernizzi, Templeton & Johnston, 2008, p. 146)
· “Once students are spelling perhaps approximately half of the short-vowel words correctly on a spelling inventory and working with mixed-vowel word families easily and accurately, they are ready for the study of short vowels in non-rhyming words outside of word families.” (Bear, Invernizzi, Templeton & Johnston, 2008, p. 148)
· “When beginning the study of short vowels, plan contrasts that are fairly distinct from each other. We recommend that students compare short –a to short –i or short –o. Do not try to move directly from a short –a to a short –e or from –e to a short –i, those are the very sounds students are most likely to confuse." (Bear, Invernizzi, Templeton & Johnston, 2008, p. 150)
· “Teachers may find transitional students in the middle-to-late part of first grade, but transitional students are found mostly in second, third, and early fourth grade classrooms.” (Bear, Invernizzi, Templeton & Johnston, 2008, p. 172)
· “During the within word pattern stage, students move from the full alphabetic phase to the consolidated alphabetic phase, where they begin to recognize patterns and chunks to decode unfamiliar words. Instead of processing a word like chest as four or five letters to match the sounds (ch-e-s-t), they process it as two chunks (ch-est).” (Bear, Invernizzi, Templeton & Johnston, 2008, p. 172)
· “Transitional readers begin to read in phrases, pausing at the end of sentences, and they read with greater expression. Teachers observe that most of the fingerprinting characteristics of the beginning stage drop away, and transitional readers approach oral reading rates of 100 words per minute.” (Bear, Invernizzi, Templeton & Johnston, 2008, p. 172)
· “Writing also becomes more fluent during the within word pattern stage; there is greater sophistication in the way transitional writers express their ideas. The physical act of writing is performed with greater speed and less conscious attention. This added fluency gives transitional writers depth and expression.” (Bear, Invernizzi, Templeton & Johnston, 2008, p. 173)
· “Opportunities abound in the transitional stage for vocabulary instruction that capitalizes on spelling-meaning connections. Students will encounter homophones during this stage.” (Bear, Invernizzi, Templeton & Johnston, 2008, p. 173)
· “There are several consonant issues that pose challenges for within word pattern spellers. They know many beginning and ending consonant blends and digraphs, however, lingering problems can exist in three-letter blends and digraphs such as spr (spring), thr (throw), and str (string). Because words that contain these triplets have a variety of vowel patterns, they are specifically studied toward the end of the stage but can be included in sorts throughout the stage when appropriate. “ (Bear, Invernizzi, Templeton & Johnston, 2008, p. 177)
· “The spellings of homophones may seem capricious, but they reflect their historical origins and may even make reading easier and meaning clearer.” (Bear, Invernizzi, Templeton & Johnston, 2008, p.177)
· “Within the word pattern stage, students create semantic sorts that are collections of words on a particular topic (e.g., baseball words, words related to outer space, government words).” (Bear, Invernizzi, Templeton & Johnston, 2008, p. 178)
· “[Simple prefixes and suffixes] are explored first as vocabulary words students encounter in their reading, and are not treated as spelling words until students know how to spell the base word on which they are built.” (Bear, Invernizzi, Templeton & Johnston, 2008, p. 178)
· “Three brief reminders are instructive at this point [within word pattern stage]: (a) ensure that students are able to read the words before sorting; (b) choose sorts that match students’ development and represent what they use but confuse; (c) avoid teaching rules – instead, have students find reliable patterns.” (Bear, Invernizzi, Templeton & Johnston, 2008, p. 178)
· “For early within word pattern spellers in late first, or early second grade an introductory pace is recommended. Start with some picture sorts to focus attention on the different short- and long-vowel sounds and then study the common CVCe pattern across four long vowels.” (Bear, Invernizzi, Templeton & Johnston, 2008, p. 179)
· “Some teachers study about five high-frequency words a week as described in word wall activities. We suggest including a week-long unit several times a year.” (Bear, Invernizzi, Templeton & Johnston, 2008, p. 182)
· “Word sorts and word study notebooks are most common and crucial activities to use during the within word pattern stage.” (Bear, Invernizzi, Templeton & Johnston, 2008, p. 184)
· “For the most part students know how to spell single syllable words correctly, so the focus shifts to two-syllable words and the conventions that govern spelling where syllables meet, or syllable juncture.” (Bear, Invernizzi, Templeton & Johnston, 2008, p. 204)
· “One of your responsibilities for word study during the syllables and affixes stage is to engage students in examining how important word elements – prefixes, suffixes, and base words - combine; this structural analysis is a powerful tool for vocabulary development, spelling, and figuring out unfamiliar words during reading.” (Bear, Invernizzi, Templeton & Johnston, 2008, p. 205)
· “Model the following strategy for analyzing unfamiliar words in their reading that they cannot identify … ‘examine the word for meaningful parts – base words, suffixes, and prefixes. Try out the meaning in a sentence, if the word still does not make sense and it is critical to the meaning of the overall passage, look it up in the dictionary. Record the new word in your word study notebook.’ This strategy will become one of the most effective means of developing and extending students’ vocabulary knowledge.” (Bear, Invernizzi, Templeton & Johnston, 2008, p. 206)
· “Students learn that when they are uncertain about whether to double the consonants at the juncture of syllables, they should say the word and listen to the vowel sounds. If they hear a long-vowel sound, the syllable is open and will be followed by a single consonant. If they hear a short-vowel sound, the odds are likely that the syllable will need to be closed by two consonants. “ (Bear, Invernizzi, Templeton & Johnston, 2008, p. 210)
· “Students in the syllables and affixes stage learn to listen for the stressed syllable and see the familiar vowel patterns they learned in the within word patterns stage.” (Bear, Invernizzi, Templeton & Johnston, 2008, p. 211)
· “It is important that students learn to spell words that are constructed from morphemic elements." (Bear, Invernizzi, Templeton & Johnston, 2008, p. 214)
· “A number of graphic organizer formats developed over the years have proven very effective in facilitating the types of engagements with new and/or difficult concepts that lead to understanding and deeper knowledge.” (Bear, Invernizzi, Templeton & Johnston, 2008, p. 215)
· “Specific errors that occur during the [derivational relations] stage fall into three main categories. (1) In polysyllable words there are often unstressed syllables in which the vowel is reduced to the schwa sound, as in the second syllable of opposition. Remembering the root from which this word is derived (oppose) will often help the speller choose the correct vowel. (2) Suffixes like the –tion in opposition also pose challenges for spellers because they are easily confused with –ian (clinician) and –sion (tension), which sound the same. (3) Other errors occur in the feature known as an absorbed or assimilated prefix. The prefix in opposition originally comes from ob, but because the root word starts with the letter p (pos), the spelling changed to reflect an easier pronunciation (opposition or opposition)?” (Bear, Invernizzi, Templeton & Johnston, 2008, p. 231)
· “Vowel alternation occurs in many related words where the spelling of vowels remains the same despite an alternation or change in the sound represented by the spelling. These alternations occur as affixes are added and the accented syllables change. Students benefit most from the study of vowel alternation patterns when these patterns are presented in a logical sequence. Begin with the study of related words containing simple vowel alternations that change from long-to-short vowel sounds as suffixes are added, as in nature to natural, sane to sanity, or divine to divinity”. (Bear, Invernizzi, Templeton & Johnston, 2008, p. 236)
· “When teaching adding –ion to words, use a word sort with –ion endings. Students first pair the base word (the verb) with its derivative (the noun), and then group the pairs by the spelling patterns to determine the generalization. Students should also look for the type of vowel or consonant alternations that have occurred” (Bear, Invernizzi, Templeton & Johnston, 2008, p. 236)
So What?
As children move through the various stages of learning how to read and write, there are certain strategies for teachers to use to promote success. First, students must be given regular practice with phonemic and phonological awareness. They must be able to match written and oral language structures and match what they say to words on the page as they are writing. When reading from memory, children are able to coordinate spoken language with print at the level of words, sounds, and letters. The strongest predictor of later reading success on its own is letter naming, which means the teacher must spend a lot of time teaching students about letters .The alphabet is learned through active exploration of the relationships between letter names, the sounds of letter names, their visual characteristics, and the motor movement involved in their formation. Initially, students use beginning consonants in their writing, so this is the place to begin word study in the early letter name-alphabetic stage.
Once students are spelling perhaps approximately half of the short-vowel words correctly on a spelling inventory and working with mixed-vowel word families easily and accurately, they are ready for the study of short vowels in non-rhyming words outside of word families. Students are not given spelling words that have prefixes and suffixes until they have been taught how to spell the base word. Do a week-long unit on high frequency words several times throughout the school year. Sorting, matching, and rhymes are useful strategies when teaching children how to read as well as using graphic organizers and modeling.
Now what?
In the future, I plan to use a word wall to introduce high frequency words. Words will be placed on the word wall every week, but I will plan to do an in-depth lesson over these words at the beginning of each unit. I will also place the alphabet on my walls and spend time with my students helping them understand the letters by how they are formed and what they sound like. To do this, I will practice handwriting with them as well as use songs and games to help connect letter-sound relationships. In addition, I will incorporate the use of word sorts, rhymes, matching, graphic organizers and modeling throughout my teaching of reading and writing.
Ray, K. W., & Cleaveland, L. B. (2004). About the authors: Writing workshop with our youngest writers. Portsmouth, NH: Heinemann.
What?
· “One of the reasons students only write a sentence when asked to write is because the medium itself – often a journal page or a single piece of paper with lines at the bottom and spaced for a picture at the top – suggests this to them. The book medium is a whole different suggestion entirely, and it causes them to do a very different thing with writing.” (Cleaveland & Ray, 2004, p. 9)
· “Most children’s reading experience in kindergarten and first grade is with picture books, so this written form is the most familiar to them and this helps them know what kind of thing they are trying to make.” (Cleaveland & Ray, 2004, p. 9)
· “Alphabet charts, number charts, color charts, calendars, signs and labels of all sorts, lists of students’ names, word walls, class charts, direction and support print for various centers and activities – the room needs to be rich with print resources. We have also found that – especially in Kindergarten – it is helpful to have alphabet strips on the actual tables at which children will be working so they can use them easily if they need reminders of how the letters are formed. “ (Cleaveland & Ray, 2004, p. 41)
· “Every time we read aloud to children, for whatever reason, we are teaching writing.” (Cleaveland & Ray, 2004, p. 42)
· “Many teachers look to the routines of the day as language-learning opportunities. ‘If the name of your favorite ice cream starts with a v, you can get in line now… ‘ or ‘Let’s spell home together before we go get our things ready to go home today’.” (Cleaveland & Ray, 2004, p. 42)
· “Memorization of high frequency words is always better work if we design it so that children have to think about how the word is spelled each time they generate it (copying doesn’t require thinking about how it’s spelled).” (Cleaveland & Ray, 2004, p. 45)
· “Students may be using magnetic letters to make words and messages on metal tablets, manipulating stamps and stickers with letters and words on them, cutting out environmental print from newspapers and labels, or practicing different letter formations and handwriting.” (Cleaveland & Ray, 2004, p. 46)
· “Many teachers sing songs and play games that teach students about how written language works. We can think of games that teaches language concepts and play them from time to time or have them available for children to play on the own – beginners’ versions of Scrabble and hangman, for example.” (Cleaveland & Ray, 2004, p. 46)
So what?
Students often write very little when given a journal page or a piece of paper with a few lines for writing. Telling students to write a book encourages them to write a lot more and is effective because it is familiar to them since most of their experience is with picture books. To help students write, the room needs to be rich with print resources. Teaching students how to write high frequency words is most effective when teaching how to think about how the word is spelled. Strategies for teaching writing include magnetic letters, manipulating stamps and stickers, cutting out environmental print, singing songs and playing games. Reading to children also teaches students how to write.
Now what?
As a reading/writing teacher in the younger grades, I will use this information to foster success of writing in my classroom. Now that I know that students are more likely to write a lot when told to write a book compared to writing something in their journals, I will ask them to make stories and include pictures to help tell their stories and get their imaginations going. To help with creativity, I plan to read aloud a lot because this will spark stories in their brains while teaching them how to write. In addition, I will plaster my walls with print resources of all types, including placing the alphabet on their desks as a quick reference for spelling. I will teach students how to sound out words when they do not know how to spell something, and I will use a variety of strategies when teaching writing so that students do not become bored and so that all learning styles will be touched on.
Roskos, K. A., Christle, J. F., & Richgels, D. J. (2003). The essentials of early literacy instruction. National Association for the Education of Young Children, 1-7. Retrieved from http://www.naeyc.org/files/yc/file/200303/Essentials.pdf
What?
· “Provide phonological awareness activities that involve rhyme, alliteration, and sound matching.” (Christle, Richgels & Roskos, 2003, p. 3)
· “Use direct instruction to teach letter names that have personal meaning to children (‘Look, Jennifer’s and Joey’s names both start with the same letter. What is the letter’s name? That’s right, they both start with j’).” (Christle, Richgels & Roskos, 2003, p. 3)
· “Engage children with materials that promote identification of the letters of the alphabet, including ABC books, magnetic letters, alphabet blocks and puzzles, and alphabet charts.” (Christle, Richgels & Roskos, 2003, p. 3)
· “Encourage children to attempt to read books and other types of print by providing a well-designed library center, repeated readings of favorite books, functional print linked to class activities, and play-related print.” (Christle, Richgels & Roskos, 2003, p. 3)
· “Encourage children to use emergent forms of writing, such as scribble writing, random letter strings, and invented spelling, by providing a writing center stocked with pens, pencils, markers, paper, and book-making materials; shared writing demonstrations in which the teacher writes down text dictated by children; functional writing opportunities that are connected to class activities (e.g., sign-up sheets for popular centers, library book check-out slips, Do not touch! signs); play-related writing materials (e.g., pencils and notepads for taking orders in a restaurant play center).” (Christle, Richgels & Roskos, 2003, p. 4)
· “Read Big Books and other enlarged texts to children, and point to the print as it is read. While introducing and reading the text, draw children’s attention to basic concepts of print such as the distinction between pictures and print; left-to-right, top-to-bottom sequence; book concepts (cover, title, page).” (Christle, Richgels & Roskos, 2003, p. 4)
· “Provide opportunities for children to investigate topics that are of interest to them. The objective is for children to use oral language, reading, and writing to learn about the world. Once a topic has been identified, children can listen to the teacher read topic-related information books and look at the books on their own; gather data using observation, experiments, interviews, and such; use emergent writing to record observations and information; and engage in dramatic play to consolidate and express what they have learned. As a result of such projects, children’s language and literacy skills are advanced, and they gain valuable background knowledge.” (Christle, Richgels & Roskos, 2003, p.4)
· "Reading aloud has maximum learning potential when children have opportunities to actively participate and respond. This requires teachers to use three types of scaffolding or support: (a) before-reading activities that arouse children’s interest and curiosity in the book about to be read; (b) during-reading prompts and questions that keep children actively engaged with the text being read; and (c) after-reading questions and activities that give children an opportunity to discuss and respond to the books that have been read.” (Christle, Richgels & Roskos, 2003, p. 6)
· “The general benefits of play for children’s literacy development are well documented, showing that a literacy-enriched play environment exposes children to value print experiences and lets them practice narrative skills.” (Christle, Richgels & Roskos, 2003, p. 6)
So what?
Helping children to read and write proves to be a daunting task when thinking about all that there is to teach in order for them to be successful. However, there are several strategies that the teacher can use to foster success. First, allow children to choose topics that are of interest to them, then let them gather data, use emergent writing to record observations and information, and engage in dramatic play to express what they have learned. When children are allowed to do these things, their language and literacy skills advance. Next, creating a writing center that is equipped with essential writing utensils and use modeling to teach students how to use the writing center and ways in which they can write. A library should also be included in the classroom that includes a wide variety of books that are familiar to them. Allow children to read books of their choice. Additional strategies that can be used include using magnetic letters, rhyme, alliteration, sound matching, reading Big Books and pointing to the words as they are read, making connections between letters and letter sounds, and reading aloud.
Now what?
I plan to create a classroom library that is filled with books categorized by genre so that students can choose topics of interest to them and find books of those topics in one place. I also plan to create a writing center with pens and pencils, paper, highlighters, etc. When my students are at the writing center, I want them to get the sense that they are authors so that they feel inspired. I will place posters around the writing center that also encourage creative writing. When teaching reading and writing, I plan to use strategies such as modeling, magnetic letters to make words, sound matching, word sorts, rhymes, read alouds, and make letter-sound connections.
Gerde, H.K., Bingham, G.E., & Wasik, B.A. (2012). Writing in Early Childhood Classrooms: Guidance for Best Practices. Early Childhood Education Journal, 40(6), 351-359.
What?
· “Children who used letters in their writing knew more letters and learned letters at a faster rate across the preschool year than children who did not use letters in their writing. This work suggests that the act of writing may support the development of other literacy skills, particularly knowledge.” (Bingham, Gerde & Wasik, 2012, p. 2)
· “Writing must be included in the classroom on a daily basis in multiple ways to encourage all children to participate.” (Bingham, Gerde & Wasik, 2012, p. 3)
· “Build about 15 minutes into the daily schedule devoted specifically to composing ideas into print. This writing may contain both pictures about what children have experienced as well as children’s attempts to capture their language through the use of scribbles, letter-like shapes, letters, or just writing their name. What matters is that they write to represent their ideas and thoughts.” (Bingham, Gerde & Wasik, 2012, p. 3)
· “It is more important for young children’s writing development for them to engage in writing activities than it is to focus on correct letter formation.” (Bingham, Gerde & Wasik, 2012, p. 3)
· “Teachers need to make the writing process public to children. For example, rather than pre-writing the morning message, write the morning message with children at circle time. A teacher can engage in self-talk to explain her/his thinking about writing as s/he writes the morning message.” (Bingham, Gerde & Wasik, 2012, p. 3)
· “Teachers should point out to children when new writing materials are available in the writing center and demonstrate to everyone during group time how to use the new materials." (Bingham, Gerde & Wasik, 2012, p. 4)
· “Some children might need hints about how to make a letter or spell a word. For these children, teachers could say the letters or sounds of words for children, or point to a word in the room that contains the letter.” (Bingham, Gerde & Wasik, 2012, p. 4)
· “Teachers should set aside a portion of the writing time for 2-3 children to read what they wrote that day. This helps children to celebrate the writing process and also helps them make the connection that writing is something that is read, reinforcing the connection between print and their writing.” (Bingham, Gerde & Wasik, 2012, p. 4)
· “Because invented spelling is a critical process for developing writing and phonological awareness, it is acceptable for children to not initially include every sound in a word or write using conventional spelling.” (Bingham, Gerde & Wasik, 2012, p. 5)
· “Providing meaningful purposes for children to write is motivating and helps writing make sense to children.” (Bingham, Gerde & Wasik, 2012, p. 5)
· “Encourage children to use various forms of technology in writing.” (Bingham, Gerde & Wasik, 2012, p. 7)
So what?
When students are learning how to write, it is important that they incorporate letters in their writing because this supports the development of other literacy skills. Spend about 15 minutes everyday giving students time to represent their ideas and thoughts through writing. Teachers should also give students purpose for writing, as well as time to share with the class what they have written. With emergent writers, the teacher should initially accept missing letters from words during invented spelling and should focus on writing activities more than letter formation.
Now what?
In the future I plan to allot time during each day for students to free write without being graded, so that they do not feel the pressures of using correct grammar and spelling correctly. I will also allow for 2-3 students to share everyday something that they have written. I think it is important to give students a purpose for writing so that they may understand what it is that they are writing, and when introducing new writing exercises I will model how to do them. I also know now that during emergent writing, I should not consider a word written wrong when students initially begin invented spelling.
Ray, K. W., & Glover, M. (2008). Already ready: nurturing writers in preschool and kindergarten. Portsmouth, NH: Heinemann.
What?
· “The presence of any form of written text in conjunction with illustrations causes them to read their texts so that they sound more like books. The presence of print seems to cue children to read differently than when they are reading only from their illustrations.” (Ray & Glover, 2008, p. 67)
· “Understanding about genre are essential to good writing because they give writers vision for writing.” (Ray & Glover, 2008, p. 70)
· “This first sense of genre children develop will likely be quite broad and connected to the kinds of topics they’re writing about: ‘This is a funny book about my sister’. (Ray & Glover, 2008, p. 72)
· “When making picture books, children learn to take action and make decisions to get them written. They learn that writing is a process; they can’t help but learn this because they cannot make books without going through some kind of process.” (Ray & Glover, 2008, p. 73)
So what?
When introducing books in the classroom, there should be an abundance of picture books and many genres. Students need to understand how to depict different genres. Initially, genre is broad and is often related to topics the students are writing about. Children learn that there is a writing process when they learn how to make picture books.
Now what?
I plan to use a variety of picture books in my classroom library so that students become exposed to connecting picture to text. This will also help them when learning to make books because they will understand that there is a writing process and that illustrations should be used to represent the text. Because of the importance of understanding book genre, I will group books by genre and create a genre study for each unit. In the study, I will have students focus on characteristics of the genre that let the reader know what genre the book is.
Kaye, P. (1995). Games for writing. New York, NY: Farrar, Straus and Giroux.
What?
· “The child who engages in scribble writing is experimenting with a major new idea. He is using graphic forms to express his thoughts. He is giving his words a physical reality on the page.” (Kaye, 1995, p. 2)
· “Before we can draw all the straight alphabet, we have to learn how to handle those little graphite sticks. Your child can learn in an entertaining way when you start a Three Color Road Race.” (Kaye, 1995, p. 7)
· “In the beginning, if children believe they are writing, they will go on doing it, and the more they go on, the more they will notice and learn.” (Kaye, 1995, p. 34)
· “What causes such discomfort with writing? In general, for first-, second-, and third-graders it’s fairly easy to place the blame. The anxiety arises from the terrors of spelling and handwriting and the ‘but I have nothing to write’ syndrome.” (Kaye, 1995, p. 35)
· “When adults fret about spelling, so do children. And when children worry about spelling, they often become nervous, inhibited writers.” (Kaye, 1995, p. 84)
So what?
The importance of modeling how to hold a writing utensil and how to write left to right, top to bottom is important. Young children may not grasp that concept at first, but eventually they will pick up on it. It is important not to tell children when they are writing incorrectly. Doing this will discourage students and the point is for them to write as much as they can so that they can start picking up on the correct way of writing. Beginning writers develop anxiety about how to spell and how their handwriting looks, however, as long as adults do not make a big deal out of it, students will not either.
Now what?
If I am a teacher that teaches writing to beginners, I will be sure to teach the correct way to hold a writing utensil, and as students practice their handwriting I will walk around to check how students are holding their utensils. In the future I will not place emphasis on ensuring students are writing correctly, but rather place the focus on what the lesson is being taught. I have noticed in my observation class a student who focuses on writing but has barely legible handwriting. Although handwriting was not the focus for the day, my mentor teacher told the student he needed to focus on his handwriting, and from that point forward he was too discouraged to write at all. That tells me that as a teacher, I must only place focus on what the lesson is of the day, rather than pointing out things that could cause terrors of spelling and handwriting.
Tompkins, G. E. (2012). Teaching writing: Balancing process and product. (6 ed., pp. 32-54). Boston, MA: Pearson.
What?
· “Researchers have found that strategic writers’ compositions are dramatically better than those of other students, and that instruction in writing strategies is particularly important for struggling students. “ (Tompkins, 2012, p. 34)
· “In ‘Explode the Moment’, writers choose a moment and expand it by adding vivid details to describe sights, sounds, thoughts, and feelings related to the moment.” (Tompkins, 2012, p. 36)
· “In the activity, ‘Snapshots’, students use descriptive language to create a written picture of a moment in time.” (Tompkins, 2012, p. 36)
· “It’s not enough for students to apply some writing strategies; successful writing requires active and deliberate self-regulation of writing strategies.” (Tompkins, 2012, p. 44)
· “Writers are regulating their use of writing strategies when they set goals, ask questions to guide their thinking, monitor their progress, evaluate whether their writing makes sense, and apply strategies to solve problems to create an effective composition and cope successfully with the demands of writing.” (Tompkins, 2012, p. 44)
· “Inexperienced writers lack knowledge about the writing process and have few problem-solving mechanisms that involve complex thinking processes available to use while they’re writing. Less capable writers seem reluctant to use unfamiliar strategies or those that require much effort.” (Tompkins, 2012, p. 45)
· “Teachers teach students about writing strategies in mini-lessons. According to Harris, Graham, Mason, and Friedlander, strategy lessons should exemplify these characteristics: explicit instruction, modeling, collaboration, and independent application.” (Tompkins, 2012, p. 48)
So what?
Strategic writers have dramatically better writing than students who do not utilize writing strategies. Many inexperienced writers do no have knowledge of the writing process or strategies to use, and those that do know strategies are often reluctant to use them because of inexperience. Teachers should use mini-lessons to introduce and practice writing strategies with students so that they can learn how to apply them on their own, however, teachers need to teach students about appropriate times for strategies to be used and what specific strategies are used for. When students know how to set goals for their writing and ask questions to guide their thinking, monitor their progress, and evaluate their writing, they are using strategies and are better able to cope with the demands of writing.
Now what?
Now that I know what a difference it makes to know writing strategies to use throughout the writing process, I will incorporate these in my classroom through modeling and think alouds. I will provide as much practice as possible so that students become comfortable with using strategies on their own.
Goldstein, J., & McCoach, D. B. (2011). The starting line: Developing a structure for teacher ratings of students' skills at kindergarten entry. (Master's thesis, University of Connecticut) Retrieved from http://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/EJ956366.pdf
What?
· “Denton Flannagan and McPhee (2009) found that upon Kindergarten entry, children born in 2001 demonstrated reading and mathematics knowledge and skills that varied by their race/ethnicity, family type, poverty status, primary home language, and their primary early care and education setting the year prior to Kindergarten.” (Goldstein & McCoach, 2011, p. 2)
· “White and Asian children had higher reading and mathematics assessment scores than did Black, Hispanic, or American Indian/Alaska Native children. Children in households with two parents, with incomes at or above the poverty threshold, or with English as a primary home language had higher reading and mathematics scores than their counterparts.” (Goldstein & McCoach, 2011, p. 2)
· “Children who had participated in regular early care and education arrangements the year prior to Kindergarten scored higher on the reading and mathematics assessment than children who had not.” (Goldstein & McCoach, 2011, p. 2)
· “In early literacy, 66% were proficient in recognizing their letters, 29% were proficient in understanding beginning sounds, and about 17% were proficient in understanding ending sounds.” (Goldstein & McCoach, 2011, p. 2)
So what?
According to studies, it appears that reading knowledge and skills vary by race/ethnicity, family type, poverty status, primary home language, and primary early care and education setting the year prior to Kindergarten. This means that the level of instruction should vary depending on those factors and that intervention may be needed to bring those students up to the levels that they should be at.
Now what?
Because I know that factors such as race/ethnicity, poverty status, family type, primary home language, and primary early care and education setting the year prior to Kindergarten influence the knowledge and skills for reading, I will work hard to assess all students several times at the beginning of the year to find out what they know. Based on the results, I will create mini-lessons and intervention activities to use to catch students up to where they need to be. It is important for me to ensure that all students are receiving the same instruction and level of attention, however I need to do all that is possible to ensure that students are not falling between the cracks.
Rader, L. E. (2008). Help: Healthy early literacy program. TEACHING Exceptional Children Plus, 5(2), 3-8. Retrieved from http://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/EJ967738.pdf
What?
· “The act of reading depends on two types of information, visual and nonvisual.” (Rader, 2008, p. 3)
· “Reading requires us to use our knowledge of meaning, language structure, and letter-sound relationships to help us get meaning from print.” (Rader, 2008, p. 3)
· “Through interaction with others who model language functions, children learn to attend to language and to apply this knowledge to literacy situations.” (Rader, 2008, p. 3)
· “Because talking and reading are different processes and produce different outcomes, we cannot assume that children learn this equivalence solely by mapping their knowledge of oral language onto written language.” (Rader, 2008, p. 3)
· “Children varied in their ability to distinguish between oral conversation and a fairy tale or a news item when a researcher ‘read’ to them from a storybook or newspaper. Such failure to pick up on physical cues that differentiate written and spoken language can be problematic for beginning readers.” (Rader, 2008, p. 4)
· “American Speech and Hearing Association (ASHA) recommends early literacy intervention for all children with speech and language delays and/or disorders. Approximately 60 to 80 percent of these children will have difficulty in learning how to read.” (Rader, 2008, p. 4)
· “Once a child develops an awareness of the sounds of spoken words, he can then link the letters to these sounds and go on to sound out new words.” (Rader, 2008, p. 4)
· “Researchers claim that perhaps the greatest prognostic indicators of success in reading in the early grades are the frequency of being read to and the acquisition of a literate language style.” (Rader, 2008, p. 4)
· “Results from large and well-studied populations with reading disability confirm that in young school-age children and in adolescents, a weakness in accessing the sounds of spoken language represents the most robust and specific correlate of reading disability.” (Rader, 2008, p. 4)
· “Those who enter school with limited language (due to a language delay or disorder) are expected to have difficulty dealing with words as objects in and of themselves. Words which are taught in a more meaningful spoken or written context are likely to be learned more readily than words taught apart from such contexts.” (Rader, 2008, p. 4)
· “Associating new vocabulary with concepts that are already known is a powerful way to learn.” (Rader, 2008, p. 4)
· “Children who acquire a substantial vocabulary are often able to think more deeply, express themselves better and learn new things more quickly.” (Rader, 2008, p. 4)
· “Children who reach school age with smaller vocabularies, less in-depth prior knowledge and background experiences, and fewer experiences with hearing stories and exploring with print, are more likely to have significant problems in learning to read.” (Rader, 2008, p. 5)
· “Students need to learn between 2,000 and 4,000 new words per year - that is, approximately 40-50 new words per week.” (Rader, 2008, p. 5)
· “Rhyming is a prominent characteristic of many songs, it was thought that singing and listening to songs would help students attune to the phonemic nature of spoken language.” (Rader, 2008, p. 7)
· “Songs that engage students in the active manipulation of the sounds in words would be most effective in attuning students to the sound structure of language.” (Rader, 2008, p. 7)
So What?
When teaching students how to read, it is important to model reading as this will teach students the thought process of reading such as sounding out words and making meaning. For example, in the class I observe, my mentor teacher constantly sounded out words for her class as she read, pointed to the words as she read, and used “stretching” to sound out the syllables and to help students better hear the different parts of the word to aid them with invented spelling. Students should be given opportunities to read out loud as this helps them form connections between reading and what reading sounds like. It will also help students think about if what they have read has made sense or not. Not only is modeling important, but reading aloud frequently is important as well. Before reading text, unfamiliar vocabulary should be discussed. Teachers should expose students to many types of strategies for reading such as songs, rhyming, making connections, associating letters to words, etc., in order for students to reach success.
Now What?
I believe there are several good pieces of information from this article that will benefit my future teaching. I now have an understanding of the importance of making connections between language and literacy sounds. When planning future lessons, I will strive to incorporate activities that the program in this article used. I must first develop or find a word list that will be used for every activity so that my students can make connections. Developing activities that will allow students to make connections between the literacy intervention and language intervention is the most critical part if student success is to be achieved. I will also be sure to model at every possible moment, make connections between not only reading but also vocabulary, create songs to help with letter-sound association, etc.
Bear, D. R., Invernizzi, M., Templeton, S., & Johnston, F. (2008). Words their way: Word study for phonics, vocabulary, and spelling inventory. (4 ed., pp. 86-128). Upper Saddle River, New Jersey: Pearson.
What?
· “Early emergent students do not read or spell conventionally and they score 0 on spelling inventories because they have very tenuous understandings of how units of speech and units of print are related.” (Bear, Invernizzi, Templeton & Johnston, 2008, p. 86)
· “Learning to read and spell is a process of matching oral and written language structures at three different levels: (a) the global level, at which the text is organized into phrases and sentences, (b) the level of words within phrases, and (c) the level of sounds and letters within syllables.” (Bear, Invernizzi, Templeton & Johnston, 2008, p. 87)
· “The reading of the emergent child is actually pretend reading, or reading from memory. Pretend reading is basically a paraphrase or spontaneous retelling at the global level which children produce while turning the pages of a familiar book.” (Bear, Invernizzi, Templeton & Johnston, 2008, p. 89)
· “Memory reading involves an accurate recitation of the text accompanied by pointing to the print in some fashion. Reading from memory helps children coordinate spoken language with print at the level of words, sounds, and letters.” (Bear, Invernizzi, Templeton & Johnston, 2008, p. 89)
· “In the early emergent stage, children learn to hold a pencil, marker, or crayon, and to make marks on paper. These marks are best described as scribbles that lack directionality and may not serve a communicative function”. (Bear, Invernizzi, Templeton & Johnston, 2008, p. 91)
· “In the middle emergent stage, children begin to approximate the most global contours of the writing system: the top-to-bottom and linear arrangement. They experiment with letter-like forms that resemble the separate circles and lines of manuscript writing or the connected loops of cursive.” (Bear, Invernizzi, Templeton & Johnston, 2008, p.91)
· By the end of the emergent stage, children are beginning to use letters to represent speech sounds in a systematic way. “ (Bear, Invernizzi, Templeton & Johnston, 2008, p.91)
· “To invent a spelling, a child must have some degree of phonemic awareness and some knowledge of letter sounds.” (Bear, Invernizzi, Templeton & Johnston, 2008, p. 91)
· “If children are only able to put down the most salient, or outstanding, sound, then they usually will put down only one letter: D for dog, S for mouse, N for and, or N for mitten”. (Bear, Invernizzi, Templeton & Johnston, 2008, p. 91)
· “The most important condition for emergent literacy to blossom is the opportunity to practice, and children’s approximations must be encouraged and celebrated.” (Bear, Invernizzi, Templeton & Johnston, 2008, p. 93)
· “The reading materials best suited for emergent readers are simple predictable books, familiar nursery rhymes, poems, songs, jump rope jingles, and children’s own talk written down.” (Bear, Invernizzi, Templeton & Johnston, 2008, p.93)
· “Useful techniques for fostering early literacy development include rebuilding familiar rhymes and jingles with sentence strips in pocket charts and matching word cards to individual words on the sentence strips as an explicit way to direct attention to words in print. Sorting objects, pictures, and words by beginning sounds draws attention to letter-sound correspondences. But reading and rereading are the techniques of choice.” (Bear, Invernizzi, Templeton & Johnston, 2008, p. 93)
· “Instruction in alphabet recognition, letter sounds, and concept of word increases a child’s phonemic awareness” (Bear, Invernizzi, Templeton & Johnston, 2008, p.96)
· “Early emergent readers need to participate in phonological awareness activities that focus attention on syllabus and rhyming words while middle emergent readers learn alliteration by sorting pictures that begin with the same sound.” (Bear, Invernizzi, Templeton & Johnston, 2008, p. 96)
· “By the end of the emergent stage, children should learn to segment onsets and rimes.” (Bear, Invernizzi, Templeton & Johnston, 2008, p. 96)
· “Matching the onset to a letter of the alphabet enables emergent readers to locate words in context and to begin to spell” (Bear, Invernizzi, Templeton & Johnston, 2008, p.97)
· “Rhymes awareness activities are an easy, natural way for children to play with words and to begin to focus on speech sounds.” (Bear, Invernizzi, Templeton & Johnston, 2008, p. 97)
· “The research on the development of phonological awareness identifies two sound units significantly related to reading outcomes: (a) rhyme awareness, and (b) individual awareness.” (Bear, Invernizzi, Templeton & Johnston, 2008, p. 98)
· “Among the reading readiness skills that are traditionally studied, the one that appears to be the strongest predictor of later reading success on its own is letter naming.” (Bear, Invernizzi, Templeton & Johnston, 2008, p. 98)
· “The alphabet is learned the same way that concepts and words for concepts are learned – through active exploration of the relationships between letter names, the sounds of the letter names, their visual characteristics, and the motor movement involved in their formation.” (Bear, Invernizzi, Templeton & Johnston, 2008, p. 99)
· “Many alphabet activities begin with the child’s name, building it with letter tiles, cutting out of play dough, or matching it letter for letter with a second set. Writing or copying their own name and the names of other family members or friends is alluring to emergent writers and is a great introduction to the alphabet as well as to writing.” (Bear, Invernizzi, Templeton & Johnston, 2008, p. 99)
· “All the phonological awareness, alphabet, and letter-sound knowledge in the world will not help children learn to read if they cannot match what they say to the words on the page.” (Bear, Invernizzi, Templeton & Johnston, 2008, p. 102)
· “The best way for children to achieve a concept of word is to have them point to the words as they read familiar text and to draw their attention to letters and sounds when they get off track” (Bear, Invernizzi, Templeton & Johnston, 2008, p. 103)
· “Students in the letter name-alphabetic stage use their knowledge of the actual names of the letters of the alphabet to spell phonetically or alphabetically.” (Bear, Invernizzi, Templeton & Johnston, 2008, p. 135)
· “When they spell, letter-name alphabetic students rely not only on what they hear in the letter names, but also on how the letters are articulated, or formed in the mouth.” (Bear, Invernizzi, Templeton & Johnston, 2008, p. 135)
· “Because vowels are so closely wedded to the consonants around them, spellers in the early letter name-alphabetic stage have difficulty separating vowels from consonants." (Bear, Invernizzi, Templeton & Johnston, 2008, p.137)
· “Through word study, students in the letter name-alphabetic stage learn to spell short-vowel words correctly and they see that short vowels follow a specific pattern, a consonant-vowel-consonant pattern.” (Bear, Invernizzi, Templeton & Johnston, 2008, p.138)
· “Initially, students use beginning consonants in their writing, so this is the place to begin word study in the early letter name-alphabetic stage. As their ability to segment phonemes become more complete, they begin to confuse short vowels and consonant blends in the middle to late letter name stage. This is the time to study those features.” (Bear, Invernizzi, Templeton & Johnston, 2008, p. 140)
· “There is no particular order to the sequence of beginning sounds, but starting with frequently occurring initial consonants where the contrasts or differences are clear both visually and phonologically is recommended.” (Bear, Invernizzi, Templeton & Johnston, 2008, p.143)
· “After students know their beginning consonant sounds, they are ready to learn about initial consonant digraphs and blends. There are several things to consider when setting up sorting contrasts for digraphs. First, consider the confusions students show us in their invented spellings.” (Bear, Invernizzi, Templeton & Johnston, 2008, p.143)
· “The study of beginning consonant blends start by contrasting a single initial consonant with its blend because this is the problem students show us when they spell sled as SED.” (Bear, Invernizzi, Templeton & Johnston, 2008, p. 144)
· “Final blends are not studied with pictures due to a lack of examples, but should be included toward the end of the stage in the study of short-vowel words.” (Bear, Invernizzi, Templeton & Johnston, 2008, p. 144)
· “Once letter-name alphabetic spellers have a solid, if not complete, mastery of beginning and ending consonant sounds, they are ready for the study of medial short vowels. Word families offer an easy and appealing way to introduce the issue of vowels early on in this stage.” (Bear, Invernizzi, Templeton & Johnston, 2008, p.145)
· “There is no particular order to the study of word families, but starting with short –a families seems to be a good choice because these words abound in early reading materials, and students are likely to already know several words from these families by sight.” (Bear, Invernizzi, Templeton & Johnston, 2008, p. 146)
· “Once students are spelling perhaps approximately half of the short-vowel words correctly on a spelling inventory and working with mixed-vowel word families easily and accurately, they are ready for the study of short vowels in non-rhyming words outside of word families.” (Bear, Invernizzi, Templeton & Johnston, 2008, p. 148)
· “When beginning the study of short vowels, plan contrasts that are fairly distinct from each other. We recommend that students compare short –a to short –i or short –o. Do not try to move directly from a short –a to a short –e or from –e to a short –i, those are the very sounds students are most likely to confuse." (Bear, Invernizzi, Templeton & Johnston, 2008, p. 150)
· “Teachers may find transitional students in the middle-to-late part of first grade, but transitional students are found mostly in second, third, and early fourth grade classrooms.” (Bear, Invernizzi, Templeton & Johnston, 2008, p. 172)
· “During the within word pattern stage, students move from the full alphabetic phase to the consolidated alphabetic phase, where they begin to recognize patterns and chunks to decode unfamiliar words. Instead of processing a word like chest as four or five letters to match the sounds (ch-e-s-t), they process it as two chunks (ch-est).” (Bear, Invernizzi, Templeton & Johnston, 2008, p. 172)
· “Transitional readers begin to read in phrases, pausing at the end of sentences, and they read with greater expression. Teachers observe that most of the fingerprinting characteristics of the beginning stage drop away, and transitional readers approach oral reading rates of 100 words per minute.” (Bear, Invernizzi, Templeton & Johnston, 2008, p. 172)
· “Writing also becomes more fluent during the within word pattern stage; there is greater sophistication in the way transitional writers express their ideas. The physical act of writing is performed with greater speed and less conscious attention. This added fluency gives transitional writers depth and expression.” (Bear, Invernizzi, Templeton & Johnston, 2008, p. 173)
· “Opportunities abound in the transitional stage for vocabulary instruction that capitalizes on spelling-meaning connections. Students will encounter homophones during this stage.” (Bear, Invernizzi, Templeton & Johnston, 2008, p. 173)
· “There are several consonant issues that pose challenges for within word pattern spellers. They know many beginning and ending consonant blends and digraphs, however, lingering problems can exist in three-letter blends and digraphs such as spr (spring), thr (throw), and str (string). Because words that contain these triplets have a variety of vowel patterns, they are specifically studied toward the end of the stage but can be included in sorts throughout the stage when appropriate. “ (Bear, Invernizzi, Templeton & Johnston, 2008, p. 177)
· “The spellings of homophones may seem capricious, but they reflect their historical origins and may even make reading easier and meaning clearer.” (Bear, Invernizzi, Templeton & Johnston, 2008, p.177)
· “Within the word pattern stage, students create semantic sorts that are collections of words on a particular topic (e.g., baseball words, words related to outer space, government words).” (Bear, Invernizzi, Templeton & Johnston, 2008, p. 178)
· “[Simple prefixes and suffixes] are explored first as vocabulary words students encounter in their reading, and are not treated as spelling words until students know how to spell the base word on which they are built.” (Bear, Invernizzi, Templeton & Johnston, 2008, p. 178)
· “Three brief reminders are instructive at this point [within word pattern stage]: (a) ensure that students are able to read the words before sorting; (b) choose sorts that match students’ development and represent what they use but confuse; (c) avoid teaching rules – instead, have students find reliable patterns.” (Bear, Invernizzi, Templeton & Johnston, 2008, p. 178)
· “For early within word pattern spellers in late first, or early second grade an introductory pace is recommended. Start with some picture sorts to focus attention on the different short- and long-vowel sounds and then study the common CVCe pattern across four long vowels.” (Bear, Invernizzi, Templeton & Johnston, 2008, p. 179)
· “Some teachers study about five high-frequency words a week as described in word wall activities. We suggest including a week-long unit several times a year.” (Bear, Invernizzi, Templeton & Johnston, 2008, p. 182)
· “Word sorts and word study notebooks are most common and crucial activities to use during the within word pattern stage.” (Bear, Invernizzi, Templeton & Johnston, 2008, p. 184)
· “For the most part students know how to spell single syllable words correctly, so the focus shifts to two-syllable words and the conventions that govern spelling where syllables meet, or syllable juncture.” (Bear, Invernizzi, Templeton & Johnston, 2008, p. 204)
· “One of your responsibilities for word study during the syllables and affixes stage is to engage students in examining how important word elements – prefixes, suffixes, and base words - combine; this structural analysis is a powerful tool for vocabulary development, spelling, and figuring out unfamiliar words during reading.” (Bear, Invernizzi, Templeton & Johnston, 2008, p. 205)
· “Model the following strategy for analyzing unfamiliar words in their reading that they cannot identify … ‘examine the word for meaningful parts – base words, suffixes, and prefixes. Try out the meaning in a sentence, if the word still does not make sense and it is critical to the meaning of the overall passage, look it up in the dictionary. Record the new word in your word study notebook.’ This strategy will become one of the most effective means of developing and extending students’ vocabulary knowledge.” (Bear, Invernizzi, Templeton & Johnston, 2008, p. 206)
· “Students learn that when they are uncertain about whether to double the consonants at the juncture of syllables, they should say the word and listen to the vowel sounds. If they hear a long-vowel sound, the syllable is open and will be followed by a single consonant. If they hear a short-vowel sound, the odds are likely that the syllable will need to be closed by two consonants. “ (Bear, Invernizzi, Templeton & Johnston, 2008, p. 210)
· “Students in the syllables and affixes stage learn to listen for the stressed syllable and see the familiar vowel patterns they learned in the within word patterns stage.” (Bear, Invernizzi, Templeton & Johnston, 2008, p. 211)
· “It is important that students learn to spell words that are constructed from morphemic elements." (Bear, Invernizzi, Templeton & Johnston, 2008, p. 214)
· “A number of graphic organizer formats developed over the years have proven very effective in facilitating the types of engagements with new and/or difficult concepts that lead to understanding and deeper knowledge.” (Bear, Invernizzi, Templeton & Johnston, 2008, p. 215)
· “Specific errors that occur during the [derivational relations] stage fall into three main categories. (1) In polysyllable words there are often unstressed syllables in which the vowel is reduced to the schwa sound, as in the second syllable of opposition. Remembering the root from which this word is derived (oppose) will often help the speller choose the correct vowel. (2) Suffixes like the –tion in opposition also pose challenges for spellers because they are easily confused with –ian (clinician) and –sion (tension), which sound the same. (3) Other errors occur in the feature known as an absorbed or assimilated prefix. The prefix in opposition originally comes from ob, but because the root word starts with the letter p (pos), the spelling changed to reflect an easier pronunciation (opposition or opposition)?” (Bear, Invernizzi, Templeton & Johnston, 2008, p. 231)
· “Vowel alternation occurs in many related words where the spelling of vowels remains the same despite an alternation or change in the sound represented by the spelling. These alternations occur as affixes are added and the accented syllables change. Students benefit most from the study of vowel alternation patterns when these patterns are presented in a logical sequence. Begin with the study of related words containing simple vowel alternations that change from long-to-short vowel sounds as suffixes are added, as in nature to natural, sane to sanity, or divine to divinity”. (Bear, Invernizzi, Templeton & Johnston, 2008, p. 236)
· “When teaching adding –ion to words, use a word sort with –ion endings. Students first pair the base word (the verb) with its derivative (the noun), and then group the pairs by the spelling patterns to determine the generalization. Students should also look for the type of vowel or consonant alternations that have occurred” (Bear, Invernizzi, Templeton & Johnston, 2008, p. 236)
So What?
As children move through the various stages of learning how to read and write, there are certain strategies for teachers to use to promote success. First, students must be given regular practice with phonemic and phonological awareness. They must be able to match written and oral language structures and match what they say to words on the page as they are writing. When reading from memory, children are able to coordinate spoken language with print at the level of words, sounds, and letters. The strongest predictor of later reading success on its own is letter naming, which means the teacher must spend a lot of time teaching students about letters .The alphabet is learned through active exploration of the relationships between letter names, the sounds of letter names, their visual characteristics, and the motor movement involved in their formation. Initially, students use beginning consonants in their writing, so this is the place to begin word study in the early letter name-alphabetic stage.
Once students are spelling perhaps approximately half of the short-vowel words correctly on a spelling inventory and working with mixed-vowel word families easily and accurately, they are ready for the study of short vowels in non-rhyming words outside of word families. Students are not given spelling words that have prefixes and suffixes until they have been taught how to spell the base word. Do a week-long unit on high frequency words several times throughout the school year. Sorting, matching, and rhymes are useful strategies when teaching children how to read as well as using graphic organizers and modeling.
Now what?
In the future, I plan to use a word wall to introduce high frequency words. Words will be placed on the word wall every week, but I will plan to do an in-depth lesson over these words at the beginning of each unit. I will also place the alphabet on my walls and spend time with my students helping them understand the letters by how they are formed and what they sound like. To do this, I will practice handwriting with them as well as use songs and games to help connect letter-sound relationships. In addition, I will incorporate the use of word sorts, rhymes, matching, graphic organizers and modeling throughout my teaching of reading and writing.
Ray, K. W., & Cleaveland, L. B. (2004). About the authors: Writing workshop with our youngest writers. Portsmouth, NH: Heinemann.
What?
· “One of the reasons students only write a sentence when asked to write is because the medium itself – often a journal page or a single piece of paper with lines at the bottom and spaced for a picture at the top – suggests this to them. The book medium is a whole different suggestion entirely, and it causes them to do a very different thing with writing.” (Cleaveland & Ray, 2004, p. 9)
· “Most children’s reading experience in kindergarten and first grade is with picture books, so this written form is the most familiar to them and this helps them know what kind of thing they are trying to make.” (Cleaveland & Ray, 2004, p. 9)
· “Alphabet charts, number charts, color charts, calendars, signs and labels of all sorts, lists of students’ names, word walls, class charts, direction and support print for various centers and activities – the room needs to be rich with print resources. We have also found that – especially in Kindergarten – it is helpful to have alphabet strips on the actual tables at which children will be working so they can use them easily if they need reminders of how the letters are formed. “ (Cleaveland & Ray, 2004, p. 41)
· “Every time we read aloud to children, for whatever reason, we are teaching writing.” (Cleaveland & Ray, 2004, p. 42)
· “Many teachers look to the routines of the day as language-learning opportunities. ‘If the name of your favorite ice cream starts with a v, you can get in line now… ‘ or ‘Let’s spell home together before we go get our things ready to go home today’.” (Cleaveland & Ray, 2004, p. 42)
· “Memorization of high frequency words is always better work if we design it so that children have to think about how the word is spelled each time they generate it (copying doesn’t require thinking about how it’s spelled).” (Cleaveland & Ray, 2004, p. 45)
· “Students may be using magnetic letters to make words and messages on metal tablets, manipulating stamps and stickers with letters and words on them, cutting out environmental print from newspapers and labels, or practicing different letter formations and handwriting.” (Cleaveland & Ray, 2004, p. 46)
· “Many teachers sing songs and play games that teach students about how written language works. We can think of games that teaches language concepts and play them from time to time or have them available for children to play on the own – beginners’ versions of Scrabble and hangman, for example.” (Cleaveland & Ray, 2004, p. 46)
So what?
Students often write very little when given a journal page or a piece of paper with a few lines for writing. Telling students to write a book encourages them to write a lot more and is effective because it is familiar to them since most of their experience is with picture books. To help students write, the room needs to be rich with print resources. Teaching students how to write high frequency words is most effective when teaching how to think about how the word is spelled. Strategies for teaching writing include magnetic letters, manipulating stamps and stickers, cutting out environmental print, singing songs and playing games. Reading to children also teaches students how to write.
Now what?
As a reading/writing teacher in the younger grades, I will use this information to foster success of writing in my classroom. Now that I know that students are more likely to write a lot when told to write a book compared to writing something in their journals, I will ask them to make stories and include pictures to help tell their stories and get their imaginations going. To help with creativity, I plan to read aloud a lot because this will spark stories in their brains while teaching them how to write. In addition, I will plaster my walls with print resources of all types, including placing the alphabet on their desks as a quick reference for spelling. I will teach students how to sound out words when they do not know how to spell something, and I will use a variety of strategies when teaching writing so that students do not become bored and so that all learning styles will be touched on.
Roskos, K. A., Christle, J. F., & Richgels, D. J. (2003). The essentials of early literacy instruction. National Association for the Education of Young Children, 1-7. Retrieved from http://www.naeyc.org/files/yc/file/200303/Essentials.pdf
What?
· “Provide phonological awareness activities that involve rhyme, alliteration, and sound matching.” (Christle, Richgels & Roskos, 2003, p. 3)
· “Use direct instruction to teach letter names that have personal meaning to children (‘Look, Jennifer’s and Joey’s names both start with the same letter. What is the letter’s name? That’s right, they both start with j’).” (Christle, Richgels & Roskos, 2003, p. 3)
· “Engage children with materials that promote identification of the letters of the alphabet, including ABC books, magnetic letters, alphabet blocks and puzzles, and alphabet charts.” (Christle, Richgels & Roskos, 2003, p. 3)
· “Encourage children to attempt to read books and other types of print by providing a well-designed library center, repeated readings of favorite books, functional print linked to class activities, and play-related print.” (Christle, Richgels & Roskos, 2003, p. 3)
· “Encourage children to use emergent forms of writing, such as scribble writing, random letter strings, and invented spelling, by providing a writing center stocked with pens, pencils, markers, paper, and book-making materials; shared writing demonstrations in which the teacher writes down text dictated by children; functional writing opportunities that are connected to class activities (e.g., sign-up sheets for popular centers, library book check-out slips, Do not touch! signs); play-related writing materials (e.g., pencils and notepads for taking orders in a restaurant play center).” (Christle, Richgels & Roskos, 2003, p. 4)
· “Read Big Books and other enlarged texts to children, and point to the print as it is read. While introducing and reading the text, draw children’s attention to basic concepts of print such as the distinction between pictures and print; left-to-right, top-to-bottom sequence; book concepts (cover, title, page).” (Christle, Richgels & Roskos, 2003, p. 4)
· “Provide opportunities for children to investigate topics that are of interest to them. The objective is for children to use oral language, reading, and writing to learn about the world. Once a topic has been identified, children can listen to the teacher read topic-related information books and look at the books on their own; gather data using observation, experiments, interviews, and such; use emergent writing to record observations and information; and engage in dramatic play to consolidate and express what they have learned. As a result of such projects, children’s language and literacy skills are advanced, and they gain valuable background knowledge.” (Christle, Richgels & Roskos, 2003, p.4)
· "Reading aloud has maximum learning potential when children have opportunities to actively participate and respond. This requires teachers to use three types of scaffolding or support: (a) before-reading activities that arouse children’s interest and curiosity in the book about to be read; (b) during-reading prompts and questions that keep children actively engaged with the text being read; and (c) after-reading questions and activities that give children an opportunity to discuss and respond to the books that have been read.” (Christle, Richgels & Roskos, 2003, p. 6)
· “The general benefits of play for children’s literacy development are well documented, showing that a literacy-enriched play environment exposes children to value print experiences and lets them practice narrative skills.” (Christle, Richgels & Roskos, 2003, p. 6)
So what?
Helping children to read and write proves to be a daunting task when thinking about all that there is to teach in order for them to be successful. However, there are several strategies that the teacher can use to foster success. First, allow children to choose topics that are of interest to them, then let them gather data, use emergent writing to record observations and information, and engage in dramatic play to express what they have learned. When children are allowed to do these things, their language and literacy skills advance. Next, creating a writing center that is equipped with essential writing utensils and use modeling to teach students how to use the writing center and ways in which they can write. A library should also be included in the classroom that includes a wide variety of books that are familiar to them. Allow children to read books of their choice. Additional strategies that can be used include using magnetic letters, rhyme, alliteration, sound matching, reading Big Books and pointing to the words as they are read, making connections between letters and letter sounds, and reading aloud.
Now what?
I plan to create a classroom library that is filled with books categorized by genre so that students can choose topics of interest to them and find books of those topics in one place. I also plan to create a writing center with pens and pencils, paper, highlighters, etc. When my students are at the writing center, I want them to get the sense that they are authors so that they feel inspired. I will place posters around the writing center that also encourage creative writing. When teaching reading and writing, I plan to use strategies such as modeling, magnetic letters to make words, sound matching, word sorts, rhymes, read alouds, and make letter-sound connections.
Gerde, H.K., Bingham, G.E., & Wasik, B.A. (2012). Writing in Early Childhood Classrooms: Guidance for Best Practices. Early Childhood Education Journal, 40(6), 351-359.
What?
· “Children who used letters in their writing knew more letters and learned letters at a faster rate across the preschool year than children who did not use letters in their writing. This work suggests that the act of writing may support the development of other literacy skills, particularly knowledge.” (Bingham, Gerde & Wasik, 2012, p. 2)
· “Writing must be included in the classroom on a daily basis in multiple ways to encourage all children to participate.” (Bingham, Gerde & Wasik, 2012, p. 3)
· “Build about 15 minutes into the daily schedule devoted specifically to composing ideas into print. This writing may contain both pictures about what children have experienced as well as children’s attempts to capture their language through the use of scribbles, letter-like shapes, letters, or just writing their name. What matters is that they write to represent their ideas and thoughts.” (Bingham, Gerde & Wasik, 2012, p. 3)
· “It is more important for young children’s writing development for them to engage in writing activities than it is to focus on correct letter formation.” (Bingham, Gerde & Wasik, 2012, p. 3)
· “Teachers need to make the writing process public to children. For example, rather than pre-writing the morning message, write the morning message with children at circle time. A teacher can engage in self-talk to explain her/his thinking about writing as s/he writes the morning message.” (Bingham, Gerde & Wasik, 2012, p. 3)
· “Teachers should point out to children when new writing materials are available in the writing center and demonstrate to everyone during group time how to use the new materials." (Bingham, Gerde & Wasik, 2012, p. 4)
· “Some children might need hints about how to make a letter or spell a word. For these children, teachers could say the letters or sounds of words for children, or point to a word in the room that contains the letter.” (Bingham, Gerde & Wasik, 2012, p. 4)
· “Teachers should set aside a portion of the writing time for 2-3 children to read what they wrote that day. This helps children to celebrate the writing process and also helps them make the connection that writing is something that is read, reinforcing the connection between print and their writing.” (Bingham, Gerde & Wasik, 2012, p. 4)
· “Because invented spelling is a critical process for developing writing and phonological awareness, it is acceptable for children to not initially include every sound in a word or write using conventional spelling.” (Bingham, Gerde & Wasik, 2012, p. 5)
· “Providing meaningful purposes for children to write is motivating and helps writing make sense to children.” (Bingham, Gerde & Wasik, 2012, p. 5)
· “Encourage children to use various forms of technology in writing.” (Bingham, Gerde & Wasik, 2012, p. 7)
So what?
When students are learning how to write, it is important that they incorporate letters in their writing because this supports the development of other literacy skills. Spend about 15 minutes everyday giving students time to represent their ideas and thoughts through writing. Teachers should also give students purpose for writing, as well as time to share with the class what they have written. With emergent writers, the teacher should initially accept missing letters from words during invented spelling and should focus on writing activities more than letter formation.
Now what?
In the future I plan to allot time during each day for students to free write without being graded, so that they do not feel the pressures of using correct grammar and spelling correctly. I will also allow for 2-3 students to share everyday something that they have written. I think it is important to give students a purpose for writing so that they may understand what it is that they are writing, and when introducing new writing exercises I will model how to do them. I also know now that during emergent writing, I should not consider a word written wrong when students initially begin invented spelling.
Ray, K. W., & Glover, M. (2008). Already ready: nurturing writers in preschool and kindergarten. Portsmouth, NH: Heinemann.
What?
· “The presence of any form of written text in conjunction with illustrations causes them to read their texts so that they sound more like books. The presence of print seems to cue children to read differently than when they are reading only from their illustrations.” (Ray & Glover, 2008, p. 67)
· “Understanding about genre are essential to good writing because they give writers vision for writing.” (Ray & Glover, 2008, p. 70)
· “This first sense of genre children develop will likely be quite broad and connected to the kinds of topics they’re writing about: ‘This is a funny book about my sister’. (Ray & Glover, 2008, p. 72)
· “When making picture books, children learn to take action and make decisions to get them written. They learn that writing is a process; they can’t help but learn this because they cannot make books without going through some kind of process.” (Ray & Glover, 2008, p. 73)
So what?
When introducing books in the classroom, there should be an abundance of picture books and many genres. Students need to understand how to depict different genres. Initially, genre is broad and is often related to topics the students are writing about. Children learn that there is a writing process when they learn how to make picture books.
Now what?
I plan to use a variety of picture books in my classroom library so that students become exposed to connecting picture to text. This will also help them when learning to make books because they will understand that there is a writing process and that illustrations should be used to represent the text. Because of the importance of understanding book genre, I will group books by genre and create a genre study for each unit. In the study, I will have students focus on characteristics of the genre that let the reader know what genre the book is.
Kaye, P. (1995). Games for writing. New York, NY: Farrar, Straus and Giroux.
What?
· “The child who engages in scribble writing is experimenting with a major new idea. He is using graphic forms to express his thoughts. He is giving his words a physical reality on the page.” (Kaye, 1995, p. 2)
· “Before we can draw all the straight alphabet, we have to learn how to handle those little graphite sticks. Your child can learn in an entertaining way when you start a Three Color Road Race.” (Kaye, 1995, p. 7)
· “In the beginning, if children believe they are writing, they will go on doing it, and the more they go on, the more they will notice and learn.” (Kaye, 1995, p. 34)
· “What causes such discomfort with writing? In general, for first-, second-, and third-graders it’s fairly easy to place the blame. The anxiety arises from the terrors of spelling and handwriting and the ‘but I have nothing to write’ syndrome.” (Kaye, 1995, p. 35)
· “When adults fret about spelling, so do children. And when children worry about spelling, they often become nervous, inhibited writers.” (Kaye, 1995, p. 84)
So what?
The importance of modeling how to hold a writing utensil and how to write left to right, top to bottom is important. Young children may not grasp that concept at first, but eventually they will pick up on it. It is important not to tell children when they are writing incorrectly. Doing this will discourage students and the point is for them to write as much as they can so that they can start picking up on the correct way of writing. Beginning writers develop anxiety about how to spell and how their handwriting looks, however, as long as adults do not make a big deal out of it, students will not either.
Now what?
If I am a teacher that teaches writing to beginners, I will be sure to teach the correct way to hold a writing utensil, and as students practice their handwriting I will walk around to check how students are holding their utensils. In the future I will not place emphasis on ensuring students are writing correctly, but rather place the focus on what the lesson is being taught. I have noticed in my observation class a student who focuses on writing but has barely legible handwriting. Although handwriting was not the focus for the day, my mentor teacher told the student he needed to focus on his handwriting, and from that point forward he was too discouraged to write at all. That tells me that as a teacher, I must only place focus on what the lesson is of the day, rather than pointing out things that could cause terrors of spelling and handwriting.
Tompkins, G. E. (2012). Teaching writing: Balancing process and product. (6 ed., pp. 32-54). Boston, MA: Pearson.
What?
· “Researchers have found that strategic writers’ compositions are dramatically better than those of other students, and that instruction in writing strategies is particularly important for struggling students. “ (Tompkins, 2012, p. 34)
· “In ‘Explode the Moment’, writers choose a moment and expand it by adding vivid details to describe sights, sounds, thoughts, and feelings related to the moment.” (Tompkins, 2012, p. 36)
· “In the activity, ‘Snapshots’, students use descriptive language to create a written picture of a moment in time.” (Tompkins, 2012, p. 36)
· “It’s not enough for students to apply some writing strategies; successful writing requires active and deliberate self-regulation of writing strategies.” (Tompkins, 2012, p. 44)
· “Writers are regulating their use of writing strategies when they set goals, ask questions to guide their thinking, monitor their progress, evaluate whether their writing makes sense, and apply strategies to solve problems to create an effective composition and cope successfully with the demands of writing.” (Tompkins, 2012, p. 44)
· “Inexperienced writers lack knowledge about the writing process and have few problem-solving mechanisms that involve complex thinking processes available to use while they’re writing. Less capable writers seem reluctant to use unfamiliar strategies or those that require much effort.” (Tompkins, 2012, p. 45)
· “Teachers teach students about writing strategies in mini-lessons. According to Harris, Graham, Mason, and Friedlander, strategy lessons should exemplify these characteristics: explicit instruction, modeling, collaboration, and independent application.” (Tompkins, 2012, p. 48)
So what?
Strategic writers have dramatically better writing than students who do not utilize writing strategies. Many inexperienced writers do no have knowledge of the writing process or strategies to use, and those that do know strategies are often reluctant to use them because of inexperience. Teachers should use mini-lessons to introduce and practice writing strategies with students so that they can learn how to apply them on their own, however, teachers need to teach students about appropriate times for strategies to be used and what specific strategies are used for. When students know how to set goals for their writing and ask questions to guide their thinking, monitor their progress, and evaluate their writing, they are using strategies and are better able to cope with the demands of writing.
Now what?
Now that I know what a difference it makes to know writing strategies to use throughout the writing process, I will incorporate these in my classroom through modeling and think alouds. I will provide as much practice as possible so that students become comfortable with using strategies on their own.
Goldstein, J., & McCoach, D. B. (2011). The starting line: Developing a structure for teacher ratings of students' skills at kindergarten entry. (Master's thesis, University of Connecticut) Retrieved from http://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/EJ956366.pdf
What?
· “Denton Flannagan and McPhee (2009) found that upon Kindergarten entry, children born in 2001 demonstrated reading and mathematics knowledge and skills that varied by their race/ethnicity, family type, poverty status, primary home language, and their primary early care and education setting the year prior to Kindergarten.” (Goldstein & McCoach, 2011, p. 2)
· “White and Asian children had higher reading and mathematics assessment scores than did Black, Hispanic, or American Indian/Alaska Native children. Children in households with two parents, with incomes at or above the poverty threshold, or with English as a primary home language had higher reading and mathematics scores than their counterparts.” (Goldstein & McCoach, 2011, p. 2)
· “Children who had participated in regular early care and education arrangements the year prior to Kindergarten scored higher on the reading and mathematics assessment than children who had not.” (Goldstein & McCoach, 2011, p. 2)
· “In early literacy, 66% were proficient in recognizing their letters, 29% were proficient in understanding beginning sounds, and about 17% were proficient in understanding ending sounds.” (Goldstein & McCoach, 2011, p. 2)
So what?
According to studies, it appears that reading knowledge and skills vary by race/ethnicity, family type, poverty status, primary home language, and primary early care and education setting the year prior to Kindergarten. This means that the level of instruction should vary depending on those factors and that intervention may be needed to bring those students up to the levels that they should be at.
Now what?
Because I know that factors such as race/ethnicity, poverty status, family type, primary home language, and primary early care and education setting the year prior to Kindergarten influence the knowledge and skills for reading, I will work hard to assess all students several times at the beginning of the year to find out what they know. Based on the results, I will create mini-lessons and intervention activities to use to catch students up to where they need to be. It is important for me to ensure that all students are receiving the same instruction and level of attention, however I need to do all that is possible to ensure that students are not falling between the cracks.