It's a New World

As technology is expanding each and every day, it is our job as teachers to keep up with these changes. The technological advances that happen in the world around us effect us directly as they bring in new literacies that our students have already begun to understand. As the world has grown to learn with the new advancements we as teachers must know that the definition surrounding being literate is directly affecting our practices. Students not only have to learn the content but also know how to understand it when branched out beyond the single text. The multimedia success has allowed for a better degree in learning but we must teach our students that learning just like we would the text. Using technology helped in making me become a teacher because my teacher in the fourth grade really used technology as a key aspect in our learning. As the chapter discussed the internet can be a big part in aiding in the inquiry method and that was what really expanded my learning then. The different modes of technology, such as, video, blogs, internet, sound, etc. reaches a new type of literacy students are faced with.

As a teacher, I want to put the use of literacies in the classroom by making it relevant. Now with many classroom having all of these literacies at the fingertips of the students it is our job to create a curriculum that allows them to have to greatest success in learning and thinking with these new assets. I thought it was interesting to read about the nonlinear characteristics of the new literacies. Although, I am part of the technological generation, it is important to instruct and teach students about the new literacies are different from the text and how they should be viewed and looked at to expand their learning and thinking. As a teacher we cannot just have technology in our classroom it has to be apart of the students learning environment that will help in their thinking and expand their knowledge about our content area subject. 

Getting Your Students to Write

Having your students write is a great way to understand their voice as well as their connection between the material and their learning. There are multiple ways to have students write such as writing to learn, public writing and writing for tests and assessments. In the reading, the book explored the more formal options of public writing and writing for tests and assessments. Through requiring your students to write for a grade it is vitally important for us as a teacher to prepare the students for this task.

In public writing, it is must the opposite of the different writing to learns tasks we have previously discussed. As a teacher, it is more of the intentional writing we require from students that will be taken for a grade as well as being more time consuming for the writer. The work the students should submit should be written so that it could go out into the world for show to the audience. In order for students to submit the best, us as teachers require from them, we must prepare them for their writing. Some ways the book has mentioned to do this was to allow for choice, writing during class and a response or feedback of their writing. I thought the most interesting thing the book pointed out though in regards to modeling the activity, was the use of trade books. As an aspiring math teacher, public writing may not be as apparent in my classroom, but in order for my students to understand how a mathematician would formally write about certain topics would be through the use of trade books. This chapter again just solidified by preconception on the use of trade books in my future classroom. 

When discussing using writing during tests it is vitally essential to make students aware of the expectations for the writing as well as prepare them on how to write for the test in order to allow for continual learning. As a teacher, if we are going to require writing for a test we must make sure that the question or prompt for the task is clearly written and asks what we expect the student to know. The prompt is the key in writing process for a test. If the prompt is poorly written it will lack a detailed or expected response from the students. Fun, this is a key aspect that is missing from a lot of writing tasks on tests and if this is brought into the writing a teacher will see better responses from students as well as continued learning during the writing process from student.s To have this teachers must prepare the students to take these tests as it has been seen in the other forms of writing. Preparation is key in order to get the students to write what is expected from them.

Connecting the Words and Concepts

One point we have really addressed this semester is the use of reading and writing within the classroom. By doing this it will increase the students vocabulary. However, as teachers we need to make sure the students are learning the appropriate academic language for our content area by providing connections and definitions among key words and concepts. This chapter focused on getting away from having students rely on rote memorization of the words and concepts. Students need to activate their prior knowledge on key concepts and words and provide connections among these.

I liked how this chapter provided ways on how to have students learn these two thing. Having the writing to learn strategies also mentioned here as a way to encourage students understanding of the words and concepts provided me with more context in which to use them. After our demonstrations, I could more easily see how they would be used in my math class but after reading this chapter I have been able to find key uses in which I can help students better their learning in my math class. Through the graphic organizer ideas as well as the varying writing to learn strategies it will help my students conceptualize different terms. Therefore, it will provide a good foundation into their reading of the the text books or other activities in which they may be used.

Throughout this chapter, I was challenged to incorporate the different strategies and techniques in my future practice as a teacher. Understanding mathematical concepts and terms are a vital success in achieving in the subject and through this chapter it gave me a foundation to help my students achieve. I have come to realize that the concepts and terms that need to be defined also need to have an active use in the classroom in order to avoid just rote memorization. Through varying applications it can really come through to students which is what is needed especially in my content area of math. 

Embracing Diversity

In Chapter 3, discussing the Culturally Responsive Teaching, I thought really recapped and added to the instruction I learned among my Education 212 course. In any classroom diversity should be embraced and used to enhance the classes learning as a whole. More classrooms are adapting the culturally responsive teaching method as it truly enhances the environment for all students but also better their learning. I thought the 7 characteristics of culturally responsive instruction highlights the necessary work it will take in order to benefit all students' learning. The one key idea though is to make this instruction relevant to all students. When teaching a class this instruction shouldn't just be placed in here and there it should truly be embedded into the curriculum all year long in order to ensure the best possible outcome as well as making the students feel comfortable to learn.

Making students feel welcome in their environment is just a part of the culturally responsive teaching. I thought the chapter's idea of the ABCs of cultural understanding was an interesting take in order to understand your students and where their culture lies. The ABCs of cultural understanding and communication allows for the relationship to be built between teacher and student and possibly family. By starting the communication at the beginning of the year for all students allows for continual growth throughout the year but also uses this knowledge to better the class. The one challenge that I saw for this was getting to know families although it will be difficult to do this for all students I believe it should be very important even for students who are culturally alike to me because all cultures have their differences that lie within them.

In understanding the importance diversity brings to the classroom, this chapter provided me with multiple to ways to go about understanding someones culture in order to embrace the diversity. Through literature, trade books and other resources they can really supplement a students learning. As mentioned within the chapter the knowing from the students is intertwined with the ways of interacting and learning for a culture. It is especially important to go about our instruction to truly encompass all the ways a student can bring in their diversity within the classroom. 

Teaching Your Students How to Study the Text

This chapter, over the studying of texts, provided me with new information on how students can approach the text in a manner instructed by the teacher. As it started out, studying texts is not just about rote memorization but rather it’s about how students should really learn and interact with the text. The first concept the chapter discussed was the text patterns. To fully comprehend the text, you must first discover the patterns purposefully done within the book. For a teacher to spend class time pointing out the features that exist within the books gives both the accelerated reader and the struggling reader a chance to adapt and understand what is provided within the text.

Once the pattern of the text is discovered, the next step is to see how the patterns relate to the information that is needed to come out of the text. One method that allows for students to visual interact with the text is through graphic organizers. Graphic organizers allow the students to understand the pattern of the text then apply it in organizing the information. Although there are different methods of graphic organizers, it should be through a scaffolding effect on how students go about this task. Towards the beginning of the year teachers should provide their students with the tools to go along with the text and illustrate to them why this form was used. Then the teacher should start taking away the process of providing them with the organizer by asking questions on what the best method that should be used or what type of pattern they see within the text. Finally, by the end of the year they should be organizing their ideas to reflect what is provided within the texts.

The one key fact through all of the different ideas for teaching students how to study the text was the idea of teaching them. In many classrooms today, studying the text is expected of students who don’t understand or know how to study it. Teachers need to be the support for their students by gradually giving them the reigns and expecting them to study the text. First, though, the teacher should provide them with the ideas and methods they need to go about studying the text which was discussed within this chapter. 

Reflection on Microthemes Presentation

After presenting my write to learn strategy, microthemes, I reflected on how I could have presented it in a different matter. I think providing the class with notecards was a good idea because it showed them how it can be used as a study tool. When allowing them to participate in how the microthemes is used in a class, I should have wrote out the question for them rather than just repeating it a few times and having it on the model. Providing both examples would have allowed for a better purpose in what they were doing. Although I provided a model that I had premade, I think it should have been supplemented with me providing a model during class. It would allow the students to see the right approach to this type of writing should be done. 

Engaging a Classroom

Through this week's reading, I came to explore the variety of ways to engage a classroom on the discussion of a reading assignment. I developed different methods to not only engage the students among the discussion but also ideas on how to tap into information they already know. The main point I seemed to understand from this chapter is that we,as teachers, need to prepare our students to think purposefully. The first way to go about doing this is to help them build their own self-efficacy. One way to aid in a students self-efficacy is to provide a response-centered classroom, as well as constant encouragement and support to assist in their reading. One quote I took from this section was, "brains may be born, but minds are made".  I feel as this shows why we need to encourage self-exploration among our students to engage them in their own thinking.

Through encouragement and activating a students thinking, you can complement it by delving into their prior knowledge. As these two ideas tend to go together, it takes practice to fully go about activating a students prior knowledge on a subject matter. The book provided examples such as creating story impressions, establishing problematic perspectives and using guided imagery to help in understanding their knowledge while sparking interest in the subject. These strategies provide a good way that will engage students in material to come but also see what they already know. The key thing that was discussed in this whole process is to activate the students thinking. By doing this, added with a little encouragement, a students prior knowledge to a subject will be revealed and then will aid in the learning process of the lesson.