Prominent Theorist Paper

Here is a link to my research paper on Ken Goodman. Enjoy!

https://docs.google.com/file/d/0B8PE3k6A1yk9UVItYmQ1b2tSRUE/edit

Module 3: Activity 2

What do you think of this? What do such activities and "cracking the code" contribute to proficient reading? What else might a reader need to become proficient? Record your thoughts in a blog posting. 

During my undergrad studies at Auburn University I used a technique very similar to the one we saw in the video during a summer reading program (the child did not have identified learning disabilities). The professor I was taking the class from had a very strong belief in this method and believed that we should teach our students to read this way. At the time, and still today, I see the benefits of "cracking the code" this way. Having the students break down words into their phoneme parts allows them to see patterns and get a feel for letter sounds. Also, by having them physically touch the letter tiles, makes everything more tangible and real for them. However, I am not confident that this strategy makes children fully proficient readers. What are they to do when they come to a word that does not follow previous letter patterns or is an exception to the rule? By telling them the correct word isn't that switching the teaching style back to whole language? As far as nonsense words, I think they are something unique that we should use as a way to gage the level of phonics comprehension our students have. They should not hold a lot of weight, but can certainly be used as a tool if the teacher chooses. 

Because of these reasons, I think it so important that we teach reading instruction from a variety of angles. Like our text states, children do not end up reading words letter for letter when they are proficient- so it is unrealistic to exclusively teach them in a way that does so. Of course phonics should be a focus, but we should include whole language and other aspects as well. In this same way, I believe children should read words in interesting and meaningful texts to become proficient readers. They need texts that they can comprehend, because that is the ultimate goal of reading. 

One thing the video did get right though, is encouraging and supporting students when they make reading successes! Teachers should always find ways to do this, praising even the smallest of successes with every student.

Weaver, C. (2002). Reading Process & Practice (3^rd Edition), Portsmouth, NH: Heinenmann. 

Module 3: Mock Memo from a Reading Specialist

Dear Teacher,
First of all, do not be discouraged by what you are seeing in Erica. This is something that actually happens quite often. Some students get so caught up in the number of words they are reading and lose sight of the true meaning of reading- comprehension! I think we need to discuss with Erica that it is okay to slow down. We need to let her know the importance of actually take the time to understand what she is reading. We should be sure to let her know that she can keep reading the same texts she is reading and still do this. However, she needs to take the focus away from speed and completion and turn it to comprehension and understanding. We need to let Erica know that while fluency is important, it is not everything. I believe that if you and I work together in a way that makes Erica feel confident about being a good reader, we will be able to get her going in the right direction.
As far as what you can do in the classroom to help other students, it might be a good idea to find some ways to strengthen comprehension while reading. There are a variety of ways to do this. One way that Weaver has found works well is the "Think Aloud" Strategy. In this strategy you would meet with a small group of students and model how a strong reader would read. Use an appropriate pace, and pause to think things out if you need to. Also, be sure to use the correct expression during the reading. Students will begin to see that you are not rushing through things, but that you are being mindful of what you are reading. It is the goal that they will see you are truly reading for meaning. Whether you use this strategy or one that you prefer, it is so crucial that you take the time to teach reading instruction in small groups. I believe students get so much more out of reading in this way. Lastly, remember to always stay positive with your students! Meet them where they are and celebrate even the smallest of successes.
You and your students should keep up the good work. Reading can be tricky sometimes, but the benefits of it for our students are immeasurable.
Let me know if you have any other questions or concerns. I would be happy to talk with you again.

Mary Kaish
Reading Specialist

Weaver, C. (2002). Reading Process & Practice (3^rd Edition), Portsmouth, NH: Heinenmann. 

Module 3: Reading Reflection

Do you agree with Marilyn Adams (1990, p. 108) who argued that rather than relying on context, "Skillful readers of English thoroughly process the individual letters of words in their texts?" Why or why not?

I do not agree with Marilyn Adam's statement. As we read, we do not look at each individual word that is written in the sentence. Moreover, as we read we do not look at each individual letter in the words. Like page 101 states, often our phonics rules do not apply to each and every word. English is language of exceptions. Therefore, if we looked at each individual letter in the words like Adams suggests we would be bogged down and overwhelmed. Taking time to do this would take away from the meaning of the text, which is why students are reading in the first place. 
In addition, as I learned from the activities on page 92, we do not need every letter in every word to determine what the word is. As we gain more experience with reading we begin to find  letter patterns in words. These patterns let us predetermine what a word is coming. One of my favorite things the book pointed out in Chapter 5 is on page 97, "Without ever having been told, we know what is possible in English, and what is not". 
Lastly, Marilyn Adams is wrong to note that we should not rely on context. I believe that context is one of the most important resources students have while reading. They can use what they know from it and what they gain from it to help them when they are struggling. They are able to take clues from it to determine what they are not sure of. 

Weaver, C. (2002). Reading Process & Practice. (3rd Ed.). Portsmouth, NH: Heinemann.

Module 2: Activities 1 & 2

Activity 1: Exercise #3c, page 58

creech- a quiet movement
droogs- a scary creature
glazzies- a structure made of ice
goloss- look at slowly
malenky- something described as being bad
messel- a small bump
millicents- unimportant things
poogly- goofy or awkward
razrez- eccentric or over-the-top
skorry- blurry
spatted- completed quickly
zoobies- ghost figures

When choosing meaning for these words, I found myself using one of two strategies. The first strategy was that I chose the meaning of the word based on the part of speech I believe that it is. I determined this by using the word endings to help me. The second strategy I used was basing these meanings off words that I already know and have similar letters, sounds, or chunks of the word. These were the two best ways I could think of to make sense out of these nonsensical words.

"A Clockwork Orange" Meanings

droogs- friends or people you hang out with
goloss- voice (was used when talking about a singer)
creech- scream or yell (used when a man was obviously afraid and fearful)
poogly- scared or afraid (used when the boys were harassing the teacher)
razrez- rip, tear or destroy (what the boys did to the teacher's belongings)
zoobies- teeth (described when the boys ripped them out of the man's mouth)

I was able to determine the meanings of these words by using clues in the context. However, many of these words took several tries for me to get before finally deciding on a meaning that I thought was best. I was only able to partly knew words that I already knew to help me since the text contained so many other words I was not familiar with in addition to these.

Activity 2: Exercise 7, page 85

- I did not try to read the words letter by letter.
- I instead tried to read the word by chunking them into syllables. I tried to use syllables that I already knew as best I could.
- I did try to read some of these words using all of the letters all at once. When I went back, I noticed that this often made me miss syllable chunks because I moved too quickly.
- I do not immediately know the meanings of any of these words. I think if I studied them for a bit I might be able to determine some meaning using root words. Pulling on prior knowledge might jog my memory as well. Also, seeing the words in context would be helpful, too. The words I would feel the most confident about would be- sycophant, submandibular and demesne.
- Yes, pronouncing the words helped me gain some insight into the meanings of these words. I was able to use my memory to recall where I had heard these words before and the context they were used in. I still would not be totally confident giving a full meaning for any of them.
- When I encounter unknown words in normal reading, I have several strategies that I turn to in order to help me. One of these is reading the word again carefully, using the context it is being used in. I also pull from my prior knowledge to see if I have read or heard it previously. Sometimes I even find myself skipping it and seeing what word would most make sense in its place and coming to a meaning that way. Lastly, in today's world of technology I am often able to highlight a word if I am reading it on a screen and my device will link me to the definition of the word. This is such a convenience in today's society.
- I think this experiment should show us that students are inevitably going to run into words that they are not familiar with. However, instead of letting it go unaddressed or telling them the meaning right away, we should give them some time to think and try to figure it out for themselves. However, they cannot do this unless they are equipped with the strategies to do so. Therefore, it is our jobs to instruct them on how to use their prior knowledge, pull from their schema, use the context (or pictures if they are available), or skip and come back. If they feel confident about their abilities to use these strategies, hopefully they will come to a meaning more often than not. This experiment also showed me that word meanings are much harder to come by when they are in isolation. Therefore, we should give students opportunities to read interesting texts where they will find words that challenge them and ask them to work on finding the meaning themselves.

Module 2: Instructional Challenge

Dialect Based Miscues 

I believe that these child's miscues are evidence of a proficient reader. I believe this because they are getting most of the words in the phrases correct. The only words that are missing are sight words or words that influence the grammar of the phrase. A child who reads with these miscues would most likely still gain meaning from the text.
If I were teaching a child who made these miscues I would wait until they were finished reading to start assisting them. Also, before I assisted them I would check to see what meaning they had gotten from the text. If they had gotten the meaning, I would simply tell them what errors they made and be sure to praise them for what they had gotten correct. If they had not gotten the meaning I would review the sight words or grammar cues with them so that they could try again and hopefully gain meaning on the next try. It is important to note too, that when assisting a child with reading it needs to be handled based on the situation and on the individual child. A strategy that works for one, might not work for all and vice versa.

Module 2: Reading Reflection

"The major folklore of reading instruction relates to the "theory" that reading is considered an exact process. In other words, the reader is expected to read everything exactly as printed on the page in order to understand the message of the author. In general the consuming public, legislatures, courts and too many educators hold to this theory. It is like the theory of the world being flat during the time of Columbus" -Robert Harper and Gary Kilarr

I agree with Harper and Kilarr's statement. Reading cannot be done exactly right every time and in every situation. And even if it was, students would never learn or benefit from reading. Part of learning how to read is learning from your mistakes- just as it is with so many other things in life.
A reader who might not be proficient in word recognition might still be able to gain meaning from text. One way this can be done is through personal context, mentioned on page 43, "We can and do use our entire personal context of knowledge and experience, our schema (including our entire social and cultural context, our background) to help us identify (and sometimes misidentify) words". Sometimes a student can simply rely on their prior knowledge to help them reach the meaning of a text, despite miscues. Readers can also gain meaning using language cues, "our intuitive knowledge of syntax, our grammatical schemas, enable us to use word endings, function words, and cues, the meaning relations among words and sentences in the text we are reading" as described on page 52. If a reader is familiar with these things they will be able to determine meaning even if they miss words occasionally. These are just two ways that prove that reading is not all about total accuracy. A student who can read every word perfectly might have trouble gaining meaning, making connections or reading for pleasure.  Lastly, the book tells us on page 63 that good readers, "are reading to construct meaning, rather than to identify words". Getting bogged down by all of the words in the text will make the reader lose sight of the meaning, and I believe that there is no point in reading unless you are gaining the meaning.
As teachers we have to accept that every child learns differently. They come from all walks of life and have all different experiences. As long as our first priority is for all children is the same- making them the best readers we can who enjoy doing it, too- the theories we teach them with should be second. Harper and Kilarr are right, there is no way that reading could only be taught using an exact process and doing so would only show you to be an ignorant educator.

References: 

Weaver, C. (2002). Reading Process & Practice (3rd ed.). Portsmouth, NH:  Heinemann.

Module 1: Activity 2

From pages 39-40 in text, question #5 a-g

a. Corandic is emurient grof with many fribs

b. Corandic granks from an olg which cargs like lange

c. Garkers excarp the tarances from the corite by glarcking the corite and starping it in franker-clarped storbs

d. The slorp finally frast a pragety, blickant crankle: coranda

e. Coranda is a cargurt, grinkling corandic and borigen

f. The corandic is nacerated from the borigen by means of voracity

g. The garkers finally thrap a glick, bracht, glupous grapant, corandic

I was only able to answer these questions using grammar clues and contexts that I was familiar with in the text. I also used basic words that I knew to help me answer the questions. Completing this assignment reminded me of my foreign language courses, which were particularly difficult for me.
Work like this is very frustrating, hard, tedious and painstaking. It also made no sense and called for strict attention to be paid. It suggests that questions like this probably evoke the same emotions in children when they are completing such tasks in standardized tests, workbooks, etc. When you are working so hard on answering questions but are bogged down by vocabulary and other challenges meaning is often lost. Students probably do not remember readings such as this as soon as they are done with what is being asked of them.

Module 1: Activity 1

Module 1: Instructional Challenge

Hocked gems financing him, our hero defied the scornful laughter. "Think of it as an egg, not a table," he said. Then three sturdy sisters sought proof, forging over vast calmness, and sometimes over turbulent peaks and valleys, until at last welcome winged creatures appeared, signifying monumental success.

1. What are the hocked gems?
I believe that hocked gems are things that the hero has stolen. I think this because I know that hocked means stolen. I also think that they are valuable because of my previous knowledge of gems and the fact that he is using them to finance him, or pay his way so to speak.

2. What should we think of as an egg and not a table?
I think that we should think of these stolen items and the process by which the hero got them as an egg. I think the writer has chosen to use the word egg because it is fragile and easily breakable. A table however, would be sturdy and hard to break. 

3. Who are the three sturdy sisters?
The sisters are people who are related in some way to the hero. They are either on his side or support him. They stay with him even when times are tough.

4. What kind of winged creatures appeared? 
I believe that the winged creatures are some sort of bird that has come down to the characters. I also believe the winged creatures could also be some sort of airplane or helicopter. 

When reading this passage with students it would be important to activate their schema of previous knowledge and related context knowledge. This would be important because it will give them some sense of where the story is taking place and the characters that are being described. It would also be important to note the use of vocabulary in the passage. Many of these words are strong synonyms for other words they might have heard before. 
If the children's schema and the text do not match you could maybe explain the passage to them  in words that they would understand or could relate to. Then, they could read the passage again and gain an understanding of what the meaning is. If you give them something they are familiar with to reference, they might have a better chance of reading the passage successfully.
Like everything else in reading, there should be a balance in what kinds of texts children read. Children should have the opportunity to read things that interest them and allow them to pull from their schema. But they should also have the opportunity to be challenged and read things they are unfamiliar with and have never pulled from before. Students need access to all types of texts in order to be successful, lifelong readers. 

Module 1: Reading Reflection

A skills approach to literacy breaks reading itself into very basic building blocks. It is rooted in the idea that in order for a child to learn how to read they must first learn letter sounds, then build on them to make letter sound relationships and then eventually put these sounds into words. Those who developed the concept used a “bottom up” approach. Phonemes and phonics are also both very important to the fundamentals of this approach. However, what some argue a skills approach lacks is the reading for meaning and understanding.

            The approach that does include reading for understanding and meaning is a comprehensive approach. This approach is rooted in using prior knowledge of words, experiences and contexts to help the reader learn to read. Much of the comprehensive approach relies on the different types of processing we use connecting to and relating to each other. In other words, readers constantly comprehend what they are reading. Skills approach supporters might argue that readers cannot even begin this process because they are not able to read the words in the text.

            I see valid points in both of these skills approaches. During my time as an undergrad I had a professor who strongly believed in the skills approach. While taking his class I was part of a tutoring program where I taught a young girl how to read by using phonemic awareness and phonics skills alone. While she was successful, I could tell that at times she longed to read more interesting texts that could stretch her imagination. It does seem however, that the comprehensive approach is more of the norm. I think as educators, it is our job to do the best we can to balance all of the different reading theories and use them to benefit our students, making them lifelong readers. 

Reading Theory

            As a child, reading was one of my least favorite subjects and was never something I chose to do for pleasure. However, now that I am an educator and have completed my Elementary Education degree, reading is one of my favorite subjects to teach and I often find myself reading for pleasure. It still perplexes me though, how this complete turn of events has taken place. But I now strive to make every student I come in contact with enjoy reading from the beginning.

            A majority of what we learn both in and out of the classroom stems from reading. Reading is something students must enjoy and want to do. Students must also value its importance. I believe that one of the best ways for both of these things to happen is for children to have books read out loud to them. While this is very crucial for young students who cannot yet read on their own, it is just as crucial for older students who do know how to read on their own. Reading stories out loud to children gives them a glimpse into all the wonderful things that happen because of reading. Students can begin to use their imagination, learn new vocabulary, make predictions and make connections with other things they have seen, heard or learned. I have found that almost every student I have worked with, both during my time as an undergrad and now as my time as a classroom teacher, enjoys being read out loud to. They look forward to this time that is shared with the teacher and class, usually finding ways to become engaged. While reading out loud should always be done in a classroom, teachers should encourage their students’ parents to read to them at home as well. By doing this, students will see the appreciation that adults have for reading and all that can be gained from doing it. Ultimately students will grow to appreciate reading and want to do it.

            While seeing the importance of reading and enjoying it is important, students cannot do this if they struggle with reading. Therefore I believe another key component to reading is finding ways for students to be successful. During my time at Auburn University I was able to take several classes that taught me strategies that would make students successful readers. These classes also gave me opportunity to use these strategies first hand in a classroom or one-on-one setting. I often found that if students were unsuccessful in reading they were often unmotivated to do so and easily lost interest. We cannot make students life long learners or readers if we do not give them the tools they need to succeed. During my student teaching experience I was able to see an excellent reading plan put into action. Part of this plan allowed for students to work at their own pace on completing reading activities. By doing this, students were able to identify which areas gave them the most trouble and allowed them to ask for help in a more specific way. This plan also allowed for students to read stories with the teacher in small groups based on ability level. In doing this, students were not intimidated by others who were farther ahead of them and could feel success within their group. I am certain that the students in this class entered the next grade more confident readers and hopefully found some enjoyment in it.

            I personally believe these are some of the best ways to make students readers for life. I often think of students as miniature adults. Just like us, they are probably not going to do something unless they see a good example first. Therefore they will not chose to read unless they see their teacher and parents making time for it and reading out loud to them. In addition, adults are not going to actively choose to do something that is hard for them and has too many limitations. Likewise, children are not going to choose to read if it is too hard and taught rigidly. But given opportunities to be successful and work at a pace appropriate to them they will do so. I am so thankful that I have been given opportunities to see the infinite benefits that reading can offer to all.