entry #6--Learning v. Acquisition

Determine if the activity is L or A
L for learning/word recognition or A for acquisition/ sociopsycholinguistic view.
The students:
_L_ look up words in the dictionary to write definitions. Words are pretaught students look up words and define them.  (Freeman and Freeman, p. 28).

_A_ make a Venn diagram to compare two stories. “The sociopsycholinguistic view, on the other hand, emphasizes that reading is a process of constructing meaning,” (24).
_L_ practice sounding out words. “ Phonics is the primary tool for word identification."  (p. 27)

_L_ read in a round-robin fashion. “Another classroom practice consistent with a word recognition view is to have students read aloud on a regular basis and help students with difficult words.” (p. 28)

_L_ correct peers when they make mistakes during reading. Teacher and peers help sound out words and help each other during round-robin reading.

_A_ identify words on a big book page that starts with the same sound. Students begin to make connections between the oral reading and the print (p.25).

_L/A_ group cards with classmates' names by a criterion on such as the first or last letter. Names make for good reading. The names can help with letters and letter associations.

_L_ write rhyming poetry and then discuss the different spellings for the same sound. “use phonics rules to sound out words” and then discuss different spellings for the same sound (Freeman & Freeman, 2004, p.25).

_L_ ask the teacher how to spell any words they don't know. “In many traditional classes, the form of writing becomes much more important then the content. Students who focus on form may not even try to use new words for fear of misspelling them,” (p. 31).

_A_ read a language experience story they have created with the teacher. Teachers help students and give them strategies to communicate, (p. 34).

_A_ work in pairs to arrange words from a familiar chant into sentences. Teachers use engaging text and stories that student are familiar with.

_L_ divide words into syllables. Students “learn to break words into parts to identify them.” (p.25)

_L_ on a worksheet, draw a line from each word in the picture that starts with the same sound. This is a way to practice language and different skills.

_A_ make alphabet books on different topics. “Students who listen and read and build up a storage of language can then later use the language to accomplish different things” (Freeman & Freeman, 2004, p.34).

The teacher:

_L_ pre-teaches vocabulary. “In word recognition class, teacher often preteach words that they thing students may not be able to figure out” (p.28).

_A_ does a shared reading with a big book. “Another classroom practice consistent with a word recognition view is to have students read aloud” (p.28).

_L_ makes sure that students read only books that fit their level. Students who read text at their own level have a better chance for comprehension.

_L_ has students segment words into phonemes. Segmenting words helps students become better readers.

_L_ writes words the students dictate for a story and has students help with the spelling of difficult words. It is important for the students to use their own thoughts and not put as much emphasis on the spelling.

_L/A_ asks students to look around the room and asks students to find words starting with a certain letter. A way to test students knowledge, and the student is using knowledge for different purposes.

_L_ uses decodable texts. Helps with word recognition.

_A_ sets aside time for SSR (sustained silent reading) each day. Sociopsycholinguistic’s view of reading is that it should be done silently. When students become stuck, they are to apply the scaffolding strategies the teacher provided (Freeman & Freeman, 2004, p.28). 

_L_ teaches Latin and Greek roots. “Students can identity longer words by breaking them down into components or parts. For example, they can divide the words into its prefix, root, and suffix,” (p.27).

_A_ has students meet in literature circles. By meeting the teacher can instruct, differentiate, and scaffold for each student.

_L_ conducts phonics drills. Phonics helps students read and drills are good for practicing skills.

_A_ chooses predictable texts. Predictable text helps students become better readers and provides confidence.

_A_ teaches students different comprehension strategies. Teaching strategies will help the students become independent readers.

_L_ uses a variety of worksheets to teach different skills. Worksheets are like drills they reinforce the skills learned.

Entry#5--Review of 2 children's books and how they can affect comprehension

The two books I chose were The Giving Tree by Shel Silverstein and The Emperor's New Clothes by Marcus Sedgwick and Alison Jay.

The Giving Tree is a book about a relationship between a young boy and a tree. The tree provides the boy with everything he wants.
1. What is a giving tree?
2. How can a tree take care of a boy?
3. How can a tree give?
4. How can a tree be happy?
It is important to explain the vocabulary to the students. Words like; selfless, needs and wants, relationship. The students need to understand that the book is teaching us a lesson about life and goes beyond the pictures on the page.

The Emperor's New Clothes is a book about a king that wants to be better than his subjects and wants to have the best clothes for the up coming parade.
1. What is an Emperor?
2. How can clothes be invisible?
3. Why is a Lion the leader of the animals?
4. Why didn't the lion know that he did not have clothes on?
Preteach vocabulary for understanding. It might be interesting to bring in the original story to compare it to this version. Talk about different types of leaders in the world and maybe the students might have their own knowledge of a leader of their country. Talk about the king of the jungle to help explain why the lion might be in charge.

Entry #4--unfamiliar text

As I sat to read an article off the internet written in German, I had no idea where to start. I began by looking for similarities to my language. I looked for words that had similar spelling patterns or words that looked like English words. I only knew two words and they were iPhone and iPod. I found a translation page through google and I looked up a few words to figure out what they thought of the iPhone and iPod. The words I initially looked up were words like sleek and light. These words made me think that the Germans liked the product. I still however could not make much more sense of the article. I found my mind wandering and it was very hard to stay focused on my task. Since I had become very frustrated I went to complete translation and read the article. All of my frustration was immediately alleviated. I then did a side by side of the German version and translated version and tried to make sense of the article. After a while I found similarities in the text which made the article a little less confusing. I can't imagine how our ESL students must feel if they have no connection with our language. I was praying for a picture to guide me through this article. So I now know that it is important to provide other things besides the text if we are expecting students to learn. The more realia the better. Using scaffolding and differentiation is key for ESL students, but can also help the other students within the classroom.