Literacy Moves On Chapters 6-10

Chapter 6:

Beanie Babies:

I think it is interesting that children can understand the aim behind the producers of beanie babies action. I remember that when I was younger I was obsessed with beanie babies. I have no idea if I ever questioned why I liked them so much, or if the producer was in fact ripping me off. I am guessing that never crossed my mind. However, I think that having this conversation would lead children to think more deeply and think like adults. I think we take for granted how much children can understand. This reading proves otherwise and shows how smart children are. We can help them become critical thinkers in the classroom by talking about situations that relate to them (ex: beanie babies). This way they are knowledgeable on the subject and give some great insight.

 Chapter 7:

Neighborhoods:

I like the idea in this chapter that children learn by doing something. Children can put themselves in someone else’s shoes, or explain their own perspective of something they are thinking. This way they will think in a different way and imagining something new. When children know whom their audience is they will write to that audience. For example, when they are writing books for students from another country, they may include a lot of details or explain things that they wouldn’t to their peers in the classroom. It shows that they know their “place” in society. That they can think critically of who may be reading their story.

Chapter 8:

Curiosity Kits:

I like the idea of using these kits to get children to engage in literacy. I have learned that children are more apt. To participate in something if they are engaged in the activity. This kit provides this for them. Although some children still saw the kits as “work” and did not want to participate with them as much. It really did help some children. Even if this is only helping some students with literature, it is important to find different activities that work for everyone.

Chapter 9:

Heroes and Villains:

I have always been a person that has found more interest in fairy tales than real life events. I like being able to use my imagination and put myself in the unreal situation and compare what I would do.  In my own school experience I have read many books that I did not want to read. However, I have also read books that I really enjoyed. It seemed like when I read the books I really wanted to read I picked them out myself. My teacher would give us a variety to choose from and I would choose it myself. As a teacher I think it will be a great idea to understand the type of stories my children are interested in. I will do this by having them create stories and work of their own. I like the idea of using movies they are interested in to explore the evil characters and perhaps traits they have in common. This again is using material they find interesting.

Chapter 10:

Getting it Right For Children:

 I think that it is important for teachers to relate the curriculum of the classroom to their student’s interests in lives. Since each year will bring a new class of students, teachers may have to adapt their lesson plans annually. This will make more work for the teacher but provide a better learning experience for the students. Just as literacy has changed to include computers, technology, media, and toys, the teaching of the subject must change as well. 

Literacy Moves On ch1-5

Chapter 1:

Multimodal texts-

~Texts need to change to the way children are experiencing them in the twenty first century. I think that incorporating images in reading is important and can represent ideas. They can also serve as a resource for meaning. When I work with children who are just starting to read, they use pictures to figure out words. In chapter 1 of Janet Evens, Literacy Moves On, she talks about a boy who uses multimodal texts in his description of the rain forest. Since he is a young student, his writing is still in the primary stages. With the use of pictures he is able to give a great description of his knowledge. It is clear that if he were only able to write what he knew, he would not be able to give as much information. This is why I think in younger grades, it is important to understand and use multimodal reading/ writing. Since it is clear that reading texts does not just mean reading words, teachers need to incorporate innovative ways to read and express ideas.  

Chapter 2:

Moving Stories

I thought this chapter was very interesting and brought up some great points. However, when Evans mentions that the need for media education is urgent in early years, I disagree. I think that our technology in the new world is changing and therefore, we need to shift what we are teaching in schools. I also think that before we start teaching new technology, the primary school grades still need to teach basic skills. It is important to introduce new activities such as, moving stories, sometime throughout schooling. However, k-2 may be a little too early. I would be worried about keeping a child’s attention long enough to teach them to use the new technology, especially if they have never been introduced to it before. Creating a story and making a movie out of it seems like it would be a little tough for children who are just learning letters and sounds. I do think that we could slowly introduce this new technology every year and eventually build up to creating stories.

Chapter 3:

Children Reading and Interpreting Stories in Print, Film, and Computer Games

I love the fact that this chapter brings up the positive side of what children engage in. She states that, “readers were able to make sense of different kinds of writing in part because photography trained them in new ways of doing so (51).” I can relate to this in the way that I view writing. When I read a book that has an “olden day” feel to the picture, I predict that the style of writing will portray something written in the past. She goes on to state that the video games kids play actually serve as learning opportunities.  When playing these games people use immersion and engagement. They have to be immersed inside the world of the game to understand it and can also be engaged with other activities such as talking about strategies.

Chapter 4:

The Dagger of Doom and the Mighty Handbag:

This chapter shows me how important it is for children to explore their writing identity in more ways than just paper pencil writing. With online or digital texts children explore the way people interact in the real world. For example, in a professional e-mail children will want to present a “coded persona” of themselves. I think it is essential that children practice this so they are prepared to do so later in life. However, children can participate in a chat room can find another way of identifying themselves in a less formal manner. Doing this will engage them in another type of writing giving them more experience with literacy.  Evans brings up offers a dilemma when she states that, “those who are less fortunate will certainly need access to the new practices involved if they are to participate fully in society (64)” This explores the idea that not everyone has access to innovative technology. School is one place where they can access and have experience using these different tools. Since society is changing to rely more on new technology, it is essential that children know how to use it. I had a class where we used everyday technology in relation to our daily assignments. For example, we used our cell phones to poll the class. We would send a text with our answer to the question. I loved using technology, and it helped me to be more engaged with the material. These points demonstrate a variety of situations where using technology can be beneficial. I will constantly be thinking of way to use technology within my classroom that will benefit children in the real world.

Chapter 5:

Creating Opportunities for Critical Literacy With Young Children

I think the story Evans presents in this chapter is very interesting. I am so impressed that a seven year old was able to make a business deal like that. He was obviously using some knowledge that he had learned in school towards a topic he was interested in. This demonstrates how important it is to use what children are interested in within the curriculum. I think this can be done by teaching basic concepts and then applying them to engaging activities. Evans also points how that you can use the material that children are interested in and pose critical literacy questions. It seems that by using items they are already interested and exposed to they will be more incline to think about it and better able to relate. 

MGRP

I think this project is a really good opportunity to learn about a certain topic one finds interesting. I found the research part of this project to be similar to a regular research paper that I was assigned in high school. However, since i was able to choose the topic, I was more involved in the reading of my topic. Since i love to be creative, my favorite part of this project was the genres. I was able to use these genres to put myself in  another persons shoes. Overall, i really enjoyed this project and I am excited to see what everyone else has created.

MGRP Ch: 5 & 7

Ch: 5 What A Character:

            I think it is a good idea to read aloud experts from good writers. In doing this, students will get ideas from the writers and apply them in their own writing. The short excerpt from, Mama Makes Up Her Mind, catches my attention and helps me see how to successfully write about a character. In order for the teacher to teach this skill, they must know how to do it on their own. I will make sure to read the books suggested to get more of an idea on how to show the character through my writing. Once I read different writings that create characters, I will ask students to describe how the author revealed their personalities. I will be looking for answers that involve writing about characters actions and dialog.

            I love the activities that are given throughout the chapter. I think creating a class character would really get students engaged.  I think this activity would better with older students, and allow them to put in their own ideas. This way when they are creating the story about the character they will be using the ideas that interested them. I think it will also be entertaining to hear different stories about the same character and point out similarities and differences.

            The quick write and revise can be something that is done with partners in any type of character writing. Students could do quick write then swap and comment on what they would like to know more of, with each others characters.

Ch: 7 Explore The Arts:

 I love the idea of having children incorporate the arts into their MGRP. By doing this, it incorporated learning from the right side of the brain. Since children will be using the left side to create their papers, the right side will come as they partake in creativity.  Since some children are more right brain users, this gives them a time to shine.

            I think it will be important to keep copies of MGRP from years past. I love looking at past examples because it helps me to think of my own. Since I am going to encourage my students to be artistic, I will take pictures of the items they create. Also, I will videotape their presentations to have on file and show to the class. 

Van Sluys-Setting up Invitations:

In Van Sluys chapter, Setting up Invitations, I read about using invitations in the classroom. I think this project would allow children to have fun with learning and explore questions they are interested in. Although time may be an issue with this assignment, linking it to other subjects (social studies, science) would allow an overlap of learning. However, in doing this, would it be beneficial for the teacher to give a list of questions for students to choose from? Would choosing the questions take away from the children exploring topics that interest them?
It seems like the teacher may have to spend a lot of time bringing in resources for the children to use. Would there be a way for children to look for their own resources? Perhaps if the teacher created a broad list of topics (ex:animals) and allowed students to base their question off of the list. This way the teacher could find resources on the same topic and not have to look for each topic.
Formulating the groups for the invitation could be tricky. I wonder how many students should be in each invitation group. How should the groups be determined? If they are in groups will they be able to work on the project outside of class.
Van Sluys mentions how this project should be fun and not labeled as an assignment that you want to get over with. I am wondering how we make the project appealing to all students in the classroom. If they are exploring questions that they chose on their own without any regulations, perhaps the topics will be something appealing to them.
Overall, i think this project could be very beneficial in the classroom. It can be tied into different subjects, literature, writing, reflection, which are all important learning elements.

MGRP-Ch 4: Poetic Surprises

In chapter 4 of Allen’s, The Muiltigenre research paper, she brings up the topic of poetry. I can relate to what she says about not feeling confident with our own writing. It is only when we are free of self-conscious that people can freely write. I like the idea of using poetry in the classroom to share with one another and talk about certain aspect of writing we feel weak in.

I agree with her when she writes, “poetry and song evoke emotions”. Sometimes when I hear a certain song my mood totally changes, and it’s the same with certain works of poetry. In the classroom I will bring this topic up and show children how writing comes from the heart. Including poetry in a MGRP can bring out certain emotions one wishes to evoke.

I like the idea of having children write down everything they are thinking and feeling without worrying about writing mechanics. They can then use what they wrote to construct poetry. Sometimes figuring out how to start a poem and what to write about is the hardest part. With this activity they are not thinking about writing a poem and can just cross out whatever they do not want to add in. 

The Multigenre Research Paper ch: 1,2,3,6 and Powell, Davidson Article

Ch: 1 its contagious

I agree that research papers are tedious and my least favorite kind of paper. With multi-genre research papers are more entertaining and use a variety of skills. I think our students will benefit from this and see the overall assignment as something that can be enjoyed. They will also be practicing a variety of skills that will be important to function in society and when they get into the working world. Practicing these skills now will only help them to benefit. I definitely want to use this in my language arts teaching.

I really like how she showed the fifth grades student multigenre research paper. It helped me to see what an elementary paper may be like. Since I have only seen examples from college students in class I wasn’t sure how a younger Childs might appear.

I am questioning weather children will have trouble finding professional writings to use as references. Since they are choosing their own topics this might be hard. Not every child has parents that will assist them and take them to the library. How do I deal with this problem?

I also question how long to spend working on the paper? Should this go on throughout the whole year. It seems like it would take a big chuck of time to see everyone’s work. Would it be beneficial to continue it throughout the whole year?

Ch 2 Nuts & Bolts-Getting started on a Multigenre Project

This chapter seems to answer some of my questions I had from the previous one. I really like the idea of giving children a big chuck of time to choose their topic. This way they can do a little research and talk to others about their topic. The resource notebook is something I want to implement into my classroom. This will ensure everything is in one place and allows me the opportunity to look at it.

I hope that I am able to be flexible with the multigenre teaching each year as the needs of the students change.

I think the response journals are a great idea not only for the research papers but to use in class all of the time. This allows the teacher to be available to all of their students. It also reminds students of their accomplishments.

Ch:3 Care Enough To Really Search-Finding Ways into a Topic

I question if we should give our students some sort of guidance when they select their topic. In our class it related to literacy, should we do the same with our own students?

I like the idea of having students fill out a questionnaire. I think this will help guide them to something they are really interested in. I also think it is important to take them outside their school for resources. Letting them see a university could be very beneficial and inspire them to go one day.

I think a good way for note taking is for students to use different color highlighters. This way they can highlight information that applies to each subject.

Ch: 6 The Voice Of Nonfiction-valuing real, Everyday Writing:

I like how she writes the paper each year along with her students. I think this will allow teachers to remember what parts may be tricky for students to understand and allow them to connect with them.

I think the list of possible genres will really help children be creative. The can use the ideas past students have used and build off of them.

I think that by adding non-fiction students will be able to think about their subject on a different level. They will be able to relate to the subject on a personal aspect and have a better understanding.

All of the genres listed within the chapter seem like they would be really fun for create. I think students will really like this part of the project. Children will have a chance to use their strengths. For example, if a child is artistic they can use this to create some sort of picture. Similarly, if they are into drama they can create a short play. There are so many options to choose from allowing children to explore different options.

Article: The Donut House: Real World Literacy in an Urban Kindergarten Classroom

The authors Rebecca Powell and Nancy Davidson talk about incorporating literacy events in student’s lives. They point out that the texts in school are not likely to be read outside school for fun. This could be one reason that children don’t pay attention to the teaching. If they had more engaging material they may be more apt to pay attention.

I like the idea of implementing literacy activities into something that is important to the students. For example, writing letters. Brochures, and proposals on important topic.

I really like how the teacher used real-life experiences in the children’s life. She also put it with a creative tasks and acting aspects by pretending to be storeowners, neighbors, etc. The writing aspect of the project was important to the overall goal of the creation. This included writing out the special recipe for the donut house, or filling out the permit for the building. The teacher can them implement mini lessons that have to do with the project such as compound words (strawberry).

I really like this literacy instruction that is situated in students lives. I want to use this in my classroom with my students. I think there will be many benefits from this that range from students being more engaged to including people outside the classroom, within the community.