Incorporating Literacy into an Elementary Classroom

Literacy is important in every content area. The ability to be able to proficiently read and write is something that all students should be able to do. Yet, some teachers may feel like they do not need to teach literacy skills in classes other than reading and English. This misconception needs to be changed because students need as much practice as they can. Adding reading and writing opportunities to other content areas will not only strengthen the students literacy skills, but will it will strengthen the content area.
 

image courtesy of http://kimjaxon.com/engl332/?p=2609

 
This year will be my first year teaching 5th grade social studies, reading, and English. As an English and reading teacher, I will be doing a variety of activities that promote literacy skills - essays, read alongs, non-fiction article readings, etc. Another aspect of English that helps form literacy skills is learning parts of speech. Students must understand the parts of speech in order to form a complete thought. So, instead of just lecturing and assigning practice work, I will also try to incorporate books about the different parts of speech. Click here to see a collection of books that could be used. Students love picture books, and this is a great way to reinforce literacy skills. I also plan on using books to reinforce figurative language skills. Students always see examples on assignments and worksheets, but they never see figurative language in an actual text.
 
 Social studies is new subject for me this year. Social studies is a content area that allows for teachers to easily incorporate literacy skills. I will be teaching a unit on Native Americans. I plan on reading a variety of informative articles as well as picture books.  Click here to see a collection of books that could be used.  I will also be using a variety of writing prompts, and I am thinking I might have students write a story acting as a historical figure we cover. In addition, students will be reading and creating a wiki about one the fifty states. One of the required parts of the wiki is a persuasive paragraph convincing me to visit their state. This not only allows students to practice writing non-fiction but also writing using persuasion.  I am still planning and getting adjusted with my new material, so if you have any new ideas, please let me know!
 

Using Quizlet in the classroom

With all of the emerging technology tools available to teachers these days, sometimes it is hard to decide what tool would best fit your classroom needs. A tool that I would like to use more in my classroom this year is Quizlet. Why? Let's face it.... kids lack study skills. Plain and simple.  Quizlet is a tool that is accessible on any device that allows students to study flashcards. Teachers can create an account for free to create their own flashcards.  Even better, teachers can search a database to find the specific topic or terms they are in need of and just provide students with the link. If students are given a chance to learn important keywords, vocabulary skills, or terms, they will better understand the text. So why not allow them to practice their study skills, so they can become better readers?



Now, how can I use Quizlet in a 5th grade classroom? As a social studies teacher, it is important for students to know a variety of important figures, events, and dates. I can simply create flashcards for each topic as a study tool for my students. My students can study for their assessment on their phones, iPads, or computers from any place as long as they have the link.  As an English language arts teacher, Quizlet can be used to practice vocabulary words before or after text, for a quiz, or just general practice.

How does this tool help a diverse set of learners? Quizlet is not just flashcards; it offers more ways to study than just that. Quizlet will pronounce the word and definition for students. It allows students to practice their content by playing two different games. The tool has a practice test for students to take in order to see what they need to study. Also, it even has a page where it will read the definition to the students, and they have to type in the correct word. Quizlet offers a variety of ways to study.

Scatter game

 

Teachers can assess the effectiveness of this tool by simply trying it in their classrooms. Give a test without letting students study on Quizlet beforehand, and give a test after students have studied using Quizlet. Compare the results of the tests, and I'm sure you will see that test scores are better after allowing students to study on Quizlet. Or, just let you students study for your test in class. You will be amazed at how engaged they are with Quizlet and the variety of study options it offers. 

If you do not give students the opportunity to practice their study skills, they will never improve. If they cannot recognize or understand a word, they will not understand the text. Show them a tool they can use to become better readers because they know they have a place they can practice vocabulary. Quizlet is a tool that will help them learn how to study whether it is with flashcards or practice tests. It is definitely a tool I cannot wait to use next year, and I hope you give it a try in your own classroom.   

EDET573 - Evaluating Wikis Assignment

A wiki is an emerging tool in the world of education. Click here to find out what a wiki is. I will be evaluating and deciding the effectiveness of two wikis that are being used in English language arts classrooms. My main goal is to decide whether or not the wikis are enhancing literacy skills.

Wiki 1 - http://hobbitalk.wikispaces.com/%2A%2AAssignments%2A%2A 
This is a classroom wiki that provides activities such as group discussions and podcasts for the The Hobbit.

Wiki 2 - http://thewright3.wikispaces.com/Summary+4
This is a classroom wiki that provides an research/summary activity for The Wright Three.

Evaluation components adapted from ReadWriteThink Evaluation Rubic and Vicki Davis, author of CoolCatTeacher blog.
____________________________

1. Collaborative Effort -

Wiki 1 provides a collaborative opportunity for students to work together to create podcasts for various chapters of the book. The students must write scripts, record, and upload their podcasts to the wiki. Throughout the wiki, students are also asked to the add information to various pages and participate in discussions regarding the text.

Wiki 2 assigns students a page on the wiki. The student is responsible for uploading information specific to that page. There are no teacher directed or assigned discussions for students to participate in. The student do use the wiki as a review tool for a test over the assigned novel.

2. Attractiveness-

Wiki 1 does not include very many graphics. The homework page is very cluttered.

Wiki 2  does a better job at providing images. The students included images on the pages they created.

3. Organization -

Wiki 1 is organized for the most part with a table of contents, but the assignments page is very hard to follow.

Wiki 2 is very organized and provides the viewer with a table of contents. Each page has a heading and is organized into parts, and the underlines are very helpful between linked pages.

4. Hyperlinks -

Wiki 1 has a page devoted to finding more information about the book as well as interactive websites.

Wiki 2 requires students cite any outside information they used under "External Links". The link are easily accessible with each page.

_______________________________

Overall, I found both wikis to be very beneficial to the classroom.  Wiki 1 provided more activities to show comprehension and understanding of the entire book. Wiki 2 does not do this because it only has students show understanding of a particular subject. Also, I felt that Wiki 2 was not as collaborative as Wiki 1.  This could be because Wiki 1 is for older students while Wiki 2 is for younger students. I do think that students would enjoy participating in both wikis.

Important reminders in the world of educational technology

 

I'm back! I hate saying that I am just blogging for my classes, but it's true. One of my goals for this school year is to blog on a regular basis for my own personal reflection. So until school starts, I will be blogging for my EDET-Technology to Enhance Literacy class.

I am excited to start a literacy class since I am a 5th grade reading and English teacher. Technology is the future of education, so I want to learn everything I possibly can that will help my students become better readers and writers. I hope to learn about ways to incorporate literacy activities into my classroom using technology. I know that I will have younger students, so I am hoping to find meaningful and engaging activities to promote reading and writing skills for them. I want to learn more ways to use inquiry based learning in a classroom.

For the first week of class, I read several resources that introduced me to the idea of using technology to enhance literacy.  I read portions of Technology to teach literacy: a resource for k-8 teachers and Literacy 2.0: Reading and writing in 21st century classrooms.  In addition, I read several articles about the importance of blogging to enhance reading and writing skills: Student and Teacher Blogging that Succeeds, Learning About Blogs FOR Your Students, and 12 Reasons to Blog with your Students. After reading these resources, I was reminded of several very important thoughts that all 21st educators should remember:

1. In education, innovations are always negatively perceived at first by some. Just because some do not perceive it as a good thing does not mean that we should not be using it. According to the Literacy 2.0: Reading and writing in 21st century classrooms, "... we do know that our profession has a long tradition of viewing any innovation as a negative - at one time, even chalkboards were thought to be a frivolous expense" (2010, p. 7).  Some educators do not like the idea of something new or something different, but don't give up. Lead by example and show other educators how great the new technology is! Educators will soon see the benefits of using innovations in the classroom.

2.  We shouldn't use blogs because we want to use technology in the classroom. We should blogs because we want to create better readers and writers.  Technology is just the tool to help students be successful. I believe that some educators just get caught up with using as much technology as possible in the classroom because they feel like it will automatically benefit students, but they are wrong. Use technology because it is has a function and purpose; don't just use technology because you can. Therefore, we should use blogs because we want to create better readers and writers. Blogging is an effective way to create better readers and writers because students are engaged. Blogging allows for questioning, reflecting, discussing, and collaborating with anyone around the world. That is not possible with just pen and paper. Students can easily read exemplary writing, so they are improving their reading skills. To become better readers, students must write. To become better writers, students must read. Blogging is a highly motivating way to get students reading and writing. Want to read more about the importance of blogging? Check out Blogging in the classroom: why your students should write. 

 

Image from  http://www.inodigi.com/en/blogs/index.html

Collaborative Tool: Scoop.it

Scoop.it is an online community that allows users to create a topic board and add websites that go along with the topic. When you scoop (or add) a website to your topic board, it shows a picture of the document along with a brief summary.  It reminds me a lot of Pinterest. Scoop.it is a free tool, but you can only have two topic boards. If you want more, you have to pay for it. Scoop.it will download an icon called "Bookmarklet" to the toolbar that allows you to easily add the web document to your board with the click of a button. It also has a suggested search option that will pull up articles that may pertain to your topic. It has an app for the iPhone, iPad, and Android devices. With the free version, you can connect your Scoop.it account to two other social networking accounts such as Twitter, Facebook, or LinkedIn. Scoop.it allows you to follow other boards that interest you. All you have to do is click on the follow button, and the posts from that board will show up on your dashboard page when you log in. So, that means that users can also follow your boards if they find them useful. 

Watch the video below for a brief tutorial on using Scoop.it. 

I am a very visual person, so I like how Scoop.it shows the picture of the article on the topic board. I also like how you can move your content around in to a different order on your topic board. It is very user-friendly, and you do not have to have a link or account to view the board. 

Scoop.it is a great collaborative tool that students can use in the classroom. For research projects, teachers could create a Scoop.it with websites that students should use to find information. Or, students could create their own Scoop.it board to help them keep track of useful websites for their research. 

For more ideas about using Scoop.it in the classroom visit: http://www.teachthought.com/technology/why-scoopit-is-becoming-an-indispensable-learning-tool/

In addition, Scoop.it can be used as a personal learning network for educators. Educators can bookmark certain articles, ideas, or information that can be used in the classroom. Educators can follow other topic boards and bookmark anything they find useful. 

I created two boards: Diverse Learners and Personal Learning Networks. The links are posted below. Please check them out! 

http://www.scoop.it/t/diverse-learners

http://www.scoop.it/t/professional-learning-networks-by-ashley-rapp

Social Networking for Educators

Social networks are a great way to find valuable resources for your classroom, your teaching, and yourself. Below are several social networks that can be used as personal learning networks (PLNs) for educators.

Image courtesy of http://www.educatorstechnology.com/2012/06/simple-comprehensive-guide-on-use-of.html

 

Facebook - I joined Facebook in 2006, and I have only used it for personal reasons. I do not really use Facebook a lot either. I never thought of it as a PLN until I really looked into the possibilities it holds for professional development. I am currently working on finding and following educational resources, educators, and products.

Pinterest - Let me just start by saying my husband hates when I am on Pinterest because I will sit for hours just looking through pins! I love it, and I spend a lot of time pinning ideas for home décor, babies, clothing, and recipes. I also spend a lot of time pinning educational resources. I got all of my bulletin board ideas from Pinterest last year, and I used it to find resources for The Outsiders and The Giver. I also use it get ideas for behavior management, classroom discipline, and the needs of my students. I have yet to create my own pins for ideas that I find online, but I know that I need to start doing it because I am not playing my part in this PLN. Click here for a board for gifted and talented students. Click here for a board for ESL activities.

 

edWeb - edWeb is an online learning community for educators. This is might first week using edWeb. Once you have joined, you can join a variety of communities that are all centered around education. I joined several communities around technology:  Tech Tools for the Classroom: Easy Ideas to Engage Students; Technology in Schools: What, Why and How; and Blended Learning: Extending Classes Online. There are a variety of communities about the needs of our diverse student population. For example, you can join Autism and Visual Learning, Deaf and Hard of Hearing, or Gifted and Talented Education.  The communities offer a variety of resources such as blogs, wikis, discussion boards, handouts, and webinars. You can also create your own community to share with others. This is a great way to communicate with educators from all over the world.

 

Nings - Nings are very similar to edWeb in my eyes because it is the same concept. You can sign up for a variety of different Nings. A Ning is a community that is centered around an educational topic. On the page, you can find a variety of different resources for that topic such as discussion boards, webinars, blogs, and videos. Some Nings worth checking out are  Classroom 2.0 and EFL Classroom 2.0 (for ELL students).

My First Twitter Chat

I was a little apprehensive about participating in a Twitter Chat. I was nervous because I wasn't sure if I would be helpful or not. So, for a couple of days I just viewed (or shall I say stalked) a couple of Twitter Chats but did not participate. Wow! I was overwhelmed after viewing the #edtechchat. So many different people. So many different posts. I couldn't keep up, and my activity page was changing like crazy! Now, don't get me wrong, there were so many great ideas being shared, but I was just didn't know where to start. 

So, I decided I would view the #elachat on Tuesday evening. Well, to my surprise, it was a smaller chat, and I felt like I could share helpful information and ideas. The topic was poetry in honor of April, which is National Poetry month. People were sharing their favorite poems, and we even compiled a Google Doc of the list. We shared ideas about how to get students excited for poetry, and we shared our favorite activities. Time flew by and before I knew it, the chat was over. Click here to visit the archive for #elachat. 

One activity that I was unaware of was something called "blackout poetry". To complete the activity, students must first create their poem after reading the information. Then, students blackout the page of a book, magazine, or article only leaving a few lines to create a poem. My students would love this activity! Below you will find an example poem, and here is a link providing more information about the activity: http://classroom.synonym.com/blackout-poems-5344.html

 

Another great activity that I learned about is something called "Book Spine Poetry". This is where students arrange books in order to create a poem from the various titles. Each title is a line in the poem, so arrange the books in any order that makes sense. Below you will find a example. 

Image from http://www.brainpickings.org/index.php/tag/book-spine-poetry/

All in all, I loved participating in the #elachat. I plan to participate as often as I can. I learned so many new great ideas while also sharing things I do in my own classroom. If you are free on the first and fourth Tuesday of the month at 7:00 p.m., check out #elachat!