Shirley Brice Heath

https://docs.google.com/file/d/0B-PwM0Vnty0wUnB0WGpNMTBBdkE/edit?usp=sharing

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. Name this posting "Module 3: Activity 2."

I do not believe that phonemic awareness single handedly helps students crack the code at the English language.  Since proficient reading encompasses syntax, schema, and phonics, students need to use real words and teachers need to create background knowledge or help students identify background knowledge of real words rather than nonsense words.  

I feel as though using nonsense word lists or having students complete the activity such as the one in the video, you are wasting a child's time and wasting valuable instructional time by having them sound out words by letter sound.  Oftentimes, in the English language the "rules" of phonics don't work 100% of the time and then students who rely on those rules are left to struggle on their own because the rules don't work with particular words.  The sounding out of individual letters in a word does not accurately portray the pronunciation of the word, and therefore meaning is lost. 

It seems like it would be much more valuable to use words that are simple and common in a student's language to use and create meaning for or build upon the meaning that is already there.  As teachers, we want to use as much instructional time as possible and we want students to become proficient readers.  Using nonsense word lists defeats both objectives.  Students need schema and background knowledge for the words and need to use the context or syntax of the words in order to create meaning and use it effectively in the future. 

Module 3: Mock Memo from a Reading Specialist

Instructional Challenge:

Erica, a fifth grader, reads grade level passages at a rate of 177 words correct per minute, or 30% faster than grade level norms. When asked to retell what she has read, Erica struggles and is able to give little to no information from about the text. Many other children in Erica's class also read well above grade level expectations for fluency rate (or automaticity), but the teacher laments that they struggle with comprehension and using appropriate expression and intonation while they read. What is going on here? What advice can you offer the teacher? Write a memo to the teacher from the viewpoint of the school's Reading Specialist. Give the teacher and explanation for the phenomenon and offer her advice on dealing with the situation. Please keep the memo to no more than 400 words. Post it to your blog and name the posting "Module 3: Mock Memo from a Reading Specialist."

From: C. Benton
To: Classroom teacher
Re: Comprehension and Fluency

Dear teacher, 
I am really impressed with the fluency rate that Erica has while reading.  However, I am very concerned that she does not comprehend what she reads.  Reading's true purpose is to gain meaning and while Erica is able to read words correctly off of a page, she is not creating meaning.  Erica does not understand the true meaning of reading and therefore thinks that true reading is fluency or accuracy in reading words out loud.  

We need to take a step back and use a text that is on a lower level, possibly a picture book, or even a book that she knows very well and allow Erica to read this book and answer questions and retell the events of the story. We need for her to understand that being a good reader does not mean that all the words are said correctly.  As she reads we need to record her and then let her listen and find any miscues she makes.  If she can point out her miscues and describe the process she was going through as she read, we will be able to show her that a proficient reader makes miscues but those miscues do not affect the meaning of the text.  

We then need to model and practice (over and over again) reading more difficult texts and answering comprehension questions and retells.   This practice can be done during guided reading, independent reading, or shared reading times. Once again, if she able to see and hear a proficient reader make miscues on more difficult texts and answer comprehension questions and retell the story we will be able to change her perception of reading.  We need for her to continuously ask herself "what did I read" and "how does this connect with my life, another book, or something I have learned" if she can do this effectively then she will increase her comprehension.

If these strategies are not successful, we need to evaluate the passage or text she is reading and determine if she has a significant amount of back ground knowledge on the topic, vocabulary, and language that is used in the text.  If she does not have this background knowledge or is lacking an understanding of the vocabulary, we need to create schema for her in order for her to be successful in reading this passage and comprehending its meaning.

C. Benton

Module 3: Reading Reflection

Reading Reflection Prompt:

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 Adams and her theory that readers thoroughly process individual letters of words rather than relying on context. As Weaver's Reading Process and Practice book has stated in earlier chapters, proficient readers use the context of the word, syntax of the sentence, and their schema of other words they have read in order to verbalize words or create meaning.  

Weaver's book references a study about eye fixation on page 106 and it says that skilled readers do not focus on each and every word as they read (Weaver, 2002).  The section on eye fixation also reveals that the brain is able to identify the individual letters of a word after the reader has identified the word and the brain does not identify the individual letters first (Weaver, 2002).  

I think about myself as a reader, and when I am reading new material, I do not process each letter or letter sound as I come to an unknown word. I use the context of the sentence or paragraph, and my schema in order to create meaning. Weaver's book reveals in earlier chapters that if adult readers, or even child readers, read each letter or letter sound of a word, the meaning of the word or sentence would be lost because that reader has spent so much time trying to identify that word.  

Readers are able to use semantic and syntactic context within the sentence in order to determine the meaning of unknown words.  It would be an waste of valuable time for a student or adult reader to process each individual letter of a word while reading.  The brain is able to make connections to other passages where those words have been used, or conversations where the word has been said and is able to recognize the meaning or pronunciation of the word in a passage that is unfamiliar to them. 

Module 2: Activities 1 & 2

Activity 1: 
Complete Exercise #3c on page 58 in the text: first write a definition of each word listed. Did you notice yourself using any fairly consistent principle for determining what the words might mean? Discuss. Then read the first chapter of A Clockwork Orange to find the meanings of at least six of the words: http://www.ebooktrove.com/top_ten/AClockworkOrange.pdf. In each case, how do you finally determine what the word means? 

Exercise #3c.
1. creech-a sound
2. droogs- animals maybe a dog
3. glazzies- glass like
4. goloss- something lost
5. malenky- silly
6. messel- a small vessel
7. millicents-something small
8. poogly- sluggish
9. razrez- criss cross
10. skorry- fast
11. spatted- to spit or to say
12. zoobies- people

As I read this list of unfamiliar words, I tried to use prefixes to aid in my meaning.  I also looked at the suffixes of the words to determine what part of speech they might be in order to help me determine their meaning. It was very difficult since there was no context.  

After reading the first chapter of A Clockwork Orange, I can determine the meaning to the following words:
1. droogs- brothers or friends
2. skorry- quickly
3. glazzies- eyes
4. goloss- personality 
5. zoobies- teeth
6. malenky- small amount; little

As I read the first chapter and discovered the meaning of these words, I used the context of the sentence and paragraph to create meaning for the unknown words.  I found myself having to re-read the sentences and also pay attention to the syntax of the word within the sentence to determine what the words mean. I also noticed myself creating pictures of movies in my mind of what was happening in the story; this helped me to visualize the story in order to create meaning and better understand the reading.  


Activity 2: Exercise 7 pages 85-86:

1. Who tried to read the words letter-by-letter?

• I did not try to read the words letter by letter.  This would have caused me to lose some, if not all meaning I might have had of the word. 

2. Who tried to read the words mostly by chunking them into syllables?

• I was able to chunk some words into syllables, but only because it was written out to the side. If that hadn't have been there, I wouldn't have been able to do that. 

3. Who tried to read the words by sampling the letters more or less all at once?

• I was able to read some of the words by sampling the letters, mainly in chunks.  I did not read them letter-by-letter but I know how some letter blends sound and was able to read the word using my knowledge of letter blends (phonics).

4. What words did you know the meaning of, or think you know the meaning of?

• I think I know the meaning of sarsparilla.  The only reason I knew that one, is because I had heard it on a School House Rock video. But reading off the words in this list did not help me understand the meaning of the words, only how to attempt to sound them out. 

5. Did pronouncing the words give you insights into their meanings?

• Pronouncing the words did not help me gain insights into their meanings because there was no other context.  They are by themselves and therefore I am unable to use context and schema to determine their meanings. 

6. How do you handle unknown words when you encounter them in normal reading?

• In normal reading, if I come to a an unknown word I use the context of the sentence or paragraph, syntax, and my own schema in order to create meaning of the word. 

7. What do you think are the implications of this experiment and discussion for how we should help students deal with unfamiliar words?

• This experiment verifies that we, as teachers, cannot rely on basic word call to determine if a student is comprehending what is being read.  In many of the leveled reading tests that are administered to students, fluency and word identification are a portion of the test.  Students may word call correctly but are unable to answer the comprehension questions or retell information from the passage correctly.  As students read it is important for us to recognize how they are creating meaning.  Word calling a list of words is not sufficient evidence that students understand the meaning of the words presented. 

Module 2: Instructional Challenge

Wheeler & Swords (2006) show how children�s dialects have their own grammatical structure, and although the structure may differ from formal or �Standard� English, we can teach children to code-switch or change registers rather than correcting them, as the following table from page 57 of their book shows:

Take a look at the following examples of children's dialect-based miscues while reading and the difference between the child's original response (OR) and expected reponse (ER). Then answer the questions that follow.

OR: It my little monkey here.	ER: Is my little monkey here? (sight word miscue)
OR: We got to tell.	ER: We've got to tell. (dialect miscue)
OR: Frog look at Toad calendar.	ER: Frog looked at Toad's calendar. (absence of past tense marker and absence of possessive noun marker)
OR: A word what sounded good.	ER: A word that sounded good. (sight word)
OR: hisself	ER: himself
OR: I can come to your party?	ER: Can I come to your party?

Are these children's miscues evidence of proficient or non-proficient reading?� Explain. If you were teaching children who made these miscues, what, if any, assistance or teaching would you offer? Post your thoughts to your blog. Name this blog posting "Module 2: Instructional Challenge."

I believe these children's miscues are evidence of a proficient reader. In order to be a proficient reader one must construct meaning from a passage and doesn't waste time and effort in the quest for meaning.  Many of these mistakes are sight word miscues "it" for "is" "what" for "that", dialect miscues "we got" for "we've got", or miscues that involve grammar such as absence of past tense markers or absence of possessive noun markers "look" for "looked" and "Toad" for "Toad's". I believe these children are proficient readers because, as Weaver states in her book, "proficient reading is not miscueless" (Weaver, 2002).   This means that proficient readers make mistakes as they read aloud orally because they are using their schema, their own dialect, or predicting what will appear next in the sentence based on the context or the grammatical structure of the sentence.

In order, though for me to be able to determine if these children have constructed meaning from what they read, I would have to analyze their retelling or their answers to comprehension questions.  However, since those are not provided, I can determine that these miscues given in the children's original responses do not affect the meaning of the sentences when compared to the expected responses.  The structure of the sentence is altered, but the meaning of the sentence appears to remain the same. 

If I were teaching children who made these miscues, I would not use special materials or change my teaching methods.  I would simply explain that I noticed the child miscued on certain words, but am proud of that student for being able to change the sentence to fit their dialect, for example, and tell that student that since they did that, they actually created more meaning than just reading the words exactly as they are written.  If a student was making these miscues and not creating meaning, however, I would do a cloze activity or work with them to determine the best means to improve their reading. Many of these students have been told or have felt that they are poor readers because they miscue and omit, replace, or use their own dialect instead of reading words precisely as they are written on the page.  We need students to understand that reading encompasses many pieces that fit together to construct meaning and reading is not reading words exactly as they are written. As teachers, we can explain to students that they are code switching and translating or changing the structure of the sentence to fit the setting, according to Table 4.1. This will, hopefully, change the way students view themselves as readers. 

Module 2: Reading Reflection

On page 41 of Weaver's Reading Process and Practice book, Robert Harper and Gary Kilgar are quoted saying:

"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 it is 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 Kilgar

I do not believe the reading "theory"  that explains reading as an exact process and therefore I agree that the theory of reading being an exact process is folklore.  Reading is much more than reciting words precisely as they are printed on a page.  Reading is understanding how letters, words, and sentences fit together to give the reader the underlying message or meaning of the passage.  Reading requires the use of grapho/phonemic awareness, context, schema, and syntax in order to create meaning of the passage or text.

In Reading Process and Practice, Weaver explains on page 69 that as children learn to read, many good readers will "progress from merely trying to supply a sensible word to trying to get the exact word, using graphic cues and letter-sound knowledge" (Weaver, 2002). Using background knowledge along with graphing systems and letter relationships the child may show understanding, not through the reading of the text out loud, but through the retelling or comprehension portion of the assessment.  She gives the example of a child saying "bird" for canary as the child reads a passage.  The child may not be able to precisely say the word canary but through the child's background knowledge and context of the sentence, the child might attempt the word canary either in the reading or retelling.

For example,on pages 54-57 in Weaver's book, Reading Process and Practice, she discusses context within reading, which includes the grammar of sentences and the meaning of words within sentences or paragraphs. She discusses how more proficient readers will typically miscue on sight words because as proficient readers read, they naturally predict what will come next based on the grammar and the context of the sentence.  Those miscues won't change the overall meaning of the sentence.  On page 55, she displays an example of first graders making miscues that do not effect the meaning of the sentences they have read. 

On pages 74-77 in reading Process and Practice, Weaver discusses the implications for understanding dialect misuces.  This section was particularly interesting to me because I have seen this with many of my students. She discusses that if students are reading a passage and translate it into their own dialect patterns, they are not making miscues, but actually creating and understanding the deeper structure of the passage or sentence.  She says the reader "simply expresses it in an alternative oral form" (Weaver, 2002).  That truly exhibits that reading is not an exact process, as stated in the Harper and Kilgar's quote.  The children that translate the text into their own dialect are truly thinking deeply about the text as long as the meaning is preserved.

The true purpose of reading is to gain and create meaning.  Just because a student can precisely read words on a page does not mean they are reading.  They must use phonemic awareness, syntax, schema, and context in order to truly read.  Believing that reading is considered an exact process is the wrong way to view reading.  The above examples prove that reading is not an exact process and takes many different processes in order to comprehend. 

Module 1: Activity 2

Complete Exercise #5 on p. 39 by reading the passage and answering questions a-g that follow it. 

A. What is corandic?
Corandic seems to be some type of noun that is created naturally or unnaturally.

B. What does corandic grank from?
Corandic granks from corite.

C. How do garkers excarp the tarances from the corite?
Garkers excarp the tarances from the corite by glarking the corite and starping it in tranker-clarped storbs.

D. What does the slorp finally frast?
The slorp finally frast a pragety, blickant crankle.

E. What is coranda?
A coranda is a cargurt. 

F. How is the corandic nacerated from the borigen?
The corandic is nacerated from the borigen by means of loracity. 

G. What do the garkers finally thrap?
Garkers finally thrap a glick, bracht, glupous grapant, corandic. 



In order for me to be able to answer these questions I had to read and identify those specific sections of the paragraph that mentions the words within the questions. I did not have to have any knowledge or understanding of the vocabulary. This experience leads me to believe that the comprehension questions on worksheets and on standardized tests are not higher level questions and require very little effort to answer. If the standardized test is multiple choice students have a 25% chance of correctly identifying the correct answer without fully reading and comprehending the passage. Students seem to have become better guessers or test takers than proficient readers and are truly comprehending very little.  A student does not have to have any schema in order to answer those types of questionns and does not have to understand the academic vocabulary or topic within the passage. 

Since I was able to answer these lower level questions with no knowledge of the vocabulary or background knowledge related to the passage, I know many of my students are doing the same thing with assessments I have given them or they have been given in the past.  I am now asking myself, are my students truly comprehending what they are reading just because they can answer questions that are easily identifiable within the text? I would have to say, no. 

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.

Answer these questions about the passage:

1. What are the hocked gems?
I think the hocked gems are something that is giving the character support or help with his task.  Since these hocked gems are financing him, I know they are giving support for his task.

2. What should we think of as an egg and not a table?
Since an egg is fragile, we must think of the hocked gems as something fragile or of worth.

3. Who are the three sturdy sisters?
The three sturdy sisters must be extra support or help that the character receives while completing the task.

4. What kind of winged creatures appeared?
I think that some kind of bird appeared- my first thought was an eagle. Since eagles are thought of as strong birds and in many films or photographs I have seen eagles flying over mountains and trees, I automatically thought of an eagle. 


If I were to use this passage with students, I would need to activate their schema.  In order to activate their schema I would need to discuss key vocabulary that would be found within this passage.  I may need to discuss the words hocked, financing, defied, scornful, forging, and turbulent. Through discussing of the vocabulary words, I would need to focus on the meaning of the words through the context of the passage or other examples where those words are found and not just give definitions of the words. I would also need to provide background knowledge that would help activate students' schema of the topic.

In order to help teach children whose schema's don't match the text's content, I would need to give visual examples such as pictures, videos, or if possible, provide them with a hands on experience that would help them to create schema for this passage. Allowing them to the chance to create meaning that matches the content is the only way they will truly learn anything from a lesson or a passage such as this one. 

I believe students should spend a significant amount of time in texts that don't match their interests or schema but they shouldn't be sent out on their own with these texts.  Students should be monitored through guided reading groups or one on one conferencing in order to keep them on track and have their learning monitored.  The only way for students to get better at reading is to challenge them by exposing them to passages or texts that don't match their interests or schema. Students need to come across vocabulary or topics that don't match their interests or schema many times in order to truly understand them. The only way to do this to allow students to be exposed to them as much and as often as possible.

After I read this passage many times, I finally searched the internet to find out what the passage what actually referring to and if I correctly answered the questions based on my schema and understanding of the passage. It was truly driving me nuts that I had no background knowledge of this passage! I had no idea this was in reference to Christopher Columbus! Knowing this, helped me to better understand that the hocked gems was a reference to the money and support given to him and the three study sisters were the ships that he traveled with. The winged creatures are a description of the ships. Knowing just a piece of the background knowledge I was able to better comprehend the passage and analyze my original mistakes in answering the questions.  This passage means more to me now that I know and understand the background. 

Module 1: Reading Reflection

What are some of the major differences between a skills approach to literacy and a comprehensive or sociopsycholinguistic approach?

I have never heard of teaching reading in these terms.  It was interesting to read these chapters and watch the video because it reassured me that when doing a running record on a student, that I had been doing them correctly! I also found it interesting that the way a teacher views reading theory affects the way a child learns to read- I hadn't ever really thought of it in this way.

In the teaching of reading there are some people that believe that it should be only skills based.  This means that students are learning more phonemic awareness and students are learning how letters sound separately and blended together.  During skills based reading instruction, students are identifying words and decoding words letter by letter.  This approach emphasis that reading is only fluency, the identification of letters and their sounds and those relationships between the letters.  It is taught in stages: smaller sets of skills and language and then the comprehension of texts. As Weaver's book indicates reading is taught in an "upwards" approach. In a school setting, students may think they are reading as long as they are correctly pronounciating words in a sentence or paragraph and reading quickly, however, if they are unable to comprehend what those words mean together and cannot identify the overall message then they are just simple reciting words and not reading for meaning. I think that it is important for students to understand phonics but it shouldn't be taught in isolation. 

In contrast, a comprehensive or sociopsycholinguistic approach to reading encompasses reading for meaning and using schema in order to build this meaning.  According to Weaver's book, in this approach to teaching reading the teacher uses simple and predictable texts to read with the students before teaching letter sounds and letter relationships.  Higher quality literature is usually reread and used to teach skills.  Phonics is taught in combination with reading strategies and is used to identify meaning through the text, and not to just identify words. The ultimate goal of reading is to take away something from the text or passage- the only way to do that is to teach students how to construct meaning using their own schema and the text. This is the better choice for teaching reading because it encompasses all components of what reading is- phonics and skills as well as comprehension and reading for meaning.

I had a student that was able to understand what she read even though she had a lot of difficulty pronounciating words because she didn't understand or use phonics.  She used her syntax and schema to comprehend what she was reading. As a teacher, it is vital to understand the importance of how reading theory affects how students view reading.  I want my students to understand that reading is for creating meaning not just for reciting words. I want my students to know that it doesn't make you a "good" reader if you can recite words quickly but cannot construct meaning from what was read. 

Personal Reading Theory Model

Growing up, I always enjoyed reading and it seemed to come easily for me.  As I got older and into middle school, I hated to read assigned reading and much preferred to read books that I was interested in.  In high school, we read "The Scarlet Letter", "To Kill A Mockingbird", and "The Great Gatsby" three books that I was required to read and fell in love with. I still remember enjoying these books and vividly remember the class discussions, and activities that my teachers assigned for these books.

As I went through college I strayed from my love of reading and only spent time reading for enjoyment during the summers.  I really fell in love with thriller books and spent one summer reading voraciously.  I ended up reading 10 books in a matter of two and a half months.  As I learned about reading I became nervous about teaching the skills component of reading.  I went through school at a time when whole language was taught and I received very little phonics instruction.  I was terrified of having to teach phonics, because I didn't know the "rules."

I believe that reading should encompass a balanced literacy approach.  Skills (comprehension and reading strategies) should be taught through modeling by the teacher, guided reading, and independent practice. Using this balanced literacy approach ensures students will receive skills from the teacher and will have the opportunity to practice them independently under teacher supervision and then eventually on their own. Using a gradual release of responsibility approach ensures the student will have a chance at feeling successful working on reading skills.  A specific time for sharing and discussing of books should be given so students can express their thoughts or feelings about books, authors, or genres. 

I set up my classroom having specific areas for group times for mini lessons, and  independent reading and practice, and a guided reading table. The most important aspect of my classroom is my classroom library and providing as much variety as possible.  It is hard to purchase many books, but I have bought books here and there and acquired some from various sources.  It is so important, though, for students to have an environment where they feel comfortable to make a mistake while reading, accept help and guidance in order to learn and correct their mistake, and to grow as a reader. 

Within the last few years, I have implemented the use of the CAFE model and the pieces of the Daily 5 into my 4th and 5th grade reader's workshop routine.  I integrate as much of the Social Studies and Science content into my reader's workshop and use fiction and nonfiction texts within the mini lessons and guided reading groups and focus on vocabulary development. I conferred with students once every two weeks and gave them goals to work toward as they read independently.  During their independent reading time students had to have a book close to their reading level (this was done after much discussion of my higher reading level 5th graders reading books such as "Bad Kitty", or the Guinness Book of World Records- I told them they could read these for fun at home for their nightly reading.)

Within my own classroom, I try to instill a love of reading within my students. Aside from giving reading tests to determine what level a student is performing on and working with students on skills they lack, I truly enjoy discussing what types of books students like to read and what interests them.  I enjoy these discussions with my students because once I find out what genre and style of books they like I can suggest specific books that will enhance their reading skills and give them the opportunity to become a life long reader.  I try to suggest books that I have read myself so that I can have a more meaningful conversation when I confer with them.  If students feel like you are interested in what they are reading, or their opinion of the books they are reading I think students will be more encouraged to read and enjoy reading. That is, after all, my goal: to encourage students to love reading!