Reading Recipe: Vocabulary

Vocabulary

An architect was walking thru Vocabulary City one day and was fascinated by the buildings. Each of the buildings were designed using words. As the architect looked around he saw tall colorful skyscrapers built with many words. Fantastic fancy buildings were built with expressive words. As the architect kept walking he was saddened by some of the buildings. There were missing pieces and holes throughout the buildings. These buildings were not as colorful, or tall, or expressive. The architect had wondered why in this city full of words why there was a difference. He came to a sign and it read:

Vocabulary

A reader’s vocabulary is knowledge of words already known by that reader. Caldwell and Leslie (2009) describe what is involved in knowing a word, “At the lowest level, it involves being able to provide a definition. At a higher level, it involves understanding how that word fits into a variety of contexts” (p. 128). If a reader can provide a definition of a word then the reader is able to attach a basic meaning to the word. Gale Gregory and Lin Kuzmich (2005) describe what will happen if students do not have, “…excellent vocabulary acquisitions strategies, students will not progress as fast and some students will not be able to access the content they must learn…” (p. 96).

In Kindergarten Literacy (2006), McGill-Franzen mentions a study on children’s language development. The study looked at the difference between children from professional families and children from families on welfare. McGill-Franzen (2006) commented, “Sadly for children in poor families, preschool vocabulary predicted later language achievement, even reading comprehension, in third grade” (p. 19). Being able to understand individual word meaning affects the comprehension of text. McGill-Franzen (2009) goes on to say that a child’s use of language by the age of three can predict their language development, listening, speaking, word meaning and syntax. For students who start with a limited vocabulary, the study of vocabulary is an important aspect to help develop reading comprehension.

Caldwell, S., Leslie, L. (2009). Intervention strategies to follow informal reading inventory assessment:

Gregory, G., Kuzmich, L. (2005). Differentiated literacy strategies for student growth and achievement in grades 7-12. Thousand Oaks, CA: Corwin Press.

McGill-Franzen, A. (2006). Kindergarten literacy: Matching assessment and instruction in

kindergarten. New York, NY: Scholastic Inc.

Finally, he understood. Readers had built this city. There was a difference in vocabulary knowledge among the citizens.

Artfully,

Mrs. Berry

Reading Recipe: Background Knowledge

Background Knowledge

Once upon a time there was an author who was baking up a reading story. The next ingredient was background knowledge. Now, this particular author wasn’t sure exactly what background knowledge was so she looked it up in her ingredient catalog. And this is what she found.

Background Knowledge

Before reading with understanding occurs, there needs to be a scaffolding of knowledge to build upon. Jeffrey Wilhelm PH.D. (2004) explains that background knowledge is necessary for students to be successful in reading. Wilhelm (2004) describes background knowledge as something that new meanings are built upon. Future learnings of more complex concepts are dependent on the foundations of the original background knowledge. Wilhelm (2004) goes on to explain that by building a foundation students are able to have their curiosity triggered by the reading. When their curiosity is triggered they connect to knowledge they already have and that builds up the information that will be needed to comprehend the text. Wilhelm (2004) stresses, “The most important time to teach reading is before kids read a text that presents them with a new challenge” (p. 76).

Each student carries their own scaffolding of experiences and expectations from their quality world. William Glasser (2006) explains that a quality world is a perception of what is important to an individual. Quality worlds are made up experiences and culture of an individual’s background. When text is read by an individual the information passes through several “filters” of relevancy. If the text that the student is reading has no connection to any of the filters in place, the information does not pass through and is reflected. A connection is not made and the student will not comprehend the text. If there is background knowledge or experience the information is allowed to pass through and become part of the scaffolding. The student will be able to comprehend the text.

Background knowledge is important for students as well as teachers. Teachers need to know the background knowledge and print experiences students possess. Elizabeth Birr Moje, an assistant professor at the University of Michigan, was asked why identity mattered. Elizabeth responded, “My immediate response is that identity matters because it, whatever it is, shapes or is an aspect of how humans make sense of the world and their experiences in it, including their experiences with texts” (McCarthey, 2002). When designing reading instruction it is vital to know the students’ identity, quality world, and print scaffolding. By using the background knowledge of students, teachers can begin to tailor instruction that can build upon that foundation.

Glasser, W. (1998). Choice theory: A new psychology of personal freedom. New York, NY:HarperCollins Publishers.

McCarthey, S., Moje, E. (2002). Identity matters. Reading Research Quarterly. 37(2). 228-238.

Wilhelm, J. (2004). Reading is seeing: Learning to visualize scenes, characters, ideas, and text worlds to improve comprehension and reflective reading. New York, NY: Scholastic Inc.

So now our author knows what background knowledge means and she added a cup to the receipe.

Artfully,

Mrs. Berry

How to Bling out a Peacock Lesson Plan

Have you ever what goes into an art lesson? Well, let me tell you. First there is the gizmo, a few do-dads, sparkles of color, some of this, and a whole lot of that. Oh, and don’t forget the whatchamacallits. Of course, there is the fun factor.

What don’t believe me? Well, I suppose, I might have exaggerated the bit about do-dads. You really only need two. Just in case you need further prof of what I say is true, explore one of my Prezi lessons for the up and coming projects on Peacocks with Pattern and Bling.

Mrs. Berry's Peacock with Bling II

Inside my Prezi Lesson you will find:

• Teacher Examples
• Videos to use
• Non-Fiction books about peacocks
• Step by step instructions
• Common Core Standards

1. Reading
2. Writing

• Math
• Michigan Benchmarks
• Science
• Art
• Grading Scale based on benchmarks
• Artwork examples that have pattern

I was inspired by this blog post called Peacocks With Shimmer and Bling from Phyl. I changed the lesson a bit to match what supplies I have in my classroom.

Something extra that I have in my classroom are actual peacock feathers for the students to touch and feel. Please enjoy these two videos that I created.

Artfully,

Mrs. Berry

Reading Recipe: Stop the printing presses!

Print-concepts

Stop the printing presses! There is a rewrite to the print concepts post. I wrote about this post earlier; however, there were some set backs and revisions were needed to be made. So here is the rewrite for the print concepts post. Again, if you have any feedback or comments please let me know.

The foundation of reading is built upon a reader’s print knowledge. Anne McGill-Franzen (2006), states “In a single meeting, a child can learn critical concepts about book orientation, distinctions between illustrations and text, directionality of text, the meaning of letter, word, first, and last, and the function of common punctuation marks” (p. 64). McGill-Franzen is referring to an opportunity for students who have not had exposure to print prior to kindergarten. Basic knowledge of how to hold a book, the connections between pictures and words, how the texts is printed from left to right/top to bottom, and that sentences end with punctuation marks are the foundation of print knowledge. Braunger and Lewis state the reason for print concepts, “This is important to make explicit, as children who fail to see the very nature and purposes of reading are often those who are seen to be at risk of not learning to read successfully” (p. 76).

Before learning to read, a reader needs to know basic print concepts. Jane Braunger and Jan Petricia Lewis (2001) write,

“Children must become aware of language as written, then gain more sophisticated concepts about print, including being able to talk about and describe its aspects and processes as they understand them. They will need to know about the parts as well as the whole and that it makes sense-it carriers meaning” (p. 76).

Students need to understand that the little symbols that they see in books or text in other places carry meaning. Barbara Law and Mary Eckes (2010) write about the importance of surrounding students with text, “Even though students may not make the connection that those squiggles are a graphic representation of the concept, seeing the squiggles every day helps reinforce the connection” (p. 117). A way to incorporate space for the squiggles or symbols into the classroom is to establish a word wall. Anne McGill-Franzen (2006) describes word walls as a way to, “help children become independent readers and writers by making the patterns within and across words more apparent to them (p. 186). By having a spot where students can see several words next to each other they are able to establish word spelling patterns. McGill-Franzen goes on to say, “The words are displayed for easy reference so that children can use these words and word patterns to help them read and write” (p. 186). Also, by having words on the wall students are able to use those words readily in their writing.

Part of learning print concepts is connecting the text together with meaning. Either the actual meaning for a word or the idea that the squiggles are words. McGill-Franzen (2006) writes, “Learning to talk requires that the child segment the speech stream into meaningful units; similarly, learning to read requires that the child segment a line of print into meaningful units-words” (p. 63). By having a foundation in print concepts students are able to take lines of print and start to attach meaning.

Bibliography

Braunger, J., Lewis, J. (2006). Building a knowledge base in reading: Second edition. Newark DE: International Reading Association, Urbana, IL: The National Council of Teachers of English.

Law, B., Eckes, M. (2010). The more than just surviving handbook: ELL for every classroom teacher. Winnipeg, CANADA: Portage & Main Press.

McGill-Franzen, A. (2006). Kindergarten literacy: Matching assessment and instruction in kindergarten. New York, NY: Scholastic Inc.

Artfully,

Mrs. Berry

6 Million Dollar Reading Make over: Recipe for Reading

Parts of Reading

Greetings,

Gentlemen and ladies, we can rewrite it. We have the technology. We have the capability to write the world’s finest recipe for reading. Mrs. Berry will be that writer. Better than before. Better, longer, more in-depth.

Ok, it might not be the finest recipe; however, this is what I have discovered over the last three months. I started this series earlier in the semester and received feedback.  Let us just say, I needed to give it a bit more depth.  I will start to define what is reading, and then define each of the eight sections.  I am always learning, so if you have any feedback, please let me know.

Reading is a complex process that involves many different parts. These parts are: print concepts, background knowledge, vocabulary, phonemic awareness, phonics, fluency, comprehension, and motivation. Print concepts are knowing the front of book, that print not pictures tell a story, what are letters and words, where first letters in a word are found, upper and lower case letters, and some punctuation marks (Clay 1998). Background knowledge is something in which new meaning are built upon Wilhelm (2004). Fountas and Pinnell (2006) describe vocabulary as, “Every language has a collection of words, a lexicon, that has particular meanings” (p. 21). Hall and Moats (2006) define phonemic awareness, “This term means that the child must be aware of the separate speech sounds in a word, not just be able to recognize letters” (p. 38). Phonics is a system of correspondence between grapheme-phoneme and linking the spelling of words to their pronunciations (Ehri 2001). Fountas and Pinnell (2006) describe fluent reading as, “…using smoothly integrated operations to process the meaning, language, and print” (p. 62). Comprehension is a process which starts with word identification and using background knowledge and ending with making the text make sense (Sousa, 2006, p. 187). Last in the list is motivation. Jensen (2005), discusses motivation, “Another way to think about motivation is that it consist of the willingness to be active (volition) combined with the actual behavior (meaningful participation)” (p. 102). A teacher needs to know which parts a student has or does not have mastery over through assessments. McGill-Franzen (2006) states, “To know where to start instruction you must know what the child can do. Effective teachers build on what children know” (p. 7).

Resources

Clay, M. (1989). The Reading Teacher. Research Library, 42(4), 268.

Ehri, C., Nunes, S., Stahl, S., Willows, D. (2001). Systematic phonics instruction helps students learn to read: Evidence from the national reading panel’s meta-analysis. Review of Educational Research, 71(3), 393-447.

Fountas, I., Pinnell, G. (2006). Teaching comprehending and fluency: Thinking, talking,and writing about reading, k-8. Portsmouth, NH: Heinemann.

Hall, S., Moats, L. (2006). Straight talk about reading: How parents can make a difference during the early years. New York, NY: The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc.

Jenson, E. (2005). Teaching with the brain in mind: 2nd edition revised and updated. Alexandria, VA: Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development.

McGill-Franzen, A. (2006). Kindergarten literacy: Matching assessment and instruction in kindergarten. New York, NY: Scholastic Inc.

Wilhelm, J. (2004). Reading is seeing: Learning to visualize scenes, characters, ideas, and text worlds to improve comprehension and reflective reading. New York, NY: Scholastic Inc.

Artfully,

Mrs. Berry