Teaching Literacy Analysis

This has deepened my understanding of the big 5 concepts of literacy (phonemic awareness, phonics, vocabulary, fluency, and comprehension) through understanding what criteria can be used to determinate what is effective developmental for a reader and what needs improvement. The Informal Reading Inventory is one example of this because it allows me to assess word recognition, oral and silent reading, comprehension, and literacy capacity. All of which is valuable information which I can then use as a reading teacher to determine further instructional moves. While I have yet to have a place to fully put these assessment techniques into my full practice as a first year teacher. Learning about how to properly assess these components has better equipped me to think about my students' literacy abilities and further strategize my instructional planning to meet the diversity of their literacy

I completed my literacy field experience at Isanti Intermediate School/School for all Seasons in Isanti, MN. I was able to complete my 20 hour observation in a 1st grade classroom (primary), a 3rd grade classroom (intermediate), and conducted fluency tests in a 5th grade classroom. Each class had approximately 22 to 25 students. Also during this literacy class, I was also able to spend a few days observing a 3rd/4th grade classroom and a kindergarten classroom through a couple of sub jobs I completed. I need to note that my understanding was that 3rd grade was part of the intermediate program so I completed half my observation and assessment time with a 3rd grade classroom and completed a 3rd grader assessment. I am happy to say

Informal Reading Inventory (IRI) are diagnostic assessment administered individually to evaluate different aspects of students’ reading. After reading the text, students orally are answering the questions following the text. Teachers take into the consideration additional factors,, such as fluency, students’ prior knowledge, and determine students’ reading levels. This information may to choose appropriate reading material for students, to form reading groups, and to plan future reading instruction taking into the considerations students strengths and needs. According to Chall (1983), the greatest value of IRI is to help educators to diagnose the gaps in the abilities of readers who struggle the most. For teachers, who looking for the better way to address students instructional needs of children, who have reading difficulties, IRI is a very valuable diagnostic tool.

According to Meikamp and Suppa (2007,) “Although the IRI may be regarded as a harmless tool because it is not a standardized test, any instrument has the potential for harm if its results are misleading or utilized inappropriately. Recently, developers of some IRIs have begun addressing the technical adequacy of their instruments,” (Meikamp & Suppa, 2007). Even though this test has areas that are questionable, it definitely provides a structure that some teachers could benefit from using in their classrooms. It is important that prior to using this assessment, that a teacher does in depth research on the assessment to gauge whether or not the assessment would work well for their students. It is important that when a teacher decides to use an assessment such as the Informal Reading Inventory, that they use this research to ensure that it is going to measure the skills of each student, so that they can effectively plan academic interventions for their students.

In Deborah Brandt’s article, Sponsors of Literacy, she defines sponsors as, “… any agents, local or distant, concrete or abstract, who enable, support, teach, model, as well as recruit, regulate, suppress, or withhold literacy—and gain advantage by it in some way” (pp 166). There have been a few people in my life who have done exactly that; they helped me gain knowledge on many topics in hopes that I would find it informative and be able to better the world around me.

To assist students to “read with purpose and anticipation,” Vacca et al. (2014, p. 173) suggests, in their book Content Area Reading: Literacy and Learning Across the Curriculum, that teachers need to “create an instructional context” that activates their students’ “prior knowledge” and helps them to become interested in a lesson. Throughout chapter six, “Activating Prior Knowledge and Interest,” Vacca et al. (2014, pp. 172-173) explain instructional strategies that can lead students to “read with purpose and anticipation.” This chapter presents the reader with a plethora of instructional strategies and means for applying them, along with example for real educators. As I journeyed through this chapter, I discovered many instructional strategies,

I learned a lot of things while planning this literacy night. First, I learn a lot about literacy night here in the U.S. Second, talking to the librarian was a great chance to improve my knowledge about those events and how to do it and what it attracts students and parents to attend the event. I also learn that it would be very good to engage parents with their children to give them opportunities to become more involved in schools. Also, event like this would make children motivation to read increases. I also appreciate the hard work that librarians do to give families and their children positive chance to have fun and read together. They spend their extra time to organizing and planning for events like that. So we should thank them and reward

The Most Dangerous Game Literacy Analysis Everybody loves the bad guy. There is always something interesting about the villain of any story, whether it be their motive, actions, or simply there look. None such as interesting as General Zaroff from The Most Dangerous Game by Richard Connell. The General lives on an island called Ship-Trap Island, and while looking like a gentleman and acting like one, he hunts those who end up on his island. He is very interesting because he hunts humans for fun.

Having a solid grasp of the concepts that build up to content area literacy is extremely important. In fact, I believe that it is my duty as an educator to have a complete understanding of the different processes and how to apply them into my lesson plans. If I were to ignore them, it would definitely hinder my effectiveness as a teacher and in turn my students' education. Understanding the concept of connecting to text, for example, could turn a boring lesson that students will forget as soon as they leave the classroom into a lesson that sticks with them for the rest of their life.

For this assignment, I completed a survey to assess my school’s literacy program by using a survey that was adapted from by Patty, Maschoff, & Ransom (1996) to analyze the instructional program and the school’s infrastructure. To be able to answer my survey, I needed to go colleagues of mine in the English Department and to my administration to help with these questions. Being a math teacher, we hardly ever discuss the literacy and the students’ acquisition of it in our department meeting during staff development days. Since I am not truly current with literacy acquisition in education, I am hoping to understand more from this process so I can help all my students. I want them to be able to read texts related to math and find

Blaze mother is currently working at the school where Blaze goes to and is in a Preschool classroom for special education students. At the end of the year they have a magician come in and she comes to a realization about what normal is. “Where is there a line between normal and abnormal” This stands out to me because everyone is different and unique in their own way. Who determines what normal is. We were discussing in my Advanced Literacy Practice class on who determines what makes this passage a 2nd grade level. My question is, why are people making generalizations on where a kindergartener of 3rd grader should be at. In science we all physically grow at different rates based off of our genes, shouldn’t this is be used as the same reason

Throughout my first year as a middle school Language Arts teacher, I have developed a theoretical understanding of what I believe are the necessary components to providing a meaningful and generative environment in which students develop and expand literacy skills. The teaching of literacy needs to include a balance of reading, writing, speaking and listening activities, and needs to be a social endeavor that provides a variety of instructional strategies to meet the needs of all diverse learners. My teaching strategies, beliefs and personality that I bring to my classroom can be characterized as a blend of two types of philosophical theories: social constructivism and relational teaching and

Since I started the Academic Literacy course, my teacher, Julia has been giving me a various and a lot of assessments to do, such as, reflective learning journal blog, writing Folio task, recording new vocabulary on vocabu;lary.com. She loves to give students many tasks to do every week but after I have done all the project in week 1,2,3. I started realise that my writing, evaluating, critical thinking, listening and speaking have been improved a lots more than I expected. Moreover, I have been working hard from the week 1 until now. I think I gained a lot of knowledge from what she gave me to do. Also, the one thing that I love is all the assignments keep me very busy which can push me to achieve my

Literacy is defined as being literate, that is, being able to read and write in a language. My personal experience with literacy began at an early age, at the age of 4 when I began to sit and read words and letters in the back of my mother’s car. Soon enough, she would bring me a magazine called “Majed” which, in the 90’s, was a popular magazine. With this, I began even more interested in reading and writing and reviewed every word in the magazine associated with each of the short pictured stories. It was the first memory I deeply recall of literacy and it was what laid the foundation for my personal love of reading and writing. The methodology used for this is an interview. There are three interviews which are analyzed and brought together in the form of a narrative. This narrative serves to better explain the emotions and thoughts that the interviewees had about the idea of literacy.

There are numerous layers to understanding the complexities of quality literacy instruction. After reading the text, I soon realized that my knowledge base needed a rapid expansion. Incorporating technology to support instruction is a common practice in education, however I never thought it could be used to introduce new or complex content. The use of videos, coupled with guided instruction, can work as anchors to support students with complex concepts (Gambrell and Morrow). I usually deter away from using technology knowledge in the classroom because students spend so many hours encapsulated with social media outside of the classroom. I will consider changing my practice and incorporate quality videos to support my students learning.