Course reflection

This course did allow me to form a solid base of resources that I will continue to use in my classroom.   I mainly looked up social studies resources for this course and found some very valuable ones.  The site that I find myself going back to again and again is Learnnc.org.  It has all types of resources available in all content areas and grade levels.  I will continue to use the internet as a resource for teaching, I couldn’t imaginge not using it.  I won’t however continue to blog.

Lesson plan 2

http://www.learnnc.org/lp/pages/4042

This lesson plan deals with going further in-depth with events such as the Trail of Tears and Japanese Internment camps, two things that are merely mentioned in most textbooks.  I love this lesson because it brings things that are very much real to our history, but have been shoved out of the books because it casts a bad light on America.  As teachers we are obligated to teach our students the truth.  In this lesson students learn about 3 different groups of people in US history, the Cherokee and the Trail of Tears, Mexican-Americans who were forced out during the Great Depression, and Japanese-Americans who were forced into internment camps during WWII.  Through the discussion of these groups students learn the difference of immigration, emigration, deportation, resettlement, etc.

This lesson is a valuable one to 8th grade because it aligns with the state curriculum.  Also this lesson allows students to think more critically towards events they have always been taught to accept and move on.  This lesson also allows students to take on the perspectives of these different groups and re-act from their shoes.

Lesson Plan 1

http://ofcn.org/cyber.serv/academy/ace/soc/cecsst/cecsst066.html

This lesson deals with students experiencing racial discrimination.  In this lesson a group of students are chosen due to an article of clothing or some distinguishable factor and shown obvious fovoritism while the rest of the class is essentially punished given extra work etc.  While I think you must be very careful and aware of your students this could be a very valuable lesson especially in western NC where there is little to no racial diversity at all.  In the write-up the teacher said that he would go as far as to make the inferior group completely upset I don’t believe I would take it that far.  I would only make the feeling of discrimnation known and then allow for that to be a segway into a lesson on civil rights, slavery, or essentially anything dealing with race issues.

I would make this lesson for 8th graders because I think it would be most relevant in this curriculum however I can see how it could be modified to the Holocaust.

I think it is very important for students to be aware of the racial issues that were so important in our nation’s history and also be aware of different types of discrimination that still exsist today.

Vocab Response

Vocabulary is a very important part of every content area.  It is also so much more than just being able to associate a given definition with a particular word.  This article provides strategies for multiple ways of approaching vocabulary in various content areas, which is something that I don’t feel I have received in other classes.  It gives a fresh way of approaching vocabulary in the classroom, and not only in ELA, that I don’t believe I would have ever thought of.

 

Related Sites:

I love that one of the sites is the ABC social studies with the T is for Tarheel book.  I purchased this book this summer and plan on using it in my classroom when I teach 8th grades social studies.  I also plan on modifying the lesson to hopefully fit all social studies areas in the middle school.

I also love the idea of using a wanted poster as a way to research a person.  This is such a creative spin to the typical essay type assignment.

Article 2 Summary

This article explains a non-traditional way of approaching a reasearch paper.  In this article the author describes a multi-genre project that allows students to research a person, event etc of their choice and compile a reserach project based on different genres of writing.  For example, instead of writing a paragraph about a tragic event in the person’s life like in a traditional paper, this project would allow the student to create a newspaper artcle or a condolence card in order to convey the tragedy.  This project opens up a world of creativity for students.  It also gives the students an opportunity to justify why they did what they did in the end notes. In traditional papers students do not really become any closer with their topic where as, as the author showed, this project became very much personal to the lives of the students.  I think this is a  great way to get students to utilize needed research tools but also do it in a way that is relevant to them because as the author said students tend to write more passionately when it’s personal.

 

How would I be able to confine this assignment or modify to fit middle schoolers?

How do I grade the finished products effectively given the large amount of different genres?

How is this applicable outside of ELA?

Article 1 Summary

“I” poems are a good way to get students to respond to what they have read.  It also opens up an avenue for students to respond somewhat emotionally to the text.  In this article the author describes the context of “I” poems.  One aspect that these poems can be utilized is before reading a book to familiarize students with the setting and the different elements of the setting.  In the article the example used is from the book Sarah Plain and Tall, where students research the different types of vegetation and animals in the Kansas prarie vs the Maine coast.  This utilization of the poem makes students aware of terms that may be used in the book and gives them a deeper understanding of the text and allows the students to see more effectively how the setting affects the plot.  Another way to use “I” poems is to track the plot.  Students take on the perspective of various characters or things in the story and convey their feelings.  By using phrases like “I am, I see, I dream” students put the characters emotions into words. I think these poems are a great way to get students to write creatively but it leaves it open for the student to format these poems as they feel necessary.

 

How do I engage reluctant readers/writers in “I” poems?

What do I do is students have difficulty thinking from another’s perspective?

How are these applicable outside of ELA?

Strategy 4

Title your post: Strategy 4

 

Your Name: Laura Rollins

 

Name of Strategy: Activate Prior Learning

 

Source: Reading Strategies for the Journey North Teacher

Link to the Strategy: http://www.learner.org/jnorth/tm/ReadStrat1.html

Give a thorough description of the strategy and how it will be implemented. This should be a summary of the strategy according to the original source: This strategy would be implemented in the beginning of a reading or a unit but then continues through to the end.  This activity allows students to bring their prior knowledge of a subject and see how it fits in with the truth of the subject.  Also I think this is a great activity that will allow students to shape their own opinions and own perspectives of history, which is how history should be taught.  I think this strategy will work for students because it is something that they can refer back to in any step of the reading or the lesson and see what they have learned, where they may be missing some facts, and what areas  they may have differing view points.  This strategy addresses skill goal 1.07 of the standard course of study for the social studies because it allows students to sort through their beliefs, the facts, and see how they differ.

Strategy 3

Title your post: Strategy 3 Your Name: Laura Rollins Name of Strategy: Story map Source: Readingquest.org Link to the Strategy: http://readingquest.org/strat/storymaps.html This strategy would be used during reading, especially when students are reading straight from the textbook. This strategy allows readers to frame the big picture into the key points while they are reading. Components that students have to fill out include: setting, characters, problem, key episodes, resolution, and theme. This could be done as a class activity or individually. I think it would be useful as a class activity because it could help students pick up on details that they may have missed while reading. Also it will open the floor up for discussion about the students different opinions and perspectives of history. I think this will be an effective strategy for students because it gives them something to fall back on and rely on when the text could bog them down. This adheres to the standard course of study by fulfilling 1.01 and 1.02 skill goals for middle school social studies .

Strategy 2

Title your post: Strategy 2

 

Your Name: Laura Rollins

 

Name of Strategy: ABC Brainstorm

 

Source: Readingquest.org

 

Link to the Strategy: http://www.readingquest.org/strat/abc.html

This strategy is a pre-reading and pre-unit activity.  It allows students to associate smaller details with a bigger picture.  In this activity students write down each letter of the alphabet going down the paper leaving room to write a word or a phrase that associates with the letter.  Before the reading or the lesson begins students will write fill in as many examples that deal with the topic as they can.  First students should work by themselves to try to fill in as much as they can and then they can work with a partner.  I like this activity because it is a good way to have students start thinking about key ideas of a certain topic while they are reading.  This activity can also be modified.  Instead of doing each letter students could do it in groups of 3 like ABC, DEF, etc, or in an acrostic way they could take the big idea and associate words with letters of that idea.  This is a good activity for all students because it allows them to associate their own words with the idea, instead of words that they may not know the definition to.  This strategy can really be linked to any part of the standard course of study, it depends on what area of the content it is chosen for.  This could also be used as a post reading activity where students use this to summarize the main ideas of a story or unit which fulfills skill goal 1.02.  Another aspect that I like about this activity is that it can be used individually and then also students can pair up together.  I think this is a very beneficial strategy that can frame or sum up a reading.

Strategy 1

Strategy 1

 

Laura Rollins

 

Anticipation Guide

 

Scaffolding Students’ Learning with Texts

 

http://www.greece.k12.ny.us/instruction/ela/6-12/Reading/Reading%20Strategies/anticipation%20guide.htm

I would use this before any type of text is read in my classroom. I like this strategy because it can benefit all of my students regardless of what level they are on.  Also this can be adapted for students who need a higher order thinking level.  This strategy could be used in conjunction with any type of article needed to fulfill aspects of the standard course of study.  A skill goal for goal 1 is for students to read for the literal meaning.  This pre-reading activity allows them to shape meanings for information throughout the text.