Final Exam Pecha KuchaJessica Acree

Good evening everyone. This is my Pecha Kucha presentation.This presentation is a culmination of everything that I have learned in this class throughout the semesterI will begin by discussing creating a foundation for the English classroom.1Creating a Foundation for the English Classroom

A successful classroom community promotes positive social skills and academic achievement. (Schoolastic) The NCTE website states that we as teachers must do seven very important things in order to create a foundation for the English Classroom. We must:

Planning for the long term Designing writing programs and literature curricula Creating effective assessment systems Implementing instructional strategies for writing, literature, media/technology, and basic skills Examining the curriculum through the lens of multiculturalism Attending to the needs of all studentsespecially those who require accommodations Giving back to the profession: pursuing a professional life outside the classroom

2Building a Classroom CommunityPositive social skills and academic achievement.

Students learn best when they feel like they are part of a community. Therefore, it is our duty to create a classroom community to promote positive social skills and academic achievement.3Critical LiteracyReading to understand the world!

Heather Coffey from the College of Education at the University of North Carolina states that critical literacy is, the ability to read texts in an active, reflective manner in order to better understand power, inequality, and injustice in human relationships. (Coffey 1) Therefore, as teachers we must use what we know of critical literacy to create activities and to select texts that will improve a students global understanding. 4Culturally Responsive English InstructionConnecting student background and interests.

Culturally responsive instruction makes a connection between students backgrounds, interests, and experiences to teach the standards-based curriculum. (Schmidt 1) This will ensure that learning becomes more meaningful for all students. Students at the secondary level are able to make connections between their own lives and the texts that they are reading, so why not make it easier for them and present them with possible connections. 5Social JusticeGuidelines and equality

One of the most important aspects in creating a successful English classroom, is social justice. Students should know that everyone in the class is created equally. A great way to show the students that they are all created equally is by giving them rules and guidelines. The rules and guidelines should be something that every student can do/or not do. It may also be a great idea to have students help create the rules and guidelines at the beginning of the year. 6Reading in the English Classroom

Now lets move on to reading in the English Classroom.

7Small GroupsLiterature CirclesBest Practices in Teaching Literature

The best practices in teaching literature may vary depending on the teacher and the students. For the sake of this presentation, I have focused on small groups and literature circles.

Small groups and literature circles are a great way to get students of all learning styles and learning ability involved in the reading.

8Literature and AssessmentHow do we do it?

Literature and assessment may be one of the most difficult elements of teaching for me. I am terrible at taking tests, and I dont want my students to have to feel that way. I do however know that I must test them some way.

Allowing students to be tested on their ability to articulate what they learned and felt during reading through a literature cirlce is my favorite way of testing. I know that I will also have to use standard methods of testing such as essays, multiple choice questions, and short answers. How you and I will test students will only come when we are able to understand our students and the ways in which they learn. 9Connections to Culturally Responsive English Instruction

As I have previously stated, we as teachers must be able to connect the content in the English classroom to a students background, interests, and experiences. We must also make that connection within that connection. While students may be able to see the connection between the texts and their lives, they must know why we have decided to present them with that connection. To assure that the students do understand the connections, we must make sure that the connections are relevant to both the content, standards, and students.10Writing in the English Classroom

Now lets move on to Writing in the English Classroom.

Steve Graham of Vanderbilt University states that, Effective writing practices have a proven record of success. In other words, they have been shown to be successful in enhancing students writing on multiple occasions. (Graham 4)11Effective Writing Instruction

Use Effective Writing SkillsFoster Creativity

Therefore, effective writing instruction is vital in imroving student writing. Using effective writing instruction in the classroom means that we must dedicate time to writing throughout the curriculum. We must also foster students interest and motivation to write since practice does make perfect. Finally, we must teach students the basic skills needed to write effectively. 12Providing Feedback to Student Writing

Providing feedback to student writing is critical in their improvement of writing. We have learned through the various video clips that we have watch throughout this semester what works and what doesnt. We have seen that students want feedback in a positive manner. As a teacher, we should not spend so much time telling the students what the are doing wrong in their writing, and focus more on the things that they are doing correctly. We have also discussed how using student portfolios of their progress throughout the year would be a great benefit for students. Students would be able to see how far they have come in their writing and what things that may still need to work on. 13Writing Workshops

Grammar Mini-LessonsTeaching Grammar in Context

Teaching grammar in context is very important in the English classroom. Grammar has been taught for many years in schools all over in isolation. Teaching grammar in isolation is done by giving students worksheets and asking them to pick out the nouns, verbs, adjectives, and so on. Many studies have shown that this method does not work in the classroom. Students learn grammar more effectively through context. Learning grammar through context consists of writing workshops where the teacher can have one-on-one time discussing grammatical issues in student writing. Grammar Mini-lessons are also another way of teaching grammar in context. Teachers should take what they have learned about the students and their grammar abilities through the writing workshops in order to create mini-lessons based on the grammatical issues that many of the students share. 14Connections to Culturally Responsive English InstructionFocus writing prompts on student interest.

Allowing students to write about what they are familiar with is important in student writing. As I have stated earlier in this presentation, students seem to learn more effectively, and are more attentive when they are able to make connections between the content and their personal lives. Therefore, it is important for teachers to create writing prompts that students will be able to relate to. This will ensure that even the most reluctant writers will complete their assignments, and the teacher will be able to assess each students writing abilities. For example, the student on the slide was asked to write about three things she enjoyed most in her life and why. This student chose to write about cheerleading, shopping, and boys.15Speaking and Listening in the English Classroom

Now, let me conclude my presentation by discussing Speaking and Listening in the English Classroom.

When we develop the speaking and listening skills of our students inside the classroom, we pave the way towards better language learning; students learn how to communicate better and listen more purposefully. (Manila University 1)For this reason, class discussion plays an important role in the classroom. 16Best Practices in Classroom Discussion

Students are beginning to think more concretely as they progress through their secondary schooling and are able to participate in more in-depth conversations. Discussion circles are a great way to get students involved in speaking about what they have learned in a specific text and how they feel about that text. These circles are also a great way to get students to listen to their classmates and to be respectful of everyones opinions. 17Fishbowl !!!Best practices in Classroom Discussion

Fish bowl activities are also a great way to promote positive speaking and listening skills in the classroom. When students are able to participate in this fishbowl activity they are given the opportunity to be both listener and speaker. The students in the middle of the circle are participating in a discussion of the text. Each student should have the opportunity to speak at least once. The students on the outside are observing the discussion while taking notes on what the students are saying based on the topic of discussion. If a student on the outside so wishes, they may go into the open chair (represented here by the student in the purple shirt), and ask a question or make a comment in reference to the topic18Facilitating DiscussionTeacher/Student Facilitators

Facilitating Discussion is very important in the speaking and listening skills of students. Without a facilitator, discussions can often get off track and end in disaster. Teacher can certainly be facilitators of whole grouped discussions by probing students with questions. Teachers could also give the students a few questions to focus on, give them a minute or two to come up with their answers, and then call on one student to begin the discussion. In small group discussions with a students facilitator, things can get a little shaky. Student facilitators should be given direct instructions, either written or spoken, that will allow them to successfully facilitate a group discussion. Student facilitators must also be fair and honest will working with a group of classmates. 19Personal Connection to DiscussionConnection to Culturally Responsive English Instruction

As writing and reading should be connected to student interest and experiences, so should discussions. We may find that some students have a hard time expressing their feelings towards certain topics in the English curriculum, but if we find a way to incorporate elements that the students are familiar with this will not happen. Students will in turn find it very easy to discuss information that they know and like. Therefore, creating questions that may be of some interest to students is very important in making the connection between the topic of discussion and the students interests. 20Christenbury, Leila. Making the Journey; Being and Becoming a Teacher of English Language Arts. Third ed. Portsmouth: Heinemann, 2006. Print.Coffey, Heather. "Critical Literacy." LEARN NC. Web. 09 May 2010. ."Creating a Classroom Community | Scholastic.com." Teaching Resources, Children's Book Recommendations, and Student Activities | Scholastic.com. Web. 09 May 2010. .Graham, Steve. "Effective Writing Instruction." Effective Writing Instruction: 1-12. Web. ."Image Result for Http://www.learningandteaching.info/teaching/graphics/fishbowl.gif." Google. Web. 09 May 2010.