Class #5
Big Questions
• How do I DI with reading in my mixed ability classroom?
• How do I DI using student interest?
Homework reflection
• Meet with your Content Buddy and discuss your note-taking or readiness assessment worksheet that you created based on last class.
• Evaluate the statements that I hand out to you and come up with what you think are the top five statements based on the article.
In your reflection section…
• What are three things I should remember about last week’s class and information processing when I create unit plans?
Big Question #1
• How do I DI with reading in a mixed ability classroom?
Guided questions for reading
• Why focus on reading?
• How does teaching vocab help with reading?
• What is reading all about anyway?
• How can I make a difference in my students’ reading lives and therefore a difference in their performance in class?
Some facts
• What are the results of in-school reading?– Increased math scores– Improvement in discipline, attendance, and
self-esteem– Improvement in problem solving skills– Increased reading ability
• Double the rate of reading growth for average student
• Triple the rate for disadvantaged students
How much in-school reading is needed?
• Most students average 7 minutes daily in school reading throughout their school careers.
• High School students average 2 minutes a day.
• The Institute for Academic Excellence research indicates that to get results like those above, students must engage in 60 minutes of reading practice daily.
What does in-school reading look like?
• TWI
–To: read to the students as they read along
–With: students interact with each other in assisted reading.
–Independently: silent reading
Reading To: Read alouds
•Ambrose Beirce’s
The Boarded Window
Reading With
•Paraphrase passport
•Paired reading
•What is content literacy all about?
•How can I deal with content literacy in my own classroom?
Content Literacy
• After 3rd grade books stop being story books and start being expository or informational.
• The shift is fundamental and research proves that it DOES make a difference to teach content literacy.
Text-books
• How to read a textbook (literally)
• How to utilize non-text functions of a textbook.
• Content vocabulary is a given at this point.
• Scaffold the aid given in reading.
• Graphic organizers/reading questions
Reflection
• Big Question: How do I DI with reading in my mixed ability classroom?
• In the reflection section of your notebook think about how to better teach reading strategies given your specific content area.
• Meet with your content buddy and discuss how to deal with this.
Big Question #2
•How do I DI using student interest?
Pre-test
• Student learning style (Gardner)
• Student interest
Learning Profile
• A million learning style tests exist, use multiple tests for more accurate results.
• Design the overarching standard that you want them to meet and then design the project that allows them to reach the standard in different ways.
• RAFT(s) can do this as well.
Student Interest
• Create an interest survey before the beginning of each unit/lesson that allows you to assess what the students are interested in.
• Choice reading
• Choice assignments (contracts)
Tomlinson Ch. 9
• For reading this week you read over Ch. 9 on student readiness. Meet with your Profile Buddy and spend the next ten minutes discussing the chapter and the important points.
• Come up with the five most important things that the chapter says.
Reflection
• In your reflection section ask yourself two questions that you still have about Student Interest.
Homework
• Read Ch. 10 in Tomlinson
• Choose a reading strategy that you could use with your students and explain how/why?
• Bring material to work on your mid-term exam.