Category: reading and literacy

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Independent Reading Assignment With RSS

On Friday, I discussed using Google forms within my wikispace. To some, this is nothing new, but for many it was a simple and effective way of integrating some technology into ones classroom. Today, I want to focus on a reading strategy that I am using with my tenth grade English class. On my wikispace, I have several RSS feeds linked into a page. This page updates regularly and allows students to view the most current articles from The Philadelphia Inquirer, ESPN.com, NPR, etc. I tried to present an array of feeds rather than just one. The point of this assignment is to get students reading daily and to encourage reading independently.

Here is the assignment…

Every night students read one article from one of the five feeds I have selected. They must read the article, and then list three facts about the article, three questions they have about the article, one supported opinion and list and define any new vocabulary words they come across. They type this up in a Google Doc and save it. The next day, we spend about ten minutes discussing their reading and their findings. Again, this is a simple way of integrating technology into your class and will promote active and independent reading.

Students are always told what they have to read, this allows students the freedom of reading something they can select on their own and enjoy. As always, I appreciate your feedback and would love to hear your ideas for Independent reading and technology in your classroom.

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Independent Reading 1.0


This was a discussion prompt that introduced my independent reading unit. We just finished a unit on the fundamental literary elements: plot structure, conflict, point of view, characterization, etc. Students will now be applying these skills to their independent reading. I’m sending them out into the literary seas in search of adventure and intrigue. NOTE: This lesson is very 1.0 but I will apply how one can make it a 2.0 activity.


The question: Why do we read fiction?


Eager hands abound!

Some of the responses:

“For Fun”

“To learn”

“To expand our imagination”

“To be taken somewhere”

“To learn about another place or culture”


Yes! It’s working; they understand the purpose of fiction!


I decide to challenge their thinking further.


The question: Those are all good answers, but why should we waste time reading books that are not true?


Students pause momentarily; I can see the critical thinking wheel spinning feverishly.


A HAND!


“We read fiction to travel somewhere we have never been and to experience something new. Like I have never been to China, but I can go there through the author’s perspective.”


I pick myself up since I just fell over from this brilliant response. This question ignites another burning mind.


“We read fiction, like to be taken, say to the past, when we wasn’t around and find out about different historical events through fiction.”


Eureka! I am loving these responses (save for the use of proper English).


This was my class today. I started with a simple question and challenged students with critical thinking. Mind you, these students are all below reading level and were anxious about reading a book outside of our required text. Maybe, it was the aesthetically appealing covers of many new books, or maybe it was the new found ownership they all half over their novel, but what ever the case, they were thinking critically before cracking the page and by god, THEY WERE ENGAGED!


This project is intended for 1.0 instruction. I am not utilizing any form of technology until I first get my kids to read. Their responses are all done…get ready…in a packet. I know, this term is a sacrilege and completely against everything iTeach stands for. However, in one of my previous posts I mentioned using goodreads.com and shelfari.com to foster summer reading. Both of these sites would serve as wonderful forums for housing your responses and tracking the progress of your students. Although these sites work well for the summer reading project, I would definitely transition my packet into a wikispace. This allows for students to post responses, collaborate in a discussion and track their progress. For my students, I would recommend having some form of tracking method that would reward efficient, not fast, readers.


Please let me know if you are doing independent reading through 1.0 or 2.0 methods. My colleagues in the 9th grade are all setting the course in this independent reading project and so far we have had great success with our 1.0 project. I look forward to hearing about different independent reading projects and what your experience has been whether you are a packet or a PC.

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Facebook for Literature and History

In a follow up to my post on “Why is Everyone So Afraid of Social Networking” I felt that it was necessary to portray some of the positive elements of social networking. One of the foundations of social networking can be derived from psychological principles and the enrichment of the Ego. However, this is simply one side of the social networking process. The core of social networking begins with a common interest and spreads out to satellite communities. However, I feel facebook and myspace are not really social networks. The core of facebook was to bring college students together and you could only join if you had a university address. This core idea has since faded and expanded into a community of people adding “friends” daily and not even really knowing their affiliation. Mind you, this is not a universal trait, but when I polled my students on how many “friends” they have on facebook, there was rarely a number below 500. FIVE HUNDRED! Really, who can keep up with that many birthdays?

The original concept behind facebook falls into the social network definition, but the recent versions are simply millions of people accepting or denying invitations based on, and let’s be honest, looks or profile information, not a common network interest. With that said, I wanted to take the concept of facebook and myspace and apply it to literature or history. This lesson worked nicely in my classroom and feel that it can work in any classroom, even those without any form of technology.

Here is an outline of how the lesson should flow.

Objective: Create a “profile page” for one of the characters in history or literature.

Process:

1. Define a social network

2. Define what “facebook” is and what it accomplishes

3. Ask students how they can apply the answers to #2 to the characters we are reading in the novel or history.

a. EXAMPLE: In Lord of the Flies, who would be in Piggy’s social network? What would be his interests? What links might he share? What might be written on his wall?

4. Ask students to create a profile page for one character in the story. They have to include all of the following items:

a. Picture – Let them draw the picture because it promotes creativity and saves paper and printer ink.

b. Basic Information

i. Age

ii. Location

iii. Birthday

iv. Sex

v. Occupation

vi. Religious views

vii. Political views

viii. Favorite Music

ix. Favorite Books

x. Favorite Movies/TV shows

xi. Favorite Quote – This is a good way to get students to elicit an important passage that defines that character.

The best way to display these pages is limit each student or group to one giant post it page. Allow them 30-40 minutes to accomplish this task and make sure they don’t over due it by trying to be overly artistic. While being artistic is wonderful, remind them that this activity is for understanding the literature.

When you are finished with this activity use the sticky portion of the giant post it pages and hang them around the room. Have students present their pages and explain why they chose to design it that way and their rationale for selecting information. Have them explain why Piggy (from Lord of the Flies) is reading Robinson Crusoe.

Remember, this activity should be half creative and half factual evidence from the text. Also, the creative material cannot just be there to gain a laugh from your classmates. EXAMPLE: Jack from Lord of the Flies likes to listen to T-Pain’s music (No offense to T-pain, but it doesn’t fit Jack’s personality).

This activity fosters reading for understanding, understanding characterization and allows students to think critical and creatively when combing through a story. I use this activity every semester and it really brings out a good dialogue about the story and the characters we read. It enhances our class discussions and gives students a familiar device to remember character traits.

The idea of a social network is to build a community from a common interest. In our literature and historical texts, this concept is evident throughout. I think it should be a part of our teaching and aid in building our students’ understanding of characters and historical figures. I hope you like this idea and look forward to hearing feedback from those who have tried it!

Happy Memorial Day to all out there and let us take a moment this weekend to reflect on those who have done so much for this country. Thank you!

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Review of Visual Thesaurus

Today I am reviewing a great website that I found via a friend on twitter. The site is called Visual Thesaurus and is designed by Think Map. The site is a visual Thesaurus and Dictionary that breaks down words by using a web mapping platform along with categorical organization. What I did today was create three videos that show you how to use the Visual Thesaurus application, The Vocab Grabber Application and the Spelling Bee application. Each tool will help students see vocabulary and reading comprehension in a different light. The words jump from the pages and dance around on the computer screen in an organized fashion. I am very impressed with this site and their applications. I think every school district should put this software into their budget for the 2009-2010 school year and beyond. I know I will be using it in my classroom, will you?

As always, I welcome your feedback and experiences using these applications!
Enjoy the show…


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Book 2.0

Today’s post is not so much of a lesson, but what will become the future of reading. I’m referring to the Kindle from Amazon. Yesterday I read this article that chronicled the launch of Amazon’s Kindle DX. This new gadget immediately alerted my attention and got me thinking really fast about the future of reading and its effect on the classroom.

In its inception, I thought the Kindle would go the way of many other tech fads that try and replace a staple that has been a part of our lives and classrooms for years. Yes, the text book will be replaced someday! And when we are all wearing our conforming tin foil-ish jump suits and fulfilling all of the visions of Doc Brown in Back To The Future II, will we reflect on the good old days of the text book? It’s an interesting question that I have trouble answering. In a world were everything is getting smaller and more connected, books and newspapers have continued to be a part of our daily lives. However, with the recent economy down turn and the continuing rise of free news on the web, the old standbys are slowly, but surely being replaced.
My bold prediction; The Kindle DX will replace all forms of books and newspapers. When this happens, our classrooms will change as well. Let’s be honest, did we ever think the book or newspaper would be replaced? I did, but I know my father did not. So let us imagine a not so distant classroom and provide some scenarios that I can foresee via my Prophet App on my iPhone (NOTE: There is no prophet App, but give it time!).
At the beginning of the year your students come into class with your syllabus uploaded to their Kindle. They can view this anytime their Kindle is around because the newest incarnation of the Kindle has a PDF reader.
Your students sit down and you ask them about current events that they read this morning on their Kindle via their downloadable Newspaper subscription. They have access to the New York Times, Washington Post and the Boston Globe.
Your students are preforming research and have access to text books and journal articles that they can read on demand via the Kindle.
For homework your students are given their class book list and they must download all of their titles for the semester. Yes! No book numbers, no torn out pages, no graffiti, etc! A thing of beauty! And the best part is, once the book is downloaded on to the Student’s Kindle, they can have that book stored for years! We are building libraries in our students hands!
As long as students don’t lose their Kindle, they have access to thousands of books and documents. School Districts with a book bag policy will gladly welcome the lack of heavy text books when students can simply carry their Kindle to class and also avoid early back problems and scoliosis .

This is a lofty goal for me to imagine and there are plenty of downsides to this brave new book. The Kindle DX has a price tag of $489.99, however, I am sure the good folks at Amazon would welcome a school district discount. And what happens when our students lose this valuable piece of equipment? When you have a book, you replace it at minimal cost; a Kindle, not so much.
According to the article above five Universities will be piloting the Kindle DX next fall. It will be interesting to hear the results of this pilot program and discover new ways to incorporate this gadget into classrooms around the country. However, with any new technology we must take baby steps and see the pros and cons of it. I am not saying that the Kindle will end books in classrooms, but it stands a good chance of being in all of our curriculum sooner than later. As we storm forward in the 21st century we must be open to these new technologies and welcome them with patient arms. Things are changing faster than ever, and we need to proceed with a vision when incorporating new technologies into our lives. Especially when they are replacing trustworthy companions that have been with us for so many good years.