Architecture of a Mini-Lesson July 11, 2009

The architecture of a mini-lesson is a topic that came up several times over the past week at the Reading Institute , not as something taught to us, but as a topic that was taken for granted to be already understood. I remember when I was at TC in March for the Literacy Coach Institute and I had such an “ah-ha” (or maybe “duh” depending how you look it at) moment myself about the mini-lessons, so I am going to share it here.

The structure of all mini-lessons is the same. If you have read Units of Study for Teaching Writing, you already know that. I did already know that, when it came to writing, but I came to a different understanding of it in March. Not only are the parts of the mini-lesson the same for a writing lesson, but they are the same for everything the teach, whether it be a Unit of Study in Reading, a math lesson, or even something at home you are trying to teach/explain to your children (or even your husband-Don’t clue him in if you are!)

Connection-Remind them of what they’ve learned/been taught yesterday (or recently).

               Do not make the mistake of asking, “Who can tell me what we learned yesterday?”. You don’t want cognitive dissonance-which often happens if a                              student volunteers a wrong answer and you keep calling on them until you get the answer you want. 

Teach-Explicitly tell them what you are going to teach them and demonstrate what they are going to do on your own work or a shared text,                                                                 such as the class read-aloud

Active Involvement (sometimes called Active Engagement)-You are scaffolding the children by providing an opportunity to do what you just modeled, either by                      themselves, or often with a partner (turn and try it). You want to vary the active engagement so it is not always stop & jot or turn & talk. Also try stop & think,                stop & list, stop & act out, or any other that works for your students. 

Link-link this to the ongoing work they’ve done and remind them how they should use/try what you taught them in their independent work

 

It is not just writing lessons, or just reading lessons, that can use this structure, it is all ways of teaching.

David Booth-Thursday’s TCRWP Keynote July 9, 2009

David Booth was a wonderful keynote speaker this morning to kick-off Thursday of the Reading Institute. His talk, “I am the book! When children find themselves inside the texts they are reading” was a great mixture of humor and seriousness. He emphasizes how children’s books (and literacy) has changed to include the things from children’s own lives (not in Dick and Jane books with the father in his hat at the breakfast table). He urged embracing all forms of literacy, including technological ones such as Kindle and Twitter.  Teaching reading is no longer the old image many people have of reading a book under a tree (see his reference to New York

er magazine cover ) but more like the Time Magazine Cover of Twitter (See below).

I found it interesting that Booth said we’ve never sold as many books as we did this year, but that the speed information is multiplying was some mind-boggling larger number. 

That it shouldn’t matter to us what shape the text takes, but that talking to children about what the book (in whatever form), reading, future plan on reading is still darn magical.  Teachers can change a kid’s life-that’s what’s dangerous (and magical). Don’t show a kid what your face would like if you’d sucked on a lemon for 100 years if they ask you for wrestling magazines or pokemon, view it as a way into a conversation with that child about their reading and the opportunity to learn and teach. 

David Booth got a standing ovation. A fantastic speaker if you ever get the chance to hear him.

 

I’m okay with Twitter, even though I had some doubts to start. It’s all in moderation-just like Facebook. 

You can follow me at bestbook.

 

 

Units of Study on Teaching Reading, Grades 3-5 July 8, 2009

A Reading UOS has been mentioned-publication date seems to be mid-school year. It’s co-authored by Lucy Calkins and Kathleen Tolan (and probably some others I don’t know about yet). It will be a firsthand publication through Heinemann.

Day 1 Reading Institute TCRWP Keynote Highlights July 8, 2009

Maurice Sykes

Maurice’s Inconvenient Truths:
1. The Joy of Childhood is becoming an endangered species.

2. An extreme strand of toxic waste called NCLB has pushed down curriculum and pushed out important work  

3. The achievement gap between middle class and impoverished children is real, significant, AND reversible. 

4. Regardless of zipcode, disability, race, gender, ethnicity, children need to be surrounded and supported by teachers. 

 

One of my favorite things he said was “All that I learned and all that I hope to be was learned in the company of children.”

 

Habits of Mind he talked about:

1. Persistence-don’t give up on your kids, yourself, or your beliefs

2. Manage impulsivity

3. Listen with empathy and understanding

4. Make an effort

5. Think flexibly

6. Think about your thinking (meta-cognition)

7. Strive for accuracy in communication-oral and written

8. Apply past knowledge

9. Be questioning and positive

10. Gather data with all senses

11. Try different ways

 

Don’t be afraid of risk. Insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results.

TCRWP continued… July 7, 2009

Two days and I have taken so many notes that my thumb is killing me from clutching my pen. 

A friend joked this morning about Lucy Calkins was going to take out a restraining order against me. HaHa. I arrived early to the first session, already having planned and scoped out where I was going to drink my latte and read my book the day before. Arrive happy to not have spilled latte on my white shirt, walk to comfy chair area, and notice that someone else is sitting there already-she looks up and who is it? 

I know you know.

 

But I’ll still tell you.

 

 

It was Lucy Calkins.

 

She was obviously going over her notes for the keynote address so I very casually pivoted past the comfy chair, left her to her privacy, and went and found a hard bench. 

I’m not stalking her-I just channel her energy and it pulls me magnetically to all things TC (just kidding!) . 

 

Homework tonight was to read The Art of Teaching Reading (ATR) Ch. 3, 5, & 6 as well as some handouts. I was glad to I only needed to read the handouts since I had read ATR in the past couple weeks.

Decided to reward/challenge myself to see if I could get myself from Columbia to Central Park and then to Times Square by public transportation (and not get lost!). Probably seems like nothing to many of you, but a BIG deal to me. Found the TKTS booth after a light rambling around and got a ticket to see 9 to 5 the musical. I LOVE musicals and it was a great one!

Day 1 Institute Homework July 7, 2009

Read the September Unit of the Curricular Calendar
Read about the components of Balanced Literacy (from binder)
Read about classroom libraries (from binder)
Read ATR (Art of Teaching Reading by Calkins) Chapters 4 & 7

Bring back the title of book you love
Fill out your personal reading log. Think about your personal reading goals.

Day One… The Teachers College Reading and Writing Project 16th Annual July Institute on the Teaching of Reading: Teach Me in the Key of Life July 6, 2009

Whew! What a great day! I am now sitting in my very dorm-y dorm room. Two major differences from when I was last living in an dorm room: A-it’s much nicer with AC and my own bathroom (although the mattress had me wishing for a hotel last night), and B-I’m drinking a beer while doing my homework (or avoiding it I guess by typing this).  

This is the largest TC Institute with people from 24 countries including Sweden, China (Shanghai, specifically), Iceland, India, and Kuwait; 38 states; and includes 90 principals, 6 superintendents and a total of 1374 participants! Wow! 

The day started with a Keynote by Maurice Sykes (Executive Director of Early Childhood Leadership Institute titled “The Courage to Teach the Joy of Teaching”. He was a FANTASTIC speaker and started with a poem by Mimi Chenfeld (from Columbus, OH!)

Teach Me in the Key of Life
by Mimi Brodsky Chenfeld

I am waiting for you
I have been waiting all my life
to spend this time
with you.

I am full of questions, adventures, wonder, curiousity,
imagination.
I am full of fears, doubts, confusions, nightmares, dreams.
I am the Cowardly Lion. I need a badge for courage.
So do you.
I am the Tin Man. So tight. I forgot about my heart.
How’s your heart?
I am the Scarecrow. Hangin’ so loose my brain feels unhinged.
Does yours?
Sometimes I’m
GrumpySleepyDopeyBashfulDocSneezyHappy.
Sometimes I’m seven new dwarfs as yet unnamed.

I love to sing.
I know the words to 2,437 songs.
Teach me through songs.
Let me paint, doodle, scribble, draw, carve, fix, sketch – DO.
I can’t keep still.
I’m a spaced-out, far-out, Star Wars, Superman IV, rock ‘n’ roll, disco,
punk, psychedelic, tuned-out, right-on, cool age, 
electronic, stereo, video games, computerized, technicolor, ten-speed kid!
I need action!
Keep it moving!

I love to read baseball cards, album covers, TV schedules, movie ads,
license plates, T-shirts, buttons, posters, cartoons, cereal boxes,
recipes, highway signs, historical markers, magazines, picture books, 
sad stories, weird poems, animal histories, lost-and-found boards…

Let me ask my questions – even if you don’t know the answers.
Dumb questions, like who started numbers?
Do caterpillars know they’re going to turn into butterflies?
Where does the white go when the snow melts?
Why does time fly?
How do we see?
What do you see?

It’s not my birthday, but every day can’t we celebrate SOMETHING?
Colors, seasons, Tuesdays, Mexico, circles, houses, maps, our names, numbers, one seed, our journals, favorite books, inventions, rivers, peace!
Can we celebrate our country on the fourth of October or the twelfth of May?
We don’t have school on the fourth of July!
Every day let’s celebrate SOMETHING!
Life – the wonder and power and miracle of Life – of being here, learning together, with all our fantastic powers.

Surprise me.
Amaze me.
Startle me.
Challenge me.
Try me.
Laugh with me.
Love me.
Teach me
in “the key of life,”
and I promise I’ll
surprise, amaze, startle, challenge, try, enjoy and love YOU!

 

 

 

Is it possible for the day to get any better than that? It did-next up was a large group session for Grade 3-5 teachers, principals and school leaders. Lucy Calkins walks on water for me-need I say more-I know there are at LEAST 1300 other people who agree with me (and that is probably a low count just for this 10 block radius!).

I skipped lunch to attend a session by Joe Yukish entitled “Looking Closely at Levels A-G”. I will post more about this separately, but I think it’s the most clear view of early levels I’ve ever heard.

We then had a small group session (about 22 people) with Tifany Davis Nealy that was also fabulous (even the assigning homework part! My husband says I’m the only one who could ever get excited about receiving homework-I don’t think he is right). I will also post separately about what we learned in small group session.

The closing session was “Creating a Richly Literate Culture in a Classroom and a School: Ten Transformational Ideas” by Mary Enrenworth, Deputy Director for Middle Schools of the TC project. 

There was then a welcome reception for out-of-towners in an outdoor courtyard. Who did I get to sit next to and talk to?  You probably won’t be too surprised when I say, Lucy Calkins of course, but I did not stalk her! She was at a table by herself and everyone was too intimidated to sit down at her table of 10. Well, that wasn’t going to stop me! Her table’s theme was How Can a School or Person Connect to the Teachers College Reading and Writing Project, Especially if You’re Outside of NYC? The second or third person who sat down was someone Lucy greeted by name with a question-The woman was so flustered she got red and had to compose herself for a second-why? Because she also recognizes the greatness of Lucy and getting to have a conversation with her in person. It’s good to recognize yourself in someone else-it makes us all feel more connected.

Another Book Give-Away July 6, 2009

Over at The Reading Zone, Sarah is giving away an autographed copy of The Astonishing Adventures of Fanboy and Goth Girl by Barry Lyga to celebrate her second blogoversary. Congratulations and THANKS to Sarah for all the great reviews! You can win by signing up for her newsletter and leaving a comment on any of her posts!

I have to say I remember reading her very first review of Into the Wild by Beth Durst and adding it to me To-Be-Read Pile.

Importance of Summer Reading for Children Continued… July 6, 2009

Reading is Fundamental has a great new article about “Summer Slide” (not the fun one). 

It’s a two-sided blade:

Those who read over the summer GAIN reading skills,

Those who DON’T read over the summer lose reading skills.

There is no option of doing nothing and having nothing happen.

Not choosing, is a choice with consequences in this situation!

Our Reading Histories July 6, 2009

I know it is not necessary to state that I love reading. I also love talking about reading. The other day at the pool, a friend and I started chatting about our childhood history of ourselves as readers. I’m not talking about when we learned to read, or how, or even our first book memory (all of which would have been interesting conversation fodor as well); we specifically were talking about our relationship with libraries and books as children.

My friend read mainly in the summer-I read year-round. She started with the A’s and read through all the books and then would mark the spot she left off to start up again next summer. 

I, on the other hand, would read through series until they were through and then move on. In between series and genres, I would comb the shelves alphabetically for books that I hadn’t read yet. 

Both of us LOVED biographies such as Angel of the Battlefield: Clara Barton or the few books that existed in an early version of a mail book-club such as Shoeshine Girl.  

Both of us are positive we read every book that was in our local public library as children.

Neither of us understand library summer reading programs that end in July! What is that all about? Doesn’t August count? Doesn’t a reading program that has an end date imply that children aren’t expected to read after that date?

Our other friends at the pool that day looked at us like we had a third hands. Meanwhile, we were just happy to have found a kindred spirit who understood that the little red wagon that was taken to the library, wasn’t for getting a ride home. It was a measuring device for how many books we could check out!