Unveiling the Underlying Messages

                I think it’s true that sometimes we would like to think that we live in a utopian society, where all people are treated equally and everything is always peaches and cream.  However, that is far from the truth.  The same perceptions of race, women, men, etc. are still reinforced into minds of our students today.  During my undergraduate years, one of my classes asked us to explore how advertisements alone have formed our society’s view of women and the impact it then has on them.  Time after time, ad after ad, women were shown phenotypically flawless.  They had not a single blemish on their face.  They were tall, thin, and had perfect hair.  Usually, these commercials also depicted these perfect women, who had used whatever product they were advertising, being attractive to men.  There is no doubt that seeing this kind of image repeatedly has some kind of effect on a woman’s psyche.  Not only does it affect women, but it also has the potential to affect the expectations that men have for women.  Girls need to know at a young age that they have the ability to be strong, smart, and independent women. 

                Race is another issue that often seems to be stereotypically defined.  Although the underlying message is not funny, I could help but chuckle at the description of the Indians from Looney Tunes.  It’s absurd that we would even think to state that they are incapable of a civil and productive life.  Also, it is so true that the hero or heroine is usually a white.  Why is that?  What does that say about our “modern” society today?   

                Children are exposed to this material everyday on the TV so why would we as teachers want to keep feeding these stereotypes to our students through their literature?  We must be conscious of what we have our children explore.  As our students get older and become more conscious about their appearance (e.g. 6^th grade or so), we could address some of these myths into the literature that is assigned to them. 

Literacy in the Modern World

I found Literacy Moves On to be a very intriguing read.  The “more modern” examples of literacy that it provided really helped me to understand the basis of this class.  Because children are submerged into the pop culture, it is important that we as teachers meet them in the middle to help their learning experiences be more meaningful.  Reading this article took me back to our literacy dig that we completed within the first couple weeks of class.  Although I’m not exactly sure why, I never seriously considered body language and simple gestures to be body language.  However, it is!  Although unintentional or subconsciously at times, we often speak through our motions.  I wish that I would have taken a closer look into the nonverbal language used at the park. 

Another valid point that this article made involved the need to teach children the value of responding critically to text.  So often, it seems that we take the information that we read for face value.  It is imperative that we encourage students to become inquisitive and promote higher ordered critical thinking skills.

I also really enjoyed reading The Inner World of the Immigrant Child.  It is amazing how much you can really learn about students and their feelings by analyzing their writing.  Reading about the feelings of isolation and challenges that the students faced and then observing the ways in which that transferred to their filmstrips was very interesting.  Seeing the students get so involved in their mini-movies really inspired me!

MGRP Reflection

In each one of my classes, I have consistently heard about project-based learning, which creates a student-centered learning environment to allow students to construct their own knowledge. To me, the MGRP is a good example of such a project.  While students have an opportunity to research material that is of interest to them, they also, perhaps unknowingly, are being introduced to many standards within language arts.  As a teacher, students are able to be formatively assessed by periodically checking in with them.  Also, summative assessment is completed through the works that student’s generate. 

Although I was very skeptical of my ability to write in genres other than expository, I was able to note that I do have the ability.   Furthermore, I realized that I already write in many of the genres that I chose; I just wasn’t fully aware of it.

I could definitely see myself incorporating this project into my classroom.  If I were to assign this activity, I probably wouldn’t require the research paper to be quite as long, merely because my students wouldn’t be quite as skilled in the task of researching.  The researching process would also be much more laborious for them.  I did like that we received feedback about our research paper before we continued with the genres.   Also, turning in the research paper before all the other genre pieces made the project seem much more manageable.   Because many short stories that are included in literature books often lend themselves to other genres, a miniature version of this project could be used as a simple writing assignment in which the students pick a part of the story to recreate through a different genre of writing of their choice!

I CAN do it!

As Cindy (pseudonym) was taking her gifted and talented entrance exam, her eyes became wide, eyebrows raised, and the smile that she normally wears had turned upside-down.    It quickly became clear to me that she was distressed and a bit overwhelmed by the page that lay before her.  After of few minutes of staring at the test, I noticed that she was discretely pulling out her small dry erase board and marker from her desk.  Intrigued, I continued to observe her.  Thinking that she had given up, I expected that she would begin to doodle.  However, I was surprised to find that she was actually writing, “I can do it!”  Before picking up her pencil to fill in another bubble on her scantron sheet, she had written this statement three times.   I was touched, encouraged, and inspired all at the same time. 

                Reflecting on my observation of Cindy’s experience several weeks ago is still very inspiring to me as I continue to work on my MGRP.  From high school forward, I feel that I was really only provided with the opportunity to write expository pieces.  Consequently, I often feel that my abilities to write in other genres are diminished.  Just as looking at the test questions overwhelmed Cindy, looking at all the different and artsy genres that exist almost have the same effect on me, but forcing myself out of my writing comfort zone is a challenge that I embrace.  Because like Cindy, I CAN do it!

Keeping an Open Mind

Stanza, meter, rhythm, and rhyming schemes are all terms that quickly come to mind when I think of poetry.  Similarly, I could add daunting, stress, and anxiety.  As you may be able to gather, my experiences with poetry have not been so great.  Although I do enjoy reading poetry, I’ve never considered writing it to be my forte.  For some reason, I’ve always felt really constrained by the "rules" of poetry, but perhaps this is because my definition of poetry is constrained. 

Reading Chapter 4 in Allen’s book reminded me of the many types of poems that do exist.  They don’t necessarily have to contain repetition and rhythm.  Instead, they can focus on capturing voice (e.g. double voice poems) or constructing a list of descriptive characteristics.  When I think of these alternatives, particularly the list, poetry doesn’t seem to be quite as overwhelming. In fact, as I was reading the list poem on page 46, I thought to myself, “I could write that!” 

 Not only did this chapter broaden my perceptions of poetry, it also instilled a bit of confidence within me.  Last week I had totally marked the genre of poetry off the list of possibilities for my MGRP, but after reading this chapter and exploring the different types of poems that exist, I’ve begun to at least consider reinstating it. 

Furthermore, I feel that re-examining my views of poetry is essential as I enter the classroom as the teacher becuase I will have the opportunity to set the tone for each lesson.  If I maintain my feelings of drudgery against poetry, I could unnecessarily turn my students off to writing it, causing them to think to that it is a chore. Because imposing a negative mind-set is definitely what I don't want to do, I must keep an open mind and remind myself I CAN also write poetry.

Learning THROUGH Experience

                   Reading the article about situational learning through the empowerment model by Powell and Davidson took me back in time because I experienced a similar learning experience in second grade.  My teacher had designed his classroom to function as a mini-economy.  As students, we received a paycheck each week for completing both our homework and our designated jobs (e.g. board-eraser, line leader, attendance-taker, etc.).  Our pay was based upon merit so we had to do the job and do it satisfactorily to be paid.  Because a paycheck really has no value if there is no money, we had a bank in addition to bank books.   Your check could be cashed to spend at the general store that was located in the classroom or put into a savings account.  The benefit to putting your money into savings, of course, was that it would accumulate interest.  As a student, it was your responsibility to keep track of your money and your savings account.  As I mentioned, the general store was there for the purpose of purchasing little knick-knacks or school supplies.  The added benefit to saving your money was the auction at the end of the year, where books and other educational items were auctioned off.  All businesses within the classroom were student run! 

                By learning in this environment, math was made practical to students because we were learning through experience, and our teacher would refer to the status of the economy by integrating it into his lessons.   This real-world application model has always been something that I have wanted to integrate into my own classroom.  Prior to reading this article, I had always focused on how I could further capitalize teaching math through this experience.  But Powell and Davidson helped me to realize how I could take my project a bit further by taking advantage of all the literacy that is inherently incorporate, but I have just overlooked in the past!  I could easily include real-life paperwork processes and have the students look for patterns in the words that they write like those described in the article! 

                Overall, I am just more excited about implementing this kind of project-based learning into my class!  Any suggestions or critiques that you have for this kind model of situational learning is welcomed!

Observing Literacy in the Classroom

Although our field experience has only been underway for two short weeks, I feel that I have already benefitted and accumulated more knowledge than I ever expected.  Watching my cooperating teacher (whom I will call Mrs. Doe) teach has allowed to realize more than ever that literacy and the priniciples that surround the subject of language arts are truly embedded into every single aspect of our lives.  And, Mrs. Doe only seems to drive this point home as she never fails to pass up an opportunity to relate the subject she is talking about back to the basics of reading and writing.  For instance, rather than always testing her students on the material that they have learned in science through the standard multiple-choice test, she is a strong proponent for allowing them to write about what they learn.  This writing analysis may take on a creative form or may be more objective.  She has also pointed out that lacking fluent reading skills creates difficulties with mathematics since math problems are not merely computational but instead require comprehension skills.

Fortunately, Mrs. Doe is also a big advocate for letting teachers-in-training, i.e. people like me, become actively involved in the classroom by engaging with the students.  Each week that I have been in her classroom, she has allowed me the privilege of leading a small reading group that merely consists of faciliating questions at the proper time as the students read aloud.  Seeing the proficiency of these readers is quite amazing!  However, it is undeniable that some of the students are not quite on the same reading level as their peers.  When these particular students read, I have noticed that those who are more fluent readers often have difficulties following along because they come bored or simply find it hard to follow along.  For the future, I wonder if anyone has any effective strategies for helping these more fluent readers keep interest while their peers, who may not be at the same level, read.

Indirectly generate personality and creativity into writing BEFORE picking up a pencil?!

Writing is personal, and writing is creative.   So why don’t we allow students to experience these feelings before they ever pick up a pencil to write?  I think that Hale makes a valid point in stating on pages 196-197 that we can spark enthusiasm for writing by simply setting aside time for students to decorate their writing notebooks.  Although it seems to be trivial, I think that we may be incredibly surprised by the reactions.  I think more than anything it gives students a sense of ownership and pride in their work.  When the outside of the notebook reflects their masterpiece of art, I think it could help them realize that the writings within the notebook are also amazing works of art.  Because these works of art are theirs, they are personal to them.  I actually have seen a similar idea put into practice this past week in my field experience.  The students received new social studies workbooks, but these workbooks weren’t your typical run of the mill workbooks; they had blank covers.  Because the focus of the unit was going to be on community, the students were given the opportunity to let their creative juices flow as they were supposed to decorate the cover according to the things that they enjoyed about or linked them to the community.  Some decided to cut and paste pictures of their favorite local basketball heroes while other opted to draw pictures of their family.  Nonetheless, it was an activity that the students really seemed to enjoy…because it made social studies more than just a school subject; it became personal. (Whether this excitement translates over to the following week when they actually have to complete the first page of the workbook might be a different story, but I’ll keep you posted!)

Just as the decorated notebooks can generate enthusiasm for writing, the location may also.  Hale suggests that teachers create “writing spots”, consisting of a small space that is designated for writing that is decorated with beanbag chairs and a small table, nothing fancy, but nonetheless special.  Recently I read a book by Esme Raji Codell entitled Educating Esme, a personal diary of a first year teacher in the inner-city of Chicago.  At one point in the book, she describes how uninterested her students were in reading so she creates a “time machine” out of a refrigerator box by decorating both the inside and outside.  The idea behind this was that reading books allows students to travel back in time.  Her students were absolutely excited about it, and everyone wanted a turn!  Thinking about this makes me think that it would be ideal to have these “special” areas in a classroom, but in both instances that I mentioned, they were used as an incentive for good behavior.  This makes me wonder if designating these spots for use as an incentive is really a good idea?  Because these writing spots are indeed special, I think that it would subconsciously spark an intrinsic motivation for students to write when they have the opportunity to utilize the space.  Yet, because there is always a chance that a teacher could be partial to one student over another, this would mean that perhaps all students would not get to experience the “writing spot” and thus not be able to experience the subconscious motivation that comes from being there.   Would drawing names out of a hat be a more fair way? 

Time is Key!

              In chapter 6-9, Hale suggests a variety of crafting techniques that teachers can choose to implement within their classrooms.  My personal favorite:  Try-Its!  I totally agree with her that it is more likely for students to have an intrinsic motivation to really learn a concept if they anticipate that they are going to publicly share their version of the craft being put into practice.  Another thing that I really like about Try-Its is the versatility that the technique encompasses; it can be used for basically any lesson that you are trying to stress!  Also, they aren't designed to take up a lot of time, and time, as I learned from subbing in a fifth grade class on Friday, is a very valuable thing. 

                Within the Try-Its section, she points out the usefulness in telling students to begin writing after you inform them that they only have an allotted time period to compose their thoughts on paper.  Honestly, I don't know that I would have found that point to be that important if it weren't for that same fifth grade class.  From the minute the bell rang, it seemed that we were falling behind schedule.  For the first few subjects that I was teaching, I just pushed through trying to teach well given the amount of time, but the students really wanted to talk rather than listen.  So, after they returned from art, it was time for science.  Because the students were working in stations, a certain amount of time was allotted to each station, and I made sure that they were aware of this.  It was amazing to me to see how much more efficiently they worked.  I think that providing them with a time limit in some ways may provide them with a sense of responsibility, in that they know that they have to complete a task while meeting deadline.  Although this really did seem to help most of the students, I can't help but wonder how many students felt that the imposed time limit brought on a sense of anxiety.  Would the benefits of using this technique outweigh any risks? 

                Another point that Hale makes in this section of reading is that it is important to pick your battles.  Analyzing an elementary student's work for assessment is key to ensure that you choose to seize the right instructional point at the right time.   Because this can be an undoubtedly arduous and complicated task at times, I am thankful that she included many real-life examples with suggestion of how she would approach the sample.  I feel that these examples allowed me to align my thinking with hers a bit more than before! 

Critically Thinking about the Craft of Writing

Writing: it's a skill that serves many different purposes.  From making a grocery list to composing a research paper,  writing is a inevitably everywhere.  For some individuals, especially those who are just learning, the task may seem daunting.  As elementary teachers, it will be our responsibility to inspire children to overcome their hurdles.  Elizabeth Hale, author of Crafting Writers K-6, offers several suggestions on ways to approach how to write, but there is one method in particular that stood out to me.   Although this many seem obvious, we know that there is a direct correlation between reading and writing; additionally, many of the books that children read involve pictures.  These pictures are not just arbitrary, but they instead fit within the context of the story and reinforce the plot, providing imagery as a means of summary or an alternative way to read the text.  Since children are exposed to this early on, why don't we teach children, particularly those who have "writer's block", to write based off an illustration that they draw rather than to base an illustration off of what they write?  To me, it seems that this process would allow for the kids to subconsciously get their creative juices flowing.  Incorporating numerous details by "zooming in" on a particular area of a "whole story drawing" would allow for a bland story to come alive.  As seen in Figure 1, I drew a picture that I think would be typical of an elementary student.    To be quite honest there is nothing overly interesting about this picture on a surface level; however, if the student took a closer look at the boxed region of Figure 2, a more interesting story could develop.



Figure 1:  A "whole story" picture" that an elementary student may try to draw. 





 Figure 2:  The boxed region is representative of the zoomed in portion from which a student may be able to add details.



               If the student were to "zoom in" on  the boxed portion Figure 2, he or she may be able to ask questions that allow for a more detailed story to unfold.  Why would a bee have the desire to fly around a flower?  Was it the smell of the flowers that drew the bee or the vibrant colors?  What kind of scent: sweet or sour? Is the bee going to land on the flower? If yes, for what purpose? Are there any sounds that may be heard (e.g. the bee buzzing)? I think you can get the idea.   As an elementary student, I never applied this method, but I truly think that it would have helped me to think about how an interesting story  could develop if I had learned that there is nothing wrong with drawing a picture first. 

                Not only did I consider some of the approaches that Hale suggested, but I also began to think about the writing process, itself, in a whole new light.  For some reason, I have never directly labeled  the writing process to involve critical thinking; instead, I ignorantly have reserved the this term for subjects like math and science.  I mean how could critical thinking linked to writing? At best, I would consider critical thinking to be linked to the content within the writing rather than the writing, itself.  But a light bulb went off when I began to read page 78.  Here, Hale suggests allowing students to discover the ways in which punctuation affects reading and writing for themselves rather than just explaining it to them.  By completing an exercise like this, students are forced to use their critical thinking skills to make a connection between how something is written and how something is read or even interpreted.  Furthermore, since every story contains some kind of punctuation, a writer has to put on their "thinking cap" and begin to think critically about " every mark on the page" since there IS a meaning behind every single mark that a writer includes.  Thus, the act of composing a sentence involves as much critical thinking as the process to develop the content within each sentence. 

In conclusion, from this reading I was able to discover new methods for crafting good writers through the "zooming in" method that can be applied to not only illustrations but also sections of writing. Equally important, I was also able to shift the way I typically regard writing.  Little did I know that I was subconsciously underestimating the power that a sentence can hold when crafted thoughtfully.  

Learning to read and write "every mark on the page"

I found the Cusumano article entitled "Every Mark on the Page: Educating Family and Community Members about Young Children's Writing" to be beguiling and informative. Because my extended family is close, my parents and I visited my 7-year-old cousin's school last spring for a program that showcased the work that the kids had done over the year. Among the pieces on display were writing samples. Although I didn't vocalize it, I must admit that I also began to subconsciously critique her work in the same manner that many of the parents that Cusumano describes: I looked at the grammatical conventions rather than focusing on the content and the ideas from which the stories were comprised. Like many of the parents, I think my assessment involved ignorance, simply because I didn't really stop to consider that at this stage in her writing career it truly is more important that she be able to express her thoughts than be able to express them correctly. Thus, I believe that it will be imperative for me, as a teacher, to effectively communicate with the parents of my students so that they are aware of what I am looking for in their child's work and where I believe their student should be. Moreover, I like the approach that Cusumano took by strategically showing parents the works of students who were a grade level below and above in order to visually suggest where their children are coming from, at now, and going to be developmentally.


Although I am aware that the content of writing is important, I also know that grammar is too. As children hone their critical thinking skill and learn to write them down, they should also be learning to construct effective sentences. Throughout reading the Cusumano article in addition to the assigned chapters of Sound Systems, I found myself wondering what the best approach would be for pointing out the mistakes found in students' writing. Coming up with mini-lessons was one suggestion that Cusumano gave, and it seemed that she looked down upon simply identifying them for the students to correct; however, I would how effective peer-editing would be. It seems that not only would students be able to test their own grammatical knowledge, but they would also be given the chance to hone their reading skills. Also, would identifying spelling mistakes by merely circling the misspelled words and then having the student look up the correct spelling in the dictionary be an effective approach? I am interested to know what others think about these ideas.

It is no secret that reading and writing are invariably linked together. I really liked the suggestion of utilizing a "print-rich classroom" found in chapter 6 of Sound Systems. In this section of the text, the authors proposed picking a sound (e.g. long "a" vowel sound) and having the students "read the classroom" to discover words from displayed writing samples that the children had composed, bulletin boards, or other posters within the class. The identified words would then be listed on the board so that they could be sorted according to the letters that were involved in making the sounds. What a great technique for interactive and collaborative learning, granted that the words from the children's samples were spelled correctly!

Overall, I found these readings to be inspiring by providing me with many useful tools that I could potentially use as a future language arts teacher!

A Walk in the Park: Observing Literacy in Action

In an attempt to observe literacy in a real life context, five of my colleagues and I visited a local park. It was my goal to carefully listen for characteristic words or phrases that would be exclusive to this location. Indeed, words like "slide" and "swing" were heard, but I soon realized that the uniqueness of the language wasn't merely found in the vocabulary, itself; it was the connotation behind the words being said that distinguished the language found in this area from other places in society. For instance, I overheard a little boy say to his seemingly younger brother, "I'm going to push you." In many instances with children, especially siblings, this sentence would indicate that they were quarrelling with one another; however, in this case, instead of fighting, the brothers were getting along. In fact, the older brother wanted to be of service to his younger brother by simply pushing him in the swing. Furthermore, a grandmother was repetitively instructing her granddaughter by stating, "out and then back, out and then back." Although "out" and "back" individually often have a very specific meaning to many people, in this context, they are grouped together with the purpose of teaching a child how to effectively propel herself in the swing.


Not only was uniqueness found in the language spoken, it was also observed in writing around the park. There were a series of x's and o's found in a 3x3 block. Is it likely that these same letters are signifying hugs and kisses as they would if they were found at the end of a love note? Probably not; instead, they were intended for the children to play a three dimensional, interactive version of Tic, Tac, Toe.

In addition, there was a large mural on the ground with a quote by G.B. Shaw that encompassed the picture and read, "We don't stop playing because we grow old. We grow old because we stop playing." This is certainly not a quote that would be appropriate in all settings, but it is definitely suitable for the park, a place intended for family oriented activities. It serves as a friendly reminder to parents and grandparents that it is okay to simply forgo the busyness of life for a bit and take on the imaginative mindset of a kid again.

When I reflect on my experience at the park, it really does seem fascinating to me that words can easily become variables with unknown meanings or definitions when they are removed from context.  Phrases or vocabulary found in the park have the potential to mean something completely different elsewhere. Who knew that a walk in the park could prove to be so educational?

Response to Blogging and "That's online writing..."

There's no doubt that writing is an essential for communicating anything from personal feelings to a friend in the form of a letter to educating the public about advances in the scientific world.  Thus, learning to become an efficient and effective writer is an integral part of education, especially early childhood; however, many of teachers do think of writing as jotting down personal thoughts that eventually form a coherent story. 

After reading the article by Witte, it does seem that blogging can be an interactive form of expression, making the process of writing more collaborative.  The feedback that students can receive about their writing can be a good source of encouragement because they can see that people care about what they are writing.