We're past the half-way mark in the class and you're all trying moves learned in the units. Now it's time to share something you've learned, question, or has changed you as a teacher because of the Units of Study. Feel free to post a question, why you question it and ask people how they are responding in their teaching!
This week you need to get a post done before class on Wednesday and comments done before the class on Thursday the 16th. So instead of visiting once and posting/commenting in one visit you will post and then wait a few days to revisit and comment when there are plenty of posts to read and leave comments.
Title: Units (Your name) -- feel free to add "Aha", "Uh oh", and/or "Really" to the title if you want to highlight your particular focus.
Saturday, November 4, 2017
Units Lindy Uh Oh
My uh oh is remembering the online supports in my Heinemann account. As I prepared for last class I wanted to use a chart I saw in the guide but it was small and not reproducible. I searched the units, started creating my own, and then because of something else went to the online resources and there it was! I ended up creating my own because I was using it for K-2 homework but it was much easier to work with when I had the full page version versus the little inset. There is a lot in these resources and it is worth registering them and using them. If you aren't sure how let me know.
Thursday, November 2, 2017
Libby- Informational texts
As a young student I had difficulties reading nonfiction texts. I have never really enjoyed reading facts about specific topics and I would always find myself very distracted as I was reading. I remember being in elementary school and reading books on animals, states, different people and food. In elementary school all of this was exciting to me. I was learning about things I was interested in that I encountered daily. I loved my “state” project, where I had to read nonfiction texts to get information on Texas. I also remember reading a “how to cook eggs” book and taught my class how to cook scrambled eggs!
As I got into middle school and high school I started to dislike nonfiction texts. History was always something I struggled with, so assignments based on reading from a text were difficult because I was not interested in the material. Science was boring to me, and reading about different things like the life cycle of a plant or the layers of the earth was never fun for me. I dreaded classes where I had to read informational texts. I must say, however, I did have teachers who brought some fun to these texts. I liked doing hands-on activities that related to what we read because it would help me grasp the concept I wasn’t understanding through reading.
As an adult, especially in college, I really enjoyed informational texts. These texts had to do with teaching and different ideas and methods teachers have used in the past. Reading informational texts I was interested in was amazing! I felt like I gained so much information in regards to my profession, and I can always rely on informational texts for more suggestions and help when I am stuck. I think informational texts can be interesting at times, but when forced to learn about topics that may not interest you can be a challenge.
Wednesday, November 1, 2017
Karie- Nonfiction
I have found that my interest in non-fiction has grown tremendously over the years. As a child I do not remember reading a whole lot of non-fiction. As a 4th grader we had to do an animal report, I chose penguins, and I used mainly hefty encyclopedias to get my information. I hated this assignment, even though I loved penguins. Looking back now I don't remember using any of the great non-fiction books for this project that my students are able to use now. Maybe I did, but I don't really remember it. I just remember having the encyclopedias and trying to find information out of this huge boring (or so I thought) book. As I got older my source of non-fiction reading was in the form of a text book, for the most part. I'm not sure why I didn't read more of the non-fiction books available, as I'm sure our library was filled with great books, but I didn't. I'm not sure whether it was because my teachers really weren't introducing me to these great books, or was it that they tried but I just wasn't interested?
I do remember reading some great historical fiction and biographies that really helped me to step inside a certain time period. Reading about different places and times is something that I have always enjoyed, but we didn't do a lot of this at school. As I have gotten older I have really gotten into reading and researching local history. The local library, and the internet too of course, has wonderful first-hand historical archives of where we live. I am fascinated by old pictures of how things used to look when this area was just getting settled. I have found many first hand accounts of different events, such as the flood of 1927, that I have shared with previous classes. I even had a student bring in her grandmothers written account of the flood. It's great when history starts coming to life.
I am reading and looking at "real-world" books with the Kindergarteners and they love these books! Not only are there some wonderful non-fiction books for them to choose from, but non-fiction books speak directly to their natural curiosity about the world around them.
I do remember reading some great historical fiction and biographies that really helped me to step inside a certain time period. Reading about different places and times is something that I have always enjoyed, but we didn't do a lot of this at school. As I have gotten older I have really gotten into reading and researching local history. The local library, and the internet too of course, has wonderful first-hand historical archives of where we live. I am fascinated by old pictures of how things used to look when this area was just getting settled. I have found many first hand accounts of different events, such as the flood of 1927, that I have shared with previous classes. I even had a student bring in her grandmothers written account of the flood. It's great when history starts coming to life.
I am reading and looking at "real-world" books with the Kindergarteners and they love these books! Not only are there some wonderful non-fiction books for them to choose from, but non-fiction books speak directly to their natural curiosity about the world around them.
Shelby & Nonfiction
When I think back to my nonfiction life as a young reader, I am immediately brought to science and social studies classes where I had to read a chapter and answer the questions at the end. Quite honestly, I found this to be quite painful. I attended to basic comprehension, but never became overly excited by much of the content. I didn't ever really preview the text or use text features to help me become more engaged, and I don't believe that I was ever explicitly taught how to.
We read all of the time in our house, but the texts we shared were primarily fiction. Although, Lindy's posts did remind me of how much I enjoyed the encyclopedias when we got them! We also were surrounded by my "parent's nonfiction", such as professional reading, newspapers, magazines - Reader's Digest, hunting magazines, National Geoprapic, etc. However, I don't remember ever really reading those with them.
In school, we also had current event work. I did enjoy this time because it allowed for the element of choice, not something we were regularly given! However, I also remember this feeling like the same assignment EVERY week for entire decades at a time!
As an adult nonfiction reader, I really enjoy professional texts. These come in many forms, such as paper copies, Kindle, Audiobooks, internet based articles, apps, etc. The possibilities are endless. I also love historical nonfiction and narrative nonfiction. I tend to gravitate mostly toward topics of interest, and also to avoid reading texts that are bogged down with heavy academic/scientific language. Lastly, I've really begun to enjoy books about self-help and making life changes.
We read all of the time in our house, but the texts we shared were primarily fiction. Although, Lindy's posts did remind me of how much I enjoyed the encyclopedias when we got them! We also were surrounded by my "parent's nonfiction", such as professional reading, newspapers, magazines - Reader's Digest, hunting magazines, National Geoprapic, etc. However, I don't remember ever really reading those with them.
In school, we also had current event work. I did enjoy this time because it allowed for the element of choice, not something we were regularly given! However, I also remember this feeling like the same assignment EVERY week for entire decades at a time!
As an adult nonfiction reader, I really enjoy professional texts. These come in many forms, such as paper copies, Kindle, Audiobooks, internet based articles, apps, etc. The possibilities are endless. I also love historical nonfiction and narrative nonfiction. I tend to gravitate mostly toward topics of interest, and also to avoid reading texts that are bogged down with heavy academic/scientific language. Lastly, I've really begun to enjoy books about self-help and making life changes.
Darby & Non-Fiction
Nope, not a fan. Given a choice, I will choose a novel every time. Even my immediate choice for our non-fiction book group was Night because of it's narrative style.
Do I ever read non-fiction? Of course I do. When I scroll through social media, I click on a dozen articles every night. Things that draw my attention are professional, political, mindfulness, environment, but truthfully, I scan these pieces looking for the most saliant bits of information.
As a student, I remember the first research paper I had to write in 6th grade. It was on sheep. I was in 4H at the time and my family had just acquired a couple of sheep, and we were all about raising them. I remember the stack of books I took home. Frankly, in class, the larger the stack, the more impressive. Encyclopedias, old books with yellowed pages and black and white photographs. They even had a funny smell. Using the table of contents, the index, trying to take notes on the most important pieces. It all seemed important. The most useful book want called Raising Sheep the Modern Way. Again I was most drawn to the pictures and diagrams of different breeds, how to build feeders and hay racks, and fuzzy lambs grazing the hillside, but for the most part it was dry and uninteresting. I read it because I had to and I could make some connection to what was in my back yard.
Do I ever read non-fiction? Of course I do. When I scroll through social media, I click on a dozen articles every night. Things that draw my attention are professional, political, mindfulness, environment, but truthfully, I scan these pieces looking for the most saliant bits of information.
As a student, I remember the first research paper I had to write in 6th grade. It was on sheep. I was in 4H at the time and my family had just acquired a couple of sheep, and we were all about raising them. I remember the stack of books I took home. Frankly, in class, the larger the stack, the more impressive. Encyclopedias, old books with yellowed pages and black and white photographs. They even had a funny smell. Using the table of contents, the index, trying to take notes on the most important pieces. It all seemed important. The most useful book want called Raising Sheep the Modern Way. Again I was most drawn to the pictures and diagrams of different breeds, how to build feeders and hay racks, and fuzzy lambs grazing the hillside, but for the most part it was dry and uninteresting. I read it because I had to and I could make some connection to what was in my back yard.
Jess & Non-Fiction
When I think back to myself as a student and reading non-fiction I feel that it was mostly during science and social studies time. I remember pulling out that thick text book and reading as a class round robin and then answering in writing the questions at the end of each chapter. When I was reading during a reading block, I really remember only reading fiction, but I'm sure that at some point I did read non-fiction but not for enjoyment.. I too remember using encyclopedia's. I don't think I was lucky enough to have a set at my house, but my grandparents did. I remember accessing them for school reports. I can't say I was really interested in non-fiction or an avid reader. Howefver, now as an adult. I find myself reaing a lot more non-fiction. I will read how-to articles about how to make things, (food and craft related). My son loves to read non-fiction books about animals, and watch videos/documentaries, etc. I feel that in this day it is so much easier to learn about something of interest than it was many years agao. YOu would have had to take out a big old encyclopedia, page through to get to the part you needed read it and take notes. NOw, with the push of a button, you can talk into your phone with your question and within 5-10 seconds have a world of information at your finger tips.
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