Tohatoha

 Ako, hanga, TOHATOHA

Todays session started of with sharing what our student created for homework.  Our one shot films about one of their favourite books they have read was a big hit.  Its interesting how fast and correct their mahi is when its something they love (filming themselves) and are very firmiliar with.  This is definately an activity I will implement into the years reading program, and will use through different topics and curricular.

Sharing their work is something my students have been very firmiliar with since we have been connected with Manaiakalani.  It is very important to our tamariki that they share their work to support and enhance their learning.

Sharing as part of feedback has been a practice that I neeed improvement on, sometimes the blogging is a lot and as a kaiako it has been sometimes difficult to manage.  Tracking and managing the kaiako and student feedback ensures that the student has an idea of what mahi their is to improve on and that they have achieved.  

Arohanui have been vdery consistant sharing they creations and tasks on their blogs. They also been commenting on other students mahi. Our next step is to encourage more kaupapa related readings and sharing of the information they have gained through their findings. Identifying and responding to new learnings and information.

Part of my mission this year and next is to get the whānau and home community to also support and respond to some of the mahi the tamariki share on their blog.

Arohanui: Tāhopumata Pukapuka Rikarika

 Hanga

All my students enjoy creation part of learning.  In wiriting they love drawing and quickly get started on mahi toi when given the opportunity, pāngarau some enjoy creating and playing kahoots, and in reading the students enjoy creating animations about a book or topic they are working on.  This week we looked at some of the students choices of text they enjoyed and wanted to share with others to encourage other tamariki or whānau to read the text they liked, through the one shot film.

This activity went of with a hit!  Here are some of the students and their short video about the text they enjoyed most this term.

Hanga - Create

 In my years of teaching I have seen many tamariki learn better through hands on mahi and activities.  When there is an opportunity for the learner to create something about the what they have read, they are able to express their ideas and/or thoughts.  The teacher is able to see how the learner has understood the text.  Through creative tasks the learner can also be prompt to think and extend their understanding.

Creating is empowering, and is part of the curriculum that requires multimodel.

Todays session shared some tools and ideas for create that tamariki can use in reading and other curricular.

However be careful when giving templates which could influence their own idea of response and be more teacher lead response.  Offer more opportunity for the learner to create their own response of the text.

More opportunity of choice and collaborating together in reading plan will make reading more interactive, enjoyable and fun!

AKO, HANGA, TOHATOHA!

Thinking

 Today we talked about the levels of thinking in literacy.  

In this session I learned about higher order thinking can be taught through modeling, response to text activities, and extended discussions.

I enjoyed and appreciated the variety of ways to encourage higher order thinking when working with reading materials, and extending the students thinking. I will be interested in using the activities in our class reading program.

We looked at 'Analysis' of a text which involved close reading and breaking it down to better understand the reading material. Looking at specific words and what they mean, and what the author is meaning. Learning to read between the lines, and beyond the lines.

We worked through a few activities that push for higher order thinking in a variety of ways.

As learners develop their understanding and appreciation of figurative language they need to make connections to the big ideas in, and across texts: 

Starting to build connections.

We looked at further interpreting and evaluating text. The following are activities which extend this for students.

I look forward to using these activities in the classroom this term and encouraging more group reading and shared reading through higher order thinking concepts and tasks.

Te Wānanga ki Te Tai Tokerau

I te pai te akoranga o ētahi taupānga puoro mai a Jacob Walker.  I hanga e au he waiata mai te taupānga puoro 'Song Maker'.

Pātaka Kupu - Vocabulary

I am looking at changing up my timetable for reading in the new term. The reading program that I am using right now is working, but I have made some additions. I am keen to set up mahi where the students are involved in indepentant activities, where they can check and or mark their own work. A spreadsheet system where the tamariki fil in when they have completed their mahi. Something like forms where it can be managed and measured.

This weeks session was very informative and exciting. Filling the room with vocabulary has always been important for the learners in the classroom. I appreciated the idea of a word wall where the tamariki are able to add new and difficult words to and do some mahi on these words for further understanding and use for the words.

Timetable

 I have not changed the timeframe of our class timetable, but I have changed and added a few activities and tasks for the tamariki.  Most of the tasks are independant work, and also encourage choice for the student.  All the changes that have been introduced have been from the ideas and information shared through the RPI program.  As a teacher I want the tamariki to want to read, and enhance their love for reading.  Reading is not just fot learning, it can be fun as well. 

A lot of the changes involves that tamariki making decisions about what book they want to read, what kinds of reading material there are, where can they get information they are looking for, and how reading makes you feel.  The students are also encouraged to share their work and explain why they are working on a specific reading.

We are using edublog more for presentation and hopefully soon it will be a platform for reflection and feedback from their peers and whānau.

Planning and Reading Programme

I appreciated learning about designing a reading programme. Especially seeing examples of other timetables for both teacher and students.

Time has been an obvious issue in my teaching practice where I have struggled to keep to the scheduled timeframes for each curriculum area, other teaching curricular (planning, marking, assessment, IEPs, prepping and my own learning), and other outside responsibilities. The information for timetables, independent learning, and tracking the progress of the learners work today really resignated with me today.

The different examples of timetables and must dos/can dos tasks empowers the learners.

I also appreciated the ideas for tracking the learning of the students, where the learner is also able to track their own progress and inform (through spreadsheet, etc) the teacher when they have completed each task. It empowers self management for thy student and creates more time for teacher to work in depth with small groups, and/or individual student.

Reading programme can integrate into other currucular.  Planning also involves links to other curricular, and this session extended on ways to further improve this for my practice.

I have also enjoyed the different activities that encouraged our own awareness of each area that was covered today. This has helped me to retain a lot of the information.

Thank you for the information on 'INFERENCE'

Classroom Set Up

This term I have worked on setting up a library in my classroom where the students are able to see, choose, and enjoy reading whether is be for reading program, silent reading, research and leisure reading.  It has been difficult using the information shared through the 'Reading Practice Intensive' (RPI) programme.  It certainly is intensive.  However the bits that are clear to me I have tried to integrate into my class reading sessions.  I have always known that reading is used throughout all curriculum, but now have tools to go into deeper thinking and strategies to increase the understanding of texts, different medium of texts, ways to increase the excitement and enjoyment of reading with the students.

Firstly I have set up a intentional library space for the students and connections to different topics.

Then I have set up a system that gets the students to choose their reader for the weekly reading tasks, and a text to read for silent reading, and enjoyment.  Both books they are given the oppurtunity to understand, talk and write about the text they are reading.  The students were issued library cards to use to get the texts they choose.  There are two monitors that manage the system.  The students have been very excited about the system as they are able to read the text of their choice.

The next plan is to connect the text to more kaupapa mahi the tamariki will be learning throughout the term.  

Guided Reading (& Comprehension)

Guided reading with strategic actions.

First of all its important to set time for guided reading, shared and independant reading.  DO NOT DISTURB this time.  

Be prepared and know the learning intentions for the students.  

This lesson today has reminded me that it is important for students to know what the learning intention is for the reading session.  It is important to be prepared with background background knowledge, vocabulary, and purposeful information.

The reading programme is connected to the kaupapa, which is also recognised in other marau.

I appreaciated the information about the difference between background knowledge and prior knowledge, and which knowledge to work on through the reading programme, as time is of the essense.  Also relevant and correct information is promted.

Ensuring their are connections between purposes and texts.  Also prompting discussion through questions and discussion about the text and information.

I enjoyed seeing examples of teachers at work for guided reading and their plans.  Especially the visual learning intentions and prompts for deeper thinking for the students.

RPI 3 Text Selection

There are many ways to get a selection of text and use this selection in a reading program.

I found the digital and audio information helpful for students that did not quite understand or hear the instructions, or that it was not as clearly explained.  

Todays session talked about grouping the students, grouping in levels or mixed.  The pros and cons.

I appreciated the information for mixed grouping and how that mixing the students extends on the cognitive level for the students reading, in most cases.  This session offered ideas and strategies for grouping to push the students ahead.

The flea jumping in a jar scenario was an eye opener for me in terms of knowing how stretch the learning of the student to their full potential.  Do not limit the potential.  Keep the lid of the jar.

Consider flexible grouping.  Reviewing the program and students regularly, change it up frequently, keep them alert and engaged.

Text selection.  There are a few ways to access a variety of text, diverse text, text of interest, digital text, etc.  

When learning a new topic teachers must consider a variety of text, genre, and how to present these set of text to the class.  Then understand how to teach the students to summerise the different text to extend the learning of the topic and/or learning intentions.

Summerising strategies.