Week Four- Discovery Streaming

I did not know that Discovery Education offered so many other things for teachers. I have always been aware of the videos that this site has to offer. I recently found the teacher section and played around on it. I love the writing prompt tool. We used it recently in Tech Rep Boot Camp. I can't wait to share it with our fourth grade teachers. I really think they will like it and find it as a useful way to integrate technology into their writing curriculum. I know the fourth grade kids really get tired of writing. I believe that using the computer to accomplish this task would freshen things up for the kids and make them feel as if it is not just another pen and paper task that we are asking them to do.

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Chapters 4-6 Guided Reading

Now that we have background knowledge on the Guided Reading program, we can start researching the means for incorporating it into your own classroom. Chapters four through six begin detailing the implementation process. Chapter Four: While reading chapter four, I found myself thinking about the word, "purposeful". The principal at Westside, Robin Braun, used this term many times when describing the Guided Reading program. During her presentation I noticed that this word kept coming up, but I assumed that it was a word that she just liked to use. However, as we are reading this book, I am finding that "purposeful" is the perfect word for describing each piece of the program. In this chapter we find suggestions for setting up your classroom in a purposeful manner in order to get the most out of your literacy program. While the author was describing each component of the Guided Reading classroom, I found myself envisioning the classroom that I observed at Westside....

Chapters 1-3 Guided Reading

You made it through the toughest part of the book! I am sure we can all agree chapters one and two were not the most stimulating or entertaining! However, chapter three seems to be where we start learning the "meat" of this Guided Reading program. As I was reading chapters one and two, I kept a few notes in my journal. I was resisting the overwhelming urge to highlight in this book. It is, after all, a library book. I will be honest though, by chapter three I couldn't resist any longer. I HAD to highlight a few things that stood out to me. If you feel the same as you are reading, highlight to your heart's content. We will beg forgiveness later. Chapter One: While I was reading the first two chapters, nothing startling came to mind. However, I did find myself wondering about YOUR classrooms. I rarely get to come into your room while you are teaching, so I am generally unaware of your routines and how much of the Guided Reading program you already use. I would like...

Chapters 7-9

We are getting closer to the end, ladies! I am sure we will all agree that chapters 7-9 were not the most invigorating chapters you have read thus far. Let's break it down and talk about what you learned from this section. Chapter 7 This chapter was all about the importance of using running records as a form of assessment with Guided Reading. The author described two forms of running records, quantitative and qualitative. Quantitative records break the child's performance down to a number. This number is used to determine the child's fluency rate. The fluency rate is a solid number that will allow you to easily see how the child is progressing. I can see this number being helpful in parent conferences. Parents may not understand the process of teaching a child to read, but they can relate to a number, especially if that number tells them where their child is currently performing and where the child needs to be by the end of the year. Qualitative records are used when lo...

Thoughts From The Book Diva....

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