Nicole Meyer

ELD 308
Dr. McKool

ReIlective Narrative

Being a teacher involves implementing multiple strategies and techniques to
assure that students learn how to read and write. There are many ways to educate
students about literacy and every teacher has a diIIerent philosophy they like to employ to
assure that their students learn how to read and write in the most eIIective manner. I
strongly believe in giving students explicit instruction when it comes to reading and
writing, giving students time to read, enjoy and discuss quality literature as well as
having assessment drive instruction. To achieve these philosophies, literature circles,
guided reading, guided writing and continual assessment can be used. All these strategies
help improve the student`s likelihood oI becoming a successIul reader and writer.
Students should be given time to discuss great pieces oI literature Ior enjoyment
and to discuss books in depth. The use oI literature circles helps students IulIill this need
and learn new ways to talk about books. According to Fountas and Pinnel, literature
circles are, 'Small, heterogeneous groups oI students who are interested in certain topics,
authors, genres, or speciIic books (Fountas and Pinnell 17). Literature circles should
take place during reading workshop and since these are kid led discussion, students
should be the ones to select the book and topic, attend meetings at the proper time, and
prepare discussions while the teacher summarizes the main points oI the book and
demonstrates routines. Choice is very important when persuading students to read great
Iorms oI literature. Literature circles allow students to pick interest level books and
simply talk about the book`s characters, plot, raise questions and make predictions.
Literature circles are a great way to get hooked on a series so once they Iinish one
book in the series, they can move onto the next. These meetings engage students and get
them excited about reading since they are able to openly discuss the book with peers who
have similar interests. They can discuss their likes, dislikes, concerns, and questions
about the book and bounce ideas oII other students to create new predictions and come up
with other conclusions they may not have thought about. Literature circles are also an
eIIective way to get students, who don`t like to read, actively engaged and excited about
reading. With the teacher`s guidance, students take part in interesting discussions and
learn new strategies about reading like, making predictions, questioning and reading
between the lines. I believe literature circles are one oI the most eIIective ways to get
students excited about reading and I will implement these discussions in my own
classroom.
Giving students explicit instruction to help them improve their reading is an
important philosophy I believe should be used in the classroom and this can be achieved
through guided reading. Guided reading is teacher led, homogenous, small group
instruction Ior students who read at the same level. 'These small groups are temporary;
they change as you assess your student`s growth and needs (Fountas and Pinnell 17).
The teacher`s role is to select and introduce a text, observe and listen to the students read
and teach speciIic Iocused skills. When the teacher implements guided reading, it allows
the teacher one on one time with their students. They gain an understanding Ior the
student`s interests and needs and can conIerence with the students to discover new
strategies to help the students be a successIul reader.
Guided reading helps readers develop more eIIective and eIIicient ways to expand
their reading power to tackle more diIIicult texts. Through explicit instruction, the
teacher can help improve a student`s Iluency, comprehension oI the text, summarization
skills and ability to ask questions and make predictions. When the student reads aloud to
the teacher, the teacher is able to assess the student and execute strategies to help students
improve in areas they may be struggling with in reading. Students practice the
instruction given to them by the teacher, which helps them improve their reading ability
to undertake new, higher-level books. Guided reading is an eIIective way oI helping
students advance in their journey to become better readers
Students need to learn what it means to be a writer. They need to understand all
the components oI writing, Ior instance, exploring topics, draIting, editing and Iinally
publishing. With the help oI guided writing, students can learn to think and compose like
a writer to create eIIective writing pieces Ior any subject. Guided writing is small groups
that introduce students to the craIt oI writing through the use oI strategies and certain
skills. These small groups are students who write on similar levels and who need to
develop there writing craIt in a more eIIective manner. 'The groupings are usually short
term, as you re-Iorm groups based on what you are learning as you read their writing
(Fountas and Pinnell 19). With guided writing, the teacher obtains a deeper
understanding Ior the students needs as a writer and can give them explicit instruction to
help them improve their abilities to explore topics like events, people, objects,
experiences and ideas. They can also give students strategies on how to successIully
draIt, edit and publish a writing piece.
II there is a small group oI students who struggle to write sight words properly,
the teacher can use guided writing time to eIIectively teach students how to learn sight
words through the use oI Ilashcards and other strategies. Students who have diIIiculties
coming up with a topic Ior their writing piece can use guided writing time to learn ways
to develop ideas Ior writing pieces by exploring what interests them through the box and
bullet technique. The box and bullet strategy has students pick a topic they are passionate
about and branch oII oI that topic to create bullets about the topic like emotions they may
Ieel, their thoughts and ideas.
ProoIreading is another hardship many students may Iace, when they are in
guided writing, they can learn how to properly prooIread their writing pieces and even
prooIread their peers writing pieces to help one another become a more successIul writer.
Like guided reading, guided writing groups change as the students learn and develop
these helpIul strategies. Guided writing allows the teacher to help multiple students at
the same time learn new ways to improve their writing and progress as a writer. Guided
writing is a great tool to use in a classroom to improve student`s writing, which will only
beneIit them through their entire academic career and because oI this, I will make sure to
use this process in my classroom.
I believe that assessment should drive instruction, I believe that assessment should
be continual and should be gathered in multiple ways like observations, conIerencing,
running records, asking questions and tests. Due to this philosophy, Iormative and
summative assessments are crucial to utilize in the classroom. Formative assessments
collect inIormation about student`s learning through continuous summarization and
assessment. Using continual observation, asking questions and selI-assessments, teachers
can get a deeper understanding about their student`s needs as a reader and writer.
Running records are also a great way to Iormatively assess students. A running
record 'Is a method to analyze students` oral reading Ior processing strategies (Fountas
and Pinnell 490). Running records allow teachers to check the student`s Iluency, speed,
rate, use oI substitution, selI-correction, insertion oI words and much more. This strategy
allows teacher`s to develop instructions to help improve the student`s diIIiculties with
reading whether is be their Iluency, tone or rate. Teachers can ask questions and have
students summarize their reading to help the teacher understand whether or not the
student comprehends the text. With this understanding, the teacher can develop
instructional strategies to improve the student`s weaknesses.
Another Iorm oI assessment that should drive instruction is summative
assessment. Summative assessment is placing value on a student`s perIormance by
comparing their perIormance with an established criterion. This can be achieved through
standardized tests, quizzes and end oI the unit tests. Again, this Iorm oI assessment
should be continual and should help teachers drive instruction to help students learn new
ways to develop their literacy, mathematics, science and social studies skills. When a
teacher implements a test on a particular subject, it helps them realize where their student
is having diIIiculties or where they are excelling.
II a student is continually producing grade A work on spelling tests, the teacher
can modiIy that one student`s spelling test to a higher level to make it more challenging
Ior the student. On the other hand, a student may be having trouble with mathematics
and may be struggling with division or multiplication. AIter a test is administered and
graded, the teacher can develop new strategies to help that student comprehend and learn
new ways to solve division or multiplication problems. What works Ior one student may
not always work Ior another and each child is diIIerent. Knowing this, a teacher should
continually assess their students through Iormative and summative assessment to drive
instruction Ior the students to satisIy their educational needs.
In conclusion, every teacher has certain philosophies they believe in more than
others. These philosophies can be seen in each individual teacher`s classroom and help
students develop new strategies and techniques to become better readers and writers. I
believe that assessment should drive instruction, students should be given explicit
instruction in reading and writing and should be given time to enjoy and discuss great
pieces oI literature. Because oI these belieIs, I will execute literature circles, guided
reading and writing and Iormative and summative assessment in my classroom to assure
that each student is learning to their highest academic potential. It`s crucial that students
learn how to read and write properly and learns new strategies to help them achieve this
greatness so it can be applied through elementary school, high school, and college and in
their Iuture careers. The instruction and philosophies teachers` use in their classrooms
are important to the student`s development as a reader and writer. With these belieIs, and
strategies, teachers can help improve their student`s weaknesses and discover their needs
to help them become successIul readers and writers.




ReIerences

Fountas, Irene C. and Gay Su Pinnell. Guiding Readers and Writers. New Hampshire:
Heinemann, 2001. Print.