Theory Application By Cori Sweeney EDRD Fall 2011

Read Aloud Each Reading Workshop session begins with a mini lesson that lasts approximately minutes. During each mini-lesson, the teacher will introduce a specific concept using a read aloud. Most often, the mini lesson will focus on a reading strategy or skill. The teacher will model or demonstrate the skill for the students. Theory Application: Information Processing: Students are using their background knowledge and schema about certain ideas to contribute to a meaningful discussion about the books we are reading. They are learning new strategies to use when reading to help them comprehend stories. Linguistics: Students are actively participating in the read aloud. They are asking and answering questions based on the books. They are making predictions and connections to the books. Sociolinguistics: Students are learning from one another. They are hearing other students points of view and perspective on different topics as we discuss them through the read aloud. The students in my class come from very diverse backgrounds, so they are learning about different cultures through the others perspectives. Engaged: Students are active participants in the learning and discussions that come from the read aloud. Students are excited and motivated to share their thoughts, predictions, connections, and stories with others in the class.

Guided Reading is a major part of a balanced literacy program in my classroom. During Guided Reading, students read as the teacher guides them through the story. I pause to ask questions and prompt readers to use multiple reading strategies to decode words and comprehend the text. Guided Reading Theory Application: Psycholinguistics: Students are participating in discussion of the books we read in guided reading. They are being exposed to a variety of different types of literature. They are developing language through these books and the discussions we have on these books. Information Processing: Students are using their background knowledge to help them understand the texts we are reading. Students are expected to retell the stories that we read to include characters, setting, beginning, middle, and end. They are expected to recall details and facts in non-fiction text. The students use many different reading strategies that are taught in guided reading groups in order to do this. Sociolinguistics: Students participate in meaningful discussion during guided reading. They are learning from the other students in the group. Other strategies that are taught during guided reading are author’s purpose and most important part of the story. Often time students have different perspectives on these things, and it is important for the other students to hear and understand different perspectives on these things. Engaged: Students enjoy working in small guided reading groups. They are excited to participate and have their thoughts heard by the members of their group. In guided reading students set goals for themselves, and are actively trying to accomplish these reading goals. At the beginning of the school year I ask the students about things they are interested in reading. I try to choose books at their reading level on topics they are interested in. The students enjoy reading these books.

Independent Reading During Guided Reading conferences, the remaining students are engaged in a rotation of literacy stations. Student participate in independent reading for minutes everyday. Theory Application: Engaged: Students are able to make choices as to what books they read during independent reading time. My classroom has a wide variety of books in the classroom library. The students are excited and motivated to choose books that they enjoy from the library, and they can’t wait to read them. Information Processing: Students use reading strategies while they are reading. They use these strategies to figure out unknown words. During independent reading time students participate in reading conferences, during this time they are expected to have a discussion about what they have read. Students use there schema and background knowledge to help them understand the text. Psycholinguistics: Students are focused on the books they are reading. They are developing language and enhancing their vocabulary through the variety of books that they have to choose from in the classroom library.

Word Study When students work on Word Study, they practice their weekly word sort. After they practice sorting their words, they have several other word study activities to choose from which include writing sentences, word hunt, ABC order, draw and label, and a variety of other activities. The students choose one activity a day. Theory Application: Engaged: Students have a choice of activities to choose from every day for Word Study. After they sort their words they can choose from activities like draw and label, or a word search. Students enjoy being able to choose what to do. This motivates them and keeps them engaged in their word study. Information Processing: Word study help the students understand language patterns. The students need to understand the sounds that their words study patterns make. This will help them to sound out unknown words while reading. Psycholinguistic: Students are seeing and understanding different rules of grammar and language. They are practicing these rules through their word study activities, and then applying what they have learned into their reading, writing, and spelling. Behaviorist: Students are participating in the same activities on a weekly basis. They are participating in these activities to help them understand their word study sort, and help them to see the patterns in other words. Everyday before they start a word study activity they sort their words by pattern.

Computer Station During Guided Reading conferences, the remaining students are engaged in a rotation of literacy stations. At the computer station students are using the website Raz- Kids. On this website they listen to a story, read the story to themselves, then answer questions about the story. Theory Application: Linguistic: Students are listening to stories being read to them on the website Raz-Kids. They hear what words should sound like. They hear fluent reading, and reading with expression. This builds their own fluency and expression. Engaged: Students favorite literacy station in my classroom is the computer station. They are motivated to complete word so they are able to come to the computer. Students are actively participating in listening and reading books. They have a choice of many different books, at their reading level, to choose from on this website. Information Processing: Students need to use reading strategies that they have been taught to read the books, and figure our unknown words. Students need to use reading strategies while they reading in order to understand and comprehend the books in order to answer the questions at the end of the book.

Poetry Station During Guided Reading conferences, the remaining students are engaged in a rotation of literacy stations. At the poetry station students work with a buddy to read a poem, illustrate the poem, and make connections to the poem. Then, they read poems together from their poetry binder. Theory Application: Sociolinguistics: Students are working with a buddy at this literacy station. They are listening to the thoughts of their buddy when it comes to interpreting what the poem means to them. They are using these thoughts to help each other draw illustrations and make connections to the poem. Engaged: Students are working together with another student at this literacy station. Poems chosen for this center are fun and exciting making the students interested in what they are reading. Information Processing: Students need to use their schema and prior knowledge in order to make connections with the poems that they are reading. They need to use their prior knowledge to help them understand the meaning of the poems. Linguistics and Psycholinguistic: Students see the different ways that poetry can be written and the different forms of poetry though the variety that is given to them at this station. They are exposed to free verse, acrostic, rhyming, haiku, and many other types of poetry They are able practice rhyme, word families, and different vowel patterns.

Writing Workshop Writing workshop has three main parts. They are a mini lesson, independent writing, and share time. Mini lessons will consist of teaching about the writing process. During independent writing students are applying the skills they've learned from the mini lesson in their own pieces. This is when I conference with students about their writing. During share time 2-3 students share their work. At this time, students give feedback to their classmates. Theory Application: Psycholinguistic: Students learn about writing thought meaningful interactions with their teacher during writing conferences. This is a time for the students to learn more about and hone in on different writing techniques. Sociolinguistics: During share time the students have the opportunity to share their writing pieces with the class. When they are done the student share positive feedback. They are also able to give advice so the student can revise their work. This is a great way for the students to learn from each other to enhance their writing. This is also a great way to share different ideas for writing topics. Engaged: Students enjoy putting their thoughts and ideas down on paper. They enjoy sharing their stories with the other students in the class. They are motivated to finish a story so they can publish their writing into a “class book.” The students have many choices when it comes to writing topics during writing workshop. Information Processing: Students learn many different writing techniques through the mini-lesson piece of writing workshop. The students need to be able to take what they learn and apply it to their writing. Students also use their schema and background knowledge to enhance the quality of their writing pieces. They can inform others in the class of their ideas, views, perspectives, and different cultures through their writing.