In class on January 22, we worked in groups and discussed choral reading. The group that I was in was working with the book Chica Chica Boom Boom by Bill Martin Jr. The book is targeted at helping kids learn the alphabet. On each page new letters were introduced with a catchy verse that rhymed with one another. In class our group were suppose to work with one another and discuss how we should read the story out loud to the class while focusing on the tempo, rhythm, pitch, and juncture. This task was in coordination with the eighth grade level expectations of speaking discourse. For the activity we had to work with each other to decide the best method in reading and presenting the book we choose. The grade content expectation that this activity addressed is described as:
Speaking (Discourse)
Students will…
Engage in interactive, extended discourse to socially construct meaning
Plan and deliver an informal presentation
This activity required us to decide as a group how we wanted to emphasize and enunciate our story when we read it out loud to the class. My group worked together and everyone contributed their own ideas. As a group we decided that we should use the approach of Cumulative Reading. Cumulative Reading is when one person starts reading the first line of the reading and then one the next line another student starts reading along with the first person, and on and on.
The activity also required my group to decide how we were going to read the story out loud to our class. As a group we had to decide how we were going to read each page by focusing on how we use tempo, rhythm, pitch, and juncture while we read. This part of the activity required us to decide how we could make the reading of our book more authentic by either emphasizing and enunciating a particular word or phrase or not enunciating or emphasizing it. As a group we had to discuss and develop strategies which we believed would enhance meaning by emphasizing parts of the book that would increase the greatest to the overall interpretation of that we were trying to convey. This also goes along with the eighth grade content expectations for speaking conventions, which is described as:
Speaking (Conventions)
Students will…
Use enunciation and stress to emphasize key ideas and concepts when presenting
Use tone of voice and pace of speaking to enhance meaning and influence interpretation when presenting
When working in my group, all of my group members were very respectful. They listened when I had to say something and were respectful to and of the ideas I suggested. They actually went along with me when I was joking about enunciating the chica chica boom boom in the book with a silly voice. This really helped with the learning community in the classroom because I felt safe with offering my own suggestions and participating in the activity. Everyone in the classroom was very respectful when other groups were reading their books and when we were working in our groups.
This activity helped me understand myself more as a future teacher. It also helped me understand how book talks can be used to enhance a student’s understanding and motivation like the article that I read by Triplett. First, letting my students work with one another to decide how to present a book to their class helps both the students who are reading the book, and the classmates they are reading to the book to as well. The activity helps the students performing the activity to give meaning to the reading that they have worked with. This makes the learning more personal because it puts the learning and the instruction in the student’s hand. This activity also helps the other students in the class because they are hopefully able to interpret the book better, and enhance the message the book and the group is trying to convey.
As a teacher this activity has helped me understand my role in a Language Arts classroom. I first learned that the students in my classroom need to be in charge of their learning in the classroom. I also learned that my student’s interpretation and understanding of the material I am reading is greatly influenced by how I choose to read it. By changing the way I use the tempo, rhythm, pitch, and juncture when I present the material can have an influence on what they get out of the information I am reading. This activity also reinforced the importance of group work and student to student interaction in my future classroom. I think it is important to understand that adults don’t think like children, and so I don’t think a class should be dominated by a teacher lecturing the class. It is important for students to work with their classmates because kids think like and relate to other kids. As a teacher by stepping back and allowing group work, you are allowing your students to increase their level of understanding, help promote a classroom community, and preparing them with the appropriate social skills that they will need in life.
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2 comments:
Andy - I really like how in your blog you mentioned the importance of allowing students to work together to decide how they want to read. Like you said, this will definitely allow students to attribute more meaning to the book. It will also set up for students to take responsibility in their own learning, like you mentioned. A lot of the readings we have had so far focus on how students need to do that. If they can take responsibility for their own learning, they will "internalize" it more. This make them more motivated to learn.
It was also interesting to me that you used Chicka Chicka Boom Boom in class. I work at a preschool where students listen to books on audio cassette tape all of the time. One of their favorite books to listen to is Chicka Chicka Boom Boom. I remember the first time I heard it played on the tape … it was not how I expected to hear it! When I read it I would use a way different tone and pace of speaking than the reader on the tape. This just demonstrates how books can be constructed and viewed in unique ways depending on the individual.
Your group did a really great job of reading the book Chica Chica Boom Boom. You guys were really creative and your reading was different from any of the other groups. In your blog, I think that you did a great job of choosing the correct grade content expectations. As you said, your group discussed how you wanted to perform you reading. You guys talked about tempo, rhythm, etc., all of the things that you needed to in order for your reading to be meaningful and well planned out. In your blog you also mentioned how your group worked well together and that everyone contributed their own ideas, that relates to how my group worked together as well. We all took turns sharing what we wanted for our reading and we took each others ideas seriously, or respectfully as you said. I also can relate to what you said about learning that book talks can be used to enhance a students learning and understanding of a piece of text. I agree with that statement and I hope that I too can implement book talks in my future classrooms.
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