For class this week I read the Article, Book Talk: Continuing to Rouse Minds and Hearts to Life by Triplett and Buchanan. The book talks about the importance of book discussions in today’s classrooms. The authors claimed that there was a direct correlation to a struggling readers motivation and comprehension and the amount of cognitive activities. To think about the article on a personal measure, I first thought about the type of talk that occurs in my classroom.
There is an abundant amount of interaction in my classroom. The classroom seems to transform from a classroom into a theater throughout the day. The teacher has a very bright and outgoing personality and he encourages discussion in his classroom throughout the day. He also allows every student to give their input into the discussion. No matter how long the student speaks, or how many times he or she raises their hand, he will continue to call and listen to them. I also have noticed that he comments on every thought and perspective, even the ones that may be totally incorrect. Another thing that I think he does well is scaffolding the students to expand their thinking. If the students need help expanding their thoughts then he scaffolds them by giving the students ideas to guide them along or by giving them motivation that they can find the answer if they keep on trying. There are some students in my class who need more scaffolding then others. Some of these kids do not speak English very well, have attention problems, or tend to get off topic every time they talk. To scaffold these kids the teacher will guide them along with their thinking, or pick times which may be appropriate or fitting for their comments. There is no negativity in his classroom by him or the other students. I have never witnessed my teacher put down a kid for raising their hand or participating in an activity. This type of interaction between the students and the teacher has really created an environment where the kids feel safe. Students listen and comment to one another and all of their hands dart up towards the sky as soon as he asks a question. However, after reading the article this week I now realize it is much more than just scaffolding. The type of activities he does as well as the scaffolding really creates this feel-free environment.
There have been plenty of cognitive activities in my third grade classroom this year that I think have helped the students. I know that there are a few students who got in trouble and who tested below grade level the previous year who have since moved to the top of their class academically. According to our reading this may be credited to these types of cognitive activities that they now do in the third grade. The book says that, “Students reported book talks were the most important part of their motivation and comprehension.” The book also says that children who may be testing low may fully comprehend what they are reading, but if they are not allowed to work cognitively with it then they don’t understand it. These children are also the students who participate the most in class now. The fact that they may not have had as much cognitive activities in the previous classroom may be the reason for their low test scores. Now with cognitive activities apart of the everyday classroom, they have raised the academic standing.
The article really showed me how important cognitive activities are to the entire classroom, as well as individual students. Being a learner who learns cognitively it wasn’t a surprise that children learn better that way to me. However, it was surprising to see the other ways in which the authors described it being beneficial to a classroom. In the book they say that cognitive activities like book discussions can, “help lead to meaningful discussions about social issues, increase the amount of motivation and interest students have in the lesson, and can promote critical thinking when topics are related to children developing identities of race, gender, and class.” Cognitive activities are a valuable source that every classroom needs to practice. There are no excuses for teachers; these activities can be blended in with their curricular already. They will actually save time by increasing the level of understanding and thinking in their classroom.
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2 comments:
Your CT sounds like an extremely amazing person and teacher. I thought it was great how you said the teacher comments on everyone’s ideas and thoughts, even the ones that are not correct. I think that is great because it emphasizes the fact that he believes all of the students are important and deserve to be heard. I think in a book discussion type format all students do get to be heard and they all get a fair chance to express their opinions even if they are completely off the wall. Compared to the IRE approach which really limits the number of students who get to respond, the book talk discussion approach really promotes multiple answers and explanations.
I also really liked how you said your CT helps to scaffold in the students who are learning English or have a difficult time staying on task. By using the book talk discussion approach, the teacher is able to decide when it is appropriate for those students to join the discussion and during the discussion the students are able to feel comfortable and safe sharing with their peers.
I was very impressed with your CT as well! It seems as if in each of the articles we all read, we learned the importance of allowing students to express their ideas and opinions about what is read in the classroom. It seems as if your CT does just that. From what you described, he seems to very encouraging and positive as well. I feel that’s actually a little trickier than it sounds. At the day care I work at kids always have things to say while we’re reading a book. Sometimes they talk about similar experiences, and sometimes they talk about things that we think are completely unrelated. But really, there was something in the book that triggered them to think that. They have some sort of connection with the book. It’s also harder than it seems to listen to comment after comment, especially when you think it’s unrelated. However, after reading your post, and reading how your teacher reacts, I can better see the importance in it. When kids comment on books you read aloud, they’re engaged which is so important.
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