langston hughes poem

For the chapter 8, I used the lesson from p. 119. I gave each student a copy of "Dreams" and asked them to read it to themselves. I explained that, when reading poetry, the first thing you should do is try to visualize the poem in your mind, using the visual words from the poem. I then asked students to close their eyes, and imagine what I was reading as I read the poem. After that, I asked some volunteers what they imagined. Then I showed a youtube clip of the poem which used visuals to illustrate the poem. After that, I asked the students what they saw in the clip, and how it correlated to the poem. Then I asked the students what questions they had, and told them that there are no "dumb" questions. I had the students go up front and write their questions on the promethean screen. Some of the questions we answered as a group, but many of the questions just led to more questions. Most of the students decided it was a sad poem, but there was one student who viewed it as a happy poem. A student asked why Hughes used "a frozen field" to describe a dream that was lost. At first, I was worried that the lesson wasn't going to work, because it was really slow at first, but gradually, as more students slowly started asking more questions, more students got involved, and more interest was shown toward the poem.

Questioning Across the Curriculum

My students use what we call the "Reading Strategy", when reading any text in any subject. The students stay more interested in the text. They are constantly thinking about questions about what they are reading instead of worrying about knowing the answers at the end of the passage. The students stop and think (ST) at the end of each paragraph. They summarize each paragraph and they look at important vocabulary and its meaning in each paragraph. They know the questions matter, and that they will stay more involved in the passage/story if they are asking themselves questions as they go.

Inferring themes

Last week I talked with my students about theme for our novel study, Maniac Magee. We reviewed what a theme means, and then I asked what the main messages or purpose of the book was. After discussing, we came up with three themes: homes/homelessness, racism, and names/nicknames. I made the point that no where in the book does it say that the theme is racism, etc. We had to infer what the themes were. I reminded them that inferring is using background knowledge plus context clues to figure out meaning from the book where it doesn't say it outright. Once we uncovered the three themes, I had students find evidence from the book to support each theme. Then we discussed it as a class.

Question Webs to Expand Thinking

Great way to help students with questioning is utilizing a question web. These webs can be used individually or in a small group. By having my students read a variety of lit (nonfiction-books/magazine, etc.) to gain knowledge, then come together and share their common thinking. Question webs help students to develop the idea of the essential questions by initiating conversation through questions obtained through the webbing.

Visualizing Hatchet

After finishing Hatchet, I divided my class into partners. I typed out the different chapters with ideas that were in them. The partners chose which chapter they were to become experts on. They reread their chapter using partner reading. I didn't just want to work on visualizing but incorporate language as well. They found examples of adjectives that helped describe the setting. They had to list the main events that happened in that chapter. Next, each student had to draw on a blank piece of paper the main setting of the chapter, including details and the "adjectives" they found in the chapter. When each partner was finished, they compared and contrasted their pictures writing down areas the other partner included or drew better, and who left off details etc. Then they were to brainstorm all the items they would need to make a diorama shoe box of their chapter's main event and detailed setting. They worked for three days working on their shoe box in class and the creativity and imaginations were great!

Inferring with Text Clues

(Need: 3 column chart titled Background Knowledge/ Text Clues/ Inference)

While reading "Where the Mountain Meets the Moon," use the chart to gain a deeper understanding of the character's emotions. There are a wealth of examples where the characters act in response to their surroundings and circumstances. Using their own personal experiences, combined with textual examples, students will be able to infer the feelings / mood that the author is portraying.

Visualizing Ch 9

After reading the novel Hatchet I assigned pairs of students a chapter to read. Each partner group had to reread their chapter together visualizing the setting and list 10 adjectives that described the setting. Each student then drew a picture of the setting of their chapter using the adjectives they had found. After each student was finished they shared their picture with their partner noting similarities and differences. Each group then planned to create a panorama box that displays the details of the main event and setting.

question webs

Question webs are a way for students to focus on a specific question or topic. I plan to use question webs with my students for social studies. We are starting to learn about the Constitution, Bill of Rights, and the three branches of government. My students will get in small groups and be responsible for coming up with their own question to research. We will do the question webs after we have studied the topic a little bit. I want to do the question webs after we have discussed the topics somewhat so the students will be able to come up with high-level questions. But, I don't want to discuss the material so much that my students have enough answers already. I will have some research questions available in case some groups are having difficulty coming up with questions on their own. The questions can't be too thin, because students will still need to do enough research on their question. I'll make sure to approve the student group questions before they begin their research. After student groups do their research, students will present their findings to the rest of the class.

Reading With a Question in MInd

As we approach our unit on the solar system, I think about the one question that I am always asked, "Why isn't Pluto a planet anymore?" This question will be a perfect example of "Reading with a question in mind."
As we read and research the planets, we can complete a Think Sheet about the planets and add to it information that we learn that would help us answer our lingering question. It would lead directly into researching other questions that come up and aligns to the CCSS pertaining to research.

Looking forward. . .the more we learn, the more we wonder

Within chapter 8 of question, the purpose of wondering is discussed. Having children wondering as we learn new information, they ask a lot of questions. Wondering should be a second nature to students. By talking as they think, draw and write down information they are learning. Having the ability to wonder and question allows students to independently research. I have contemplating doing a science fair project this year. This area of wonder would be a great way for students to tie in what they are thinking about and investigate for further exploration.

Questioning That Leads to Inferential Thinking

During my lesson over questioning that leads to inferential thinking, I first tell students what I am thinking and questions I have about what I am reading. I have been integrating this reading strategy into math problem solving questions. When I read a problem solving question aloud to my class that sounds very confusing, I first ask them questions that I am also wondering about myself. For example, what is the question I'm really suppose to be solving? or what information/words are used that I don't need to be paying attention to? Then I allow them to ask questions/share about how they think they could solve the problem and how they couldn't solve the problem. I believe having them share ideas and think about different questions to the solve the problems, makes students better thinkers and better problem solvers.

Thoughts on State Assessments

When preparing for State assessment this year, my class used the Read, Write, and Talk - Stop Think and React strategy. The students read an article on Testing Tips. The student jotted down their thinking as they read the article. The kids did a great job of stating their opinions throughout the article. Next they wrote thick and tin questions in the margins of the article. The students did a great job of asking thought provoking questions. They asked things like, "Why do the teachers get so worried about the tests?" and "Why is the government involved in what we are doing in our classroom?" The discussion that followed was very interesting and beneficial! It really helped my students relax before the tests began.

Questioning During Science National Geographic

In a National Geographic Magazine. I read one of the articles aloud. While I was reading it, I would stop and tell them a question that I wondered about. I would stop every once in awhile showing different ways of wondering and asking questions...like "I knew that, but I didn't know... I wonder how...." "That's cool, but did it..." We discussed how we know about more subjects than others, but even when we think we know a lot, we still have questions. Or while we're reading, we read about things that make us wonder or have questions that remained unanswered. I handed out sticky notes and said they were going to read another article and as they came upon something that made them wonder or have more questions, to write that on the sticky note and put beside the article. The students also noticed as they read, that some of their questions were answered later as they were reading the article. When we were done, we read the article together and stopped every once in awhile when a student would share their thoughts, wonders, or questions about it. The National Geographic magazine worked really well because it is full of great photos and interesting topics. This one was especially interesting talking about how living animals/plants live in weird/extreme places (like in poisonous caves etc) and how impossible it seems. We then talked about how these questions would lead us to do more research or in depth study about our questions. If I or a student didn't have an answer, I encouraged them to go home and search on the internet for the answers so they could share what they learned with the class the next day.