Using a large supply of books, technology-based information, and nonprint materials representing multiple levels, broad interests, and cultural and linguistic backgrounds.
As a Kindergarten teacher, I hear the statement, "But I don't know how to read" often at the beginning of the year. One of my earliest lessons is teaching children that reading does not solely relate to knowledge of words in books. I present a barrage of lessons and practice on multiple forms of reading such as reading the pictures in books, reading sounds, and reading images. These activities are presented using print, non-print, and technological mediums and represent various levels, interests, and cultural backgrounds.
Children need a wide range of experiences reading in many forms to build their confidence and interest in reading. Educators must provide these outlets and resources, but also model utilizing them for students. Many of these "outside-the-box" experiences will be novel and uncomfortable for some students. For example (Artifact 1), early in the school year I asked parents to send in environmental print clippings for a binder activity. Students worked to sort the logos into a binder that had one page for each letter of the alphabet. As we did the first few together, I asked them if they knew they were reading. Surprise and confusion was the initial reaction, but as we continued, excitement and pride followed. My second artifact is an example of a "thinking image" that I use daily in my classroom. Students use the sentence stems, "I think..., I wonder..., I see..., and I feel..." to read the images and have a partner discussion. My third artifact is my notes from the graphic novel The Arrival that we read in my Reading Comprehension course. This was an impactful reading experience for me. It drew me outside my comfort zone and pulled me into a culture and experience different than my own. My fourth artifact is my notes from a video about reading film in my Reading Comprehension course. My fifth artifact is a sample from myOn reader, a digital library that every child in my district has free access to and an individual account that stores their selections and tracks their progress. This program has the option of reading to the child while tracking the text, and also has the option of a built in dictionary so students can look up word meanings at any time. All of these artifacts demonstrate my knowledge of the need for various types of reading that represent differing levels, interests, and cultures.
As a Kindergarten teacher, I hear the statement, "But I don't know how to read" often at the beginning of the year. One of my earliest lessons is teaching children that reading does not solely relate to knowledge of words in books. I present a barrage of lessons and practice on multiple forms of reading such as reading the pictures in books, reading sounds, and reading images. These activities are presented using print, non-print, and technological mediums and represent various levels, interests, and cultural backgrounds.
Children need a wide range of experiences reading in many forms to build their confidence and interest in reading. Educators must provide these outlets and resources, but also model utilizing them for students. Many of these "outside-the-box" experiences will be novel and uncomfortable for some students. For example (Artifact 1), early in the school year I asked parents to send in environmental print clippings for a binder activity. Students worked to sort the logos into a binder that had one page for each letter of the alphabet. As we did the first few together, I asked them if they knew they were reading. Surprise and confusion was the initial reaction, but as we continued, excitement and pride followed. My second artifact is an example of a "thinking image" that I use daily in my classroom. Students use the sentence stems, "I think..., I wonder..., I see..., and I feel..." to read the images and have a partner discussion. My third artifact is my notes from the graphic novel The Arrival that we read in my Reading Comprehension course. This was an impactful reading experience for me. It drew me outside my comfort zone and pulled me into a culture and experience different than my own. My fourth artifact is my notes from a video about reading film in my Reading Comprehension course. My fifth artifact is a sample from myOn reader, a digital library that every child in my district has free access to and an individual account that stores their selections and tracks their progress. This program has the option of reading to the child while tracking the text, and also has the option of a built in dictionary so students can look up word meanings at any time. All of these artifacts demonstrate my knowledge of the need for various types of reading that represent differing levels, interests, and cultures.