Learning Blog 8

As this chapter (8) details writing comes in many different forms. There is formal writing, informal writing, response writing, the writing process etc. I believe that it its important for students to understand each of these processes and use them when appropriately. The part that confused me was the section about writing as a process because I believe that even though we may not formally complete the writing process every single time we right, we do complete it in some form. For example, when writing an email, journal, or research paper there is some kind of brainstorming (getting your ideas together), drafting and then re-reading/editing before submitting or finalizing our "perfect" copy. All of these steps may not be written out but they do happen. I also believe that students need to understand determining the type of writing you are doing is part of the writing process as well. This step is part of the preparation phase of writing. You need to know who you are writing to, why you are writing, what type of writing you are completing and so-on.
One thing that I have seen lost in my classroom (I assist but am not the main teacher for literacy) is informal or response writings. Students do not have a chance just to write. Their are no journals being kept and most writing is for grades or at least critic. Feed back is extremely important but I feel like collecting everything our students write does not allow them to have any stress free expression where they can try new things, express themselves, and take risks. In todays world too much emphasis is on grades and tests, if a student has figured out one style or trick in writing will get him a good grade, and he does not have a grade free chance to write he will never change his ways.
Writing can be used as tool in each stage of PAR but also can be taught using PAR. Students need to prepare and reflect on their writing just as much as they write. I believe each step is equally important to raise complex writers.

You Can't Learn from Books You Can't Read

The article “You can’t learn from books you can’t read” has been really thought provoking for me. I am currently a 5^th grade long term substitute who started in the middle of the year. A lot of class resources were already in place and it was up to me to use them. One of these resources (for each subject) is the “one size fits all” textbook. One of the two classes I work with is inclusion. These textbooks are on level for about 5 students out of 22. I realized very quickly who those 5 students were because they were the only ones who really understood the material. The teacher whom I replaced would give readings for homework and take the review questions as quiz grades. These strategies left a lot of students behind to struggle. In 5^th grade I believe it is important for students to be able to independently read and walk away with meaning. To better fit this class I make different homework packets that have the same information but the reading is better leveled to fit the students needs. One time I believe having a full class textbook is a good tool is for whole group read aloud. If the teacher is reading the words and supporting the class through making meaning, a one size fits all textbook (as long as it is grade level appropriate) is an appropriate resource to use. If you would like students to work on inclass activities, achieve3000 is an online database perfect for this task. At the beginning of the program students take a placement test. As the teacher you may assign certain articles and subjects or students may search for them on their own. The pictures, titles, and subjects are the same for every student but the text is leveled to fit their specific needs. 5 students may sit next to each other and never know the difference between the articles. Harder vocabulary words have a dictionary option and sometimes may even read it to you. All in all, as teachers we need to be sensitive to our students reading levels when using reading in the content areas because the can’t learn from books they can’t read.