Differentiated Assessment

The unit I am doing with my students is persuasive writing.  To relate this to their real lives, I have created a resume and cover letter writing unit incorporating persuasive writing.  My student outcomes is for students to learn what information is compiled in a resume and how to translate that information into a cover letter in which s/he is persuading someone why they should be hired.  Students will understand that polishing a piece of work is necessary, the order and format of a document is important, and how to use persuasive language.  Students will know the order of information in a resume and what information to include in a resume and how to write a strong cover letter.  Student will be able to gather information to display in a resume and write a cover letter.  Other than the final product, I check in with students about their understanding and knowledge however, would like to develop a more formative assessment for the lesson plan.  I was thinking that after showing and explaining a "good resume", I would provide students with samples of "good resumes" and "not so good resumes" as a way for students to compare and contrast the differences.  Or I would provide students with a "not so good resume" and ask students to provide feedback on what information is missing or what would make the resume or cover letter stronger.  These are ideas and I have yet to expand or explore them.

Self-Assessment

My current level of understanding, knowledge and skills is at an emerging and applying level.  I feel like I do a very good job of identify strengths and needs of my students.  I feel like I am able to determine where my students are performing.  However, it has been challenging for me to know HOW to differentiate the instruction and work for each group level.  I have attempted to provide lessons that address the different learning styles of students and even attempted to break students up based on skill level, however I have not done it consistently.  I also try and integrate art, drawing or pictures to provide visuals.  I still feel like I am not moving "fast enough" or challenged enough my high skilled students, and I "leave behind" or don't give enough attention to my low skilled students.

The evidence in my growth lies in my ability to feel confident in what I do.  I also know that feedback from my coach and my student sample work shows that I am improving.

How People Learn

How do you teach students to be life long learners?  I find myself often wondering how many of my students have hidden talents.  I know that the "traditional" classroom and learning environment isn't the best fit for most of the students we serve.  That's why we have been innovative in creating outdoor education opportunities, service-learning and committing to the arts.  I think about Bill Gates who didn't finish school yet went on to become a major success.  I wonder how many times we stress doing well academically in school, when in the end, it may be a limiting factor in how to measure our students knowledge, success and ideas.

I was a little surprised that the data showed that students only spend 14% of their time in school.  I would've said they spent 1/2 their time in school and the other half at home.  I believe in community building and look to finding more ways to connect the two.  Then I wonder how much of what the students learn at school, really gets taken home, applied or shared with their families and communities because of what is really going on at home.  There are so many other things students are surrounded by when the leave school.  What then becomes important and how do you bridge that gap?

How People Learn

When and where have you experienced learning experiences or activities like this, where you were so absorbed in what you were doing, you needed no extrinsic motivation to continue? When do you feel most alive and interested in what you are doing?

There are a few different things that I can think of that I do and feel most alive.  I feel most alive when I am working on arts and crafts, trying to find a new discovery or playing sports.  Something all these activities have in common is that they are very active and physical.  For arts and crafts, I could be working on a project for hours or days and not want to stop.  I enjoy cutting, pasting, coloring, drawing, painting and being creative.  I enjoy building things and seeing the finished product.  For new discoveries, I enjoy looking things up on the internet to find out new information.  I am naturally curious about things and find it fascinating to learn how things are made or why things are the way they are.  I have been known from my friend to have random facts of knowledge which they call my "Phung-isms".  I can research something that triggers my curiosity for hours and hours.  The other thing that makes me feel most alive is when I am playing sports, especially volleyball.  I am entirely engaged and also take on a whole new level of energy and interest.  I'm like that kid who forgets to eat because they so much want to go outside and play.

Writing to Learn

Currently, I am doing a literacy unit and I am having the students learn how to ask questions in their reading.  As for writing-to-learn strategies, I have not used any formal strategies.  I have used a worksheet that helps students brainstorm ideas, write topic sentences and supporting sentences.

Writing strategies can help students hold their thinking because they can reinforce ideas.  Writing gives students opportunities to hear, see and read what they're thinking.

Older Readers, Vocabulary

"After Third Grade"

After surveying the students in my class, about 90% of them don't like to read or don't find reading important.  However, when I probed a little deeper, some students do enjoy reading magazines, sports pages or comics.  I agree that offering independent reading where they can choose what they like to read is a good way to encourage more reading and begin to introduce reading strategies, however, I would like to know if it would be appropriate to do this with their independent reading choice.  On some days, I have given students time for independent reading (where they can read what they want either from home or from a selection of books in the class), however not done a specific lesson plan with it.  Is this an opportunity to teach or should I keep it as a time to allow students to just read?

"Alternatives to "Look it up in the dictionary!"

Haha.  I was always taught to look up words in the dictionary and I thought that was a strategy for vocabulary development.  However, I ended up experiencing exactly what was in the text.  Students wanted to write down the shortest definition or didn't know which one was appropriate to the reading or assignment.  Then students looked up words that defined it such as the act of that word.  So that wasn't helpful at all.  I get a little nervous teaching vocabulary because I am unsure myself what roots, suffixes, affixes, prefixes mean.  I know it could be a way to learn together, but at that point, who is supposed to teach us the correct answer?  Also, how do you brainstorm meanings of words when my students are already limited in their English?

What specific words in the next unit do you foresee students having difficulty with?  How did you go about choosing these words?

For now, I'm not sure what words I will be selecting for vocabulary development with my students.  Prior to this, we were doing a mini projects with revolutionary 

Strategies That Work/Possible Unit Texts

For my ELD class, I have used various short stories for reading with my students.  These short stories were examples of memoirs, autobiographies and biographies.  There are many challenges that are posed to my students when using these readings.  Many of them have a difficult time with vocabulary, others cannot summarize a reading in their own words and most do not engage with the text.  With some students, it is hard to determine because although their English is limited, their primary language skills aren't, so it is possible they can comprehend the text if it were in their primary language.  I will notice some students decoding words that may sound or look like words they've heard before.  A strategy I think would prove most useful to my students is to self monitor and engage.  That means ask questions as they read, take notes and be active with the text.