Issue #24Print Friendly Version (PDF)  

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The Director's Corner

Dear FOR-PD Participant:

I would like to welcome all of our new fall participants! I know that our staff and your facilitators are excited to begin this online journey with you this fall. You will find that your facilitator is a wonderful resource of knowledge and support. Other members of your course are also excellent resources. As you are learning, I encourage each of you to raise questions and make connections to your own classroom and instruction.  One of the great benefits of online learning is the types and amount of sharing that are possible. Use the discussion board not only for your assignments, but to share ideas that have worked for you and your students.

For our summer 2006 participants, your courses will be coming to a close on October 16th. Now is the time for you to make sure that you have completed all of your discussions, quizzes, and literacy logs. In order for you to complete the course, you must have 16 points or higher on every discussion and quiz and on your literacy log. If you are behind, now is the time to communicate with your facilitator and make plans for how you will get caught up. Remember that communication with your facilitator is critical.

This month our literacy newsletter focuses on creating discussion within your classroom. We hope that you enjoy the research and resources presented on this topic.

What does research have to say about discussion in the classroom?

• Discussion promotes deep understanding of text (Gambrell, 1996).
• Discussion leads to higher-levels of thinking and problem solving (Gambrell, 1996).
• Student led discussions foster greater student participation than those lead by the teacher (Almasi, 1995).
• Effective discussions are more likely to occur in situations where students learn discussion strategies (Raphael, 1996).
• Discussion increases comprehension (Alvermann, et al., 1996).

As a teacher, I tried hard to include as many opportunities for discussion in my classroom as I could. Sometimes it was successful and other times, I thought to myself, "WHY?" On the days that I incorporated discussions my students reported actually enjoying the learning process. Discussion doesn't just happen; in my classroom it took modeling, practice, and trial and error. Knowing that discussion is critical to student learning, I sought out ways to make discussion more streamlined. One powerful strategy I came to know was the Socratic Circle.  I incorporated other strategies such as Mind Streaming (Project CRISS) as a way to get my students used to discussion. In Mind Streaming students are paired up to discuss a particular topic or text. For one minute, one student talks while the other listens, after a minute the roles are reversed. This is a great discussion strategy for accessing and building background knowledge. Once my students were comfortable with paired discussion, I graduated to Buzz Groups - groups of 3-4 students who discussed topics and specific questions about a piece of text. Once students were comfortable with these small group discussions, I began to introduce the Socratic Circle. In my classroom, Socratic Circles provided a structure in which to engage students in discussion about their reading and learning. I know that these discussions challenged my students and extended their learning.

Don't forget to also check out this month's Reading Strategy, Questioning the Author (QtA). This strategy helps students understand the underlying messages of a piece of text. It also promotes critical reading and thinking and students acquire a deeper understanding of the text. The QtA strategy can also be used to focus your classroom discussions on students' important understanding of text. This powerful strategy can be used across grade levels and across content areas.

We welcome your feedback on how we can better support you and help you grow professionally. Thank you again, for all of your work. Please feel free to contact me in case you have any questions or comments. You may reach me at cc@orion.itrc.ucf.edu and/or 1-407-207-7294.

Best wishes,

Catherine Glass
Project Director, FOR-PD

 

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Banned Books Week

The American Library Association (ALA) is celebrating their 25th year of fighting to keep books freely accessible in U.S. schools and libraries by offering a wide range of resources during Banned Books Week, September 23-30. By visiting the ALA website you'll learn about why books are often challenged, how to deal with challenges, the top 100 most frequently challenged books, and the history of banned books week. Also available this year is the 2006 Banned Book Virtual Panel Discussion. Chris Crutcher, Sonya Sones, and American Library Association Intellectual Freedom Expert, Kent Oliver will be discussing experiences and issues with banning books in America and how it effects intellectual freedom and access to information.

Wondering what the "10 Most Challenged Books of 2005" were? Here's a list by ALA:

1. It's Perfectly Normal by Robie Harris
2. Forever by Judy Blume
3. The Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger
4. The Chocolate War by Robert Cormier
5. Whale Talk by Chris Crutcher
6. Detour for Emmy by Marilyn Reynolds
7. What My Mother Doesn't Know by Sonya Sones
8. Captain Underpants series by Dav Pilkey
9. Crazy Lady! by Jane Leslie Conly
10. It's So Amazing! A Book about Eggs, Sperm, Birth, Babies, and Families by Robie H. Harris
    

Want to learn more? The National Council for Teachers of English also recieves information on challenges. This year they had an average year of 89 challenges. Read more at NCTE Reports 89 Censorship Challenges -- An Average Year.

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Read Together, Florida!

From the Florida Department of Education: Volunteer Florida Foundation, in collaboration with Just Read, Florida!, is preparing to launch this year's Read Together, Florida! One State/One Book reading promotion, a project of the Governor's Family Literacy Initiative. The promotion will run the entire month of October and has much to offer high school students as well as adults.

The chosen book is The Zero Game, by Florida author Brad Meltzer, a graduate of North Miami Beach Senior High. The book is a New York Times bestseller and is a true page-turner that I am certain your high school students will enjoy. I hope you will embrace this book for your October classroom activities, enhancing your students' love of reading. Among the activities are:

• an essay contest for high school students that will enable them to win scholarships and prizes,
• an exciting online game that requires the player to read the book to advance in the game,
• the ability to register online for a grand prize drawing at the end of October for a weekend trip to Washington, D.C. to tour the sites described in the book with author Brad Meltzer,
• a riveting read that includes government and science topics in a compelling story, and
• online talking points to assist you in engaging your students in this book.

Book discounts are available through the publisher, Hachete/Warner Books. Please contact Jody Mosley at jody.mosley@hbgusa.com. A minimum discount of twenty percent is extended to each school, depending on the quantities ordered.

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Florida's Spanish Heritage Month

The celebraton of Florida's Hispanic Heritage Month "La Florida: Honoring Our State's Spanish and Latin American Influences" began on September 15, 2006. The Governor's office will be offering a fabulous web page that will contain information about Florida's Hispanic and Latin-American heritage. Biographies of influential Hispanics, reading materials, and a statewide calendar of events will be featured.

Along with the celebration of Florida's Spanish Heritage Month, Governor Bush and his wife Columbia will be sponsoring the Fourth Annual Hispanic Heritage Month Essay Contest for Florida's K-12 students, focusing on Florida's diverse Hispanic heritage. There will be three four-year scholarships to the winners, which will allow them to attend any state college or university.

The National Council of English also has a good list of resources on their Celebrate Hispanic Heritage Month website.

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Reading in the Arts Contest: Florida's Journey into Neverland

This year the statewide Reading in the Arts book for middle schoolers will focus on the New York bestselling book Peter and the Starcatchers by Florida author Dave Barry and Ridley Pearson. Grade specific contests and activities have been developed and will be open to all students in grades 6-8 in public, private and home schools.

Three winners will be chosen based on the following categories:

• 6th Grade Illustration Contest
  
• 7th Grade Short Essay Contest
  
• 8th Grade Short Video Contest

Winners will receive prize packages including a SeaWorld park vacation and much, much more. Teachers of winning students will also receive prize packages.

Contest Rules
Judging Guidelines
Contest Prizes

Entries must be postmarked to designated entry submission locations no later than 5:00 PM EST on Friday, November 10, 2006.

Haven't yet read Peter and the Starcatchers? Want to read the first chapter? How about review the discussion guide? Use the links below to learn more about Barry's and Pearson's high seas adventure for Peter Pan.

Chapter One of Peter and the Starcatchers
Discussion Guide

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Where's FOR-PD Going to Be? Come See!

Are you attending a local or state conference this fall? FOR-PD may be there and we'd love for you to come by so we can share more great information with you. Take a look below at the conferences our staff memebers will be presenting at during the months of October and November. Rememer to look through the specific conference guide to find the precise locaiton and time.

FOR-PD Fall Conference Schedule

Conference	Date	Where
Florida Department of Education/Florida Education Foundation 2006 K-12 Conference Title: " Resources to Build and Sustain Secondary Teachers' Reading Expertise"	October 3-6	Caribe Royale, Orlando
National Council of Teachers of Mathematics NCTM Title: "The Importance of Reading in Mathematics--The Impact on Large Scale Reading Professional Development on Mathematics Teacher Practice."	October 13	Orlando Airport Marriot
National Council of Teachers of English NCTE Title: "Professional and Instructional Resources to Develop Literacy Expertise of Language Arts Teachers'"	October 12-14	Renaissance Orlando Hotel, Orlando
Florida Reading Association FRA Title: "What Literacy Resources Can I Use to Support My Reading Instruction?" AND Title: "Helping Secondary Students Take Content Vocabulary to Heart!"	October 19-22	Wyndham Orlando Resort, Orlando
Sloan-C Conference International Conference on Asynchronous Learning Networks Title: "How Difficult is it to Facilitate? Facilitator Experiences and Practices From the Education Field" AND Title: "Professional Development without Boundaries: The Impact of Online Professional Development in Building and Sustaining Teacher Expertise in Reading Instruction"	November 8-10	Rosen Centre, Orlando

 

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Public's Attitudes Toward the Public Schools

The 38th Annual Phi Delta Kappa/Gallup Poll of the Public's Attitudes Toward the Public Schools has recently been published online at the Phi Delta Kappa International Website. The sample used in this survey totaled 1,007 adults. The Gallup Organization used a standard national telephone sample that used a random-digit telephone sample which was based on a stratified sampling design. Telephone numbers were stratified into four regions across the county and, within each region, further stratified into a community strata. Interviews were conducted on weekends or weekday evenings so that there was a greater potential for respondents to be among the working population.

The poll produced many findings and Phi Delta Kappa has drawn some thoughtful conclusions. The following is a sample of those conclusions. To view all the findings and conclusions of the poll please visit the Major Findings and Conclusions link:

• Conclusion I. The public's strong preference is to seek improvement through the existing public schools. Policies shaped with this fact in mind are most likely to gain public approval.
• Conclusion II. Public ratings of the local schools are near the top of their 38-year range.
• Conclusion V. Gaining public support for school improvement will be more likely if proposals are based on the schools in the community and not on the nation's schools.
• Conclusion VI. There has been no decline in public support for public schools. Approval ratings remain high and remarkably stable.
• Conclusion VIII. Those who would implement the charter school concept should ensure that the public has a clear understanding of the nature of such schools.
• Conclusion IX. There is near-consensus support for the belief that the problems the public schools face result from societal issues and not from the quality of schooling.
• Conclusion X. The public is aware of the link between adequate funding and effective schooling and understands that current funding levels are a challenge for schools.
• Conclusion XXIV. The public does not believe that students in their local schools work hard enough in school or on homework outside of school.
  

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25 Best Internet Sources for Teaching Reading

As a result of several national reading initiatives, reading instruction in schools has become the focus of much attention and concern.  Research has acknowledged that five main principles are necessary for teaching reading: phonemic awareness, phonics, fluency, vocabulary, and text comprehension.  The Internet has been an effective catalyst for reading instruction and incorporating Internet-based activities in the classroom can be beneficial to students and teachers alike.  In the article, "25 Best Internet Sources of Teaching Reading", Wasburn-Moses identifies some of the most informative teacher-approved websites, using the five principles of reading as a guide.  Each of the sites was reviewed by the author and the final list was comprised using the following criteria:

• Alignment with NRP findings
• Diversity of materials
• Possibility for practical classroom application
• Comprehensiveness
• Applicability to a variety of educational settings

Teachers found these sites to be "useful and applicable to daily practice" (Wasburn-Moses, 2006). 

Phonemic Awareness

1. Phonemic Awareness
   http://www.manatee.k12.fl.us/sites/elementary/palmasola/rcompindex1.htm
   
2. Read*Write*Think: Phonemic Awarness Lesson Plan Index
   http://www.readwritethink.org/lessons/index.asp?grade=0&strand=2&engagement=14&display.x=26&display.y=19
   
3. Songs for Teaching: Books With Rhyme, Alliteration, and Other Word Play
   http://www.songsforteaching.com/avni/alliterativebooks.htm
   
4. Get Ready to Read
   http://www.getreadytoread.org/
   
5. TEAMS Educational Resources: Phonemic Awareness Activities
   http://teams.lacoe.edu/documentation/classrooms/patti/k-1/activities/phonemic.html
   

Phonics

1. Words and Pictures
   http://www.bbc.co.uk/schools/wordsandpictures/index.shtml
   
2. Teach with Phonics Skills Chart
   http://teacher.scholastic.com/reading/bestpractices/phonics/teach.htm
   
3. The Nonsense Word Test
   http://teacher.scholastic.com/reading/bestpractices/phonics/nonsensewordtest.pdf
   
4. Phonics Assessment
   http://eprcontent.k12.com/placement/placement/placement_langarts_2.html
   
5. Reading Games Room
   http://www.adrianbruce.com/reading/games.htm

Vocabulary

1. Chapter Books to Read Aloud
   http://www.kinderkorner.com/readalouds.html
   
2. Vocabulary Instruction
   http://www.vocabulary.com
   
3. Vocabulary Lesson Plans
   http://lessonplancentral.com/lessons/Language_Arts/Vocabulary/index.htm
   
4. Vocabulary Lists
   http://www.tampareads.com/trial/vocabulary/index-vocab.htm
   
5. Online Vocabulary Development
   http://www.techteachers.com/vocabulary.htm

Fluency

1. Coaching Reading Fluency
   http://www.interdys.org/pdf/T38-Reading-Fluency.pdf#search=i_reading%20fluency
   
2. Readers Theatre
   http://www.aaronshep.com/rt/RTE.html
   http://www.teachingheart.net/readerstheater.htm
   http://www.humboldt.edu/~jmf2/floss/rt-eval.html
   
3. Peer Tutor Training Manual
   http://www.jimwrightonline.com/pdfdocs/prtutor/prtutor_lesson3.pdf
   
4. Teaching Fluency Through Poetry
   http://www.poetry4kids.com/index.php
   
5. Fluency Calculator
   http://teacher.scholastic.com/reading/bestpractices/assessment/OFAcalc.htm
   

Comprehension

1. Children's Literature Web Guide
   http://www.acs.ucalgary.ca/~dkbrown
   
2. Reading Challenge
   http://www.bookadventure.org
   
3. Literary Lessons
   http://home.att.net/~teaching/litlessons.htm
   
4. Reading Strategies
   http://curry.edschool.virginia.edu/go/readquest/links.html
   
5. Comprehension Rubric
   http://www.mrsmcgowan.com/reading/rubrics.htm#Comprehension

References
Wasburn-Moses, L. (2006). Twenty-five best Internet sources for teaching reading. The Reading Teacher, 60 (1), 70-75.

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Holidays, Happenings, & Events

This month's Literacy Newsletter focuses on the ways to create discussion and conversation in the classroom. Discussion should be seen as an important tool for learning in both the elementary and secondary classroom. "It engages students, broadens their perspectives, and promotes meaning-making, decision-making, and higher level thinking" (Spiegel, 2005, p. 9). As students proceed through school they should be given many opportunities to engage in conversations, dialogue, and discussion to support their newfound understandings and opinions.

We hope that you find the information in this In Focus section helpful. Please feel free to contact us with questions or feedback on this section of the Literacy Newsletter. You may reach us at forpd@mail.ucf.edu or 1-866-207-7296.

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Developing Discussion in the Classroom

Developing discussion in the classroom offers students the ability to benefit from a focused conversation that is based on a topic they have read about or reviewed. When designed appropriately, discussions assist students in constructing meaning from text that they may have not been able to create by themselves.

Characteristics of Discussion

Discussions have many characteristics including being open-ended, recursive, collaborative and constructive (Spiegel, 2005). Open-ended discussion differs from closed-ended discussion as closed-ended discussion deals more with the teacher trying to purge the correct answers out of students. Open-ended discussions help students clarify their answers and thoughts while the teacher plays more of a facilitator of learning instead of an evaluator of responses.

Discussions are also recursive, not linear, in nature. As students discuss the material they will often jump from topic to topic and subtopic to subtopic in such a way as to help sustain the discussion. The students may revisit a topic or subtopic many times, adding and interjecting different thoughts and ideas. The discussion should continue until the students have explored the topic thoroughly and feel satisfied with the results.

Collaboration and construction of knowledge needs to be part of developing discussions. "If talk is not collaborative, then it is not truly a discussion" (Spiegel, 2005, p. 13). Collaboration needs to be supported to allow for the sharing of ideas, considering other perspectives, and working together to construct meaning. While not everyone needs to agree within a discussion, there also should not be one student who dominates it. A discussion is a group effort and if one student seems to be the only one talking the activity becomes a lecture.

Benefits of Discussion

There are many benefits of using discussions in the K-16 classroom. These include social interaction, helping students develop a deeper meaning, promoting high-level thinking, increasing ownership plus engagement, and helping all students participate, regardless of literacy level (Spiegel, 2005).

Reading is a social process. Discussion promotes this process through collaboration and social interaction. As students gather their thoughts in preparation to express them they will increase their understanding of the material. The use of social interaction allows students thoughts and ideas to be challenged by fellow classmates, which will require them to rethink and revisit their own thoughts on the topic and subtopics.

By working together the students help co-produce a new meaning that is often richer and deeper than if they had worked completely alone to construct meaning. Before the discussion students may have new thoughts after a lecture or reading of a text. During the discussion students will begin to modify and clarify their ideas. After the discussion the students should continue to revise their thoughts on the topic discussed.

As students become more engaged with the discussion, and feel part of the discussion, the exploration and topic orientation may change. At this point, the students have taken ownership and will probably explore the topic for a longer time and with deeper thoughts and considerations. Higher-level thinking skills will also be more apt to arise as the open-ended nature of true discussions allow for analysis of problems and solutions.

Discussion is inclusive and allows for students at a variety of levels to participate. Students who may be struggling with the regular text can be given a different text on the same topic. (Spiegel, D., 2005) This can help students even add different perspectives as one group may have learned something the other group did not, by using the different text, and vice-versa.

Preparing for Discussion

Getting your class ready to participate in discussions should involve creating a classroom environment based on trust and one that is inquiry driven. Helping students understand that they should be inquisitive in nature and that the fellow-classmates, plus themselves, are a community of sorts are both key to the success of engaging discussions.

Teachers need to also consider the background knowledge needed, the vocabulary will need to be taught or reviewed, and the overall goal or purpose of the discussion. Providing students with a background knowledge quiz or using exclusion brainstorming can be very helpful in gaining insight into what your students do and do not know.

Exclusion Brainstorm Example

Teacher Directions: Choose five words that relate directly to the topic, five words that are unrelated, and five words that are ambiguous. Student Directions: Choose the words you think do not relate to the topic and explain why. Choose words you do think relate to the topic and explain why. Discuss the remaining words and how they may or may not be related to the topic. Subject: Astronomy Topic: Planetary science
celestial	interstellar	limit cycles
micrometeoroids	Edge of chaos	exoplanet
axiomatic formulation	morphisms	pulsar
genes	moon	comets
species	asteroid	Charles Darwin
Based on Spiegel, D. L. (2005). Classroom discussion: Strategies for engaging all students, building higher-level thinking skills, and strengthening reading and writing across the curriculum. New York: Scholastic, page 63.

 

Discussion planning sheets can also be beneficial when working with whole or small group discussions. This will help students prepare for a discussion by identifying important facts, conclusions, and opinions. And, because they are writing it down, the students will be able to refer to their discussion sheet if they become jumbled or disoriented when it is their turn to speak. A final column can be added for students to write down new ideas after or during the discussion. (Spiegel, 2005).

 

Discussion Planning Sheet Example Question or Topic: Should the United States return to its foreign policy on limiting our relations with other countries? Facts Opinions Conclusions New Thoughts During the early years the U.S. tried not to take part in foreign relations. This was a good idea because we were farmers back then. We needed to take care of ourselves. That was the past. We are not farmers anymore. We're a big part of the world and we need to be involved. It's not easy staying isolated as we are looked up to in the world. People need our help. It would not be easy to go back because the world has changed. In 1941, Japan bombed Pearl Harbor. The U.S. declared war and afterward became a very powerful player in world politics. This brought us back into the limelight. We needed to make a stand. We couldn't sit by any longer. We are considered a key player in peace. We can't sit by. Going back to isolation policy would make us look arrogant and foolish.

Based on Spiegel, D. L. (2005). Classroom discussion: Strategies for engaging all students, building higher-level thinking skills, and strengthening reading and writing across the curriculum. New York: Scholastic., page 83.

Facilitating Discussion

The questions teachers ask are important within the framework of developing discussion. Teachers need to consider what kinds of effective questions to ask that will assist students in thinking in detail and will result in more than a one-word answer. Teachers should help students understand that they should be asking questions too. The following are characteristics of good questions and poor questions (Spiegel, (2005).

Characterisics of Good Versus Poor Initiating Questions

Good	Poor
Do not have one right answer. Focus on a big idea and not just a detail. Lead to other questions.	Have a right answer, so there is nothing to discuss. Focus only on a small part of the picture. Questions do not go anywhere.
Based on Spiegel, D. L. (2005). Classroom discussion: Strategies for engaging all students, building higher-level thinking skills, and strengthening reading and writing across the curriculum. New York: Scholastic., page 68.

As the discussion in the classroom gets underway teachers will need to consider listening before speaking, asking questions as a participant, not a teacher looking for a specific answer, and try not to evaluate comments. (Spiegel, (2005). The goal is to get a flow of ideas and help students learn from each other and themselves. Teachers may want to consider where they should interrupt or if they should interrupt at all. The goal is to keep the discussion on track without forcing the topic to take a particular path. When working with discussion, the overall goal is to help students seek their own path toward the meaning of the text or topic.

Still, teachers may want to consider interrupting if there are many similar responses, a few students are dominating the conversation, an argument ensues, the conversation is dying down, information that is consistently untrue, or there are stereotypical or racist remarks. Teachers will need to consider how they will deal with these issues. For some, such as with the argument or when the information provided is not true, the teacher could ask the students for evidence to support their thoughts. If many responses are similar or if the conversation is dying down, the teacher may want to use questions to drive the discussion to a slightly different focus. (Adler & Rougle, 2005)

Following Up Discussion

Upon its completion, "if a discussion has been effective, participants leave with new perspectives and meanings" (Spiegel, 2005, p. 101). And yet, this should not be the end of learning and constructing knowledge. Students need to continue the reflection process. Activities that support this can range from reflection journals to thinking charts. Thinking charts benefit students who prefer something visual to help them monitor what they once thought and now believe. This simple chart benefits students in their thinking as they see how their own growth and understanding has changed on the given topic. (Spiegel, 2005).

Tracking My Thinking Chart Example

My Original Ideas	What Others Thought	What I Think Now
Big Ideas The Salem Witch trials were caused by the people in New England being scared of witches and magic. The townspeople were scared women under the spell of the devil were going to hurt and kill their families. Many slaves were accused of witchcraft.	Nancy --- The trials were caused by fear of witches. But, also the people were Puritans and some believed that farming and livestock losses were caused by the wrath of God as punishment for witches.   Manuel---Not that many people were actually put to death. In fact, it was about 20 and not all were women. About 14 were women and 6 were men.   Gina--Some people accused the women and men because they were spiteful and having other issues with them.	There was a basis for the fear of witches. Some Puritans really thought that it was God punishing them for something. Others were just trying to get revenge and harm their neighbors.   Manuel made me rethink what I read in my book. There were not any numbers listed and I thought this was a huge number of people. It's interesting to think it was 20 people.   Why did the men get accused? Weren't women thought as more vulnerable to the devil?
Support Many women were accused of witchcraft and killed. They had many, many trials.
Support Tituba, a slave of one of the families, was one of the first women to be accused of witchcraft.
Based on Spiegel, D. L. (2005). Classroom discussion: Strategies for engaging all students, building higher-level thinking skills, and strengthening reading and writing across the curriculum. New York: Scholastic.., page 108.

 

Activities that Support Discussions and Reflection

Fishbowl Seat students in two concentric circles and have them pair up with a classmate not in their circle. Ask thought-provoking discussion to the students in the inner circle. As the inner-circle students discuss their thoughts on the question, have their outer-circle partners take notes on their inner-circle partner's behavior. Upon completion of the discussion, have outer-circle partners give constructive feedback to their inner-circle counterpart. Have partners switch places and ask new questions to the new inner-circle. Repeat steps 1-4 as listed above. Spiegel, D. L. (2005). Classroom discussion: Strategies for engaging all students, building higher-level thinking skills, and strengthening reading and writing across the curriculum. New York: Scholastic.	Questioning the Author The Questioning the Author (QtA) strategy is based on the constructivist view of learning in which "learners need to actively use information, rather than simply collect pieces of information" (Beck, et al., 1997, p. 8). This during-reading strategy allows teachers to ask specific questions of students that will help them create meaning and reflect on the text while they read. Teachers must carefully plan instruction and develop queries to help guide students through their own thoughts on the topic at hand. To learn more about the procedures and benefits of Questioning the Author, visit the FOR-PD September Reading Strategy of the Month. Beck, I. L., McKeown, M. G., Hamilton, R. L., & Kucan, L. (1997). Questioning the author: An approach for enhancing student engagement with text. Newark, DE: International Reading Association.
Discussion Webs Helping students gain practice in looking at both sides of a topic before making conclusions can be very beneficial when developing discussions. Make a question based on your text or content being used. Example: Should the driving age be lowered to fifteen? Have students find a partner and share responses to the question and the reasons why they feel the way they do. Have students discuss conflicting points of view if students feel the same way. Have them write this information on a piece of paper or in a notebook. Students should then consult with another team of partners to compare their reasons and work toward a group conclusion. Groups then need to identify one reason that supports their conclusion. The student chosen as the group's spokesperson will share the conclusion and reasoning with the rest of the class. Spiegel, D. L. (2005). Classroom discussion: Strategies for engaging all students, building higher-level thinking skills, and strengthening reading and writing across the curriculum. New York: Scholastic.	Taking a Stand This activity can help your students think deeper about a story or piece of text by asking them to consider different perspectives. Taking a Stand can provide practice of using discussion to improve understanding. Create six to eight thought-provoking statements about the text. Example: Ginger was a horrible dancer because she never practiced or did what Mrs. Allen told her to do. Ask students to take a position on each statement and note if they strongly agree, agree, are unsure, disagree, or strongly disagree. Students then take turns discussing their feelings about the statement. They should use their own experiences and examples from the story as evidence of their feelings. Later students can transfer this skill to writing down their thoughts on a specific question or statement and providing evidence to support their position. Adler, M. & Rougle, E. 2005. Building literacy through classroom discussion. Research-based strategies for developing critical readers and thoughtful writers in middle school. New York: Scholastic.
Reflectng on Reflection Journals Journals can support students' awareness of their own growth and learning, especially if done before and after a classroom discussion. Having students further investigate how they construct meaning by reflecting on their journals will aid them further with understanding of the topic at hand. After students have completed many pre-and-post discussion journal entries, bring them together and share with them that they will be reviewing their own journals and reflecting on how much their thinking has changed. Provide students with two sets of sample journal entries. One set should show a shift of opinion on a large scale where there was a big "aha" moment. The other one should be more of a smaller change where the opinion modification was subtler. A third set of sample journal entries should be provided where there is no change in opinion. This is a good time to let students know that they do not always have to change their minds on what they think but that they should note differing ideas. They should entail why the evidence and thoughts of others did not make them change their mind. Have students review their own work and compare where they made subtle changes or not changes in their opinions and with entries where they made larger changes. Spiegel, D. L. (2005). Classroom discussion: Strategies for engaging all students, building higher-level thinking skills, and strengthening reading and writing across the curriculum. New York: Scholastic.	Stand and Deliver Trying to get your students engaged and involved with classroom discussion? Stand and Deliver may be the right activity for you. Teachers create a short list of thought-provoking statements on the topic at hand and list them on a board or chart paper. A Likert scale is provided alongside the statements numbering 1(strongly agree) to 5 (strongly disagree). These numbers, 1 through 5, are placed around the classroom. Privately students decide if they agree with the given statements. Students then move to the number that matches their thinking and take turns explaining their thoughts and feelings. They will need to supply evidence based on the text or their own insight into the topic. Adler, M. & Rougle, E. 2005. Building literacy through classroom discussion. Research-based strategies for developing critical readers and thoughtful writers in middle school. New York: Scholastic.

References:

Adler, M. & Rougle, E. 2005. Building literacy through classroom discussion. Research-based strategies for developing critical readers and thoughtful writers in middle school. New York: Scholastic.

Beck, I. L., McKeown, M. G., Hamilton, R. L., & Kucan, L. (1997). Questioning the author: An approach for enhancing student engagement with text. Newark, DE: International Reading Association.

Spiegel, D. L. (2005). Classroom discussion: Strategies for engaging all students, building higher-level thinking skills, and strengthening reading and writing across the curriculum. New York: Scholastic.

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Resources

September's Reading Strategy of the Month focuses on Questioning the Author.

Try this strategy in your classroom and then email us and tell us how it worked (forpd@mail.ucf.edu). Also, don't forget to share the strategy with your colleagues. Each month we feature an effective reading strategy, explain the rationale behind the strategy, give directions on how to use the strategy with students, present ideas for adapting the strategy to different content areas, present ideas for assessing the strategy, and of course provide a printable PDF version of the strategy. Check out our Reading Strategy Archive to see past Reading Strategies of the Month.

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Books for Students

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Professional Book Recommendations

Improving Comprehension with Questioning the Author
by Isabel L. Beck and Margaret G. McKeown

From the Publisher: In this fully revised and expanded edition of a classic, Isabel L. Beck and Margaret G. McKeown share their new findings on Questioning the Author, the approach that galvanized the research field to look at comprehension instruction in a new way. What's the big idea? What is the author telling us now? That's what the author says, but what does the author mean? By using queries such as these during reading, at strategic points in a text, students learn how to build meaning and consider and converse with an author's ideas. These queries help focus discussions on important understandings. They also embolden struggling readers to work through the ideas in a text rather than skim over them.

The book includes how-to's on planning and orchestrating the Questioning the Author approach as well as a practical trouble-shooting guide based on classroom transcripts of 25 common challenges to discussion.

 

Family Literacy Experiences
Creating Reading and Writing Opportunities That Support Classroom Learning
by Jennifer Rowsell

From the Publisher: Family Literacy Experiences explores the power of the home-school connection, and shows teachers how to make the world outside the classroom an integral part of compelling instruction.

This book offers a multitude of effective and practical ways that teachers can use what already excites and motivates students. It invites teachers to recognize the rich diversity of literacy experiences outside the classroom and create a parallel classroom where meaningful reading and writing takes place.

This unique resource is organized by genre, and each chapter examines:

* revealing moments that demonstrate the genre in action;
* inherent skills of each genre and how to build them into classroom instruction;
* simple activities that involve students in purposeful learning;
* an easy assessment frame that addresses the specifics of the genre.

Rooted in the latest research and incorporating the powerful voices of education leaders, students, parents, and teachers, this book provides practical guides for using what excited students to transform classroom learning.

Reading Doesn't Matter Anymore...
By David Booth

From the Publisher: In this timely, wise, and often witty book, eminent educator and author David Booth argues that teachers must redefine reading as an activity that embraces the needs and interests of students. Reading isn't just about Dick and Jane or great literature any more: it's about the Internet, comic books, technical manuals, graphic novels, iPods, and much more.

Booth outlines twelve simple steps to help teachers and parents alike revolutionize the way they view - and encourage - children's reading in all kinds of genres and formats. He argues forcefully that we must:

* redefine what reading means;
* include comics, magazines, manuals, along with novels in our reading programs;
* understand that technology is part of the new literacy;
* remember that story is the heart of literacy;
* help students build strong reading muscles;
* value the reading responses of young people;
* view writing as literacy;
* recognize the different ages and stages of individuals;
* explore how words work;
* turn printed texts into active learning;
* focus on literacy in every subject;
* welcome youngsters into the culture of literacy.

In some very personal reflections, the author reveals the decisive moments in his life that have shaped his approach to reading and learning. Lively anecdotes throughout the book create a highly readable narrative that makes a compelling case for recognizing the unique value of reading...almost anything.

The book concludes with over one-hundred literacy events that celebrate reading not just in school, but the world beyond.

 

Breakthrough to Meaning
Helping Your Kids Become Better Readers, Writers, and Thinkers
By Jean Anne Clyde, Shelli Barber, Sandra Hogue, and Laura Wasz

From the Publisher: What if there were a single literacy strategy that helped learners of all ages across all contexts read critically, write reflectively, think deeply-and, yes, even improve their performance on standardized reading and writing assessments? There is. It's called the subtext strategy, and in Breakthrough to Meaning, you'll find out how it can help children improve in virtually every aspect of their learning.

The power of the subtext strategy is its ability to use numerous entryways into learning--including not only reading and writing but also art and drama--to bridge the multiple literacies kids bring to school and the demands of conventional print. It's a fresh, manageable way to work depth and breadth into literacy instruction while building students' skills and abilities in important areas such as critical literacy, reading and writing narratives or persuasive essays, media literacy, and standardized testing. Subtexting leads children to explore different perspectives, helping them understand characters, authors, and situations, even ones quite unlike their own. They'll also learn to think and write in more informed and sensitive ways as they respond to an audience's needs, making Breakthrough to Meaning ideal for tackling a variety of genres, including on-demand writing.

Breakthrough to Meaning's smart, specific, and easy-to-implement subtext-based reading, writing, and thinking lessons address the major needs of the contemporary classroom. It includes practical instructional strategies, links to national content standards, vignettes of teachers and students using subtexting, techniques for improving the assessment and instruction of English language learners through subtexting, as well as graphic organizers, charts, and compelling examples of student work.

Breakthrough to Meaning is a novel and practical across-the-curriculum resource that improves students' abilities to make meaning, respond to texts, and write in powerful ways.

Reading Aloud Across the Curriculum
How to Build Bridges in Language Arts, Math, Science, and Social Studies
By Lester L. Laminack and Reba M. Wadsworth

 

From the Publisher: In Learning Under the Influence of Language and Literature, Lester Laminack and Reba Wadsworth demonstrated how to make the read-aloud a strong supporting structure for literacy learning across the day. Now with Reading Aloud Across the Curriculum they reveal how the read-aloud can strengthen students' abilities and achievement in other subject areas.

Reading Aloud Across the Curriculum is a practical guide to expanding your read-aloud instruction to accomplish literacy-based goals in four key subject areas-math, social studies, language arts, and science. You'll find strategic advice for planning thematic, content-driven units that use reading aloud to scaffold understanding and increase engagement. Beginning with smart ideas for introducing students to new content through picture books, Laminack and Wadsworth share ideas for assembling themed sets of children's literature that help kids use the predictable structures of the read–aloud to connect with new ideas. Then Reading-Aloud Across the Curriculum provides suggestions for helping students do research that extends the knowledge they've gotten from whole-class readings and build a bridge from literacy skills to content knowledge. Laminack and Wadsworth give you three specific units of study each for social studies, language arts, science, and even math-twelve units altogether. Each comes with dozens of recommended titles, over 400 in all!

Full of useful planning tips, classroom-tested strategies, and Laminack and Wadsworth's trademark enthusiasm for children's literature, Reading Aloud Across the Curriculum doesn't just pick up where its predecessor left off-it takes you and your students to whole new levels of cross-curricular engagement.

The Book Club Companion
Fostering Strategic Readers in the Secondary Classroom
By Cindy O'Donnell-Allen

From the Publisher: Just because a book club meets during class time doesn't mean reading can't be fun. And just because reading is fun doesn't mean it can't help you meet curricular objectives. With The Book Club Companion you'll find out how the for-pleasure concept of book clubs can help students enjoy reading during the school day, and how you can use book clubs to immerse adolescents in literate, real-world behaviors as you connect them to the English curriculum.

Drawing on current literacy research and more than a decade's experiences with student book clubs in secondary classrooms, Cindy O’Donnell-Allen demonstrates how clubs can help adolescents become more willing, engaged, and strategic readers. Her comprehensive guide distinguishes book clubs from similar instructional techniques like literature circles and offers ideas for implementing clubs, using flexible grouping to meet student and curricular demands, and creating themed sets to offer students choice and you planning options. The Book Club Companion provides numerous resources to get in-class clubs started, keep them running, encourage student response, track discussion, and assess progress. It includes book lists arranged by grade level, reproducible assignment sheets, scoring guides, and tools for record keeping and teacher research.

Get into in-class book clubs. You'll motivate students to read, help them enjoy the experience, and give them an opportunity to become more reflective and accomplished readers as they share in the excitement of connecting the real world to the classroom.

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Text Sets

Developing text sets is a great way to activate and enhance student's prior knowledge on a particular topic or theme. Text sets lend themselves well to increasing engagement, modeling and building fluent reading when used as a read-aloud, and supporting comprehension strategies.

As described in the February FOR-PD Reading Strategy of the Month, text sets can be considered a collection of books related to a common element, topic, theme, or type of text. They provide readers with a medley of text and other materials, including non-fiction, websites, photos, pictures, primary source documents, and fiction, that will support the growing need for students to obtain quality information from a variety of sources.

From the tooth fairy in the early grades to the frolicking fairies in Shakespeare's Midsummer's Night Dream, fairies can be found in a variety of literature for grades K-12. A fairy is considered a spirit or supernatural being that has often been used in legends, folklore, and mythology. Fairies, within the realms of folklore and legend, are seen as bright and festive creatures that are well known for their mischievous nature. ("Fairy", 2006) Fairies have been of interest to writers for many centuries. The Shakespearean fairy, Puck, from Midsummer's Night Dream, is one of English Literature's most beloved characters. Puck sees himself as tricky and clever; he is a key player in the story. He mingles among the people and is not seen as a god or mortal, but something in-between. And, who can forget how they felt about fairies when the possiblity of one coming at night to leave them money was being shared at school and home? Young children are often enchanted by the idea of the fairy because although small, they often have great power.

Below is a sampling of text sets to use in the K-12 classroom on the topic of fairies. Rememer, before making any book or resource available be sure to check out its appropriateness for your students.

 

"Fairies" Text Sets
Books and Resources for Grades K-5 The Truth About Fairies by Philip Ardagh Arthur Spiderwick's Field Guide to the Fantastical World Around You by Holly Black Comet the Fairy Dog by Mary Murphy Alice the Fairy by David Shannon The Pumpkin Fairy by William T. Boyd A Deluxe Book of Flower Fairies by Beatrix Potter Finn and the Fairies by Licia Oddino Clemency Pogue: Fairy Killer by JT Petty Tooth Fairy by Audrey Wood The Fairies of Nutfolk Wood by Barb Bentler Ullman The Fairy Rebel by Lynne Reid Banks Fairy Dust and the Quest for the Egg by Gail Carson Levine The Charm Bracelet by Emily Rodda The Fairy Alphabet of F. Y. Cory by Fanny Y. Cory Fairy Realm series by Emily Rodda,	Books and Resources for Grades 6-8 Faeries by Brian Froud Artemis Fowl series by Eoin Colfer Good Faeries Bad Faeries by Brian Froud Drawing Faeries: A Believer's Guide by Christopher Hart Lady Cottington's Fairy Album by Brian Froud The Illustrated Encyclopedia of Fairies by Anna Franklin Celandine by Steve Augarde Fairyland in Art and Poetry : From The Metropolitan Museum Of Art by Richard Doyle The Fairies: Photographic Evidence of the Existence of Another World by Suza Scalora Faerie Wars by Herbie Brennan The Various by Steve Augarde
Books and Resources for Grades 9-12 The Good Fairies of New York by Martin Millar A History of Irish Fairies by Carolyn White Tithe: A Modern Faerie Tale by Holly Black Fairieality Fashion Collection From The House Of Ellwand by Eugenie Bird I Was a Teenage Fairy by Francesca Lia Block The Summer King by O. R. Melling Great Book of Fairy Patterns by Lora S. Irish Fairies by Yoshitaka Amano The Coming of the Fairies by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle Fairies in Nineteenth-Century Art and Literature by Nicola Bown Midsummer's Night Dream by William Shakespeare A Celtic Night : A fifteen-year old girl's modern retelling of Shakespeare's A Midsummer Night's Dream by Bridget O'Dwyer	Web Sites Fairy Arthur Conan Doyle, Spiritualism, and Fairies Fairies in Art Medieval Faeries Global Faeries What is a Fairy? Dictionary Definition and Elaboration The Literature Network: Midsummer Night's Dream

FOR-PD is looking for ideas for future text sets. If you have an idea we could use email us at forpd@mail.ucf.edu with the subject heading TEXT SETS.

Reference
Fairy. (2006, September 13). In Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. Retrieved 13:49, September 15, 2006, from http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Fairy&oldid=75477701

 

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Feeling frustrated? Can't figure it out? Don't forget the FOR-PD Help Desk is available. Help Desk hours are:

Monday through Friday 9:00 AM - 4:00 PM
Monday, Tuesday, and Friday 6:00 PM - 10:00 PM
Saturday 10:00 AM - 3:00 PM

The phone number is 1-866-863-READ (7323) toll free, Florida calls only. For non-Florida calls only 407-249-4702. Technical support is also available through AOL Instant Messenger, screen name "forpdhelp".

If you need technical support beyond that which your facilitator or school technology coordinator can offer, please contact the FOR-PD Technical Support Help Desk. Please fill out the Tech Help Form or call the Help Desk. Describe your problem as completely as possible and leave your name and return phone number, and someone will get back to you.

Chat Live with the Help Desk. First, make sure that we are online. The button below will tell you whether we are online or offline. Next, click on Set Screen Name and type your name. Then, click in the light blue box below to type your message. Press Enter to send it. This requires you have Macromedia Flash installed on your computer. http://www.itrc.ucf.edu/about/technicalsupport.html

Don't forget to check out the Tutorials and Troubleshooting Guide. Both of these resources provide a wealth of information on the tools used in the course and specific technology problems past participants have had along with solutions to these problems.

Pop-up blockers continue to be the number one issue the Help Desk deals with. If you have a pop-up blocker on your web browser, you will not be able to access the quizzes in the course. To disable your pop-up blocker follow these directions:

Disable Pop-Up Blocking programs

• Move your mouse to the lower right-hand corner of your screen near the time
• Scroll your mouse over the icons listed to the left of the time
• If you notice any of the icons refer to Pop-Ups, right-click on them and click "Disable" or "Exit". Please note that Norton Internet Securities and McAfee Firewall need to be disabled as well.

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Tips and Tricks for the Online Student

"At the end of my first week in an online course, I felt panicked, confused, and overwhelmed. It became apparent to me that virtual schooling was not going to be easy." Did you feel like this after the first week of FOR-PD? Maybe you still feel like this now. Below are some tips and tricks others have found useful, as they have worked through an online course.

1. Maintain an accurate calendar and schedule. When you logged into the FOR-PD course for the first time, you should have noticed a course calendar. This calendar is there to help you and the facilitator keep the correct pace for your section. On this calendar, your facilitator has included lesson due dates, important reminders for the week, and maybe even dates of events happening in your district or in the state. Use this calendar to help you plan out your week. Determine how many days you will need to complete the assignment and make a commitment to get the work done. Do this by making an appointment in your own calendar to work on the lesson for the week. Keep in mind that you will need time to read the lesson materials, check out the required readings, complete the literacy log, take the lesson quiz, and post your discussion.
   
2. Determine what you MUST do for the lesson, the rest is there for you to look at another time. In each lesson FOR-PD has included a task list that tells you what you must read and do for each lesson. Look this over; you may find that you are spending way too much time looking at areas that are less important. For example, participants have told us that they spend hours and hours going through the many links contained in each lesson. We suggest that you do the required tasks first and then go back to view the other links. Did you know that all of the course links are also contained in our Resources Database? This database is available to anyone and can be found on our Web site. So the resources will be there for you any time you want them.
   
   

One of our FOR-PD Facilitators makes this excellent scheduling recommendation to her participants: Monday and Tuesday - Spend an hour each evening reading the lesson content; go to the end of the lesson and understand the discussion assignment and its rubric; take the quiz; work on the online literacy log each evening. Wednesday and Thursday - Put your thoughts together, email or talk to colleagues about the assignment, as this is where the most growth happens; retake the quiz if you need to; respond to others on the discussion board. Friday, Saturday, and Sunday - Compose your discussion entry and post it to the appropriate discussion area. Make sure you have completed the online literacy log and passed the quiz for the lesson.



3. Make sure you read everything that is required! Although this seems self-evident, it's very easy for an online student - pressed for time and anxious to complete assignments - to scan through postings, lesson content, and assignment directions without really reading. By reading postings twice, you will have a better chance of understanding the true message that is being communicated. Make sure you read both the discussion directions and the grading rubric. Often times, participants will read a discussion posting and then think they know what should be included. When they get their grade back they realize that they missed key pieces of the assignment. For example, in Lesson 7, you must include specific information in the subject line of your discussion posting. This simple task is worth four points on your grade. If you miss this you are already at the minimum score for this discussion. So please make sure you read and follow the directions and the rubric.
   
4. Reply to people in your section. One drawback of asynchronous online courses, like FOR-PD, is discussion with your facilitator and course mates relies on the discussion board and email. One thing FOR-PD strives to achieve in each section is a sense of community. To achieve a sense of community, participants must interact not only with the facilitator, but also with other participants and the course content. We have found that there is a great deal of communication between facilitators and participants, but not as much between and among participants. For success in an online learning environment it is imperative that participants be active knowledge-generators who assume responsibility for constructing and managing their learning experience.

When threaded discussions grow in length, the temptation is to respond with cursory comments such as "I agree," or "That's true." These comments add little to the dialogue. Make an effort to include more details, rationale, and opinion. Cite the specific portion of the discussion to which you are referring. This enables those in your course to follow the conversation's path, and contributes to a more intelligent discourse. Without it, postings have little meaning. Respond to the great ideas being generated by your course mates. Ask questions if you don't understand their line of thinking. Ask questions to help them extend their thinking on a particular topic. For example, these two teachers are communicating back and forth on a strategy one has decided to try in her classroom.

"I think exit cards are a good idea. Let me know how they work and how much more work they require on you as a teacher. I already feel as if I have more to do than time in the day." "I agree! There's never enough time! I plan to just CHECKMARK the names of the students on my attendance roster for each card they turn in during the week. At the end of the week, I'll add up the checkmarks and give out 10 pts. per checkmark. This may be revised, but I'll start here. I'll let you know how it works."

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My course is about to close, what do I need to do?

All sections of the summer FOR-PD course, that started on July 10, will be coming to an end in the middle of next month on October 16.

Below are some tips to remember before your course closes:

1. Check your course grades. Do you have a score of 16 or higher on all of your discussions? Do you have a score of 16 or higher on all of your quizzes? Have you submitted a literacy log for lessons 2-14? You must achieve all of these in order to be in good standing and complete the course successfully.
2. Now more than ever it is important that all your assignments are completed according to the course schedule. The day after the course closes your access to your course will be closed. This means you won't be able to get back into the course and complete unfinished work.
3. Before you complete lesson 14, make sure you take the post-course survey located in the Quizzes section. This is a mandatory course requirement.
4. Does your district need a copy of your literacy log? If so, please print out the log before the last day of your course.
5. Complete the Course Evaluation. This is found in the Quizzes section.
6. If for some reason you are unable to finish all of your assignments before you are denied access to the course, contact your facilitator. Facilitators will be able to work with you on getting these assignments completed.

After your course closes and the facilitator has had a chance to grade all of the assignments, an email is sent by the facilitator to FOR-PD delineating completion information for each section. Once we have received this information and updated our databases participants will receive a certificate of completion via the email you have provided us. FOR-PD will also send each district a listing of those participants who completed the course.

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WHEN: October 17, 2006 TIME: 7:30pm - 8:30pm EST WHERE: General Chat for All Courses WHO: participants TOPIC: Technology Help GUEST: FOR-PD Tech Team

WHEN: November 21, 2006 TIME: 7:00pm - 8:00pm EST WHERE: General Chat for All Courses WHO: participants TOPIC: Technology Help GUEST: FOR-PD Tech Team

All chats are logged and posted on our web site (Chat Transcripts). Before joining one of our chats make sure you know the Chat Protocol.

Chat Protocol: Please be aware that FOR-PD uses a moderated discussion format. A moderator will keep the chat on topic and recognize question/statement requests by participants. The person who has the floor can field questions and statements from other participants, but they hold the floor until they are done. When they are done, the moderator will recognize another participant who requests the floor.

In order to make the chat flow smoothly, please use the following chat symbols and guidelines:

  !     The exclamation point is like raising your hand, you want to be recognized to make a statement.

  #    Use the pound sign to let everyone know you are done asking a question or making a statement.

  ....  This lets everyone know you have more to say.

Guidelines

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