Time is flying! Just two weeks left of summer and I really have nothing to share with my colleagues when I return. I have been personally tracking my reading on a Summer Book Challenge through Goodreads. I am finishing up book 9 (yes nine!) since June, and I hope to read 2 more before school starts in full in 3 weeks. The challenge includes several summer related topics from which to read and has really stretched my imagination sometimes. I have enjoyed most of them. I just finished Wild which was popular several years ago, and I think it was my favorite! I had forgotten they made a movie of it, so now I need to find it on Netflix and add that to my watch list-maybe when I have less time for reading!
Besides reading, it was quite an adventuresome week. My 16 year old got her license, then got stung by a stingray (note there were quite a few folks being treated at the lifeguard station that day!), my older daughter and I went to a paint nite at a local coffee shop, and a lot of time is being spent selling and buying a new (to me) car that will eventually become the teen's when she graduates. Now, if we can just find what we're looking for...
I will be visiting my classroom this week and getting stuff prepared for school at home, as well as making the annual pilgrimage to Target, Office Depot, Staples, Dollar Tree etc! Here we go.... I always enjoy the new school year, but hate that it means the end of the summer! Are you ready yet?
On to the book study....
Goal 8-Supporting Comprehension in Nonfiction: Determining Main Topic(s) and Idea(s)
I love that Jennifer Serravallo notes that children often remember the "zingers" they read in nonfiction text and that by creating a mini organization system (I picture a file cabinet) in their head where they place the information from the text and that more complex texts have affects the understanding of that information. I also love the idea of planting sticky notes throughout a text, and having students identify the main idea as they go as a way to assess this goal. I have always had trouble, myself, separating the topic from the main idea so I probably have not taught this so well to my students either. This chapter has given me plenty of great ideas to choose from.
8.1 One Text, Multiple Ideas (or Topics)
This is like text evidence math! As students read, they note what each section is mostly about. Then they add that information to their previous notes. Students can then determine if the author has moved on to a new idea or if it adds to the first idea. This strategy works well with students at many different levels. However, higher level readers may be able to construct a complex statement about the ideas the author has mentioned. Again, I see sticky notes in this strategy as a way to collect all of those thoughts and put them together as a whole. They would also be useful for students to construct a paragraph or so summarizing what they had read.
8.3 Topic/Subtopic/Details
I have never really had my students take good notes while reading. I always felt they needed to focus on their reading without being distracted by note taking. After teaching third grade last year after many years in second, I realize my students are more able to do this than I thought. Using Jennifer's example, students can categorize their notes easily. I can see this graphic organizer working with 8.8 Sketch in Chunks as well. (Think Sylvia Duckworth's SketchNoting!)
8.14 Time = Parts
This strategy is specifically designed to be used with biographies, subdividing a person's life into subtopics (usually timeframes). However, since biographies are often written with the person like a character in a book, Jennifer Serravallo suggests using Chapters 5 and 6 to support comprehension in narrative nonfiction. I like how the student has placed their notes on a timeline.
Goal 9-Supporting Comprehension in Nonfiction: Determining Key Details
Jennifer Serravallo says, "Determining key details is the difference between taking a highlighter to every single word in a textbook, and highlighting just those facts that align to your purpose for reading, or that align to what the author is trying to day." What an excellent visual when defining key details! By paying attention to how a child connects the main idea and details of a text, and the quality of those details a teacher is able to determine if this goal is the right fit for his or her students. I can see myself using the following strategies:
9.2 Reading with a Sense of "WOW"
Encouraging students to be curious about their reading can be difficult, especially with younger readers, but this curiosity will help them remember key details. Jennifer suggests telling students to "let the information "sink in", think about how it answers questions or satiates your curiosity." This can be more difficult when a text is part of a curriculum or something that has been chosen by others, but students need to be able to read and understand texts that they choose as well as those assigned to them and using this strategy may help them find the WOW in something they weren't even interested in!
9.7 Click and Clunk
What a great way to help students focus on their own understanding! Did it "click", or make sense or were you confused, "clunk"? When you feel that clunk, you need to go back to reread. The padlock visual is very effective!
9o9.14 Slow Down for Numbers
Numbers, numbers, numbers! Some kids love 'em, some don't, but within a nonfiction reading they are probably important. It can be helpful to draw (here's that SketchNoting again!) or visualize exactly what those numbers mean to get a good understanding of what is being said. Slow down, people!
That's that for now! Next up: more nonfiction comprehension as well as some focus on language/vocabulary strategies. Have a great week!
No comments:
Post a Comment