I am reminded by Conley (2007) how important it is to “lead the class through discussion aimed at figuring out a difficult text passage” (p. 130). I don’t think this book itself (the Conley book) is “difficult” to read, enough to warrant a talk about figuring it out, but I think we need more discussion in the class, more talk. I think I’ll bring Basic Economics to class as an example.
On a related note, I’m looking forward to examining the Curriculum Framework together. I think this will elicit talk about the reading of difficult texts. “Good informational texts have clear purposes and a well-defined audience” (Conley, 2007, p. 131).
Conley says narrative texts are “in some ways” a bit more complicated that informational texts (p. 132). I’m wondering what you all think about that statement?
Check out the box on p. 133 again—these stats floor me every time. Nearly 100% of public schools have access to the Internet?! The ratio of students to computers in classrooms is 4:1?! You’ll have access to computers in your teaching—what will you do with them? What’s important for kids to learn in this “Digital Age”?
Conley seems skeptical about readability formulas. I’m with him, and I like the idea of readability checklists and the FLIP assessment to help examine text complexity. I’m intrigued with how Conley and Allen (our two books) define FLIP differently.
Creating a chart like the one on p. 143 seems like a summer task to me, when you’re outlining/creating your pacing guide.
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I think narrative texts are some what difficult. I feel that if the material doesn't have a little challenge, then it is not as fun. It takes a little more time to process the information or even find meaning to narrative text. The best thing about narrative text is that it can become authentic. You can add your own thoughts and compare it to the author's thoughts.
ReplyDeleteIn response to your comment, I think the first obvious challenge with using brainpop is the issue of cost. To gain full access to all information, the purchase must be made. With all of the budget cuts, many schools probably cannot afford such resources.
ReplyDeleteSecond, because the site has so much to see and do, the students who are able to access and use the site may become distracted due to exploration. When I come across a new site, I like to see everything that it has to offer before completing my original task.
distracted by exploration seems a bit like an oxymoron to me. i wish there was more time for exploration in classes, but I agree that we should teach with online resources in specific ways. perhaps brainpop would be lead by the teacher, or could be used as an "enrichment" activity after other texts have been explored.
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