Jen's RRs

Chapter 1

How Children Read

This chapter talks a lot about how children read. It says that they use their prior experiences to figure out what words are how to understand the text. Some of my students see the first letter in the word and fill in the word with a word they know. The word usually does make sense in the sentence but it is not the correct word. I think that my students read too quickly and do not even notice their mistakes. I try and get them to go back and slow down so they can catch the mistakes that they made. After doing all of my running records I realized that almost all of the students said that they book they read was just right. I guess they like to read books that are not at all challenging.

Chapter 2

Teaching Reading

I think it is really useful to see sample running records. Now I know how to do them correctly. I have done several running records with one of my students. She always reads at least ninety percent of the words correctly but when I ask her what she read about, she has no idea. I have her slowly reread a few sentences and then I ask the same question but she still can not tell me a summary of what she just read. I would not classify her as an early reader because she can say the words. I do not know what category she would fall under.

Chapter 3

Classroom Setup

I never really thought about how important a classroom setup can be. The floor plan on page twenty looks a lot bigger than any classroom I’ve been in. When I have my own class I want to have an extensive library. I want to have books of all reading levels so my students choose to have just-right books or challenging books. Ideally I would like to organize my library by reading level and keep all books neatly in baskets. I will also be sure to keep weekly reading logs for all of my students. I want to make sure they always have something to read.

Chapter 4

Reading Conferences

I have not yet done any conferences with my students. I am a little scared that I won’t do a good job and my students might not want to read for me again. I realize that I need to get over this fear. Conferences are a good way to get to know students better. You not only learn their reading ability, you also learn about who they are.

Chapter 5

Running Records

Running records are a good way to keep track of students’ progress reading. I wish I had enough time to sit down with all of my students are take thorough records. I don’t feel like I do a good job when I listen to my students read. They all read really quickly and do not notice when they read or pronounce words incorrectly. When I tell them to go back to a word they missed, they just give me a confused look. To them, their reading is perfect. My students never say that a book is too difficult or too easy for them. I think they like to read books that they know they will not struggle with and can finish quickly. When I suggested the book Homecoming to my students, they said they did not want to read it because it was too long.

Chapter 6

Retelling

I am glad this book gives step by step instruction about how to go about conducting a retelling. I have tried it in the past and was sometimes unsuccessful. One student I asked could not tell me a thing about the story she had just read. She could read just about all of the words but could not comprehend what they meant altogether. I did not know where to go from here. One idea I got from this chapter was giving her a shorter book to read so maybe she would have less to remember. She showed a little improvement but was not completely successful.

Chapter 7

Read Alouds

I have done many read alouds with my class. Almost everyday after lunch I read a chapter from our book. So far we have read Danny the Champion of the World, The Twits, and are now starting Mr. Popper’s Penguins. Before I start reading I ask them where we left off and what last happened in the story to make sure they are paying attention and remember what was read. Students are eager to raise their hands and retell what happened in the previous chapter. When I feel like they have told enough I start reading. It seems like the students are enjoying being read to.

Chapter 8

Guided Readings

Taberski’s guided reading planning sheets are very organized and easy to understand. I don’t think I am ready to do this. I don’t know how she can interact with a group of students, listen to all of them read, and keep a log of everyone’s progress. I would not be able to keep up with my students because they read so fast.

Chapter 9

Word Wall

I noticed that the word wall in my classroom now is not set up the same as in my second-grade class. In second grade, the word wall was more similar to the one in the book. All of the students’ spelling words were in the wall. Many of them had spelling patterns. Now, the fourth grade spelling words are just words from the book they are reading. There is no grouping or pattern at all. I guess this set up is more for lower elementary students.

Chapter 10

One-on-one Time

Taberski stresses that one-on-one time is essential when a child is learning a new skill. They need to be guided and reassured that they are reading correctly. I don’t remember ever having this kind of one-on-one time. I remember DEAR (drop everything and read) time. Maybe this is why I don’t enjoy reading. Maybe if I was encouraged more as a child I would like it a little.

Chapter 11 and Chapter 12

Letting Students Choose Their Own Books

For silent reading time my students are allowed to choose any book that they want as long as it is a chapter book. I don’t think this is doing enough to make sure each student is reading a just right book. Students read at all different levels so we should make sure their books are appropriate. Sometimes a go around and take a look at what they are reading. They like to tell me what their books are about. As long as they are enjoying reading I think it’s okay.

I don’t know what to do when a child sits there and stares at the pages. I know this is what I began doing in second grade. This is when I started hating reading. Independent reading time was when I would look at words and think about other things. I do not want any of my students to hate reading so I want to be sure that I keep an eye on them and always ask what the book is about.

Chapter 13

Reading Responses

This past week I had my students write book reviews. They had to find a book that they enjoyed reading and write a one page book recommendation. They were instructed to tell a little about the story, write what they liked about it, why other would enjoy it, and not give away the ending. At first many of them did not do well. They wanted to summarize the book. I read examples from papers that received ME. I then had them rewrite it and turn it back in. Even though most of them did not follow directions I am pleased to know that they were able to retell what their books were about.