Module 6: PowerPoints

Reading Strategies: Reading in the Upper Grades

I absolutely loved reading and learning about the word walls. This is actually something that I am being required to implement in my classroom as of the last week. I think that word walls have such a wonderful purpose when used correctly and effectively. I plan on creating a word wall in which includes content words and synonyms. Although my classroom colors do not include yellow, I definitely plan on using black writing on yellow paper like the PowerPoint suggest. I cannot wait to use the Guess the Word game. What a fun and engaging way to help students learn their vocabulary, especially when it is related to what they are learning. All the games that are discussed in this PowerPoint, I am definitely using once I get my word wall up and running. This actually is motivating me to get on the ball.  As a teacher in the upper graders (5^th), we are constantly doing think alouds, initially  being modeled by me. I really like the strategy of reading ahead and going backwards to see if the author clears up any confusion for the reader or uses context clues to help the reader better understand unfamiliar words and phrases. I really like the 3-2-1 strategy. I always want to use it as a ticket out the door, but never know exactly what the 3-2-1 are meant to be. This gave me a good way to formally assess my students. I truly enjoyed this PowerPoint as it was informative and useful for the grade level I teach. I learned several strategies that I had heard mentioned but did not know the specifics such as the 4 types of reading questions. I definitely plan on applying much of what I learned in this PowerPoint to and in my classroom.

Assessment of Cognitive, School, and Home Factors

It was interesting to learn what “type” of students do well on and struggle with particular types of test. For instance, I have quite a few students being tested for Target this week. I know that the first test they are taking is a Cognitive Abilities Test (CogAT). I now can see why these tests are no longer used in wide practice. As intelligence tests do not measure neither problem solving skills nor other critical areas, and are also bias toward poor readers, I find that the best type of assessment is simply teacher observation. Through working with a student in a small group setting or even one-on-one, a teacher can learn so much about a student and their actual abilities.