Chapter 3 Tucker

This chapter focuses on writing lesson plans for the diverse student or to put it another way to not write lesson plans that are just for the average student. Lessons that are meant to teach to the middle of ability are called traditional lesson plans by the textbook. With inclusion and the result differentiated instruction adapted lessons are how teachers plan for this diverse instruction. An example of a diverse lesson plan is the laboratory approach. This approach has five steps explore, organized record of results, identify patterns, hypothesize, and test the hypothesis. This process is believable to students because they work their way to a result and understand from beginning to end. In adapting lesson instruction shifts from teaching the textbook to teaching concepts is the objective for instruction. The book also gives many ggod examples of adapted lessons to demonstrate to readers how to adapt a lesson. The focus of creating good adapted lessons is place the focus on the student and their immediate needs instead of on teaching material. In my own instruction I develop lessons with many different activities and I let the students learning lead us in through the learning process. My main goal is to teach a particular skill to all the students in my small group settings.

Tucker Chapter 2

This chapter starts with an overview of the NCTM standards and the legal apsects to the classroom that have followed. I can personally see the results of this chapter in the classroom where I teach. An inclusive policy is now the norm and time in the resource room is limited to the small group and smaller units of instruction discussed in the textbook. The textbook talks about the multiple intelligences and how to design objectives that meet these intelligences. Where I teach there is a big push to use differentiated instruction to teach an objective to a learners specific learning style. I like the reference the book makes to developing lessons to what a student already knows. This follows the scaffolding process of learning. The book also talks about how a learning disability does not mean an individual has low intelligence but instead a weakness in one or more area of learning. I have students that I see now who could be labeled gifted if tested, but suffer from a disability that makes learning difficult at times. An example is a very intelligent young student who suffers from seizures. After each seizure the student loses information that was learned and has to start over with some concepts. This chapter was a good overview of what we are dealing with at school now. With inclusion being the norm and differentiated instruction being the strategy that teachers use to make inclusion possible by tailoring objectives to meet the students personal strengths.

Tucker ch.1 and 13

I like how chapter 1 starts with explaining how we sometimes forget that an activity needs to be useful and not just fun. I find myself getting caught up in the procedures of an activity sometimes and I forget about the objective. The textbook clarifys this very nicely. I'm not sure about the textbook views on speed-drill practice activities. According to the book, speed-drill activities are not effective. I have read a lot of studies that show that these types of activites increase math fact fluency and automaticity which are the foundation for learning new concepts or as the book puts it (think-time practice activities). I just don't think memorization activities, when it comes to math facts, should be dismissed. Both have their place in instruction. While reading about real- world problems, it came to me to change the open-ended practice questions that we are doing and to make them real students and problems that they can identify with. In ch 13 I use the Match Me activities weekly. I have found them to be very effective for students to practice and become more proficient in comprehension and understanding. I have also used Take the Path, Concentration, and different forms of Scavenger Hunt. I have found these all to work very well with remediation of math skills. I am looking forward to trying some of the activities that I haven't used. I think I am going to try the Round We Go this week with a group of Kindergarten students. I am glad to see that this textbook not only gives strategies for teaching but also some good ideas to practice in the classroom.

Blog Post for ch 8,9 Writing and Word Recognition

I liked what the textbook had to say about making the writing process real to the student and giving them experiences to draw upon to write about. I have always been used to the whole writing process: rewriting, drafting and composing, revising and editing, and finally publishing and sharing usually in some type of author's chair. Now that most schools are using a daily writers workshop, this process isn't as formal as it was before. Students now are in a structured, predictable time where they will write. Instead of grammar worksheets and textbooks, schools are incorporating teacher guided writing lessons or mini-lessons to incorporate grammar into real student writing. This is much more beneficial to students because it gives them ownership of their hard work. The book suggested a semantic map to help students think through the writing process. I have used semantic maps in the past and they work especially well with students with disabilities who may not know what to write about next. It gives them an order to follow when thinking through a particular writing. The book also gave the example of portfolios to showcase student work. I think that is a great way to share their accomplishments and organize their writings. It is also a resource for future evaluations for students who may need additional support from the school. When it comes to grading, I have found the use of rubrics to be a great asset for a fair grading system that also lets students know up front what is expected of them.
When it comes to dealing with students with disabilities I think that they need more direct instruction when recognizing words. Teachers need to use all of the examples in the book to help students reach their full potential. From phonics instruction to the different approaches used in the book (VAKT, Language Experience), I think that we still need to remember to make the process enjoyable to the student. When I have used stations in a reading program I had a sight word station. Students made their own paragraghs using magnet sight words on a metal cookie tray. They would love to share the different stories that they developed. Another fun example in the book was readers theater. I know from experience that is a favorite of students. The most important aspect for all language arts is to make it real for the students.