Challenging myself as a Reader

One of the changes I have made this year, in terms of assessing the personal reading of my students, was to add the row in the rubric that targets challenging oneself as a reader. I know from my own reading experience that it is easy to get sucked into the world of only reading certain genres and particular authors. This makes me lazy when I read because I know what the author will do, or what to expect from reading so many other similar books.

My students, and their parents, have asked, "How do we challenge ourselves as readers." Here is the beginning of an answer.

The first thing to do is to read outside your comfort zone. Pick up books in genres you may not be familiar with. Explore new authors. This was the goal of the "Around the Library in 14 Genres" contest held earlier in the year. The amazing thing to me is that when you branch out and try new reading materials you discover so many wonderful things. I, personally, don't really enjoy mystery novels, and yet some of the most enjoyable books I have read in the last year have been in that genre. I have read the first two books by the late Steig Larsson. You never know. You may discover that you actually enjoy what you thought you didn't.

Drop into a library and browse through the shelves. Some books may just jump out at you.

"...kids are good at connecting ideas and making things their own. If we provide them the supportive environment and tools to foster these connections and ideas, schools are doing their jobs.”

Steven Berlin Johnson

We've been trying to do just this, at least in the grade 8 English classes I teach. Inspired by a video I saw on ted.com, by an Educational researcher named Sugata Mitra, [His talk centred on the child-driven-education.] I have had my grade 8 students working in groups over the last month on a number of activities centred around improving their understanding of certain Literary elements like plot structure, irony and symbolism. It was wonderful to see the groups stand up in front of the class and teach each other through a variety of different media. We saw giant books, pop-up books, slideshows, puppet shows, skits and videos all used to communicate the student's learning.

Which brings me back to the quote with which I started this entry. I like to think that the environment within the grade 8 English classes has been the one described in that quote. Let me know.

D/I workshop

I was away from school today because I was attending a workshop on Differentiated Instruction. Much of these strategies are things good teachers do anyway. Still, I found the speaker, Karen Hume, very interesting and upbeat. She was very knowledgeable. (Of course, she is a former teacher-librarian.)

What I walked away from the day with was the desire to try out some of these strategies. The overall message was a positive one. We should want to try these things because we want all of our students to be as successful as possible. Knowing that students and all of us really, learn in different ways, it would be irresponsible of me, as a professional, to not try everything I can to help my students succeed.

So look out, students. Some new strategies are going to be making an appearance in our English class.

Sugata Mitra: The child-driven education | Video on TED.com

Sugata Mitra: The child-driven education Video on TED.com

Grade 8s, this is the video that inspired your current assignment. It is worth watching.

A New Year, a New Beginning

Now that we are half-way through September, it seems like a good time to stop for a minute and think about how we are going to spend the year. I am lucky enough to teach three English classes this year: 7F, 8G and 8H. I will attempt to use this blog to write about things that relate directly to what we are doing in English class. Hopefully you will let me know if the content I put on this is relevant, and also to suggest things that can be placed here. I look forward to learning with you.

April's post:

Many of you have read "The Shepherd's Granddaughter", one of the nominated titles for this year's Red Maple Reading Program. You may also be aware of some of the controversy that has recently arisen concerning this book. Here is a link to an open letter asking for the book to be withdrawn from the Red Maple Program: Open Letter to Ontario's Education Minister. Here are some of the responses to this letter: Censorship Controversy Heats Up , Not Wise to Ban Children's Books , Jewish Groups Say... .

After reading the articles what do you think? Should the book be pulled from the competition because an organization dislikes its content? Who should decide what books get to be part of a competition like the Red Maple? Who should decide if a book is suitable for a school library? Are you old enough to read controversial books and decide for yourselves? How would you go about finding more information about the subject so that you could make up your own mind?

I think these are interesting questions and I would like you to weigh in with your thoughts about this topic of censorship. One of this month's posts needs to be a response to this issue.

March 2010

I always find it interesting to follow the thoughts that flow from the reading in which I am constantly engaged. This month, I am offering three suggestions for you to ponder and then write about.

The 2010 Winter Olympics. Yes, the Olympics are over and maybe you are like me wanting more of it to watch on TV. How do you feel about Canada having hosted the Olympics? Has this changed the way you feel about sports? Has this changed the way you feel about living in Canada? Are the Olympics a good thing? Was it justifiable to have spent so much money on this event when the world has so many other issues that require our attention? What was your favourite Olympic moment? There is so much to think about, maybe you will offer your thoughts on this subject?

Good Deeds

I read an article this morning in which the author wrote about her attempt to do one good deed each day for fifty days. Now this isn't the first time I have read or heard about people doing this, but for some reason it stuck in my head. So, I challenge all of you to try this for the month of March. Do one good thing each day. Do something not for yourself, but for someone else. Keep track in your blog or some other way. One deed at a time we can change the world. Here are some links to others who have gone through this journey or maybe are still walking that path:

One Good Deed Per Day

365 Days of Goodness

I'm sure you can find others that will help to inspire you. I am hoping that all of you will take me up on this challenge. This could be a life changing moment.

What comes next, after high school? As I am getting ready to go to this year's Career Conference in May, I have been thinking and talking with others about the world beyond high school. Do we, as a society, have certain preconceptions about where students should go and what they should do after high school? Do you know what you will be doing when you finish high school? What is the goal of school and education within our society? When I was in grade 7, it was the expectation that I would attend a university upon finishing high school. Is that the only option? What do you think?