Autumn Combs

Try-It Outs
Chapter 1
1. Discuss four learning strategies. How can a teacher help students use these strategies to acquire
knowledge?
a. The four learning strategies are predicting, organizing, elaborating, and monitoring.
Predicting requires that the child anticipate what will happen next. Organizing takes
place when children divide information into different groups. Elaborating is when the
student expands on the information. Finally, monitoring means that children keep track
of their own progress. Teachers can help students to acquire knowledge through these
four categories. When students predict, they are putting the material into their own
words which in turn makes it stay with them for a longer period of time. The organizing
part of the learning strategy list helps students put information together into groups
that make sense. When the material is organized like this, the student is able to connect
with the material in a better way. Next, elaborating on the subject requires the students
to think about the subject at hand and give his own twist or ideas to the group. With
monitoring, the students are able to see their progress and goals that they have. This
will help students to use the data to build and work to increase their data. It will also
help to provide a clear picture so that students will not think they are ok when they are
not.
2. Discuss the four language systems.
a. The four language systems include: phonological, syntactic, semantic, and pragmatic
systems. The phonological system deals with and represents the sounds that are in
English words. The syntactic system talks about the structural system that tells how
sentences are formed. Semantic system talks about the meaning system of English that
deals mostly with vocabulary. Finally, pragmatic refers to the system of English that
varies according to social and cultural uses.
3. Why is it important to teach critical literacy?
a. It is important to teach critical literacy so that students can communicate with others in
society. Critical literacy is also important for students to solve problems in everyday life.
Critical literacy also to do something that you want them to do in your day. With this
critical literacy, students will know how to interact with one another in the classroom
and how literature plays an important role in their lives. With critical literacy, students
can grow to be activists and stand up for an issue that they feel strongly about. Without
the ability to express ones ideas, change would be impossible and people would not be
able to better their situations.
4. What are the six language arts?
a. The six language arts include listening, talking, reading, writing, viewing, and visually
representing. There are listening strategies that the students can use for comprehension
and monitoring of their understanding of the information. Students should talk in order
to respond to literature that has been read in class , talk with peers about work, or give
oral reports. Students use reading in order to comprehend and learn new information.
There are different types of reading such as independent reading, shared reading, and
guided reading. Writing helps students refine their writing and gives them opportunities
to write different genres. Students view information regularly through commercials and
ads that they need to be able to read and comprehend. Finally, students visually
represent information to share with others and combine real and virtual worlds to
present information that is engaging.
Try-It Out!
My students in the Birmingham City placement were given opportunities to participate in most of the six
forms of Language Arts. The students listened to their teacher and peers on a regular basis in order to
understand the information provided. They must follow instructions and use note-taking guides while
listening to the lecture. The students are also allowed to participate in speaking. They are often given
opportunities to discuss subjects with their groups so that they can talk themselves through the material
and hear each others ideas. Reading is also present during class. The students read texts in order to
comprehend the material and answer questions about it at the end. The students also participate in the
different types of reading. Next, students are able to write every day. They begin their day with a journal
entry that they are able to write their own thoughts for. They are also given a chance to participate in
different genres of writing such as narrative, descriptive, and persuasive during this journal writing time.
Viewing is used often in the classroom. The students watch videos for engagement pieces and also view
charts for science lessons. This gives visual representations of the information to the students so that
they can have something to think back to when they need the information. Finally, the students create
visual representations least often. They did create drawings that help them comprehend a certain part
in the story that they were reading.














Chapter 2
1. Discuss the four patterns of practice for a language arts classroom. Discuss the pros/cons of
each. Does your teacher use any of these? If yes, which ones?
a. The four patterns of practice for a language arts classroom incluse: literature focus
units, literature circles, reading and writing workshop, and thematic units. Literature
focus units have the teacher and students reading and responding to texts together as a
class. At the end, the students create an oral, written, or visual presentation of the
material. This pattern of practice is important because it allows the lessons to be
scaffolded for students, the students explore vocabulary, and the literature that is used
is high quality text. The problem with this pattern of practice is that students read the
same books despite their interests or reading levels and the instruction is very teacher
led. Literature circles involve the students breaking up into groups and reading a book
together. This book can be based on their reading level. There should be reading
questions that the students use as a guide during the reading. The pros of this pattern is
that there are a variety of reading level books available for the students. The students
are also able to work with classmates, participate in authentic literacy experiences, and
participate in discussions that will clear up any misconceptions. The cons of this practice
are that the teacher does not have as much control over the class and the students are
able to get off task more easily or they choose books that are not on their level. Reading
and writing workshops provide the students to choose a book that they want to read
and respond to it when they do read it. This is then shared with classmates as a sort of
book talk. Pros of this pattern include: appropriate level books, motivation for students,
practice with the writing process, activities are student led, and teachers have time to
work one on one with individuals. The cons of this pattern are a limited amount of
teacher control over the class and keeping students on task to finish their work. Finally,
thematic units are based on social studies and science topics. The students use the six
language arts to participate with the material and they draw on other literature besides
textbooks to learn the information. The pros of this pattern are that the students read a
variety of genres of text, students keep track of their learning, organizers are used for
the information, scaffolded teaching for individuals and groups, talking to clarify ideas,
technology is used throughout, and students create projects. The cons of this pattern
include work on the teachers part to design and put the unit together. These units are
also time consuming compared to textbook-driven lessons/units. I was not in my
teachers class during their literature time in order to observe any of these patterns to
be put into practice.
2. Discuss some ways to assess students in language arts.
a. Some ways is through classroom observations, anecdotal notes, conferences, and
checklists. Classroom observations simply mean that the teacher is watching the
students and making notes on what the child is struggling with or what the child needs
extra practice with. Anecdotal notes involve the teachers writing brief notes about
students. These notes describe events and report situations rather than evaluate them.
For conferences, the teacher and students meet together in order to focus on goals and
achievements of the student. Finally, checklists provide the teacher with a list of
information that he or she is looking for as the students work. This checklist can be used
as the students work so that the teacher can check off points that each student is doing
well or needs work on.
Try-It Out
1. I observed a student in one of my placements as he was writing in his journal. This is an activity
that takes place every morning when the students come into the classroom. The anecdotal
notes are as follows:
- He is concentrating well on the task.
- He stops and thinks often about what he is going to write.
- He seems distracted when other students finish before he does.
- He does not quite understand that the contraction wont takes care of the not in the
sentence. When he writes, he often writes both of these words.
- The student is writing well developed sentences but could use help with an increase in
vocabulary.
- He is often caught up in the presentation of the work and does not quite finish his thoughts.

2. The two writing samples that I collected are from a fifth grader and a third grader. The
difference between the two is very evident. The fifth graders handwriting is in cursive while the
third grader is still writing in print. The writing of the third grader is also very brief and choppy.
The sentences use transition words but the ideas are barely elaborated on as the student writes.
This is evident in the classroom where the student learns. The class is currently focusing on the
use of these transition words and using them in order to write in a logical and effective manner.
The fifth graders piece however, is short. It was designed to be a book talk of a book that she
had recently read. The sentences are longer in this piece though even though there are fewer
sentences. Her vocabulary also seems at a higher level and her ability to make the sentences
flow is better. She is also summarizing a portion of the text that she had written which shows
where she is in the classroom. Her teacher has been working with the class on summary and
cursive handwriting. This is very evident in the piece. The two works are different in the
vocabulary used and the hand writing. The subject matter is also different. The third grader has
a good vocabulary in place and the school should continue with this vocabulary instruction. With
the fifth grade piece, the school should also continue with work with vocabulary.
a. See attached for writing examples.







Chapter 3
1. Discuss the key features of the reading process and some activities/strategies that should be
done in each stage.
a. The key features of the reading process are prereading, reading, responding, exploring,
and applying. Prereading requires that students participate in activities that build their
background knowledge of the material and preread the text. Reading has students read
the material to apply strategies that they have learned. Responding requires that
students write down their thoughts about the text that they read and discuss this with
classmates. Exploring is when students learn vocabulary and think more deeply about
the text. Finally, applying occurs when the students create a project and learn to value
the reading experience.
2. Discuss the key features of the writing process and the activities / strategies that should be done
in each stage.
a. The steps in the writing process include: prewriting, drafting, revising, editing, and
publishing. In the prewriting stage students are brainstorming ideas of what they want
to write about. They should be completing items such as graphic organizers. In the
drafting phase, students are putting ideas together and are making a rough draft using
their ideas that they brainstormed. In the revising section, students look over their
rough draft and discuss their writing with others. This is also a time for them to look
back over and think about any changes they would like to make. Editing is when the
student goes through the work to find errors that are in the rough draft. For this section,
the student will need editing mark guides and colored pencils in order to make
corrections to his work. Finally, the student will publish his final draft that should be free
from errors. This is also their time to share their final work with classmates.
3. Discuss the 6 traits of writing. How would you teach the 6 traits to students?
a. The six traits of writing are ideas, organization, voice, word choice, sentence fluency,
and conventions. The ideas section is the main message that is trying to be conveyed.
This is a time for the details to be chosen and a vivid picture to be painted in order to
write. Organization is the structure of the piece. This is when students include hooks to
grab the readers attention and using transitions. Voice is developed by using strong
verbs and avoiding vague words that will not help the reader visualize the story. Word
choice is also key in that the words the students choose should help to make the story
come to life. They should also try to use new words to up their vocabulary. Varying
sentence structure and beginning sentences in different ways is what sentence fluency
is all about and is something that students should strive for in their writing. Finally,
students should reread their work in order to find spelling mistakes and mechanical
errors. In order to teach the six traits to students, the teacher should model these traits
for the student throughout the year. Minilessons are also a great tool to use in order to
focus on one of the traits and master it before moving to the next one.



Try-It Out
Minilesson on visualization 3
rd
grade
Standard: 3.) Describe characters in a story (e.g., their traits, motivations, or feelings) and explain how
their actions contribute to the sequence of events. [RL.3.3]
Learning Goal: Students will use visual techniques to describe characters using words and pictures.
Engagement: Teacher will read the book You Are Special to the class without showing them pictures.
Today, as I read this book to you, I want you to think about the characters in the story and think
about/paint a picture of what you think they would look like in real life.
Teaching: Now that the book is over, choose one of the characters that you remember and share with
your group your mental image of this person. Give the students time to talk with their group. Teacher
will walk around during this time in order to listen to the groups. Call on one of the groups. Tell me what
your group talked about. Listen to the answer. Did you hear how they described the person? Could we
draw a picture of the person using the words that they just told us? We could! When the author uses
words that paint a picture, we should work to visualize that picture in order to understand what is going
on in the book better. Now you are going to have a chance again to practice visualizing characters.
Practice: I will pass out these organizers to you and I want you to listen to me read this book called
Theres a Wocket in my Pocket. While I read, I want you to listen and pick out a character that you want
to visualize. Pick one that has good words describing it. You will write down the words that you hear and
draw the picture that you see when you hear the character being described.














Chapters 6, 7, and 8
1. What are the benefits of personal writing in the classroom and what are some examples of ways
teachers can incorporate personal writing in the classroom?
a. Benefits of personal writing in the classroom include letting students use it as a tool for
learning by keeping logs and it helps develop writing fluency. Handwriting skills, writing
conventions, and spelling are also benefitted by using personal writing in the classroom.
Some examples of ways that teachers can incorporate personal writing into the
classroom is by allowing students to keep journals in different subject areas that they
can write down their ideas in. They can also use blogs and informational writing
activities. These activities can be worked into the four patterns of practice so that it
becomes a very stable part of the lessons that the teacher teaches and the students are
receiving that practice that they need.
2. Discuss the four types of listening.
a. Discriminative listening is when the student is listening to words to distinguish sounds.
Aesthetic is when students listen to a piece for enjoyment. Efferent requires that
students listen to understand the message. Critical is when students evaluate what is
being said.
3. Discuss some ways teachers can encourage appropriate conversation in the classroom.
a. Teachers can encourage appropriate conversation by creating an environment where
the students feel free to speak and are not afraid to share their ideas. The teacher can
also encourage learners in the classroom, people who want to know more about the
world and the way it works. Teachers should ask plenty of good questions to get the
students thinking about the subject. The students should be asked to elaborate and
specify their answers and the others should be encouraged to listen so that if you call on
them, they can retell what was said.
Try-It Out
1. I read a book to my class called The Creepy Carrots. This book was very fun for the students and
they were engaged during the reading. After we were finished, I asked them questions to get
them thinking about the story and talking with one another. We talked about why it was an
award winning book. Students were able to share their ideas and give specific examples from
the story as to why they thought it won an award. I also stopped at parts of the story and asked
them what they thought would happen next. At the end of the story we also made predictions
about if the carrots were real or not.
2. I led one student in a grand conversation about a book that she was reading at the time. She
was able to take responsibility of the material, share the summary, and tell me her ideas and
opinions of the book. She also told me why she like the book which was because it linked to
other books that she had been reading. This was a grand conversation because she was able to
use the book that she had been reading to guide me in a discussion of it.



Chapter 9
1. How do children develop the concept of story?
a. Children develop this concept of story by listening to stories. They also should read
stories on their own and by telling and writing their own stories. These components will
help the student gradually develop the concept of story.
2. Discuss how you could use the sketch to stretch strategy.
a. This strategy could be used to help students think about what they are reading on a
deeper level. This strategy calls for the students to use symbols and words to represent
how the story makes them feel or what it means to them. This activity allows the
students to share ideas and think about the text in ways that they did not before. It also
helps them to think on a deeper level about the text.
3. What are some ways students can read stories?
a. Students can read stories with the teacher in a shared reading activity, with the teacher
in a guided reading activity, independently, with a partner, or aloud to the class.
Try-It Out
1. In the attached lesson, I modeled the rereading strategy in order to revisit the material and help
the students make sense of the material.
2. I taught a minilesson on summarizing. This minilesson was taught in a small group setting to half
of the class at each time. See attached.















Chapter 12
1. What are the stages of spelling development? Discuss what you might expect from a student in
each stage.
a. The first stage is called Emergent spelling. In this stage students scribble and can write
letters but they do not link the scribble to a letter sound. The second stage is Letter
Name-Alphabetic Spelling. This stage is when students can represent the sounds in
words with letter. Spelling is abbreviated but they learn consonant blends and
diagraphs. Stage three is Within-Word Spelling. In this stage, the student learn long
vowel patterns and r-controls. They still confuse spelling patterns. The next stage is
Syllables and Affixes Spelling. This stage is when students learn to spell multisyllabic
words. The final stage is Derivational Relations Spelling. This stage focusses on the
students ability to explore the relationship between spelling and meaning of words and
learn that related spellings often mean related meanings.
2. Discuss the components of an effective spelling program.
a. Word walls are components of the spelling process that point out words to students for
them to keep track of on their personal wall. Proofreading also helps students with
spelling. During this time, students are able to find problems with words and fix them.
Dictionaries also help with spelling. Students can check their spelling and read the
words. Knowing root words and affixes can also help students with spelling. When they
know these spellings, they can break down the word into manageable parts. Word sorts
also help students with spelling.
Try-It Out
See attached












Chapter 13
1. Discuss the components of a grammar program.
a. Parts of speech deal with the eight groups that words can be divided into: nouns,
pronouns, verbs, adjectives, adverbs, prepositions, conjunctions, and interjections. Parts
of a sentence deals with subject and predicate. This allows the sentence to actually be a
sentence. Types of Sentences is another which talks about the way the sentence is put
together. There are dependent and independent clauses. Capitalization and punctuation
is another component of grammar. This stresses which words should be capitalized and
what kind of punctuation should be used in order to convey the necessary emotions.
Usage talks about the way verbs are used or double negatives that should not be used.
2. What are some guidelines for teaching grammar?
a. The teacher should teach grammar through reading. This has been proven to be more
effective than traditional ways of grammar teaching. Teachers should also teach the
parts of speech by reading and writing grammar concept books. The students should
also be taught to manipulate sentences in order to learn the different ways that
grammar can be used and the way words can change from one part of grammar to
another.
3. Why do you think it is important to teach handwriting?
a. It is important to teach handwriting so that students are able to express their ideas to
others. Without legible handwriting, the students thoughts and ideas can not be
shared. Once the student is able to produce their letters and words more fluently, they
will become faster at writing and it will become effortless.
4. What is the sequence of handwriting development?
a. In kindergarten, many students have not held a pencil therefore their handwriting is
large. Instruction is needed during this time to prevent bad habits from forming. Formal
handwriting instruction begins in first grade. They learn print letters and how to space
out the letters. Cursive introduction takes place in third grade. Cursive should not take
the place of print.