Oh, the Places You'll Go!

" The more that you read, the more things you will know. The more that you learn, the more places you'll go." Dr. Seuss

Dr. Seuss did a fantastic job in simply stating the obvious, books are a gateway to a world where print is used to teach us many things. Allowing our children to discover what is inside a book can lead them to live a print-rich life.

Now a days, it's a difficult task to get our students interested in reading. But when we work in tandem with our families in making reading a powerful thing, reading becomes enjoyable and not a task.

Get Lost in a Book

"The worth of a book is measured by what you can carry away from it." ~James Bryce

Sharon Taberski brings up an interesting point in Chapter Four of the book, where she speaks of getting children to learn how to love reading. This is especially challenging because reading has become more of a requirement than recreation. She also points out that becoming a fluent reader can also make you a fluent writer, and I find that especially true. This rapid decline in literacy is reflected in the standardized tests that are given within the school year, but such decline is evident in the classroom as well.

With that said, it seems almost impossible to get a student to read on their own time and at their own will, but if we, as educators can suggest reading materials that will cultivate their love for reading, we can definitely get the student to pick up a book and read, even if we're accomplishing the feat, one student at a time. I truly believe that if the student came across a book or a novel in which they were interested in, and related to, they would definitely enjoy that reading experience.

JFK

I hope everyone is doing well these days. Thanks for the get well wishes, it really brighten my spirits knowing that i have such caring classmates. For the last two weeks, I was down with the flu and I am now catching up with my assignments.

Quote: "A child miseducated is a child lost." John F. Kennedy

As simple as he said it, a child miseducated is a child lost. I see that sometimes with students, when they don't know something and they don't understand something taught to them, they literally have that "confused" look on their faces. I tend to look and pay attention more to the students with the confused look, than the others because they are the ones who need me more!

Words of Wisdom

"Kind words can be short and easy to speak, but their echoes are endless."
-- Mother Teresa

It's been a rough week. I found out recently that a teacher from my team has been defaming my name to our students, solely blaming me for her student's lack of proficient writing skills. To top it off, I am still struggling, and thus dreading, my fifth period class. The class is composed of all sorts of misfits, and all my attempts to reach them and TAME them have been fruitless. The cherry on top of it all? I finally ran out of ink, so today, I was unable to print some much-needed instructional handouts.

Although I digress, I want to go back to my fifth period and that unnamed gossip queen of a teacher. There are times, situations where I feel that I need to express how I feel inside, and to just explode in pure anger and fury, but I always come back to Mother Teresa's quote. She reminds me, with such simple words, that when faced in complicated situations, we have to be the bigger and the better person. After all, it is what we do and what we say that defines us and shows who we really are.

sick

I apologize for the delay in my blogging, I have been sick these past few days. So now I am going to attempt to catch up to everyone else.

Your role as a leader is even more important than you imagine. You have the power to help people become winners. Ken Blanchard

As Teachers we do have the power within us to make everyone in our classrooms winners. Achievement can shine through in different forms such as reading all the spelling words on the board properly, getting an "A" on a math test, or reciting a poem in front of the whole class. We have the power to help our students do so.

Think Positive!!!

"Optimism is the faith that leads to achievement, nothing can be done without hope and confidence." -- Helen Keller

Being optimistic in all aspects of education is critical when teaching children. As a teacher, a wife, a daughter, a sister, and a friend, being positive gives me the strength to help others. I can only give what I am to others around me with hope and confidence that they will do the same to others around them.

Touch the Lives of Others

All you touch and all you see, Is all your life will ever be.

- - - Pink Floyd, "Breathe"

Although this song has nothing to do with teaching, it resonates with me because as teacher, touching the lives of others comes with the job. At the end of the day, if you can walk away knowing that you made a difference in a student's life, whether it was teaching them how to write a Tanka poem or to distinguish a gerund between an adjective that ends with "ing," or inspiring them to pursue a goal or dream, there are personal rewards gained from the profession that are far more satisfying than material possessions. We connect with our students through teaching. I have a former student from two years back, who e-mailed me recently asking for advice, and I was TOUCHED and HONORED to reciprocate. I had become more than a teacher to this student. I had become a trustworthy mentor, a friend, and a confidante. And to me, that is a reward onto itself.

A Little Work and More Play

In chapter two, Taberski discusses defining goals for teaching children to read. I find myself in amazement after administering quarterly reading assessments to students. I've noticed that at my school, reading scores have soared higher than expected. In my office while I administer tests, I encourage students waiting to be tested to read a book of their choice from my book collection. Yet to my surprise, most students know what book to quickly pick and begin to read. Motivating children to love to read didn't seem to be a concern. But shortly after, listening to several students read and later begin to have difficulty reading became a concern. Chapter two provided many running record samples in student assessment notebooks. After reviewing figure 2-2 through 2-10, I realize that I can definitely set goals for teaching students to read. But I would need to keep in mind the characteristics of my readers at their different stages of reading.

"Good teaching is one-fourth preparation and three-fourths theatre." -- Gail Goldwin

I remember not too long ago preparing for a lesson that took me almost 2 hours to do. When the day came, I taught the lesson and realized that I spent too much time preparing for it. My students had so much fun without all the preparations and the day went better than expected.

Defining My Goals

Taberski described in chapter 2, how defining goals for our students in our classrooms can become a powerful thing. As we set goals for our students, our mission is to help them achieve it. Many of the strategies she describes in the reading, made me reflect on how I can set goals for my struggling readers in my classroom and how I can modify the goals I have already established for them to become independent strategic readers.

Quote: "A good teacher is like a candle- it consumes itself to light the way for others." Author Unknown. I like to think of myself as a candle, i try to bring into my class a different perspective of teaching and learning for my students, I want them to see the "light" in every lesson..

Wishes to Save The World Through Reading

The rhetoric that Harwayne uses to emulate Taberskis’ voice and opinions about teaching reading has tweaked my perspective.  After reflecting on chapters one and two, I am reminded that reading teachers can do much with their methodology and skills if only they know from where they are thinking and for what it is that they are striving for.  Larry Elder coalesces the chapters with this truly inspirational quote: “A goal without a plan is just a wish.”  In the realms of teaching reading, it really was just my wishful thinking to believe that if only I was “given a cape and a tiara, I could save the world”.  Through examples and stories, Harwayne reminds me that it is the students’ behaviors and needs that set the tone:  it is from where they are thinking that should direct and define my goals as a reading teacher.  Thus, I am now inspired and believe that this reading teacher can still do much to save the world, however, the cape and tiara should be given to students; and given this perspective … I really don’t mind.  

Image:  images.google.com

At Turtle Speed

"Slow and steady wins the race" -Aesop

I like this quote because it suggests that something negative can be turned into a positive. Sometimes, we need to allow the students to evolve and grow at their own pace. The best we can do is nurture and guide them to the path that will lead the individual to success.

As mentioned in Chapter One and Two of the text, we need to familiarize ourselves with the way the students learn, and implement strategies that will mold student learning. With such diversity, some learners will be ahead, some will be behind. However, we do not simply give up on those who have fallen behind. We pace them and guide them until they are ready to be great on their own.

On an unrelated note, it was really great meeting everyone today!