Learning Letter

This quarter has been a whirlwind with a lot to do and a lot of new information being thrown at me. This class is no exception when it comes to having plenty to do and plenty to learn. Looking back at this quarter and everything that I have done, I am really proud of my growth as a teacher. The work I have done in this class and all of the new concepts and theories that I have read and discussed have significantly impacted my ideas as a teacher.

I am very proud of the work I have done on my book-talk, mini-lesson, and my Unit plan. Each one challenged me differently, causing me to think differently. I really enjoyed the book-talks because they gave me the opportunity to share a book that I really love, and that some of my students love, and give my fellow teachers a new book option. I also really appreciated seeing the other books everyone chose. A lot of the books discussed I have never had the opportunity to read and have now added them to my reading list. The mini-lesson was challenging in a different form than my usual lessons. It was tough to write a lesson plan that used a book while staying within a 20min time frame. There was so much I could have done with the book, but because of the short time limit, I had to really search for what point I wanted to teach. This assignment challenged me to take an assigned book that I didn't have much say of and teach it to my students in a way that makes sense, mimicking what some of us might have to do depending on the school we teach at. The unit plan was the most challenging of them all. It was a lot of fun to take a book that I would teach and create a 3-week unit plan for it, but it was so tricky! I have never written that many lesson plans altogether, and creating an entire unit plan was tough. I am really proud of all the hard work I put into this assignment though, and there is a lot that I learned from it.

I am not going to lie, there was a lot of reading in this class, and at times it was hard to keep up with all of it. I feel like I could have learned a lot more in this class if there was a little less reading, that way I wouldn't rush through the reading and would be able to retain more. However, despite occasionally having to rush through the readings, there is a lot that I learned about concepts and theories of teaching. I really enjoyed I Read it, But Don't Get It and Readicide. Those books really had an impact on me because the concepts addressed in the two books are something I face every single day in my practicum. Getting my students to read and comprehend novels or short stories is a painful process, and everything discussed in the books and in class was extremely influential on how I approached teaching my students literacy. Since completing all the reading in the class, I have noticed my teaching of literature changing, and I have attempted to change my approach to working with my students. Since then, I have seen an increase in reading comprehension amongst my students.

Reflecting upon everything we did in this class this quarter and my participation, I can already see my thinking about myself as a teacher to be influenced positively. Already, in my practicum, I have seen my confidence in myself and what I am teaching grow immensely. I feel more comfortable teaching my students and writing lesson plans. This class has given me a lot of ideas, new approaches, and new experiences that I can bring in to my classroom as a teacher. I think the most significant impact this class has had on me as a teacher is not only confidence but also helping me to feel comfortable in front of my students and in coming up with lessons. I still have a lot of growth that needs to be made in both aspects, but I can already see a difference being made in how I teach and in myself as a teacher.

Graphic novels in the classroom

Can I just say that I love the idea of using graphic novels in the classroom! I grew up reading Marvel and DC comic books, and I absolutely loved them. They were engaging, and I would fly through them as I read. I think a lot of students could learn really well with graphic novels being used in the classroom. If my teachers had used some graphic novels, I can guarantee that myself and other students would have been more engaged.

Now, I am not saying that teachers should use graphic novels as a stand-alone, but I do think that they are an underutilized resource. It would be awesome to pair graphic novels with a novel. For example, one of my dream lessons to teach is Pride and Prejudice paired with the graphic novel Pride and Prejudice and Zombies. Now that might seem like an odd pair, but hear me out. You could easily use authors purpose for both books and compare them. This would help students grasp how an author might take something and present it in a new way, but it's still a similar story. I feel like this would be such an engaging unit for students and you could hit a lot of the CCSS with it.

Working with my students right now, graphic novels would be a huge tool that I know would work for them. Similarly, on the reverse side, you could use graphic novels in that students create a graphic novel for a final project of a novel. One of my students was given this option, and he has been so excited to work on the project. We don't just have to have them read graphic novels, we can have them create their own that would assess what they are learning and comprehending from the text.

Elie Wiesel: Night

Elie Wiesel's Night is a capturing read that I think everyone should read at least once in their lifetime, if not more than that. I'm not going to lie, it was hard for me to get through this book. It was dark and emotional, and I had to take multiple breaks. But in spite of it all, I really enjoyed the book, and I want my students to enjoy it as well.

This book is a coming of age novel, but not in your traditional way. This is a forced coming of age novel, in which the author had no say in their coming of age, but nevertheless, they had to be an adult. They weren't ready to be an adult, but here they are. I think this is an important idea to look at in a classroom when using this book. A lot of students come from a background where they are forced to grow up hard and fast like Wiesel was. You could definitely do multiple lessons on this idea, and it's an important topic to address.

I think another thing that could be taught on is the note from the author in the very beginning. I found this note to be very informative, and I think there is a lot that a teacher can do with it. Having students discuss this letter in groups, or analyze different parts of it before actually reading the novel would be a great intro to the book. I also think doing the part of the book with maybe a background on the Holocaust would be a good intro to the book.

Even a research project on the Holocaust before reading would be good. Students could research a person from the Holocaust or even a concentration camp. I think it would be fun giving students the chance to pick their own aspect to research before reading the book. Just to give students background knowledge to whats happening as they read.

Poe's "Cask of Amontillado," "Fall of the House of Usher," "Ligeia," "The Black Cat," and "Annabel Lee"

Poe's works have been used all around the world to teach a variety of topics to kids, no matter the grade level. His works "Cask of Amontillado," "Fall of the House of Usher," "Ligeia," "The Black Cat," and "Annabel Lee" are no exception. Each short story has a different lesson that students can be taught. 

Poe's "Cask of Amontillado" can be used to teach students about the meaning and morals of a text. One moral question that can be asked of this story is "does vengeance equal justice," or even "is revenge just." This story really plays on the topic of revenge and is a great way to teach students how to analyze the text to find the answer. There are a lot of passages in this story that contain a large amount of information that students should analyze to find the meaning and morals of a text. Poe's "Cask of Amontillado" is a great piece to teach students how to find the meaning and morals of a text. Students could easily take sections of the text and attempt to find a moral or meaning and then share it with the class.

Poe's "Fall of the House of Usher" is a great ghost story that could be used to teach mood and setting to students. The entire story takes on a very dreary mood that students should be able to pick up on. Students could easily find sections, words, and phrases that help to create the mood. The setting is also very important to this story and can be used to teach students the importance of setting. I think t would be fun to have students do a parody or an imitation of this story to mimic the mood and structure of the story. This story would also be a great one to use a storyboard with or have students draw comics with them. Comics would allow students to learn and analyze the text in a different way than they normally would.  

Poe's "Ligeia" is an incredibly chilling story, and can be used to teach students about imagery. This story has to be my favorite of Poe's, and I feel like there is so much students can learn from reading and analyzing it. Students could mimic this story, do comics, and analyze the text for literary devices. Students can also use this text to learn about imagery. 

Mini Lesson

TPA Lesson Plan #____1___

Course: __ENGL 493_____

1. Teacher Candidate	Kennedi Newman	Date Taught	Nov. 8, 2017
Cooperating Teacher	Brad Read	School/District	Shadle Park High School
2. Subject	English	Field Supervisor	Lucy Monte Calvo
3. Lesson Title/Focus	Cultural Identity in High School	5. Length of Lesson	20 min.
4. Grade Level	Grade 10

6. Academic & Content Standards (Common Core/National)	CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.SL.9-10.1 Initiate and participate effectively in a range of collaborative discussions (one-on-one, in groups, and teacher-led) with diverse partners on grades 9-10 topics, texts, and issues, building on others' ideas and expressing their own clearly and persuasively. CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.W.9-10.9 Draw evidence from literary or informational texts to support analysis, reflection, and research.
7. Learning Objective(s)	1.    Given The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian, Students will demonstrate their ability to participate and collaborate effectively with diverse partners by participating in a class activity and class discussion. 2.    Given a writing prompt, Students will demonstrate their ability to draw evidence from literary text to support reflection by working individually to answer the writing prompt.
8. Academic Language demands (vocabulary, function, syntax, discourse)	Vocabulary: Cultural identity, social justice Function: Demonstrate ability, participate, collaborate, reflection. Syntax: Students will answer a writing prompt. Students will participate in an activity on cultural identity. Discourse: Students will participate in a class activity and class discussion. Students will work individually to answer the writing prompt.

9. Assessment

Formative Assessment: Informal Students will be given participation points for participating in the classroom activity and class discussions. The teacher will keep track of students who are participating in order for students to receive points. This will assess student’s ability to participate in collaborative discussions and draw evidence for reflection from a text. Students will also be answering a writing prompt for three completion points. This will assess student’s ability to draw evidence from a literary text to support their reflection. **Attach** all assessment tools for this lesson

10. Lesson Connections

Research: "High school students who participate in social justice education have a greater awareness of inequities that impact their school, community, and society, and learn tools for taking action to address these inequities. Also, a classroom that consist of students with a diverse set of identities creates an ideal circumstance in which a teacher can build upon student differences in order to facilitate meaningful discussions about social justice, especially issues of race." (Welton, et al). Teaching social justice in the classroom is an extremely important aspect. If students are given real world examples of social justice education and how they can fix what is happening in their school or community, they become aware and are ready to take initiative to help those around them. This lesson brings in this idea of social justice education by giving students a hands on experience of some of the discrimination students with different cultures face. This lesson causes students to be aware of the diverse population in their classroom and school and have discussions about important issues. This lesson gets students talking in the classroom and helps to draw connections between The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian and what they can do in their own school. Prior Knowledge: Based on student’s completion of The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian in class, students will be continuing their discussion of cultural identity and social justice. Students will be continuing to develop their ability to work in groups by participating in the classroom activity and classroom discussions. Students have been using the novel to develop their understanding of cultural identity and social justice in the classroom. The book has allowed students to have open communication with their peer’s ad this lesson will further allow for this. Further Development: Students will be using this lesson and The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian as they work on the final essay. Students will be using this lesson and the novel to write an essay on cultural identity and social justice in their schools. They are able to use this lesson to draw evidence from the text and discussions to use in their own essays.

11. Instructional Strategies/Learning Tasks to Support Learning
Learning Tasks and Strategies Sequenced Instruction
Teacher’s Role 1.    Introduce and set up High school Cultural Identity activity. Three students will volunteer to go out into the hallway. The students in the hallway will be given one cultural identity and the students still in the classroom will be given a different cultural identity. One student inside the classroom will be given the same Identity as those out in the hallway. The idea that the students are told is that they are new students at school trying to make new friends. The teacher will explain directions to each group and answer any questions the students may have (5 min) 2.    Facilitate activity. Roam classroom and monitor students. Answer any questions students may have as the activity goes along. Make sure that students stay on task and send them back to their seats if they are not. (5 min.) 3.    Have students go back to seats at the end of the activity. (2 min.) 4.    Facilitate class discussion on the High School Cultural Identity activity. Ask students how they felt doing this activity and what are some examples of what happened in the activity that they have seen in their personal lives (5 min.) 5.    Introduce and have students work on a writing prompt in which students must come up with ways to solve the problems addressed in the activity in their own schools (3 min.)	Students’ Role 1.    Listen as the High School Cultural Identity activity is explained and set up. Volunteer to go out in the hallway or stay in the classroom. Listen as the cultural identity for you is explained. Wait while the cultural identity is explained to the other group. Listen as the teacher gives the prompt that you are in high school and attempting to make new friends. Ask questions as needed. (5 min.) 2.    Participate in classroom activities. The three students from in the hallway should attempt to find a new “friend” who has the same culture as them. Those who weren’t out in the hallway should follow what their culture says. Ask questions as needed. (5 min.) 3.    Go back to seats at the end of the activity (2 min.) 4.    Participate in class discussion on the High School Cultural Identity Activity. Answer the questions on how student felt during the activity and what are examples of what they just did that students have seen in their personal lives (5 min.) 5.    Listen as the writing prompt is introduced. Work individually on the writing prompt where students must come up with ways to solve what happened in the classroom activity in their own schools. Ask questions as needed. (3 min.)
Student Voice to Gather The teacher will walk around with a class roster and assess during the activity and the class discussion whether students are meeting the learning objectives. Students will be given a 3 if they are meeting the learning objectives, a 2 if they are struggling to meet the learning objectives, and a 1 if they are not meeting the learning objectives. Students will also be doing a writing prompt that will be turned in to assess their ability to meet the standards. This will assess student ability to draw evidence from their text to use in their reflection of the writing prompt.

12. Differentiated Instruction

Plan Student Interests: Students in this class enjoy communicating with their neighbors. Students will be able to talk with their neighbors and peers during the classroom activity and discussion. Students in this class make full use of technology and will be able to use their laptops to answer the writing prompt if they choose to. Student Learning Styles/Modalities: Kinesthetic learners will be able to get up and move during the class discussion time and during the classroom cultural identity activity. Visual learners will have the learning goals and writing prompt projected on the screen. Auditory learners will have the learning goals and writing prompt read aloud off of the screen. Intrapersonal learners will be allowed to talk to their neighbors and peers during the classroom activity and discussion. Interpersonal learners will be able to work individually during the writing prompt time. Student Needs: Student #1 has only a goal in math but will be allowed extra time on the writing prompt. Student #2 has a goal in writing, will be given an extended deadline/extra time for the writing prompt if needed, individualized/small group instruction, and modified grading. Student #3 has accommodations in reading: The assignment has been adapted to require less reading, the student will be allowed extra time to complete the writing prompt, simplify complex directions if needed, pair written instructions with oral instructions.

13. Resources and Materials

Plan Student Materials: Writing utensil, extra sheet of paper (if wanted), and laptop (if wanted). Teacher Materials: Projector, computer, learning objectives document, writing prompt document, classroom activity directions. Resources: Alexie, Sherman. The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian. New York: Little, Brown, 2007. Welton, A. D., Harris, T. O., La Londe, P. G., & Moyer, R. T. (2015). Social Justice Education in a Diverse Classroom: Examining High School Discussions about Race, Power, and Privilege. Equity & Excellence In Education, 48(4), 549-570.

14. Management and Safety Issues

Plan Emotional Issues: Students will be polite when others are talking and not interrupt as well as respect what the other have to say, and students will respect when they teacher is talking. Because the classroom activity could get emotional, students will be able to go to the counselor or talk to the teacher at any time. Students will be polite during the classroom activity. If students start to get off task or get out of hand during the activity the teacher will redirect them or stop the activity to reinforce the be polite and respectful rule. Behavioral Issues: Management issues will come when students are doing the classroom activity and individual work. The teacher will roam the room during the activity to make sure students are achieving the goal and following rules. Students will be sent to their seats if they are misbehaving or not doing what they are supposed to. To keep students on task during writing time, the teacher will remind them that the time is for independent work, not group work. The teacher will also roam the classroom keeping students on task. The teacher will do their best to redirect students if they become off task.

15. Parent & Community Connections

Plan Parent Connections: Students are invited to go home and share what they have learned in class today. Students can ask their parents what they believe their cultural identity is and how they can use their new knowledge to support others at school. Parents and students will be challenged to come up with ideas on how they can use their cultural identities to support others at school and in the community. An email will be sent home that explains to parents what students have done that day and encourages them to talk about cultural identity with their students Community Connections: Students will use this assignment to develop their understanding of cultural identity in the classroom and their community. Students have been learning about cultural identity in schools, and they will be able to put this knowledge forward in the community. Students will be able to use this knowledge to better the school they go to and the community they live in.

Readicide

Kelly Gallagher's Readicide is an accurate take on reading in schools. Starting in elementary school reading is pushed to the extent that by high school, students don't care about reading. Even in college, not many students can remember the last time they read for pleasure. I, for one last read for pleasure this summer. I don't have time to read during the school year. So many students face this idea of readicide, the "systematic killing of the love of reading, often exacerbated by the inane, mind-numbing practices found in our schools." I completely agree with what Gallagher has to say, the idea of reading for pleasure and not reading because they have to is completely disappearing from our schools.

After going through America's education system and volunteering in classrooms, I completely agree with this idea of teaching to the test and flogging a book to death. In almost any classroom, teachers tend to teach to the test instead of teaching to what students are interested in and what can help them succeed. But most importantly, teachers completely flog the book to death. Teachers, whether they know it our night, try to squeeze absolutely all they can get out of a book. What they don't realize is that this idea of getting as much out of a book can completely ruin a book for our students. I know several books that I have read from school that has been completely ruined for me. It is a problem that every teacher faces. I think that as teachers, we need to accept that students aren't going to get everything. It would be better for us to do multiple books and teach from those so that students can enjoy them. We can hit multiple topics through multiple books, instead of trying to hit all the topics in one book.

Tovani’s I Read it, but I don’t get it

Tovani's I read it, But I don't get it is an amazing read filled with humor and great ideas when it comes to working with challenging students and classrooms. Tovani has worked with students that have mastered the art of "fake reading" to college-bound juniors and seniors who struggle with the different demands of content-area textbooks and novels. I really found the book helpful because I have quite a few students in my classrooms that have mastered the art of "fake-reading" meaning they just don't care what they read or even do the reading. Students have a plethora of resources available to them to get reading done, SparkNotes being just one example. But, while I have students who "fake-read" I also have students who just don't comprehend the reading no matter how hard they tried. I enjoyed seeing that other teachers struggle with these two different types of readers.

What makes me sad is the fact that these two different types of readers can often be confused and mistaken for the other. Students who can't or struggle to comprehend texts can be thought to be "fake-readers." Students get thought bad of because it seems like they just don't care when in turn they are struggling. Students also can turn from readers who don't comprehend texts to those who just don't read or SparkNote the texts because no one helped them when they needed help.

I enjoyed chapter 6 of the book that talked about connecting the new information to the already known information. I think the biggest chunk that teachers should work with is pulling in personal knowledge or personal experience into their classroom curriculum. Too often we worry about cramming too much information into students heads and don't even think about drawing personal connections. Students who can make connections between their personal lives and the things they learn in classrooms are able to learn and retain information better.

What is Social Justice? Why is it important for our classrooms?

The definition of social justice can be easily found by typing in the word to Google; "justice in terms of the distribution of wealth, opportunities, and privileges within a society." But the definition of Social Justice in the classroom can be defined entirely differently. Social Justice in the classroom isn't just a definition, it is something that we as teachers see every day and something that must be taught. Social Justice in the classroom can be defined by the diverse population within the classroom walls, the conversations we have on the subject of our diversity, and the readings we do that talk about the tougher subjects. Social justice in the classroom can't be just put into a neat definition; Social Justice in the classroom is always changing and evolving.

"High school students who participate in social justice education have a greater awareness of inequities that impact their school, community, and society, and learn tools for taking action to address these inequities. Also, a classroom that consist of students with a diverse set of identities creates an ideal circumstance in which a teacher can build upon student differences in order to facilitate meaningful discussions about socialjustice, especially issues of race."

In a study done by Welton, et al. titled Social Justice Education in a Diverse Classroom: Examining High School Discussions about Race, Power, and Privilege, students were found to benefit from the inclusion of social justice education in the classroom. It allowed students the opportunity to talk about life issues and gain a bit of empathy. Students who are in a classroom that encourages conversations on social justice are more likely to take the initiative in the schools and communities when it comes to social justice. Social justice is important in the classroom because it encourages our students to know and understand issues and then take a stand for them. Every classroom will have those students who refuse to take part, or who refuse to see what is happening in the community. Not every student cares about what is happening in their community, or they come from families in which some life truths will forever be rejected. I have some students in my classroom that refuse to accept or even think about some of the deeper level issues going on at their school or in their community. Some students would rather not know than face the truth. But for the most part, social justice in the classroom really encourages the environment.

Duncan-Andrade and Morrell’s “Critical Pedagogy and Popular Culture in an Urban Secondary English Classroom”

"we felt that it was only within a pedagogy firmly committed to freedom and social change that we were able to motivate student to develop sophisticated academic literacies" -Duncan-Andrade and Morell

This article completely blew my mind in its ability to impress the idea that students learn best through a pedagogy in which they are given initiative. It was beautiful to see how through their given curriculum, students were able to take the initiative in their classrooms and their school. I applaud Jeff Duncan-Andrade and Ernest Morell for taking this perspective and showing teachers that students from urban high schools are capable of many things.  

I feel that it was essential that this research and the lessons were done in a culturally expressive way. I agree that students should be taught in such a way that freedom and social change are encouraged to help students learn. My students at Shadle Park High School or going through a culture unit right now. They are focusing on the idea of the "American Dream" and the "American Promise" and whether or not these two are achievable. They have been watching and reading many different texts that encourage discussions on this topic. At the same time, my students are actively learning and fighting for certain causes like the students in this article. A lot of my students are standing with immigrants and are wanting to give them the "American Dream" or help them to achieve it, which I think is an amazing thing. As teachers, we should give our students a pedagogy that encourages them to take a stand and connect with others. Empathy is key.

I rather enjoyed that this article connected our earlier reading of Paulo Freire's “Pedagogy of the Oppressed” Chapter 2. It was beneficial to see a connection made between readings. I thought it was interesting to see how the authors of this article agreed with Paulo Freire's idea that pedagogy should be centered upon "dialogue, inquiry, and the real exchange of ideas between teachers and students..." (p. 10). I actually find myself being influenced by Friere's idea about pedagogy. We should base more learning off of a mutual exchange of ideas between student and teacher.

PAULO FREIRE: CHAPTER 2 OF PEDAGOGY OF THE OPPRESSED

"The truth is, however, that the oppressed are not "marginals," are not living "outside" society. They have always been "inside" the structure which made them "beings for others." The solution is not to 'integrate" them into the structure of oppression, but to transform that structure so that they can become "beings for themselves."" -Paulo Freire

In chapter 2 of Pedagogy of the Oppressed, Paulo Freire expresses the need for education to change from this idea of "banking education" to "problem-posing education." The term "banking education" was a completely new term to me, yet a very accurate one once looked at. Our school systems commonly just deposit information and expect students to remember it all. Instead of posing a problem for students to work through and solve, we just give them the answers. This reminds me of a question we were asked in my education class; "are you teaching for answers or teaching for questions?" As teachers, I feel that we should teach for questions; teach students to think deeper and work towards solving problems themselves. If we just teach for answers and teach so that students know, we restrict personal growth and don't give students to reach their full potential.

I really enjoyed the quote from the text that I cite about, because I feel that we don't integrate the oppressed, but we change to allow them to be themselves in a world that fits. As teachers, we should continuously strive for change, attempt to help those who feel they can't create an environment where they feel they can. We shouldn't integrate those inside the structure into an oppressive structure; we should give them the freedom to roam and breathe. Students need an environment where they can be themselves, speak their minds, and grow. Students don't need an education system that restricts personal thought. I agree with Paulo Freire in this way. 

Assessing and Evaluating Students' Learning

Assessment and evaluations are a huge emphasis that is placed on today's teachers, no matter the school they work at. We are constantly told to collect and take assessment, to evaluate our students on what they know and what they are capable of. Even as student teachers, assessment, and evaluation is something that we are told from the start to include and collect from our classrooms. But with all this emphasis on the evaluation the question can be asked, is there such thing as too much assessment?

It is in my humble opinion that there is such thing as too much assessment. Assessment should be used to challenge students and make them think. It shouldn't quiz students on what is the most information they can memorize by the test. I believe that, as similarly stated in the article, assessment should evaluate students on what they know how to do; "what is more important is their ability to apply that knowledge to texts-- the "knowing how" aspect of learning literature" (225). There is a huge difference between knowing about and knowing how. Too much assessment starts to blur the line between knowing about and knowing how. Similarly, too much assessment does not give teachers an accurate read on their student's ability. If teachers have too much assessment, they might not be able to distinguish between what students know and can do and when students are just not having good days. If we, as educators, spread out assessment we can see what students are able to do over time and not just at the moment. We can see the good and bad days as what they are and not judge students for them.

I really appreciated the section of this article that talked about the huge tests and how teachers find themselves teaching to the test. The part that I found most interesting and accurate was the chunk that talked about how these large school tests can lead to "making faulty generalizations about students and/or labeling students based on single test scores... that can adversely affect their self-image as readers or writers" (238). I think this quote is an essential thing to remember as educators, that just because a student didn't do too well on a test doesn't mean they aren't capable of succeeding.

California State Universities Expository Reading and Writing Course Assignment Template

Every school system has their own curriculum and standards for reading and writing. I found California State Universities Template to be rather self-explanatory. A lot of what was covered is already commonly used in classrooms and innate in persons teaching style because we have experienced it for so long. I don't think they needed to go so in-depth, but then again there might be a chance that not everyone knows each of those approaches. I think a lot of what was addressed takes place in this classroom without being planned or having a structure. I felt that this article really tried to structure the reading and writing process rather than just suggest approaches. There was a lot of "and then do this next" from my perspective.

I do feel that a lot of the approaches were great ideas. Some of the questions suggested were very open-ended, and I enjoyed how they could be used for multiple approaches to reading and writing. I think a lot of the reading strategies were things that we, as educators, have already experienced and used multiple times in our school years. I rather enjoyed the multiple perspectives approach where students look at the reading or writing from a different perspective other than their own. I think this is a precious approach to reading and writing. The approach allows students to think deeper and explore new directions in which to take their writing. I felt that a lot of the writing strategies were very valuable.

I also really enjoyed that the authors placed emphasis on having students brainstorm and focus on the content in their writing rather than the grammar conventions and other structural items. In our education classes, having students focus on their content and ideas is always stressed to be the first piece to develop. I believe there should be multiple drafts where students concentrate on developing their ideas and only one in which they really focus on grammar and structure. As educators, we should be encouraging our students to be creative and develop their thinking, Grammar and other conventions can always be worked on later.

The Common Core State Standards for English Language Arts Instruction in Grades 6-12

This is my second quarter in my practicum at Shadle Park High School, and my third quarter working with Common Core State Standards. I am no stranger when it comes to incorporating CCSS into my lessons, but it can be challenging still not solely to focus on teaching to the standards. This chapter hit on a lot of the problems I have working with CCSS as well as a lot of the problems I have seen and experienced in schools. I think the biggest thing this article hit on that I enjoyed reading about was the concept of "standardizing" classrooms. A lot of schools that I have heard about or experienced can be found to standardize all of their classrooms, treating every student as though they are the same. But, as stated in this chapter;

"the needs, abilities, knowledge base, and interests of teachers and student vary from school to school, classroom to classroom, and even within every classroom---they cannot be standardized" (p. 8).

Too many schools and teachers believe that every student is the same, and learns the same. The problem is that this is not the case, and commonly CCSS implies that it is. I feel that we, as educators, should work towards breaking away from that misconception and redefine CCSS. CCSS are extremely helpful in the classroom; they give teachers something to work towards, a ground level to start at.  I also enjoyed how this article touched on homogenization of instruction because that is a real problem I see in the classroom I work in currently. Homogenization is where the teacher teaches the content the same way for every class and doesn't differentiate instruction. Differentiated instruction is a tremendous tool that should be used in every classroom; no classroom is precisely the same. Sometimes CCSS does lead to this idea that we just have to teach to the standard and teach to the test, not teach to allow learning or growth.

I did enjoy the part of this chapter that talked about us, as educators, being a primary asset for motivating our students; "If your students perceive you as knowledgeable and excited about learning, then they may be more likely to be excited. CCSS can be paired with a teachers passion for teaching and help people grow. I think this is a common thing that is missed when it comes to using CCSS. CCSS shouldn't be seen as a chore to use; it should be regarded as a tool to help direct and grow a teachers passion. CCSS are an underutilized resource when it comes to helping teachers teach. Besides, to quote Barbosa from Pirates of the Carribean "The Code (CCSS) is more like guidelines, really."

Brookfield's “Discussion as a Way of Teaching”

After reading Brookfield's "Discussion as a Way of Teaching" I found that there were several good techniques suggested to be used in a classroom, but I struggled to see how, as an educator, I would have time to use them in my classroom. I really enjoyed the section titled "Other Techniques for Setting Ground Rules" on page 5 where Brookfield presented Johnson, Johnson, and Smith's T-Chart idea. I can see how the T-chart can be a useful tool for students when it comes to setting ground rules for discussions and what these ground rules looked like. Other than this section, I actually found a lot of the techniques for setting ground rules for discussions to be tough to implement in a classroom. They seem to take quite a bit of time, and time is not something freely given in today's classrooms. I also found that some of the ideas were directed towards classes that have students who actively want to learn, while the classrooms I work in, the students don't actually care about participating. I would have loved to see more ideas on how to engage and get students to take an active part in classroom activities. I do think that this article had a lot of good ideas, but there are still so many different issues and concepts that could have been addressed. I do agree that a discussion is an underutilized tool in today's classrooms, and I would love to see them implemented more. This article brought up some important topics that I think we, as educators, need to address. For example, a particular subject that I would love to see discussed or examples of is how exactly do we find the time to set ground rules for discussions and keep them implemented so that every student actively participates or feels comfortable to speak in class. Are there ways to subtly implement standards and techniques for discussion without wasting time?