RPI 6 - Vocabulary and Decoding

 Connecting with Manaiakalani

Once again Dorothy had lots of wonderful knowledge and tidbits.

Low-demographic students can miss 32 million words before they enter school, which is a huge amount to pull back.

However, I like that teaching vocabulary allows students to open doors. One of the easiest ways to do this is by reading to our children and students. Even newborns who can't open their eyes enjoy listening to familiar voices as that is how they connect with family from the womb.

I want to check out a few apps to help build a game-like challenge for students. Students from my class have been reflecting on other choice boards and asked: "Why don't we have more game-like activities in reading and writing?"

It was pointed out that Wordwall is a user pays.

I also like when the teacher doesn't have to make them all. Especially teaching Year 7 and 8 students love to be creative, making their own and sharing with others, shows what they know. However, I would spend the first term giving examples of what was expected.

Dorothy also reminded us about using smart chips (dates, people or map locations) and dropdowns. Providing students with an interactive Google Doc or opportunities to identify words by highlighting/finding specific words, such as verbs makes this achievable for struggling students.

Background Knowledge

Naomi's idea 'We can't think without words' placing vocabulary at the top of the ' Teach Learner to Think and Question Pillar'. While students may learn to decode and read text, they must grasp that letters form words and words convey ideas. With this understanding, they might make the necessary connections between decoding and comprehension.

 Low oral vocab is the reason for many of students issues with reading. So we need to be on target.

Allowing Learners the opportunity to rate their understanding of vocabulary in a story is a great self-assessment and then reassessed at the end of the week. It is also easy to reproduce for any text, as these are the ones I can see being used and students can become familiar with and be proud to blog about as they show progress.

I have been that teacher, overusing one or two activities (define, find synonyms/antonyms) and if I'm bored after a few weeks it can't be good for students. Although I used to use define as a dual purpose (understanding and dictionary skills).

Word Consciousness

I like the idea of being word-conscious, as an avid reader I find it fascinating when I come across a word I have heard but not seen and hear students use specific words or technical words my heart flutters.

Hearing them use intricate words is empowering for them and as a teacher.

As a reader, there are survival words that students need to understand or the text won't make sense, so it is important to teach them and expose words to students before reading.

Since COVID-19, I have been doing Rebus Puzzles with students to build understanding of word puzzles. I love the fact that to understand them students need to infer. Students were even explaining why or how they worked them out reinforcing their understanding or point of view and helping others to work them out next time, as we often found similar puzzles at different times.

Explicit, Robust Vocabulary Learning Opportunities

For this to work we need to know which words to focus on. In teaching Years 7 and 8 most students recognise the high-frequency words.

This image is unclear but I appreciate the sample of Tier 2 words given. E.g. hilarious, endure, despise, arrange, compare and contrast.

Whereas Tier 3 is content or job-specific. An electrician would know 'reactance and relay' but a doctor might not. And a doctor would know 'immunosuppressed and oedema', whereas an electrician may not.

Tier 2 words are important as they don't come up in conversation often but impact student understanding of the text. Try to focus on 5-8 words a text.

Cracking Unfamiliar Words

Papakura Achievement Initiative (PAI 2005-2015), schools in Papakura focussed on Literacy,  and part of that was through Joy Allcock's Switched on to Spelling. With my previous experience with Jolly Phonics, I got the consonant-vowel patterns. This was a good reminder to revisit this with struggling readers to identify sounds they find tricky so they can identify patterns and work out words giving them independence with reading.

Time needs to be scheduled so it becomes part of the teaching programme not hit and miss. Deliberate Teaching!

Skill Builder - Questioning

Shared understanding helps students discuss and consolidate information. This can be achieved by using focused questions.

Where to Next?

• Sharing the spelling programme (The Code) as it goes from Year 1 to Year 10 and we are looking for a schoolwide programme.
• Using some if not all of Dorothy's ideas for spotlighting words in text such as dropdown and smart chips.
• Magpie Window/Wall or Word Wizards (on a window) as I have limited wall space. I also have mobiles I can hang for specific words (better words) that I need to dig out.

RPI - Reflection on Task Board & Timetabling

 Task Board Rejigged

I have adjusted my timetable, I have a group I need to see daily which limits the time they have for choosing as they are still expected to get the reading response completed. 

So I created a simpler taskboard with a spot for fast finishers rather than extra for experts. I think the reason for the title is self-explanatory. However, I have explained to students that fast finishers do quality mahi.

The other groups I see twice a week still but once is a 5-10 minute check-in to check they know what they are doing with the reading and reading response. (A great time for students to seek clarification). I have also added this timetable and have the links to group pages, which has helped me move efficiently from one group page to the next without having to return to the home or main reading page. (links to reading page - to see in action). Currently, you can see I have a bit of room for testing with reports looming, but this will change again shortly to 1:1 conferencing for students who want more individual help or a question they don't want to ask.

I have been looking at ways to help another teacher and how we can simplify a Maths task board. One thought I came up with was having 2 one for 'Must-do' and 'Choice' and the other for group work. They would sit beside each other on the class site so students are in one place to find all the work.

Student Responses from My class about the Choice Board - 

Student A, Student B, Student C

With a group task board next to it, on the class site (group page) that could look like this with more detail and links to the learning. This second part is only a rough draft.

RPI - Reflection on Great Beginnings

 Reading to Write and Writing to Read

I love this concept. As a person who has dabbled with writing, I love reading novels and seeing how they have constructed their ideas. How authors have used similies, personification and onomatopoeia along with other literacy features we teach in the class. Now students can start their narrative with the problem rather than build up to it.

I have used writing frames before and it is great to know I can come up with my own, using what others have written. 

The timing for this task was wonderful as we were about to revisit narratives. I also like how you can use this particular frame to pose questions to bring suspense and the issue to the forefront of the story.

I introduced the story with one group from the class but used the frame with the whole class. Next time I will introduce the story to other groups and use that frame with the entire class. This way they can all see how the process works.

We have in fact just received our Duffy Books and I was looking at one called Last Chance, it starts with asking the reading 5 things that can not stand.

My example using this writing Frame:

The mountain was silent from up here even though it was early afternoon.  The only sound was the faint whirring of the helicopter blades in the distance. The ravine loomed before us fresh snow hung in the air as my closest friend chomped at the bit. Will we make it?

My Challenge now is to create more writing frames - We have been looking at Report Writing, and I realise I could have created one for students to write the general statement and possibly the first paragraph.

The final thought I am sharing with my class is how they too can be magpies and use stuff others have written and change it to make it their own. Text is often woven from other sources, taking words, phrases from text, and people and using them as part of their creation.

The idea of adding these ideas, words, phrases to a Magpie Wall so all can see and use them later is a wonderful of sharing.

Did you know Writers are robbers?

Am I returning to class on air days? Here is how I introduced suspense during reading and took it into writing.

I look forward to creating the poster for Great Beginnings with my Year 7/8 students after the discussion where they were sharing parts of books where they could recognise the suspense.

1. They have great ideas that other students can be inspired by and through
2. Students will understand the chart's purpose and how to use it with clarity.

TOD - Local Curriulum @ Papakura Marae

Today, the focus was on bringing Local History Alive for us and our students through activities we can use in our class. 'Ko au ko Papakura, Ko Papakura ko au' is our theme for the year and we are teaching the students about their place and role in Papakura and having kaitiakitanga in our place.

Telling the stories of the Wharenui, TeNgira

It all started with an email ensuring teachers who were attending knew the protocols for visiting a marae. This was helpful even though I have visited a couple before, but understanding the Kaupapa behind what we were doing was wonderful and a chance to practise and know the songs we needed for the powhiri. 

When we teach, in the classroom, we share with students the purpose of the learning to help their understanding and this was the same, for those of us who have not been brought up on a marae. 

We started with a Powhiri. The tangata whenua then shared the history of the pou (the specific carvings and art pieces surrounding the Te Ngira) and how their role as guardians helps everyone feel they belong. This is what we want students to be able to do, share their stories with pride (poho kererū).

I have previously visited this marae with students, while I was teaching at another school and we had the opportunity to participate in different activities.

Today there were three workshops: 

1. 

   The other part of Pukekiwiriki, with housing in between.

   Pukekiwiriki, a hikoi up the Maunga to the Pā site with Wiremu and Hemi to hear the rich stories of the kumara pits and the richness of the area (EHS did this during the previous holiday, which I was grateful for as we ran the other workshops).
2. Maara Kai, Aunty Mā and Kristal shared their expertise on the history and planting, in conjunction with Maramataka Māori and the history of hākari (feast of years past). It can also be culturally responsive to the needs of our students as it is related to their current knowledge and makes connections with the land.
3. Purākau o Neherā, digitally telling our narrative using Storyboard That, Canva and Book Creator as the specific apps. Tools we were already using showed others the possibilities they can take back and utilise in class.

Hunua Ranges from Pukekiwiriki.

Before the term started we went on our own hikoi, wondering how many of the students had been up the maunga. It was a nice way to catch up and understand our theme, as I started into Term 1. I could see the connections back to Mangere, as I have been up there multiple times with schools and found many connections back to the information and people. The kumara pits, the Maramtaka, the fertile soil and the Maara Kai. 

Where there is kai there must be water. We could see the Hunua Ranges and thoughts of the dam came to mind, the flowing of water down to local streams, possibly behind the marae or the Hayes Stream. 

All of this fed into our topic for Term 2, some levels picked up on the water cycle and waterways and utilising science experiments to develop student understanding and ways to preserve water. We went with erosion and how water can affect the land we live on, Climate change, and the impact on the environment as we could see the quarrying from the maunga.

Kumara Pits.

View to the East with the Kumara Pits.

It was fascinating to listen to the history of the area I have lived in for over 20 years and spent most of my teaching career here. 

Much appreciate the knowledge of our Principal and Staff at Edmund Hillary and their willingness to share. Without this Kaupapa people will continue to feel lost.

Toolkits - Term 2: Google Admin

 Thanks Jeremy, we have come from a similar place. I confirmed that what I was doing was an extension of the scope of my digital role. 

He had a few tips for the Organisational Units and ways to keep these in check, leading to a discussion on actions for when students and teachers leave. 

What should happen to their accounts? This I found interesting as I am setting up resources for teachers to use today and looking forward and if my account is suspended, all that work would be useless. 

All accounts should have passwords changed and moved to the leavers OU. 

This prevents deleting and access when it is no longer required. Something Manaiakalani is very staunch about!

Toolkit - Term 2: Te Reo for the Akomanga

 A couple of my favourite I want to take straight back to class and use are

Āta whakarongo mai - āta meaning to me

Kei te marama tātou? Ke te pai?

He pātai tā tētahi? Questions?

Kūjara - Google

Tāruatiā - Make a copy

When I stepped out of the class, I needed new phrases for that role, and lost my confidence. Now, back in the class, I have noticed especially after going through these (many I knew). I am hearing myself say more and more Yah!

RPI - Reflection on Guided Reading Process

 To improve my Guided Reading Lesson, 

1. I will focus on sharing the learning intention, as I can be hit and miss with this and the purpose behind the learning intention, and reading responses or follow-up activities are related to these. 

With all students the purpose or reason for learning is important but I have found it even more so as students are older. It helps students engage as they too can see the purpose behind what they are learning and how it applies to life (which gives it meaning outside the classroom). 

Regardless of how time-poor I feel, students are more engaged providing more focused learning time and better results.

      2. Sharing how to be successful

We all like to be successful and the best way is to know what to do next, how did we get through Uni, by knowing what was expected and when it was expected, 

      3. Being quiet, giving students time to respond.

Manaiakalani observes teachers, as part of this they look for students interacting with students, or extended discussions, (without the teacher directing or forcing the conversation). Again as I am teaching older students they don't need me to fill in the gaps of discussion, and silence, they may occasionally need discussion scaffolds, but that doesn't mean I answer.

     

      4. Prior Knowledge Activation or Activites.

Again is this because they are older students, I often forget to have a discussion on what students know about the text and dive in. However, this is important for students who are struggling readers or writers and this discussion or activity can help them focus in on what they are about to learn. 

I see it happening at home one minute we are talking about my boys' rugby and the next it is the national teams and I am lost and wondering why I have to be at a game at 7pm at night. All because a couple of words have been missed in the conversation and assumptions are made.