Monday, April 24, 2017

Keystone

Unit Plan on Descriptive Writing:
https://docs.google.com/a/nyit.edu/document/d/1Co7NBtgn24mGmSPsyrpfEwIXCcl3TAkseNQVmsRXRdU/edit?usp=sharing
Rubric:
https://www.dropbox.com/s/kmrqq52678pqrmp/Rubric.docx?dl=0

ELL Case Study

https://www.dropbox.com/s/hnz7rq7rbup5fn0/ELL%20Case%20Study.docx?dl=0
Sample Papers:\
https://www.dropbox.com/s/u665wil6w184irs/SOLOM.pdf?dl=0
https://www.dropbox.com/s/xnis6y6dvjy87fi/2017_04_21%2010-59-33.pdf?dl=0


Friday, April 14, 2017

Graphic Organizers as a Tool for Literacy Instruction

Graphic Organizers are a great tool for literacy. The purpose of the organizer is to have students manipulate pieces of information and create a visual structure which shows connections between the pieces.
In my classroom of 2nd graders, we used these visuals often and found the results very effective. We used them most often as a follow up from a reading assignment. After independent reading, students would receive a sheet with a graphic organizer such as a T-chart or a Venn diagram or a web and fill it out. This was a great review for the students since it required them to reread the text to find the appropriate phrases to copy over. It also caused the students to actually think about what they had read and analyze it. Alternatively, we would give it to the students before they read the book, and explain what needed to be done. That way, the students would look out for the correct information and copy it over as they read.
In the study written about, the graphic organizers were used both for a visual aid as well as for metacognition and metalinguistic skill building. The findings supported the usage of graphic organizers for students who are developing language and content simultaneously.
Below is a link to a lesson plan which uses graphic organizers in a reading comprehension lesson. http://www.readwritethink.org/classroom-resources/lesson-plans/scaffolding-comprehension-strategies-using-95.html?tab=4

Interestingly, some of the graphic organizers used overlap with the other strategies mentioned in the article.