Discussion Question 1
Handout 1.1: Learning Theories
|
Orientation |
Theory |
Characteristics |
Applications |
|
Teacher-Centered |
Behaviorism |
● Focuses on observable changes in behavior ● Views the teacher’s role as providing information and supervising practice ● Describes learning as the result of stimulus–response actions ● Uses incentives and rewards for motivation |
● Basal readers ● Minilessons ● Worksheets |
|
Child-Centered |
Constructivism |
● Describes learning as the active construction of knowledge ● Recognizes the importance of background knowledge ● Views learners as innately curious ● Suggests ways to engage children so they can be successful |
● Literature focus units ● K-W-L charts ● Thematic units ● Word sorts |
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Sociolinguistics |
● Emphasizes the importance of language and social interaction on learning ● Views reading and writing as social and cultural activities ● Explains that children learn best through authentic activities ● Describes the teacher’s role as scaffolding children’s learning |
● Literature circles ● Shared reading ● Reading and writing workshop ● Author’s chair |
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Information Processing |
● Recommends integrating reading and writing ● Views reading and writing as meaning-making processes ● Explains that readers’ interpretations are individualized ● Describes children as strategic readers and writers |
● Guided reading ● Graphic organizers ● Grand conversations ● Interactive writing |
Handout 1.2: The Four Cueing Systems
|
System |
Terms |
Applications |
|
Phonological System The sound system with approximately 44 sounds and more than 500 ways to spell them |
● Phoneme (the smallest unit of sound) ● Grapheme (the written representation of a phoneme using one or more letters) ● Phonological awareness (knowledge about the sound structure of words) ● Phonemic awareness (the ability to orally manipulate phonemes in words) ● Phonics (knowledge about phoneme–grapheme correspondences and rules) |
● Decoding words ● Using invented spelling ● Noticing rhyming words ● Dividing words into syllables |
|
Syntactic System The structural system that governs how words are combined into sentences |
● Syntax (the structure or grammar of a sentence) ● Morpheme (the smallest meaningful unit of language) ● Free morpheme (a morpheme that can stand alone as a word) ● Bound morpheme (a morpheme that must be attached to a free morpheme) |
● Forming compound words ● Adding prefixes and suffixes to root words ● Using capitalization and punctuation ● Writing simple, compound, and complex sentences |
|
Semantic System The meaning system that focuses on vocabulary |
● Semantics (meaning) ● Synonyms (words that mean the same or nearly the same thing) ● Antonyms (opposites) ● Homonyms (words that sound alike but are spelled differently) |
● Learning that many words have multiple meanings ● Studying synonyms, antonyms, and homonyms ● Using a dictionary and a thesaurus |
|
Pragmatic System The social and cultural use system that explains how language varies |
● Standard English (the form of English used in textbooks and by television newscasters) ● Nonstandard English (other forms of English) |
● Varying language to fit specific purposes ● Comparing standard and nonstandard forms of English |
Handout 1.3: The Balanced Literacy Approach
|
Component |
Description |
|
Reading |
Children participate in a variety of reading experiences using picture-book stories and novels, informational books, books of poetry, textbooks, and Internet materials. |
|
Phonemic Awareness and Phonics |
Children learn to manipulate sounds in words and apply the alphabetic principle and phonics rules to decode words. |
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Literacy Strategies and Skills |
Children learn to use problem-solving and monitoring behaviors called strategies and automatic actions called skills as they read and write. |
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Vocabulary |
Children learn the meaning of words through listening to books teachers read aloud and from content-area study. |
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Comprehension |
Children learn to use reader factors, including comprehension strategies, and text factors, including text structures, to understand what they’re reading. |
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Literature |
Children become engaged readers who enjoy literature through reading and responding to books and learning about genres, text structures, and literary features. |
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Content-Area Study |
Children use reading and writing as tools to learn about social studies and science topics in thematic units. |
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Oral Language |
Children use talk and listening as they work with classmates, participate in grand conversations, give oral presentations, and listen to the teacher read aloud. |
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Writing |
Children learn to use the writing process to draft and refine stories, poems, reports, and other compositions. |
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Spelling |
Children apply what they’re learning about English orthography to spell words, and their spellings gradually become conventional. |
Handout 1.4: The Common Core State Standards
|
Chapter |
Reading Strand: Literature |
Reading Strand: Informational Text |
Reading Strand: Foundational Skills |
Writing Strand |
Speaking and Listening Strand |
Language Strand |
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2 - Examining Children’s Literacy Development |
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X |
X |
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X |
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3 - Assessing Children’s Literacy Development |
X |
X |
X |
X |
X |
X |
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4 - Cracking the Alphabetic Code |
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X |
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5 - Learning to Spell |
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X |
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X |
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6 - Developing Fluent Readers and writers |
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X |
X |
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7 - Building Children’s Word Knowledge |
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X |
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8 - Facilitating Children’s Comprehension: Reader Factors |
X |
X |
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X |
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9 - Facilitating Children’s Comprehension: Text Factors |
X |
X |
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X |
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10 - Scaffolding Children’s Reading Development |
X |
X |
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11 - Scaffolding Children’s Writing Development |
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X |
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12 - Integrating Literacy Into Thematic Units |
X |
X |
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X |
X |
X |
Handout 1.5: Levels of Scaffolding
|
Level |
Reading |
Writing |
|
Modeled |
Teachers read aloud, modeling how good readers read fluently using books that are too difficult for children to read |
Teachers demonstrate how to write a composition, creating the text, doing the writing, and think aloud about their use of strategies and skills.
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Shared |
Teacher and children read books together, with children following as the teacher reads and then repeating familiar refrains. |
Teacher and children create the text together; then the teacher does the actual writing. Sometimes children assist by spelling familiar words. |
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Interactive |
Teacher and children read instructional-level texts together and take turns doing the reading. Teachers help children read fluently and with expression. |
Teacher and children create the text and share the pen to do the writing. They spell words correctly and add capitalization, punctuation, and other conventions. |
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Guided |
Teachers teach guided reading lessons to small, homogeneous groups using instructional-level books. |
Teachers teach lessons on writing strategies, skills, and procedures, and children participate in supervised practice activities. |
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Independent |
Children read self-selected books independently, and teachers conference with children to monitor their progress. |
Children use the writing process to write stories, informational books, and other compositions. |