Ms. M's Tales of a Teacher: My Personal Teacher Blog

 In my previous blog I opened the conversation about applying modifications to a virtual environment. It certainly looks different, feels different and that's because it is! I've spent a lot of time these first few weeks of school thinking about modifications and how to effectively implement them for my students. My co-teacher and I have looked over our students' IEPs, discussed how they would typically be implemented, and what is holding us back.  The reality is that not all the modifications are able to be applied in the same ways, and some have to be changed completely. Rather than having them fully adjusted in the IEP itself, we realized that how we implement the modifications students need is what will make it possible to meet their needs, goals, and requirements in their IEP.  Much like how differentiated instruction can vary based on the content, process, and product, implementing modifications in a virtual and/or hybrid environment can be differentiated (and in th...

Last week my co-teacher and I had a meaningful conversation about modifications- a popular and important topic for the students in our class. Our class is richly diverse with various cultures, abilities, languages, and learning styles that make it unique, yet offer challenges for us as teachers to meet the needs of our learners in this new learning environment we are experiencing this year.  One of our concerns before school even started was how to deliver instruction that was differentiated, and ensure modifications were in place for all of our students, especially those that require them with IEP and 504 reports. We realized that some modifications are going to be altered such as offering manipulatives. We use virtual manipulatives and allow the students to move them, or to direct us as teachers where/how/when to move them. Some modifications (such as extra time) don't require much of a change, however utilizing breakout rooms in Zoom has been helpful to provide a quiet space for...

Recently I read an article from ASCD Express that focused on meaningful grades. Shortly thereafter, I found others relevant to the same topic. The one that I personally focused on is titled: Quality Over Counting: Mindsets for Grading Reform by Tom Schimmer.  One key point that resonated was in section  number three; Standards Over Tasks. Typically teachers, including myself, organize our gradebooks by tasks such as quizzes, projects etc., however, we are grading on a "standards-based" report card. The truth is, the task-organization is not reflecting standards because of the type of evidence included. Schimmer explains how standards are organized by strands, categories or domains.  The challenge comes with how to exactly grade if using tasks were to be set aside, and even Schimmer agrees to this point. Here are some of my thoughts for how we can accomplish this, especially with our current learning environments being different than they have in the past. Which, by the wa...

 I can recall even when I was in early elementary school, one of the emphasized points of writing was reader's response, which acted as a direct connection to reading text and writing. In my earlier years of teaching, it was a scheduled skill in various curriculums that needed to be covered (in both reading and writing.) Over the years, with the rise of Readers' and Writers' Workshop, where the emphasis is on student choice, teaching reader's response has become a skill that's been tucked away into the shadows.  My question therefore is: Has the need for reader's response truly become less necessary to comprehend text and demonstrate proficiency in writing, or has the de-emphasis added to the struggle for readers to think about the W.A.B questions (posted in an earlier blog!)  and write well?  The goal here is to share some brief points of importance and let you as an educator decide...  1. Teaching reader's response can have a place in both reading periods ...

 This week our chapter of KDP held a PD session for our initiates and members; Strategies for Effective Lesson Planning. The outstanding panel of professional educators we had brought their wisdom as well as fresh perspectives for getting organized, writing plans, and adding creative flare for student engagement.  As a veteran teacher, this workshop offered a space for me to think critically about my plans, and how I can modify them for our current learning environment, as well as a traditional classroom. After the workshop I compiled a list of main take-aways and will share them here:  - Lesson plans might seem redundant, so make them meaningful for you!  - Think about what areas you need to focus on more critically. For me, connecting my standards and objectives is always a challenge!  - Use lesson plans as a space to plan out everything you will do during that lesson, and also as a reflection after to see how well students did.  - Share your lesson plan ...

 I could not wait to write this blog post today. Many of my questions and concerns have finally been addressed, and I'm understanding so much more about my reading instruction, and the growing readers I work with.  Although I will keep my summary short, I will be sharing some of my take aways that I insist you look into and dig deeper with. For those who have been wondering how encoding skills can be strengthened for their students- you're not alone! I've asked myself the same question!  I've always taught students decoding skills, (sounding out words) along with phonemic awareness/ phonics. In an article by Jeannine Herron for Educational Leadership, Herron states that phonics can be more engaging if we teach students how to spell and write words (encode) before we read them. The article was written in 2008, yet we are still facing the same issues with struggling readers today. Could this mean that we are still approaching instruction from an incorrect angle? Most def...

 Recently the term "the science of reading" has grown to be a common buzz-phrase among those who study reading, and how to teach reading. I came across a great article (ironically on social media,) that I found not only interesting, but relevant and comprehensive.  There's a difference between knowing and reading about "the science of reading" which by nature is empirical in nature, whereas teachers need practical applications for their daily work with students learning to read. In the article I'm sharing, cognitive scientist Daniel Willingham speaks on this topic. He's been mentioned in podcasts I've listened to before, and now I see the relevancy even more in his work.  I've shared this before that structured literacy is important to the foundation of learning to read. One point in the article that stood out was the idea that teachers of reading must be able to pronounce all 44 sounds in English correctly. This is understandable when teaching e...