Epifano/Mills ELA 8
In co-taught ELA, our goal is to get the students to think about themes in stories and how to then write a universal thematic claim with supporting evidence and explanation.
After reading the short story, Raymond's Run by Toni Cade Bambara, we posted the question "How does this connect to what you already know?". Students thought about how they could make connections to text to text, text to self and text to world. The students wrote their connection on a sticky note and posted it on chart paper that was hung around the room. After each student made their own connection, we then had them "Chalk Talk" and write a comment or connection to someone else's posting. By thinking and connecting to other students' thoughts, we were hoping that the students would come to a deeper understanding about the text.
After thinking through the text and making connections we were impressed with the thoughts the students had and felt like they were able to better understand the realization or lesson learned in the text. By having the students see and share their thinking we also had meaningful conversations related to the text and were able to dig deeper for that understanding. In the end, the thematic claim statements the students wrote showed a deeper understanding of the text.
Epifano and Mills,
ReplyDeleteI like how you had students post their connections on sticky notes instead of just on a sheet at their desk so that everyone could view all the connections made, and you could make comments on the class's connections as a whole. I think that connections to the text, text-to-self in particular, are a powerful way to improve student comprehension and motivation to read. I usually struggle with getting students to make text-to-world connections, particularly in co-taught, but that is something I am working on!
Sandi and Heather,
ReplyDeleteI like how you incorporated movement into your classroom because this requires 100% participation. Connections make stories relatable to students, which is especially important for a co-taught class. It can make them care about learning. I always say, "Never underestimate a child," and the results from your lesson proves this. You were able to access their thinking and I am sure they enjoyed the lesson, perhaps without realizing all the learning that was taking place. Kudos to you:)