Reading Strategies for Advanced Academics

Reading Between the Lines:Meeting Students in the Middle

By: Donna Moore, Ed.D.

Mission:

Using the Power of Reading, Language, and Technology to encourage, stimulate, and engage secondary readers of all levels to become confident, thoughtful, and articulate through:

Required classroom reading (Buff Time) Self-selected literature Collaborative on-line discussions

(forums, wikis, blogs, podcasts) Reading-Buddy journals And much, much more….

What Does Research Say?

Students who read magazines and newspapers regularly for enjoyment also tend to be better readers than those who do not. (Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA))

Ensuring that books are available to any child at any time of the year will be a good first step in enhancing the reading achievement of low-income students and an absolutely necessary step in closing the reading achievement gap. (Ameliorating summer reading setback among economically disadvantaged elementary students, Richard Allington, April 2007)

Research cont…..

Students who read widely and frequently are higher achievers than students who read rarely and narrowly. (Scholastic: Classroom Libraries Work!)

Children learn an average of 4,000 to 12,000 new words each year as a result of book reading. (Scholastic: Classroom Libraries Work!)

Research has found a relation between the amount of time that children read for fun on their own and reading achievement. (Handbook of Research on Teaching the English Language Arts)

http://www.scholastic.com/readeveryday/facts.htm

WHAT IS A WIKI?

LET’S WATCH THIS SHORT VIDEO

TO GET AN IDEA.WHAT IS A WIKI?

Using Wikis in the Classroom

How can Wikis be used in the classroom?

GROUP PROJECTS TO RESEARCH, OUTLINE,

DRAFT, AND EDIT PROJECTS

STUDENTS WORK TOGETHER IN ONE PLACE

POST SYLLABUS, HOMEWORK, COURSE MATERIALS, STUDY

GUIDES, REVIEWS, LECTURES, OUTLINES, POWER POINTS.

Use Wikis to Communicate Assignments:

ORGANIZE ARTICLES, WEBSITES, VIDEOS,

AUDIO RECORDINGS, AND OTHER RESOURCES

FOR YOUR STUDENTS

Resource Collections:

• POST QUESTIONS FOR STUDENTS TO BRAINSTORM.

• HAVE STUDENTS POST PAPERS FOR PEER FEEDBACK.

• HAVE STUDENTS REPLY TO OTHERS.

Peer/Teacher Review

Question and Response

• STUDENTS AND/OR TEACHERS POST AND RESPOND TO QUESTIONS ON A GIVEN TOPIC

• DISCUSS IN AN ACADEMIC AND MATURE MANNER

PROVIDES PARENTS A CHANCE TO BE A PART

OF THE CLASSROOM DISCUSSION AND STAY

INVOLVED AND CONNECTED TO

CLASSROOM NEWS AND EVENTS

Parent Involvement

CREATE A FACT PAGE BASED ON

INFORMATION LEARNED FROM

REVIEWED ARTICLES

Fact Page

HTTP: / /WWW.WIKISPACES.COM/

Wikis in Every Classroom

• Wikis are free and easy to use — no technical skills or IT required!

• Curriculum Sharing: Post and comment on lesson plans and syllabi.

• Online Resource Collection: Share your favorite online learning tools, blogs, websites, etc.

• Assignment Sharing: Post successful homework, course materials, study guides, and more.

Why Use Wikis as Teacher Peer Sites

Online Discussion Forums

Student generated ideas with depth

Recommended Books

Gilmore, B. (2006) Speaking volumes: How to get students discussing books—and much more. Portsmouth, NH: Heinemann.

Recommended Books

Gallagher, K. (2004). Deeper reading. Portland, ME: Stenhouse Publishers.

http://www.shelfari.com/

Literary Personal NetworkCommunity Based Book ShelfOn-line forum for literary discussion

Researcher’s Comments

Dr. Nancy Hadaway: “Good readers make good writers.”

In The Power of Reading: Insights from the Research, second edition, Stephen Krashen states, “In school free reading programs are effective for vocabulary development, grammar test performance, writing, and oral/aural language ability” (Greaney 1970; Krashen 1989).

References

Krashen, S. D. (2004). The power of reading: Insights from the research (2nd edition). Portsmouth, New Hampshire:

Heinemann.

Lesesne, T. (2005). Making the match: the right book for the right reader at the right time, grades 4-12. Portland, Maine: Stenhouse Publishers.