The Lesson...Part 3

Isoke Nia is the Director of Research
and Development for the Teachers
 College Reading and Writing Project.

   I had to be on my game in order to generate excitement for nonfiction text that following Monday.  After all, the kids have been saturated in fiction text for so long that I knew I had to to hook them immediately, or lose them forever! So,   I requested every nonfiction book Gail Gibbons ever created from our school librarian and I threw in a smattering of books about content and created a lending nonfiction library within our classroom.   I decided to begin the study with an activity from  Isoke Nia.  I placed handfuls of books on each of my three clusters of desks.  I included in each group a “red herring” to check for understanding of a fiction text versus a nonfiction text.  I asked each group to create a T-chart and list their noticings of nonfiction text compared with what they knew about fiction text.  During this activity, they were so engaged in great discussions about nonfiction that I beamed with joy! My kids sounded amazingly intellectual...I thought I died and went to heaven!  This immersion in nonfiction text really opened them up to a different kind of reading and they liked it!  
     Afterwards, a representative from each group hung the poster up and each group shared out.  Together, we created one master poster of our findings and compared it to a hand-out that listed the access and visual features of nonfiction.    

Found this awesome idea on another blog:
 http://oneextradegree.blogspot.com 

        Next, we changed location and placed our collection of nonfiction books on the floor and the children created a circle around them.  They were given the task of finding and marking with a post-it the different text features we discussed earlier using our plethora of books. There was lots of chatter as they discovered various captions, sidebars, and headings.  We spent time sharing our findings and selected one student example and made copies of them from the texts.  From these copies, I created larger-than-life posters that hang in the classroom.  Using distributed practice, I constantly review text features with the kids across the curriculum.  Already, I see a difference in my student’s ability to navigate expository text as well as comprehend the text!  
     This is just the beginning in the genre of expository text though.  There are so many options to explore and incredible ideas to pull from.  The photo above is an awesome example of hands-on learning.  I plan on incorporating that in this years expository book frenzy (from The Book Whisperer).  If you were wondering what comes next...I would say text structure followed by great leads for expository writing.   


I hope this was helpful and I am always open to suggestions that will further enhance my student's learning.   

     

Got Nonfiction? Part 2

     Last year, I took a class through the Pennsylvania Writing and Literature Project (PAWLP) about using nonfiction text in the reading and writing classroom.  It was eye opening and forever changed the way I deliver reading and writing instruction!  One of the instructors was Lynne Dorfman, co-author of Nonfiction Mentor Texts. She did a book pass using her vast collection of nonfiction titles, blessing each book before passing them around to our book-hungry hands!  I left that class energized, believing that every problem could be solved with a nonfiction picture book!  

     Wearing my “nonfiction glasses,” I looked over my classroom library and realized 80% of the books were fiction titles! Problem number one!  Next, I analyzed our language arts anthology and found it was 63% fiction based and 37% nonfiction!  Problem number two!  Is it any wonder the kids don’t self-select nonfiction books?   This lack of nonfiction text creates a gap in students reading ability, both in fluency and comprehension.  As a result, they have far less familiarity with nonfiction text and its  underlying structures than with narrative text.  About 45% of my students read between 10-40 less correct words per minute on the nonfiction passage on the last theme test then the first narrative passage. This is hugely problematic! 

      So, how did I create a love for nonfiction and a thirst for knowledge among my students?  I fell in love with nonfiction books myself!  

...Tune in tomorrow for part 3...

The Lesson

Using Picture Books to Bring Nature to Urban Kids...

     My passion for this topic was born out of my student’s lack of background knowledge and actual experiences with nature.  I realized they didn’t engage in outdoor fun, mostly due to the concrete world they existed in, and the dangers that hid in the shadows of an urban, low-income neighborhood.  I heard too often about shootings, police activity, and fear of what could happen, to appreciate their lack of participation in their out-of-doors surroundings. 

      A few years ago, I bought a historic farmhouse on a little over an acre. With land comes the victory garden, the 5,000 gallon Koi pond, and of course, poultry!  I became a lover of nature, gardening, and dirt.  I spent most of my time elbow-deep in dirt as I weeded, planted, and pruned my surroundings.  Still, I pondered my student’s lives back at school.  I thought about what their reactions to the garden would be: picking a plump tomato and spindly-green cucumber and then making a salad from their labors. I thought about the wildlife around my house and how little they see at home.  My thoughts went wild and eventually I acted on them. 

Gertie, my English setter.

     After countless movies about teachers who inspire underprivileged kids, I took the initiative.   Five contests later, I found myself at a nature preserve in Newtown Square with my husband, our two dogs, and three student-winners.  We spent the day 
soaking in the sun, running through streams, and chasing the dogs.  Was it successful?  Well, when I heard one student exclaim, “Oh my gosh!  Grass!”  I knew it was.  

Baby geese at my back door!

     Although my contests generated immense intrinsic motivation within my students, something that is lacking in most of our student population, I was asked to end the contests because it went against every district rule.  I felt defeated.  How would I bring nature to my students now?  I needed an alternative,  so I took up photography.  I photographed everything!  The change of seasons, projects around the house, wildlife (after all, my house is a designated wildlife habitat!), the pond, the chickens, the garden, emerging Cicadas!  You name it - I captured it!  Realizing the need for hands-on components too, I brought in abandoned bird nests, Cicada exoskeletons, a dead Cicada killer, unwanted snake skins, a deer skull (a big hit with the kids), and pelts.  The photos became a slide show, which opened up whole class discussions.  We googled sounds of birds and sought after books for further knowledge on topics of interest.  

     As a fourth grade teacher in Pennsylvania, I am responsible for state testing in three subjects: math, reading, and science.  Math instruction comprises three hours and twenty minutes per week (I know, I’m shocked myself!), twelve and one half hours are dedicated to the weekly language arts block, leaving a measly two hours per week allotted for science instruction.  For years I have watched in silent agony as my students struggle to both read and understand the science state exam.  I tell them it’s only a reading test about science, but what I really want to say is, “Seriously, you want them to pass a test that is too hard for most of them to read, about topics that they have little or no background knowledge in?”  Houston, we have a problem! 

..... Check back tomorrow for part 2 .....