In November of 2013 an article entitled Bilinguals Reading in Their Second Language Do Not Predict Upcoming Words as Native Readers Do, Clara Martin looked at the difference of monolingual readers and bilingual readers in their ability to predict words to follow and predict the outcome of stories. According to their research, monolingual students were more able to predict words to follow rather than student who are reading in their second language.
With this evidence, it is shown that for bilingual students, difficulty predicting the end of sentence can be a reason as to why their reading skills are slower, not as fluent, and not as strong as those reading in their first language.
Upon studying reading skills for those learning English as a second language there are ways to help. You can give students more vocabulary practice, using cluster charts showing similarities between words, while reading the students will learn to be able to predict the next word to come in a sentence. Also to group students together, weaker second language students together with stronger students to be able to learn from.
The English language is difficult to learn, and the idea of learning English alongside content and curriculum for school can seem daunting and difficult for students. As their educators we need to remember to remain patient with them, and to walk with them step by step to help their educational process.
Monday, October 28, 2013
Sunday, October 27, 2013
Silas Marner Memoirs
My sophomores girls just finished the novel, "Silas Marner", by George Eliot. The plot of the story was intriguing to the students, and they took the heart the meaning, felt compassion for Silas and all the events that occurred in his life and the father he ended up being for Eppie.
Throughout reading the story I asked the girls to write journal entries as if they were Silas Marner. Asking them to place themselves in Silas Marner's shoes, and to write out his thought processes from the events in his life.
Upon completion of the novel, and after reading numerous journal entries and loving reading their "Silas Marner-thoughts"I wanted to be able to take it a step further. I explained to the students what a memoir is (a collection of memories). Their assignment then was to walk through the entire book of
"Silas Marner", from his time in Lantern Yard, his reasons for leaving, what he thought, all the way to Eppie's wedding day explaining what went through his mind giving away his daughter, his one true love.
The girls loved it, and wrote several pages. Without computer access and opportunities to practice typing or forming a word document, I then allowed them time to type it up. After their final drafts were complete they presented their memoirs to the class, and I compiled them together to make a book of their memoirs. They feel proud of themselves when they look at it, and were able to share them with our principal.
I was inspired by a fifth grade class from the late 70's I read about. A class researched, read about, took field trips of the sea and then worked together to write a book entitled "Our Friends in the Water". The teacher spoke of her class' ownership of their learning and their participation, and how it motivated them to work even more. I wanted to provide for my students a similar experience. I read of this class in "Reading, Writing, and Learning in ESL: A Resource Book for Teaching K-12 English Learners" by Suzanne F. Peregoy and Owen F. Boyle.
Throughout reading the story I asked the girls to write journal entries as if they were Silas Marner. Asking them to place themselves in Silas Marner's shoes, and to write out his thought processes from the events in his life.
Upon completion of the novel, and after reading numerous journal entries and loving reading their "Silas Marner-thoughts"I wanted to be able to take it a step further. I explained to the students what a memoir is (a collection of memories). Their assignment then was to walk through the entire book of
"Silas Marner", from his time in Lantern Yard, his reasons for leaving, what he thought, all the way to Eppie's wedding day explaining what went through his mind giving away his daughter, his one true love.
The girls loved it, and wrote several pages. Without computer access and opportunities to practice typing or forming a word document, I then allowed them time to type it up. After their final drafts were complete they presented their memoirs to the class, and I compiled them together to make a book of their memoirs. They feel proud of themselves when they look at it, and were able to share them with our principal.
I was inspired by a fifth grade class from the late 70's I read about. A class researched, read about, took field trips of the sea and then worked together to write a book entitled "Our Friends in the Water". The teacher spoke of her class' ownership of their learning and their participation, and how it motivated them to work even more. I wanted to provide for my students a similar experience. I read of this class in "Reading, Writing, and Learning in ESL: A Resource Book for Teaching K-12 English Learners" by Suzanne F. Peregoy and Owen F. Boyle.
Saturday, October 26, 2013
Jack-o-Lanterns and Folktales
To give my students an opportunity to learn about a different culture and a holiday and tradition it practices, I gave an assignment to create their own Jack-o-Lantern and to also write a folktale to go along with it.
I looked up a folktale of the generation of the Jack-o-Lantern, from a christian perspective, that led to someone making a good choices. We were studying folktales at that time in our grammar class. And to increase their personal learning and interest I asked the students to write their own folktale about the generation of the Jack-o-Lantern. The folktale had to have characters, and a moral lesson to learn.
For a little more fun, I presented to the students three different Jack-o-Lanterns that I had made from construction paper. They were to make their own personal Jack-o-Lantern using their own creativity. The Jack-o-Lanterns now hang from my classroom ceiling as decoration and as a reminder of their work and folktales.
I looked up a folktale of the generation of the Jack-o-Lantern, from a christian perspective, that led to someone making a good choices. We were studying folktales at that time in our grammar class. And to increase their personal learning and interest I asked the students to write their own folktale about the generation of the Jack-o-Lantern. The folktale had to have characters, and a moral lesson to learn.
For a little more fun, I presented to the students three different Jack-o-Lanterns that I had made from construction paper. They were to make their own personal Jack-o-Lantern using their own creativity. The Jack-o-Lanterns now hang from my classroom ceiling as decoration and as a reminder of their work and folktales.
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