3+Dec+10+Meeting+Log

Bobbie, Trace, Michael, Janine, Susan R, Susan V, Tom signed on to the wiki and began reflecting upon their reading, "Bringing Literacy Strategies Into Content Instruction, Professional Learning for Secondary-Level Teachers" by Marcia L. Kosanovich, Deborah K. Reed, and Debra H. Millerand. Reflections are captured on their participant pages.
 * Writing into the Meeting**


 * Bobbie** - I knew students encountered many words each year but I was surprised to see the number estimated to be 10,000 or more. Information about students who do not read very often having a vocab deficit reinforced some of my own thinking. Texting and "shortcut" words also seems to have an effect on student vocabulary, student writing, what is appropriate for inclusion in written work (especially graded/handed in written work). It was nice to see a specific example of content writing in math.


 * Michael**: I found the four categories very helpful. I would like to explore other specific lessons, methods and strategies. The premise of the article makes a lot of sense and correlates with a lot of what I've experienced and what I've been reading and learning in workshops.


 * Janine** - Reflecting on the article Bringing Literacy Strategies into Content Instructions, Chapter 3 - I was most intrigued by the discussion of learning vocabulary through oral and written means. But specifically using discussions.


 * Susan R.** - Specialized vocabulary should be purposely introduced at the beginning of new units. It has been my experience that many content area teachers do not do this.


 * Trace** - Vocabulary is crucial. How can we create opportunities in our classes to help our students become introduced to. . . experience. . . and master crucial vocabularies? Is it important to distinguish between a vocabulary word as it is used in a discrete discipline and how it is used in the "real world?" Like learning to code-switch? How to learn new words? Looking up words and analyzing words are some strategies they use, among others. Not sure what that's about, but it surprised me. Also surprising, the value of direct instruction. Students don't just learn vocabulary by reading, or other "discovery model" activities, some direct instruction needs to occur. I was told (at least implicitly) that direct instruction is bad somehow, that students will acquire the skills they need to acquire "in the process of" working on larger projects, in the context of "authentic work." But this article (and other experiences) reminds me of the value of direct instruction that is strategically focused on building skills.


 * Susan V**. - I found myself considering the relationship between good readers and vocabulary. The article stated that the more one reads, the more your vocabulary expands. I am not sure I agree with this, although in reading instruction circles this is a given. Expanding ones vocabulary when reading requires interaction with the text which requires will. A reader must consciously utilize context, morphology and research skills to learn new words while reading. So is the converse actually true? Those with larger vocabularies become readers?


 * Tom** - Language acquisition tells us that sometimes we may have "input" comprehensions meaning that we can understand what we //hear// or //read// prior to being able to "output" abilities, demonstrating that we know something that we //say// or //write//. So, if this is true, than within the content areas, we need to do a better job as teachers creating a variety of exposures to VOCAB, content area language, many inputs and then many output trials.

So...with English language learners, they suggest that we do a bunch with //word walls//, creating ongoing visual access to new words. They also suggest that we use props ("realia") to teach words so that the input is accompanied by a visual cue/image to remember.

But about outputs, how do we create enough chances for students to put out/try out and use the new language that they are learning. Certainly, it has to extend beyond simply defining and memorizing definitions.


 * Group Discussion**
 * Direct instruction…Trace was saying that the article made her re-think direct instruction since she's so mired in guided discovery.
 * How do we learn read? . ..
 * Susan V.: Remembers Flashcards, There are different kinds of reading… phonetic/reading
 * Is there a value added in vocabulary instruction when we teach prefixes, suffixes, morphology?
 * Rather than this or that, decoding or "whole language," we need both and…
 * Mike: The workshop approach and finding a balance makes sense, but getting it right is difficult.

Classroom discussions… USING vocabulary…how do you create the opportunity for discussion? A lot of teachers are afraid of kids talking… Huge number of new words that kids encounter every day… What is the NUMBER of exposures to a word that kids in order to own a word? Bobbie has a free-period with an English teacher and she uses English words consciously: – “behoove”, “juxtapose” Mike: How many exposures does a kid need before be willing to use a word? Giving kids a //choice// at some level, there’s more motivation. //Choice// within a framework…writing a persuasive writing piece… Janine: Choosing the medium with which students can express themselves is critical Susan V.: How is vocabulary mastery assessed? Sometimes the language of the definition. Writing a sentence that reveals the meaning of the word… Using words in the context of their lives…helps, especially with words with various meanings -Microscope…diaphragm. The book __Proust and the Squid__ discusses the skill that must exist for writing and reading. Great Questions Arose from the discussion:
 * 1) When and how should students use dictionaries? How much direct instruction is needed?
 * 2) When and how should students use a thesaurus?
 * 3) How do we manage the volume of vocabulary we need to learn?
 * 4) How many passes at a word are needed to incorporate the word into a student's vocabulary?
 * 5) How do you know the most salient content words to focus upon?

We looked at a BOCES resource that has essential questions, words/concepts for Social Studies Units.