Literacy is a vital component in all subject areas. If a
person is not literate, then they are unable to expand their learning through
all different domains of their development. This is why reading and
comprehension are so important, but don’t just need to be emphasized in the
reading or language arts courses. It needs to be taught in a well rounded, all
subject manner so that every student can still thrive in the arts, sciences, or
literature courses to the best of their abilities.
Throughout
this module, I learned many things about RTI. Since I am currently teaching in
an private school, we do not have much exposure or use of RTI. However, in my
internship in Alabama, the school did have an RTI program in place. I had never
learned much about RTI in my undergraduate education, so seeing different
students being pulled randomly out of the classroom with little explanation as
to what they were doing or where they were going, I am glad to have read over
these articles and become exposed again to this program.
One key
point that Brozo points out in his article is the importance of ensuring that
content learning and literacy go hand in hand. When a student is unable to
apply further and more in depth learning to a concept that they understand,
then they have missed the main underlying point of it all. A student yes should
master the key content and become as much of an expert as possible in the
subject, but if the student is unable to then apply that learning further,
communicate it in different ways or relate it to further discussion, then the
child has not fully mastered the concept. After reading this section, I realize
why it is so important for us to encourage our students to think critically about
certain texts and subjects, to really understand all aspects and apply that
thinking and learning to grow the knowledge. Hopefully a program like RTI is
able to successfully achieve this.
In
continuing my reading on RTI, I was unaware that for the middle and upper
school grades, most programs require them to come up with their own form of
intervention and leveling of instruction. However, I see how this type of
program can being implemented in very challenging due to the difference of
curriculum and scheduling in the older grades versus in elementary school.
Therefore, I wonder if that is any way to implement this program through
special education teachers or the learning specialist on campus that can make
their own individual schedules with particular students during a free period or
break perhaps? I have never really thought about this program in regards to the
older grades, so learning about this issue is very interesting for me.
Discussing
RTI in Georgia was new information to me because of attending a college in
Alabama and due to my current job being a private school. Looking through the
charts and realizing that GA has four tiers was interesting. I found it more
appealing that all students somehow participate in the program. I feel as
though this could be more successful helping everyone be on the same page and
not making certain students feel excluded or cast out. Throughout all of the
articles, it appears to me that RTI is a program that is aiming to benefit
struggling students. However, in the upper grades, this program may not be
implemented as much due to the struggles in different curriculum demands. I
learned a lot about RTI and appreciated this new knowledge due to my current
job not involving this type of additional support program.
Rainbow Reading Video:
I had never
heard of this rainbow reading program, but I think it seems fantastic. It is a
fun and engaging way to get children interested and excited about reading due
to all the possibilities reading can bring to young children. I am glad to have
seen this new video and hope to learn more about the rainbow reading program.
Writing Express with First Graders:
I think
what Dr. Spivey is doing to determine the sentence structure is fantastic. It
is so engaging having the students come up with the subject and the action in
the sentence. They are making sentence and do not even know it. He continuously
repeats what they are trying to achieve, making it a continuous reminders that
our subject just did something. The first have to “name something” and then
tell “what it did.” This is a very fun and exciting way to get students
involved in the lesson. Each child holds their trunk, making a whole part and
having it all come together. The children’s actions relate to his graphic
organizer on the board and making a whole “tree” together is making a whole
thought and a very involved sentence. Adding on the “where” the something
happened is a branch, etc. This was a great way to view how to make a sentence
structure. My second graders would tremendously benefit from interacting and
coming up with their own sentences. I really enjoyed watching this video!
Literacy and reading strategies:
Initially,
I appreciated the review of phonics and phonemic awareness. So often these two
concepts can be easily confused or mistaken, so it is always great to review
them and look back at the components that make them up. In my school, we use a
program called “Word Study” to help our students become more educated on letter
sounds, how they connect, and then how to spell the word. This is why decoding
is so valuable because if a child is unable to decode, then they are not aware
of certain letter sounds, why the vowel may sound a certain way, etc. This is
why workshop learning and providing centers for students keeps them engaged and
excited about their learning of how to decode and then develop into their
comprehension skills. I also found the WebQuest section to be very interesting.
I too utilize this in my classroom and students just love the opportunity to get
online and get involved in something.
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