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Why is it valuable to teach diverse literature?
- dropout rates are higher for students of other
- ethnicities
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- US classrooms are experiencing the largest
- influx of immigrants since the early 1900s, further increasing the diversity of
- students.
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- Children will live and work in a world that is
- vastly different from the one in which we grew up. Economic, technological, and social changes are connecting
- us across the globe.
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- Knowledge of the world and of diverse cultures
- is no longer a luxury, but a necessity.
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- Children need understandings of both the diverse
- cultural groups within their own country and global cultures that cross outside
- of their borders.
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What is the difference between traditional
reading instruction and inquiry reading instruction?
- Traditional : mastery of content. Places teacher at the center, the
- teacher does everything. The goal
- is for the students to understand the information the teacher gives them.
- Inquiry approach – focuses on how one
- learns. Problem-based learning and
- constructivist learning.
- -students’ inquiry is guided by their own
- questions related to a work of literature – questions they honestly care about.
- -Emphasis is placed on the process of how
- one gets and makes sense of information about literature so that knowledge
- gained will have wide application.
- Teachers operate as facilitators rather than
- dispensers of knowledge. They ask
- leading questions rather than tell answers.
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Why are information books good for children to
read and how can we get them to read this genre?
- Children are naturally curious. They can use these books to nourish
- that curiosity with lively, intelligent answers, provocative questions, and
- stimulating books that provide answers and a thirst for further knowledge.
- -It is only through repeated experience
- with a specific genre that one learns how to read or write that genre.
- - All children benefit from learning how to
- read and enjoy nonfiction, since from middle grades through adulthood, most
- day-to0day reading demands (textbooks, instructions, etc) are expository
- -A key factor in comprehending expository
- text is that readers learn to relate new information found in the text to their
- own prior knowledge on the topic stored in their minds.
- -Select excellent works of nonfiction for
- reading aloud and suggest similar works to parents for at-home reading.
- -Call attention to student’s prior knowledge on
- a subject and noting the various text structures while reading will help
- students learn to read and appreciate this genre.
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Explain how a literature circle works.
- Students share their responses with peers about
- a book they have read as a group or a book read aloud by the teacher to the
- whole class.
- -
- One of the goals is to have all children learn
- to work together and to value the opinions and view of others.
- -
- Groups can be established by the desire to read
- the same book, by friendship, by heterogeneous assignment by the teacher, or by
- random assignments.
- -
- Small groups are usually set up with two to six
- students for optimal functioning.
- Students who have less skill working in groups often function better in
- dyads or triads.
- -
- The small group discussion is a
- student-to-student form of communication that permits students more control
- over the discussion and more roles to perform as group members. For example, students may assume the
- role of leader, recorder, arbiter, listener, or devil’s advocate.
- -
- The advantages of small-group discussions are
- that students are in control, have more opportunities to express their
- opinions, and ca become more actively involved. Unless students have been taught to work together, however,
- groups do not function well.
- -
- Small group discussions with the teacher as a
- participating member and joint planning by teacher and class before groups
- begin working can enable the group to set rules, goals, and time lines.
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What are some ways we can tell if historical
fiction is “quality”?
- -Historical fiction must tell an engaging
- story
- -Must have rounded, complex characters with
- which children can identify
- -Impart a universal theme that is worthy
- and thought provoking.
- -Must present historical facts with as much
- accuracy as possible.
- -The setting must be described in sufficient
- detail, as to provide an authentic sense of that time and that place without
- overwhelming the story. E.g Time,
- place, hair, clothing, etc must be woven into the story.
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