Title
Literacies - Language Arts
Collaborators
MJ Moran
Diane Potts
Schools
Sir Matthew Begbie Elementary
Last Modified
April 29, 2007
Description
Novel studies, Buddy Reading, Current Events...how does one set parameters to talk about and teach Literacies in Language Arts? Here are two novel studies and two terms of Buddy Reading from my continuously developing perspectives on Literacies in Language Arts as a grade 6/7 teacher.
Term One - Literature Circles
Classrooms are places of literacies learning. Literacy learning occurs in multiple ways. Each teacher approaches the beginning of a school year individually, creating what she feels are possible places of literacies learning for the students she has the opportunity to work with this year. As an elementary teacher I am responsible for...
Buddies
We start Buddies almost the first day of school. It is helpful for the Kindergartens to have Grade sixes and sevens ease them into being one of a twenty-something group. It is helpful for the Grade sixes and sevens to have the opportunity to work with the younger students, the opportunity to be a leader, to be a teacher, to be a...
Term Two - Talking, Drawing, Writing
In first term I chose a novel study format that apprenticed the students into a discourse that enabled them to discuss their engagement with the characters, the author and the plotline in a group. I chose to read a very 'easy' novel that 'hooked' everyone - from book lovers to highly...
Buddy Links
These are the Links to our buddies salmon books.
 |
Harris - Reflections
Upon completion of the novel I make time to find out what the students thought of the process. This is the first time through a reflection for new students in my class so I ensure there is time to explain that I use their reflections to improve...
View Gallery
|
 |
Zack Part 1Chpt 5
The second term novel study follows another approach - read, talk, draw, talk, write, repeat.
View Book
|
 |
Zack Part 1 Chpt 7
The second term novel study follows another approach - read, talk, draw, talk, write, repeat.
View Book
|
 |
Zack Part 1 Chpt 9
The second term novel study follows another approach - read, talk, draw, talk, write, repeat.
View Book
|
 |
Zack Part 1 Chpt 11
The second term novel study follows another approach - read, talk, draw, talk, write, repeat.
View Book
|
 |
Zack - Reflections Post Presentations
The two hours of presenting projects is usually highly emotionally and intellectually charged. It is my practice to capture some of this in closing reflections, both to hold the moment and to have closure for the event. For closure this day we...
View Gallery
|
 |
Zack - Reflections on the Process
When a study is finished I want to know what the students felt about the process: what they enjoyed, what they learned, what they felt went well, what could have gone better. They completed the following reflections without instruction - the...
View Gallery
|
 |
Buddies - Know, Wonder, Learn for Salmon
The big buddies help the little buddies to collect and write what they already know and what they wonder about salmon before the salmon eggs arrive.
View Gallery
|
 |
Buddies - Salmon Danger Drama
After reading, discussing and brainstorming possible dangers a final practice of each egg's life is run through and then the dramatic event is performed before the audience of the two classes.
View Gallery
|
 |
Buddies - We Have Alevins!
Some of the salmon eggs have survived to the next stage - alevins. Here we are taking turns looking for the alevins while also reading, writing and discussing alevin facts.
View Gallery
|
 |
Cayden's Salmon Book
This is Cayden's Salmon Book.
View Book
|
 |
Hakeem's Book
A beautiful book of Hakeem's work, especially beautiful because Andrew is his buddy, and is converting it to a book.
The work is mainly about salmons. I hope you enjoy it.
View Book
|
 |
Derick's salmon book
Pages of dericks salmon book
View Book
|
 |
Christy Salmon Book
This is my buddies book that includes my buddies work about salmon.
View Book
|
 |
Jeffrey's Salmon Book
A book made by Jeffrey on what he learned on the topic Salmon.
View Book
|
 |
Angela's Salmon Book
This is my buddies salmon book were she is showing her work and what she learned about a salmon.
View Book
|
 |
Sarah's Salmon Book
This is Sarah's Salmon Book :)
View Book
|
 |
Daniel's Salmon Book
The book about Daniel as a salmon and him going through his life.
View Book
|
 |
Tyler's Salmon Book!
This is the stages I am before I was release!
View Book
|
 |
Iris's Salmon Book
Pages of a book that Iris created with the help of her Grade 7 buddy
View Book
|
 |
Angela's Salmon Book
This is a book showing images of div.15 and their buddies making a Salmon Book !!!
View Book
|
 |
Christy's Salmon Book
This is book showing the images of div.15 and their buddies making their Salmon Book =P
View Book
|
 |
Alex's Salmon Book
This is book showing images of div.15 and their buddies making their salmon book !!!!
View Gallery
|
 |
Geoffrey's Salmon Book
This is a book showing images of div.15 and their buddies making their salmon book xD
View Book
|
 |
Sacha's Harris Project
Sacha chose several connections between his life and the main character's life to represent his learning.
View Gallery
|
 |
Jason Liang's Harris Project
Jason chose to write summaries of several of the chapters and an alternate ending to represent his understanding of the novel
View Gallery
|
 |
Matthew K's Harris Project
Matthew chose several connections between his life and the main characters life to write about and illustrate to represent his understanding of the novel.
View Gallery
|
 |
Kevin's Harris Project
Kevin chose to illustrate several of his favourite parts of the novel to represent his understanding.
View Gallery
|
 |
Kristine's Harris Project
Kristine chose to write the final letter in the novel, reflect on how the main character might have felt and then write a response to the letter as her representation of her understanding of the novel.
View Gallery
|
 |
Klassen's Harris Project
Klassen chose to write summaries of several of the chapters to represent his understanding of the novel.
View Gallery
|
 |
Helen's Harris Project
Helen reproduced the six parts of the Literature Circles, wrote a script for a play and acted it out with her group, and wrote a response to the closing letter to the main character as her representation of her understanding of the novel.
View Gallery
|
 |
Holly's Harris Project
This is the Journal that Holly wrote from one of the main character's perspectives, it was attached to her poster as her representation of her understanding of the novel.
View Gallery
|
 |
Elisa's Salmon Book<333
A Salmon book made by Kindergardens!
View Book
|
 |
Rachel's Salmon Book =D
This is Rachels Salmon book showing pages that she made of her being an imaginary baby salmon !!!!!
View Book
|
 |
Anson Salmon Book
A book about salmon. Anson has been drawing the pages for over two weeks every Thursday morning at school.
He likes drawing trains. If you look closely you can see them.
We hope you like it!!!!!!^.^
View Book
|
 |
Completing and Sharing the Salmon e-Books
The Big Buddies had been busy scanning, uploading and adding the work the Little Buddies had put together. Together they looked at the progress and thought about how to add final touches.
View Gallery
|
 |
Literature Circles - Passage Picker
This activity has the students attending to short bits of prose. Finding which bits they are attracted to and describing why the bits are of interest to them.
View Presentation |
 |
Literature Circle - Illustrator
This activity requires the student to recreate an image they had while reading the novel and explain why this image is their choice.
View Presentation |
 |
Literature Circles - Predictor
In this activity the students are asked to think like the author, to pull salient ideas from what has already happened in the plotline and develop a plausible continuation.
View Presentation |
 |
Literature Circles - Summarizer
This activity gives the students a format to use to create a summary. As they read through the chapter the key ideas are jotted down in their words and point form. First orally, and then in text the point form ideas are woven together to create...
View Presentation |
 |
Literature Circles - Connector
This activity requires the student to relate events, feelings, situations in the story to events, feelings and situations in their lives. It requires them to specifically describe what happened in the story, what happened in their life and what...
View Presentation |
 |
Literature Circles - Project Work
This is the 'deeper' part of the unit. The learning has happened and now it is time to show me and themselves what that learning looks like.
View Presentation |
 |
Literature Circles - Vocabulary Builder
This activity requires students to pay attention to the language the author employs, and connect it with their understandings and interests in language usage.
View Presentation |
 |
Literature Circles - Projects
These are the completed projects: some text, some image, some drama, some electronic, some individual and some group.
View Presentation |
 |
Buddies - At First
When the year begins the Kindergartens are usually quite shy, and the Grade 6/7s are usually quite understanding.
View Presentation |
 |
Buddies - Collecting Fall Leaves
Beautiful fall weather and changing leaves took us outside to collect and then inside to sort, count and graph our findings.
View Presentation |
 |
Buddies - Playing Games
Along with reading, collecting leaves and graphing our findings we also build relationships by playing games.
View Presentation |
 |
Buddies - Writing Letters to Santa
Pre-talk with the Big Buddies, which included drawing on their knowledge of writing letters and some general guidelines, helped them to be very successful writing teachers for the Little Buddies.
View Presentation |
 |
Buddies - Santa Replies
Big Buddies, given an audience, can also be good writers; as well as good reading teachers and good listeners and good friends.
View Presentation |
 |
Buddies - Making Games
Big Buddies worked together to create a game for each of the Little Buddies as a Christmas gift.
View Presentation |
 |
Buddies - Testing and Giving the Games
After the work of creating the games the Big Buddies needed to test drive them before giving them as gifts.
View Presentation |
 |
Multimodalities With Diane
Helping the student's to broaden their ability to represent their understanding Diane Potts came to lead Division 15 through some introductory discussions about Mode, Media and their relationship to Intelligence, (a topic we had been looking at in...
View Presentation |
