Nearly Halftime

                Rapidly, I am approaching the last days of the first half of my senior year of college education in preparation for the hopeful acceptance of a position as a middle school educator. I feel somewhat fortunate to be seeking licensure to teach both English and History at the middle school level. It really is because the two subjects so easily intertwine that I chose this program (and the hopes of looking more hirable after graduation.) I have learned to integrate literacy strategies into my lesson designs out of natural training because I am educated about incorporating literacy strategies into my teaching. Most notably, I find that giving students graphic organizers that pave part of the way for them tend to draw out students’ confidence while modeling proper spelling, punctuation and form, and doing so in an intelligible format. I like to encourage students to use their imagination with a choice of a few open ended writing prompts that if properly responded to will show their comprehension of the material that I have tried to teach them. I am also a fan of letting them garner inspiration from an experience. I have successfully persuaded students to write based upon several experience-based prompts this semester:

• ·         A creepy (impromptu) urban legend about the third floor of the school building
• ·         The production of a sidewalk-chalk map on the outdoor basketball court
• ·         Digging holes with shovels (some for the first time in their lives) for engagement with Sachar’s Holes, of course
• ·         And today by creating a nearly full-scale outline of the great pyramid using yarn, stakes, fishing line, ribbon, and three huge balloons (F.Y.I. one must notify the FAA if planning to fly tethered balloons more than 500’ or within 5 miles of an airport.)  

I think that the biggest trick when it comes to increasing student literacy is reaching students at their own levels and helping them to grow in confidence as writers. They must feel that they have something of value to communicate. In order to feel like writers, they must feel that they have a proper genre and audience (one man’s poetry is another man’s song.) Teachers are capable of providing authentic audiences for students in the form of gallery walks, oral or video presentation, online display in blog or other social media form, email exchange with another class, or any other number of ways. Students must first realize the power that they can wield by being literate through experiencing feedback from multiple sources. I will practice peer-workshops and specified real audience opportunities for my students to not only take away some of the students’ apprehensions to give them as many chances as possible to improve at self-expression and comprehension of others expression. Students might develop a greater appreciation for their education if what they learned in one class proved helpful in another class or in life, now. What a novel idea!

http://gawker.com/5992398/the-unbelievable-photos-taken-by-the-crazy-russians-who-illegally-climbed-egypts-great-pyramid