Entry # 20: Building
strong readers in the middle grades
Early Balanced Literacy (EBL) was adopted as a district wide initiative
in Philadelphia a few years back. There was a lot of emphasis placed on
rolling out this process in grades K-2, and there was a little talk about
bumping up the strategies of EBL for use in the intermediate and middle
grades too.
The thinking behind the "bumping up" was based on a recognition
that as students moved into the higher grades, they should continue to build
on the strategies they were taught in the early years. It was also understood
that many of our older kids still needed intensive reading support.
A few months ago when I moved into administration, my boss signed me up
for a class in EBL. She knew that I had been somewhat removed from recent
developments in reading instruction and wanted to bring me up to speed.
When I arrived at my first class, I was pleasantly surprised to learn that
EBL made sense to me. I was secretly worried that it might be a basalized,
lock-step program to teach basic decoding and or phonics. Instead, I found
a well organized, thoughtful approach, with a strong focus on making children
aware of the strategies good readers use.
A "rich print environment"
I was drawn in immediately by the print rich environment and the layers
of engagement that all of the children experienced. As one of my early assignments,
I observed a few classes in action. I saw little pint sized readers, who
selected their own books and got cozy with them on overstuffed pillows.
I saw "buddy reading" and friends supporting friends. I also saw
small groups working with teachers and literacy interns on texts that were
just a little beyond their individual reach.
The most dramatic thing I witnessed was little children figuring out how
to say a word and discover its meaning. The students talked openly about
sounding out words, chunking words, looking for picture cues and thinking
about whether language and usage sounded like the way we speak.
I was impressed with both the amount, and the variety of material, that
kids could choose from in the classrooms I visited. I enjoyed the seamless
blending of reading and writing skills in the EBL block. I immediately began
to wonder what these methods would look like in the middle grades.
What might this look like in the middle grades?
On Monday, We'll begin fleshing out our image of Expanded Balanced Literacy
for grades 3-6. We are sponsoring a class for teachers in two of our Clusters.
We'll explore ways to remain true to the tenets of EBL, while we navigate
the shifts and tweaks needed to respond to the needs of our older students.
We are using a book called Guiding Readers and Writers, Grades 3-6, Teaching
Comprehension, Genre and Content Literacy by Irene C. Fountas and Gay
Su Pinnell. A hefty title for an equally large book. The text offers numerous
practical applications of Guided Reading and Writing as well as an extensive
list of leveled books you can use with older students.
I am looking forward to exploring the possibilities for this approach with
colleagues from grades 3-6. I know there will be many concerns about management
and materials for this program, but I'm up for the development of solutions
by our group.
I know we have our work cut out for us because we all have plenty of baggage
-- suitcases chocked full of assumptions about how and when students should
become readers and writers. Years of frustration haven't replaced those
assumptions with new, working theories, but I hope this class will begin
to do just that.
My co-facilitators bring a solid grasp of EBL to the table and I am the
resident Middle Schooler. Before I'd ever heard of EBL, I began trying to
surround my students with text and print. While I was a science teacher
by assignment, I tried to be a teacher of children in practice.
Tripping over all the books
I once read a quote by Robert Frost in a reading class, that said something
to the effect that, you should have so many books that children were literally
tripping over them. Mr. Frost's advice suited me just fine! While I didn't
have any tripping casualties, my room overflowed with books and resources
at all different levels of complexity.
I tried to create an environment where you could explore your questions
about the material I covered, as well as the material I didn't cover. I
was lucky enough to have wired IBM computers for student use too.
While I did not have the blocks described by Fountas and Pinnell for language/word
study, reading and writing, I did incorporate all of these strands into
my science classroom.
I was able to share the wisdom of a college instructor I once had, who told
us to check out weighty concepts in children's books first, in order to
get a solid understanding of the basics. By sharing this strategy with my
students, I gave them license to check out easier texts without fear of
embarrassment.
By using cooperative learning strategies, I facilitated paired reading,
research and writing for my struggling or ELL students. Project based learning
and student choice components helped students see the need for the reading,
writing and learning which we did.
Ready to learn about reading
However, I did not conduct specific reading lessons, in my science classroom
and I am anxious to learn more about the mini lessons and guided reading
aspects of this program. While I felt most students did benefit from my
merging of science and literacy, the literacy benefits were uneven at best.
Before I was asked to specialize in science, I did begin using a literature
circle approach with my homeroom. My understanding of this model was limited,
to say the least, and I'm anxious to deepen my understanding of its use
as a tool.
Designing reader's groups that read in order to make and share meaning,
seems like the key, to adolescent reading for the joy and continued value
of learning from it. As adults, we don't read to regurgitate facts, why
do we expect our children to do so?
On a slightly different, but related front, I'm reading Mosaic of Thought,
Teaching Comprehension in a Reader's Workshop by Ellin Oliver Keene
and Susan Zimmerman.
On the back cover, the authors state their question, "How do students
become thoughtful, independent readers who deeply understand what they read?"
The book represents their noteworthy efforts to answer this question, an
answer we'd all like to understand.
Starting Thursday, I'll be co-moderating a discussion of the text on the
Middleweb Booklist and Ellin Oliver Keene has agreed to join our conversation.
The serendipity of having the opportunity to share this book, just as I
begin co-teaching this EBL class, is one of life's happier coincidences.
I can't wait to reap the benefits of both experiences!
(Editor's note: Anyone who would like to participate in this conversation
should send a message to norton@middleweb.com
and mention "Mosaic of Thought" chat.)
On a separate note, our efforts to unpack the racial intolerance at the
high school are continuing. We have a series of Unity Day assemblies and
break out conversations in the works and I will share more as we refine
our plans and their Middle School connections.
[Editor's note: Deb is co-moderator of the
new MiddleWeb listserve.]
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