My vision of a reader's workshop

My vision of a reader's workshop in my classroom would start with the entire class in the meeting area, as the teacher I would conduct a "mini lesson" which would include me introducing the book very excited, reading through the book while role modeling, and putting emphasis on specific things I would like the students to pick up on, like characters, their emotions, the setting and transitions in story.
During my reading time I would pause to encourage students to find out what we know, make connections and inferences, "what do you think is going to happen?" When I am done reading the book I would invite any students to share any questions, comments or connections they had with the book. Also review the main points.
To continue reader's workshop, after our mini lesson students will go back to their seats to independently read through the book. This is the "independent reading" part of workshop.
When they are finished they will break into small groups for "conferencing". During this conferencing time students will again discuss how they felt about the book, if there was anything new they came across after they just re-read it or any questions they had. Each group will be given a "focus question" to discuss. This question will be open ended and require the student to think critically. If the class read the book "Cinderella" a focus question would be something like "What are some ways Cinderella could stand up for herself to her evil stepmother and step sisters?" Students will discuss their answers and feed off each other's. The answer to this question is not on paper therefore they will be thinking critically, and using their group discussion to form a logical response.
After student are done discussing their focus question they will "journal" their responses based on their own thoughts, opinions, evidence from the reading, and group discussion.
After they are done journaling each group will sit together in the meeting area and will share their focus question and their reaction to it with the class. The rest of the will have the chance to add any comments and all groups will have a turn to share. Each focus question will be focused on major aspects in the book.

How to support all learners

In this blog we will focus on how to support all types of learners in a literacy classroom. Lets start by identifying the three main types of learners.... We have visual, audiotry and kenesthetic learners.

For our visual learners, a good way of getting them to fallow along with the book and comprehend what they are reading is to use pictures along with the sequence of the story. Lets say the class is broken down in small groups and there is a group of visual learners. The teacher gives them the activity of reading the book together, and after every page they use provided pictures to "map out" what is going on in the story. On the first page n the book Henry ate a cookie. The group must identify the activity on page one, select the picture representation and places it first in line. On page two Henry's friend comes over and wants a cookie too, so Henry gives him one and they are enjoying them together. Again, the group summarizes the main point of page two, identifies it with the picture and places it second in line, so on and so forth.... Sequencing and identifying main points are big components of literature. You can eventually incorporate more difficult questions by asking them "when did the problem occur?" and have them answer using their picture sequence.  

Another time of learner is an auditory learner. These learners are great readers because they are able to absorb the material in a simple form, by being read to out loud. Once they hear the material they are processing it in their head and usually do not get "lost" or need visuals because they are fallowing along and perceiving information just by listening. Although, to some this may seem like a very difficult way to learn. There is usually far less auditory learners in a class then any other. These are the students that enjoy and are successful at reading out loud, which is how I would facilitate these types of learners in a small group. They could either take turns reading out loud of fallow along with a book on tape. They can give an auditory description or summary amongst their group at the end of each page.

We will also have kenesthetic learners in our classrooms. These learners perceive best when they put the readings into action and are able to physically experience what they read. These are the students that will be put into small reading groups and their activity will be too summarize the read material by acting it out, processing through the events on each page. You could have each student play the role of each character. This way the students are incorporating the skills of summarizing, applying it to real life (by acting it out) and of course teamwork.

My perfect classroom

As a future special education teacher I am not going to have your "typical classroom" there are many neat things available for special education students to benefit from. So if I was blessed with unlimited resources to design my perfect classroom that will stimulate my students and provide a learning atmosphere here is what I would include....
A smart board for advanced technological and interactive learning.
A huge sensory center with a sand table, water table, play dough table and a miscellaneous table for the sensory activity of the day which could be magnets, rice or ice.
A motor center with huge gym mats, platform swings, a rock wall, trampoline and cardio equipment for when the students need a gross motor break or to get some energy out.
A flourished art center with easels, huge storage area for all art supplies labeled by picture and word so the students will associate them with the art supply. This center would be decorated by students own work.
A quiet, reading, calming center where students can go if they are feeling over stimulated or need a break which would include a book shelf, pillows, bean bags and also a fish tank.
A huge wall mirror to use for self awareness, or role modeling. I think mirrors can provide a different perspective of oneself that some aren't used to. Mirrors can also be used to encourage self confidence or compare/contrasting.
I would have live plants scattered all over the room and it would be the students responsibility to take care of them.
I would want a full functioning kitchen where we can do cooking projects. Cooking projects not only promote self help and independence skills but also incorporate math skills (time and measuring), social skills (working together as a team) and also patience.
Finally, each individual in the class, including the teacher, will have their own work area. It will be a designated place for direct instruction or "book work", an area to keep their work in progress and belongings organized. Each person having their own space will also provide them with a sense of self and their own "home base" in their classroom. I feel this is a very important aspect of a classroom.

My first memory of language arts

My first memory of language arts was how I didn’t really understand the name. why was it called language arts I thought. I liked just calling it reading or writing. They were certainly two different things to me….which leads to my mixed memories and feelings towards language arts as a whole. I am diagnosed with ADD and weak auditory processing skills and had an IEP all through school. This brings up the unpleasant memories I have of the reading aspect of language arts. I remember sitting in class while the teacher or students would take turns reading aloud while everyone fallowed along in their books. Well that was the worst for me. I never felt like I was able to keep up or stay focused on fallowing along and usually felt lost, because of the auditory dictation and trying to keep up I did not comprehend anything. Writing on the other hand was a release for me. I have always felt as though it came easy for me to express myself through writing, probably because I always have so many thoughts in my head. I liked writing things with a beginning middle and end. I thought it was so cool when we first started learning about introduction, body and conclusion paragraphs. Still to this day I find myself learning and growing as a writer. My English class last fall certainly played a role in that. Now as an adult student I am fully aware of the relationship between reading and writing, what we know as “language arts” or “literacy” and the importance of grasping both aspects to be a successfully literate person.