I must admit that I more often than not fall privy to the one-stop-shop fix all solutions; especially when it comes to reading comprehension. I so badly wish for my students to engage with texts as I do, and to share in my love for reading that I will do seemingly anything to get them to that point.
I found this chapter insightful, as it opened my mind to changes that I could be making in the classroom to better my student's comprehension. The chapter called for more time devoted to strategy instruction. After self-reflecting, I concluded that I gave adequate time for strategy instruction and time spent reading, but not nearly enough time wrapping up the lesson at the conclusion of reading and reinforcing the strategy. A quick look back in my lesson plans tells me too, that I've probably been going too fast in my instruction of strategies. One week it's summarization, while the next it's asking questions. While each strategy has been reinforced with a colorful sticky note and a quick time to share, my own reinforcement as a teacher has been lacking.
One particular line stood out to me as I was reading this chapter. Routman states that you need to "continue to ask yourself, 'How is this procedure helping my students become more proficient and independent as readers?'" This truly struck a cord with me, as I was once again realizing how I have been focusing more on what the latest and greatest comprehension craze is, and less on whether or not it is truly helping my students. Sure, my students succeed in the moment of asking questions and making predictions, but is what I'm doing as a teacher going to be beneficial to them long term, or just in the moment? I definitely enjoyed reading this chapter, as it gave me some great ideas on how to adjust my reading instruction, including teaching rereading as a useful strategy. I agree with Routman, in that rereading is not taught enough as a useful strategy. I look forward to the changes that will be made in my classroom not only for this year, but as I start my next.
That is the key question I ask all the time! "Will this help them to be a better reader/writer?" If we do this and honestly reflect on our practices in light of that question, our students will truly flourish!
ReplyDeleteYou are doing a lot of reflecting on your practice, which will only benefit your students in the future. Reflection after practice time is so important, but so easy to skip!
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