DPI 4.A School library media coordinators use effective pedagogy to infuse
content-area curricula with 21st century skills / AASL 2.4 Literacy strategies
content-area curricula with 21st century skills / AASL 2.4 Literacy strategies
- Utilizes participatory and social learning experiences in instruction
- Candidates collaborate with classroom teachers to reinforce a wide variety of reading instructional strategies to ensure students are able to create meaning from text
In order to activate prior knowledge before reading Charlotte's Web as a class, I had 2nd graders fill out an 'entrance ticket' about their expectations of a farm. Their teacher indicated the need for students to be more practiced on writing sentences, and recognizing 'colorful' words, or adjectives. This was an exercise in using imagination, constructing complete sentences with correct punctuation, as well as developing an understanding of adjectives. Students were given a prompt (below) on a piece of paper, along with tools to write. After ample time to write down their ideas, we moved to a partner-based discussion model where each student had the opportunity to share their responses. While students discussed with one another, I was able to walk around the room, listen to conversations and read responses as a way to conduct a formative assessment. If students neglected to use adjectives in their writing, I asked them to tell their partner more descriptive words in their discussion, or if one student seemed to dominate the conversation, I encouraged them to use their words to ask specific questions for their partner to answer. The exercise not only focused on preparation for reading comprehension, it also helped students work on important social interactions as well.
DPI 4.B School library media coordinators know the content appropriate to
their teaching specialty / AASL 3.3 Information technology
their teaching specialty / AASL 3.3 Information technology
- Teaches students effective strategies for accessing, evaluating, and synthesizing information resources to support learning
- Demonstrates knowledge of curriculum goals across grade levels and subject areas
- Designs, delivers, and assesses instruction that integrates 21st century skills and content
- Candidates demonstrate their ability to design and adapt relevant learning experiences that engage students in authentic learning through the use of digital tools and resources
Working with the technology facilitator, we examined our schedules and compared it to the curriculum map that the 5th grade team is following. Discovering that the science teachers would soon be covering ecosystems, we decided to use that topic as a way to introduce Google Drive and work together over several weeks. Students were provided with a graphic organizer that looked like a slide layout in order to organize their ideas and research they came across during time provided in the media center. They were allowed to choose their own partners, with the expectation that they would have more success working with someone they were comfortable talking about their ideas with. After finding and organizing information on their selected ecosystem, students were provided with Google account usernames and instructions on how to access Google Drive. From there, they translated their findings into creative products using Presentation, and learning about the resource as they went along. The goal of the experience for students was two-fold: learning more about ecosystems, and using Google Drive successfully. The collaborative goal for myself and the technology facilitator was to create an environment where students were critically thinking about a curricular topic, and cultivating creativity simultaneously with our assistance. Having two instructors throughout the lesson contributed to its success, as team-teaching allowed us to cover more student questions, as well as demonstrating the collaborative nature of our fields for the students and teachers.
DPI 4.C School library media coordinators promote reading
as a foundational skill for learning / AASL 2.2 Reading Promotion
as a foundational skill for learning / AASL 2.2 Reading Promotion
- Expands and enhances the quantity and quality of students' reading activities
- Candidates use a variety of strategies to promote leisure reading and model personal enjoyment of reading in order to promote habits of creative expression and lifelong reading
Fiction Diggers! is a challenging program designed to encourage extracurricular reading among 4th and 5th grade students. The goal of the program is to expose students to a variety of quality, current literature written by prominent authors in the area of children’s and young adult literature. The program culminates in Spring with an annual school competition, during which several teams of 4 to 6 students answer questions about the books and earn points for correct answers. The winning team advances to the county-wide competition in April. The Fiction Diggers! program is in its 8th year and is conducted at each elementary school in Dare County. Along with the AIG teacher, we coordinate the Fiction Diggers! program, meetings, and competition. A significant time commitment is required in terms of reading each of the selected books, coming up with 50+ practice questions for each of the 14 texts, running the after-school meetings and practice sessions with students, communicating with parents, and promoting the program throughout the community. For accountability and gauging student comprehension, I created the materials below. The book list is a reading log, and the reflection sheet is used for students to provide their thoughts and questions about the text, and will serve as an assignment to demonstrate comprehension, and later, a study guide to prepare for the competition.