[ola] Re: Progressions
- From: Cathy Bird <cathy.bird@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
- To: "ola@xxxxxxxxxxxxx" <ola@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
- Date: Wed, 18 Dec 2013 13:34:06 -0700 (MST)
In a conference last year, I heard a speaker say that if you want to assess
reading comprehension, you need to do it in L1 (not level but language 1). That
makes sense to me, but I don't want English in my classroom. I could eval with
comprehension questions as homework or as a MonkeySurvey done as HW. But
really, I am not worrying about their level of 'input' but rather their output.
I am evaluating their writing, their speaking, their progress on OWL skills,
but not the level of language they comprehend. That type of eval usually
requires use of English.
I found it hard to let go of the idea of evaluating all the time, but with OWL
(and I am a new, yet very passionate user) the point of reading (in my opinion)
is to broaden their output, add words to their brains if possible, and to have
them begin connecting what they hear with the written word. It is a tool to
improve spoken and written output only. That gives me permission to have
students understand to their level, ask for clarification if they need it, and
then move on. Some readings just aren't that interesting. Some spark to life.
If you feel you must evaluate the reading, I can think of a few traditional
ways that could be adapted to fit (?) OWL:
1. have them draw what they understood in picture frames.
2. Or give them sets of words that are known and they circle which ones best
fit the reading.
These are the kind of things my youngest has done in K, 1st and 2nd reading
classes (L1). The best way to evaluate them is to have them tell you what they
understood and what think or what they can describe after reading.
3. give them a video recorder and 2 minutes to share their thoughts.
Good luck! - and please shout out if this is a convo better done OFF the
listserve.
Cathy Bird, via iPad
> On Dec 18, 2013, at 1:20 PM, "Young, Lisa" <lyoung@xxxxxxxx> wrote:
>
> Nice ideas thank you! How about actually assessing the level though?
> Comprehension questions?
>
> From: ola-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx [mailto:ola-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx] On Behalf Of
> Cathy Bird
> Sent: Wednesday, December 18, 2013 11:58 AM
> To: ola@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
> Cc: ola@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
> Subject: [ola] Re: Progressions
>
> For L1, I dip back into the text they bought (and that I no longer use as
> before), as there are good articles in it. I have also had them 'read'
> YouTube videos for young kids, where the words pop up with the song. They
> read each other's sentences, both in journal and on white boards. For French,
> I find that the more authentic the text (ie. People Magazine on-line) the
> more impossible it is for ME, let alone students, but I still try sometimes.
> I also use the Scholastic magazine that I subscribe to, which is still quite
> real, but is kept light, short and sweet. I still have to look up vocab,
> since I am no longer hip and au courant, but the topics appeal to my MS
> students and they are a successful struggle.
>
> I don't feel like I have good sources, really. I would love to have MORE, but
> don't have tons of time to find a vein that I can go back to time and again
> as our OWL topics shift. Anyone?
>
> Cathy Bird, via iPad
>
> On Dec 18, 2013, at 11:39 AM, "Young, Lisa" <lyoung@xxxxxxxx> wrote:
>
> On the topic of L1 texts, what are you using? Also I am wondering what tools
> any of your are using out there to measure reading ability?
>
> From: ola-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx [mailto:ola-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx] On Behalf Of
> Thomas Hinkle
> Sent: Wednesday, December 18, 2013 8:36 AM
> To: ola@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
> Subject: [ola] Re: Progressions
>
> To me, the issue of grammar and the issue of units are two separate issues.
>
> I think there's a *lot* to be said for focusing on competencies rather than
> grammar, as Arnold pointed out in a recent post to this group.
>
> I'm becoming more and more skeptical, however, of the OWL belief in not
> having units. For me, as a teacher, I find I can get in a rut and easily not
> introduce nearly enough material. Often my best days (and I'm currently *not*
> using units) are when I quickly grab onto something from the kids and use it
> as a base for teaching a particular vocabulary area (yesterday we did
> cleaning, for example). My current plan is to design units of vocabulary for
> next semester to make sure I am teaching a breadth of material and not
> getting bogged down with kids reviewing the same old words or topics. I'll
> let folks know how it goes, but I am suspicious that organizing my class into
> "units" will (A) give the kids a feeling of security and structure (B)
> improve the variety of topics and engagement that I get from kids (C) inspire
> me to do a better job bringing in L1 texts and materials for kids to practice
> with.
>
> Tom
>
>
> On Wed, Dec 18, 2013 at 11:02 AM, Young, Lisa <lyoung@xxxxxxxx> wrote:
> I am another one struggling to make sure the grammar piece is included so I
> explain to my parents that I actually teach a modified version of the OWL
> program. I had a conversation recently with my feeder school teacher who
> told me that she is happy when the kids come in to Spanish 2 with “Lots of
> vocabulary” and able to conjugate verbs in present, preterite and present
> progressive. I guiltily will take days to explain in English certain grammar
> concepts that I am trying to teach in the circle. I try not to do this and
> am convinced as my program develops with my younger kids I won’t have to do
> this anymore. One thing I have done staying in the language that I think
> helps is showing student work examples that are correct and then modeling on
> the board and in the language what is not correct.
>
> My little kids are another issue because it is difficult for me to stay in
> the language with the discipline issues that arise. K-2 will totally tune my
> out in the language and it is hard to stay in the language with them and keep
> their attention. Maybe someone out there has some good advice for me?
>
> From: ola-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx [mailto:ola-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx] On Behalf Of
> ANGELA STEPHENS
> Sent: Tuesday, December 17, 2013 3:12 PM
>
> To: 'ola@xxxxxxxxxxxxx'
> Subject: [ola] Re: Progressions
>
> Calysta et all,
> I find that I too am leaning toward the UNIT driven class though it
> stresses me out because I feel like I am not being “faithful” to the OWL
> though we do aim for 100% Spanish and I do not have desks or chairs. Most of
> my kiddos have no issues sitting on the floor when we sit and they absolutely
> love using the small whiteboards for a variety of activities. The small
> whiteboards are available through Carlex and Teacher’s Discovery for fairly
> reasonable pricing. We also use them as hard writing surfaces, so they are
> multi-purpose.
>
> The grammar stuff is not an issue for me at this point because I am the only
> Spanish teacher in my building, but I do worry about how the kids will
> transition to the next level. From what I am seeing, my 6th graders are
> adapting to the speaking and accepting the “lack of grammar instruction” much
> better/easier than the 8th graders who spent time in the traditional
> classroom style setting. For example, my 6th graders are always trying to
> tell me stories about what happens in their lives in Spanish, even with their
> limited Spanish vocabulary. They draw, act out, point, and mimic just like
> we really do in authentic situations. One such story was told by a young
> lady who was trying to tell me that her mom, her sister, and grandparents had
> gone to the pier to watch the boats for someone’s birthday and her mom turned
> quickly and dropped her Bluetooth in the water. She knew azul and pointed to
> a tooth in her mouth, I was quite confused but when she pointed to her ear,
> I finally understood that she meant Bluetooth for her phone, and the story
> became funny to all of us. We then were able to add vocabulary for cell
> phone and technology and money, stuff we would never traditionally cover in
> an exploratory level class. This story stemmed from the student next to her
> mimicking that he likes to go fishing. Just the fact that kids are using the
> language, without the fear of making mistakes or looking foolish/uncool, is
> so awesome to me. This is what we all work so hard to accomplish. This makes
> changing the “rule for teaching” so worth every sleepless night!
>
> Thank you all for sharing in this journey!
> Angie
>
> From: ola-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx [mailto:ola-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx] On Behalf Of
> Calysta Phillips
> Sent: Tuesday, December 17, 2013 1:07 PM
> To: ola@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
> Subject: [ola] Re: Progressions
>
> Yes! I know I am NOT ALONE in doing a traditional UNIT driven class in the
> CIRCLE. How do I know my circle is Unit driven? In Spanish and French 2 we
> are wrapping up a "Doctor/reflexive verb/body parts" unit. In Spanish and
> French 1, we are wrapping up "Classroom/Emotions/Prepositions of
> Location/estar/ir" Unit (Avancemos 1, Unidad 2 anyone?)...While I left room
> for a lot of "extra" stuff to come up, we were hanging ornaments on the very
> tips of my predetermined branches...
>
> The good news???? I FINALLY GOT RID OF MY DESKS!!!! :) I did it, Darcy!
>
> The bad news???? Still not letting it go, letting the Question Hook Sequence
> happen... feeling "obliged" to my department that they arrive at levels 3 and
> up with a knowledge of the grammar....
>
> Who else is teaching traditional "UNITS" in the circle... bringing the agenda
> to the table? I have several things stopping me:
> Fear
> Department Alignment
> Lack of knowledge/comfort with ACTFL levels and progressions to really be
> able to monitor my students that way.
>
> Would love to know who else is in my boat. Thanks! Calysta
>
>
> On Sat, Dec 14, 2013 at 4:21 PM, Call Daniel <dcall@xxxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote:
> Very helpful, Ricardo. I still feel that I could use a lot of practice and
> mentoring with this, but every little bit helps.
>
> Dan
>
> From: ola-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx [mailto:ola-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx] On Behalf Of
> Ricardo Linnell
> Sent: Saturday, December 14, 2013 11:46 AM
> To: ola@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
> Subject: [ola] Progressions
>
> Hey Everybody,
>
> I wanted to take a moment to talk about progressions. I am sure that quite a
> few of you understand how to use them in your classes, but there are probably
> as many or more teachers who are unsure of exactly what it is, much less have
> the confidence to unleash it in your classes. I felt like that for a long
> time, until I was able to visualize it and draw it. A progression as a
> visual, looks a lot like this (see photo). You have the central topic, either
> dictated by vocabulary from that day, the previous day or such. For many of
> you who have been through one of Darcy's workshops, you probably remember the
> types of questions that we used in one part of the workshop. Creating
> relevant questions around the topic is a great way to generate interest and
> motivation to speak. IE: we are wrapping up a Canned Food Drive at my school
> and so we counted our cans and it was just an instant, built-in topic for the
> class. I asked them to discuss in groups the reasons for giving food during
> the holiday season. I gave them a couple of minutes to speak and then asked 2
> or 3 of them to tell the class their reasoning. We got time, money,
> resources, things...etc out of the students as far as vocabulary were
> concerned. I asked the students to discuss the different types of resources
> that they felt they could offer to those in need. Again, more discussion.
> Finally, the last question was if they had a friend, family or if they
> themselves ever had a need to rely on the Oregon Food Bank or another
> organization for food and resources. If so, to explain what that experience
> was like. This all happened within the course of no more than 15 minutes. It
> can go longer or shorter, depending on the amount of questions, activities or
> depth to which the class goes. I hope that everyone has a wonderful holiday
> and vacation. I hope this helps.
>
> Ricardo
>
>
>
>
> --
> Thomas Hinkle
> English & Spanish Department Coordinator
> Innovation Academy Charter School
>
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