Day 5 11/8

11/8/13

·         What students learned and which students struggled with the lesson

Students learned how to properly write a thank you letter.

Students struggled with expressing how they benefited and why they were grateful to the person they were thanking.

·         What are alternate reads of your students’ performance or products?

I finally found time to fully address the letter writing and used an extended amount of time to have students review and rewrite their letters based on my input and teaching. Some students found this exercise to be very easy as they wrote with great detail and met all expectations. For the students who had been struggling, I believe they improved their abilities to write after being given more specific instruction. All students improved from their original draft to the final letter.

·         What did you learn about your students’ literacy practices that extend beyond your objectives?

The students wanted to write a good letter worthy of sending to the people they were meant for. I learned that students can be very engaged in writing when they find the purpose meaningful and connected to their personal life.

·         When and how will you re-teach the material to students who need additional support?

This thank you letter exercise is completed. In our next class, I will ask the students how the recipients of their letters responded and will answer any questions during this time.

·         If you were to teach this same lesson again, what would you do differently and how do you think the changes would improve students’ learning?

I would devote much more time at the beginning of the exercise to explain exactly what I want to see and set very clear expectations for the students. I would also be sure to model the format in which the students were to write at the beginning. I think this modeling and setting of expectations would positively influence the students as they would not need to guess at what I want.

·         What did you learn so far about implementing your ‘core practice’ and what do you need to do to continue your professional learning?

I found that students were capable of incorporating the vocabulary words rather easily with their thank you letters. However, they struggled when they were trying to fit a different form of the word. Several students who changed to a different form of our vocabulary words used them incorrectly. I think I need to allow the students to explore the words more and have them use the various forms so they can have a greater understanding of their vocabulary.