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Prompt 8: picture books

Searching Tumblr for #picturebooks was a lot more satisfying than I expected! One of the first images I saw was someone dabbling in animation and it led me to Jacob Germs’ Tumblr, which is truly amazing. The images are super adorable, and I look forward to using these when working with younger students on my upcoming placement. Another Tumblr account I stumbled upon was David Litchfield, who illustrates children’s books and has worked alongside some amazing authors. These resulted in my finding new picture books to add to my ever-growing class library collection. I also found a recurring hashtag in #kidlit which yields some fantastic results as well, for anyone looking for something a little different.

Overall, during this search I discovered the broad types of picture books, more specifically the illustration techniques utilised to convey various messages in adorable (or dark) picture books.

Recommended sites to follow: 

http://jacobgerms.tumblr.com/

http://tinkerd.tumblr.com/

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Prompt 7: ABC resource critique.

http://education.abc.net.au/home#!/media/31320/rap-machine-talent-quest

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Prompt 6 - phonics debate

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Prompt 5

To ensure multimodality in question asking, I would mix up the questions with various technology and musical elements.

One question, to get students thinking, could be performed using poetry and music.

On this cover the sky is blue

And the dirt is mostly brown.

But what else do you see

When you really look around?

I would also utilise an app such as Kahootz or Padlet, to create an engaging quiz using animations, music and lots of class discussion. Within this quiz, questions I would ask students are:

-          What do you think the text is about, based on this cover? – this allows students to experience various perspectives on the same content.

-          What is your favourite feature? – a question like this is bound to elicit plenty of animated discussion, especially for the observant students.

-          drum roll* Does anything on this cover creep you out at all?

-          If you could change one thing about this cover to change the message it delivers, what would you change? – these questions get students thinking and using their creative abilities.

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Prompt 2: literacy poster

I selected this poster, as I believe the ability to ask a good question is highly important. As a primary teacher, every class I have will see a poster similar to this, although the criteria will change slightly depending on the age of the students I am teaching. I have seen many students struggle to successfully question, in literacy, mathematics, and even the school yard. Subsequently, these students could also struggle with comprehension. How can you identify facets of a text, for example, if you cannot think of questions to ask yourself whilst reading? 

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Prompt 4: placement reflection

As I have not yet completed my placement, I shall reflect on previous experiences. The first experience I have to share took place during my last placement. It was the leadup to NAPLAN, and an interesting experience. Until this point, I had not taught many literacy blocks, which made my task the more difficult: teaching NAPLAN. This was not an experience I enjoyed, I felt the time could have been better spent teaching the students content with more guts, yet you cannot really say no to your mentor. I tried to put my bias aside and look at the experience with fresh eyes but spending so much time preparing students for a test just was not something I enjoyed. Nor did the students, who struggled to remain engaged, despite my efforts to keep it light and enjoyable. Fortunately, I only had the grade 5 students, my mentor worked on something else with the grade 6 students. Nevertheless, having students read from a test booklet and take practice tests is not my idea of a successful literacy lesson.

On a lighter note, I have had MANY great experiences observing literacy lessons! During my first placement, the students were engaged with reading recovery. The groups were determined by ability, then got to select a text which made them all happy. I heard this often took a while, yet the students were responsible and considerate, a real joy to witness. At the end of the reading session, each student had a role to reflect upon, so they remain engaged and alert during the reading sessions. Similarly, the writing blocks were equally amazing to observe. My mentor ensured students were aware that they only had to do their best and was reassuring towards students who required the extra confidence to complete the tasks. Students focused solely on the content, which meant that some students handwriting was not as neat as others, but the content of each student’s writing had meaning and thoroughly engaged the reader. I cannot remember the details of these lessons, as they were some time ago now, but the enthusiasm and engagement from every student has (and will) always stuck with me. I have included a photo of the wall of resilience and self-empowerment, something my mentor would direct students towards whenever self-doubt would start to show.

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Prompt 3: handwriting reflection

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Prompt One:

I loved being read to as a child; it was the only one-on-one time I had with my parents. My mum would often put so much animation into her reading that it made me feel like I was right there, in the story. Once I started school, the teachers that read aloud (not that I recall many doing so) would also insert plenty of animation into their storytelling, which made the experience engaging. I believe this to be the reason why I enjoy reading and have such fond memories. My fondest memory was meeting both John Marsden and Margaret Clark. The Tomorrow series was my favourite as a teenager, and I thoroughly enjoyed Margaret Clark in upper primary. I still have the books they signed during their visits to my school! These experiences have shaped how I view reading both as a parent and a teacher, and I believe my repertoire of voices will benefit me in the literacy classroom.