D&Z Chapter 12

I really enjoyed reading about the major conclusions from recent reading research presented in chapter twelve. I think these few points really narrow down the top five ways students are taught to read and the top five things students should read. I really want to focus in on one piece of advice given in each of these categories:

What Students Should Read

1.     Teenagers need genuine choice of reading materials: much of what they read should be self-selected, based on interest and curiosity (293).

I can’t help but wonder how much more I would have enjoyed school if I had the opportunity to select novels that sparked my interest. The only time I ever remember selecting books I wanted to read was in middle school, when we had to read 25 books each year and fill up the sticker chart (I ended up filling more than one line)! This is the first experience that comes to mind when I think about self-selected novels.

I am by no means saying that students should have a choice when it comes to everything they read in the classroom (that would be difficult because each student has a favorite genre and opinion). But, they should be able to choose some of the books they read. I think a good way to do this is give a list of novels that have the same main ideas or highlight the major topics you are trying to teach (maybe 5 books max) and have them choose from that (much like our summer reading book list- we always had options). I think this would really give students a bit of freedom, and according to D&Z, “researchers have found that the ability to choose their own reading enhances teens’ motivation to read (299).” I couldn’t agree more! So, to my fellow teacher candidates, lets give our students options!

How students are taught to read

2.     Teachers make their own reading habits and processes visible by regularly reading aloud and by explaining and modeling their thinking about content-area texts (294).

Here we go again! Model, model, model. A reading strategy we have been seeing a lot that involves teacher modeling is referred to as a think-aloud. Think-alouds were introduced in an earlier chapter, and I really think it could help students understand how they should be reading, what questions go through the minds of experienced readers, and the ways in which experienced readers get through difficult reading material. According to D&Z, all teachers are reading models whether or not we are comfortable in the role. Furthermore, students benefit when teachers share their reading lives with them, talking about books or articles they are reading, sharing information gained from texts, and modeling a literate life.

I have never actually thought about my experiences this way, but I have realized that my professors are constantly sharing their reading lives with me. A lot of times, my professors will say “I read on ScienceMag that…” or “I watched a video on NOVA PBS about…” I have never actually considered this as sharing their reading lives with me, but I suppose that is just what they are doing!  

D&Z Chapter 11

While reading D&Z chapter 11, there were a few topics that really caught my attention. I found it interesting that struggling readers don’t see what is happening in the text until a considerable amount of discussion brings the picture into focus. I think as individuals, it is easy to take our reading skills for granted and disregard those who are struggling. This is because when we read, we see the picture, and we believe everyone else does. This is where teachers are gifted! Teachers are able to understand that in order to help students understand and learn from the tasks we assign them, we must work with their reading process. If they aren’t seeing the picture, we must paint it for them. In order to help them, D&Z propose key strategies for helping struggling readers on page 281.

I especially liked these key strategies for helping struggling readers. At the beginning I understood the idea of supporting readers and pushing them to succeed, but I was questioning “How?” I think these are great strategies and definitely something to keep in mind because we are all going to have struggling readers. It is enough to help them through the text, but it will mean so much more if we incorporate these strategies. One word I have been seeing a lot is the word “model.” D&Z have definitely stressed this idea of modeling throughout various chapters in their book (including this one… specifically modeling thoughtful reading). But, I am finally understanding why… especially from observing these last few weeks and being in the classroom. Students like to see that you are performing and doing what you expect them to do. My cooperating teacher was teaching a lesson on annual parallax (the difference in position of a star as seen from Earth). There is a little demonstration you can perform to help drive home this idea of annual parallax. You have the students hold their hand out in front of them (making a fist) with their thumb sticking upwards. Have them close one eye and focus on an object in the background. Then, ask them to switch their focus between eyes (so now they close the one that was open and open the one that was closed). What they should see is a shift in the location of their thumb in relationship to the background object they were focusing on.  At first the kids felt embarrassed to sit there with their hand stretched out in front of them, but when they saw the teacher doing it, they joined in.

Believe it or not, modeling occurred to me one morning during my observations. Regardless of where I am and what I am doing, if the pledge of allegiance or the national anthem is to be sung, I stand up in respect for my country. However, this particular day, during my observations, I felt I NEEDED to more than ever. I thought “Wow… I’m really becoming a teacher!” For some reason I felt obligated to model this behavior. It really seems silly that I felt I had to model the pledge of allegiance, but if I expected them to participate, then I had to too.  I’ve noticed this is something I have been getting better at as I progress through my studies, and I never realized how important modeling is to students.

D&Z focused on modeling thoughtful reading in this particular chapter. The idea is for teaching to help struggling students by modeling their own mental processes as they read rather than throwing them to the wolves, so to say. One strategy proposed in chapter 5 was this idea of using “think-alouds,” where teachers go through their thinking as they read a passage in the text or a word problem. Eventually, the students grew familiar with this kind of thinking, and when asked to perform think-alouds on their own, they used the same kinds of inner dialogue. This goes to show how powerful modeling can actually be!

Anyway, I apologize for the rant on modeling, but it is something I have been thinking about extensively. Another topic I liked in chapter 11 was the idea of building engagement with the text. I liked how Jeff Wilhelm did this by incorporating drama and drawing in his classroom, and I also liked the idea of taped books. However, I think taped books would benefit middle school students much better than it would benefit high school students.

D&Z Chapter 9 and 10

After reading chapters 9 and 10 of Daniels and Zemelman, I have a deeper appreciation for book clubs and inquiry units. I have always envisioned a book club as a bunch of older people sitting around, reading a book. It can obviously be much more than that! I have never actually been involved in book clubs/reading circles, but I think they can serve as a useful learning tool. I could definitely see myself using the strategies proposed in chapter 9 and 10 in my future classroom. Now, there are a couple of things I really liked in each chapter that I would like to touch upon.

First I want to touch upon chapter 9. I like how D&Z emphasize and stress the fact that book clubs should be student-centered. They tell us, “kids must take responsibility for running these discussions; we cannot get tricked into spoon-feeding them topics.” Granted, the teacher’s role is to assist, observe and facilitate, but it is the students’ role to run the discussions. I think this is important. Talk about releasing responsibility… this is a great way to do it! I especially like one of the tools specifically designed for reading circles (book clubs), referred to as the role sheets. Although D&Z suggest that role sheets be used for only a brief training period, I think this is a great way to set a purpose for reading and ensure that each student is contributing to the discussion. This tool also encourages students to focus on one particular kind of thinking that smart readers use (247). I never thought that I would be able to implement book clubs/reading circles in a science classroom, but I could easily have students read biographies of scientists, or science articles from www.sciencemag.org. Many times, scientific writing is extremely difficult to get through. However, if students are discussing and working together in a reading circle, they will be able to interpret and understand scientific writing in more detail. So thank you, D&Z… I am now an advocate for reading circles!

Now I want to share something that stuck out to me in chapter 10. I really enjoy the idea of inquiry units. I especially liked the example given towards the beginning of chapter ten, in Jacqueline Sanders’ class. She has students choose a job with a salary they think is adequate, and subtract taxes, rent, and utility costs from the gross pay. Then, they use the IRS instruction booklets to figure their final income tax return. How cool is that!? This example, in particular, gives students a snapshot of the real world, and opens their eyes to things they’ve never really sat down and thought about before. In the end, they often find that money is tight after subtracting the costs of living, and they have a greater appreciation for their parent’s hard work. Luckily, I can relate to this project, as I did something similar to this in my junior year of high school in my business skills class. The project had to do with budgeting. I forget the details surrounding the project, but I remember computing numbers based on a given salary (what type of car we could afford, the mortgage on a house etc).  We did a lot of stuff with resumes, researching colleges, etc in that class…stuff related to life in the real world. Overall, I think inquiry units grant students a unique opportunity to explore life outside the classroom and dive deeper into historical and current topics and events. I would definitely like to implement this strategy in my future classroom, as there are plenty of topics in science that could be researched in such a way (vaccines, medications, disorders etc).

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                           

D&Z Chapters 5 and 8

After reading chapters 5 and 8 of Daniels and Zemelman, I literally want to photocopy these pages or purchase my own copy of the textbook (I rented it from Chegg). Although it was one of the longest chapters, their strategies for before, during, and after reading are great for any classroom!

I have read a handful of the blog posts already, and a lot of people spoke about the strategies themselves. I want to touch upon them as well, but I think it is important we understand the key to teaching the strategies. D&Z explain that an essential step in ensuring that the reading strategies in this chapter truly help students to comprehend and make use of what they read is a process called “gradual release of responsibility (89).” I remember learning about this in one of our previous classes (if I remember correctly, it was the Wilhelm chapters that spoke about the gradual release of responsibility). Just to recap, the idea is (as the title suggests) gradually releasing responsibility from teacher to student. It follows four different steps:

1.     “I do it, you watch”

2.     “We do it together”

3.     “You do it with my support”

4.     “You do it alone”

Following these four steps will help students internalize a reading/thinking strategy until it becomes habitual. So, model, model, model and gradually flip the roles.

Now, I will touch upon a couple of my favorite strategies. First, I like the idea of coding text. However, I would probably have students annotate the text (book or supplemental materials) using sticky notes. Then, I would have them leave them in the book/on the page and read their comments and questions. From there, I would compile a list of questions and revisit them next class, answering any of those questions (only for about 10 minutes or so).

A second strategy I liked was “sketching my way through the text.” I think this would appeal to all students, whether or not they enjoy drawing because it is simply a rough sketch. I really wish some of my teachers used this strategy because when I draw things out, (especially in science) and try to walk myself through the concept; I tend to remember it more. Although it sounds fun and enjoyable to me, it may not be enjoyable to all of my students, so I would use this strategy sparingly.

Now just to touch upon chapter 8… I like the idea of reading workshops. I think they could be used as a form of assessment, especially if you conduct the one-on-one conferences during reading time. According to D&Z, these meeting will enable you not only to assess students, but also to inform yourself about their learning needs and their achievements. Then, you could focus more on the topics students are struggling with, and less on those they seem to have grasped.

D&Z Chapters 6 and 7

After reading D & Z chapters six and seven, there were a couple of things I wanted to touch upon. I wanted to talk a bit about the jigsawing activity presented in chapter six, and the idea of creating a classroom community presented in chapter seven.

I really enjoy the idea of jigsawing as an activity that can be implemented in the classroom. I remember doing a jigsaw activity last year in SED 406. I enjoyed it, but I felt it went a little too quick, and I didn’t have enough time to formulate my thoughts. For that reason, if I were to implement this strategy in my classroom, I would ensure students have enough time to read the article, understand it, and be able to formulate their thoughts in such a way that they are able to present it to the rest of the group. I didn’t like the way it was implemented in chapter six, in the english lesson. I feel as though a novel is best understood when read individually, from cover to cover. I feel as though if I did a jigsaw activity with a novel, I would miss some key facts, events, and characters.

However, for history, I think it works a bit better. I liked the history example in the book, and I think it would also be useful when learning about amendments, laws, and historical figures (etc). I’ve been trying to think about ways to implement jigsawing in a science classroom… I was thinking something like constellations or elements from the periodic table. If anyone has any other ideas, I am eager to hear them! I’m finding it a little difficult to come up with something biology related, as I feel a lot of the content is important for every student to study and know. Overall, I think jigsawing is useful in the classroom once in a while, but it definitely should not be used constantly.

A second point I wanted to elaborate on was creating a classroom community. In chapter seven, Daniels and Zemelman explained that “we need to make the classroom a community, a place where students feel safe to take the risks involved in learning, where they see it connected with their lives, and where they help and learn from one another instead of working only as isolated individuals. And we do this not just to make students feel good, but to enable them to learn meaningfully in our subjects, through reading as well as the many other avenues we use in our teaching (204).” I think this is really important because I have sat in various classrooms, where I’ve felt intimidated to speak, or scared that what I say might be laughed at or critiqued. I think we have all felt this way at some point… it definitely isn’t a welcoming feeling. I think it is important to form some type of contingency contract where students know the rules of the classroom, and they collaborate along with the teacher to create these rules. When I was at URI, I took the equivalent to CEP and the professor I had was amazing. She brought up something she did in her own classroom in order to create a strong community. She took poster paper the size of the entire wall, and the class came up with rules in a collaborative manner. If they agreed to comply with the rules, they signed the paper that the rules were written on. This way, they understood exactly what was expected, and helped create their own classroom climate. I have considered doing this in my own classroom so that all students feel welcome and comfortable. I want my students to be able to voice their opinions without worrying whether or not they are being judged. This way, my students will be interacting, engaging, and learning in a meaningful way.

Here is an example!

Strong Chapter 6

After reading chapter six of Strong’s book, I can’t help but think about one of the opening quotes by “Darth Vader.” He says, “using writing to discipline students is a wonderful approach… coupling punishment with fear, we can virtually guarantee non-writers later on.” Of course he is writing in a sarcastic tone when he refers to it as a wonderful approach, but I really wanted to elaborate on this quote because it brought back some vivid memories of my own schooling.

I think teachers simply, and without worry, correlate punishment with writing. When do you ever see teachers “punish” a student by making them sit and solve math problems, or read a science textbook? It just doesn’t happen. It must have something to do with the mechanical movement involved when a pen is introduced to paper. Whatever it may be, it makes teachers believe writing can be used as a form of punishment. However, coupling writing and punishment makes it that much harder for teachers to implement writing in their classrooms, especially English teachers. If the students are constantly forced to write as punishment, they are never going to enjoy it.

I can’t help but remember being punished with writing in my middle school gym class. I was constantly forced to sit at a desk, in a corner, and write on a piece of paper “I will not chew gum in physical education class.” I had to write the entire period, front and back, on multiple pieces of paper (yet they constantly stressed the fact that students should be active 60 minutes a day- and here I was, writing for 60 minutes, when in all reality I could have used the exercise at this point in my life). Anyway, can you guess what happened when I handed those papers in? No, they were not graded or kept on file; they were ripped up right in front of my face and thrown in the trash. So, as a student, how am I supposed to form a relationship with writing when it is constantly being used as a form of punishment? I’m honestly surprised that I enjoy writing today, because these memories are so vivid. Luckily, I have not become one of these “non-writers” Darth Vader speaks about, but this is what he was getting at! If we continue to couple writing with punishment and fear, we can guarantee non-writers later on. Students are simply not going to want to write if it is viewed negatively and used as a form of punishment.

Before I wrap up this blog post, I wanted to incorporate a CRAFT I could implement in my own classroom. In case you didn’t know, I am a huge fan of cells, and so this is my CRAFT on cells! Feel free to critique.

Imagine we inject you into a eukaryotic or prokaryotic cell (the choice is yours!) We want you to slip on your water shoes and goggles, and swim around the cell. Explain to your peers the various organelles you see, the functions that are taking place, and observe the relative location of these organelles in relation to each other. After making your observations, create a map (similar to that of a city) depicting what you saw. Include streets and landmarks. Label each street with a name (for example the exterior of the cell can be called Cell Circle, or the street near the Golgi Apparatus, Golgi Boulevard). Be creative! It doesn’t just have to include the organelles. Draw in some houses, or some of your favorite restaurants. But, the position of organelles should be fairly accurate with respect to one another. Finally, remember to add some color! We want your friends to be interested in the interior of a cell as well!

Context: Development of a cell city/Map

Role: Observer/Architect/Developer

Audience: Your peers that you want to educate about the cell

Format: Map

Topic: Cell organization

D&Z Chapters 3 and 4

After reading chapters 3 and 4 of Daniels and Zemelman, I can’t help but think to myself, “finally, teachers and other educators are starting to realize how complex textbooks are, and how frustrating it can be to rely on the text for information.” The authors describe textbooks as difficult, superficial, and sometimes inaccurate. I agree with this point. Personally, I have never enjoyed reading from textbooks. I often find that while my mind wanders… my eyes wander down the page. Once I snap back into reality, I have to reread the entire page because my mind did not process the text. So…to my fellow, future educators, I suggest putting less emphasis on textbooks. When our students go to college, the professors that are uneducated in this area will surely give them enough to read.

There were a couple of points that I wanted to comment on. First, was the idea of textbooks, and how many of them are often considered inaccurate. I found it astounding that one of the leading textbook publishers had 86,026 errors across its series of books. But, what I found even more interesting was this idea of how “smart teachers can make textbook errors useful (57).” I loved the story of Don Grossnickle. He took a textbook error and made it into a useful lesson about how the Bubonic Plague wasn’t actually spread by the bacteria of rats and fleas. According to Science News, it was actually caused by a viral hemorrhagic fever. As a biology major, this is something that I can implement in my own classroom. Science is always changing and there are constantly new breakthroughs. (And in a way, this lesson serves as a science and a history lesson!) So, I suppose when publishers make one of their many, many mistakes, us teachers can use these mistakes to our advantage. It definitely makes me question how much of the information I’ve read is actually accurate!

A second point I wanted to touch upon was the idea that textbooks are superficial. From reading the chapter, I realized that I have been a victim of textbook superficiality as a student. As a science teacher, I played the role they asked in chapter three. I thought I knew the answer to this question, seeing I am a biology major and these concepts have been drilled into our heads ever since middle school. But, I was wrong. I thought that the nutrients from the soil contributed to the tree’s mass. Based on my answer, I have learned that my education was textbook dependent. I’m sure I will learn about this in my plant class next semester, but I did not know that the mass came from the air. You know what they say… you learn something new every day!

One thing we can do to ensure our students don’t become victims of textbook dependency is to put less emphasis on textbooks. According to Daniels and Zemelman, “…textbooks continue to be overused, and should be supplemented generously or replaced with other reading materials where possible (53).” If we as teachers select material based on the needs/levels of our students, they will learn more. I think this is good advice, something we should be aware of as we continue on our journey to becoming teachers.

After reading this chapter, I have learned more about the type of teacher I will be in the future. I, for one, will put less emphasis on textbooks. After all, I have observed in classrooms focused heavily on supplemented materials (the students never actually opened the textbook and read from it). I found this to be an effective way of teaching, especially in the sciences. The students understood the material because they weren’t reading a bunch of scientific text, and they enjoyed learning in this manner. Science textbooks tend to be very difficult and dense. So, I hope to implement this strategy in the future. Until then, I will continue my textbook dependent studies to get to that point.

Understanding By Design

I know a lot of my peers mentioned the video we watched in 406 of Grant Wiggins’ explanation of “Understanding By Design.” So, I suppose we’ve had a brief introduction before this week’s reading assignment. But, as I began reading, I couldn’t help but remember his reference to soccer and how he spoke about refereeing a soccer game that lacked strategic thinking. He described the scenario as a lot of aimless running around. It wasn’t until the team was asked to self-assess that it made a difference in the way they played. They were asked, “What is working on the field? What is not working? What do we need to work on?”  By doing this, they were creating/embedding long-term goals into short-term plans. This is what we need to do as future teachers and advocates of UBD.

I believe that Understanding By Design is a hard concept for a lot of us to grasp. As far as I’m concerned, I was hardly ever taught in such a fashion. I proceeded from K-12 in the traditional (contentàactivityàtest) fashion. Mind you, there was always a huge emphasis on NECAP testing. So, when I read in Module A that, “in many schools teachers are expected to engage in test prep as a means of raising test scores (4),” it really hit home. I remember sitting in the cafeteria of my high school each morning during NECAP week being fed breakfast (this was in an attempt to increase test scores…it was really insane now that I think back on it). I find it so sad that schools are forcing teachers to teach to a test. Like the author noted, it’s not just about covering the content, but uncovering it. This is why I support the idea of Understanding by Design. I am for what it aims to do, which is focus on helping students come to an understanding of important ideas and transfer their learning to new situations.

I can’t really say I disagree with the idea of Understanding By Design, as I feel the pros heavily outweigh any cons. I especially liked and wanted to touch upon their discussion of Judy Willis’ validation of the principles and practices of UBD (in module A). I wanted to touch upon this because as a future science teacher, a lot of the content will be taught more effectively through hands-on experiences. Oddly enough, one of the points of validation for UBD was that, “Experiential learning that stimulates multiple senses in students, such as hands-on science activities, is not only the most engaging but also the most likely to be stored as long term memories (6).” I can really relate to this point! As a science major, I have taken numerous science classes (all of which were considerably difficult). I found that I learned most when I “did” something with the content. This is what I hope to do with my future students.

One of my most vivid science memories dates back to my freshman year of high school. We were in the lab creating our own DNA double helix on one of those big post-it notes. I remember matching the base pairs, color coding, and transcribing my DNA molecule into RNA. I absolutely loved this hands-on activity, and it was there that my foundation of complementary base pairing began. So, when it was re-introduced to it later in my life, I had a previous experience with the material. With that, I was able to further my understanding by doing more with the material. As a future science teacher, I think this is going to be very important, and although this particular lesson wasn’t based on backward design, I know it would work with one.

This is what it would look like, with a legend and a color coded sequence!

Daniels and Zemelman Ch 1&2

After reading chapters 1 and 2 in Daniels and Zemelman, I couldn’t help but go back to the McDonald's incident. My first thought was: Wow! Those two students must have had to muster up a lot of courage to walk into a fast food chain’s restaurant and know enough information about the subject to persuade the customers not to eat there. It was obvious that they felt very passionately about this topic after diving deeper into their research (as would anyone who cared the least bit about their health). I was especially surprised when Antonio walked up to the woman and pulled out his copy of Fast Food Nation. The author wrote, “she leans down to read the page, heavily highlighted in yellow, with cryptic annotations in the margins (Daniels and Zemelman 2).” Antonio must have enjoyed the book and learned a lot from reading it because he took the time to analyze and annotate (he even remembered what page the statistics were on so he could show the woman). Granted, it took them about a month to read about the fast food industry and how it affects all aspects of our lives. However, it proved to be worthwhile and it seemed as though the students were able to learn a lot by researching and diving into outside sources (other than their 600 page biology text). The best part was that they were able to go out into the community and spread knowledge about the dangers and prevalence of food-borne illnesses, all while having fun doing it. That IS science! This is what we need to do as future educators. We have to come up with ways in which students can give back to their communities with the knowledge they have gained in school and in their research. This is exactly what these students did!

I really liked the assumption that the fast-food project was based on. It was the assumption that “teenagers should not be ‘getting ready’ to be lifelong learners, but should be fully engaged right now (3).” I think this speaks volumes. I have heard so many mission statements that want to prepare students to be lifelong learners and productive members of society. Yet, the students are not exploring these options. The fast-food project gave these students the chance to learn in an environment outside of the classroom, with an abundance of outside sources. These students proved that they have soared far beyond the “getting ready to be lifelong learners” stage. These students are lifelong learners.  

Wilhelm's "A Theory of Teaching"

Wilhelm’s “A Theory of Teaching” tackles the question, “how will we ever know if students are actually learning the information we are attempting to convey (specifically through text)?” As professionals and experts in our field of study it is easy for us to know what we want students to learn, but how will we know if they are actually learning it? Wilhelm does a great job proposing strategies and techniques. Towards the end of chapter two, on page 54, he shares the “Six Methods for Teaching Reading Strategies.”

The first couple of chapters spoke extensively about terms/strategies/people we have learned about previously such as: scaffolding, learning-centered teaching, social speech, the zone of actual development (ZAD), the zone of proximal development (ZPD), psychologists Lev Vygotsky and Jean Piaget, Hillock’s “environmental teaching,” (etc.)

One important strategy and type of reflective technique I found interesting was the idea of “wide-awake teaching.” This was the first time I have ever heard of this type of teaching. I like it because it seems as though it is reflective. Wilhelm spoke about this strategy on page 5 of his article. The idea is to ask, “Is this working? How do we know? Are we happy with our orientation? How can we change things (Wilhelm, 5)?” It is important that we reflect on these aspects of our lessons and make changes when necessary for success in the future.

I must admit that I became frustrated with this article numerous times, almost leading me to believe that it was beyond my zone of proximal development. However, I was able to connect with the text and make meaning (a portion was actually about creating meaning while reading!), as it brought back vivid memories.

One connection I can make between my own experiences and this reading was the direct instruction lesson we taught last semester in 406. Direct instruction follows a specific sequence: main idea, example, group practice and individual practice. I couldn’t help but make the connection that this pattern is learning-centered teaching, which was spoken about extensively in the article. The idea of “I do, you watch/help” serving as the example portion. The idea of “you do I help” serving as the group practice, and “you do I watch” as the individual practice.

And… here is a second connection: Throughout my last three years of college, I have noticed that almost all of my science classes require you to learn material on your own. Year after year, I find myself sitting down trying to force myself to understand the material from the text. Sometimes I can read a chapter twice, still without much luck. The problem is, I have never seen the material before and cannot be expected to pull out the most important information from the text. This is how I felt taking Human Anatomy my freshman year at URI. This class was HORRIBLE. Everyday, I was working beyond my zone of proximal development. The professor would purposely cancel class so we could stay in and teach ourselves. Once I learned every bone in the body, I had to learn every muscle in the body… oh and let’s throw in the origin, action and insertion of each and every muscle you just learned. Yes, it was difficult. It was not fun. And so, Vygostky would not approve of this style of teaching.

                                                         

It was obvious that my professor has never heard of/never been a fan of Vygotskian theory.

Vygotsky did not believe that the mind grows naturally or without assistance (Wilhelm, 15). Anything that is learned must be actively taught. If it is not being taught in the first place, we should not expect it to be learned. This is important to keep in mind as future educators!

Literacy Profile- Softball

Spring is and always has been my favorite season. Besides the fact that flowers begin to bloom, and the temperature begins to increase, it marks the start of the softball season. Year after year, I laced up my cleats, put on my lucky number nine, grabbed a glove and ran onto the field. The smell of dirt filled the spring air. I would stand at home plate and admire the white chalk lines, the raked brown dirt, and the green outfield. This is, was, and always has been my favorite view. All the stresses and anxieties of the day suddenly vanished, and I was once again playing the game I love.

At six years old, my twin sister and I would have my dad pack up our tricycles and we would take a trip to the baseball fields behind Centerdale School, in North Providence. While we rode our bikes in the small parking lot (with some friends our age), our dad was busy coaching my brother’s little league baseball team. Sometimes, while my friends were busy playing, I would stop to watch the boys play baseball. I began becoming interested in the position of catcher. At some point, I fell in love with the game. Each time I watched, I became more and more anxious to play. It wasn’t until one night my dad and brother came home from practice that I said, “Daddy, can I put on the equipment? I want to play baseball.” My dad and brother helped me put on all of the catcher’s equipment. My little body was floating in the heavy equipment, but I was eager to begin learning the position. I stood in the middle of our dead end street and made my brother pitch to me. At first, a few balls got past me, but day after day I found myself getting better. Besides teaching me how to become a catcher, my brother taught me how to bat and how to throw. We spent endless nights in our yard practicing. I would watch his every move and try to mimic the motions. He would tell me, “You want to keep your eye on the ball and when it comes, bring your arms around but don’t drop your shoulder, rotate your hips, leave your back foot planted and squish the bug.” Squish the bug? Sounds silly, but to my surprise every good coach uses this phrase. The idea is to help you remember that the back foot is supposed to stay planted. All the power in a swing comes from the hips. It doesn’t matter how tall or strong you are, it’s the fundamentals.

The years flew by and over time I became literate in softball. When I went to high school, I was very eager to play and showcase my talents. I tried out my freshman year, and I landed a spot on the varsity softball team. I remained in this spot all four years of high school. Each game, I would stand near the chain-linked fence and take some practice swings. Every time I looked back, I saw my biggest supporter and the man responsible for my softball successes. This man was my brother. He would quickly give me advice like, “if the first pitch looks good, just go for it!” In my mind, he was always right, and so I listened. After all, he is the person who influenced me to play the game.

During my sophomore year, I hit my very first homerun. I remember it like it was yesterday. We were playing Ponagansett High School and were down 7-5 in the last inning. It was our last chance to score any runs. I stepped up to the plate, with everything in my head my brother taught me when I was little, and I took a swing. I began running, and as I rounded first base, I watched the ball sail over the centerfield fence that read 205 ft. My heart almost beat right out of my chest. I had just won the game for my team by hitting a walk-off home run! It was truly the most uplifting moment of my career. My brother couldn’t make it to that game to witness the homerun, but you bet he was the first person I called with the good news. I got to keep the game ball, and it remains on display in my bedroom. It serves not only as a keepsake, but also as a reminder that I was able to become skilled and literate in an area outside of school.

Softball has had such a positive impact on my life. I was able to form relationships with others that share the same passion for the sport. Also, as captain of my team, I learned how to become a more confident leader. Furthermore, (and oddly enough), through softball, I learned how to teach. I began to understand that fundamental aspects of the game were difficult for others to grasp, and so I took it upon myself to help those players succeed and become better. These teaching experiences taught me to look at things from different perspectives. Although the game comes easy to me, it may not seem so easy to others. I learned that sometimes you have to explain things in different ways in order for someone to grasp a concept in its entirety. I will take these experiences with me not only as a future teacher, but also as a future coach. I have always dreamed of coaching the softball team at my future high school. If all goes well, I will be able to show students that they can be literate in areas outside of school. If they struggle in school, I will ensure they excel on the field, for purposes of sell-fulfillment and confidence. I hope to pass down the knowledge I gained from my brother to help my future students and athletes. So, everything I have learned through my own experiences is important to keep in mind as a future teacher and coach.

 

Here are a few pictures that basically sum up my softball career! All the way to the left is a picture of me at age 5, when I first started playing tee-ball for North Providence West. The second picture is a plaque that I earned my senior year of high school. All the coaches in the division vote for whom they believe rank 1^st in the division at each position. I was lucky enough to have earned this ranking as catcher in Division II North. The picture to the right is of another plaque I won my senior year. It is a MVP plaque, which was given to me by my coaches and athletic department.