Out of Her Mind -- Musings on Education and Life

Students in my SIOP English II class overcoming their shyness and presenting in front of the class How SIOP (Sheltered Instruction Observation Protocol) Meets the North Carolina Professional Teaching Standards What Is SIOP? SIOP is a research-based instructional model originally designed for English Language Learners (ELLs), though as is true with most differentiation, this model is a good instructional model for any student. North Carolina Professional Teaching Standards and How SIOP Aligns Standard I:     Leadership in the Classroom   Promotes Collaboration. Encourages students to take responsibility for their own learning. Advocates for students. Standard II:  Respectful Environment for Diverse Students Has high expectations for all students. Collaborates with specialists to meet the special needs of all students. Creates a flexible, supportive learning environment. Capitalizes on diversity. Adapts teaching using researc...

Summary of Fitzgerald’s “English-as-a-Second Language Learner’s Cognitive Reading Processes: A Review of the Research in the United States”             In this article, Jill Fitzgerald reviews the research on English-as-a-Second Language (ESL) learners in the United States to date (1995) [1] .   She notes that ethnic and racial diversity continues to increase in our country; thus educators’ concerns about ESL students and their instruction continues to rise.   Out of necessity, there has been a growth in ESL research, research that explores various aspects of the ESL learner and instruction.   This article is mainly concerned with characterizing and making sense of research pertaining to ESL learners and their cognitive processes during reading.             In this research review, Fitzgerald uses the federal definition of ‘limited English proficient’ as give...

What Is Comprehensible Input? Comprehensible Input Is… Communication made clear --it’s all about comprehension-- & Can be achieved by: --enunciating --speaking more s-l-o-w-l-y --reducing the complexity of speech with simple sentence structures (subject-verb-object)   “You circle the answer” NOT “Circle the correct answer.   Only choose one.   Eliminate some answer choices” –at least not for beginners OR CONFUSION ensues! --avoiding idioms --paraphrasing (say it another way) --repetition --oral and written directions (crystal clear expectations) modeled, step-by-step --teaching homographs & homophones, synonyms & cognates --using multimedia, gestures, body language, pictures,  & objects --previewing material --providing graphic organizers, taped texts, & sentence strips Comprehensible input is --repeated exposure --in a variety of ways --in a variety of contexts ...

Morris & Gaffney's (in press) article, "Building Reading Fluency in a Disabled Middle-School Reader" details the work done with a rising 8th grader at  Appalachian State University's Reading Clinic over the course of a calendar year. Who is Luke? Luke is a middle- schooler , a rising 8th grader, who reads at the rate of a 2nd grader.  He lacks fluency and speed.  Exogenous Factors:  moved from another state in 5th grade Endogenous Factors:   ADD, seizure disorders; both controlled by medications Reading History: at 5th grade, read at late first grade level had difficulty in decoding/read at a slow rate after working int he Wilson Reading program, his decoding had greatly improved by the end of 6th. However, rate remained slow. He currently reads at a 3rd-4th grade level with a significant deficit in reading fluency. Luke's Intervention--Focusing on Fluency Using his interests (Civil War, WW II, Civil rights, & Greek mytholog...