Welcomes to RELO Andes Webinars

Rob O’Leary

roboleary@hotmail.com

The Problem – Students

Unprepared to Read a New Text

• Thinking back to your school days, how many of you read a story/poem in class (not necessarily English) and did not understand what it was about?

• What are some of the reasons why you did not connect with the story/poem?

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Summer Reading1987, Notre Dame High School, Utica, New York.- No reason given for reading this story.- Very little background on author or time period. - No new vocabulary taught.- Nothing to gain the interest of the students.

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- Many students were disengaged.

- Learned but did not gain perspective on why the story or author was so important.

- Learned how to write essays but teacher did not reach out to other learning styles.

- Don’t remember learning significant new vocabulary.

Poll Question:

• How many of you use pre-reading activities in your classrooms on a consistent basis?

•- Always (100%)

•- Often (over 75% of the time)

•- Sometimes (50% or less)

•- What are pre-reading activities?

Pre-Reading Activities – The Whys

• One way to get more students involved in the text is to use pre-reading activities.

• Some of the benefits are:

Giving background knowledge (book, author, etc.)

Teaching difficult vocabulary

Activating prior knowledge

Supplying interesting details that make students want to read

Additional Ideas?

Solutions–Activity #1 Speed Dating• Place students in two even lines facing each other.

• Ask a question – Ex. Who has a baby brother or sister in his/her family? Each student talks to her/his partner. After one minute, Stop!

•Ask partners to share answers with the class.

•Next, one line moves down one place while the other line stays in place. Everyone will have a new partner.

•Ask a new question and repeat.

•Make sure questions are connected to the lesson!

Solutions–Activity #1 Speed Dating

Solutions–Activity #1 Speed Dating• How could you use this in your classroom?

• Let’s take an answer or two.

Party Time!

•Tea Party •Cocktail Party

Solutions–Activity #2 – Tea Party• Question – What do people do at a party?

• Tea Party – students mingle and discuss the upcoming story.

After getting in groups, each student gets a unique sentence from story.

For three minutes students read their sentences to as many other students as possible.

Time called. Students sit in original groups and tell at least one new sentence they heard.

Groups then must write a paragraph incorporating at least four sentences and try to figure out what story is about.

Solutions–Activity #2 – Tea Party• Reflection: What benefits do students get from this exercise?

• Do you feel this would work in your classroom? Why?

Anticipating

•What will happen next...?

Solutions–Activity #3 – Anticipatory

Guide• Anticipatory Guide is a series of statements that relate to the story.

• In the ‘Before Reading’ box, students mark whether they ‘Agree’ or ‘Disagree’.

• Compare answers with a partner.

• Full class – who ‘agrees’, who ‘disagrees’ and why. Can be used for a debate.

• Students get into groups of four and use sentences to determine what the story is about.

• After reading story, students go to the ‘After Reading’ box and once again ‘Agree or Disagree’

•Did their opinions change after reading? Why?

What is a Novel or Something

Novel?

Solutions– Activity #4 – Novel Ideas Only

• Students are in groups of four or five.

• Write the name of the new story on the board.- On The Road

• As a group, students must generate ideas about the plot of the story.

• Three minutes. Each student writes a sentence.

• After time is called, count how many ideas for each group.

• One group reads ideas. Other groups listen.

• Other groups will read their answers BUT can only read new ideas. No repeating answers!

• If a group repeats an answer the class yells out, “Novel Ideas Only!”

Solutions– Activity #4 – Novel Ideas Only

•Example:

•We think the story On the Road is about…:

•A man and his dog as they travel across Peru on a motorcycle.

•A family taking a vacation to Disneyland and all of the strange things they see.

•A woman who helps build roads through mountains so medicine can be delivered to a remote village.

Questions For the Participants

• In which grade levels can these activities be used? Why?

• Do you regularly use pre-reading activities in your class? Why or why not?

•What are some pre-reading activities you have done in class?

• Can these techniques be used in something other than a language class? (Science, History, etc.)

Questions From the Participants

• What questions do you have about these techniques?

• What other questions can I answer today?

Final Poll

• How many of you will go back to your classroom and try:

1. One of these strategies.

2. Two of these strategies.

3. Three of these strategies.

4. All of these strategies.

Thanks for joining us!

Check us out next month

▫ Presenter: Lisa Wakefield

▫ Location: Lima, Peru

▫ Topic: Interactive Vocabulary Strategies

▫ Date: November 15, 2017 (Pending)

▫ Time: 1500-1600