RPI Session 3: Text Selection

 Session 3: Text Selection

Connecting with Manaiakalani

With text and all its varieties, including digital text of multiple sources, digital text is the way to go! In the classroom, digital texts rely heavily on the digital fluency of the teacher in the classroom. When we are talking about text, we need to focus on the digital. Digital apps are great for helping students to engage in reading and literacy and they engage students in their own curiosities and could provide high ceilings and fill gaps. However, they do NOT replace the direct teaching that a teacher is able to provide in the life of a student. Think about Learner Selected Texts and having students record what it was they were engaging with either on a Google Form or a Jamboard. Also, remember to use digital copies of the text for students to collaboratively engage with using highlight tools and comments (ie as a question in the comments and then highlight the answer). 

A great reminder to have students actively engage with a digital copy of the text to comment/highlight according to the desired learning outcomes. This is something that I have successfully used in my literacy teaching with older students, and I am very thankful for the reminder to try to use this method with my Year 4 students during the upcoming term.

Choosing Appropriate Texts

Just like “getting to know our learners,”choosing appropriate texts also moves through the Pillars of Practice. In Manaiakalani, According to Rudine Sims Bishop (Ohio University), students need to engage in three types of texts: 

1. Mirror Texts: A reflection of myself in the text

2. Window Texts: Expand thinking into topics outside immediate world

3. Sliding Doors: Allow ALL students to enter into the world providing a colourful view of the world through literature

In Manaiakalani, learners' selected texts are so important to allow students the opportunity to go through the sliding glass doors into world that they want to engage with. 

We acknowledge that our students begin school with a 30 Million word gap so we are always looking for ways to extend the vocabulary of our students across all topics.

The word gap is real in my classroom this year. I am contantly trying to encourage my students to orally share and to engage with new (and often higher level) vocabulary. I would love great opportunities to provide our students with PM books that better mirror their own lives and I tend to use the stories that I know allow for conversations to occur. 

Flexible Grouping

Mixed ability grouping is a flexible response the main idea is that kids come together and work (with teacher support). Must always be responsive to what our learners need for their learning level.  Leveled reading is when we are directly providing texts that have language and vocabulary at a level that those students can engage with. Mixed ability texts are accessible for all students (could use audio/video of story). Always be thinking about the text and learning intentions. There are times when texts can be used across ability groups depending on your learning intention for that text and the students accessibility of that text’s topic. 

Choosing Texts

When choosing texts, it is important to consider the following: 

• Give yourself enough time to ask questions of a mentor or others before the weekend if needed

• Make sure you have a clear understanding of what your learners need to learn next

• Think about what might engage your learners

Everything builds off the foundation of tier 1, which consists of everyday words. It is only through print (books/academic content) that you are able to achieve tier 2 understanding. Tier 3 is academic specific terminology. This is one way to think about acquiring vocabulary. We want to be sure that we are selecting texts that provide an avenue for students to move into and be exposed to tier 2 words. 

Text Sets

When selecting texts we need to be aware of various text types (long, non-fiction, short story, novel) as well as multimodal texts (themed video, non-fiction, poetry, fiction). When looking for themes in a book, think about what changes or learnings a character has made in a story (ie helping, working together).  What are the roles of the sidekicks? What are the relationships between the main character and the sidekicks? 

Skill Builder: Summarising

This needs to be explicitly taught by sharing description, exemplars and modelling/thinking aloud. 

Record yourself reading a portion of the story, and then summarise what you have read (or answer questions) while still recording. A summary needs to be condensed in your own words. Model getting rid of the non-essential/important information. 

Reading Wider

Reading to students: Choose a novel (or longer text) that you have already read so you have an idea of when to stop reading and discuss at certain points. Make reading fun…change voices, show your excitement for the story and model what a good reader does. Only read for 10ish minutes. 

Shared Reading: All students have the opportunity to access the text (easily linked to writing). 

Paired Reading: Students are reading to each other aloud. These can be books from book boxes, reading shelves, books that have been used for shared reading. 

Thinking about my own reading programme this term, I would really like to bring into my classroom a greater focus on reading to students. I find that when I get moving into the teaching aspect of the classroom this is generally the easiest thing to leave out simply due to lack of time or getting sidetracked by other issues that arise in the classroom. Students are often given opportunities to read to others and I hope to grow this further next term by having some Year 5 students visit our classroom each day for my students to read to.  Our Team 3 Reading Challenge has provided a great buzz across our team and many of our students are all reading independently whenever they have a chance to complete their chapter book and get a book on our special sharing wall in the corridor.