Theoretical Discussion #1

Heather Reese (Tina&Tracy)

Theoretical Discussion #1

Article: In pursuit of an illusion: The flawed search for a perfect method

The first statement that I found very true was ‘poor teaching should not be tolerated, and reading instruction can be improved, especially for low income children.’  I teach in a school that is 75% poverty.  My principal, Tracy, has made it a priority in our school to do all we can to teach all students to read.  The article states that ‘the best instruction results when a combination of methods are used by a teacher to meet the needs of all students.’  Tina, Tracy and myself discussed how our school recently received a grant that has allowed us to purchase a variety of resources, as well as professional development opportunities and the assistance of two reading specialist to guide teachers in the best practices to reach the needs of all students.  This has given all teachers a ‘toolbox’ to pull from.  Tracy complimented our faculty by saying we use the best tools we have for our students.  As a teacher I feel that I am now better trained and more effective in my reading instruction because I do not teach a ‘program’.  I carefully integrate a variety of programs to meet the needs of all the learners in my classroom.  In our discussion, Tracy pointed out that teacher learning is a lifelong process.   As the processes and research change, we as educators need to keep learning and adapting.  We are definitely doing that in our school. We have 10 teachers who are completing graduate level course work as reading specialist.  My favorite part of the article discussed how situations are different from day to day.  This is so true in kindergarten!  What works one day, may not work the next.  ‘On the spot’ teachable moments can be some of the most effective teaching.

Article: What is this thing called “balance?”

Tina, Tracy and myself agree that there is no single approach to teach reading. 

Our school is using what is described in the article as the four-block program.  We are combining several approaches to have the most effective teaching.  This year we began Guided Reading and The Daily Five, as well as interactive read alouds.  Next year we will implement Words Their Way, Writer’s Workshop and Shared Reading.  We also discussed the homogeneous and heterogeneous grouping with our k-2 students.  The scheduling in our day allows us time to teach students on their instructional level in small groups.