“stuck in the middle ”: helping students begin new literacy lives

“Stuck in the Middle”:

Helping Students Begin New

Literacy Lives

Summary by Abbi Gee

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Article"Stuck in the middle":

Helping students begin new literacy lives.

Barbara Radcliffe, 2007

A case study of her own middle school classroom.

Look—she wrote a book with Buehl!

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Importance Struggling readers are failing to gain the skills

they need to be successful.

Due to our use of high-stakes testing to determine placement, promotion, and retention of students, students are entering and exiting middle school later.  

The icing on the cake: students’ own perceived inadequacy due to low test scores.  

Culminates in unmotivated, frustrated students who are caught in a cycle of literacy failure.

SummaryRadcliffe uses a five-step approach

to break the students’ cycle of failure and help them begin what she calls new “literacy lives.”  

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SummarySTEP ONE: ACCEPTING THE

CHALLENGE

Acknowledge the attitudes and beliefs students hold about literacy

Discuss different types of literacy

Help students see themselvesas readers and writers—develop a new “literacy self”

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SummarySTEP TWO: BUILDING STRONG

TEACHER-STUDENT RELATIONSHIPS

Get to know the students personally

Utilize reading surveys, quick writes, &community-building activities

Have students explore their reading history & make a reading timeline

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SummarySTEP THREE: CREATING LITERACY-

RICH ENVIRONMENTS

Select content that excites students

Find a balance between interest and reading level

Introduce them to the library

Create READ! posters to foster positive attitudes

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SummarySTEP FOUR: CONNECTING READERS TO

TEXTS

Develop a learner profile using all your compiled information

Select a text you think will speak to the student

Introduce the text in a one-on-one conference

Keep trying until student sees success

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SummarySAMPLE LEARNER PROFILE

Radcliffe’s learner profiles include the following data she collects:

namebirth date test scores

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SummarySAMPLE LEARNER PROFILE

The students also respond to the following:

Preferred learning style:Multiple intelligences:Thoughts on reading:Reading strategies:Reading interests:Hobbies:Favorite book:Favorite form of writing:About me:Why do people read?Book recommendation:

What does someone have to do in order to be a good reader?How do you feel when you are asked to read aloud in front of your classmates?Do you prefer to read by yourself, in a small group, or as a whole class?What sort of things do you think about when you read?

SummarySTEP FIVE: SUPPORTING READERS

WITHSTRATEGIC LITERACY INSTRUCTION

“All readers deserve intentional and explicit reading instruction.”

Effective before-, during-,and after-reading strategiesSocratic seminarsLiterature circles

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Summary

Results: after a year in her course, 28 out of 32 remedial eighth-grade students saw success on the state assessment and were able to advance to high school.  

Her techniques align closely to our class readings; her strategies are sound.  

Students had a newfound love and appreciation for reading. The cycle had been broken!

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Take AwayStruggling readers need help to break

out of the cycle of failure.

Their own reading histories and self-reported data can be a great starting point.

Following Radcliffe’s suggested five steps helps students enjoy reading AND learn specific reading strategies to improve their reading.

Resources: Strategic Literacy Instructiono http://www.webenglishteacher.com/konigsburg.html

for a collection of information and lesson plans by author and title.

o http://www.readingrockets.org/articles/82 for Jim Burke's 103 ideas that students can do before, during, and after reading.

o http://www.educationworld.com/a_curr/curr259.shtml or http://www.litcircles.org/ or http://www.eduref.org/cgi-bin/printlessons.cgi/Virtual/Lessons/Language_Arts/Reading/RDG0206.html for an introduction to literature circles with many practical advice and lesson plan ideas.

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Resources: Strategic Literacy Instructiono http://www.studyguide.org/socratic_seminar.htm or

http://www.teachnlearn.org/socratic_seminars.htm to glean how to knowledge on using Socratic seminars to engage and motivate readers.

o http://www.literacymatters.org/adlit/intro.htm to learn more about the world of adolescent literature and ideas for activities and lesson plans.

Resources: Choice in Reading Materialo http://nancykeane.com/booktalks/ to access a

database of book talks by interest or subject.

o http://www.reading.org.ezproxy.gvsu.edu/downloads/choices/yac0 -bookmarks0 -2006.pdf for the most recent list of Young Adult Choices reviewed by teenagers and published by the International Reading Association.

o http://www.teachersfirst.com/read-sel.cfm for appropriate book suggestions by grade level.

o http://www.carolhurst.com/titles/allreviewed.html for reviewed book suggestions through grade nine.

Resources: Graphic Organizerso Story Map

(http://www.readwritethink.org/materials/storymap/). The Story Map interactive is designed to assist students in prewriting and postreading activities by focusing on the key elements of character, setting, conflict, and resolution.

o Plot Diagram (http://www.readwritethink.org/materials/plot-diagram/). The Plot Diagram is an organizational tool that is used to map the events in a story. Designed in a pyramid or triangular shape, this mapping of plot structure allows readers and writers to visualize the key features of stories.

Resources: Graphic Organizerso Literary Elements Map

(http://www.readwritethink.org/materials/lit-elements/). Students can map out the key literary elements of character, setting, conflict, and resolution as prewriting for their own fiction or as analysis of a text by another author in this secondary-level interactive.

o ReadWriteThink Notetaker (http://interactives.mped.org/notetaker722.aspx). Useful for a wide variety of reading and writing activities, this outlining tool allows students to organize up to five levels of information using bullets, Roman numerals, or letters.

Radcliffe’s References Beers, K. (2002). When kids can't read: What teachers can do. Portsmouth, NH:

Heinemann. Biancarosa, G., & Snow, C. E. (2004). Reading next-A vision for action and research

in middle and high school literacy: A report to Carnegie Corporation of New Tork. Washington, DC: Alliance for Excellent Education.

Brashares, A. (2001). The sisterhood of the traveling pants. New York: Delacorte. Buehl, D., & Stumpf, S. (2005). The 6-8 literacy notebook. Madison, WI: Madison

Metropolitan School District. Burke, K. (2000). Reading reminders: Tips, tools, and techniques. Portsmouth, NH:

Boynton/Cook. Daniels, H. (1994). Voice and choice in the student-centered classroom. York, ME:

Stenhouse. Grimes, N. (2002). Bronx masquerade. New York: Dial. Guthrie, J., & Wigfield, A. (1997). Reading engagement: Motivating readers through

integrated instruction. Newark, DE: International Reading Association. Hinton, S.E. (1967). The outsiders. New York: Penguin. Langer, J. (2002). Effective literacy instruction: Building successful reading and

writing programs. Urbana, IL: National Council of Teachers of English. Lewis, C. S. (1950). The lion, the witch, and the wardrobe. New York: Macmillan. McCombs, B., & Barton, M. (1998). Motivating secondary school students to read

their textbooks. NASSP Bulletin, 82(600), 24-33.

Radcliffe’s References Mikaelsen, B. (2001). Touching spirit bear. New York: Scholastic. Myers, W. D. (1992). Somewhere in the darkness. New York: Scholastic. Myers, W. D. (1999). Monster. New York: HarperCollins. National Middle School Association. (1995). The developmentally responsive

middle school: This we believe. Columbus, OH: Author. Pelzer, D. (1995). A child called It. Omaha, NE: Omaha Press. Plumb, B., & Ludy, J. (2002). Seminars and self-assessment. In J. Holden & J. Schmit

(Eds.), Inquiry & the literary text: Constructing discussions in the English classroom (pp.161-172). Urbana, IL: National Council of Teachers of English.

Rudell, R., & Unrau, N. (1997). The role of responsive teaching in focusing reader intention and developing reader motivation. In J. T Guthrie & A. Wigfield (Eds.), Reading engagement: Motivating readers through integrated instruction (pp. 102-125). Newark, DE: International Reading Association.

Shakur, T. (1999). The rose that grew from concrete. New York: MTV Books/Pocket Books.

Spinelli, J. (1990). ManiacMagee. Boston: Little, Brown. Strasser. T. (2000). Give a boy a gun. New York: Simon and Schuster. Tovani, C. (2000). I read it, but I don't get it: Comprehension strategies for

adolescent readers. Portland, ME: Stenhouse. Tyree, O. (1993). Flyygirl. Washington, D.C.: Mars. Woodson, J. (1998). If you come softly. New York: Penguin Putnam.

Bibliography

Radcliffe, B. (2007). "Stuck in the middle": Helping students begin new literacy lives. Voices

from the Middle, 15(2), 18-29. Retrieved from http://search.proquest.com.ezproxy.gvsu.edu/docview/213930808?accountid=39473