instructional inquiry plan deborah geer university of new...
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Technique 13 1 Deborah Geer
Instructional Inquiry Plan
Deborah Geer
University of New England
EDU 743 Connecting Reading and Writing for Success
June 24. 2012
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Overview:
Details are important for students to include in their illustrations and writing, as well as
to understand as a reader. They can assist readers in understanding a piece of text more fully
and help the writer communicate their thoughts more effectively. The technique chosen for
this project was Crafting Details of Expression and Gesture (Wood Ray, 2010, pp. 137-138). This
technique was chosen because Staffordville School has been working on incorporating
character’s feelings into story retells. This was done to support student understanding of the
importance of characters’ feelings in literature, in an effort to improve the first grade students’
ability to use feelings in their writing narratives. This technique would help to scaffold this
effort.
Learning Objectives:
The technique of Crafting Details of Expression and Gesture (Wood Ray, 2010, pp. 137-
139) incorporates a number of different areas of the kindergarten curriculum in the Stafford
Public School District. From the Stafford Public Schools Social Studies Guide (2006 p. 13), it
includes the objective to identify feelings shared by all human beings. From the Stafford Public
Schools Language Arts Guide (2002 p. 14- 21), it involves two areas, which are reading and
writing. Under reading, it supports that students will read and respond in individual, literal,
critical, and evaluative ways to literary, informational, and persuasive texts. In addition, this
technique assists students to analyze details, identify character traits, and discuss qualities that
they like and dislike and relate them to their own experiences. Under writing, this technique
helps students to produce visual texts to express, develop, and substantiate ideas and
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experiences, as well as exposing them to personal writing. In addition, it exposes students to
the steps in the writing process and will gives them an opportunity to revise their illustrations
by adding information.
Resources :
Resource that will be needed include:
Smartboard
PowerPoint slides from the Instructional Inquiry Project Demonstration
Student literature related to feelings (See list in Appendix A)
My Feelings Books
Crayons or colored pencils
Copies of assessment sheets
Plan for Instruction:
Implementation would begin in the first few weeks of school during the “All About Me”
Unit. Students will be introduced to feelings using slides in the PowerPoint. These will be used
to discuss that expressions and gestures are important to understanding a character’s feelings
and actions. Then each of the four feelings identified will be introduced and discussed during
separate lessons.
The instruction for each feeling would last for 5 days. The first day, students will be
introduced to the feeling through photographs before moving to illustrations. This was done
because last year the school psychologist gave a pre-assessment before beginning the new
social skills program and noted that a number of students struggled to the identify facial
expression on photographs of children. For each of the feelings, students would study and
discuss the facial expressions and body language of the people in the photographs. Then they
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would apply that knowledge to the characters in the illustrations. For the next three days, they
would participate in daily read alouds that are chosen to emphasis that feeling. During this
time, students would discuss the techniques that the author used to convene the character’s
feeling. A list of children’s books to use for the read alouds can be found in Appendix A. On the
last day, the teacher would ask questions about how students could show the feeling in an
illustration and then model illustrating a picture of the feeling, before asking students to
illustrate a time in their life when they felt that way (see Appendix B). While students are
drawing, the teacher would do two things. The first is monitor student’s illustrations and to ask
questions for the students to revise their work. The second is to scribe the student’s story onto
their picture. At the end of the writing session, students would have the opportunity to share
their illustrations and stories, as well as to describe how they related the feeling in their
illustration.
Even though this unit is based on four feelings in the first weeks of school, this
technique could be applied throughout the school year. During read alouds and guided
reading, students will be asked to look at characters’ expressions and gestures in books in order
to extend their comprehension, as well as to apply it to their illustrations. As the kindergarten
year continues, they will be exposed to other feelings that may be brought up in literature,
discussions, or the social skills curriculum. These possible feelings could be frustrated,
embarrassed, and disappointed. They may need a more in depth discussion on them and the
steps in this lesson could be applied.
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Assessment:
Assessment for this activity would be based on observational notes and student
illustrations. Students’ first day of school illustration will be used as a baseline in order to judge
student growth (see Appendix C). As the technique is implemented, notes will be taken on
student understanding and progress. Data will be gathered from their illustrations and will be
recorded on the form in Appendix D. Student Retell Benchmarks (see Appendix E) will be
studied in order to judge the effect of this technique on student’s ability to incorporate feelings
into their retells.
Differentiation:
There might be areas where students need differentiation. The first area is student's
understanding of the expressions and gestures in the photographs and illustrations. During the
discussions, some students may have difficulty with identifying feelings and they may need to
be pulled aside in a small group or individually to discuss pictures and illustrations of
expressions and gestures. A few children may need a more active approach such as giving them
a scenario, such as how would you feel when your dog died and make the corresponding face in
the mirror. The second is that some children may understand the gestures and expressions, but
may have difficulty putting them into their pictures. In order to assist those children, the
teacher will model an example for the students, before they are asked to illustrate picture in
their book. The teacher will move around the classroom as they draw and ask questions to
assist students in adding these details in their illustrations. Finally for those students that
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struggle with fine motor, they will be supplied people shaped stencils to trace in order to make
the outline of their person and then they can add facial expressions into their drawing.
Peer Feedback:
The feedback from my peers was two types. The first was encouraging comments. The
second was items to include in my project. Most of that feedback included books to use in my
project. I took their suggestions into consideration and used some of the literature, but only
after, I found a copy of the book to examine. In addition, I received ideas for questions that I
incorporated into the PowerPoint. There was a suggestion to use photographs of my students
making the facial gestures into my PowerPoint, since it was the end of the year, I decided to
wait and do that next year with the kids in my classroom that way they would be able to see
themselves in the PowerPoint.
Conclusion:
Wood Ray (2010) in her book In Pictures and in Words discusses the importance of using
illustrations to assist students in learning the writing process. Illustrations are an important
step for students to learn about the written word. It is important to take advantage of this and
begin to teach students about illustrating before they begin to write. They will be able to take
this knowledge and transfer it into their writing. “If teachers are willing to make a composing
connection and show children how an illustrator’s decisions about pictures are a lot like a
writer’s decisions about words, she forms a bridge of understanding that nurtures children as
both illustrators and writers” (Wood Ray , 2010, p. 15). For example in these lessons, students
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learn the importance of including details of expression and gesture into their illustrations to
make them more meaningful. Knowing the importance of this will make it easier for them to
understand why their writing needs details for it to come alive for the reader.
References
Stafford Public Schools. (2002). The language arts curriculum. Retrieved from:
http://www.stafford.k12.ct.us/files/_EZKGB_/b1e4f4656584ee853745a49013852ec4/M
icrosoft_Word_-_Curriculum_at_a_Glance-_Language_Arts.doc.pdf
Stafford Public Schools. (2006). The social studies curriculum. Retrieved from:
http://www.stafford.k12.ct.us/files/_EZKGB_/b1e4f4656584ee853745a49013852ec4/M
icrosoft_Word_-_Curriculum_at_a_Glance-_Social_Studies.doc.pdf
Wood Ray, K. (2010). In pictures and in words: teaching the qualities of good writing through illustration study. Portsmouth, NH: Heinemann.
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Appendix A
Student Literature
Allen, J. (2007). “I’m not scared?". New York, NY: Scholastic, Inc.
Bang, M. (1999). When Sophie gets angry-really, really angry. New York, NY: Scholastic, Inc.
Buckingham, M. (2006). The bravest fish. New York, NY: Scholastic, Inc.
Butler, M. C., & Chapman, J. (2008). The dark, dark night. New York, NY: Scholastic, Inc.
Curtis, J. L. & Cornell L. (1998). Today I feel silly & other moods that make my day.
HarperCollins.
Deluise, D. & Santoro C. (1990). Charlie the caterpillar. New York, NY: Scholastic, Inc.
Dewdney, A. (2009). Llama Llama misses mama. New York, NY: Scholastic.
Dewdney, A. (2005). Llama Llama red pajamas. New York, NY: Scholastic.
Dewdney, A. (2010). Llama Llama mad at mama. New York, NY: Scholastic.
Drachman, E. & Muscarello J. (2004). Ellison the elephant. Los Angeles, CA: Kidwick books.
Emberley, E., & Miranda, A. (1997). Glad monster, sad monster. New York, NY: LB Kids
Publishing.
Henkes, K. (1991). Chrysanthemum. New York: Greenwillow Books.
James, B. & McNally B. (2002). The shark who was afraid of everything. New York: Scholastic, Inc.
Kraus, R., & Aruego, J. (1971). Leo the late bloomer. New York: Windmill Books.
Mayer, M. (1999). I was so mad. New York: Golden Book Publishing.
Moroney, T. (2008). When I’m feeling angry. San Francisco, CA: The Five Mile Press Pty Ltd.
Moroney, T. (2008). When I am feeling happy. San Francisco, CA: The Five Mile Press Pty Ltd.
Moroney, T. (2008). When I’m feeling sad. San Francisco, CA: The Five Mile Press Pty Ltd.
Moroney, T. (2008). When I’m feeling scared. San Francisco, CA: The Five Mile Press Pty Ltd.
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Rey, H. A. (1969). Curious George. Boston: Houghton Mifflin.
Ritchie, A., & Edgson, A. (2007). Me and my dad!. Intercourse, PA: Good Books.
Sendak, M. (2003). Where the wild things are. New York: Harper Collins.
Smallman, S. & Tickle, J. (2007). The very greedy bee . New York, NY: Scholastic Inc.
Spelman, C. M. & Cote N. (2000). When I feel angry. New York, NY: Scholastic, Inc.
Tekavec, H., & Spengler, M. (2002). Storm is coming!. New York: Dial Books for Young Readers.
Urban, L. & Cole H. (2009). Mouse was mad. New York, NY: Scholastic, Inc.
Wilson, K. & McMullen J. (2011). Hogwash. New York, NY: Little, Brown and Company.
Wilson, K. & Chapman, J. (2008). Bear feels scared. New York: Margaret K. McElderry Books.
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Appendix B
My Feelings Book By
__________
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I feel happy when…
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I feel sad when…
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I feel mad when…
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I feel scared when …
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Appendix C
Baseline Activity
Name ____________________
Today is my first day of
kindergarten. I feel…
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Appendix D
Name ______________________________________
Student Notes on Incorporating Gestures and Expressions
Activity Did student incorporate gestures and expressions independently?
Notes and student comments
Baseline first day of school
Feelings book Happy
Feelings book Sad
Feelings book Mad
Feelings book Scared
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Appendix E
Kindergarten Retelling Rubric Book Title:______________________________
Name __________________________________ Date: _____________________________
1 2 3 4 Characters (or topic in nonfiction)
Refers to 1 or 2 characters or topics using pronouns (he, she, it, they)
Refers to 1 character by generic name (boy, girl, dog)
Refers to 2 or more characters by generic name (boy, girl, dog)
Refers to most characters by specific name (green turtle, Sammy Sosa)
Link’s characters’ feelings with action taken
No feelings Refers to feelings briefly (crying, laughing)
Identifies feelings Identifies feelings and makes connections
Settings(s) Makes no mention of where or when the story takes place
Mentions one detail related to the setting
Mentions 2 or more details
Demonstrates clear knowledge of where and when the story takes place and when applicable connects setting to important elements in the story
Story events/ key events
Tells one or two events or key facts
Tells some of the events or key facts
Tells many events in sequence for the most part, or tells many facts
Tells most events in sequence or tells most key facts.
Retelling with Teacher
Retells with 5 or more questions or prompts
Retells with 3 or 4 questions or prompts
Retells with 1 or 2 questions or prompts
Retells with no questions or prompts
Comprehension Level
5 6 7 8 Very Little Comprehension
9 10 11 12 13 Some Comprehension
14 15 16 17 Adequate comprehension
18 19 20 Very Good Comprehension
Score _______________