Be Part of The Solution / Giving Students Agency

Sitting here thinking about ideas for my future lesson plans, and stumbled across this.  Such a great way to give students agency! This was filmed in 2008, hahaha.

Where I'm From

By: Karen Ramirez

I am from an overprotective mother shouting “ten cuidado!” every five minutes.

Where the dads come home with greasy hands from the intestines of a car.

I am from where the dinner menu is steak con chismole or fried mojarras con limon

and, sitting at the dinner table where primary colors are all the rage for home decor.

I am from scraggly weeds breaking through the crumbling concrete,

where strong brown vines wrap buildings and suffocate the abandoned ones.

I am from walls crammed with vibrant visuals and leaky creaky classroom roofs never to be repaired.

I am from quote-unquote “not enough funds” and “we need to raise those scores.”

I am from studying lines like,

“Long live the rose that grew from concrete when no one else cared.”

But also studying writers like Robert Frost, Shakespeare and that dude with the white beard.

What was his name again?

I am from hot fried bunuelos,

crispy on the outside and cheesy spongy sin on the inside.

I am from steamy refried beans mixed with cool tangy sour cream.

Where drinking home-made cold, creamy, sweet and spicy horchata is something I can do EVERY.SINGLE.DAY.

I am also from birthday parties until 5 in the morning,

where the couples are dancing sensually to salsa and vallenatos,

and putting up with beer belly hugs from my hairy inebriated uncles.

Oh yea, don’t forget to break the piñata.

I am from hearing the deep bass and the echoing beat,

coming from a shiny transformer rumbling down the street.

I am defined as being a “latina” but also being a “gringa” at the same damn time.

I am from a place where everyone speaks three languages:

English, Spanish and struggle.

Working with one of my students

I was featured on PPSD's blog! Here is the link to the article: Click here :)

Ch.12 Recommendations from Reading Research

That feeling after reading The Harry Potter Series.

Chapter twelve was a bittersweet chapter for me. First, I think that this book was awesome and enlightening but I feel like there is so much more research to be done.  While it touched on great points on how to encourage reading through different subjects there lacked a lot of information on English Language Learners.  I love how this book has given me a lot of tools, tips and lesson plans that will remain in my career for the rest of my life.

In the last chapter there was research from Zihua Fang that said literacy can be improved by using four approaches:

1. Cognitive Strategies
2. Linguistic Approach
3. Sociocultural Approach
4. Critical Approach

I think that as a future English teacher I have these strategies engraved in my mind - especially when I will need to differentiate.  I think that this chapter specifically laid it out like that for the other subjects *cough* *cough* Are you listening guys?  Basically other subjects (Math, science, history) cannot point fingers and say reading takes place in the English class because ALL teachers should be assigning reading across all subjects.

While reading the points made by Zihua Fang's research I could not help but think.. this reminds me of what (usually) happens when you are a member of a book club!  Members learn different strategies on reading, members are constantly looking for meaning in the text, the club as a whole respects other views and opinions, members feel like important parts of the club, and members usually have a big idea or question that brings the readers together to solve (or at least try to).  And, they are not penalized for getting information wrong or expressing their own opinions... hmm....

"-It's literacy as liberation. (293)"

The textbook then turned into a list of what students read.  An interesting point was that students should feel a sense of personal purpose meaning they need a sense of motivation.  Usually this motivation involves intrinsic motivation as the text proved.  It was surprising to see that Central Falls Highschool is still using the "accelerated reader" program.  This computer program is where students read a book.  Then the students are quizzed on the book, the program then assesses the student on whether or not they understood the material or facts within the book.  (A standardized test for books.)  While this can be beneficial if students feel redeemed by the software but what if they receive a low score and actually did read the book?  This is another point that is hard for me to grasp because if students fail at the scores won't they eventually think, "this software is telling me that I can't read, so I won't keep trying."

Another point that resonated with me was how poor readers or those who avoid reading "see it as merely decoding for words, or looking for answers to the questions at the end of the chapter rather than a personally purposeful exploration. (296)"  I think that poor readers may not have the vocabulary words to read or just have not found material that is entertaining or that serves a purpose in their lives.  This can also connect to why students who read and then take the "accelerated reader" tests may have failed.  The reading that is done should also be on grade level in order for students to understand.

A couple of other points I enjoyed were the "I do, you watch" strategy.  This has also been repeated and engrained in my mind which I will hopefully put into practice for my lesson plans (yay!).  Also that reading should be social just like I said in the bookclub idea, socialization will lead to learning - Just like the great Piaget said!

"When students need to move up the ladder of challenge, they need teachers who don't just assign and exhort, but who show them the way. (304)"

Chapter 10 & 11 - Inquiry Units and Struggling Readers

Daniels and Zemelman brought up some strong points about teaching literacy in these chapters.  First of all, inquiry units.  Inquiry units basically involve students doing their own research.  Their own research which will connect to real-world problems which will make the work interesting and at the same time incorporates key learning concepts.  An Inquiry unit can bring in many Common Core Standards which make it dare I say... easier on teachers.  Inquiry units are "easier" in the sense that the teacher will teach a big unit with a lot of standards instead of coming up with one Common Core standard per lesson plan.  Also, it helps students because they are actually learning by working hard.  This kind of teaching is important for after-highschool life.  Through inquiry units literature like: magazines, articles, newspapers, internet and novels can be incorporated.  Students need to know how to read newspapers, magazines and other literature.  There were a lot of suggestions as to what kinds of inquiry projects can be invented such as jigsawing, role-play and researching controversial questions.  Also the students have CHOICE, they can choose what they want to research as long as it ties into the learning concepts... Awesome, right?
This chapter also expressed how it is so important for teachers to model reading and work to be done in the class.  I can see how important it is for teachers to humble themselves in front of their students.  I have a lot of stories that I would love to share with my classes about my struggles in high school as well as college.  I think that many successful people have had that one person (or couple of people) who believed in them.  By students seeing that their teacher believes in them and that the teacher has persevered, it can truly inspire students to succeed.

In the beginning of the chapter "Students Who Struggle with Reading" there was a part where it said that struggling readers cannot focus on a mental picture.  This was something I struggled with when I was in school.  I could visualize pictures in books that I liked (such as novels ❤) but pictures were not coming into my mind when I was reading other material (such as material in science and history).  Thankfully, I had projects in school that involved making commercials (in Mrs.Grant's class) and also creating advertisements for history (in Mr. Scappini's class).  These kinds of assignments helped me along greatly with connecting literature and creating a mental picture.

Another aspect of this chapter is creating positive youth relationships in order to create strong readers.  I am such a huge advocate for positive youth relationships because I believe that high school and middle school students face so many problems whether they be hormonal, developmental or even home situations.  Having that one teacher who will not belittle them when they make a mistake or make a sarcastic remark will always strengthen student's reading skills.  Having a positive environment not only encourages student's to admit to their mistakes but allows the teacher to create a learning outcome out of a mistake.

I have one gripe with this text... while it gave me some great ideas on starting inquiry units, I feel as if there are more that can be talked about.  It also did not have as many outside resources to look into for inquiry units as I would have liked.

What kind of stories do you have about your struggles in high school?

D&Z Chapter 8-9 / Book clubs and Independent Reading Time (Dun Dun DUN!)

As a future English Language Arts teacher a main concern I have been battling within my mind is whether I will have time to form book clubs and independent reading time.  Sometimes I tell myself: "Yes! Independent reading time is essential" other times I find myself saying, "how will I teach and still have time for independent reading time and prepare kids for testing?" (and then I proceed to cry internally about my future teacher struggles).

This chapter gave me tingles of excitement!  Because, it made me feel like it is possible to have independent reading time and book clubs.  I knew this was going to be a great chapter when I read, "We want our students to leave us with an enduring curiosity about our field, plus the motivation and the tools to continue the learning"(221).  Thankfully, I had great English teachers while in school which left me with this exact feeling after I left high school.  My high school teachers (and my mom who was also a teacher) always encouraged reading and writing throughout my life but also left me with a lifelong love for literacy.  Even after high school I kept blogs, a writing journal, I review restaurants on Yelp! (Follow me here ;), I even wrote a novel at one point (which I sadly lost) and of course I read many different kinds of books in my free time.  These are the type of things I want my students to find love in and continue to do even after high school.  I had teachers who brought me up to the library and had me select a book for independent reading time; I had Mrs. Grant who would hold Socratic Seminars a couple of times a year; Mrs. Garces who would help use analyze novels and of course Mr. Occhi who would encourage us to keep writing.

What I truly loved about these chapters is how they explained step by step how to hold student's accountable.  On page 228 there is a section where it explains how if you notice your students are struggling with a literary concept (Some examples could be: Theme, plot, contrasting texts, similes, etc.) you can actually teach a mini lesson.  This also ties in with the CCSS in: 

CC.K-12.R.R.1 Key Ideas and Details: Read closely to determine what the text says explicitly and to make logical inferences from it; cite specific textual evidence when writing or speaking to support conclusions drawn from the text. (www.Corestandards.org) The textbook suggested that using post it notes, student portfolios, or even making reading journals could be an excellent way of holding kids accountable. Book clubs were also an important aspect of individual reading.  I can see this being incorporated into a learning center which would be awesome! The text also emphasized that the teacher's role should be to assist, observe and facilitate.  This also emphasizes the idea of a community of learners and having students doing the work instead of the teacher. (Can I get a hallelujah?)  This chapter also made self assessment an important aspect of the book club. It ties into what Professor Horwitz is doing with our class.  She has us grade ourselves but this chapter adds a second layer emphasizing that it is important for students to improve themselves and see what they are doing well and what needs more work. This chapter also emphasized that rubrics and requirements can be invented by the class as a whole. Requirements being invented by the student's also adds a sense of comfort, self-assessment and account- ability.  I absolutely loved these chapters - they made me excited to start teaching. These chapters were great for ELA, were they equally as great for other subjects such as Math, History, Science?

D & Z Chapters 6 & 7

First of all I thought it was a bit ironic how the textbook we are reading says "[the teacher] then assign[s] those six or seven pages every day to 'get it done.' (177)" We are reading the whole textbook in this class, Lol!  Actually, this textbook is one of the best textbooks I've ever read, so it's okay... I'll let this one slide.

Some points that really stuck out were how textbooks can be used in classrooms but that the ideas should be uncovered rather than just going over them.  Chapter 6 has a set of questions that teachers can ask themselves before they go over the material - to see if it really is that important to go over.  I thought this was especially important for history, math and science concentrations.  Since, we all know that it would probably be impossible to go over the whole entire textbook in one school year.  Do I hear a challenge being made?

Vocabulary is also a point in this chapter where it points out that Tier 2 words (which cover multiple disciplines and meanings).  Should be taught to our future students.  Vocabulary was always easy for me because I would derive a lot of the English word meanings from Spanish vocabulary.  I think vocabulary is one of the most important yet most forgotten tools in our units.

What I did not like about this chapter was how it hit me with a harsh reality.  Many state tests will dictate what kinds of texts we need to train our students to be prepared for.  In the section "Find out what's really on the big test" it says explicitly that teachers need to see what kinds of texts are in the tests.  Later on in these chapters it says "The Common Core Standards focus pretty much on learning outcomes rather than classroom processes but not entirely. (206)"  This is contradictory because on one hand Common Core only shows the outcomes teachers should get but the tests want to test students on certain texts.... so basically I need to teach what the government wants me to teach... Cool.  Slowly but surely I can see classrooms turning into the novel 1984 by Orwell.

Don't get me wrong, I think that there should be a set of standards every teacher needs to follow.  But, I do not agree with children missing time in class to do a test.  Maybe I will agree with the test later on in my career but for now I will give it a exagerated eye roll.

On a brighter note I loved how chapter 7 reinforced the community of learners outlook on teaching.  As a high school student I remember one of my favorite teachers being Mr. Occhi.  He really inspired me to become an English teacher.  One thing I remembered was he would nickname his students slowly as the year would progress.  My nickname was "Mighty" while this seems like such a random thing to do I felt like I had a connection to him.  While this does not exactly connect to what the text says about creating a community of learners, it put a lot of the students at ease.  The text says "Make the classroom a place where students trust the teacher and believe it's safe to take risks, a place where it's OK to ask questions when they don't understand something, and they can expect to receive the support they need to handle challenges. (206)"  Part of creating a community of learners is to accept children for WHO THEY ARE - This is something Dr. Cook also encouraged.  Hopefully our class as a whole as well.  

Daniels & Zemelman Chapter 4 & 5

 After reading these chapters I could connect a lot of the main points to my actual life.  Around page 65 Daniels & Zemelman talk about how many non-fiction books use a solid organizational pattern.  Non-fiction books in sense ease in the reader to what is to be learned or what the main point of the

book is.  A connection I immediately made is how books actually teach the reader.  Which I thought was interesting because I have always heard people talk about Malcolm X’s biography but I have never once heard anybody remark on something they have read in a textbook about Malcolm X.  This shows me that giving students non-fiction books can inform them sometimes better than a textbook.

Another point that I connected to my life was: “26 states are officially moving towards as they develop the Next Generation State Standards – depth versus coverage.”  This made me so excited because I will be starting to implement the Next Generation State Standards in my summer position.  On Friday I attended a meeting where we talked about how we will be implementing more hands on activities into our summer curriculum.  Totally excited!

After reading that some schools had a standard that their students had to read forty books a year, I was impressed.  I remember in middle school I had teachers who would set aside reading time for their students in class.  In those ten minutes I remember I would read and that is where I would find books that I actually liked.  That is where my lifelong love of reading grew.  A quote, which I enjoyed, was: “But real readers, lifelong readers, assign themselves (69).”  I think a lot of English majors can relate to this because English majors typically love reading, analyzing and talking about all areas of literature.

Chapter 5 was a compilation of tools for thinking for literature.  I read the tools and totally overlooked the chart that Daniels and Zemelman included.  Wow, so awesome that they included an actual tool for the tools, such a foolproof tool.  It shows to me that they really took time to think over what they wrote and are credible. 

Strong Chapter 6

This chapter of reading was refreshing as both an english and education major.  Finally someone puts creativity into their actual practice!  The use of Darth Vader as an enemy trying to create students into subjects of society was great.  I can relate to what William Strong was talking about when he said that

Punishment + Fear + Writing = Non-writers

This topic was stressed in my Secondary Education English class.  Where I learned that as a future English teacher I need to be able to not criticize but give advice as to how to improve writing in order to make future writers.   Also as teachers we cannot expect students to just magically know how to write.  (Expectations like that will also create non-writers.)

This chapter also reminded me of what types of writing are the fun and engaging kinds of writing.  I know that some of my best writing is always when I am very emotional about it.  Whether I was in middle school and in love with a boy, angry about what someone said to me or sad about a family/friend situation.  Whether my writing was in poetry, writing mini-novels, comics or journal entries - I was always passionate about something.  Our students are the same way too! Which is why I think that this chapter talked about writing in a way that I KNOW works.

Strong mentioned that the best and most effective assignments are the ones that have ten design principles.  They were:

Make sure your topics are meaningful

Use specific terms such as: define, illustrate, persuade, etc.

Exercise C.R.A.F.T. (Context, Role, Audience, Format)

Design topics to elicit meaningful, specific, immediate responses.

Define the criteria.

Give the students choice.

Create topics that invite inventive thinking.

If you use a hypothetical situation make sure it is within your students grasp.

Select topics that have a purpose.

Use creative formats.

This makes sense because when you use topics that are interesting such as, teen pregnancy, racism and drug abuse.  Suddenly you see student's eyes light up, especially those who would never participate.  I have been fortunate enough to see some of these topics in action at Central Falls Highschool.

Scavenger Hunt

1.  What is the name of the oldest health care provider in Central Falls?
The oldest health care provider in Central Falls is Notre Dame Ambulatory Center which is now an extension of Memorial Hospital which is located in Pawtucket, RI.  Notre Dame Ambulatory Center is located on 1000 Broad St, Central Falls RI.

The Post Office

2.  What is the name of the oldest nonprofit organization serving the Latino community in the city?
The oldest non-profit organization in Central Falls is "Progreso Latino."  They help Latinos in the community to be able to attain education, housing as well as immigration services and lots of other useful things.

www.ProgresoLatino.org

7.  Do local residents generally have Internet in their homes?

Higginson Ave Complex (aka snow piles everywhere)

I believe that a lot of local residents do have internet, I know my younger cousin who goes to Veterans Elementary School receives reduced-price internet services.  Which I think is amazing because now even low income families can afford to have internet.

8. Is there a post office in the town?
Yes, there is and it is located on Dexter St.

10. Is there a movie theater in town?
Not anymore but when I was very young I remember driving by this movie theater.  It has been bought out and is now being used as a church.

12.  Are there public parks?

What used to be a Movie Theater kinda still looks like one :)

Yes, there are a couple of public parks in Central Falls.  There is:
Higginson Park Complex
Jenks Park
Macomber Stadium
High St Ball field
Coutu Memorial Park
Crossman Street Playground
Sacred Heart Ave Playground
Illinois Street Playground
Garfield St Playground
Lewis & Hunt Park
Pierce Park
River Island Park.
Woo! that was a mouth-full I never realized we had so many parks.

15.  Find one monument or Statue.  What is the history associated with it?
The Coutu Memorial Park is a memorial park which was interesting to me because it is so recent.  It is located on the corner of Hunt St & Lewis St.  It was built as a reminder and memorial for Chief Robert A. Coutu and Chief René R. Coutu.  It was built due to their great work and contributions to the City of Central Falls and to the Fire Department.  

24.  There are three professional baseball players from Central Falls.  Name them.

Cogswell Tower in Jenks Park

Charley Bassett played from 1884-1892
Jim Siwy played from 1982 - 1984
Max Surkont played from played 1949-1957


26.  Becoming wealthy during the Gold Rush of 1849, she remembered her hometown and donated $50,000 to build the most recognizable feature in the city.  Everyone knows who she is and can see her donation, time after time.
Caroline Cogwell donated $50,000 to build Cogswell Tower which is located in Jenk's Park and is thought as Central Falls signature landmark.  

28.  She was a champion of the underdog and with the help of her husband helped slaves escaping to Canada.  Later she worked for the rights of women.
Elizabeth B. Chase helped to move slaves into Canada through Central Falls which used to be considered Valley Falls.  

Phillips, Arthur Sherman. The Phillips History of Fall River. Fall River, MA: Dover, 1944. Print.

Ubd Chapter 1 & Modules A & F

Ubd chapter 1 focused on the idea of backwards lesson planning.  The chapter broke down the meaning behind why and how teachers should implement this form of planning into their everyday routine.  Understanding by design is what Ubd stands for and there is a lot of punch behind the three letter acronym.  Ubd claims that teachers are designers and that the way that we plan out curriculums should be based on: Planning lesson plans backwards; Focusing the design of the curriculum to meet specified purposes and most importantly students are learning is the curriculum is designed well.  

Ubd starts off with mapping out what you want your students to learn and what results are expected.  Also determining acceptable behavior as well as planning learning experiences and instructions.  This translated to me as "if you want to be a teacher your curriculums should be thought out well and prepared, if not you are in the wrong career."  Ubd is further broken down into filters as well as stages to more easily plan out curriculums.  What really stuck out to me from the stages and filters were:

- The importance of engagement of students.

- Assessment and evidence is needed to validate proficiency in your students.

- Plan, plan, plan.

-What materials and/or resources will you need for this curriculum?

-Establish standards and curriculum expectations.

What I really enjoyed about this method of curriculum planning was how easy it would be to fuse scaffolding and Understanding by Design together to create a master curriculum.  Understanding by design is in a way placing emphasis on scaffolding by, creating steps from the last step to the very beginning.

Module A went into "The big ideas of Ubd."  Which included:

- Research on learning and cognition that reflects the centrality of teaching and assessing for understanding.

- A helpful and time honored process for curriculum writing.

A big red flag that popped in my mind when reading this section was how great it was that I was being exposed to Ubd this early in my career.  Which will help me be able to create curriculums easily and have a way to see curriculums as a sort of timeline or how to step by step.  Judy Willis a contributor to Ubd explained that patterning is when the brain perceives patterns from information either learned previously or newly attained material.  The best remembered information is learned through multiple and varied exposures.  Also learning that is engaging will be the stored in long term memory. I really do agree with this section and was like "hell yea!" in my mind.  Mostly because I remember having those great high school teachers who would use different ways of teaching like recording a commercial activity or using real life examples.  Those teaching techniques still stick with me today while note taking days are blank from my memory.

One aspect of Module A that I did not like was the "twin sins"  where the author claims that teachers may confuse "hands on with minds on" and that teaching is sub-par when "marching through resources."  An example of each of these twin sins is what really lacked for me in this chapter.  It was not as clear as I would have hoped.

Module F covered essential questions and understanding.  I liked how there was a whole chapter on questioning.  I understand how questioning is truly essential to include into curriculums.  Questioning not only activates schema but it also acts as a cue which allows students to answer and understand better.  A quote from this module that really made me happy was: "Serious learning involves inquiry in the face of uncertainty (77)."

This quote just made me tingle with excitement because I would LOVE to create a community of learners where students were not scared to ask questions.  I think asking questions is a great way to learn and as long as we create a community within our classrooms having students seriously learn should be a piece of cake.

My Interest inventory

Subjects Matter Chapters 1 & 2

After reading through chapters 1 & 2 of Subjects Matter by Harvey "Smokey" Daniels and Steven Zemelman I have come to a couple conclusions and a couple of concerns.  The first chapter in Subjects Matter depicted how a proficient classroom along with students should look and act like if they are fully engaged in learning.   The first chapter also depicted what classrooms and students will look and feel like if they are just doing the typical read through the text and quiz the next day.  What I liked about this chapter was how the authors wrote it, they made me feel like I had a teaching best friend who is going to help me become the best teacher I possibly can.  Second, I also liked how the authors presented examples and detailed what goes on in a student's mind when they are actually comprehending a text.

Daniels and Zemelman made me feel excited to teach again because they hit home with everything they talked about.  Especially about how they said "Subjects Matter is all about: effectively inviting kids to engage in our subjects, to think, remember, build knowledge -- and to care. (9 Daniels and Zemelman)"  A couple of questions were raised in my mind when I finished chapter one.  I realize that yes, creating a community of learners is definitely possible but what happens to the lone student who just does not want to participate at all?  Working in an after school program I have seen the students who just pack up their stuff and leave the classroom because they feel that it is a waste of time.  What tactics can teachers use to help these hard-to-reach students?  I hope eventually I will come to some strategies about this.

This chapter also went into detail about the Common Core.  I graduated from an urban high school and it has helped me see what it is actually like to come from a low-performing school.  This chapter brought me back to what it was like to have teachers say "you guys are not doing well on the NECAP, it is because you are poor.  Scores matter! Why aren't you guys learning? blah blah blah."  If teachers repeatedly remind students how they are low-performing and poor year after year.  How do they expect improvement?  Development and learning stems from positive reinforcement, amazing curriculums and great teachers. (Am I missing something?)  Scores are a student's right to know but I am a firm believer that teachers should keep those remarks to themselves.  But nobody has tried this out yet, hopefully sometime in the future. (Definitely by me)

Chapter 2 went into detail about what a student feels like when they read in a classroom.  I loved how this was structured within the text! It totally put me back to what it actually felt at times in my middle school/high school classes.  This chapter also analyzed the Common Core Standards which definitely relieved me.  Daniels and Zemelman really broke down what was great about the Common Core Standards and what needed fine tuning (a.k.a. what sucks about them).  It really helped how they clarified what an independent learner/reader should be.  Independent learner/reader does not actually mean "here is some reading or work now do it by yourself."  An independent learner/reader has a teacher as a guide and the teacher holds the students hand step by step until they actually LEARN what they are analyzing, reading, comprehending etc.

After reading these chapters I have questions in my mind but also a happiness that having Common Core Standards as well as an engaged classroom is a possible task.  Sometimes, when I read the standards I think wow, this is so hard how is this going to be possible?  But, Daniels and Zemelman made it feel possible.

Wilhelm, Baker & Dube Reflection (Chapters 1 & 2)

"Strategic Reading, Guiding Students to Lifelong Literacy" Wilhelm, Dube and Baker argued many different theories, ideas and definitions of what teaching literacy should be like.  I was astounded when they mentioned how it is predicted that 95% of elementary school teachers use the basal reader as the curriculum.  The basal reader is a good way to find ideas on how to run a curriculum but it totally goes against the ideas Wilhelm, Dube and Baker stand by in these chapters.

The contributors kept stressing the idea of "Teaching must be reconceived as 'guiding students to more competent learning performances.'"  They also stood by the theory of having students in The Zone of Proximal Development instead of The Zone of Actual Development.  They explained that having students continue to work on information that they had already mastered was repetitive and pointless.  They stressed that real learning in literacy takes place in The Zone of Proximal Development where the teacher implements a strategy of teaching and becomes more of a guide.  This strategy that they support is: "I do you watch, I do you help, You do I help, You do I watch."  This strategy not only simplifies a seemingly complicated way of teaching but also stands behind Vygotsky's idea of scaffolding.  This also transforms the teacher into a guide where they guide the child by the hand until they master what is to be learned.

Wilhelm, Baker and Dube also stress how learning should be fun.  If learning is not fun or if students cannot see the correlation between learning and real life they will most likely be uninterested.  Especially if the learning is outside of The Zone of Proximal Development.  One of the theorists named Hillocks argued that the best learning engages students and is fun.  Hillocks also argues that engaged learning works because it is usually challenging and purposeful.  Hillocks said that if students are provided enough support and effective learning techniques they will learn.  The authors also went through and explained different kinds of methods for teaching reading strategies such as cognitive structuring, modeling, questioning, explaining/instructing, feeding back/naming and contingency management.  These two chapters really hit home as to what kind of skills I am trying to learn and master as a future teacher. 

How I Learned to Draw Graphically Using Different Types of Media and How it Influenced My Life

Growing up my parents always wanted to provide me with as much possible so I could succeed in my education.  They would buy sets of encyclopedias, hire tutors and also they bought me a computer at the age of ten.  For a while I had a computer without Internet because I did not need the Internet at that age.  Today, if you hand a teen a computer they would give you a dirty look and say, “What do you expect me to do with this?”  But at the young age of ten I learned the ins and outs of working with a computer without the use of Internet.  My favorite software had to be paint; I would sit in front of paint for hours and draw.  I would draw comics, cartoons and also lettering.  My drawings were not only limited to the computer but I also had a knack for drawing on paper.  My parents quickly realized that I could draw and that their investment in the computer was not going down the route they had intended.

            Some people will argue, “No art is ever original.”  But, I taught myself how to draw from observing other’s work.  My influences on my art came from two very distinct places.  My “graphic design” skills grew when my parents installed Internet.  Immediately I made a MySpace account and I remember surfing the website and finding beautiful, custom-made layouts.  People would create the graphics for the layouts and then code HTML onto their profiles and create beautiful webpages.  I remember that I immediately looked up as much information as I could about HTML and taught myself how to code from scratch. I then created my own layouts with different backgrounds and my name lettered across. The layouts would be created by hand using Paint and Photoshop.  Influences would come from all over including key layout artists I would look up and gain inspiration from their creativity.  My art on MySpace was highly regarded, I had over a 100,000 friends and people would offer me money to customize their layouts.

            For my paper drawings, I was heavily influenced by one of my art teachers in high school.  I always thought lowly of my paper drawings because I was not very good at drawing people or realistic items like fruit.  However, my art teacher in high school showed me artists who defied ordinary like Dali and Van Gogh.  Their art fit the other genre, which did not involve much people or realistic items. Throughout the art class I did get to work on a self-portrait, which with the guidance of my art teacher turned out pretty good.  My real talent and love was with drawings that had bold lines, graphic details and a fantastical touch.

            Once I hit my later years in high school MySpace got out of style and Facebook came in with it’s default, bland, blue and default layout for every user.  I lost a lot of my knowledge with coding HTML but drawing stayed with me.  Whether it is on a computer, iPad or paper, drawing has always been my favorite hobby.  I love sitting down with a full mind and just letting markers, pencil or my stylus do the talking.  Teaching myself how to code web page layouts not only taught me the power of my mind when I am determined but also showed me how amazing the human brain is.  I was a twelve year old who knew how to make complete web pages from scratch, something even adults with degrees in the field struggle with today.  It impacted my life because it taught me that many feats are possible with determination and goals.

            Being literate in drawing and graphic design helps me because I work with middle school students in an afterschool program.  My boss and I were told by the district to make visuals with our expectations for our youth and I decided to take on the task.   I made all of our posters from scratch which not only look fun but also colorful and deliver our important mission statement and message of “respect yourself, others and property.”  Other than creating visuals, the journey of learning how to draw has taught me that if a youth has the right amount of confidence, support, resources and knowledge they are able to achieve anything they want in their lives.