I've spent the last four years learning what to do and how to do it. It's a different animal when you get in the trenches and do it, though. Since I'm back in the classroom, I'm making a conscious effort to to do all those things that I learned about--read-alouds, mini-lessons, embedded grammer instruction, modeled thinking...the list goes on forever. So what do these things look like in REAL classroom? I'm not talking about the ideal situation of a reading lab like a lot of experts have. I mean a room full of real ninth graders on as many different levels as there are bodies in the room.
Yesterday was day one and I started with a read aloud. I decided to do Duck on a Bike as a little lesson that you can do whatever you believe in. I will say that the reception wasn't hostile. They weren't exactly clamouring for more, but they were attentive. Today, after bellwork, I read Incredible Me! to help kick off our "Who am I?" unit. I was very impressed by my connections. They were present. Slightly quieter than yesterday. Still not overly ecstatic.
Will read alouds work for us every day all year? Sure they will! All great classes start with a read aloud. But all of them can't come from children's books. I'm on the lookout for blogs and columns to share with my students. I like starting the class with a read-aloud. It gives me structure. And since I don't believe in DOL, it gives us a way to start class.
Next time, embedded grammar instruction. We started today and will continue as we go. We'll see. This afternoon, I'm going to model thinking in front of seniors. Wish me luck!
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