Emma's Literacy Blog

  I walked to Mr. Roberson’s creative arts class, as per usual, on November 30 th. As I approached the door, the lights were off. I was really confused, until I saw the movie Coco playing on the front screen. The kids had a half day, so periods were shorted, about twenty-five to thirty minutes each. I got to see second and third period that day instead of first and second. Third period was a planning period though, so my observ ation was cut short. That’s okay, there is always plenty to see during second period. My favorite class! I could tell they were bored. There was shuffling of chairs and chattering. They didn’t care about Coco, while I was fully entranced by the little half boy half ske leton. I didn’t turn around to look, but I heard the rowdy boys behind me getting a little too excited about whatever they were discussing . One of them exploded. Not quite yelling, but talking very loudly; way louder than the rest of the group of boys. He was being silly, I had heard his ...

  Tovani starts her sixth chapter by listing her students. It’s a little funny and beyond relatable that she had a hard time remembering her quiet students. Or in her words: “invisible.” Again, it is all about finding what is behind this mask that makes student s feel comfortable in the learning environment. I loved the title of her first section to address this “problem”: Talking Isn’t the Only Way to Show Thinking.        Despite how much I lov e to talk now, I almost never spoke in classes in my early to late year in public education. I have certainly never been an introvert, but I never used talking aloud in class as a way of working through problems. If I was verbal at all, it was because I was called on or when I was working through a problem to myself. I often felt more comfortable whispering with a teacher about my thoughts than sharing them with the entire class. I worked better on paper, my strong suit being writing as opposed to speaking. I can’...

  As usual, I walked into Mr. Roberson’s class with about twenty minutes left of first period. That day was dedicated to makeup work. The students were working at their tables, some more quietly than others. I’m sure you can recognize a theme at this point, students are often doing busy work while I’m there. This period was just fine; the bell rang and they moved on while others moved in. Second period: my favorite, not Mr. Roberson’s. Some of my favorite students walked in: the troublemakers, the rowdy ones. Roberson told them what they had to spend their day doing. He listed which students were missing what assignments. There were several that had n’t turned in more than one worksheet. All of their assignments can be found on Schoology, their “Canvas.” After the announcement is when things got a little crazy. Several students, who were probably avoiding their boring worksheets, continued to get up out of their seats to ask to leave to either use the bathroom or go t...

  In Mr. Roberson’s class on October 19, I entered the class halfway through first period. The students were working at their tables . There was a bit of chatter, but not overwhelmingly so. Students were working on their costume designs for a play that they had read previously in the week. They could use any coloring utensil that they wanted. Shortly after, the bell rang, and secon d period came in. Mr. Roberson affectionately describes second period as his trouble class. After introducing the assignment to that class, he makes his way back to his desk. He often sits there and tells me the latest gossip wh ile the students work. Most students got to work after given the assignment, but there are always those few that waste their class time. There is one student in particular who was having trouble sitting down to do his work the entire period. Thank goodness Mr. Roberson likes to gossip; he shared with me that this student moved from Mexico around the time he was entering the fi...

  At the beginning of Tovani’s fifth chapter, she touches on her use of long term targets , student participation, and engag e men t with the world. She takes the time to list some long-term learning targets for the class she is teaching. This one assignment ties into several other goals for her students. Not only will these targets help them complete their writing assignment well, but they will also acquire the skills to continue using the writing process she has laid out for them to use. If all goes well, these tools to write well will follow them throughout their writing careers.   She also emphasizes the importance of speaking with and not to others at the conversation table. Small comments are often underestimated in the classroom. When appropriate comments are made, they can stick with students for a very long time. Often, I forget the larger themes of classes, but will remember something small that a professor or teacher said with no context or larger purpose. ...

  This chapter broke my heart! When her students tap into what they genuinely care about, magic happens. I remember in my younger schooling years when this would happen. It is so interesting that as continuous students, that we relate to all levels of learners.        The first thing that struck me from the reading was the use of photography as text for Caleb. Tapping into student interests outside of school via social media is genius! Personally, I don’t know if I would be comfortable checking out a student’s Instagram... but getting to know students on this personal level gives so much insight into what they care about. What do they want to share with the world? I feel that image is a form of text that gets overlooked often. In reality, sometimes an image can hold more meaning than a set of paragraphs. For example, when her students made connections between the Syrian refugees and the Mexican and South American asylees, image could have been anoth...