Week 10 Reflection

Post #1

Yesterday I incorporated leveled readers for the first time this semester. While the students worked well with one another in their reading groups, they were absolutely bored with the books that were provided. This "boredom" was the opposite of the effect I had in mind, considering the fact that I incorporated these books so that students could better understand Chinese traditions and ways of life because they did not seem to understand by simply reading the story The Ch i' lin Purse, which is a Chinese Folktale. In the story, the vocabulary is quite difficult, which may account for the lower comprehension rates and interest in this story; of course if students do not "get" something they are not going to enjoy it. My question is this: How do I incorporate aspects of the basal reader and still make instruction interesting? Am I doing enough by implementing technology and arts-based activities, or is there more I can be doing? When should I pull materials like leveled readers and when should I chose to set them to the side?

Post #2

Today I tied one of the themes of this week's story, traditions, into a writing exercise. Students were asked to write about a favorite family tradition that they share with their loved ones. This evoked an enthusiastic response, as students were eager to share their favorite family activities with me. To me, this demonstrates the importance of linking instruction to students' real-life situations and interests. Sometimes it is difficult to get students to write, but today when they were able to share a piece of themselves with me and their classmates, they were motivated to share their ideas and experiences. Better yet, once students shared their paragraphs describing their favorite traditions, I was able to talk about some of the Chinese wedding traditions that are mentioned in The Ch i' lin Purse and compare them to a few of the stories that students shared. Thankfully, I was starting to see some wheels turn once again :)