The Reading Brain - It's No Hocus Pocus

The written word is like a magic charm as powerful as any wizardry that Harry Potter could summon. With a wave of his wand he draws children in totally. In truth, we know it's really the clacking keyboard that casts the spell. These children who disappear into the pages of a book, are really taken in by the power of reading. It is literacy that grants them access to mystical worlds in faraway lands.

Little do they know that it is this act of reading, that is the most impressive sorcery of all time. Humankind was not born to read! It took 2000 years to make this intellectual leap. Just as a prism unlocks the colors in a beam of light; the brain's synaptic pathways unlocks the sound/symbol relationship. How? The brain wired older structures to house vision and language together.

The evolution of the reading brain looks something like this: The

Token Reading Brain:

Our early ancestors used area 37 (object recognition) as the earliest form of reading. This enabled us to link an object with a concept, making connections to associated areas of the brain.

The Logosyllablary Reading Brain:

Chinese readers offer a view of the ancient Sumerians who created the first written language Cuneiform. This is a form of hieroglyphic writing that resembles bird tracks, or fingernail impression in clay tablets. Check out: http://www.wsu.edu/~dee/GLOSSARY/CUNEI.HTM if you want to learn more...

The English Reading Brain:

If you want to learn more about the evolution of reading, there is a must have book, Proust and the Squid by Maryanne Wolf. Check her out: http://www.childrenofthecode.org/interviews/wolf.htm

Although it seems as if literacy were conjured up - as though some secret scroll was unfurled in the brain. In a way it was - but the scroll is really a network of nuero transmitters setting the brain alight with the author's craft. Reading allows us to see what cannot be seen, shape shift to a different self- a transient identity. The process that allows this is amazing. If you want to see the reading brain in action click on the video link next to this post.

Until next time readers...

What Works...in the Classroom

Reciprocal Teaching

is a research based method of teaching that is predicated on four strategies that good readers use:

• Predict - students link text to their prior knowledge
• Question - students make literal and inferential queries
• Clarify - students do word attack or visualize to deepen meaning
• Summarize - students share the most salient aspects of text
  

These strategies are intended to be used interchangeably in a teacher led cooperative group. Using this method 2-3 times per week, over a span of three to six months can yield one or two years comprehension growth.

If you want to learn more check out Lori Oczkus. I met Lori at a conference and she was amazing. She had so many ideas, and her books are full of easy to use materials. These are two of Lori's books that I have and use regularly:

&

If you want to see her in action check out this link to her Home Page...

http://lorioczkus.com/teachers-tips-lori-oczkus.php

Shooting Rubber Bands

Back to school - all those different little people together in one room. There were those who sat quietly doodling in the margins. All those who were studious and wrote everything down. How about the kids who just couldn't sit still moving around, playing with things in their desk, or shooting rubber bands when the teacher wasn't looking. As children we didn't think about how they taught us to read. Now that we're the adults do you wonder how they did it? There are two schools of thought when it comes to reading and it helps to think of them as if they were the phases of a shooting rubber band - release (developmentalists) and stretch (interventionist). This time it's the teacher who is taking aim.

If a rubber band is released, it takes on whatever shape is conducive to it's environment. Those who have a developmental view are proponents of whole language, essentially to immerse a child in rich literature, foster a wealth of language, teach strategies based on reading observations, appreceiving reading growth. This is an environment that encourages literacy growth. Yes it is...

If a rubber band is stretched it becomes a slick aim line pointing in a clear direction. Those who are interventionists see reading development as being more concrete. The reader has to master a series of sub-skills in order to read fluently. The belief is to intervene with immediate corrective feedback, giving multiple exposures, and allowing for many repetitions until the skill is mastered. This is the way to create proficient readers.
Yes it is...

In years past this was referred to as the "Reading Wars". I don't know about you, but I could do with some peace. In many ways education is similar to politics. It seems that educational philosophies can become so entrenched to the point where these beliefs become dogma. I like to believe that happens because the work is so important people just want to do what they know is right. Just like politics, there are no simple solutions to complex problems.

The good news is, most teachers know this. The primary mission is helping children learn to read. That is why there is room for both in the classroom. Some people learn how to read as if it were breathing; others need to learn strategies for the alphabetic principle (phonics); and some thrive with a smattering of both.

I do not believe in whole language, I do not believe in phonics, I believe in what works for the reader. A literacy toolbox includes all of this - rich literature, sophisticated language, developmental designs, strategies, and more. It is imperative to understand the context of a reader while being responsive to whatever needs exist. Dedicated educators possess a deep understanding for appropriate interventions. If something isn't working it gets fixed. There are so many good things going on in the classrooms of America - I just wish more people knew.

This is not to say there isn't a lot of work to be done. As with a rubber band and the process of stretch and release and stretch and release causes it to break; resulting in some pain in the process. Clinging to ideals over finding solutions is just like that, but it causes a wake of pain - called illiteracy. Teachers know there is a small window of time to intervene before all that can be done is to remediate a problem. I encourage you to get involved with your child's literacy growth this academic year. You make a better advocate if you understand the needs. So roll up your sleeves and partner up with your child's classroom teacher, there is no stronger team.

Read it Again...please!

“Read it again…please.” Did your child ever ask to hear the same story over and over? It gets to the point where you no longer need to see the words, and if you dare to change any aspect of the story, well you’re in for it, “It doesn’t go that way. Read it the right way.”

What may not be so apparent is the reason why young children love these tried and true stories. The truth is the benefits from repeated readings provide opportunities to develop early literacy skills. With each reading, a book reveals something new. It’s all a matter of children’s perspective; for instance, one day they are learning to navigate “book talk” as they expand their understandings for vocabulary or syntax. The next time they may study illustrations and concepts. Think of it like this, a book has many layers each time it is reread a child can go deeper into its design. In a sense, this is how children learn to build a book in their heads.

Once children have the intellectual capacity to understand the dynamics of a book; rereading provides ample possibilities for increased fluency and comprehension. Fluency is one of the most researched areas in literacy. It is comprised of three elements: accuracy (reading the words correctly), rate (reading the words in a conversational way), and prosody (expression when reading words or phrases). Yet how to teach fluency is still somewhat ambiguous to both educators and parents. Start with this question, what is happening during reading?

If the reader is not accurate when reading, like horse for house. The issue could be there is some missing phonics skill like the sound "ou" makes in the word house. It could be that the reader doesn't know enough sight words. Sight words are words children need to know automatically like "the" these words are tricky for children because they cannot sound them out. It might be that the reader does not have the oral vocabulary to match the decoding attempt. So if the child knows a word like timid knows there is a likelihood for accurate decoding.

If readers are reading too slowly it might be that they are decoding letter by letter. If it takes too many tries to read the word,this too will impinge on the overall fluency which in turn effects comprehension. Fluency and comprehension are linked, it has a lot to do with working memory. Look at this way, if it takes too long to read a word in a sentence the child may forget what the sentence meant in the first place.

If the reader lacks prosody it could be that punctuation goes unnoticed. They do not have a deep understanding for syntax (see how those early experiences all come back). They are expending too much intellectual energy on decoding the words to manage real expression during reading.

Try this website to make repeated reading fun.
Poetry Theater @ Giggle Poetry.com http://www.gigglepoetry.com/poetrytheater.aspx

Reader's Theater is a great way to encourage children to reread text. If they have to perform what they are reading it is a sure way to motivate children while having a good time. Let me know what you think.

Crafting CROWD; Practicing PEER

Reading with your child is a parental state of bliss. What could be better? There is a secluded spot, a favorite book, and your little one. You gather close, read the words, and explore the story together. You point to colorful pictures and react to emboldened words as you raise your voice accordingly. I wish I could freeze those moments and return to them when I’m in need of sanctuary. These memories are precious because I have a swirl of experiences relating to this one act of sharing a book. My parents, my grandmother, my sister read to me; I read to my brother Jim, and to my nieces and nephews; then at last I read to my own little ones – though not so little anymore. It is a circle unbroken by generations - to love to read.

Everyone entered school either reading already or learning soon there after. Learning to read was not a concern to anyone – it was just a natural progression. Why? Did we have some natural predisposition for reading? Maybe. Was this penchant towards books something we learned? It seems likely. Two years ago, I learned about a method of read aloud, called Dialogic Reading, designed by Dr. Grover (Russ) Whitehurst (http://www.childrenofthecode.org/interviews/whitehurst.htm#PersonalBackground). As I watched this method’s procedure unfold I was struck by it’s simplicity but more than that, it’s familiarity. It described, to a T, our little reading ritual. How brilliant of Dr. Whitehurst to recognize this power of reading a story and open it up for the rest of the world. Also readers, if you have looked at the Source websites, if you click on What Works Clearinghouse, this is what school districts are using to evaluate programs that merit high marks for rigor for Scientifically Based Reading Research (SBRR), Dialogic Reading brought in some highly coveted statistical ratings No easy task. If you’re the kind of person who needs proof or if you just really dig statistics, here is the website check it out. http://www.eric.ed.gov/ERICDocs/data/ericdocs2sql/content_storage_01/0000019b/80/29/e1/30.pdf

How do you do this? It’s simple. There are two acronyms to remember, the first is CROWD. This describes kinds of prompts adults need to pose to children while reading.

· Completion: child fills in blank at the end of a sentence.
· Recall: adult asks questions about a book the child has read.
· Open-ended: adult encourages child to tell what is happening in a picture.
· Wh-: adult asks “wh-” questions about the pictures in books.
· Distancing: adult relates pictures and words in books to children’s own experiences outside of the book.




The read aloud method for using the prompts in CROWD is the second acronym PEER.

· Prompt: adult uses a prompt from CROWD
· Evaluate: adult evaluates the child’s response.
· Expands: adult expands the child’s response.
· Repeats: adult repeats the prompt.

Look at the Youtube video http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eXmwfyxS1f8 it demonstrates this very nicely. The adult begins the process with a Wh prompt: “What kind of machines do you think we’re going to see in this book?” The child begins listing machines – he is accessing that intellectual category. Think of it as priming a well – first the pump has to be primed by pumping the handle then the water flows. The adult is priming the child’s brain then the thinking flows. The adult Evaluates the child’s response then she Expands and Repeats together by doing this: “I think we’re going to see all those machines in this book. That’s very exciting.” As you watch, notice how she is crafting the CROWD prompts as she practices the PEER method. It is clear that this is a very familiar book to this child – rereading is good for children. I think that will be our topic for next time – rereading. I hope that you are finding these posts useful. I hope you are making time even a beautiful sunny cool day like today to read. You will never have a surer investment than the time you spend together in a book. So read, enjoy, and discover.

Sticks & Stones May Break My Bones, But Words Will Never Harm Me…

It is a gray day here readers, it’s been raining on and off, and the weather has turned cold. I hear the chatter of my daughters putting together school supplies in the dining room. They are getting along and talking about what the start of middle school will bring them. There is a wonderful mix of curiosity, and anticipation, with a sprinkle of anxiety, which resides in the tenor of their voices. The waves of sound drift throughout the house seemingly permeating the walls or any barrier for there is no shortage of conversation. They have always had a bounty of words. They alongside their brother can converse freely choosing the words to pinpoint their ideas or feelings in nanoseconds not apparent to any onlooker or even to themselves. Their words pour out like water from a faucet.

Certainly, words have never hamed them. It brings me back to the days of when they would ask questions upon questions about words: “What does obedient mean?” to “What is the difference between exquisite and beautiful?” If there are “foodies” in the world (forgive me, I just saw Julie & Julia) then we live in a house of - “wordies”. My father once wrote that his mother, regarded words as valuable as electricity and were not to be wasted. This view of language has shaped my understanding of words - how choosing the right one was a matter of efficiency and precision. I mused over this when my daughter wanted to use the word trenchant, she had read in a review of Leopold’s Sand County Almanac. We looked it up, trenchant means having keenness and forcefulness and penetration in thought expression or intellect. She later used the word to describe Georgia O’Keeffe in a report she did for school. By the way, other than speaking directly and purposefully with children as a means to endow them with an expansive vocabulary, wide reading is the next level for learning new words.

So it has been that I have always found this a normal state of being, this regular questioning and answering regarding words. But can you imagine there is a scientific/ educational term for this? It is called, word consciousness. When a child asks you what a word means they are operating on the highest levels of critical thinking – they are analyzing words in order to create meaning. Just as my daughter did with word trenchant, she owns that word it is there for her use whenever she needs it. If she sees it text it will hold nuances of meaning that others would miss for not having access to its influence. It is tucked away in her phonological processor (the region of the brain devoted to processing speech sounds) waiting. Since she has had prior experience with this word, she will be more likely to decode this word than the child who does not share this kind of wealth.

Yes, this is a kind of wealth - intellectual wealth. Here is the darker side to the statement “…words will never harm me.” Not having rich experiences with language does harm children. Remember that I said this journey to literacy begins before a child ever sees the printed word. It is true children entering Kindergarten can have a 30 million-word gap between socioeconomic groups. To learn more check out the watermark study, Meaningful Differences, by Betty Hart & Todd Risley. The following link is an excerpt from their book in an article published by American Educator: http://www.aft.org/pubsreports/American_educator/spring2003/catastrophe.html Children who have limited exposure to language find themselves in a dire state. They are behind their peers before they even enter school. We educators know this, and this knowledge can change everything, but we must intervene early. We need to create partnerships with parents.

Next time dear readers we will talk about how to read with children to increase their capacity for language through a method known as Dialogic Reading. I leave you with this, in the minds of children there is a river, a current of thought. Brilliant and spectacular charged with bolstering energy. If there is a life force then this is its power source. Words flush out ideas, and it is these ideas that will change our nation. Let the river run.

Learning to Fly

One of the primary goals to becoming a literate person is to know real freedom and autonomy. Freedom is to access knowledge and autonomy is to use it – or not. Do you read to entertain and escape? Do you read to learn? Do you read as a form of communication with others? Whatever the reason – the experience of engaging text is truly unique it carries the reader away into its world of language in imagery.

Have you ever seen a baby bird take flight? Well no, I haven’t either but I imagine that it is more like graceful falling than flying. Getting to know how to use wings to fly takes time and practice. That’s exactly like what the fledging reader needs. Time and practice. How do you guide your little one to learn how to take flight with words?

Your child’s classroom teacher may discuss reading strategies or fix-up strategies. Here are strategies that a reader can use to help them learn how to deal with mistakes (miscues) as they learn how to decode text.

“Use a picture clue.” – Many beginning books have a high correlation from picture to text the picture is a clue.
“Skip it then go back reread.” – Skip the troublesome word and finish the sentence then go back and reread it maybe you’ll have the information you need to solve the word.
“Reread” – If the reader doesn’t understand what was just read go back to reread, or if the reader took a long time solving a word go back to preserve the meaning of the sentence.
“Get your mouth ready.” – Sometimes the reader just needs to consider the initial letters of a word e.g. if the word is slip get your mouth ready by saying the /s/ sound.
“Look at word beginnings and endings.” Often times, middle (medial) parts in word are the more difficult for children to decode. We want to build confidence beginning (initial) parts of words are usually easier to figure, as is the end (finial).
“Find a word chunk.” This is a phonics cue in programs like Fundations they call these glued or welded sounds e.g. fan, an is the chunk or glued or welded sound.
“Does it look right?” When a child reads a word like glad and they read it as happy this, is the time to cue child back to the word glad and say does it look right?
“Does make sense? Why?” Children should always be reading to understand what they read, so if the child has just labored over a few sentences ask them if it made sense and then say why do you say that? See what they tell you.

These strategies help young readers learn how to read with autonomy – so that they can be free to learn and create.

One last quote from a favorite poet, “Hope is the thing with feathers” (Dickinson 1830-86) Literacy is what gives me hope – teaching children to read is teaching their minds to fly. They will answer all of the unanswered questions of today, but they need our help.