Literacy Now

Music is often the catalyst I need to jump start my own writing for the day. I choose my playlists based on subject matter. For example, when I’m working on my young adult manuscript, I listen to the edgier contemporary artists. I add a layer to my listening criteria depending on my protagonist; if it’s a male character, I’ll choose male vocalists, and if it’s a female, I’ll pick female artists. The music provides a rhythm and a flow by which my words form their own rhythm and make music on the page, only in words.

Music can trigger a memory that will in turn add authentic realism to the words on the page. Music can also inspire a certain mood. For example, upbeat tunes will likely bring pep to your writing. The opposite is also true. Listening to melancholy songs brings out the sadness in my characters’ lives.

As a classroom teacher and now as a private tutor, I’m always striving for ways to help my students find inspiration to write. The blank page is especially daunting for young writers learning the writing process. The page gets bigger and whiter the longer it goes without words. When I’m stuck behind my writer’s block and inspiration to write is lacking, I turn on my music and watch the words dance onto my paper. I do the same for my students when they’re faced with writer’s block, too.

Bringing music into your writing lessons is simple to do and doesn’t cost anything extra. The following are a few ideas to help get you started:

Lower Elementary Students

For the younger students, I suggest selecting music for the whole class to listen to. Classical or New Age music—basically anything without lyrics—provides a good place to start. The students can focus on the sounds the instruments are creating and, in turn, the mood of the music.

One of my favorites is the FANTASIA soundtrack. The music is generally recognized by the students and sounds lively and adventurous. On a piece of poster paper, you and your students can brainstorm adjectives and adverbs to describe the mood of the music. They can then use that list of words in their stories. This is a simple lesson but one that will jump-start your students’ writing on a positive note.

For Middle Grade Students and Older

I like to give my students choices in what they want to write about so with that comes choosing the music they want to listen to while they write. As long as the lyrics are kid-friendly, I’m game. When I taught in the classroom my school didn’t have fancy audio visual equipment. I only had my good ol’ boom box that played CDs and cassette tapes. I was limited to choosing one particular artist and then switching CDs and tapes. Today, teachers have more options with playlists on iPods and MP3 players. You can even create your playlists to reflect and inspire the genre of writing you want your students to write.

Just yesterday I was working with a student who wanted to write a story about how she convinced her parents to get her a cell phone. She brought a favorite mix of artists on a CD—her mother told me she was getting the phone but not an iPod (yet). I cued the mix up on my computer and my student went right to work on a realistic fiction story. This is a student who is not fond of putting pencil to paper. Still, throughout the session she wrote nonstop, except to look up words in a dictionary to check her spelling. She told me the music helped to keep her motivated on her writing.

For Musician Students

Using music to inspire writing also works in the reverse. I have a student entering third grade. He is a very accomplished pianist and writes his own music, but he’s not too fond of writing words on paper. My student enjoys reading Shel Silverstein poems, so I asked him to pick a favorite and then write the music to go along with the poem. No problem! A week later, at our next session, he had a wonderful melody that perfectly matched the story in the poem.

Next, I asked him to play one of his favorite songs. Then I asked him to tell me the story that the music was telling. He verbally explained a beginning, middle, and end. Onward to our next assignment, which achieved my ultimate goal: to get him to write a story. I gave him the option of writing about an original song or to use one he already studies in his music lessons. He chose “Jazzy Toccatina” for his story. Here is what he wrote:


As you can see, my student outlined the plot into a beginning, middle, and end, as well as noting the location and characters. Without realizing it, he had written a story with words!

Music is a universal language. No matter what the mood you are feeling or trying to create, there is a melody to be heard and transposed into words.

Kathleen A. Hunter, MS is a literacy tutor and aspiring children's book author. You can visit her online at www.KathleenHunterWrites.com.



Teaching Tips: Bringing Children, Dogs, and Books Together

by Mary Beth Scumaci

It’s back to school time! You know what that means...it’s time to set those technology resolutions for the year into action. Make time to get your teacher website designed or surf for fresh ideas to enhance your current website. Why websites, you may ask? They are a fun, engaging, and professional way to communicate with your students, their families, and colleagues. Teacher websites are a great place to compile all of your resources and ideas. Once posted, you have an archive of all of your favorite teaching resources and curriculum materials. According to Cleanapple.com, the top ten reasons for creating a teacher webpage are:

10.  It’s an easy way to meet the needs of many students who have an IEP and 504 plan.

9.  You’re creating an archive of your class-complete with the exact materials you've used.

8.  A teaching website keeps you organized and on track.

7.  It’s getting so easy to do that it can actually save you time.

6.  You have an easier answer to “What did I miss?”

5.  Helicopter parents have an off-site landing pad.

4.  Your contributions go farther than you think-global possibilities.

3.  It’s okay to show off–share your amazing lessons and activities.

2.  It’s a two-way street-an efficient communication tool (e.g. teacher-student & student-teacher).

1.  It’s your gateway to engagement-a great resource posting site and way to communicate with and engage your students.

Below you will find a link to a model teacher website that will help motivate you to start clicking, blogging and communicating in tech savvy, colorful, and educational way.

This month’s spotlight shines on Mrs. Amanda Madden, a second grade teacher at Bell’s Crossing Elementary School in Simpsonville, South Carolina for her attractive and informative website, Madden’s Monsterous Masterminds. Visit her website, it is just delightful! She has designed an attractive and engaging website that provides students and their families with resources, curriculum materials, and a great social space for communicating. Mrs. Madden’s first page captures a sense of fun, community, and organization. You will find her class mission statement, a class brochure, student bios, a guest book for virtual visitors, and a map where you can add a pushpin to mark your geographical footprint.

Madden’s Monsterous Masterminds has followers across the United States. Mrs. Madden has included a range of option tabs on her website that include: Welcome, Site Map, Students’ Spot, Parents’ Place, Meet The Teacher, Reading Workshop, Writing Workshop, Mathematics, Units of Study & Blog Buddies.  Speaking of blogs, Mrs. Madden has a blog for teachers. She posts lots of great ideas, tips, and strategies including freebies, and interesting ideas to use in the classroom.

Mrs. Madden is a true professional who believes in teacher sharing. You will find many resources throughout her website that will inspire you. Below are a few screen shots from her website.

The Class Home Page

Meet the Teacher, Mrs. Madden

The Parent’s Place

The Students’ Spot

Reading Workshop

Units of Study Writing Workshop

 

So, how did Mrs. Madden accomplish her goal of setting up her own webpage? She went to http://www.teacherweb.com and signed up for an account. You can set up webpages for any grade level, group, or organization. The fee for an annual account membership is currently $39 per year and there is a risk free, 30 day trial. Before you sign up for a free trial, explore the Teacher Web Designs section. There are a variety of template options to explore.  I’m sure one of them is bound to meet your personality and educational needs. The “For Teaches” tab offers links for sign-up, features, teacher site example, pricing, pre-service, and workshops. It’s as easy as a few clicks of a mouse to get started. You can blog, create a photo gallery, synch it with your grade book, upload multimedia files, post homework assignments, and more. Why not give it a try?

 

Sample Template Designs

 

Good luck and best wishes for a tech savvy school year! 

Mary Beth Scumaci is a Clinical Assistant Professor and Technology Coordinator for the School of Education at Medaille College in Buffalo, New York. 

This article is part of a series from the International Reading Association Technology in Literacy Education Special Interest Group (TILE-SIG).

With school beginning soon these titles could help children and young adolescents learn more about language. Some highlight idioms or metaphors. Others discuss vocabulary and story elements. These books could be shared before reading and writing workshop or as language mini lessons. Students could be invited to write in similar styles using strong vocabulary and exciting language. We hope you enjoy these reviews from the International Reading Association's Children's Literature and Reading Special Interest Group (CL/R SIG). 

GRADES K-3

Fleming, Denise. Under ground. New York: Beach Lane Books/ Simon & Schuster.

The cover flap states, “Do you ever wonder what creatures live under the dirt beneath your feet?” In simple vocabulary and bright bold colors young children will explore what is under ground. The book begins with a robin perched in a tree looking for dinner, “Low down.” The next page shows the robin flying down to the brown earth, “Way down.” On the third page the robin pulls a pink earthworm out of a winding tunnel, “Under ground.” Children will also notice three large carrots with white roots, ants foraging in plants and three grubs buried underneath. Hidden in each illustration are toys, pottery or objects such as nails or keys. Other creatures highlighted include the shrew, mole, cicada, chipmunk, box turtle and more. Above ground a little boy and dog are planting, studying and playing. The final page includes creature identification with information about each insect and animal. The amazing illustrations were created using pulp painting, a papermaking technique using colored cotton fibers poured through hand-cut stencils. 

- Deanna Day, Washington State University Vancouver

McKinlay, Meg. (2012). No bears. Illus. by Leila Rudge. New York: Bloomsbury/Walker Books.

Ella regards herself as a natural storyteller, and as is the case of many authors, she is quite opinionated about her story elements and even more particular about which characters to feature in her story and what words to use. For example, the story she plans will include a princess, a monster and elements of humor interspersed with some excitement. She has one taboo, though: Her story will contain no bears. As this budding author embellishes her fairy tale about a princess who is stolen by a monster until being foiled by "somebody" (unpaged), observant readers will realize that the bear-free story actually owes much to hard-working bear behind the scenes. The illustration on the last page brings everything together for readers. The digital illustrations and simple text show the mild-mannered bear minding her own business but also providing some essential help, unbeknownst to Ella, in every frame. Many readers will appreciate a picture book such as this one in which characters step into and out of their own stories. 

- Barbara A. Ward, Washington State University Pullman

Ode, Eric. (2012). Dan, the taxi man. Illus. by Kent Culotta. Tulsa, OK: Kane Miller.

This rhythmical picture book will make a great read aloud in primary classrooms because children will easily catch onto the pattern and begin to make the sounds and read along. Dan the taxi man is going to the show and picking up the band. His car says “Beep! Beep!” First, he picks up Maureen with her tambourine, “Shake-a shake, crash! Shake-a shake, crash!” Next, they pick up Tyrone with his saxophone, “Squeeba-dee dee, squeeba-dee doo!” Later they pick up Star with her electric guitar, Clair with her rattly snare and Ace with his upright bass, repeating every sound the instruments make throughout. Finally they arrive at the rockin joint for the concert. The band begins playing, but something’s missing. The musicians stop the song and run outside to get, “Dan, Beep! Beep! The taxi man.” 

- Deanna Day, Washington State University Vancouver

Oelschlager, Vanita. (2009). Birds of a feather: A book of idioms and silly pictures. Illus. by Robin Hegan. Akron, Ohio: Vanita Books.

Playful pictures introduce the literal interpretation of idioms while an upside-down paragraph explains what the idiom refers to in familiar language. Double page spreads add to the understanding of each idiom, like a goose driving a car over hills of bumps referring to “goosebumps,” or a woman under an umbrella while cats and hotdogs are “raining” down on her. Each spread includes a sentence using the idiom in context. At the end of the book, the author offers a detailed explanation of idioms pointing out the humor involved within the understanding and how much fun it is to use figurative language in writing and everyday speech. ReadWriteThink offers a lesson on idioms entitled “Eye on Idioms”. Teachers who are looking for smartboard teaching ideas on the use of idioms will find several lessons at the Smart Exchange website. 

- Karen Hildebrand, Ohio Library and Reading Consultant

Oelschlager, Vanita. (2011). Life is a bowl of cherries: A book of food idioms and silly pictures. Illus. by Robin Hegan. Akron, Ohio: Vanita Books.

Food is the common thread to demonstrate the use of humorous idioms in use in today’s language and each idiom is accompanied by colorful acrylic and deliciously playful illustration. The wordplay and puns make it easy for young children to understand the use of phrases in conversation especially as these idioms relate to food. “Food for thought”, “couch potato”, “cold turkey” and “eat your words” are just a few of the idioms that are illustrated. The author includes an explanation of each idiom and uses it in a sentence for reference. Idioms are often the most difficult aspect of learning the English language for ELL students making this book a handy reference tool for teachers who have non-English speaking or early ELL students in their classrooms. The author offers suggestions for using this book at her website. 

-Karen Hildebrand, Ohio Library and Reading Consultant

Oelschlager, Vanita. (2012). Out of the blue: A book of color idioms and silly pictures. Illus. by Robin Hegan. Akron, Ohio: Vanita books.

The author’s new book on idioms takes on color words accompanied by the familiar childlike and colorful double-page illustrations by Robin Hegan that enhance the understanding of the featured idioms. As children look at the humorous literal interpretation of the idiom, they have to guess the real meaning and then turn the book upside-down to find the answe and explanation for use. Again, playing on idioms that create smiles and laughter, children are asked to guess what is “a red letter day” or chuckle at being “tickled pink.” At the end the author has provided a more detailed look at language usage and figures of speech. Take a look at the “Figurative Language: Teaching Idioms” lesson on ReadWriteThink. 

- Karen Hildebrand, Ohio Library and Reading Consultant

GRADES 4-6

Barton, Michael. (2012). It’s raining cats and dogs: An autism spectrum guide to the confusing world of idioms, metaphors and everyday expressions. London, U.K.: Jessica Kingsley Publishers.

Written for children and young adults who have autism spectrum disorder (ASD) this book explains that understanding idioms is difficult for people with autism, especially children. It can also be difficult for ELL students. Though written and illustrated in a humorous style, the writing goes beyond simply illustrating idioms, it also explains how the autistic child or young adult interpret language absolutely in the literal sense and have great difficulty interpreting the references or allusions to concepts of “being a chicken” to mean being cowardly, for example. The author himself is on the autistic spectrum and so his illustrations and explanations are authentic as to how young adults interpret figurative language like metaphors and idioms. The author’s mother has written the foreword for the book to present an introduction to her son and his learning style. Clear explanations with a sly touch of humor explain many common idioms used in everyday language. 

- Karen Hildebrand, Ohio Library and Reading Consultant

Hest, Amy. (2012). Letters to Leo. Illus. by Julia Denos. Somerville, MA: Candlewick Press.

Fourth grade is nowhere near as enjoyable as third grade was, and Annie Rossi struggles through the days, some memorable, others miserable. One good part of the year, though, is her new dog Leo, to whom she writes letters during the school year, starting in November and ending in July. She describes herself at her best, when she's being kind to another classmate, and at her worst, when her admonishments cause her father to ride his bicycle too fast, resulting in a crash. Most of all, she misses her former teacher, Miss Meadows, and tries to tolerate her current teacher, Mrs. Bailey, who earns bonus points when her father, a published author, visits the class. It’s almost impossible not to like Annie, first introduced in Remembering Mrs. Rossi (Candlewick, 2007), partly because she's still coping with the death of her mother, but also because she is so devoted to Leo, even when he isn't the perfect pet. Annie faces quite a few changes in this book as her best friend prepares for a move to New Jersey, and her father may be moving past his own mourning. Readers will smile at the passages describing Annie’s concern for an "elderly parent" (p. 83), her father, and suggestions to help the elderly one ease back into social settings. 

- Barbara A. Ward, Washington State University Pullman

Klise, Kate. (2012). The phantom of the post office: 44 Old Cemetery Road: No. 4. Illus. by M. Sarah Klise. New York: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt.

The titles in the 43 Old Cemetery Road series simply keep getting better and are filled with clever wordplay. Following the cleverly named Till Death Do Us Bark (Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2011), this fourth one brings the reader up to speed, providing background about Seymour Hope's unusual family and their lives in Spence Mansion in the aptly named town of Ghastly. Seymour, an 11-year-old boy adopted by a ghost writer Olive C. Spence, literally a ghost, and Ignatius B. Grumply, another writer, are working on their latest literary installment when they start receiving threatening fan mail. Meanwhile, the post office is scheduled to be replaced by VEXT-mail, the description of which will delight many a technophobe since it seems to be more of a hindrance to communication than an aid. A visit from M. Balm's cell phone-wielding niece Wynonna Fye (Wy Fye, for short), who becomes ill from a mysterious flu, thickens the plot of this mystery. The story is fun and filled with hints that might solve the mystery; for instance, Wy Fye is supposed to be reading The Phantom of the Opera while recuperating. All the action is described through letters, texts, and newspaper articles. What elevates the title from other mysteries and adds to its appeal are all the delightful names and word play that fill the book's pages: Sal U. Tayshuns, Sue Perstishus, for instance, and the mysterious fan or phantom's theft of the letter f, wreaking havoc on the written word, especially in the town newspaper. Readers are likely to chortle over all those ph letters substituting for the missing f. 

- Barbara A. Ward, Washington State University Pullman

by Julie B. Wise

Do you know the top aspirations and specific needs of students, parents, and educators for 21st century learning environments? The answer may surprise you. In 2012, Project Tomorrow, an educational nonprofit organization, published Mapping a Personalized Learning Journey – K-12 Students and Parents Connect the Dots with Digital Learning. This report examines the Speak Up National Research Project survey results collected from 416,000 K-12 stakeholders (students, parents and educators) in the fall of 2011.

Over the past nine years, the Speak Up survey has seen growth in the value of digital learning from both student and parent groups while educators’ views haven’t changed. As a result, there is a gap, “between how today’s students want to use technology for learning and how technology is served up to them in school.”  Speak Up 2011 results show how students and parents quickly adapt to technology and 3 ways these devices can support educators as they differentiate their instruction.

First, personalized digital learning is a key component to increasing student engagement. Second, infusing a wide variety of technology tools throughout the year creates opportunities for students to master 21st century skills required for their future work place success. Finally, common core standards suggest a shift in the traditional classroom paradigm to a digitally-rich, socially-based, student-directed learning environment.

The four key findings for classroom teachers and researchers to consider include:

1. Students are personalizing their learning out of school. Since this generation has grown up with the opportunity to personalize their shopping, entertainment, and banking needs, they are transferring these experiences to their homework. Students are increasing their use of social media tools such as, discussion boards, Facebook, Twitter and Youtube to support their homework. “To simply dismiss student use of these social networking sites as frivolous or even dangerous misses the deeper storyline around the use of social media.”

2. Students and parents support the Bring Your Own Device (BYOD) concept to aid in personalizing their learning at school. “Parents from low-income (Title 1) schools (61%) are just as likely to report that they would purchase a mobile device for their child to use for academic reasons as parents in non-Title 1 schools (63%). This is in stark contrast to 65% of principles that said they wouldn't allow the devices into the classroom.

3. Students envision flipping the math and science classrooms by providing online videos and tutorials after school so a conversational framework for thinking and reasoning could be used during class. Findings suggest students’ interest in STEM fields jumps from 20 to 27 percent when technology is used to support both teacher and student-directed learning. 

4. Survey results pinpoint four specific technologies all stakeholders feel are essential. They include: Internet access at school, e-textbooks, tablets provided by the school, and online classes. These shared views provide a starting point for discussion and strategic planning to create a vision of digitalized learning. 

Begin your own personalized learning journey by clicking the link to the infographic of the Speak Up survey.

Julie B. Wise is a doctoral student at the University of Delaware, juliebwise@comcast.net.

This article is part of a series from the Technology in Literacy Education Special Interest Group (TILE-SIG).

by Clarissa Hardcastle

The non-profit Kids In Need Foundation (KINF) is teaming up with Walgreens to help lift the burden off of economically disadvantaged parents and students as well as under-funded teachers who are trying to prepare for the school year.

From July 29 through August 18, customers can buy classroom materials and donate them at any in-store collection bin as part of the Walgreens Back to School Supply Drive. With 7,907 stores in all 50 states, the District of Columbia, and Puerto Rico, these supplies will reach thousands of students.

“Walgreens is committed to helping the communities we serve, and this school supply drive is one more meaningful way we can help ease the stress on parents and teachers who may be struggling with making ends meet,” said John Gremer, Walgreens director of community affairs.

The drugstore chain’s locations also provide health services. Take Care Clinics in select stores offer back-to-school and sports physicals as well as immunizations.

According to a November 2011 New York Times article, all 50 states have reported significant increases in the number of children enrolled in the National School Lunch Program, an indicator of the poverty level of U.S. families.

“This is a massive project that will help alleviate a massive problem. More than 14.8 million students in the United States live at or below the poverty line. When families are trying to overcome severe economic reverses, school supplies are not at the top of their necessity lists. To make matters worse, most school budgets no longer allocate for basic supplies,” said Dave Smith, executive director, KINF.

Teachers from low-income schools can “shop” for free teaching supplies at KINF resource centers. At the end of the national school supply drive, these centers will collect donated supplies from  Walgreens locations.

“Boys and girls tell us things like ‘this is the first box of crayons I ever had’ or ‘I gave the notebook you gave me to my sister because she’s older than me and she never had a notebook before,’” said Smith. “When you receive a thank you letter or drawing from students who receive the free supplies we provide, you find these children have a true appreciation for what they’ve received. School supplies of their very own are precious to them.”

About Walgreens

As the nation's largest drugstore chain, Walgreens’s (www.walgreens.com) vision is to become America’s first choice for health and daily living. It provides access to consumer goods and pharmacy, health and wellness services. Take Care Health Systems, a Walgreens subsidiary, manages worksite health and wellness centers and in-store convenient care clinics.

About KINF

KINF’s mission is to provide free school supplies to ensure that every child is prepared to learn. In addition, Kids In Need Teacher Grant programs provide educators with funding for innovative learning experiences. KINF has distributed $400 million in materials since its founding in 1995, and it has received Charity Navigator’s highest rating for three consecutive years. For more information, visit www.kinf.org.  Follow KINF on Twitter at http://twitter.com/kidsinneed.

Clarissa Hardcastle is the strategic communications intern at the International Reading Association.