Being the Change - Chapter 5 & 6 {#cyberpd}

As I kept reading and finished Being the Change by Sara K. Ahmed, I really held on to the idea of this powerful work being anchored with simple introductory conversations of daily observations.  I also find myself reflecting on my school community and what it offers or doesn't offer.  I worry our children are protected and sheltered and won't be ready for what they may encounter.  I also worry we cover things up because we think they aren't ready and wonder when we stop this to promote growth and change.  I found a sentence I wanted to share with parents to maybe help our community.  "And if we don't know the answers to our children's questions, we can create opportunities to learn together."  I love when a child says something and makes me stop and think.  I don't hesitate to think along the side of them to figure things out.  I wonder how we can model this as part of the learning process and make it visible to help our families and community.

Another sentence I want to ponder longer is, "When we ask ourselves honest questions about how we may see our own humanity in others, we will be far more adept at being compassionate citizens."  It makes so much sense to find things the same to help us process, question, and support a situation.

The lessons ideas n Chapter 5 are lofty and big for little ones.  I found myself writing notes in the margin to think about the word obligated; committed, obliged, pledged, required, tied, and urged.  I wasn't thrilled with these words either.  Then I started to ramble on with a few questions that might help little ones think about obligated.

   

Who helps you make decisions?

Who helps guide you?

Who watches or takes care of you?

I think I need to wrestle more with the steps or process of thinking about those you could defend or stand up for.  Those who you will connected with might be something to think about.

I think decision making is one to explore more with because little ones have a lot of impulsivity.  I want to look for picture books characters that make conscious and unconscious decisions.  I wonder if Cathy Mere has that list already made, she loves to make book lists!  

Then the words intent and impact sent me to dictionary.com.  I found intent to be defined as meaning or significance - the why and impact to be the influence of effect - the impression a decision or choice may have.  Again, I think we need picture books geared for little ones with some examples here.  

Chapter 6 sums up all that I'm thinking about this work no matter what the grade level is.  We have to start the school year ready to listen and allow time for the students to share their news.  This sharing isn't just about hearing it, it's about learning from it to grow as a human.

Thank you Cathy and Michelle for organizing #cyberpd.

Being the Change - Chapter 3 & 4 {#cyberpd}

As I continued reading Being the Change by Sara K. Ahmed, new learning is taking place for me and I need to listen more carefully.  I teach second grade currently and I want to say microagressions don't happen in our community at this age.  However, as I sit and reflect today I think if I listen with this lens or focus in mind I might pick up on some simple/possible ones younger students will use.  

I'm wrestling a bit with what microagressions will sound like in a primary classroom.    "Microagressions  are comments relating to someone's identity that leave a lasting, negative impression on the receiver of the message."  In her examples on p55 I found two that sounded like primary students; Did you make that?  and I heart your hair.   I have to be honest though some years I don't have students with cultural differences which seem to be an obvious opportunity for microagressions.  I really wonder what other readers are thinking about microagressions in primary grades; grades one, two, and kindergarten.

As I was reading, I wondered if intentional was part of a microagression and on pg 58 it was confirmed that it is.  I think primary students need to study intentional and unintentional.  Younger students can just state what they see based on observations or a honest wondering.  They certainly struggle with the idea of their words lasting and having a negative impression on the receiver.  So, I'm thinking maybe the precursor to the work with microaggressions with primary students is discussing someone else's identity beyond developing their own webs and discussing how our words can linger with someone, hurting their feelings.  I think we can foster the work in this book in grades that follow by creating an awareness of self and then others.

As I ponder my thinking around microaggressions in primary, I found myself excited to introduce the word bias in second grade and lay a foundation for the meaning and explore what it looks like for each of us.  I think with support and guidance we could frame our thinking around I am statements and the examples on p62 seem possible for second grade.  I found myself reframing my reading this week with the phrase, keep it simple.  

I'm also wanting to have a discussion with my students about labels, stereotypes, and assumptions.  I don't know if they have experienced labels yet.  My heart hopes not - they are just seven-ish years old.  

So much great thinking about being better informed about you students and helping them process their own news or the news of the world this week.  I was super excited to read about this because we share any news we have with each other a few days a week in our morning meeting and I'm thinking we need this all five days.  The news we typically share in second grade was validated in our reading this week because it's usually very self centered, as it should be with primary students.  I'm also thinking I need to make sure I'm available to not only greet them at the door each morning but be close as they settle in to over hear any news that might be shared informally in between students.  I'm sometimes caught off guard with public news students might know and instead of shy away from discussing maybe I can collect their thinking and either ponder how we can address it as a class or let parents know.  With little ones, there's a range of news knowledge their parents want them to know.  I can respect that.  However, I thought some of the lesson ideas shared could be modified and used when we use Scholastic News, National Geographic for Kids, and Newsela this year.  

Personally, as I read these two chapters I was hoping and wishing my own teenage daughters would have the opportunity and guidance to think like this with one of their teachers.    

Thank you Cathy and Michelle for organizing #cyberpd.

Being the Change - Chapter 1 & 2 {#cyberpd}

I'm very thankful I had a gift card and chose to spend it on Being the Change by Sara K. Ahmed to participate in #cyberpd.  I initially didn't look at this book very closely because it's marketed for grades 4-8.  When it was selected I found some tidbits that others felt things in the book could be tweaked for primary grades.  As, I finish chapters one and two I would agree.  

As I read chapter one, the sentence, "We have an obligation to make kids feel visible."  I enjoyed reading Sarah's thoughts that followed discussing how this can be done through establishing relationships.  I think if you are reading this book you are invested in communities and relationships and wonder if any of  you had thought about the work we do in these two areas as making kids feel visible.  I hadn't and I want to make sure my students do feel visible.

As I read about identity webs, I found myself comparing them to Georgia Heard's heart maps.  I was wrestling if they were different ideas and I concluded they are.  I think identity webs could help build heart maps later in the year.  I loved the idea of starting identity webs the first day of school.  Kristi Mraz did a wonderful blogpost with Heinemann where she lays out how she would adjust identity webs for her kindergarten students.  It's doable with primary students.

I drew a little heart in my book on p36 where Sara encourages us to kid-watch.  In the age of data driven meetings, reports, and testing I long for someone to justify kid-watching.  I also think the suggestions on p36 and p37 could be guidance for an Reflection/Closing Circle at the end of the day.  

I started tweaking the language used for discussing the discomfort during disagreement.  This is just a rough draft and I'm open to any thoughts for further revising for younger students.

 - Listen with an open mind and heart.

-  It might not feel right.

-  What is your body doing?

-  Others can think differently than you.

-  We can have different ideas.

Thank you Cathy and Michelle for organizing #cyberpd.

#CyberPD - Digital Reading Part 3

I didn't want the book to end.  I just have to be honest but if good books have to end then this ended the way I wanted it to.  "But in this digital age, we both believe that we must keep our eye on the literacy assessment practices we have trusted for years."  

Franki along with other mentors have had me conducting reading interviews with students for twenty years.  However, I was nudge here and wrote revamp next to Franki's new list of questions.  I completely agree if we want to foster digital readers we need to find out where they are to see changes during the school year.  

I enjoyed the very encouraging pep talk on the bottom of p92.  Digital tools are not meant to throw out things we've done previously.  They are meant to be an addition for creating and fostering successful communicators.  I feel comfortable with the suggested list of tools for assessing reading.  I just need to now think with intention when and why we will use them in our classroom community.  I am pondering if second graders can annotate on digital devices, has anyone tried this with primary children?  I'd love some tips.  

I want to quote Franki and Bill at my curriculum night, "I realize it was the conversations around these projects - not the projects themselves that truly mattered most."  I think it's important to not only share the projects when they are completed but share the journey, which in turn may foster more conversations or an extended conversation.  I do understand sometimes it's hard for students to share all they have done during their day when they are tired after school but we are doing some meaningful work hopefully out side of recess and lunch.  

I have been using a website for quite some time for communicating with families and have always received positive feedback but I never considered this as an act for engaging parents themselves as digital readers.  I think this could be another talking point at curriculum night.  Who is a digital reader?  Who has checked out our class website?  Then if you have, you are a digital reader.  This scenario might be a good lead in to guiding parents through the various tools we will use this year at our curriculum night and help them log in if necessary or have some intentional guidance for following through at home.  I'm familiar with some of the other digital communication tools and will be spending some time over the next few weeks in deciding exactly what I will use this next year.  

Thank you to Cathy, Laura, and Michelle for co-hosting and generating some summer #CyberPD love!

#CyberPD - Digital Reading Part 2

I have thoroughly enjoyed reading Chapters 3-5 in Digital Reading by Bill Bass and Franki Sibberson this week.  When you read several books by the same author its like visiting with a friend.  I find their writing together friendly, inviting, and encouraging.  I really hope other participants are feeling the same way as you continue to read about using technology in your literacy work.  Personally, I'm finding this book nudging and pushing me to do more with my students and digital reading.  I've been skimming the surface with technology and I'm feeling some nudges and pushes by reading Bill and Franki's book to find ways to use technology with more authenticity, with intentional decisions in hopes of becoming more connected.  

In making the work in my classroom authentic, I clearly need to share and think carefully about my own digital reading life.  I loved the questions on p30 and thought they might make good mini lesson topics for my second graders.  I also think these might be worth talking to parents.  I wonder if they are digital readers?  I wonder if they share their digital reading with their child?  I usually invite parents to come in and share their reading lives with us and over the years my students have loved to ask if they read on an e-reader.  Maybe my informational letter about reading to families needs to include a digital reading piece.  

I want to model digital reading more in our workshop and have digital reading an option for my students.  I think a Symbaloo board called, Places We Read might be a great project in the near future.  This way students could also access it from home.  In the past, a few students have owned an e-reader but they haven't brought them to school.  I wonder why and might offer that as an option, my district does have a BYOD policy.

Several times throughout these three chapters I read Voices from the Classroom scenarios that connected written digital or video pieces to content areas of learning.  I think this might be a great first step with our primary learners.  I want to spend some time exploring and finding digital text to compliment our science and social studies content, especially. I'm wondering how Franki or others organize the clips they use?  Our school days are being reorganized and we are being asked to do more without any additional time.  Integrating the content areas into our literacy work might be very helpful and vice a versa.  

The connected piece has been missing in my classroom community.  I have not had parents or encouraged parents to leave us comments on our classroom blog.  I have not shared it very publicly for others to learn along with us.  I've created a twitter account and just last spring figured out how to work around district filters to be engaged with it.  We were able to connect with Amy LV at Poetry Farm and what a great experience this was for my students.  I think our twitter focus will be to connect with other classrooms and authors or professionals in our field/area of learning, not a reminder of things for parents.  I hope to Skype with an author this year, participate in Global Read Aloud and World Read Aloud Day, all things I have known about but never participated in.  

As you can tell, I have lots of things swirling through my head.  Thank goodness for summer to regroup and connect with all of you to help me grow.  Thank you to Cathy, Laura, and Michelle for co-hosting and generating some summer #CyberPD love!

#CyberPD - Digital Reading Part 1

I have to begin with a confession.  I own all of Franki Sibberson's books.  I am a huge fan of Franki's writing and when I read her next book was titled Digital Reading, I jumped with joy and was ready to click preorder!  Then I read the byline, What's Essential in Grade 3 - 8 and my heart sank a little bit.  I teach 2nd grade!  I didn't know what to do and I wasn't sure who to ask.  I am blessed to know how to get in touch with Franki and call her my friend, so I did just that. I reached out to my friend who was brilliant in her response.  She told me the first chapter was online and I should read that to see if I wanted to purchase the book.  I followed her suggestion and clicked preorder within minutes.  

I usually follow grade level suggestions but this is what I know about Franki's writing.  It's down to earth.  It's full of good suggestions that make me stop and think.  It confirms what I'm thinking when the world seems to spin a little bit in the opposite direction.  I know digital reading is a way of life.  I know it's important for K - 12 to think about embracing digital reading because our students either are trying to read digitally or will be very soon.  

In reading Franki and Bill's first and second chapter, I find myself thinking about what I might want digital reading to look like in my classroom.  Figure 2.2. The role of digital texts in the literacy workshop made my mind spin really fast and is some information I need to process more.  I was surprised how many ways digital reading could be incorporated with our reading workshop, as I read through the questions provided.  I was surprised to reflect and decide I'm not modeling digital reading enough in my classroom and maybe this is where I might focus my work while reading this book.  It might be taking this recommended for grades 3-8 book and finding nuggets we can use with more modeling or shared participation for a longer period of time.  However, if I truly think about how my students work, they will be eager and willing to move the pace a bit faster from the I do to we do to you do, meaning they will be engaged with digital reading!  

I also want to share a few thoughts from the book that made me stop and say hmmm

     -"reading on a computer does not make a digital reader"

     -"digitally literate vs technology users"

     -"Figure 1.3"

    -"learning to read digital texts must be embedded in the ways we do our     literacy word on a  day to day basis

    -"authenticity, intentionality, connectedness"

Thank you to Cathy, Laura, and Michelle for co-hosting and generating some summer #CyberPD love!