Master's Showcase
literacy education
In my undergraduate work at Michigan State University I focused on the content area of literacy, giving me a strong foundation in literacy teaching. After my first year of teaching lower elementary students, I realized that literacy education was the content area where I felt I needed the most development in. I felt that there were so many aspects to complete a balanced approach to literacy that I needed to further investigate in order to become a truely effective literacy teacher. Therefore, I chose to concentrate on literacy education within my masters program to grow professionally as a lower elementary school educator.
As a reletively new teacher I felt that literacy was a major undertaking in the lower elementary classroom. There are so many components that go into teaching a child how to read, phonemic awareness, fluency, comprehension, accuracy, etc. And that doesn't even touch on the structure of reading instruction and assessment such as mini-lessons, independent, guided, and shared reading, conferencing, and assessments. Throughout my learning in this program I have become a better literacy instructor. I am able to effectively take notes and records about students while conferencing. I feel confident that I can improve a student's fluency and comprehension through a variety of newly learned activities. I know that I have the skills to teach phonemic awareness to students during shared, guided, and independent reading times. These are skills that are now strengths because of my literacy focus in my masters program.
Below are some examples of what I have learned within this literacy concentration area. They show the research, teaching, and reflection I have done throughout these courses, demonstrating my growth and development as a literacy educator.
As a reletively new teacher I felt that literacy was a major undertaking in the lower elementary classroom. There are so many components that go into teaching a child how to read, phonemic awareness, fluency, comprehension, accuracy, etc. And that doesn't even touch on the structure of reading instruction and assessment such as mini-lessons, independent, guided, and shared reading, conferencing, and assessments. Throughout my learning in this program I have become a better literacy instructor. I am able to effectively take notes and records about students while conferencing. I feel confident that I can improve a student's fluency and comprehension through a variety of newly learned activities. I know that I have the skills to teach phonemic awareness to students during shared, guided, and independent reading times. These are skills that are now strengths because of my literacy focus in my masters program.
Below are some examples of what I have learned within this literacy concentration area. They show the research, teaching, and reflection I have done throughout these courses, demonstrating my growth and development as a literacy educator.
TE 802: Reflection and Inquiry Teaching Practice I
The first literacy course I took post bachelors degree was during my internship year. Here is where I created a more solid base for my literacy instruction, taking a balanced approach and beginning to discover who I was as an elementary literacy educator.
Balanced Literacy Handout: This balanced literacy handout allowed me to begin thinking about the components of a balanced approach to reading within the elementary classroom.
The first literacy course I took post bachelors degree was during my internship year. Here is where I created a more solid base for my literacy instruction, taking a balanced approach and beginning to discover who I was as an elementary literacy educator.
Balanced Literacy Handout: This balanced literacy handout allowed me to begin thinking about the components of a balanced approach to reading within the elementary classroom.
TE 842: Elementary Reading Assessment Instruction
Focus Project: In my final project I focused on helping my second graders clear up confusion while reading. I taught specific strategies and skills that helped them remember and understand that reading always has to make sense. I noticed as a second grade teacher that students were very focused on decoding words and using word solving strategies that they didn't always realize that reading needs to always make sense. That is, once they have the decoding down from first grade, it was important for me to focus on helping them make meaning of what they were reading and stopping if they were confused.
Teaching Beliefs and Practices Paper: In this paper, I discussed my thoughts and feelings about teaching reading before I took this course, including my definition of reading and what I saw the main components of reading to be. I then described my current and newly learned understandings about the components of reading as well as how to effectively assess and instruct those components. I knew my knowledge based on course readings, videos, presentations, and discussions. I was able to reflect onto my own teaching, understanding what aspects of my current reading instruction were affirmed throughout this course and what aspects were drawn into question. Finally, I created a plan of action where I translated what I learned throughout the course about teaching reading at the elementary level and put it into action, moving foward as an educator of reading into my future experiences.
Focus Project: In my final project I focused on helping my second graders clear up confusion while reading. I taught specific strategies and skills that helped them remember and understand that reading always has to make sense. I noticed as a second grade teacher that students were very focused on decoding words and using word solving strategies that they didn't always realize that reading needs to always make sense. That is, once they have the decoding down from first grade, it was important for me to focus on helping them make meaning of what they were reading and stopping if they were confused.
Teaching Beliefs and Practices Paper: In this paper, I discussed my thoughts and feelings about teaching reading before I took this course, including my definition of reading and what I saw the main components of reading to be. I then described my current and newly learned understandings about the components of reading as well as how to effectively assess and instruct those components. I knew my knowledge based on course readings, videos, presentations, and discussions. I was able to reflect onto my own teaching, understanding what aspects of my current reading instruction were affirmed throughout this course and what aspects were drawn into question. Finally, I created a plan of action where I translated what I learned throughout the course about teaching reading at the elementary level and put it into action, moving foward as an educator of reading into my future experiences.
TE 846: Accommodating Differences in Literacy Learners
Fluency Case Study: In this case study I focused on helping improve the fluency of one of my second graders. She was a bit of a struggling reader and due to her fluency weaknesses she had low confidence when reading. Throughout this course I learned about the main components of reading and how to accommodate differences in each individual reader. I feel more confident leading strategy groups and guiding students reading skills and comprehension.
Fluency Case Study: In this case study I focused on helping improve the fluency of one of my second graders. She was a bit of a struggling reader and due to her fluency weaknesses she had low confidence when reading. Throughout this course I learned about the main components of reading and how to accommodate differences in each individual reader. I feel more confident leading strategy groups and guiding students reading skills and comprehension.