Content Area Reading

Welcome!

This is a blog designed by Hobart teachers Rhiannon Jolliff and Kristen Smith to share ideas, research, and resources about teaching literacy at the elementary (K-6) level. Here you will find information about content area reading, 21st Century Learning, vocabulary instruction, and much, much more! We hope you will follow us as we grow as teachers, readers, and bloggers!

Sunday, October 24, 2010

Two Writing Teachers

I know that this blog technically is about reading, but as writing is also a HUGE part of becoming literate, I couldn't pass up sharing this link. Ruth Ayers and Stacey Schubitz have created a blog all about writing workshop. Ruth Ayers is a writing coach from Indiana and Stacey is a reading specialist now living in Pennsylvania. Two Writing Teachers is a blog dedicated to writing, however this is infused with reading, as there are mentor texts to be used that could also be used in reading workshop, and there are also links to reading websites. The first blog entry that caught my eye on was today's entry about the use of flip cameras in the classroom to capture moments in writing workshop... what a way to bring your classroom into the 21st Century! They also have a companion website with resources worth checking out!

Thursday, October 7, 2010

Reading Technology for Younger Readers

In today's technology-driven world, it is never too early to get our youngest learners on board! Articles and studies show that our society is embracing e-books and their popularity continues to grow, including with textbooks. Also, students have said that they would be more likely to read for fun if technology were to be incorporated, since they already use devices to text, email, listen to music, etc. As a first grade teacher, I see a huge gap between my students who are most and least skilled on the computer. It takes some students 5 minutes just to log on, while others can type in their own internet addresses and browse the web unassisted! It is important to give our youngest students the opportunity to familiarize themselves with the technology they will be using in the future. I have been reading about e-readers, but felt they were too complicated for many first grade students, who are just learning to read. I was pleasantly surprised to find that V-Tech has designed an e-reader for our youngest learner! I think this is a great way to motivate students to 1) read and 2) learn to use technology as a tool to learn! This is an animated interactive reader that uses popular characters in stories, which would be very engaging for first grade students, but still educational with stories, story dictionaries, and reading games.




Links for more information:

VTech presentation on V.Reader

Information on Amazon about VTech Reader This site has videos that allow prospective buyers to watch the reader in action!

E-Readers

I recently read an article about a Scholastic study on digital reading. According to the NY Times article, which surveyed over 2,000 children ranging in age from 6-17, 25% of the children had already used a digital reading device, with 57% overall showing interest in reading digitally. There is a huge discrepancy between want and availability, however, since only 6% of these children's parents actually own a digital reader. Even with the other 16% that plan to buy one, that still does not meet the needs/wants of all 57% that showed interest.

So who does that leave to meet their needs? Schools!

I think that schools should survey their students about digital readers and if the interest matches that of this study, I think it is worth the investment. I think about all of the students who claim that they do not like to read and think that maybe this is a way to reach them! The article focused on reading for fun, not textbook reading, so if 57% of the students would read for fun on the digital device, I wonder how many of the 2,000 students would prefer their textbooks to be on these devices as well. But going back to recreational reading... I think that so many students would rather play video games, text, or play on the computer than read, and if this will draw some of them back in, it should be attempted! This plays into our topic this week about adolescent reading. If readers are more interested in reading, then they are more likely to put in an concerted effort and learn more! If we can pique interest of students, so much is possible!

Parents surveyed agreed as well, with 83% of parents stating that they would allow or even encourage their children to use digital readers. What this says to me is either parents hadn't considered digital readers until this survey, much as I hadn't until we read about 21st Century Learning, or they cannot afford to purchase this device. Parents and schools need to work together to discuss options for providing these to students that are interested! One thing I know is that after hearing so much about this device, I have now changed my mind and want a digital reader!


Textbooks are here to stay, at least for the time being, but I think this is a viable option to get students more motivated to read texts... and also lighten the load in their backpacks! Students would have access to any book at any time on one small device.

Here are some links with more information about the study and about e-readers:
Tech News Daily article about survey
Scholastic's Kids and Family Reading Reports
New Study on Reading in the Digital Age: Parents Say Electronic, Digital Devices Negatively Affects Kids' Reading Time
U.S. News & World Report: New Kindle E-Reader Enters Textbook Market This article contains comments from college students and educators as to their opinions about e-textbooks.
Textbooks Ditched at Clearwater, FL High School
EDU in Review Blog: iPad E-Book Reader to Offer Textbooks