Kim's LA Lesson 1 Reflection

·        I was pleasantly surprised to hear that a good portion of my students had participated within book club groups in prior grades. I was shocked to learn that a couple of my students had actually already read Tuck Everlasting but they were also very eager to participate within their book club groups.     

What students learned and which students struggled with the lesson. 

o   Today, students were provided with their book club groups based upon a list of people that they thought that they would work well with and our own opinion on groupings. Students were also provided with an opportunity to go through a novel preview sheet based on the back of the book and what they saw on the covers of their books. Students seemed to struggle most with the groupings that they were placed in; many complained of being outnumbered by the other gender.
The vast majority of my students struggled with developing a definition of suspense which related back to the prompt that they were working on for the day's silent sustained writing time. 

·         What are alternate reads of your students’ performance or products?

o   The novel preview seemed to cause challenges for a few students because they lacked the abilities to read the back cover and look at the illustrations on the cover to make predictions. These students seemed more interested in talking with their new group members rather than fill out the novel preview sheet. If groups are still struggling to become on task, I will need to sit and monitor them and adjust them accordingly.

·         What did you learn about your students’ literacy practices that extend beyond your objectives?

o   A majority of my students participated in book club groups when they were in previous grades, however, their book club groups were run differently than what they are being run currently. It was very helpful for the students who have had book clubs before to have a refresher and those who have not been in book club groups to watch a couple of YouTube videos to see what and how a book club group sounds in a successful situation. Following the videos, we developed a set of book club rules that everyone could agree upon.

·         When and how will you re-teach the material to students who need additional support?

o   I have a student, KC, who struggles with being able to write his thoughts on paper; however, he is able to share his ideas verbally with his group or myself rather successfully. Within his group, the peers that I placed him with are very supportive and patient. They are willing to talk through his ideas with him and help him write out his thoughts. If it is possible during the lessons, I will be able to sit with him and his group, to help keep him on track and focused.

·         If you were to teach this same lesson again, what would you do differently and how do you think the changes would improve students’ learning?

o   If I were to teach this lesson again, I would group my students into book club groups based upon their comprehension scores. We have started partner reading using these pairings and pairs seem to be working well together. For their first book club group, it is working well that students are able to be placed with other students that they feel comfortable sharing their answers with in discussions.

·         What did you learn so far about implementing your ‘core practice’ and what do you need to do to continue your professional learning?

o   My students seem to struggle with writing based upon predetermined prompts. They seem to be able to discuss their ideas with their groups quite well. I hope that they will be able to incorporate their discussions into their writing to achieve successful writing.