Resistance stories from black history

 I picked up Rann Miller's Resistance Stories from Black History for Kids Expanded Edition: Inspiring People and Events that Every Kid Should Know based on a reference from another text. Although I learned things from the book, it did not meet my expectations. It is more of a textbook than a story book. It details many things that I did not know. At times it made me uncomfortable, a sure sign my white privilege was dealing with information that I was both unaware of and not proud about. Unfortunately, the story of our country's past is not a uniform one of greatness. It is full of stumbles, missteps and serious errors, not always followed by corrections. We have great ideals and do not consistently work to uphold them.

The book spans the timeline from ancient African civilizations to modern day America. It provides information primarily about the Americas, but tells of modern black history as it impacts and is impacted by the people in the lands it speaks of. I learned about Caribbean and South and Central American efforts at throwing off the mantle of persecution and drivee for both freedom and equality. Portions of it could be very inspirational for students struggling to define their personal identities. I wish there was more of a storytelling slant to the work. The pedantic style will not engage everyone. It is heavily referenced with 847 footnotes, a glossary, many context clues for vocabulary understanding and a comprehensive index.

The book is an easy read with short chapters followed by reflection questions. That said, it is inconsistently edited. Portions include grammatical errors, missing words and awkward sentences. I do not fault the author's use of vernacular, but that is not where these issues emerge. It would be interesting to take some of the sentences out of the text for an ELA task of Jeff Anderson's idea of building sentences. (Break a sentence into a series of simple sentences and get students to combine them to form a single sentence.) 

The book provided a thoughtful read, but not the stories I was looking for. I can see pulling out segments to enhance a social studies curriculum.

Shifting the Balance

 My instructional coach gave me Katie Egan Cunningham, Jan Burkins and Kari Yates' text Shifting the Balance: 6 Ways to Bring the Science of Reading into the Upper Elementary Classroom thinking I might enjoy reading it. She was right, I did enjoy reading it. It reaffirmed my beliefs about teaching reading> Even if that is not my primary job now, I do try to incorporate reading instruction into my work with high school students with special needs.

A couple of years ago the balanced reading approach was debunked and our pendulum is now swing to the science of reading. This swing is one that I have seen over the years I have taught and I expect that it will swing again in the future. What the science of reading proposes is that students pay attention to the print on the page in order to understand it rather than using a 3 cueing strategy. It puts a focus on phonics and phonemic awareness, especially in the early years. Other components are added in: language, fluency and comprehension, generally, it is assumed, later. I will advocate that all five components need to be woven together with a heavy emphasis in the primary years on phonemic awareness, phonics and language and adding a shift to greater focus in the later elementary years on fluency and comprehension. Shifting focus does not mean the other components are ignored, just given different amounts of attention.

This book is generally organized into six sections:

1. knowledges' impact on comprehension
2. strategy instruction
3. vocabulary
4. word reading
5. fluency
6. independent reading

With each section providing a vignette of a teacher with a concern, a list of misunderstandings and the science behind the explanations, and then recommendations for making the shift. The easy read format means you do not need to read the book cover to cover to find information you are looking for. The authors advise to make a small change rather than trying to change everything at once. 

Key things I took away include a focus on on prior and background knowledge. Some reading series have focused on this idea of Hirsch's Core Knowledge Curriculum. I have previously written about the importance of prior knowledge and am glad to see it focused on here. Eliminating science and social studies for a language arts block does not make sense, incorporate these subjects into the reading block so that kids read about what they are studying as well as develop knowledge about the world around them. This is especially important in places where children may not have rich outside experiences and language development.

Another important idea is that strategies, while useful and important, should not be the major focus of instruction throughout the upper elementary grades. Students still need instruction in phonics skills that they may not have yet acquired. Strategies are important tools, not the goal of instruction.

From vocabulary, we need to recognize that vocabulary develop is grown in three ways- oral language, wide reading and direct instruction. There is not enough time in the day to directly teach all the vocabulary students need. In Living Environment (aka biology) students need to learn three words a day, every day. Just for that course. Just level three words. We cannot teach all the words kids need to learn throughout the course of the day. They need multiple exposures to words in oral speech: According to the passage, what is a significant contributing factor to the fall of the Roman empire? Instead of just reading the question, add the definition of important after the word significant. We need to see vocabulary in text that we read, both in school for a class and independently. Unfortunately, while many kids are reading more, the texts and memes they read do not have a lot of language sophistication. I really liked the chart on page 80 that indicated rare words per thousand words:

• print ranged from newspapers 68.3 to children's books at 30.9
• TV ranged from adult TV of 22.7 to children's programing at 20.2
• speech indicators were expert witness at 28.4 and college graduate conversations at 17.3, 
• While not indicated, I suspect high school students and the tic tocks that appeal to them would be in the range of 10 words per 1000.

Students need lots of exposure to text with complex vocabulary and support to help them understand the complex vocabulary. Even children's books, a favorite instructional tool of mine, are better than mere conversation. I really like them because they are so accessible and can be followed up with more complex texts. Once the content and vocabulary framework have been built, they can then handle more challenging readings.

I have also written a great deal about fluency. If you look through those you will see that the most important thing here is that kids read quickly with meaning with understanding. Merely looking a speed eliminated the need to understand the text, a common criticism of fluency instruction. Fluency, however, is essential, because it is the bridge to comprehension.

Leveled reading is something, as a special education teacher, I have been concerned about. Giving work that is too far outside the zone of proximal development is counterproductive. That said interest and supportive knowledge and language work can make texts more accessible. Students should not be barred from reading hard, self-chosen books, they should be encouraged to reread interesting passages and books and they should be allowed to put a book down if it does not engage them.

This book is a great resource for people trying to reset their reading instruction to reflect the science of reading at the elementary level, but the book is also great for teachers at the secondary level who are concerned about their students success with reading.

Executive function toolkit: procrastination

 

Understood.org defines executive function (EF) as “a set of mental skills that include working memory, flexible thinking, and self-control. We use these skills every day to learn, work and manage daily life. My favorite definition however is the set of skills to get things done and not get punched in the face. EF skills are important to learn as poor ones can interfere with school, job and relationship success.

 “Experts define procrastination as a self-defeating behavior pattern marked by short-term benefits and long-term costs. Many of us know it as putting off things that we need to get done, no matter the level of difficulty behind the task.” (McLean) Procrastination is a common phenomenon in both children and adults. Approximately 20% of adults struggle with it. Often procrastination is linked to depression, anxiety, ADHD and poor physical health. As the graphic indicates, procrastination has many possible sources and often they overlap. So what can you do?

1.       Don’t think about one overwhelming thing or all the overwhelming things, pick one little thing that will help you get there. Don’t think about the whole paper, think about writing the first sentence. Then write one more…. Don’t think about going to the gym to work out for a while, just get your gym bag ready to go. Then get in the car to go. Don’t think, I have to clean my whole room, just start with the clothes on the floor. Then pick another thing. S. Perler

2.       Chunking- if your child has an IEP you might have seen this word. It just means breaking a task down and giving yourself credit for each little piece. Depending on how bad your procrastination is, you may need to use smaller chunks. For one person it is the first sentence, for another, the first paragraph, for another, it is getting out your computer. This is related to the above idea. S. Perler

3.       Sometimes therapy with or without medication can help with catastrophizing, anxiety, and depression.

4.       Learn to tolerate discomfort. Name the feeling, imagine yourself doing the task, face the discomfort and notice that the sky doesn’t fall down. L. Phillips

5.       Pomodoro technique: Pick a task, set a 25 minute timer, work on the task as hard as you can until the timer rings, take a 5 minute break, and repeat. Todoits For children, 25 minutes may be too long to work. You can start as short as 5 minutes and gradually increase your time on challenging tasks. You can even chart the number of successful cycles that you complete in a day and try to increase it.

6.       Set the conditions right- working in a warm environment with sunlight can by itself help with focus. K. Davis Then eliminate distractions- turn off the TV and music, set your phone to silent and maybe even put it in another room, go to the bathroom and get a drink.

7.       Get enough exercise. K. Davis If a child is not getting 60 minutes a day of exercise, push to increase exercise. Adults should target at least 30 minutes a day. This can help with mood and fitness, but grades, attentiveness and impulsivity are improved with exercise.

8.       Reward yourself when you finish a challenging task- spend some time on that favorite video game, watch your favorite show, whatever it is that you will work for. Caution: rewarding children with money can backfire. They can start to work ONLY for an offer of cash, and as adults, no one pays us to clean our toilets. Sometimes we just have to do the unpleasant job.