One strategy that fits well with the GAME plan process that my co-teacher and I have incorporated into our Reading block is called the Literacy CAFE. Students meet with teachers one-one-one and first discuss what they think they do well as a reader. After that the teacher will listen to them read for a few moments. The teacher and student conference afterwards and pick a goal from the CAFE (Comprehension, Accuracy, Fluency and Expanding vocabulary).
Once a goal is chosen the teacher will help the student decide on a strategy or action(that have been previously taught) from a menu to help them work towards that goal. One example may be if the student chose accuracy has a goal, a strategy from the menu may be cross checking. The cafe menu is displayed on a class bulletin board and all students have a post it with their name placed in the appropriate section based on the chosen goal.
Then these goals are monitored staff and students through additional conferences and anecdotal notes. Depending on success new goals and actions may be chosen. The final evaluation would be the district DRA assessments to test whether the students reading level has increased.
While this strategy may not directly involve technology it can still help students meet NETS standards because it provides a strong foundation in the GAME process which will be invaluable when integrating technology. That said there are ways to incorporate technology into this process. One idea is to have students blog about their goals and actions as a way of monitoring their own progress. We are also going to incorporate a wiki for students to share interesting vocabulary they find while working on the expanding vocabulary goal.
More information on this strategy is available in "The Cafe Book" by Gail Boushey and Joan Moser. We use this to complement the Daily 5 system which is by the same authors.
Sample menu: http://www.thedailycafe.com/CAFE_Menu_New.pdf
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Your Literacy CAFÉ idea sounds amazing! How much time does it actually take per student per day? Our students this year are really struggling with reading which is such an important skill with first graders. I might do some extra research on this idea.
ReplyDeleteI like how you mentioned how you could incorporate technology by allowing the students to blog about their goals, action, and progress. This would be a great way to get parents involved as well. Parents could view and comment on their child’s post in order to give them praise and check their progress and thoughts on their actions.
Christina,
ReplyDeleteI teach science but good reading skills is also an important requirement to enable my students understand what I want them to learn.I could use your literacy CAFE method to improve the reading skills of my students especially in the area of expanding vocabulary and comprehension.
Individual GAME plan for the students would be helpful in their academic achievements in the long run.It allows the students to monitor and evaluate what they are learning and improve along the way.The use of blogs and wikis would enable the class members to learn from each other how best to attain their set goals.
Williams.
I think the cafe idea is a wonderful tool for teaching literacy and incorporating a wiki is and innovative idea. How can you differentiate instruction with CAFE? What accommodations are available for SPED students?
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