just a little more time

I love teaching first grade. I have taught first grade for three years, and while I would like to experience teaching other grades, I would not be surprised if I decide to eventually go back to first. In my opinion, it is one of the most important grades, and one of the most rewarding. Students need to build a strong foundation of skills, and it is my job to help them. When I am at work, I teach children how to read. Think about it. If you are reading this blog, you know how to read and have known for many years. It is a skill many people, including myself take for granted. But there was a time when you looked at a paper and tried to figure out how the words went together. That is part of my job. When students enter first grade, they may know how to combine some letters, or know certain words. By the time they leave, they have become fluent readers who can comprehend texts. It is an amazing accomplishment and I am a part of that experience for twenty-plus kids every year. 

Each child enters a first grade classroom at different levels. Some may still be struggling with their letters and some may already know how to read higher-level books. I differentiate my instruction to the best of my ability based on each student's needs. One of my favorite parts of the year, regardless of the skill, is when it clicks for the students. A student who had difficulty blending sounds together, all of a sudden, gets it. A student who didn't understand how to put thoughts together to form a sentence, writes a meaningful story with multiple sentences. It is exciting for the students and rewarding for me to observe. I remind myself, they just needed time. I allowed them to take the time they needed, and it paid off. 

In my Research into Practice education class, many people have shared stories of their children or students in early childhood grades needing more time to develop certain skills. A four year old may not want to write his or her name. A first grader might love to read but hate sounding out words. Certain people may feel the best way to solve these challenges is to encourage those students to practice the skills they hate. I would argue, that unless it is clear to expert educators that there may be a learning disability, the children just need time. Instead of forcing them to practice something they connect with negative feelings, try encouraging them and provide positive experiences that will help the students build confidence in those skills. For example, express interest in a child's wonderful drawing with lines that represent letters, rather than reminding her she didn't add her name. Take time to read books with your children that represent enjoyable experiences rather than forcing them to sound out a word in a book. Through literacy experiences and practice in school, students will be ready. You can't force children to do something they are not ready for, but can help build their confidence and let them know they are supported.

While I feel strongly about allowing students to take the time they need, it is difficult as a teacher to find that time. Teachers feel pressure from administrators to make sure their students are meeting benchmarks by a certain time. Teachers are evaluated based on whether students meet those benchmarks, or pass a standardized test. I understand the need for benchmarks and assessments, but I have an issue administering standardized assessments in early childhood grades. The students may have not had the time they need to fully develop their skills, and therefore the standardized tests are not a reliable determination of what the students know. Randi Weingarten, President of the American Federation of Teachers, and Nancy Carlsson-Paige, a professor of early childhood education at Lesley University feel that implementation of the Common Core Standards needs to reflect how children learn, through real world, hands on experiences, developing skills over time.  They expressed that "this process is not always linear and is not quantifiable; expecting young children to know specific facts or skills at specified ages is not compatible with how they learn. It emphasizes right and wrong answers instead of the developmental progressions that typify their learning." (Strauss, 2013) They suggest the best way to evaluate students is through expert teacher observation. In this Washington Post article, they recommend rejecting standardized tests in K-2 classrooms. I agree with this recommendation. I have seen second graders cry over confusion when taking standardized assessments. I have seen results that are not useful for teachers to reflect on their practices to best help their students. I do not think administering standardized tests supports the developmental philosophy of allowing children to have time in early childhood education classes. If we feel strongly about children's success, we need to allow them to participate in developmentally appropriate experiences. 

Reference: 

Strauss, V. (2013). Reject common core tests in k-2: Weingarten, Carlsson Paige. The Washington Post. http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/answer-sheet/wp/2013/11/17/reject-common-core-tests-in-grades-k-2-weingarten-carlsson-paige/ 

Technology in the ECE Classroom

How do you use technology in the classroom? We all know how important it is to incorporate technology into our daily lessons. Does technology improve the learning of students in an early childhood classroom and is it possible to use technology in the wrong way?

Last year in my classroom, we had two dysfunctional computers. My students used the computers at least once a week for reading and math as part of their centers and sometimes for research. I tried to find games that were differentiated based on their needs such as www.abcya.com, www.starfall.com, and pbskids.org. However, I did not always feel the games on those websites were the best fit for all my students. They were always excited when it was their turn on the computers, but there was the constant interruption of, "Both of the computers froze!" There was a computer lab in our school but by the time I walked my students upstairs to the room, made sure they were all logged on to working computers, the class period was basically over. This year we finally received Promethean boards! We didn't receive a connecting computer with the software...meaning the teachers' Promethean boards are currently covered with chart paper. You can only imagine how frustrated the teachers are with technology this school year.

Many school have a range of technology resources. Individual schools need to decide which technology resources to use and how to use what is available. But I wonder how to integrate technology that is developmentally appropriate and useful in an early childhood classroom. According to Dr. Bruce Perry, in his interview with Scholastic, it is important to keep healthy development in mind as teachers and parents think about using technology with young children.  He feels that when using technology with children, teachers should "make sure that we use them to enhance or even expand our social interactions and our view of the world as opposed to using them to isolate and create an artificial world." Teachers need to reflect on whether the technology they use in the classroom expands students' social interactions, or whether children are just playing a game that keeps them busy. 

I know I should rethink the games I allow my students to play. I had no way of holding my students accountable for what they were learning during the games. I don't know if the games my students were playing were helping their academic or social development. The National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC) also explains how to integrate technology developmentally in an early childhood classroom. Technology needs to be, "responsive to the ages and developmental levels of the children, to their individual needs and interests, and to their social and cultural contexts." (McManis and Gunnewig, 2012, p. 16) Scaffolding needs to occur  in order to make sure the students understand the concepts and are able to effectively use the technology. Technology should not be used to substitute instruction, but should be integrated into the curriculum. The technology used should be authentic and meaningful in order for it to be beneficial to the students' development. (McManis and Gunnewig, 2012)


Teachers should integrate technology into classrooms in a developmentally appropriate way, but what are some resources? I found some online that might be helpful for incorporating technology in your classroom. I would love to hear about any other resources you use in your classroom.

• Apps from scholastic.com
• 50 Education tools

References: 

McManis, L. and Gunnewig, S. (2012). Finding the education in educational technology with early learners. Young Children. Retrieved from: 
http://www.naeyc.org/yc/files/yc/file/201205/McManis_YC0512.pdf

Perry, B. Using technology in the Early Childhood Classroom. Scholastic. Retrieved from: http://teacher.scholastic.com/professional/bruceperry/using_technology.htm

Reading Without Sound

What is essential for early literacy instruction? According to Kathleen Roskos, James Christie, and Donald Richgels, there are eight reading strategies a teacher should use in preschool in order to prepare children for school. These include rich teacher talk, storybook reading, phonological awareness activities, alphabet activities, support for emergent reading, support for emergent writing, shared book experiences, and integrated, content focused activities. But what happens when children can't participate in an activity using one or more of these strategies?

As I walked around a family friend's gathering last weekend, I noticed a couple of people using sign language. I watched them for a minute, intrigued by their understanding of this language that is so unfamiliar to me. One girl I talked with was able to partially hear with her hearing aide. She could also read lips well and was able to reply using English. I later saw the girl reading a book. I began to wonder, "How do deaf kids learn to read?" The order of words and grammar in English is different than American Sign Language. They can't hear sounds and have trouble with phonological awareness. In my first grade classroom I rely heavily on my phonics program to teach my students how to read. What would I do if I had a child with hearing loss?

After doing some research, I found a paper by Susan Goldin-Meadow and Rachel Mayberry, which informed me that, '"Only 15 percent of white deaf students who graudate from high school, and only 5 percent of African American and 6 percent of Hispanic deaf high school graduates, read above the sixth-grade level"' (Allen, 1994). These percentages seem low, and may make parents with deaf kids feel as though reading is not a necessary goal for their kids. On the contrary, Raising Deaf Kids discusses the importance of trying to teach kids to read. The website recommends telling the story in sign language first then reading the story in English, finger spell some of the words to help the child learn the letters of the alphabet, and either sit facing your child as you read so they can see the signs or place the child on your lap and sign in front of their bodies. Just because it is more difficult for a child who is deaf to learn to read, doesn't mean parents and teachers should not try. But is there enough research on how to teach deaf children to read?

Goldin-Meadow and Mayberry discussed three findings in their paper after observing deaf children that can be informative for anyone learning to read. They found that children need to know a language before learning to read, children cannot learn a first language through print, although they can learn a second language through print, and children need to be taught to read. They can learn a language by just listening, but reading requires another step. While I never questioned the importance of phonics, I never thought about the challenges with reading people face who don't know a language from listening.  In the future, I look forward to reading more about how to teach deaf children and children with hearing loss to read.


References:
Goldin-Meadow, S., Mayberry, Rachel, I. (2001). How do profoundly deaf children learn to read?*. Leaning Disabilities Research and Practice, 16(4), 222-229. Retrieved from: http://idiom.ucsd.edu/~rmayberry/pubs/GoldinMeadow-Mayberry.pdf

Raising Deaf Kids. (2001-2004). National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders. Retrieved from: http://www.raisingdeafkids.org/

Roskos, K. A, Christie, J.F., Richels, D.J. (2003). The Essentials of early literacy instruction. National Association for the Education of Young Children, 1-8. 

Learning a second language at a young age

In class this week we discussed the importance and milestones of speech and language development. While I always knew that it is easier for children to learn another language than it is for adults, it amazed me to see graphs and data from the TED Talk that show how difficult learning a language becomes as children get older. The conversations from class made me think, "Why doesn't every elementary school teach students a second language? Why do they wait for middle or high school?"

I work in a public school in D.C. called Shepherd Elementary School. We are an International Baccalaureate school which, in our school, means we try to integrate all of the subject areas and teach children how to live and act globally. In Susan Lang's article, Barbara Lust and Sujin Yang have found that students learn a second language best when the language surrounds them. At Shepherd, students are required to devote a portion of the week to studying French or Spanish in an immersive classroom where the teacher only speaks Spanish or French. While the students at Shepherd do not speak a second language for all, or even half a day, they are able to learn to speak, read, and write in a non-native language. According to Lust and Yang, learning another language will also help with cognitive advantages. " These cognitive advantages can contribute to a child's future academic success."' (Lang, 2009). The students at Shepherd will hopefully be better prepared for the challenges of middle school and high school since they have been exposed to Spanish and French since preschool.

I don't understand why so many school systems wait until middle school to begin teaching a second language. I attended a private Jewish elementary school where I learned Hebrew for a third of the day from kindergarten through fourth grade. I went to public school in fifth grade and I took Spanish beginning in seventh grade and stopped after the required four years. At the time, I didn't realize how beneficial it would be to learn Spanish. I didn't stick with it. Today, while I don't consider myself bilingual, I remember Hebrew much more than Spanish. 

Was it easier for me to learn and remember Hebrew because I was younger and my brain was still developing? Linda Halgunseth discusses in her article that, "'research has found that children who begin to learn a second language before the age of 6 or 7 are more able to speak the new language like a native speaker than children who didn’t start until after ages 6 or 7 (Bongaerts, 2005)"'(Halgunseth 2009). She also explains that research shows that children who learn a second language will eventually outperform their peers who only know one language. Shouldn't every American student begin learning a second language in elementary school when it is more meaningful? Would it help the success of our students in their academics and for their future careers? 

References: 
Halgunseth, Linda. (2010), How children learn a second language [article]. Retrieved from    http://www.education.com/reference/article/how-children-learn-  second-language/?page=2Lang, Susan S. (2009). Learning a second language is good childhood mind medicine, studies find   [article]. Retrieved from http://www.news.cornell.edu/stories/2009/05/learning-second-language-good-childhood-mind-medicine 

Does Head Start Make a Difference?

As an education professional I believe that early childhood education has a strong impact on a child's life. Not knowing anything about the woman I discuss below, my limited observation follows. This story is meant to highlight what I believe to be a larger issue and not directly offend parents who might make a mistake. 

This past Thursday around 1:00 pm, I was walking down the street in Chinatown, DC when a woman in about her thirties, ran past us on the sidewalk yelling, "Ugh, wait, wait, wait!" at the bus that had just closed its doors, about to pull away. About fifteen people waiting at the bus stop looked at her, with her baby in the stroller, feeling her frustration. We can all understand how it feels when you see a bus door closing, knowing the next one might not come for another fifteen minutes, at least.

The attention quickly shifted. A girl around four years old ran onto the street, along side the bus, trying to help her mom catch the bus. Following behind her, was her two to three year old brother. You can only imagine the fear in everyone's eyes: A small boy running next to tires that were his size, as they slowly began to move.

I was behind a crowd of people. I'm not sure whether the boy was pulled onto the sidewalk by a stranger, or if the bus stopped because of traffic or the driver felt something was wrong. Thankfully, no one was hurt. But I was angry. How could this mother not think about the safety of her children on the crowded streets in Chinatown? Was waiting for a bus so horrible for this mother, that all common sense left her mind? This story is only one incident I happened to observe during my day. But I wonder if a story like this a part of a larger societal problem.

In my Emergent Literacy: Research into Practice class in grad school, we had a short conversation about the importance of Head Start. Head Start is an educational program for kids from lower income families. It is an environment that not only helps with cognitive development, but supports children's health, and social emotional development. It also helps parents learn about parenting and how to be supportive to their children. Do I know if these kids came from a disadvantaged family? No. Do I know the exact ages of the kids and whether they are enrolled in school or not? No. But as an early childhood teacher, my gut feeling was, "If only these kids were in school, they would have some structure. Maybe if the boy was in Head Start the mother would learn something about parenting."

There are people who believe Head Start is a waste of government spending. Some people do not think what a child learns or does not learn at three years old matters. Planet Money, a program funded by NPR, made a podcast about a study that started in the 1960s at the Perry Preschool Program, where they followed children for 40 years to determine whether attending preschool makes a measurable difference in a child's development. Half of the children in the study had free access to preschool, and half didn't have access to preschool at all. The study found that the children who attended preschool were less likely to be arrested and made more money at their jobs. The researchers also found that the skills acquired in preschool that help with your future are more difficult to gain as you get older.

There are other children who almost get hit by a bus or don't know to stay off of a busy street. There are parents with three or more kids who don't know the first thing about parenting. I wonder if this mother, who seemed to be clueless about the safety of her children, attended a preschool herself. Will her kids make similar irresponsible decisions as adults? Or will programs like Head Start allow disadvantaged children to have a successful future? The Researchers at the Perry Preschool Program would say yes, and I agree.


Planet Money (2011, June 10). The case for preschool. Planet Money @ NPR Podcast. Podcast 
            retrieved from http://www.npr.org/blogs/money

Hello! My name is Rachel Goldman and I am currently pursuing my Masters at Johns Hopkins University in Emergent Literacy and K-8 Math Lead Teacher.  I grew up in NJ and then attended the University of Maryland where I studied Early Childhood Education. I have taught first grade for the past three years at Shepherd Elementary in Washington, DC. I am spending this year focusing on my Masters program, tutoring, and observing teachers.

I have created this blog to reflect on the most current topics in literacy education. My goal as a teacher is to create an environment where students become life long readers and writers and share their love of learning. I hope this blog will be a place where educators can share their ideas and learn from others in order to be the best literacy educators. I look forward to sharing my thoughts about literacy and reading about your ideas and questions as well. Thank you for checking out my blog!