Final Reflections

I really enjoyed this class. Everything that I learned I am going to put into use, which is nice!
The book we used is going to stay with me forever. It is such helpful information and ideas, I know I am going to be referring back to it many times.  I have pages marked with notes that I will be using shortly in my field experience. I liked how Dr. Pytash provided a theme to the books we read then allowed us to choose from five books. I think this is a useful strategy that I will use because not all students have the same reading interests. It allows the students to have some independence in their reading choice, but the teacher still has the control.


I enjoy reading a lot and it was nice to be surrounded by others who feel the same passion as I do. Now all I am going to do over winter break is read the many book ideas I got from this class. So far, this has been my favorite class. It has everything that I like, plus I learned so much!

Chapter 14

I love reading and I wish I could do more of it. I am defiantly going encourage reading in my classrooms. I want to be able to provide books in my classroom, so students won't have to search for them (because they won't). I want to be able to suggest a book and hand it to them in the same instance. Again, it is getting to know your students and figuring out what interests them. I like many different genres of books, but what I like is different then what my students might like. I like all the suggests Beers' provides about introducing books. I think reading aloud a passage as Dr. Pytash did, allows for a peak of interest by students. The book jackets are also another good idea. Have students bring a book cover of one of their favorite books and put them all on a bulletin board, this will allow students to see what kids their age like to read. Defiantly getting to know the school librarian will help tremendously. They live in the library and will be a big help when trying to get students to pick out books. I love going to the library or bookstore, but their are many people who find it overwhelming, so that is why I like the idea of bring the library to your classroom better than taking the students to the library.


This chapter provided many useful links to booklists. This will be very helpful when trying to figure out what books I want in my classroom.

Chapter 13

Students learn many school in their earlier elementary years that are later enhanced in high school and beyond. Confidence in the classroom is one of those skills. Confidence is a hard thing to have sometimes, but it is important as a teacher to work with students to make them feel important in the classroom. By setting expectations as the classroom and individual level, it will allow students to have something to strive for. If expectations are not set, then students won't have anything to work towards. It is important to set individual expectations for students because they are not all the same and don't perform at the same level. 

One thing that I don't like personally is group work. But I have learned that it helps engage learning and it helps to work with your classmates. In my future classroom, I will have group discussions and smaller group discussion. It will get students to work with one another and hopefully develop a new understanding of their peers. Diversity is a major part of the classroom, but it is how as a teacher you approach it. Obviously, the views I had in high school and the views I have now are different. But I believe it is important to celebrate the diversity of everyone. Life would be boring if everyone is the same!

Many times when students read, myself included, they are taking a more efferent stance towards reading. They are trying to figure out what to get from the text. They are looking to answer questions for homework or a test. Instead of taking a aesthetic stance, which to live through the text. As an avid reader, they are able to switch between these two stances. However, those that can't will take a more efferent stance and not be able to enjoy reading.

Chapter 10

I agree with Beers when she says "the more a reader reads, the more her reading rate will improve." When I begin teaching, I will defiantly set aside time for independent reading. It will give students a chance to read what they want and improve their skills at the same time. I think this philosophy is the same with anything that you do; the more you work at something, the better you become at it. 

It is important when measuring a students reading rate to take into consideration their reading level. It would do no good to give a student with a low-reading ability something that is too difficult. Also, to provide them with something that might capture their attention, rather than something boring. The suggestions Beers' provides are very important to consider when you are trying to determine a students reading level. It goes back to really understanding your students. 

The suggestions for improving students fluency were helpful. The one I like the best was giving students varied opportunities for hearing text. If the teacher reads to the students or have a high-fluency student read a passage, then students can learn and recognize fluency. Then to ask students what they heard, so they can mimic the behavior. Reading aloud can help in many other ways as well.