Literacy+Documents

Below is a series of documents that have been uploaded to view on the computer. These documents showcase my work throughout all of my student teaching and clinical/school practicum. I have selected certain documents to portray a wide range of my capabilities in different content areas, types of classrooms, and types of instruction.

** Artifacts for Teaching Portfolio ** 5.1 ||
 * Artifact Number: ||  Nature of Artifact:  ||  Course:  ||  Standard Addressed  ||
 * Artifact 1 ||  Professional Development Plan, “Preparing for the Common Core Curriculum Standards”  ||  LRC567, Literacy Coaching (mid program)  ||  2.1  ||
 * Artifact 2 ||  Whole Class Instruction Guided Reading Lesson Plan  ||  LRC553, Classroom Practicum (mid program)  ||  2.1
 * Artifact 3 ||  Final Report on Remediation Sessions  ||  LRC545, Remediation of Literacy Problems (mid program)  ||  2.2  ||
 * Artifact 4 ||  Annotated Bibliography on Whale Unit  ||  LRC553, Classroom Practicum (mid program)  ||  2.3  ||
 * Artifact 5 ||  Annotated Bibliography for Instructional Materials to be used with ELLs at the RISSE center  ||  LRC590, Research Seminar in Literacy (end of program)  ||  2.3  ||
 * Artifact 6 ||  Research Review, “English Language Learners: Bridging Communication Gaps Between Families and Schools”  ||  LRC590, Research Seminar in Literacy (end of program)  ||  4.1  ||
 * Artifact 7 ||  __Other People’s Words__ by Victoria Purcell-Gates essay entitled, “Set Up for Failure”  ||  LRC530, Theories of Literacy  ||  4.1  ||

4.2 ||  4.3    5.1    5.4  ||  //Abby lesson plan 3//  ||  LRC551, Clinical Practicum (end of program)  ||  5.3 5.1 ||  //Andrew Lesson Plan 2//  ||  LRC545, Remediation of Literacy Problems  ||  5.3 5.1 ||
 * Artifact 8 ||  Executive Summary, “Home to School Connections for English Language Learners”  ||  LRC590, Research Seminar in Literacy (end of program)  ||  4.1
 * Artifact 9 ||  Whole Class Instruction, “Summarizing and Making DVD Covers”  ||  LRC553, Classroom Practicum (mid program)  ||  4.2
 * Artifact 10 ||  Small Group Instruction, “Sentence Fragments”  ||  LRC553, Classroom Practicum (mid program)  ||  5.1  ||
 * Artifact 11 ||  Classroom Practicum Blog on motivation in student learning  ||  LRC553, Classroom Practicum (mid program)  ||  5.2  ||
 * Artifact 12 ||  One-on-One remedial lesson plan
 * Artifact 13 ||  One-on-One remedial lesson plan
 * Artifact 14 ||  Classroom Practicum Blog on instructional grouping  ||  LRC553, Classroom Practicum (mid program)  ||  5.4  ||
 * Application of Artifacts to IRA Standards for Teaching Portfolio **

With the recent development of the Common Core Standards in English Language Arts (ELA) and Mathematics for students grades K-12, administrators and teachers need to understand the shifts in the standards and how it will impact the curriculum at their schools. **Artifact 1** is a professional development plan I developed in LRC567 Literacy Coaching, which was focused on introducing and familiarizing teachers and administrators from an area school with the Common Core standards. This professional development plan outlined goals, activities, and resources for Arongen Elementary School in the Shenendehowa Central School District. The professional development plan also calls for teachers to work and design curriculum both horizontally and vertically aligned to the new standards.
 * 2.1 **


 * Artifact 2 ** is a guided reading lesson plan I wrote and carried out in a fifth grade whole group class setting during my classroom practicum placement at Slingerlands Elementary School in the Bethlehem Central School District. Guided reading is a staple component of many of the Albany area districts’ curriculum. Additionally, the lesson plan was aligned to the NYS Common Core fifth grade ELA standard RF 5.4, which concerns fluency and accuracy of reading, and standard RI 5.4, which concerns content area vocabulary.

2.2
 * Artifact 3 ** is a blog written for LRC553 Classroom Practicum on effective instructional approaches. Struggling readers and writers benefit from explicit instruction. Research has found that by bringing attention to the covert processes, understandings, and skills we use and control in order to read and write effectively, students increase their metacognitive awareness and can then improve their literacy skills. This blog piece highlights my own use of explicit instruction throughout my classroom practicum lessons and the success that was met from my students. Furthermore, I discuss systematic instruction and the benefits of planning lessons with a rationale and evidence based practices. Each lesson written throughout LRC553 required a rationale for the concept being taught as well as research to back up the rationale. Lastly, this blog piece examined contextualizing learning for students in order to make their learning more meaningful, mindful, transferable, and useful. Research has found that connecting content to students’ schema is an effective instructional strategy for all learners.


 * Artifact 4 **, my final remediation report on a one-on-one tutoring program for a struggling sixth grade student in LRC545 analyzes the various instructional strategies I used throughout my remedial tutoring sessions. Each instructional strategy used was intended to specifically target the individual needs of this particular learner. Andrew struggled greatly with fluency and word recognition of multi-syllabic words. According to the Qualitative Reading Inventory 5, Andrew was reading orally at a 5th grade instructional level towards the end of his sixth grade year. This final report evaluates the effectiveness of each of the strategies I used to help Andrew improve his fluency and word recognition.

2.3 My placement at Slingerlands Elementary School for Classroom Practicum (LRC553) required me to find instructional materials for either a science or social studies unit in the fifth grade classroom I taught in. **Artifact 5** is an annotated bibliography for a unit on whales for my cooperating teacher’s classroom. Each year, the fifth grade students and teachers at Slingerlands Elementary School spend about two months researching whales and all there is to know about whaling and its history. This annotated bibliography is intended to help the teachers at Slingerlands build and use quality materials that meet the needs and abilities of all learners while working on the Whale unit. The resources include a mix of print, digital, online, and multi-media materials.

In LRC590, we are working with the Refugee and Immigrant Support Services of Emmaus Center to develop a curriculum and materials suitable and adapted to the English Language Learners that attend the after school and evening programs. **Artifact 6** is an annotated bibliography that consists of materials that can be used with a wide range of English Language Learners. The materials included vary in type including online games, narratives, and textbooks. This bibliography will be given to volunteer instructors and coordinators at RISSE in order to inform their choices of future instructional materials.

4.1 Diversity plays a large role in children’s literacy acquisition and development. It is important that we as educators recognize this relationship and address it in our teaching and studies. **Artifact 7** is a research review that I wrote during my final semester in the literacy program at Saint Rose. This paper entitled, “ English Language Learners: Bridging Communication Gaps Between Families and Schools,” explores the relationship between first and second language acquisition and literacy development in non-English speaking students and the effect the involvement of their home has on their academics.

Adapted from the research review in Artifact 7, **Artifact 9** is an executive summary written by myself and two other students who studied similar topics in terms of English Language Learners. This executive summary was written like a newsletter and is intended for use by the volunteer teachers at RISSE in order to better inform them of best practices to be used with their diverse students. The executive summary outlines recommendations for the RISSE center in terms of forging positive relationships with students and their families. Research shows that making these connections is of extreme importance to ELL student academic achievement and wellbeing.


 * Artifact 8** is an essay I wrote for LRC530, Theories of Research, based on the research novel, //Other People’s Words// by Victoria Purcell-Gates. The essay takes a deeper look into how one’s background and culture effects literacy development. I argue that stereotypes and prejudices cast a wall between educators and students when students’ cultures are of a low prestige language variety. This wall thwarts certain students from obtaining the same fruits of education that are offered to most students. Culturally and linguistically diverse students face a huge challenge in many of today’s schools when diversity is seen as unfavorable. Diversity is in fact what makes each student unique and special.

4.2
 * Artifact 9**, the executive summary written for LRC590, is a newsletter that briefs that audience (the volunteer teachers at RISSE) on what research has found in terms of home-to-school and school-to-home literacy connections for English Language Learners and then outlines a few recommendations to be put into practice at the RISSE center for optimal communication between families and students. In this newsletter, my group members and I stressed the importance of involving students’ home lives and families in their program. We found that ELLs are best supported when their families and educators effectively communicate with one another. This newsletter is intended to provide guidance to the volunteer teachers and other staff at RISSE in not only making these connections, but really valuing the contributions the diverse families offer, as well.


 * Artifact 11** is a lesson plan I conducted during my classroom practicum at Slingerlands Elementary School. While in my fifth grade classroom placement, it was evident that the students were not all on the same reading level. In this particular lesson, I looked at the students’ reading levels, as assessed by the classroom teacher using Burns and Roe reading assessments, and organized them into three different groups. I had a high reading level group, a medium reading level group, and a low reading level group. Three different texts that corresponded to each group’s reading ability were provided to students at the beginning of the lesson. Prior to the lesson, I wrote students names on each article so that when the articles were handed out, it would not be obvious how the grouping was done. By differentiating the reading articles, all of the students were able to read and understand the given texts with ease. In learning literacy practices, no student should be forced to struggle with text they cannot understand. Furthermore, I made accommodations to a visually impaired student that was in this class. Kelly fortunately had the use of a Braille Reader in which her article was scanned in and converted to Braille. Kelly was then able to also type up and print out her summary in order to be handed in for me to read, as well. Every classroom is diverse and it is of extreme importance that materials and instruction be differentiated so that everyone may be offered the same opportunity to succeed and learn.

4.3 My last two semesters in the Literacy program at Saint Rose have focused a lot on providing support to the volunteer teachers at the RISSE center in Albany. Although RISSE does an excellent job at providing immigrants and refugees with the necessary life skills and English speaking skills for life in America, the inclusion of research-backed best practices and strategies could improve the quality of instruction taking place. These individuals deserve a chance to be successful in their new lives after so many of the horrors a multitude of them had to face. **Artifact 10**, a PowerPoint Training video made for the volunteer teachers at RISSE explicitly describes why home and school connections for ELLs are especially important and how to forge these relationships. This video shows that my group members and I strongly believe in social justice and giving all types of learners a chance to be successful.


 * Artifact 11**, a whole group lesson plan written for Classroom Practicum, actively relies on schema theory and making connections. This particular lesson asked students to write a summary of an article in the format of a DVD cover. When introducing the lesson, I brought in the DVD “Shrek” and asked students to describe to me what the movie was about. I then read the summary off of the back cover out loud and asked students how long the summary was and if they thought it was sufficient. Most students noted that it was only one sentence long and that it accurately captured the main idea and plot story of the movie. Students were eager to then share their own one-sentence summaries of the movie “Shrek.” I then assigned students to differentiated levels of texts to read and asked that they each write a 2-3 sentence summary of their text in the format of a DVD cover. Students enjoyed working with a format they were familiar with and could relate to, and it really allowed them to make connections between what they already knew and the new summarizing content I was trying to teach.

5.1
 * Artifact 12** is a small group lesson plan I conducted in my fifth grade classroom placement at Slingerlands Elementary for LRC553. This lesson plan was intended for two groups of students who performed poorly on a previous assignment given by the classroom teacher. While teaching the lesson with the first group, I made slight changes to my lesson as it was written in order to meet the students’ needs. I found that by consistently repeating what was needed in order to make a complete sentence, students had an easier time differentiating between a sentence fragment and a complete sentence. By the time I worked with the second group of students, I had modified my lesson plan numerous times in order to cater to my students’ particular needs.

For every lesson plan I wrote for my various classes and placements (**Artifacts 2, 11, 12, 14, and 15**) I made sure to make all materials readily available to students. If students were required to read something, I provided the text in printed form so that they were able to take notes and write directly on it. I also often provided white boards, markers, colored pencils, markers, pencils, and instructional examples for my students so that the majority of time allotted for instruction was constructive. Additionally, these lesson plans demonstrate my ability to plan and provide instruction and materials for a variety of individual, small group, and whole class activities.

5.2 Motivation in the classroom is essential for student academic achievement. **Artifact 13** is a blog post I wrote for my Classroom Practicum coursework that explains the importance of engaging students in their literacy practices and provides some evidence-based principles for educators to follow. I reflect on my own practices as an educator and how I have attempted to engage my students in what they are learning. Differentiating texts, for example, is something I do quite often in lesson plans because I recognize that not all students perform at the same level. Every student should be given the opportunity to succeed, and providing a range of texts allows not only this, but often results in higher engagement, as well. A supportive social environment, the rest of my blog entry argues, is made up of student choice and providing opportunities for students to make connections between their home and school literacies.

5.3 Students who struggle with reading and writing benefit from one-on-one instruction, explicit teaching, and effective routines. **Artifact 14** is a lesson plan I conducted in LRC551 Clinical Practicum with a sixth grade student named Abby. Abby struggled greatly with both reading and writing, and I found that by setting up a routine for each tutoring session, the lesson went smoothly. Abby was able to anticipate and prepare for each subsequent activity and understood what we were doing, when we were doing it, how we were doing it, and most importantly why we were doing it. In establishing a routine similar to the one outlined in Artifact 14, Abby was able to master a number of skills she could not always perform before.

Similarly to Artifact 14, **Artifact 15** is a lesson plan of a remedial lesson plan I conducted in LRC545, Remediation of Literacy Problems. Similar to the tutoring sessions in Clinical Practicum, this particular lesson plan set up a routine for my assigned student, Andrew. Andrew was a sixth grade student who struggled greatly with decoding multisyllabic words, so each lesson began with a fluency and word work portion. By the end of the tutoring sessions, this repetitive routine allowed Andrew to successfully decode a number of multisyllabic words.

5.4 There are a number of grouping practices that help teachers to meet the needs of all learners. Throughout my coursework, I have experimented with a number of evidence-based grouping arrangements. **Artifact 16** is a blog I wrote for LRC553 on grouping children for instruction. I read and responded to an article by Kathleen Jongsma entitled, “Grouping Children for Instruction: Some Guidelines.” I then reflected on my past grouping practices and their effectiveness.


 * Artifact 11**, a whole group lesson plan written for LRC553 describes the grouping practices I put in place for a fifth grade classroom. For this particular class, reading abilities were scattered everywhere from third grade reading levels to eighth grade reading levels, so ability based grouping worked extremely well. The texts used in the lesson were chosen based on three reading levels-fourth, fifth, and sixth and students were assigned to groups with a certain text based on Burns and Roe assessments done by the classroom teacher. Grouping in this fashion was beneficial to the students as they were all afforded an opportunity to succeed at their own instructional level, rather than struggle or find the task too easy. Grouping was something I had to think about hard and often with this class, and I found a number of grouping practices that worked effectively.

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