This is a pretty thick book. Let me just start with that. :) And although it looks a bit daunting, it is actually very accessible content-wise. The book focuses on contemporary language acquisition, and it includes very detailed activities and ideas for teaching emerging bilingual students. I found the lesson description and graphics to be very interesting and helpful in assisting me with increasing my knowledge of how to better present instruction to students learning the English language. Although you may not sit down and read the book as a whole, it is an excellent resource to add to your professional library.
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Making Content Comprehensible for English Learners: The SIOP Model by Echevarria, Vogt, and Short4/24/2022 I can't say that you are going to pick this book up and read it like your favorite novel; it is not that kind of book. It is, however, a helpful text for teachers of emerging bilingual students. The authors do an effective job of explaining the SIOP model and breaking it down into a pretty user-friendly framework for readers to follow. I would recommend it for instructors wanting to learn about the SIOP lesson planning process. It is a good resource for new learners to SIOP as well as a good review for those of us needing to review the SIOP Model. I have read and enjoyed The Sports Gene by David Epstein, so I thought I would give Range a try. This book does not just center on sports, however. In the book, Epstein looks at how generalists, are often better suited for tasks because they have a wealth of overall knowledge and can view things from a variety of perspectives and through different lenses. He gives examples from sports, business, the medical field, etc. I found the examples shared to be interesting overall. In a world where as a society we strive to "specialize" our children in sports. music, etc. at an early age, I found the examples in the book refreshing. Are there people who specialized in their area that attain greatness? Of course, and several of them are mentioned in the book, but there are also stories of those who did not even choose the field in which they would attain greatness until much later in life after trying multiple other avenues. This book was a little dense in areas and a slow read for me, but overall, I did enjoy the content and ideas presented within it. To be honest, I am not sure what made me pick up this book to read. I think I saw it on my Kindle library app and decided that I do not normally read much about disability or see much about disabilities in books, so I thought I would give it a read. The book is written by Emily Ladau who shares her own struggles with being treated differently or inferiorly because she has a disability. I think her voice and inclusion of her personal thoughts and experiences throughout the book adds a bit of authenticity to the story, I must say that the main thing I learned from this book is that some people are ridiculously rude and unthoughtful. I am 100% certain I do not always say the right thing or respond in the correct manner in all situations because, let's face it, I am socially awkward, but at least I attempt to be a nice human, and it is clear through some of the stories shared in the book, that not all people try to be nice. That being said, Ladau does not shame people in the book, she comes from a place of - acknowledge your actions and do better - which I found refreshing. After reading the book, I think I will be a bit more cognizant of my thoughts and actions surrounding people with disabilities and just people in general, and I think that is a pretty good outcome. It is a great reminder to always treat everyone with dignity and respect, and if you make a mistake, own up to it and then do better. My principal provided us a copy of The Culture Code at the beginning of the school year and asked us to give it a read. Y'all, it took basically forever for me to read it. We are talking months which is not how I usually roll with reading. It wasn't because the book isn't interesting or well-written. It just seems to be how I read books like this; books on self-improvement or organizational goals and improvement are just something I must take in small bites. This isn't a writing genre that generally speaks to me, even if there is much to learn from them. That being said, I stuck with it, and am glad I did. I enjoyed how Doyle incorporated specific examples and stories of how the cultural has been established at varying types of organizations - Navy Seal teams, sports organization, corporate organizations, and even schools. It was interesting to see the common threads that they all seem to share. Although this book is lumped into the business genre, it didn't feel too "businessy" to me. I think anyone who works within a team or organization could benefit form giving it a read, especially if they are a supervisor. America's First FemalE Serial Killer: Jane Toppan and the Making of a Monster by Mary Kay McBrayer1/5/2022 I must admit. I enjoy true crime books and podcasts. I like hearing about the criminals as well as the investigation and how the criminal was found out. This book is not exactly the typical true crime book (at least the ones I have previously read). This book explores how Jane Toppan became America's first female serial killer; however, it is not written as a detective story but as more of a novel which I had mixed feelings about. I enjoyed that the book read like a novel seeing as I tend to read more fiction than nonfiction and fiction tends to be a quicker read; however, as I read, I found myself thinking about Toppan and the victims in the book as characters and not actual people. "Novelizing" Jane's story seemed to make it come across as less factual and more fictional to me which I found to be a problem. It was interesting to learn about Toppan since there is apparently not a whole lot of information about her, but I do think I would have preferred a more traditional approach to the telling of her story. That all being said, the book is worth a read if you enjoy true crime. This is a portion of my book review for my graduate class over this text: Introduction: Teaching Literature to Adolescents is written in collaboration by Richard Beach, Deborah Appleman, Bob Fecho, and Rob Simon. All of these authors hold positions in higher education at universities teaching courses related to literacy. Each has also published multiple books and articles related to adolescent literacy, and they all seem quite qualified to discuss best practices in adolescent literacy. The opening chapter of the book is directed to teachers who are stepping into the classroom and might have some hesitancy about what they should be teaching and how to go about effectively teaching literacy skills in their classroom. According to the preface, the authors wrote the book to provide some guidance, best practices, and strategies to assist preservice middle and high school teachers as they navigate literacy instruction. Focus: In the preface of the book, the authors lay out the thesis and organization of the book as well as discuss the theoretical and philosophical rationale for the included content. The authors' basic thesis is to provide preservice middle and high school teachers with current methods of teaching literacy based on critical, social constructivist, and sociocultural theories of learning. The authors contend that the theories are based on engaging students through alternative perspectives of literature and giving them an opportunity to extend their knowledge and perspectives through writing, discussion, and drama. The book includes theoretical ideas as well as specific teaching strategies, and classroom examples and observations that are based on best practices and supported by data which is cited throughout the chapters and at the conclusion of the book in the references section. The book is divided into four sections: Why Should I Teach Literature?, What Texts Will Students Read and View in My Classroom?, How will I Teach Literature?, and We Make the Road by Walking. As the reader progresses through the book it steps the reader through why, how, and then ideas to sustain literacy instruction in the classroom in order to assist pre-service teachers with getting started and staying current on literacy instruction. Chapter one of the book lays the framework of the content by stating, "We believe that critical inquiry approach and the theoretical positions that inform the teaching we describe and advocate in this book are powerful and effective" (Beach et al. p. 5). The authors go on to discuss transmission theories and critical sociocultural theories with the emphasis being on the effectiveness of critical sociocultural theories, and through the chapters, the authors continue to build the case that students learn when engaged with literature through questioning and making text connections to the world and culture around them. As the chapters continue, the authors discuss how curriculum units can be planned through backward planning and setting essential questions that are tied to standards. Emphasis is given to extending literature beyond the traditional canon and allowing students to choose young adult literature that is interesting and engaging to them. Specific activities are suggested such as allowing students to demonstrate their understanding of literacy concepts through formative assessments such as paintings, poems, discussion, and with digital tools as well as with formal writing. Students are encouraged to respond to literature through multiple perspectives and specific examples are provided such as biographical perspective, gender perspective, and social class perspective. The final section focuses on professional learning and how teachers can continue to develop over the span of their teaching careers with the emphasis being research and critical dialogue. The authors advise that educators not become stagnant in their classroom and continue to interact with peers in order to discuss hard questions, learn new strategies, and work out difficulties encountered in the classroom. The ideas and strategies within Teaching Literature to Adolescents help pre-service teachers lay a firm foundation for effective literacy instruction and help those of us who have been teaching for multiple years, re-evaluate the instruction taking place in our own classrooms. The knowledge presented within the text echoes the theories, best practices, and strategies that have been presented in all of the texts and journals I have encountered thus far in my graduate studies. Response: To be honest, I found this text difficult to engage with due to the writing style. It read more like a textbook to me than some of the other books I have read so far in my graduate studies; that being said, the content covered within the text is important and is supported by data. I appreciated the best practices and the specific examples provided throughout the text and found the middle chapters to be much more helpful than the first few chapters which were more of an introduction, and may be very helpful to pre-service teachers, but were not super helpful to me as a somewhat seasoned teacher. I would recommend this book to my colleagues, especially chapters 3-11 which get more into the "meat" of literacy instruction instead of the theory. As far as textbooks go, I actually found this book to be pretty informative and easy to read. I enjoyed the topics discussed in the book which range from early literacy skills, reading comprehension, vocabulary, writing, and professional learning. I also appreciate that each chapter is divided into sections based on current issues in best practices, evidence-based best practices, best practices in action, reflections, and engagement activities. I found the best practices in action to be a very useful section because specific examples and strategies are discussed and readers are given a glimpse into classrooms. I would definitely recommend this book for teachers who are looking to review literacy skills and learn about best practices they can institute in their classrooms. I admit it. I am a bit of a nerd, and as such, this book is right up my alley. It is sciency and hippie all rolled into one. If you are interested in learning about how breathing through the nose versus breathing through the mouth might affect your health, you will enjoy this book. The author explains the research he has done into this subject (as well as others) and shares the experiments he conducted on himself and a his friend. He discusses various breathing techniques he has tried as well. Many of them sound a bit crazy, but I found his insights interesting. I would certainly not take this book as sound "medical" advice, but it is an interesting read and offers insights into how breathing affects us. I have heard a lot about growth mindset lately, so I thought I would go directly to the source to find out more. Growth vs. fixed mindset is being bandied about in education circles, and I wanted to make sure I have a firm grasp on the concept. After reading this book, I definitely feel a bit more knowledgeable about what a growth mindset is and how to develop it in myself as well as how to help others try to shift their view from fixed to growth mindset as well. I particularly enjoyed the chapters and examples that explored athletes and their mindsets as well as the chapter on CEOs. Since I am an educator, I would have enjoyed more examples of student feedback and of how to assist struggling students with developing a growth mindset, but luckily, there are several videos of Dweck speaking online that I plan to watch. I also plan to request the MindsetMaker Professional development course from my administration so that I can continue exploring. I do believe reframing how we think and how we view challenges is a very important component to achieving our goals and becoming happy with our accomplishments, so I would definitely suggest giving Mindset a read. |
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