Easier to work with a novel that you have enjoyed reading. The novel should
have a strong, fast paced plot and ... A Walk to Remember by Nicholas Sparks.
Presented by Shari Brown, M.A.
Interests refer to a student’s likes, preferences,
favorites, etc. Student’s assets include a student’s abilities, skills,
strengths, capabilities, etc.
Discussion of ways to get to know your students’ interests and assets…
Observe your students Talk to your students
Ask your students to share Watch what you say, how you say it, and what you do in the classroom Employ a variety of teaching strategies Opening letter Student survey
Journaling Truth Statements
Think aloud Exit Slips
Dr. James Comer
Independent Activity
Answers the “Why are we learning this?” question and gives meaning to learning. AND Connects what we teach to our students’ lives in their real world roles as family members, employees, and community members.
John Dewey (1859-1952) stressed experiential
modes of learning, theorizing that learning results as we strive to make sense of our experiences. William James (1880) believed that teachers
should have their students put new knowledge to immediate use in order to build useful systems of association.
David Kolb (1983) believes that most students do not fit
neatly into one category of learning styles. Almost all students can learn by and benefit from all four experiences (thinking, feeling, doing, and watching). Thomas Sticht (1990’s) proposed that persistence and
attendance would be markedly improved if programs could provide education directly linked to job training objectives. Sticht suggested that students who cannot link instruction to some direct outcome of significance to their lives are less likely to persist in the adult education program.
Seven principles that form the framework for contextual education 1. Purpose Principle
2. Building Principle 3. Application Principle 4. Problem-Solving Principle
5. Teamwork Principle 6. Discovery Principle
7. Connection Principle
Students are so much more academically engaged when
they know the reason why they are learning something. More engagement results in improved attendance, better
persistence, and increased transition to post secondary education and employment.
Five core teaching principles
Relate E xperience
A pply
Cooperate
Transfer
Increases student knowledge retention Increases student motivation
Views learning as a team effort between the teacher
and the learner, encouraging student persistence Makes learning the learner’s responsibility
Focus on four questions What do we want students to know?
Why do they need to know it? How will we know they know it? How will they learn it?
Group Activity
Example and Activity
REACT
Collective reading
experience Supportive reading experience Access to the idea of development (theme, plot, characters) Opportunity to share your own enthusiasm for a text The text itself is the supporting structure for the lessons
Makes it easier to
adequately cover all topics and subject areas Enables instructor to
better utilize time by combining the time allowed for each subject
May be limited depending on what is available and what
funding you have Easier to work with a novel that you have enjoyed reading
The novel should have a strong, fast paced plot and
interesting, well delineated, memorable characters Impossible to create enthusiasm in your students when
teaching a novel you found dull and uninteresting
Choose a novel that is part of a theme or integrated unit that
captivates your students imagination and explores human conditions
Choose interesting novels for your students: consider age,
reading level and abilities, gender, and interest
Make sure students can identify with the emotions of the
characters so that they can learn how others deal with situations and problems that might be similar to their own experiences
Borrow books from the library to read, before making a final
choice
Night by Ellie Weisel Speak by Laurie Halse Anderson To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee
Tuck Everlasting by Natalie Babbitt Where the Heart Is by Billie Letts The Outsiders by S. E. Hinton
Walking Across Egypt by Clyde Edgerton A Walk to Remember by Nicholas Sparks Because of Winn-Dixie by Kate DiCamillo
Twenty and Ten by Claire Huchet Bishop
Break the novel down into natural segments Read chapter by chapter taking notes on new
vocabulary and discussion questions Plan around no more than two main objectives per segment Plan for assessment opportunities Consider the students in your class and how to support them
Help students with cultural background
Stimulate interest in the story Develop guideline questions and vocabulary Teach literary elements: characters, setting, time,
problem, events, solution Align the novel with a Universal Theme Prediction activities based on the cover/title
Word searches Crossword puzzles Vocabulary sketches Sentences: Fill in the blank Flash Cards Dictionary Definitions/Sentences
understand the plot Character studies understand difficult vocabulary/word study activities understand style and language Sequencing activities Role play Re-writing an extract in a different form or from a different point of view develop effective reading skills Note taking skills Creative Writing/Open Ended questions will allow students to predict outcomes, make comparisons and contrasts, and draw inferences Journal writing Supplementary lessons and resources (articles, books, research, speakers, movies)
Reader Response Journals Writer responds to something of importance to them that they have
read Students will bring to their writing life experiences and knowledge
Dialogue Journals A conversation in written form between the student and teacher Less threatening because they are merely responding to the teacher, the
chore of coming up with something on which to write is eliminated The student will take cues from the teacher’s spelling and form, thus improving their skills without realizing it Adult learners feel less threatened and more open to creative expression Self Esteem Journals Boosts the self image of the writer Students are given confidence or self esteem prompts and asked to
respond to them Example: What does it mean to “Let your light shine through?”
Enable students to develop writing skills in a
nonthreatening gradeless environment Allow students to make mistakes and learn as they
complete more assignments Act as a diary of students’ growth as writers and
thinkers, and often students can learn a great deal about themselves just by looking over their past work
help students to interpret the text help students to understand narrative point of view provide follow-up writing activities provide follow-up fluency practice
Link with a movie Comparison between movie and novel
Novels with the same theme or topic
Book Clubs Art and Drama Activities Oral Book Reports
Novels by the same author Discuss writing style, theme, and similarities and
differences
GED Subject Area
Activities and Lessons
Writing
Poetry, Essays, Journaling, Poster Presentations, Note taking
Math
Vitruvian Man, Ratios/Proportions, graphs/charts, measurement, percents
Science
Scientific Method, Flower Dissection, Nutrition, Plant Life
Social Studies
History of Women’s Rights/Women Suffrage , Art History
Reading
Poetry, Maya Angelou, Vocabulary (prefixes/suffixes/root words), Literary elements
Parenting
Body Image, Rape, Sex Education, Relationships, Mentors, Friendship, Bullying, Communication with children
GED Subject Area
Lessons and Activities
Writing
Reports, Essays, Journaling, Note taking
Math
1932 living prices compared to now (fractions, decimals, percents, tables, graphing)
Science
Farming , Nutrition, Animal Science
Social Studies
Great Depression, Stock Market Crash, Franklin D. Roosevelt and the New Deal
Reading
Whole class novel reading, Poetry, Research, Vocabulary, Literary Elements
Parenting
Social Inequality, Racism, Peer Pressure, Discipline techniques, Formal and Informal Education, Relationships
Constraints
Solutions
Someone has already read it
Rereading can be positive if there is progression (involve, extend, and stimulate students)
Absences/Missed Parts
Recap (a necessary device anyway), but use other students to do this as well as yourself
Trying to cover too much
Look at progression and be selective
Students reading aloud badly
Each student can have their own text to read along, help each other, find alternatives to “round robin” reading
Could spend too long on it
Make sure objectives determine the length of the unit
Students may read ahead
In small groups read
Grandfather’s Journey by Allen Say Come up with ideas for an integrated lesson plan Record on chart paper Report back to the group
www.teachertimesavers.com www.suidoo.com/teachingnovels
Contextually Mediated Practices, FIPP Contextualized Instruction, ABSPD, Appalachian
University Michigan Adult Education and Professional Development Project (2009)
