Blog #6 Reading/Writing

Dear Dr. Jones,

For this blog, I was asked to focus on Tompkins text as well as Hicks to gain insight of the different habits of mind that I should consider while reading multiple texts. Also, for this blog I was asked to think about what instructional strategies and learning activities would I incorporate for my students in my own classroom as a future teacher. While being enrolled in this writing extensive class with Dr. Jones, I believe that this writing class has been going well for me. When I first saw that I was going to be attending a writing college class for graduate school every Monday, I expected this class to have a lot of writing assignments. However, I was surprised that we were going to be writing blogs each week relating to the readings we have discussed in class. I enjoy writing blogs each week relating to the readings we read for that week because it helps me focus deeply on the content that the author includes as well as paying attention closely to many of the quotes that are explained in the articles or text.  In addition, it gives us a chance to work with technology. Also, it gives Dr. Jones to write feedback to us on Moodle, as well as looking at our peer’s blogs for enjoyment.

 One thing I did not realize is that our and I are completing a genre piece project where we will be focusing on a topic that we are interested in. For this assignment, I did not know that we were going to be creating three pieces representing different genres while using a voice, audience, and purpose for writing. I thought initially we were going to create one long piece of writing instead of multiple to engage our audience. Another thing that I did not expect was creating a presentation that I would consider using in the classroom when I become a future teacher. I found this assignment to be interesting because I was able to search for a mentor presentation where I could use in my third grade classroom. Furthermore, I did expect that we would continuously speak about the instructional strategies or learning activities that we can incorporate in our classroom someday.

     Some habits of mind that I have used to develop through my writing and reading experiences would include being open-minded and curious of what more information I wanted to learn, while asking questions about the text. Also, I tend to be creative while investigating and representing ideas while I read multiple texts. In addition, when I engage in my learning and sustain interest in the text, I usually can understand the text better. If I continuously to use these strategies and habits of mind while writing, it will support my comprehension and assist me to achieve success. Throughout my literacy graduate program, I have certainly been asked to compose in multiple environments. For instance, I have wrote many writing assignments and essays by hand and on the computer using technology both at school and at home. I find when I type on the computer; it is easier and faster for me. However when I have to edit or revise my essays, I usually print out the paper and complete the revisions by hand, therefore I do not miss my careless mistakes. Within this class, I feel like I have developed new rhetorical knowledge while learning about the different important genres and what each genre consists of in greater detail.

The instructional strategies that I learned that would benefit my work as a future teacher of literacy would be introducing my students to create their own presentations; therefore they become familiar with utilizing technology in the classroom. Some students in my classroom will have limited experience with using technology at home. Therefore, I will teach my students to concentrate on the author's craft that each presentation requires such as using different fonts, words, images, backgrounds and many others that authors show to readers. Many teachers use learning activities during instruction as well. For instance, many teachers use reading logs and personal journals in their classroom. I will consider using reading logs and journals in my teaching, therefore students can write about their personal experiences or events that have happened to them to practice reflecting. Then afterwards, I will provide them with supportive feedback on their journals or reading logs to enhance their writing.

    At this moment, I do not think I am struggling with writing these blogs, however I am having difficulty creating a poem for my first genre piece project. I am challenging myself to write a poem, because I enjoy writing poetry. I remember in elementary school I loved using poetry for many writing assignments because I was able to become creative and write about a topic I desired. Lastly, I am able to use my own figurative language while writing this descriptive poem. Therefore, I am hopeful to write this swimming poem and have the opportunity to engage my audiences and hold interest in them.

Sincerely, 

Anna 

References

Hicks, T. (2013).  Crafting digital writing.  Portsmouth, NH:  Heinemann.

Tompkins, G. E.  (2019).  Teaching writing:  Balancing process and product (7^th ed.).  Upper Saddle River, NJ:  Merrill.