This weekend the Twitter stream provided many insights about Literacy, Literacy Instruction, and “Intent”. A powerhouse line up was present at the New England Reading Association conference (#NERA2016) in Portland, Maine. You can see the speakers and topics here. This post celebrates the Twitterverse that allowed me to curate these ideas from afar.
What is reading?
At #NERA2016 Saturday, Matt Glover and Kathy Collins proposed this expansive definition. Many questions immediately came to mind.
Who does the work of reading?
What is the intent of reading?
What does this require of a teacher?
This quote from @chrisclinewcps says so much about some of the characteristics of “INTENT”!
At the opening session of #NERA2016, Ralph Fletcher fired an early shot across the bow with this slide. Think about these three questions as you read the content on his slide.
What was his intent?
What is the message for teachers?
What is the message for students?
As a reader, what was Ralph Fletcher’s message?
How important is choice?
Is choice just for students?
Is choice also for teachers?
And that connected to Paula’s tweet:
And during the panel for The Teacher You Want to Be, Vicki Vinton also said,
What does this mean in writing?
Paula also tweeted out this learning from Jeff Anderson (@writeguyjeff) about the role of grammar in writing.
Is the intent to have students do the work?
Are students doing the thinking?
Dan Feigelsen is crystal clear in his intent.
Are you?
Pernille Ripp asks this question:
Her May blog post here addressed specific steps to create writing communities.
How do your students know the intent of your writing instruction?
Empowering students to do the work is the basis of Jan and Kim’s book. If you have not yet checked out this book, you need to do so!
According to the #NERA2016 program, Vicki Vinton’s session was
Vicki Vinton: Beyond Book Choice: What Student-Center Reading Instruction Can Look Like
According to the educator John Holt, “Learning is not the product of teaching. Learning is the product of the activity of learners.” And in this interactive session, Vicki Vinton will share ways of ensuring that the activity of students and their thinking—versus curriculum and standards—are at the center of your reading instruction, whether you’re working with a whole class, a small group or one-on-one conference. You’ll see how to become a creator of learning opportunities, rather than a teacher of strategies and skills, which in turn will help students become powerful and insightful meaning makers, thinkers and readers.
The intent of “student-centered reading instruction” is for learning to be at the center of student work. How do you work towards this every day?
What do you notice as a reader?
What do you DO with / or make of what you noticed?
Because the intent is reading deeply, thoughtfully, and authentically!
What are your beliefs?
What is your intent?
Check out other thoughts about “intent” on #DigiLit Sunday with Margaret Simon here.
And special thanks to all who tweeted from #NERA2016 and especially to their Twitter Ambassadors: @LitCoachLady, @literacydocent and @guerrette79.
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Everyone at this conference was so passionate about the work they’re doing, it was impossible not to be energized by them! As you’ve noted, the points and questions they raised will be swirling around in my head for months to come!
I think that lineup has both “passion” and “joy” next to their names. It’s easy to let breathe in that energy and positivity! Can’t wait to see where else your journey takes you!!!
Such energy at this conference. Thanks for capturing these snippets and spurring on thinking with intent this morning.
Margaret,
Yes, this conference is now on my bucket list. After I saw the list of presenters, I was totally NOT surprised!
Always so much to think and learn about!!!
Whoa! What a conference and how amazing you got all of this and you WEREN’t there! Imagine what you would get if you were. Amazing stuff Fran!
I know! As an AVID learner yourself, you appreciate all the “parts” that we already know about these presenters! So even at a distance I can build those connections (and perhaps “over simplify”), but it does all come down to your beliefs, do you REALLY own them, and how would we know?
❤
Wow Fran!
Your post is full of great thinking and sharing. I will mark it as a post for further reflection. Thank you for sharing all of your learning and thinking with us-energized!
You are welcome, Amy! Have you read “The Teacher You Want to Be”? It’s amazing ~ and I haven’t finished it yet!
Very interesting post! I think reading is one of the most fundamental skills we need to teach our kids.
Reading is so complicated that we have to make sure that we leave room so students to do the work and provide the thinking. It can’t all be about multiple choice tests!
You got that right. We need to teach our kids to be critical thinkers, to question everything! 🙂
Oh, YES! Just because it’s on TV does NOT mean it is the truth. Or that it shouldn’t be “fact-checked”! 🙂
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