Chapter 5 - Post 2

Read the section on pp 138-139 about Task, Text, and Talk.  How would your social studies curriculum look if you implemented this?  What needs to "give" in the daily schedule to accommodate it?  Do you believe that some of the literacy block could be effectively used for specific content in social studies and science?

Chapter 5 - Post 1

Do you believe that social studies is best taught with reading and writing at the core? Are the texts you have worthy of this idea:  "...students must be taught to 'argue with the text'...Social studies is the place to learn [this], to 'think and reason in sophistcated ways.'"

Chapter 4 - simple redundant literacy

On p 127, there are 5 bullets for every assignment that starts with reading.  Do you agree or disagree with the bullets, and with the idea that all lessons should look like these?  Why or why not?

Chapter 5. Post one. Social studies

Is it feasible to teach social studies the way Schmoker advocates when it is not assessed via TCAP? How much time would it really take to find the "30 or so" primary source documents nd write the formative and summtive assessments needed?

Chapter 4 post 4

What do you think about the reading list for Hobert Elem and the discussion of the teaching methods used?

Ch 4 post 3

Re discussion of english class requirements on pp 115-116: one of the strengths of the AP tests are that the AP courses must all cover the same pieces of literature, with some teacher choice for additional selections. Is this something that should be considered for younger students? This could eliminate basals and some teacher choice.

Chapter 4 - Post 2

At the top of p 105, there is this statement:
     Virtually any student can learn the mechanics of reading to decode grade-level text in about 100 days.  That   means virtually all could be reading shortly after mid-year of 1st grad...What they do need, immediately, are extended daily opportunities to read, much of it for pleasure.  When we continue to teach reading skills, we prevent the rapid acquisition of knowledge and vocabulary - at a critical, formative moment in a child's education.

Do you agree?  Why?