This week, in Spilling Ink , we have been working on spooky writing for Hallowe'en. My cauldron, bubbling At the start of the week, I provided learners with a variety of writing prompts for stories, poetry and non-fiction, to stimulate their writing. They were, of course, also encouraged to use their own ideas. Busy writing We wore masks, hats and fangs; we shut the blinds and listened to a spooky soundtrack . I prepared a fire for my cauldron full of gruesome creatures. A witch, an owl and Count Dracula Vampires We wrote and edited and reworked until we were ready to share. Ghouls and wizards Writing poetry Today, we gathered on the mat, around the cauldron, to share our finished writing. We discussed how to build tension, appropriate settings and characters, the difference between a cliffhanger and an open ending, effective vocabulary, repetition and the effect of different sentences. Three witches around the cauldron Each contr...
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I have just finished planning and building this website , which acts as a full unit of work for Year 10, second language learners. Using picture books as a starting point, we learn key terms and devices for effective story-telling . There are loads of opportunities built in for writing and reading, as well as speaking and listening to develop confidence in preparation for the assessments. The stages I have planned are as follows: The assessments and learning intentions align with the CIE English as a Second Language syllabus but could easily work for any English curriculum. I think the unit would work equally well as an introduction to literature students. The end product will be a children's story book based on a childhood memory and, to make it authentic, we will share with primary learners and donate to the school library.
There is much evidence to acknowledge that literacy today is not the same as literacy yesterday. Emerging literacies and new ways of reading, along with our interpretation of what actually makes a text, means that educators need to address new ways of engaging learners when it comes to reading. Kress (2003) suggests that transformations in digital technologies have forced teachers to rethink what literacy means (Bormann & Lowe, 2010), and Patrick Carman, author of the popular "Skeleton Creek" and "Trackers" series (Scholastic) suggests that technology can “enrich fictional narrative and engage young readers” (School Library Journal, 2011). When it comes to encouraging children to read, Carman says that, "we need to get smart about tech" (School Library Journal, 2011) and e-readers could be just the solution to re-engage digital learners. What are e-readers? E-readers are electronic devices upon which books can be downloaded and read. They are light...
For my MEd this week, we are looking at Personal Learning Networks - of which I am a huge advocate. I chose to review http://edupln.ning.com/ as I am already a member and dedicated user of both Edmodo and Twitter – both of which are excellent for creating PLN. Edmodo is great to use in the classroom as an organisational tool and learning portal; I use it for all my classes. I have posted about Twitter previsously and strongly advocate all educators create an account. As suggested in the video Being Connected , (U.S. Department of Education, Sept. 2013); your PLN will grow organically as you become familiar with the way that things work. What I liked about edupln.ning.com, is that when you sign up, you can add in your Blog, Twitter, LinkedIn, Google+ details etc., which shows me this place is one that recognises the power of connection. Having accounts linked together is really helpful when managing a PLN – because, as suggested in Trust’s article , managing a PLN (particularly a...
Following posts about teaching my second language learners, I was invited to be a guest on a Twitter Chat. #PSTChat is for pre-service teachers based in Australia. The topic was EAL Strategies. The chat is archived on Storify . Check the following posts that warranted my invitation: 1) Scaffolding ESL 2) Fotobabble 3) Authentic Audience