Artifact 3: Book Buddies
ELEMENT A: Teachers demonstrate knowledge of current developmental science, the ways in which learning takes place and the appropriate levels of intellectual, social and emotional development of their students.
ELEMENT C: Teachers demonstrate a rich knowledge of current research on effective instructional practices to meet the developmental and academic needs of their students.
ELEMENT F: Teachers provide students with opportunities to work in teams and develop leadership qualities.
ELEMENT G: Teachers communicate effectively, making learning objectives clear and providing appropriate models of language.
The last piece of evidence that supports Teacher Quality Standard III is “Book Buddies.” Book buddies is a weekly activity where my class and a 3rd grade or Kindergarten class get together for 20 minutes to introduce themselves, and read to each other. Each student brings 2 books to share and they take turns reading their own material. There is opportunity for students to help each other with reading if difficulties arise. At the end of our book buddy time, I call on a few groups to share what they read or share an experience. When my class gets back together in our room, we review our thoughts, share experiences and discuss feelings of nervousness, excitement, success stories, and how they worked through a tough situation, if any. The types ofresponses I received showed maturity, growth and leadership skills.
This evidence supports Standard III, Elements A, C, F and G. First, students have the opportunity to work in teams and develop leadership qualities. The group size creates opportunities for students to learn from one another. Students participate in discussions and assume leadership roles while promoting effective interactions amongst the team. Element G is supported because I model effective communication skills before book buddies begins with a role-play and reminder of how to work with a partner. Student are asked to introduce each other and the reading materials used in this activity at the end of the book buddy session. The students apply effective oral communication skills and use academic language to give a re-tell of their stories. This evidence also supports Element A in that students are reading books aligned with their ability levels via the teacher discretion. Students get excited on the weekly searching for books in their reading level and understand appropriate resources on a personal approach to their learning. Finally this supports Element C because students are developing how to communicate with one another by looking, listening and reflecting with one another. They are practicing being mindful working with one another as well as embracing new and unique ways of learning by applying the skills and knowledge learned in the classroom.
I noticed that some of my students were struggling reading with fluency. I thought to create book buddies to help these students, and other students, practice reading to someone else by working together in teams. I found that my students who do not have much support at home or ELL students are the ones who really latched on to book buddies. The only time they get to read is at school, so pairing them in teams aligned with their learning abilities has increased student achievement and social interactions. Interestingly, these are usually the students who can’t wait to share how it went, what they did when they met each other (like gave one another a handshake) and how they helped each other in their reading. This is a great way to encourage students in leadership roles, and build trust amongst others while interacting through reading and oral communication.
ELEMENT A: Teachers demonstrate knowledge of current developmental science, the ways in which learning takes place and the appropriate levels of intellectual, social and emotional development of their students.
ELEMENT C: Teachers demonstrate a rich knowledge of current research on effective instructional practices to meet the developmental and academic needs of their students.
ELEMENT F: Teachers provide students with opportunities to work in teams and develop leadership qualities.
ELEMENT G: Teachers communicate effectively, making learning objectives clear and providing appropriate models of language.
The last piece of evidence that supports Teacher Quality Standard III is “Book Buddies.” Book buddies is a weekly activity where my class and a 3rd grade or Kindergarten class get together for 20 minutes to introduce themselves, and read to each other. Each student brings 2 books to share and they take turns reading their own material. There is opportunity for students to help each other with reading if difficulties arise. At the end of our book buddy time, I call on a few groups to share what they read or share an experience. When my class gets back together in our room, we review our thoughts, share experiences and discuss feelings of nervousness, excitement, success stories, and how they worked through a tough situation, if any. The types ofresponses I received showed maturity, growth and leadership skills.
This evidence supports Standard III, Elements A, C, F and G. First, students have the opportunity to work in teams and develop leadership qualities. The group size creates opportunities for students to learn from one another. Students participate in discussions and assume leadership roles while promoting effective interactions amongst the team. Element G is supported because I model effective communication skills before book buddies begins with a role-play and reminder of how to work with a partner. Student are asked to introduce each other and the reading materials used in this activity at the end of the book buddy session. The students apply effective oral communication skills and use academic language to give a re-tell of their stories. This evidence also supports Element A in that students are reading books aligned with their ability levels via the teacher discretion. Students get excited on the weekly searching for books in their reading level and understand appropriate resources on a personal approach to their learning. Finally this supports Element C because students are developing how to communicate with one another by looking, listening and reflecting with one another. They are practicing being mindful working with one another as well as embracing new and unique ways of learning by applying the skills and knowledge learned in the classroom.
I noticed that some of my students were struggling reading with fluency. I thought to create book buddies to help these students, and other students, practice reading to someone else by working together in teams. I found that my students who do not have much support at home or ELL students are the ones who really latched on to book buddies. The only time they get to read is at school, so pairing them in teams aligned with their learning abilities has increased student achievement and social interactions. Interestingly, these are usually the students who can’t wait to share how it went, what they did when they met each other (like gave one another a handshake) and how they helped each other in their reading. This is a great way to encourage students in leadership roles, and build trust amongst others while interacting through reading and oral communication.