Module 4: Instructional Challenge

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Marcus is a student who very frequently miscues by substituting words that start with the same letter or first few letters of the word in the text, but his substitutions often are not syntactically or semantically acceptable (they neither sound right grammatically nor make sense). What possible teaching strategies would you suggest to help Marcus? Post your response to your blog and name the posting "Module 4: Instructional Challenge." Respond to 2 other classmates.

When I read this several things came to mind.  I first had to figure out how I was classify Marcus in my classroom.  I see him miscuing on words and substituting words that do not make sense.  Because of this, I see a comprehension issue.  I also see that he is not trying to correct his mistakes which leads me to think there is a confidence/ attitude issue as well.

For the comprehension: I would make sure to work with Marcus one-on-one whenever possible.  I would definitely recommend working before or after school so that he has time to concentrate and process my teaching points.  I would read aloud the beginning of a chapter to Marcus, then, I would have him read a page.  After we read a page I would stop and ask him “tell me what you just read” or “did something not make sense”? This is checking with his comprehension and to see if he is even catching his mistakes.  I would also go back to my handy-dandy Post-It notes.  I think that with Marcus he needs to jot does a lot of what he is reading to remember what he has read.  I would also suggest he writes down words he struggled with.  With those words he struggled with I would have him say them over and over again until he felt comfortable.  I think that if we slowed down and made sure that what he read really made sense he would begin to feel more comfortable and confident and understand that making mistakes is OK but it is important to fix them.

For the attitude/ confidence: For Marcus I would definitely suggest reader’s theatre.  Since I do this with my whole class it is an easy way for everyone to participate so I am not singling Marcus out.  Allowing him to practice with his group/at home will help him build up confidence.  He and his group members will also have to talk about what they are reading so we can see if this is a comprehension problem.  I would also like ot try something like Sergio did to Rudy on page 236 (Weaver, 2002). I would work with Marcus to make alist of things he likes or wants to read/ write about.  We could pick one topic at a time and read about it (in easier texts if necessary). I would have Marcus read it over and over until he felt comfortable to share with his group/ the entire class.  I think that tuning into what Marcus is really interested in would help him become more intrinsically motivated as a student.

Just a few ideas… :)