Synthesis Blog #3
This week’s reading was about textbooks. As a social studies and science teacher, textbooks are a really good resource. They are a way to go over the text and information that is needed for the lesson. But, I also know that textbooks can be boring for most students, including myself. So for me as a future teacher, it is important to make sure the students are involved and engaged with the text.
I always found popcorn reading a way to keep me involved with the text. This is one method that supports what the author suggests as a good tool for classroom reading. They suggested to have the students “work in pairs, groups and teams at all stages of reading.” Working in groups would allow the students to have discussions after the reading to make sure that each of the students understood the reading or if not, the students are able to build off of other student’s prior knowledge or new knowledge of the text. I also think that using textbooks that have websites that assist the text book is a really good resource, especially for students who are more visual learners.
WC: 192
I do think the popcorn strategy can be an effective way to keep students engaged in reading exercises. I also think we as future teachers need to be conscious that this strategy can be both helpful and harmful to our students, and we need to make our best judgement in determining which strategy to use. The popcorn strategy can create an anxious atmosphere in the classroom, especially for students who have trouble reading or who don't enjoy public speaking. Students can also get too focused on keeping up in the text that they don't comprehend what is being read aloud.
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