Stages of Spelling, Writing Process, and Personal Writing

The writing process is something that every child must learn in school. I remember learning the process when I was younger. We learned how to do the bubble map; which we used for brainstorming and organizing our ideas. I honestly hated the writing process but realized that it always helped my papers turn out much better. After talking about the writing process again, I realize that it might help me organize my papers better. To this day I still dislike the editing process. I realize as a future educator that the writing process is essential for teaching children how to write, so from now on I am going to try my best to use it.

Writing has always been a difficult task for me, but lately I have learned to enjoy writing. Having a blog makes writing a little easier because I get to write down my feelings and reflect on what I am learning in my education class. I do have to use the writing process at times before I start writing a blog because I have to organize my thoughts and decide what I want to write about.

In my education class, we have to write a book. It can be any type of book but I think I am leaning towards a children's book. I want my book to help children and for it to be something that everyone can enjoy. I am still writing ideas down, trying to figure out what I want my book to be about.

Social Skills and Language Arts

When one has a disability in reading and writing, it make make them feel that something is wrong with them. Then they feel awkward around other people, as if they are being judged the entire time. It hurts their self-esteem, which is needed when trying to make friends or join in social occasions. One also may feel that they cannot achieve their goals because of their disability.

In school when someone has a reading or writing disability, they were extremely quiet and shy. They did not want to talk much in class or participate in class discussions. Once again this made it hard for them to make friends because they did not participate socially.

When I am a teacher, I am going to reassure my students that everyone learns at different paces and that no one is the same. I will encourage my students to speak out in class and that even if their answer is wrong because no one knows all the right answers. I want my students to know that they will not be looked down upon because of a writing or reading disability. As a teacher, I want to make my students realize that they can do anything they want to even with disability.

Phonics vs. Whole Language

When I was being taught to read, I used phonics. This was done by learning how to sound the letters out in the word. I first learned the consonants and vowels and how each of them sound. Then I learned how to combine them together. I think that this was a good way to learn how to read but I think there are many other useful ways to teach a child to read.

When I was younger, I remember my teachers using "round robin" as a way for us to practice reading and it was a way for her to make sure we were paying attention. Every time we had to read aloud, I was terrified. I spent the whole time trying to figure out what section I was going to read, and then I would sit there and read it over and over again so I would not embarrass myself in front of the whole class. After I was done reading I would stop paying attention, unless I had to read again and then the whole process would start over.

When I start teaching, I will not use this method. I do not want the children to be put on the spot and feel embarrassed. As a future educator I want them to enjoy reading and find it stress relieving instead of stress inducing.

The Reading Process

Aesthetic reading is when a reader is reading for enjoyment. The reader focuses more on the thoughts and feelings, while an efferent reader reads to get information about something. Most of the time someone would use efferent reading when reading for school work.

There are five stages of the reading process, which I thought was very interesting. The first stage is Prereading. This is before the reader even opens the book. The background and the plan for the book is set at this time. The second stage is Reading. Reading is when the reader can read by themselves, with a buddy, or a teacher reads aloud. The reader during this stage must read the book from start to finish and apply things that one has learned. The third stage is Responding. This is where the reader responds about how one feels about the book. The reader could discuss one's response with a classmate, as a class, or by writing a journal entry. The fourth stage is Exploring. During this stage the reader really thinks about the book and can pull new vocabulary from the book to learn. The fifth stage is Applying. In this stage the reader can create some sort of artwork.

There are many factors that are important in developing capable readers. Capable readers read the book and recognize words almost instantly. These readers have a large vocabulary and do not ponder on what the words mean. Capable readers must also be able to read fluently. The readers can read quickly and remember what they have read. Capable readers have a wide range of vocabulary and learn many new words a day. The last factor in capable readers is comprehension. Comprehension is extremely important because capable readers can use their own experiences to connect with while reading.

Children can read in many different ways. There are five ways children can read books. The first type is Shared Reading. Either the teacher can be reading from one's own copy while the children listen or the children can also have a copy of the book and follow along. The second type is Guided Reading. Guided reading is when the teacher puts the students in groups according to their reading levels. The third type is Independent Reading. This is when the student reads alone and can sometimes pick the book that they want to read. The fourth type is Buddy Reading. This is when a student reads with another student. The fifth type is Reading Aloud to Students. This is when the teacher reads aloud to the class.