Untitled

[obell2-blog]

In full: Climate activist Greta Thunberg rebukes world leaders

The teenager reprimanded those who she accused of ignoring science and being too slow in their approach to tackle climate change. Watch her statement in full...

I have chosen this speech by climate activist Greta Thunberg as the persuasive and emotive language within it really resonated with me. The words she speaks are educated and passionate while the visual of a young girl pleading for her uncertain future would make anyone stop and think. I would use this video as a mentor text in a persuasive language unit, exploring the different techniques she employs and whether they are successful on us as an audience. People are at their most engaged and persuasive when discussing a notion, they are passionate about, I would encourage my students to chose topics that they can all resonate with.

[obell2-blog]

Week 7

My goal at the beginning of this unit was to “gain a better understanding of the uses and implementation of a specialised spelling/phonics program” and throughout I have been exposed to a range. The program I have seen implemented with the most success is THRASS, but I have had to explore it further outside the classroom. The THRASS Institute Australasia & Canada provides a details introduction to the program explaining and justifying its use. This resource could introduce a teacher to the THRASS program, helping to develop their language knowledge.  

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bVs4DMCb_iw - THRASS Intro - Phonemic Awareness

Another resource is the online platform Story Box Library in which teachers can access and range of books read by people of all ages. The videos contain audio and great visuals of the text and could give teachers access to a range of books to be utilised as mentor texts within the classroom. This video is of a young boy reading the Mark Greenwood book, Moonwalkers.

https://storyboxlibrary-com-au.ezproxy-b.deakin.edu.au/stories/moonwalkers/

[obell2-blog]

Kids Book Review is an online platform run by volunteers that works to review children’s text and provide extensive resources for quality children’s books. They review a range of texts, targeted to various age levels giving readers an insight into the publishing world. Kids Book Review also conducts interviews with authors, illustrators and others in the publishing business giving readers a more thorough insight into the text. The site also has links to various libraries and literacy programs that can be accessed through their ‘friends of KBR’ link. Teachers or students could access Kids Book Reviews when searching for quality literature, and explore their various reviews, book lists and resources.

Kids Book Review can be accessed at: http://www.kids-bookreview.com/p/about.html

[obell2-blog]

I created this poster to provide students with a clear description of the writing process. Using this poster students can keep track of their own writing, and reflect upon which step they are currently on. This poster is modeled on a similar display I saw in a placement classroom, that simply listed the steps of the writing process for student reference.  

[obell2-blog]

My favourite primary school teacher had the entire Roald Dahl collection and would read a different book to us each term. She would switch between voices and characters bringing the stories to life as we sat in our chairs. The stories were whimsical and absurd exactly what we wanted out of a story at that age.

This exposure to a range of stories and text when I was young has definitely inspired my love for reading today. Especially when you can go back and read and text from your youth, associating it with the memories from school. As a teacher I want to inspire my students to love reading and books, not to see them as a chore. I think early exposure to a range of texts is key for students to fall in love with reading, so they can find the style that best suits them.