The Faithful Reader September 2018

How Classroom Structures Maximize Learning and Student Engagement

Eachday,weconsider-didthestudentslearnwhatIwantedthemtolearn?Thisischallengingwiththenumberofstandardswearerequiredtoteach.

Onewaytomaximizeinstruc@onistoplanwiththeendinmind,usingayear-longplanorcurriculummap(seetheAugust2018newsleHerforthis).Anotherwaytomaximizeinstruc@onandstudentengagementistouseyourclassroomspacemoreefficiently.Havingstudentssitinstraightrowsisn’tengaging,anditrequiresyoutobetheonlyexpert.Whenstudentscanworkindependentlyonmeaningfulwork,youarefreeduptoworkwithsmallgroupsandindividuals.

Below,youseetwostructures.Thetopstructureisappropriateforgrades3andup.Itallowsstudentstowork“near”eachotherorwitheachother.Itgivesspacesfortheteachertoworkwithsmallgroupsattables,orusingthewheeledchairshecanwheeluptoapodofdesks.

The“Fantas@cFour”structurewascreatedbyseventh-gradeteacherJohnNickas,modeledaWertheDailyFive.Mr.Nickasno@cedthathisseventhgraderswerestrugglingtoreadtheirsocialstudiestextbook,sohecreatedthisstructurewhichheusedtwodayseachweekfor44minutes(11minutesateachsta@on).Seepage3ofthisnewsleHerformoreinforma@on.

Don’tfeellikeyouhavetojumpinwithbothfeetandtrythewholething.Considerthefirstimage-isthereonewayyoucanchangeyourdeskset-uptogiveyouspaceandfreedomtomeettheneedsofallstudents?Startsmall.

InOctober:whatdostudentsdointhesestructures?Whatdoestheteacherdo?

Page � of �1 5

THE FAITHFUL READER

Assistant Director for Professional DevelopmentAndrew M. Greeley Center for Catholic Education

Michelle P. Lia, EdD

Loyola University Chicago

The Faithful Reader September 2018

The Most Magnificent Thing written and illustrated by Ashley Spires

AliHlegirlwithherbestfriendintheworld(thedog)wantstobuildTheMostMagnificentThing.Butwhenshecan’tgetitrightthefirst@me,shegetsfrustratedandgivesup.Bestfriendtotherescue!

Independent Reading Level Lexile 380 grades 1 and up

Most appropriate for age 7 and up

Genre realistic fiction picture book

Inside Out and Back Again by Thanhha Lai

In1975,HàislivinginSaigonwithherfamily.TheVietnamWar(ortheAmericanWarifyouareVietnamese)isnearingtheend.AsSaigonfalls,Hàmustleavetolive.SheandhermotherandbrothersgotoarefugeecampinGuamandthenaresponsoredbyanAmerican“cowboy."HesponsorsthemaWertheychangetheirreligiononpapertoChris@an.TheymovetoAlabama,andthenbeginsanewjourneyforallofthem.

Agreatbooktostudyperspec@ve-bothofachildrefugeeaswellasadifferentperspec@veoftheVietnamWar.

Reading Level Lexile 800

*Appropriate for grades 4 and up

Genre historical fiction written in free verse

Page � of �2 5

Text SetsAtextsetisasetoftextsthathavethesametopicorthemeincommonbutmaybetoldfromadifferentperspec@ve.

Usethesetextsetsforliteraturecircles/bookclubs.

HistoricalFic,on-VietnamWarInsideOutandBackAgainby

ThanhhaLaiAlltheBrokenPiecesbyAnnBurg

Cracker:TheBestDoginVietnamby

CynthiaKadohata

TheWallwriHenbyEveBun@ng

illustratedbyRonaldHimler

Patrol:AnAmericanSoldierin

VietnamwriHenbyWalterDean

MyersillustratedbyAnnGrifalconi

Realis1cFic1on-Inclusion

WonderbyR.J.Palacio

FishinaTreebyLyndaMullalyHunt

OutofMyMindbySharonM.Draper

ClosetoFamousbyJoanBauer

RulesbyCynthiaLord

Book Recommendations

Greeley Center Mission

We are Catholic educators who challenge Catholic schools to be excellent because they are essential in preparing students

for the future.

The Faithful Reader September 2018

Page � of �3 5

The Faithful Reader September 2018

Page � of �4 5

The Faithful Reader September 2018

Page � of �5 5