Teaching strategies employed by effective teachers are always meant to keep the students engaged and motivated. There are several strategies to choose from, and hence teachers select the ones that will fit their classrooms and the ones that have been used before and worked best.
Teaching Strategies for Reading
Reading is a fundamental skill that is used daily in our lives. Teachers provide their students with effective reading strategies to enable them to become confident readers not only for their academic success but also for their lives. By implementing these strategies, students are given the tools that will help them in succeeding. There are two main effective teaching strategies to focus on which is shared reading and guided reading (Tierney, 1985).
Shared reading
This is an interactive kind of reading practice that takes place when learners share or join in the reading of some texts or a journal while being supported or with the guidance of a teacher. The instructor designs the abilities of the readers which include reading with expression and fluency. This strategy often incorporates the use of big books with enlarged text and illustrations. The teacher initiates the story by discussing the author, cover and the title of the book and by also asking the students to make predictions concerning their thoughts on what the story might be talking about. Using the appropriate tone and inflection the teacher reads the story aloud to the students. Here the teacher can stop to ask the students to predict the story or even ask questions to measure their level of comprehension. When concluding the story, the teacher reserve time for comments and reactions and asks questions regarding the story and creates a relationship of the story to the student’ same experiences. The instructor may tell the students to narrate the story in their own words to measure their level of concentration and understanding. Re-reading the story or allowing time for independent reading is also important and finally, a teacher may conduct activities for following up, for example by making pursuits associated with the story. Shared reading is an essential strategy as it assists in teaching the students the fundamentals of the sounds, alphabets and all the components related to reading skills. Telling the stories aloud allows the students to sound out words on their own and teaches them what certain consonants and vowels sound like if separated or put together. It also helps in building confidence in the students since when they read out loud, they are willing to make mistakes before their peers. The teachers help them when necessary allowing them to succeed by themselves. Indeed, this helps them to become strong readers (Lonigan " Whitehurst, 1998).
Strengths
It provides the support necessary for readers who are struggling.
The shared reading where the teacher uses the technique of predictable text builds reading fluency and knowledge on sight words.
Allows learners to enjoy reading materials and stories that they may not read by themselves.
It ensures that all the students acquire a feeling of success by giving the group the support they require.
It also builds confidence among the students.
Limitations
In a situation where there is a high ratio of students to teachers, not all students participate in the shared reading.
There is minimal attention to the diverse needs of the students.
The strategy involves mostly teacher-centered instructions.
There is less student-centered instruction involved.
Leads to less interaction among peers.
Areas of reading supported
In science and social studies, reading standards are covered during shared reading time. There is the use of enlarged texts and charts where the teacher guides the students. For example in science, the teacher can use tables to explain the parts of the body or in social studies the charts can be used to guide the children in map reading and directions.
In arts and poetry, shared reading is beneficial where the students read out the poems loudly putting on the correct intonations and spellings with the help of the teacher.
Guided reading
This technique involves the teaching of reading and not the aspect of just hearing the students read. There should be a specific learning objective and focus during the reading session. Guided reading includes the decoding of texts as well as the understanding and interpretation of the same book. Students' engagement with the text by critically evaluating and the reflection on the responses they give regarding the version brings knowledge and understanding of the text. In this strategy, the students develop the skills of evaluation, deduction, justification and inference. In guided reading, the teacher groups the students according to their ability to read and gives them books suited to their reading ability. The teacher usually has her copy of the text, and each in the group also has their copy. The students then read independently without taking turns or reading in unison. After some time, the teacher goes back to the text and puts the focus on a particular teaching point. This strategy helps the students to analyse and explore the books they read (Angela, 2006).
Strengths
It enables the teacher to spend time focusing on students which gives him or her the opportunity to see the progress of the students in reading and areas that need more developing.
It helps students in improving their reading and becoming independent readers while at the same time heeding the help and support from their teachers where needed.
It gives students the opportunity for engaging in dialogue analysis, discussing the text with others, sharing thoughts and learning from the ideas and knowledge of the other children in the group.
It increases students’ motivation to read by grouping them according to their abilities which helps them relieve stress by reading and this can build confidence in them.
Limitations
The aspect of grouping children about their reading abilities is not ideal since children develop at different rates and are unlikely for the children at the same group to be at the same stage and hence the teacher has to make a compromise and place a child in the group that fits best.
Time constraints can affect guided reading which reaps off sufficient attention for the students during the session.
It is difficult to manage the students, primarily when working with the allocated group and making sure that the other students are working productively.
If the learning objective set by the teacher is not clear to the students, the reading session will not have fulfilled its aim.
Areas of reading supported.
Guided reading supports classroom learning in areas where differentiation is critical. Children in the initial stage need instructions for their reading progress while those at higher levels can use picture cues in decoding new texts. The beginning of the year is the best time to set the tone for guided reading in the respective groups.
Teaching Strategies for Writing
Writing is an important life skill as it allows students to communicate their feelings, needs and thoughts. As technology changes, interaction with other people also changes and writing become more of a social process. Writing strategies used in schools prepares the students for the demands awaiting them as they grow. If students are invited for writing on a daily basis and taught basic lessons that meet their instructional needs, their development in writing will impress their parents, teachers and themselves (Flower, 1989).
Interactive Writing
This technique of writing is instructional and involves a teacher sharing a pen with students to construct and compose a piece of text collaboratively. The students' role in this strategy is dominant. Indeed, this is because the students come up with the ideas for writing and take turns to write words or sentences on the board while the others support the one who is writing. The role of the teacher is limited since he or she only gives support to the students when necessary. When one student is writing on the board, the others participate by spelling the word out or writing it down on their books. The text is read and reread as students add ideas to the story. The intention of actively participating in the writing of the text and reading it repetitively is to create a text that is readable and accessible. After completing the text, the teacher displays it in the class for future reference when the students engage in independent writing (McCarrier, Pinnell " Fountas, 2000).
Strengths
It allows the teacher to teach several writing skills in one lesson by guiding the students using print-space conventions, punctuations and capitalisation.
It also improves knowledge on spelling, provides a connection of letter-sound and also links writing with the decoding process.
It develops student's skills and abilities in independent writing.
It allows the teacher to engage in instructions where the students need it.
Interactive writing is versatile and can be changed to meet the various needs of the students.
Limitations
It is difficult for young students to hold a pencil and sound a word correctly as well as using spacing, comma and other skills used in writing.
Finding an instruction practice for the teachers that meet the writing needs of students is limited due to the variety of different learning needs.
Areas of Reading Supported.
Interactive writing is commonly used in science lessons. It is used during experiments, investigations and after making reports on scientific procedures and conclusions. Students can also implement this strategy in creating science-based graphs, graph organisers and charts. It can also be used in describing the habitats and needs of animals in the class.
Shared writing
Shared learning strategy bases its ground on experiences or events shared by each student. Children are the active members in composing the scripts. The teacher and the learners establish a plan for the writing and discussion of the text while the teacher writes it down. This technique allows the students to understand patterns within the writing and the connection between the words and letters. Shared writing is persuasive because the teacher not only models what writing should look like but also gives the students reading practice. The purpose of this writing technique is to model the process of thinking involved in writing and allow the students to focus and engage in the process (McKenzie, 1985).
Strengths
Shared writing supports both reading and writing.
It allows participation in class by all the students.
It encourages close examination of words, options and texts of authors with guidance from the teacher.
It demonstrates the skills and abilities of writing which are the use of punctuations, grammar, and spelling.
It focuses on composing texts by the students and leaves the transcribing of the text to the teacher.
Limitations
At lower grade levels, the teachers may not model all the aspects of writing. They can only focus on one or two elements of writing in short and focused lessons.
It may be difficult for some students to understand what is happening primarily in this context since they have different abilities of writing.
When a teacher asks for suggestions when transcribing the texts, some individual students may not be concentrating or paying attention to what the teacher is teaching.
Areas of Reading Supported.
Scaffolding or supporting the development of students' writing skills can use the approach of co-construction of a written text. Shared writing can be used when teaching different types of texts or genres. For instance, a teacher may pose a question on punctuation to one student who knows that area, while focusing on another student who has a more expanded vocabulary to give a synonym for a word already used repetitively in the text written.
Conclusion
Teaching strategies have evolved with different instructors developing new ways of improving literacy to their students. Those strategies are helpful to students, and they mould them to become better people in the society from a young age. Learning is a continuous process and students, teachers and parents should cooperate to ensure teaching continues from the initial stage when a child is young until the student can face the world on his or her own.
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References
Angela Hobsbaum. (2006). Guided Reading: A Handbook for Teaching Guided Reading at Key Stage 2.
Flower, L. (1989). Problem-solving strategies for writing. Orders, Harcourt Brace Jovanovich, 7555 Caldwell Ave., Chicago, IL 60648.
Lonigan, C. J., " Whitehurst, G. J. (1998). Relative efficacy of parent and teacher involvement in a shared-reading intervention for preschool children from low-income backgrounds. Early Childhood Research Quarterly, 13(2), 263-290.
McCarrier, A., Pinnell, G. S., " Fountas, I. C. (2000). Interactive Writing: How Language " Literacy Come Together, K-2. Heinemann, 361 Hanover Street, Portsmouth, NH 03801-3912.
McKenzie, M. G. (1985). Shared writing: Apprenticeship in writing. Language matters, 1(2), 1-5.
Tierney, R. J. (1985). Reading strategies and practices. A compendium. Allyn and Bacon Order Dept., 200 Old Tappan Rd., Old Tappan, NJ 07675.
