Embedded Reading

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Archive for the month “April, 2013”

28 Apr 2013

La Prodigiosa Tarde de Baltazar from Mike Peto

Below is an amazing collection of work from a very generous teacher.   In this blog post, Mike Peto shares his work and his insights.  From Mike Peto’s blog:

“Embedded readings helped me scaffold this story:

I have always loved this story by García Márquez but, until now, I never quite managed to find the right approach to teaching it. This is such a delight to read and discuss, yet the high-level vocabulary threatens to derail the conversation from the interesting ideas presented in the story to incomprehensible trivia (i.e. what are the “eaves” of a house, and why do i need to know that word in Spanish?). Here is how I approached this story for my AP language class:”

You can find the rest of his post….the Embedded Readings…and much more here on Mike’s blog.

When I asked Mike if I could post his piece here he sent this response: ” Of course! It was a lot of work, I´d like as many people as possible to benefit 🙂

Thank you so much Mike!!

 

All content of this website © Embedded Reading 2012-2014 or original authors.  Unauthorized use or distribution of materials without express and written consent of the owners/authors is strictly prohibited.   Examples and  links may be used as long as clear and direct reference to the site and original authors is clearly established.

Posted in Creating from the Top Down, Spanish Embedded Readings, Teachers Talk About Embedded Reading | Leave a comment
26 Apr 2013

Epilogue Casi Se Muere

Below is the epilogue that Andrea Bush (Marcus Whitman HS, Rushville, N.Y.)  created with the help of her students.  (see previous post) Casi Se Muere is one of the novels written by Blaine Ray for emerging readers in Spanish.     This story, entitled,  One Year Later, is the epiloque written by Andrea’s students.    The idea of the story is that one year later, Ana (main character-student from California) returns to the city of Temuco, Chile where she had been a participant in an exchange program.  (Storyline of Casi Se Muere).  While she is there the first time, she saves the life of a student and they become interested in each romantically.

The idea of “one year later”  worked beautifully for repetitions!!!   At the end of the novel, the community was celebrating Independence Day.  When she returns a year later,  it’s Independence Day again!  Because of this,  Andrea was able to have the students reuse scenarios and structures from the book to create the reading.

Andrea also encouraged them to recycle other events (and therefore vocabulary and structures) from the novel in creating the story.   At the same time, they were asked to create a NEW situation or scenario.    What a great example of an upper-level task!

Below is Andrea’s 4th period class’ epilogue…first in Spanish and then in English so that those of you who do not read in Spanish can enjoy.    Thanks for sharing Andrea!!

Un Año Después

Base Reading

Un año después, Ana regresa a Chile.

Ana va a la escuela, y se siente muy feliz porque Teresa está en la escuela también.

¡Ana ve a Pepe Ayala!  Otra vez, ¡Pepe no puede tomar aire!  Ana pone los brazos alrededor de Pepe y presiona muy fuerte.  Un pedazo de empanada sale de la boca.

Ana mira a Pepe y Teresa.  De repente, Pepe la da un beso a Teresa.  Ana grita “¿QUÉ?” y se siente muy enojada.

Ana quiere ir a una de las fiestas para celebrar el 18 de septiembre.  Ana decide ir a la fiesta de Jaime porque está enojada con Teresa y Pepe.

Ana está sorprendida que le gusta pasar tiempo con Jaime.  Después de dos días, Ana no se siente enojada.

Después de dos semanas, Ana vuelve a California.

Version 2

Un año después, Ana regresa a Chile.  Primero, Ana va a la casa de Teresa, pero Teresa no está allí.

Ana va a la escuela, y se siente muy feliz porque Teresa está en la escuela también.  Ana habla con Teresa.

Ana y Teresa van al parque. ¡Ana ve a Pepe Ayala!  Ana grita, “¡Hola!” y camina hacia él. Otra vez, ¡Pepe no puede tomar aire!  Ana pone los brazos alrededor de Pepe y presiona muy fuerte.  Un pedazo de empanada sale de la boca.

Ana mira a Pepe y Teresa.  Algo es diferente, de repente, Pepe le da un beso a Teresa.  Ana grita “¿QUÉ?” y se siente muy enojada.

Ana quiere ir a una de las fiestas para celebrar el 18 de septiembre.  Ana decide ir a la fiesta de Jaime porque está enojada con Teresa y Pepe.

Ana está sorprendida que le gusta pasar tiempo con Jaime.  Ana piensa mucho en Jaime. Están enamorados.  Después de dos días, Ana no se siente enojada.

Después de dos semanas, Ana vuelve a California.

Version 3

Un año después, Ana regresa a Chile.  Ana llega en Temuco.  Primero, Ana va a la casa de Teresa, pero Teresa no está allí.

Ana está emocionada por ver a sus amigos porque tiene ropa nueva. Va a la escuela, y se siente muy feliz porque Teresa está en la escuela también.  Ana habla con Teresa.

Ana y Teresa van al parque.  De repente, Ana ve a una persona que conoce.  ¡Ana ve a Pepe Ayala!  Ana grita, “¡Hola!” y camina hacia él. Pero, Pepe tiene un problema.  Otra vez, ¡Pepe no puede tomar aire!  Ana pone los brazos alrededor de Pepe y presiona muy fuerte.  Un pedazo de empanada sale de la boca.  Cae al suelo.  Pepe dice, “Otra vez, estoy vivo gracias a tu buena acción.”

Ana quiere pasar tiempo con Pepe.  Ana mira a Pepe y Teresa.  Algo es diferente, y Teresa le da un abrazo fuerte a Pepe. De repente, Pepe le da un beso a Teresa.  Ana grita “¿QUÉ?” y se siente muy enojada.

Ana quiere ir a una de las fiestas para celebrar el 18 de septiembre.  Ana decide ir a la fiesta de Jaime porque está enojada con Teresa y Pepe.  Está enojada porque Pepe le dio un beso a Teresa. En la fiesta muchas personas comen empanadas y beben soda.

Ana está sorprendida que le gusta pasar tiempo con Jaime.  Ana está muy feliz, y piensa mucho en Jaime. Están enamorados.  Después de dos días, Ana no se siente enojada.  Está feliz porque Teresa y Pepe están felices juntos.

Después de dos semanas, Ana vuelve a California.

One Year Later

One year later, Ana returns to Chile.

Ana goes to school and feels very happy because Teresa is in school too.

Ana sees Pepe Ayala!!  Again, Pepe cannot breathe!  Ana puts her arms around Pepe and applies every strong pressure.  A piece of empanada flies out of his mouth.

Ana looks at Pepe and Teresa.  Suddenly, Pepe gives Teresa a kiss.  “What?!”, Ana shouts.  She feels very angry.

Ana is surprised that she likes to spend time with Jaime.  After two days, Ana doesn’t feel angry.

After two weeks, Ana returns to California.

Version 2

One year later, Ana returns to Chile.  First she goes to Teresa’s house, but Teresa isn’t there.

Ana goes to school and feels very happy because Teresa is in school too. Ana talks to Teresa.

Ana and Teresa go to the park.  Ana sees Pepe Ayala!!  Ana shouts, “Hello!” and walks toward him.  Again, Pepe cannot breathe!  Ana puts her arms around Pepe and applies every strong pressure.  A piece of empanada flies out of his mouth.

Ana looks at Pepe and Teresa.  Something is different.  Suddenly, Pepe gives Teresa a kiss.  “What?!”, Ana shouts.  She feels very angry.

Ana wants to go to one of the parties to celebrate September 18th.  She decides to go to Jaime’s party because she is angry with Pepe and Teresa.

Ana is surprised that she likes to spend time with Jaime.  They are in love.  After two days, Ana doesn’t feel angry.

After two weeks, Ana returns to California.

Version 3

One year later, Ana returns to Chile.  She arrives in Temuco.  First she goes to Teresa’s house, but Teresa isn’t there.

Ana is excited to see her friends because she has new clothes.  Ana goes to school and feels very happy because Teresa is in school too. Ana talks to Teresa.

Ana and Teresa go to the park.  All of a sudden, Ana sees a person that she knows.  Ana sees Pepe Ayala!!  Ana shouts, “Hello!” and walks toward him.  But Pepe has a problem!  Again, Pepe cannot breathe!  Ana puts her arms around Pepe and applies every strong pressure.  A piece of empanada flies out of his mouth.  It falls to the ground.  Pepe says,  “Again I am alive thanks to your good deed.”

Ana wants to spend time with Pepe.  Ana looks at Pepe and Teresa.  Something is different and Teresa gives Pepe a big hug.  Suddenly, Pepe gives Teresa a kiss.  “What?!”, Ana shouts.  She feels very angry.

Ana wants to go to one of the parties to celebrate September 18th.  She decides to go to Jaime’s party because she is angry with Pepe and Teresa.  She is angry because Pepe kissed Teresa.  At the party, many people eat empanadas and drink soda.

Ana is surprised that she likes to spend time with Jaime.  Ana is very happy and thinks about Jaime a lot.  They are in love.  After two days, Ana doesn’t feel angry.  She is happy because Pepe and Teresa are happy together.

After two weeks, Ana returns to California.

 

All content of this website © Embedded Reading 2012-2014 or original authors.  Unauthorized use or distribution of materials without express and written consent of the owners/authors is strictly prohibited.   Examples and  links may be used as long as clear and direct reference to the site and original authors is clearly established.

Posted in Creating from the Bottom Up, Spanish Embedded Readings, Using Readings With Students, Using Students' Ideas | Leave a comment
26 Apr 2013
2 Comments

These Are The Guidelines

A gifted new teacher tried out Embedded Reading for the first time this week with great success.  Andrea gave her students a chance to write an Epilogue to a novel they had read.   She didn’t ask them to write the entire thing, just a piece of it.  She then combined all of the ideas from one class period to create an Embedded Reading in three levels for her students.    She discovered, like most people do, that the students do not get bored reading the “same” story several times!!    Their feed back to her was that it was exciting to know that a) they were going to understand each piece   b)  something new was going to be in each piece and c) something they had written would show up somewhere!

Then…she was able to repeat the reading pieces by switching fourth period’s reading with ninth period’s reading and they got double the input!!

Then….she could lead discussion comparing the two versions.

Her first foray into Embedded Reading was successful because she is a caring and gifted teacher who has worked hard to establish positive relationships with her students.   She also followed several important guidelines:

1.  Less is more.

The base reading was clean, minimal and right on point for the level of her class.  Every student was able to understand it.

Then, she added just enough detail to each succeeding reading that students were interested to discover more without being discouraged by the length or difficulty.

She also kept the reading to three versions: perfect for the reading level and the amount of time that these second-year students can stay focused.

2.   Variety is the key.

Andrea added a variety of items to the new levels.   Some words and phrases were short and highly familiar.   Others were more complex or contained less familiar vocabulary.   Information/language was added to the beginning and middle of each level, as well as to the end.

She made sure that each student had contributed to the final piece by taking at least one word, phrase or idea from each student.  (This isn’t as challenging as it seems…..)

The students approached each level differently.   There were verbal questions for one, illustrations for another, discussion for the third.   This is KEY to keeping students from feeling like they are doing the same thing over and over again.

3.    Teach  For  Success

Because Andrea had already laid a foundation for success with steps 1 and 2 above, she could approach the lesson with an extremely positive outlook.   This attitude spilled over into her students.  Because she had worked hard to create an atmosphere of trust, they were willing to address material that was progressively more challenging.

It doesn’t mean that the readings didn’t require advanced skills.  It doesn’t mean that some pieces weren’t challenging.  It means that despite increasing difficulty, the scaffolding created the opportunity for students to be highly successful and they believed that they could be.

4.  Open Doors for Students to Connect with the Text.

Obviously, being able to comprehend the text is the first, best way to connect students with what they are reading.  Without that, nothing else happens!!

This particular exercise allowed students to contribute as authors.   That is the beauty of creating a “Bottom Up” reading.   As authors, they are infinitely more interested in reading.

Even if the students had not authored the text, they had numerous opportunities to interact with the text on a personal level.    The story was a continuation of one that they were already familiar with.   The location, some details, and more importantly, the characters were familiar.   By illustrating, they were able to create their own visualization of the story.

They also made a number of observations about the piece that Andrea allowed them to “own” for themselves.   Their discovery of a story within a story made them feel as if they had uncovered a surprise created for them by their teacher.   After that, every new detail was like a new little gift that she had arranged just for them to unwrap.

Four simple guidelines that, when followed, help all of us to create and use Embedded Readings successfully with our students.

 

All content of this website © Embedded Reading 2012-2014 or original authors.  Unauthorized use or distribution of materials without express and written consent of the owners/authors is strictly prohibited.   Examples and  links may be used as long as clear and direct reference to the site and original authors is clearly established.

 

Posted in Tips for Success, Using Readings With Students, Using Students' Ideas

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