No matter what creative project or skills you wish to master the most important one in your life will be your career. A career is not your job. A job is a place you go to earn money. A career is a vocation that you choose because it is something you want to do; something you love to do; it is something you have the talents and ability to do.
So many people waste their lives doing things that they don't like. One that only provides money but there is no outlet for their talent, creativity or happiness. Your career is a large part of your life. Choose one that draws out the best in benefits like satisfaction, earnings, environment, achievement, prestige and suited to your individual nature.
Look once again at the goal you have chosen and written down on your 3x5 card. If you have no goal, you drift. Too many goals and you scatter your energies. A goal beyond your reach will frustrate you. one below you will lead to boredom. One with too long a range will get you no where. One with too short a range will get you no where.
Emerson said, "Nothing great was ever achieved without enthusiasm."
How do you find what is the best vocation for you? Do anything that might help you find yourself. How much time and money have you already spent on things not half as likely to bring you such rich reward as finding yourself? You can change careers at any time. You can start school at 40 or 60. You can find out what is natural for you at any age. Go after it.
Aim at something within reach. Be an optimist but not an idiot. Aim at the reachable. To try something and fail is better for you than trying nothing and succeeding.
There are clues to your future in your past. there is no gold mine as rich as your own past experiences. All your talents, wishes and interests are hidden there. Study them. Dig them out. Remember Acres of Diamonds? Your diamond is probably closer than you think.
Ask yourself of any career that interests you. Does it serve a useful purpose? Am I proud of it? Is it constructive of human welfare? Do I admire people in this career with self respect and satisfaction. If not, drop it.
Some people's talents are so obvious we call them born actors, salesmen, artists etc. They have no problem, but the rest of us have to dig it out.
Knowledge is power. It is doubly true when that knowledge is about ourselves. Get to know yourself, start writing. List your desires, abilities, possibilities, limitations, skills, experiences and possible alternatives. So many apparently "impossible" problems were solved in writing.
Define clearly what you want. If you had your choice of any job, what would it be? Buy yourself a dozen packs of 3 x 5 cards and a large notebook. From now on think and write. Ideas come with writing .
You'll never know what great possibilities are hidden inside of you without a thorough search in writing. Explore it fully. Think, compare, combine, associate relate, adapt.
Write down on a piece of paper the words, "How can I find my right career? or Goal in life? what first steps can I take?" Then listen. Writing this down acts like magic. It starts the flow of ideas. Once you find yourself, most of your other problems solve themselves.
Here is a paraphrase of Kipling's last thought in his poem, "IF"
"If you can stick, and give up through boredom, but keep trying, to the very end, yours is the world, and everything that's in it, and what is more, you'll succeed my friend."
About the Author
Ellis Peterson AKA Ragnar Storyteller is a retired math professor and electronics engineer. His writings are unique and refreshing. To see more of his writings visit his websites. http://www.olevikingshop.com/ and http://www.runes-for-health-wealth-love-now.com/ Or Go to goggle and type in his pen name RAGNAR STORYTELLER.. contact: ragnarstoryteller2@gmail.com Visit his Blogs: http://ragnar-storyteller.blogspot.com/
Saturday, July 19, 2008
Poetry Writing - Write Great Poems Easily by Harnessing Your Imagination by Robert Taylor 3 votes vote Quality poetry is a good way to evoke the
Quality poetry is a good way to evoke the emotions and imagination of the people who read it. In order to write good poetry, you need to be able to establish rapport with your readers and offer them imagery and ideals that touch them deep inside. If you want to write good poetry easily and effortlessly, there is a powerful technique that you can use to help you.
When writing poetry, use the following techniques to invoke your imagination, establish rapport with your audience and present your ideals in a meaningful way to the reader.
1. Decide on your concept.
2. Brainstorm your concept.
3. Randomize your content.
4. Establish rapport with your targeted audience.
5. Unleash your subconscious imagination.
6. Walk away from your poetry
7. Write your poem.
Deciding on your concept is the easiest part of poetry writing. In order to do this, you just have to decide on what you want people to take away from your poem. Whether you want them to see love in a new way, or to see the harsh concepts of war or challenge them to improve themselves...you need only to decide on a concept, or several concepts you want to tie together.
After you have your concept, you need to brainstorm that concept in order to get an organized sense of what you want to say. Without really thinking about it, jot down (or type) a number of phrases, ideas or words related to your concept. The more you come up with the better.
Once you finish brainstorming a list of concept related ideas, the next step is to randomize your content. This step is similar to brainstorming except instead of trying to find things related to your concept you are looking for things that don't have any obvious connections to your idea. The point of this step is to challenge your conscious and unconscious mind to find new connections and ways to view your concept.
Once you have finished with brainstorming and randomizing your ideas, the next step is to gain rapport with your audience. At this point, put your list of words, phrases and ideas to the side and just close your eyes and relax. Allow yourself to imagine being one of your audience...try to imagine how you would look at the situation or idea. The better you are able to put yourself in their role, the better you will be able to write poetry that they can comprehend. Take your time with this step and really allow yourself to step into their role, their life, their mindset. As you find yourself entering their mindset, you will find it easier to write poetry that they can respond to and feel.
Once you have connected internally to your audience move into the next step...which is unleashing your subconscious imagination. Take a few deep breaths and allow yourself to relax as completely as possible. Ask your subconscious mind to provide you with the words, ideas and concepts in a way that will allow you to write a good poem. Continue to relax and mentally visualize what you want...which is a quality poem. Imagine reading the poem and enjoying what you wrote. Tell your subconscious mind that your goal is to produce a quality poem and ask it to give you the words you need to accomplish your task. Continue to relax and internalize your goal of a quality poem for several minutes. At some point you will get a sense of having successfully empowered your unconscious mind...at this point just wake yourself up and move to the next step.
The next step is easy. Walk away from the poem for a while. Go take a walk, do some chores, or do something that gets your conscious mind away from the poem. This process works much like the "Eureka" concept. The better you can take your mind off the poem at this point the easier it will be to write later.
After taking thirty minutes to an hour to cool off and focus on other things, its time to sit down and write your poem. At this point just try to allow the ideas to flow from your mind to the page. Don't try to force the poem, just let it come at its own pace and allow it to flow naturally. Write until you feel that you have completed your idea, or as much as you are ready to complete at the moment.
About the Author
Robert Taylor is a webmaster for a number of webpages, and a web page designer. His hobbies include software design, writing and hypnotherapy. Among the web pages that he currently manages are the following.
WWW.AllMyPoems.Com
WWW.HypnoEnhancer.com
www.IronZipper.Com
When writing poetry, use the following techniques to invoke your imagination, establish rapport with your audience and present your ideals in a meaningful way to the reader.
1. Decide on your concept.
2. Brainstorm your concept.
3. Randomize your content.
4. Establish rapport with your targeted audience.
5. Unleash your subconscious imagination.
6. Walk away from your poetry
7. Write your poem.
Deciding on your concept is the easiest part of poetry writing. In order to do this, you just have to decide on what you want people to take away from your poem. Whether you want them to see love in a new way, or to see the harsh concepts of war or challenge them to improve themselves...you need only to decide on a concept, or several concepts you want to tie together.
After you have your concept, you need to brainstorm that concept in order to get an organized sense of what you want to say. Without really thinking about it, jot down (or type) a number of phrases, ideas or words related to your concept. The more you come up with the better.
Once you finish brainstorming a list of concept related ideas, the next step is to randomize your content. This step is similar to brainstorming except instead of trying to find things related to your concept you are looking for things that don't have any obvious connections to your idea. The point of this step is to challenge your conscious and unconscious mind to find new connections and ways to view your concept.
Once you have finished with brainstorming and randomizing your ideas, the next step is to gain rapport with your audience. At this point, put your list of words, phrases and ideas to the side and just close your eyes and relax. Allow yourself to imagine being one of your audience...try to imagine how you would look at the situation or idea. The better you are able to put yourself in their role, the better you will be able to write poetry that they can comprehend. Take your time with this step and really allow yourself to step into their role, their life, their mindset. As you find yourself entering their mindset, you will find it easier to write poetry that they can respond to and feel.
Once you have connected internally to your audience move into the next step...which is unleashing your subconscious imagination. Take a few deep breaths and allow yourself to relax as completely as possible. Ask your subconscious mind to provide you with the words, ideas and concepts in a way that will allow you to write a good poem. Continue to relax and mentally visualize what you want...which is a quality poem. Imagine reading the poem and enjoying what you wrote. Tell your subconscious mind that your goal is to produce a quality poem and ask it to give you the words you need to accomplish your task. Continue to relax and internalize your goal of a quality poem for several minutes. At some point you will get a sense of having successfully empowered your unconscious mind...at this point just wake yourself up and move to the next step.
The next step is easy. Walk away from the poem for a while. Go take a walk, do some chores, or do something that gets your conscious mind away from the poem. This process works much like the "Eureka" concept. The better you can take your mind off the poem at this point the easier it will be to write later.
After taking thirty minutes to an hour to cool off and focus on other things, its time to sit down and write your poem. At this point just try to allow the ideas to flow from your mind to the page. Don't try to force the poem, just let it come at its own pace and allow it to flow naturally. Write until you feel that you have completed your idea, or as much as you are ready to complete at the moment.
About the Author
Robert Taylor is a webmaster for a number of webpages, and a web page designer. His hobbies include software design, writing and hypnotherapy. Among the web pages that he currently manages are the following.
WWW.AllMyPoems.Com
WWW.HypnoEnhancer.com
www.IronZipper.Com
Refresh Your Writing: Three Ways to Break Out of a Rut by Stephanie Cage 0 votes vote Have you ever found yourself getting into a rut... writing t
Have you ever found yourself getting into a rut... writing the same sort of thing over and over again until you feel as if you could do it in your sleep... and maybe even are doing? Or even just wondered whether there's more to writing than the genre you've loved for so long? If so, it might be time to try something different.
1) Turn your writing on its head. Do the opposite of whatever you normally do. I write poetry and prose, but never drama, so for me getting involved in a project to write a one-act play was a great rut-breaker. The play I wrote was dire in a million and one ways, but I learned more from that than from half a dozen 'successful' projects. If you don't know where to start, go to the library or onto Amazon and look for a category of book you wouldn't normally give a second glance to, then challenge yourself to write something - even if it's only a piece of flash fiction - in that genre.
2) Take your writing on holiday. If you can afford it, writing holidays are a great way to inspire change, but there are cheaper ways. Sit in a local park for an hour to people-watch, or walk around a part of town you don't normally go to, challenging yourself to come up with at least one new idea on the way - the dafter the better. This isn't about great quality writing, it's just about stretching your creative muscles.
3) Bring in another creative form. Write about a favourite artwork or photo, bake a cake or put up shelves and write a poem about the experience. Take photos or revamp your wardrobe. Getting creative without any preconceptions can really shift you out of a rut, but so too can doing something new and looking for ways to include it in your writing.
You might find yourself heading off in a whole new direction, or you might decide that where you were is where you were meant to be all along. Either way, you've learned something, and staying open to learning will always make you a better writer.
About the Author
Stephanie Cage is a writer and life coach based in Yorkshire, England. Visit http://www.stephaniecage.co.uk to find out more about writing and coaching.
1) Turn your writing on its head. Do the opposite of whatever you normally do. I write poetry and prose, but never drama, so for me getting involved in a project to write a one-act play was a great rut-breaker. The play I wrote was dire in a million and one ways, but I learned more from that than from half a dozen 'successful' projects. If you don't know where to start, go to the library or onto Amazon and look for a category of book you wouldn't normally give a second glance to, then challenge yourself to write something - even if it's only a piece of flash fiction - in that genre.
2) Take your writing on holiday. If you can afford it, writing holidays are a great way to inspire change, but there are cheaper ways. Sit in a local park for an hour to people-watch, or walk around a part of town you don't normally go to, challenging yourself to come up with at least one new idea on the way - the dafter the better. This isn't about great quality writing, it's just about stretching your creative muscles.
3) Bring in another creative form. Write about a favourite artwork or photo, bake a cake or put up shelves and write a poem about the experience. Take photos or revamp your wardrobe. Getting creative without any preconceptions can really shift you out of a rut, but so too can doing something new and looking for ways to include it in your writing.
You might find yourself heading off in a whole new direction, or you might decide that where you were is where you were meant to be all along. Either way, you've learned something, and staying open to learning will always make you a better writer.
About the Author
Stephanie Cage is a writer and life coach based in Yorkshire, England. Visit http://www.stephaniecage.co.uk to find out more about writing and coaching.
Tips to Writing a Fantasy Novel that is Different and Unique by Will Kalif 0 votes vote Fantasy novels can be worlds filled with amazing and wonde
Fantasy novels can be worlds filled with amazing and wonderful journeys and adventures but does the world really need another novel with all the typical things like fire breathing dragons, magical all-powerful swords, and the story of a farm boy turned hero? Don't fall into the trap of writing a typical fantasy novel. Here are some tips that will help you write a fantasy novel that is different, new, and maybe even better.
The first thing I want to impart on you is about the very nature of "fantasy". It implies an act of creative imagination. That is great for you as a writer. You are writing a story and building a world. And it is your world. Absolutely anything applies! Write anything you want to write. Don't be boxed in by traditional rules of fantasy. You are in control of everything and nobody can tell you otherwise. Let loose and just see where you imagination takes you.
And this doesn't just apply to the characters, world and story. This also applies to the rules of writing. Want to write your whole novel in a new language that only one-eyed centaurs speak? Go with it and see where it takes you. Want your story to jump around in time -spanning ten thousand years? Cool! How about writing it in epic poem style or from varying points of view? This is your world. Write it any way you want to. Don't be afraid to explore the mechanics of writing in new ways. If you have this nagging feeling that you should be writing a certain way then why aren't you?
Here are some tips and ideas on what you can tinker with in your novel to make it more creative and different
Time - This is one of my favorite things to tinker with. Time doesn't have to plod along at the usual pace. And If you have been writing for a while you have become a bit sensitive to time, nd you probably already tinker with it. Does a two minute sword fight take two minutes to read? Nope. The basic rules of time need not apply to your writing. Want to write your whole novel in the one minute life span of some type of fantasy creature? I think it would be fun and challenging.
Perspective - Is your main character human? That's perfectly fine but wouldn't it be a challenge and a lot of fun to use some kind of other creature as your narrator? How would a strange fantasy creature think? An easy way of looking at this would be from the perspective of a dragon that lives for thousands of years. Wouldn't that dragon have a whole different outlook on the world - based on an accumulated wisdom.
Creation of systems and beings - This is where you can have a lot of fun yet still impart something special to your readers. Aren't there already enough ogres, elves, and dwarves tromping around the pages of fantasy novels? Couldn't you come up with something new? Draw some sketches and write down outlandish ideas. How about a whale sized creature that floats through the air eating microscopic bacteria? Or a race or elf-like creatures that fire electric eels from their bows? As far as systems go wouldn't it be different to have your adventurer stay in one place and have all the adventures come to him? Rather than tromping around the world maybe the world would come to his front door. How about a world where every single living creature falls asleep for the duration of the full moon? It would be fun to find out what happens when they all wake up.
Some cautions for your new imaginative writing
Just because you are writing something new and creative doesn't mean you shouldn't have any discipline. You are still writing for people. And people have expectations. That means there has to be a certain logic and sense in your world. You have to lay out rules in a way that the reader will understand and accept as natural.
So don't find yourself falling into the trap of just coming up with something to solve a situation or crisis. One of the worse things you can do is just all of a sudden grant your main character the ability to cast a spell that solves a problem. Don't bend your rules to make your story work. Layout your rules then work within them.
With a little bit of imagination you can come up with a world and a story that is totally different, yet totally rewarding for your readers. Let yourself loose, try different things, and see where they lead. You are the creator of a totally new world and just about anything goes. Just make sure you temper it with some discipline so it makes sense.
About the Author
Will Kalif is the author of two fantasy novels with several more coming. Visit his site devoted to fantasy at: The Fantasy Guide website - Your guide to Fantasy
Or visit his blog devoted to all things Medieval and Fantasy at: Heroic Dreams - Never Give A Sword to A Man Who Can't Dance
The first thing I want to impart on you is about the very nature of "fantasy". It implies an act of creative imagination. That is great for you as a writer. You are writing a story and building a world. And it is your world. Absolutely anything applies! Write anything you want to write. Don't be boxed in by traditional rules of fantasy. You are in control of everything and nobody can tell you otherwise. Let loose and just see where you imagination takes you.
And this doesn't just apply to the characters, world and story. This also applies to the rules of writing. Want to write your whole novel in a new language that only one-eyed centaurs speak? Go with it and see where it takes you. Want your story to jump around in time -spanning ten thousand years? Cool! How about writing it in epic poem style or from varying points of view? This is your world. Write it any way you want to. Don't be afraid to explore the mechanics of writing in new ways. If you have this nagging feeling that you should be writing a certain way then why aren't you?
Here are some tips and ideas on what you can tinker with in your novel to make it more creative and different
Time - This is one of my favorite things to tinker with. Time doesn't have to plod along at the usual pace. And If you have been writing for a while you have become a bit sensitive to time, nd you probably already tinker with it. Does a two minute sword fight take two minutes to read? Nope. The basic rules of time need not apply to your writing. Want to write your whole novel in the one minute life span of some type of fantasy creature? I think it would be fun and challenging.
Perspective - Is your main character human? That's perfectly fine but wouldn't it be a challenge and a lot of fun to use some kind of other creature as your narrator? How would a strange fantasy creature think? An easy way of looking at this would be from the perspective of a dragon that lives for thousands of years. Wouldn't that dragon have a whole different outlook on the world - based on an accumulated wisdom.
Creation of systems and beings - This is where you can have a lot of fun yet still impart something special to your readers. Aren't there already enough ogres, elves, and dwarves tromping around the pages of fantasy novels? Couldn't you come up with something new? Draw some sketches and write down outlandish ideas. How about a whale sized creature that floats through the air eating microscopic bacteria? Or a race or elf-like creatures that fire electric eels from their bows? As far as systems go wouldn't it be different to have your adventurer stay in one place and have all the adventures come to him? Rather than tromping around the world maybe the world would come to his front door. How about a world where every single living creature falls asleep for the duration of the full moon? It would be fun to find out what happens when they all wake up.
Some cautions for your new imaginative writing
Just because you are writing something new and creative doesn't mean you shouldn't have any discipline. You are still writing for people. And people have expectations. That means there has to be a certain logic and sense in your world. You have to lay out rules in a way that the reader will understand and accept as natural.
So don't find yourself falling into the trap of just coming up with something to solve a situation or crisis. One of the worse things you can do is just all of a sudden grant your main character the ability to cast a spell that solves a problem. Don't bend your rules to make your story work. Layout your rules then work within them.
With a little bit of imagination you can come up with a world and a story that is totally different, yet totally rewarding for your readers. Let yourself loose, try different things, and see where they lead. You are the creator of a totally new world and just about anything goes. Just make sure you temper it with some discipline so it makes sense.
About the Author
Will Kalif is the author of two fantasy novels with several more coming. Visit his site devoted to fantasy at: The Fantasy Guide website - Your guide to Fantasy
Or visit his blog devoted to all things Medieval and Fantasy at: Heroic Dreams - Never Give A Sword to A Man Who Can't Dance
Model Reading Strategies To Improve Comprehension For All Students by Laura Robb 0 votes vote "But I'm not a reading teacher. I teach literature."
Model Reading Strategies To Improve Comprehension For All Students by Laura Robb
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"But I'm not a reading teacher. I teach literature." I hear this comment repeated again and again as I coach teachers in Virginia, New York, and Michigan and conduct workshops for middle and high school teachers around the country. I'm sympathetic to their words because these teachers have had little to no formal training in teaching reading. However, reading is a part of daily learning, not only in the primary grades, but in grades 4 and up; and studies by the U.S. Department of Education (2003) indicate that more than 8 million students in grades 4 to 12 are struggling readers. In addition, high school students in the lowest 25 percent of their class are 20 times more likely to drop out of school than are excellent and proficient learners (Carnevale, 2001).
For me, the choice of whether or not to teach reading -- even if you're not a reading teacher -- is obvious: Middle and high school students need reading instruction, especially students who struggle because they read three or more years below grade level. Annually, struggling readers slide further behind; they can't and don't read in English and content subjects, and they don't choose reading as an independent activity.
Some schools have added a special reading intervention class to support striving adolescent learners, but that's not enough. In an area high school, I worked with ninth graders reading on a third to fifth grade level. Success was high as long as students learned at their instructional levels. However, their self-confidence and motivation to read roller-coastered each day because in their English class they were expected to read Animal Farm (1993) by George Orwell as well as ninth grade-level textbooks in science and social studies. In my class, students rode the crest of the roller coaster and earned A's and B's; in other classes, their ride plummeted to the valleys as they earned D's and F's.
We can repair this disconnect between an intervention class and the regular ninth grade curriculum by taking an interrelated two-pronged approach: supplying middle and high school teachers with multiple texts at diverse reading levels for instruction and providing ongoing professional study that shows teachers how to use multiple texts and teach reading strategies to reach every student in classes with mixed reading levels (Robb, 2007; Tomlinson, 1999, 2002).
Let's look at the experience of Katie, a teacher that I coach. Katie teaches a ninth grade heterogeneous English class at Lee High School in Staunton, Virginia. In a study of life in the South prior to civil rights legislation, she was teaching To Kill a Mockingbird (1982) by Harper Lee, a book that only 30 percent of the students could read. So she expanded the possibilities by adding Mildred Taylor's Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry (1976), The Friendship (1987), and The Gold Cadillac (1987). This way, every student was able to read and contribute to discussions and projects. Katie explained that the benefits went beyond engaging students in texts they could read to bringing multiple perspectives to this pre-civil rights study (Robb, 2002; Zarnowski, 2006). Katie also included teaching reading and vocabulary strategies within the research-tested three-part reading framework of applying strategies before, during, and after reading (Gillet & Temple, 1990; Robb, 2000, 2007; Tierney & Readence, 2000).
The Read-Aloud: A Multipurpose Teaching Strategy
To accomplish the shift from teaching one book to all students to using multiple texts, I use the read-aloud as a common teaching text. Not only am I reading aloud to model how strategies work, but I'm also developing students' listening skills. The common texts I choose are short -- I teach with poetry; passages from picture books, short stories, and articles; and sections from longer texts. If the selection is complex, I make an overhead transparency so students can follow my modeling.
This thinking aloud is important for all middle and high school learners, for it shows them what happens in your mind and emotional center as you read. When I ask struggling readers what goes on inside their minds when they read, the response is unanimous: "Nothing!" Their reaction helps me understand why they don't read, for reading texts without imagining, questioning, connecting, thinking, and feeling is simply saying words. Each time you model how reading strategies work becomes an opportunity to show students what happens inside your mind when reading is enjoyable.
One of the most powerful strategies for supporting the development of mental pictures and connections is visualizing. And when you include as many of the five senses as you can -- seeing, hearing, tasting, touching, smelling -- you enrich visualizations by building connections with past experiences and the emotions surrounding them.
Let me walk you through a lesson that I facilitated for ninth graders on visualizing. I used the following four-line poem by Emily Dickinson:
SUNSET
Where ships of purple gently toss On seas of daffodil, Fantastic sailors mingle, And then -- the wharf is still.
One purpose of describing the lesson here is to demonstrate that creating mental pictures with sensory images and memories can increase comprehension and build strong personal connections. The "walk-through" below provides suggestions along with my think-alouds that can guide your planning for building reading instruction around the three-part framework.
Paint Mental Images Using Your Senses--Before-, During-, and After-Reading Strategies
In addition to showing students how using the senses can increase understanding by building strong mental pictures, I wanted them to discover and come to understand what an extended metaphor was through their experience and my think-aloud.
Before Students Read: Reading starts before opening a text, and getting students ready to read is as important for them as it is for you and me. When students share with a partner and then with the entire class, preparation can enlarge background knowledge and introduce vocabulary. At this point, students' responses let you know whether they have enough background information to proceed with the reading. If not, take some time to build students' prior knowledge by using picture books, photographs, and video clips. The more students know about a topic, the better their recall and understanding. Moreover, increased comprehension enables students to use the facts and details in a text to analyze information and build new understandings.
First, I prepare ninth graders to read and visualize using their senses. I ask them to pair-share about sunsets for about three minutes. What did the sky look like? What did you hear? Smell? Any connections you made or emotions felt? Here are some student ideas I wrote on large chart paper:
The sky changes color. I see bars of pinks and purples and grays. I feel the soft wind and think of the ocean and the smell of salt. I hear insects humming. I see bats. I can taste evening--the dew, the dark that's coming. I remember watching the sun, like a red ball of fire, descend below the mountain me and my family climbed.
Next I read the poem aloud three times. Poems should be heard and enjoyed before students analyze them. With a short selection from a text, it's helpful to read it twice and let students know that they need to listen carefully to observe how you are applying the strategy. I also like to give students something to think about--something they will do after I model.
During Reading: This is the time to pause and think aloud and show how you use your senses to visualize and build comprehension. Too often, we teachers wait to build students' understanding after reading. I want this process to start during reading. Here's my think-aloud for the poem:
Robb's Think-Aloud: The words ships, toss, and seas make me compare the sunset to the ocean. The word toss makes me feel a wind that moves purple strips across the sky. Seas connects me to the blueness of the sky and helps me feel and see how vast the sky and sea are. Daffodil helps me imagine the bits of yellow sun that still light up the sky. The name of the flower with a golden trumpet raises memories of the sounds of evening that approaches and the sound of the wind gently tossing ribbons of clouds.
The last two lines also use ocean words. Fantastic sailors creates a picture of purples and yellows in different shapes. Mingle helps me see the colors mixing as evening approaches. Wharf in the last line means a dock, and I hear the waves lapping, I taste the salty evening, I see darkness settling in just like a ship docks at a wharf. I think Dickinson is using the sea to help me picture the sunset as she saw it. The sea images narrow the kinds of pictures and connections I can make.
At this point I invite students to pair-share about my think-aloud and offer their observations. Here are some points ninth graders made:
I think you reading it a few times helped me see the sea words. I never thought that the sea and sunset had that much in common. It's like she [Dickinson] used one big comparison.
At this point, I compliment students on their thinking and listening and introduce the phrase "extended metaphor." I explain that it is the same comparison used throughout the poem and that Dickinson helped us visualize and use our senses to see the sunset she saw by comparing it to the sea and using words we associate with the sea.
After Reading: This is a time for reflection, which aids recall and the skill of making connections, and can include discussion, writing, drawing, etc. It's also the appropriate time for students to apply what they have learned to other texts.
I divide these ninth graders into groups of four, give each one a poem with an extended metaphor, and invite them to explore and discover the comparison and use this along with their senses to visualize, build comprehension, and make connections. Each group has its own copy of the poem and one copy on an overhead transparency so the group can present its learning to the class.
Closing Thoughts
When you show with think-alouds how a strategy works, students can step inside your head and better understand how visualizing (or another strategy) supports reading. Moreover, using the read-aloud as your common teaching text will enable you to offer groups reading materials they can apply the strategy to because they can read them.
References
Carnavale, A. P. (2001). Help wanted...college required. Washington, DC: Educational Testing Service, Office of Public Leadership.
Gillet , J. W., & Temple, C. (1990). Understanding reading problems: Assessments and instruction (3rd ed.). New York: HarperCollins.
Lee, H. (1982, orig. publ. 1960). To kill a mockingbird. New York: Warner Books.
Orwell, G. (1993, orig. publ. 1945). Animal farm. New York: Everyman's Library.
Robb, L. (2000). Teaching reading in middle school: A strategic approach to reading that improves comprehension and thinking. New York: Scholastic.
Robb, L. (2002). Multiple text: Multiple opportunities for teaching and learning. Voices from the Middle, 9(4), 28-32.
Robb, L. (2003). Teaching reading in social studies, science, and math: Practical ways to weave comprehension strategies into your content area teaching. New York: Scholastic.
Robb, L. (2008). Differentiating reading instruction. New York: Scholastic.
Taylor, M. (1976). Roll of thunder, hear my cry. New York: Viking.
Taylor, M. (1987). The friendship. New York: Puffin.
Taylor M. (1987). The gold Cadillac. New York: Puffin.
Tierney, R. J., & Readence, J. E. (2000). Reading strategies and practices: A compendium. Boston: Allyn and Bacon.
Tomlinson, C. A. (1999). The differentiated classroom: Responding to the needs of all learners. Alexandria, VA: ASCD.
Tomlinson, C. A. (2002, September). Different learners, different lessons. Instructor Magazine.
U.S. Department of Education. (2003). Nation's report card: Reading 2002. Washington, DC: National Center for Education Statistics.
Zarnowski, M. (2006). Making sense of history: Using high-quality literature and hands-on experiences to build content knowledge. New York: Scholastic.
(Originally published at ADLIT In Perspective, April, 2007 and reprinted with permission of the author, Laura Robb).
About the Author
Differentiating Reading Instruction: How to Teach Reading to Meet the Needs of Each Student, reflects and offers ways to deal with the fact that middle school classes include students reading at a diverse range of instructional levels. To learn more about Robb's books, classroom libraries, recommendations, teaching and parent tips, and more, visit Laura Robb.
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"But I'm not a reading teacher. I teach literature." I hear this comment repeated again and again as I coach teachers in Virginia, New York, and Michigan and conduct workshops for middle and high school teachers around the country. I'm sympathetic to their words because these teachers have had little to no formal training in teaching reading. However, reading is a part of daily learning, not only in the primary grades, but in grades 4 and up; and studies by the U.S. Department of Education (2003) indicate that more than 8 million students in grades 4 to 12 are struggling readers. In addition, high school students in the lowest 25 percent of their class are 20 times more likely to drop out of school than are excellent and proficient learners (Carnevale, 2001).
For me, the choice of whether or not to teach reading -- even if you're not a reading teacher -- is obvious: Middle and high school students need reading instruction, especially students who struggle because they read three or more years below grade level. Annually, struggling readers slide further behind; they can't and don't read in English and content subjects, and they don't choose reading as an independent activity.
Some schools have added a special reading intervention class to support striving adolescent learners, but that's not enough. In an area high school, I worked with ninth graders reading on a third to fifth grade level. Success was high as long as students learned at their instructional levels. However, their self-confidence and motivation to read roller-coastered each day because in their English class they were expected to read Animal Farm (1993) by George Orwell as well as ninth grade-level textbooks in science and social studies. In my class, students rode the crest of the roller coaster and earned A's and B's; in other classes, their ride plummeted to the valleys as they earned D's and F's.
We can repair this disconnect between an intervention class and the regular ninth grade curriculum by taking an interrelated two-pronged approach: supplying middle and high school teachers with multiple texts at diverse reading levels for instruction and providing ongoing professional study that shows teachers how to use multiple texts and teach reading strategies to reach every student in classes with mixed reading levels (Robb, 2007; Tomlinson, 1999, 2002).
Let's look at the experience of Katie, a teacher that I coach. Katie teaches a ninth grade heterogeneous English class at Lee High School in Staunton, Virginia. In a study of life in the South prior to civil rights legislation, she was teaching To Kill a Mockingbird (1982) by Harper Lee, a book that only 30 percent of the students could read. So she expanded the possibilities by adding Mildred Taylor's Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry (1976), The Friendship (1987), and The Gold Cadillac (1987). This way, every student was able to read and contribute to discussions and projects. Katie explained that the benefits went beyond engaging students in texts they could read to bringing multiple perspectives to this pre-civil rights study (Robb, 2002; Zarnowski, 2006). Katie also included teaching reading and vocabulary strategies within the research-tested three-part reading framework of applying strategies before, during, and after reading (Gillet & Temple, 1990; Robb, 2000, 2007; Tierney & Readence, 2000).
The Read-Aloud: A Multipurpose Teaching Strategy
To accomplish the shift from teaching one book to all students to using multiple texts, I use the read-aloud as a common teaching text. Not only am I reading aloud to model how strategies work, but I'm also developing students' listening skills. The common texts I choose are short -- I teach with poetry; passages from picture books, short stories, and articles; and sections from longer texts. If the selection is complex, I make an overhead transparency so students can follow my modeling.
This thinking aloud is important for all middle and high school learners, for it shows them what happens in your mind and emotional center as you read. When I ask struggling readers what goes on inside their minds when they read, the response is unanimous: "Nothing!" Their reaction helps me understand why they don't read, for reading texts without imagining, questioning, connecting, thinking, and feeling is simply saying words. Each time you model how reading strategies work becomes an opportunity to show students what happens inside your mind when reading is enjoyable.
One of the most powerful strategies for supporting the development of mental pictures and connections is visualizing. And when you include as many of the five senses as you can -- seeing, hearing, tasting, touching, smelling -- you enrich visualizations by building connections with past experiences and the emotions surrounding them.
Let me walk you through a lesson that I facilitated for ninth graders on visualizing. I used the following four-line poem by Emily Dickinson:
SUNSET
Where ships of purple gently toss On seas of daffodil, Fantastic sailors mingle, And then -- the wharf is still.
One purpose of describing the lesson here is to demonstrate that creating mental pictures with sensory images and memories can increase comprehension and build strong personal connections. The "walk-through" below provides suggestions along with my think-alouds that can guide your planning for building reading instruction around the three-part framework.
Paint Mental Images Using Your Senses--Before-, During-, and After-Reading Strategies
In addition to showing students how using the senses can increase understanding by building strong mental pictures, I wanted them to discover and come to understand what an extended metaphor was through their experience and my think-aloud.
Before Students Read: Reading starts before opening a text, and getting students ready to read is as important for them as it is for you and me. When students share with a partner and then with the entire class, preparation can enlarge background knowledge and introduce vocabulary. At this point, students' responses let you know whether they have enough background information to proceed with the reading. If not, take some time to build students' prior knowledge by using picture books, photographs, and video clips. The more students know about a topic, the better their recall and understanding. Moreover, increased comprehension enables students to use the facts and details in a text to analyze information and build new understandings.
First, I prepare ninth graders to read and visualize using their senses. I ask them to pair-share about sunsets for about three minutes. What did the sky look like? What did you hear? Smell? Any connections you made or emotions felt? Here are some student ideas I wrote on large chart paper:
The sky changes color. I see bars of pinks and purples and grays. I feel the soft wind and think of the ocean and the smell of salt. I hear insects humming. I see bats. I can taste evening--the dew, the dark that's coming. I remember watching the sun, like a red ball of fire, descend below the mountain me and my family climbed.
Next I read the poem aloud three times. Poems should be heard and enjoyed before students analyze them. With a short selection from a text, it's helpful to read it twice and let students know that they need to listen carefully to observe how you are applying the strategy. I also like to give students something to think about--something they will do after I model.
During Reading: This is the time to pause and think aloud and show how you use your senses to visualize and build comprehension. Too often, we teachers wait to build students' understanding after reading. I want this process to start during reading. Here's my think-aloud for the poem:
Robb's Think-Aloud: The words ships, toss, and seas make me compare the sunset to the ocean. The word toss makes me feel a wind that moves purple strips across the sky. Seas connects me to the blueness of the sky and helps me feel and see how vast the sky and sea are. Daffodil helps me imagine the bits of yellow sun that still light up the sky. The name of the flower with a golden trumpet raises memories of the sounds of evening that approaches and the sound of the wind gently tossing ribbons of clouds.
The last two lines also use ocean words. Fantastic sailors creates a picture of purples and yellows in different shapes. Mingle helps me see the colors mixing as evening approaches. Wharf in the last line means a dock, and I hear the waves lapping, I taste the salty evening, I see darkness settling in just like a ship docks at a wharf. I think Dickinson is using the sea to help me picture the sunset as she saw it. The sea images narrow the kinds of pictures and connections I can make.
At this point I invite students to pair-share about my think-aloud and offer their observations. Here are some points ninth graders made:
I think you reading it a few times helped me see the sea words. I never thought that the sea and sunset had that much in common. It's like she [Dickinson] used one big comparison.
At this point, I compliment students on their thinking and listening and introduce the phrase "extended metaphor." I explain that it is the same comparison used throughout the poem and that Dickinson helped us visualize and use our senses to see the sunset she saw by comparing it to the sea and using words we associate with the sea.
After Reading: This is a time for reflection, which aids recall and the skill of making connections, and can include discussion, writing, drawing, etc. It's also the appropriate time for students to apply what they have learned to other texts.
I divide these ninth graders into groups of four, give each one a poem with an extended metaphor, and invite them to explore and discover the comparison and use this along with their senses to visualize, build comprehension, and make connections. Each group has its own copy of the poem and one copy on an overhead transparency so the group can present its learning to the class.
Closing Thoughts
When you show with think-alouds how a strategy works, students can step inside your head and better understand how visualizing (or another strategy) supports reading. Moreover, using the read-aloud as your common teaching text will enable you to offer groups reading materials they can apply the strategy to because they can read them.
References
Carnavale, A. P. (2001). Help wanted...college required. Washington, DC: Educational Testing Service, Office of Public Leadership.
Gillet , J. W., & Temple, C. (1990). Understanding reading problems: Assessments and instruction (3rd ed.). New York: HarperCollins.
Lee, H. (1982, orig. publ. 1960). To kill a mockingbird. New York: Warner Books.
Orwell, G. (1993, orig. publ. 1945). Animal farm. New York: Everyman's Library.
Robb, L. (2000). Teaching reading in middle school: A strategic approach to reading that improves comprehension and thinking. New York: Scholastic.
Robb, L. (2002). Multiple text: Multiple opportunities for teaching and learning. Voices from the Middle, 9(4), 28-32.
Robb, L. (2003). Teaching reading in social studies, science, and math: Practical ways to weave comprehension strategies into your content area teaching. New York: Scholastic.
Robb, L. (2008). Differentiating reading instruction. New York: Scholastic.
Taylor, M. (1976). Roll of thunder, hear my cry. New York: Viking.
Taylor, M. (1987). The friendship. New York: Puffin.
Taylor M. (1987). The gold Cadillac. New York: Puffin.
Tierney, R. J., & Readence, J. E. (2000). Reading strategies and practices: A compendium. Boston: Allyn and Bacon.
Tomlinson, C. A. (1999). The differentiated classroom: Responding to the needs of all learners. Alexandria, VA: ASCD.
Tomlinson, C. A. (2002, September). Different learners, different lessons. Instructor Magazine.
U.S. Department of Education. (2003). Nation's report card: Reading 2002. Washington, DC: National Center for Education Statistics.
Zarnowski, M. (2006). Making sense of history: Using high-quality literature and hands-on experiences to build content knowledge. New York: Scholastic.
(Originally published at ADLIT In Perspective, April, 2007 and reprinted with permission of the author, Laura Robb).
About the Author
Differentiating Reading Instruction: How to Teach Reading to Meet the Needs of Each Student, reflects and offers ways to deal with the fact that middle school classes include students reading at a diverse range of instructional levels. To learn more about Robb's books, classroom libraries, recommendations, teaching and parent tips, and more, visit Laura Robb.
The History Of Gift Giving On Valentine's Day by Beverly Sugarman 0 votes vote February 14th has long been celebrated as Saint Valentine's Day whe
February 14th has long been celebrated as Saint Valentine's Day when lovers exchange cards and gifts as tokens of their love for each other. The origins of this holiday are disputed by many experts.
Some experts feel that the origins of Valentine's Day may be traced to the ancient Romans and their February celebration of Lupercalia, although this celebration had nothing to do with romance. This festival was held on February 15th and was closely associated with fertility. Roman men would run naked through the streets, striking out into the crowd with shaggy thongs. As it was believed that to be struck could help a woman become pregnant or aid a pregnant woman in childbirth, these females would purposely step into the path of these blows. The word Lupericalia comes from lupus (wolf) and is closely connected with the she-wolf that suckled Romulus and Remus, the legendary founders of Rome. This festival was only local to Rome and was abolished by Pope Gelasius I in the 490s.
There are several Christian martyrs who bear the name Valentine and whose saint day is February 14th. There was Valentine of Rome who suffered martyrdom in AD 269 and was buried on the Via Flaminia. His relics are located at the Church of Saint Praxed in Rome and at Whitefriar Street Carmelite Church in Dublin, Ireland. Due to the location of the latter relic, this Valentine may have been well known on the British Isles. Another Valentine was Valentine of Terni, who was martyred in AD 197 and is buried in a different section of Via Flaminia. Since his relics are present at the Basilica of Saint Valentine in Terni, he was probably not as well known in northern Europe. Neither of these Valentines had anything to do with love or romance. Other than their names and the date of their saint day, these saints have no connection to Valentine's Day.
The idea that this celebration is associated with lovers seems to have been introduced by Geoffrey Chaucer in 1382 in his work Parlement of Foules. This poem was written to honor King Richard II upon his marriage to Anne of Bohemia. As Chaucer refers to birds mating, it seems likely that he was not writing about February 14th as English winters were cold and the birds would probably not have been present. Another St. Valentine had his saint day on May 2nd, which would be a more reasonable time for birds to be mating.
The conception of Valentine's Day as a day for lovers began in the United States in the 1840s by Esther Howland whose father owned a large stationery store. She began to mass produce valentines that lovers could send to each other based on an English valentine that she had received. The purchase of these cards has led to Valentine's Day being the second largest holiday for card manufacturers, second only to Christmas.
Since the 1950s, lovers have been giving gifts as well as cards. These gifts include roses and candy. The diamond industry began to promote jewelry as the perfect Valentine's gift in the 1980s. Today, flowers and candy are still given, as well as jewelry and various gift baskets which can be filled with chocolate or wine and cheese.
While many people may think that Valentine's Day is an ancient celebration, the association that the holiday has with lovers turns out to have been developed as a commercial venture. Perhaps we should stick with the story about the ancient tradition. Sometimes fiction is much more romantic than the truth.
About the Author
We have baby gift baskets that are cute and practical. Perfect for the newborn and new moms. For more information, visit this article on baby gift baskets.
Some experts feel that the origins of Valentine's Day may be traced to the ancient Romans and their February celebration of Lupercalia, although this celebration had nothing to do with romance. This festival was held on February 15th and was closely associated with fertility. Roman men would run naked through the streets, striking out into the crowd with shaggy thongs. As it was believed that to be struck could help a woman become pregnant or aid a pregnant woman in childbirth, these females would purposely step into the path of these blows. The word Lupericalia comes from lupus (wolf) and is closely connected with the she-wolf that suckled Romulus and Remus, the legendary founders of Rome. This festival was only local to Rome and was abolished by Pope Gelasius I in the 490s.
There are several Christian martyrs who bear the name Valentine and whose saint day is February 14th. There was Valentine of Rome who suffered martyrdom in AD 269 and was buried on the Via Flaminia. His relics are located at the Church of Saint Praxed in Rome and at Whitefriar Street Carmelite Church in Dublin, Ireland. Due to the location of the latter relic, this Valentine may have been well known on the British Isles. Another Valentine was Valentine of Terni, who was martyred in AD 197 and is buried in a different section of Via Flaminia. Since his relics are present at the Basilica of Saint Valentine in Terni, he was probably not as well known in northern Europe. Neither of these Valentines had anything to do with love or romance. Other than their names and the date of their saint day, these saints have no connection to Valentine's Day.
The idea that this celebration is associated with lovers seems to have been introduced by Geoffrey Chaucer in 1382 in his work Parlement of Foules. This poem was written to honor King Richard II upon his marriage to Anne of Bohemia. As Chaucer refers to birds mating, it seems likely that he was not writing about February 14th as English winters were cold and the birds would probably not have been present. Another St. Valentine had his saint day on May 2nd, which would be a more reasonable time for birds to be mating.
The conception of Valentine's Day as a day for lovers began in the United States in the 1840s by Esther Howland whose father owned a large stationery store. She began to mass produce valentines that lovers could send to each other based on an English valentine that she had received. The purchase of these cards has led to Valentine's Day being the second largest holiday for card manufacturers, second only to Christmas.
Since the 1950s, lovers have been giving gifts as well as cards. These gifts include roses and candy. The diamond industry began to promote jewelry as the perfect Valentine's gift in the 1980s. Today, flowers and candy are still given, as well as jewelry and various gift baskets which can be filled with chocolate or wine and cheese.
While many people may think that Valentine's Day is an ancient celebration, the association that the holiday has with lovers turns out to have been developed as a commercial venture. Perhaps we should stick with the story about the ancient tradition. Sometimes fiction is much more romantic than the truth.
About the Author
We have baby gift baskets that are cute and practical. Perfect for the newborn and new moms. For more information, visit this article on baby gift baskets.
Ideas For Your Fortieth Birthday Bash by Victor Epand 0 votes vote If you've known him/her for so long and you are stranded for an idea, I should
If you've known him/her for so long and you are stranded for an idea, I should say that I'm somewhat at a loss as to what to suggest you.
But the benefit here is that you really do know this person very well. Try to think if you know of anything that they would like to have, and perhaps get them that. I don't think it has to be anything extra big or extra expensive, as long as you know that this is something they really want.
Also, since you've known them for so long, you can probably guess whether he/she wants this to be a big celebration in the first place. Some people like to meet their fortieth birthday with a huge bash, while others want to ignore it completely and pretend it never happened. Like you said, it is a milestone.
If he/she does want it celebrated, here's an idea for you. How about hosting a surprise party for them? I figure that, that is not such a bad idea because he/she will be going away on a trip. You'll have some preparation time available to you too while he/she is enjoying Mexico. You could call up some common friends they haven't seen in a while and arrange for them to come, and just make it a very warm, special and memorable occasion. I'm sure they would enjoy that very much.
You could give them something related to Mexico. Like maybe a Mexican sort of painting or hats or stuff that look sort of Mexican looking. It might also be a nice idea if you had pictures of them from the time they were together and could make a photo album out of it to give to them. Maybe luggage, some spending cash for clothes or souvenirs, maybe you can give them some sexy romantic stuff, so they can have extra fun on their trip. A camera, some stuff for a massage (like spa kind of stuff), lotions...and just stuff like that.
The gym and martial arts is hard unless you want to spend a lot. You could send them a guide book for martial arts or a book about traveling. You could also send them a calendar that shows different places they could go. You could send him/she a gift certificate to some place to shop. You could just send them a book or maybe something he/she would need for there place or wherever, or something they mentioned occasionally like he/she wants a watch or something.
Those are a few ideas. The gift certificate may be good for the first gift, that way they can pretty much get whatever they want and it can be within your price range.
I think listing his/her accomplishments is a very good idea. It's very meaningful and you should have a lot to list since you have known him/her throughout your lifetime.
But I really think that's a good idea. You could also write him/her a poem about how wonderful he/she has been to you in your life, but that's only if you are a pretty creative person and are good at writing poems. But I think the list of accomplishments is a good idea. Just be sure to give them something else too depending on if you can afford it. Maybe some money or something they need for his/her place or wherever.
About the Author
Victor Epand is an expert commentator at http://www.CustomDesignPostcards.com. Visit us when you need to make custom designed holiday, gift, and invitation cards, as well as business cards and brochures. We are the only design utility that lets you download the print-ready images!
But the benefit here is that you really do know this person very well. Try to think if you know of anything that they would like to have, and perhaps get them that. I don't think it has to be anything extra big or extra expensive, as long as you know that this is something they really want.
Also, since you've known them for so long, you can probably guess whether he/she wants this to be a big celebration in the first place. Some people like to meet their fortieth birthday with a huge bash, while others want to ignore it completely and pretend it never happened. Like you said, it is a milestone.
If he/she does want it celebrated, here's an idea for you. How about hosting a surprise party for them? I figure that, that is not such a bad idea because he/she will be going away on a trip. You'll have some preparation time available to you too while he/she is enjoying Mexico. You could call up some common friends they haven't seen in a while and arrange for them to come, and just make it a very warm, special and memorable occasion. I'm sure they would enjoy that very much.
You could give them something related to Mexico. Like maybe a Mexican sort of painting or hats or stuff that look sort of Mexican looking. It might also be a nice idea if you had pictures of them from the time they were together and could make a photo album out of it to give to them. Maybe luggage, some spending cash for clothes or souvenirs, maybe you can give them some sexy romantic stuff, so they can have extra fun on their trip. A camera, some stuff for a massage (like spa kind of stuff), lotions...and just stuff like that.
The gym and martial arts is hard unless you want to spend a lot. You could send them a guide book for martial arts or a book about traveling. You could also send them a calendar that shows different places they could go. You could send him/she a gift certificate to some place to shop. You could just send them a book or maybe something he/she would need for there place or wherever, or something they mentioned occasionally like he/she wants a watch or something.
Those are a few ideas. The gift certificate may be good for the first gift, that way they can pretty much get whatever they want and it can be within your price range.
I think listing his/her accomplishments is a very good idea. It's very meaningful and you should have a lot to list since you have known him/her throughout your lifetime.
But I really think that's a good idea. You could also write him/her a poem about how wonderful he/she has been to you in your life, but that's only if you are a pretty creative person and are good at writing poems. But I think the list of accomplishments is a good idea. Just be sure to give them something else too depending on if you can afford it. Maybe some money or something they need for his/her place or wherever.
About the Author
Victor Epand is an expert commentator at http://www.CustomDesignPostcards.com. Visit us when you need to make custom designed holiday, gift, and invitation cards, as well as business cards and brochures. We are the only design utility that lets you download the print-ready images!
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