"Did we just need another graphic organizer?" - Made me laugh out loud. Oh, the grail of the perfect organizer! I love how clearly you lay out just how immersed you need to be as a teacher to get students to really swim in complex texts. Maybe some would say it's messy work, but well-worth the outcomes.
Beautiful comment. And yes it was after making my 50th nonsensical graphic organizer that I felt I was finally ready to put “proficient in Microsoft word” on my resume 😝
I love your metaphors here, particularly this line: "But when students finally face the real thing, it often feels like trying to lift a heavy weight after weeks spent studying pictures of the barbells in the gym."
This is why I get so frustrated with basal readers instead of real books-- it's not REAL, and has just about as much effectiveness as pictures of barbells. I appreciate that framing.
You might enjoy the book The End of Education as We Know It: Regenerative Learning for Complex Times by Ida Rose Florez. She talks about the difference between complication and complexity and how immersing students in the mess of complex problems with guidance and scaffolding is such a key pedagogy in many subjects-- because that is the way we learn as babies. Her thinking is very aligned with what you describe here.
Great post! In my opinion, very helpful guidance for how to do this can be found in the book Robust Comprehension Instruction with Questioning the Author: 15 Years Smarter by Beck, McKeown, and Sandora. They discuss some caveats/cautions about modeling.
They write:
"Although there are many examples of modeling that work well, there are also some tendencies that reduce the potential impact of modeling as a teaching strategy. For example, attempts at predicting an obvious event, such as “I think the wolf is going to blow the third little pig’s house down,” do little to illustrate what is involved in figuring out ideas. This example points to a common problem in examples of modeling that we have seen, which is that what gets modeled tends to be the obvious. It also highlights the contrived nature of some kinds of modeling. In contrast, modeling when done well can help students “see” things in texts they might not have noticed and can allow students to observe or “overhear” how an expert thinks through a complicated idea. Which parts or ideas in a text that a teacher chooses to model are determined by the text ideas that the teacher thinks students might need help with, as well as by the teacher’s spontaneous reactions to text—yes, modeling should be reserved for what one has authentically noticed as a reader. Modeling should be as natural in character as possible. It should also be as brief as possible; a long soliloquy by the teacher is unlikely to effectively communicate key ideas to students."
You express this concisely when you refer to the benefit of modeling "in the moments that truly call for it".
What a fabulous contribution. This profession really is riddled with caveats, isn’t it? This is a great overview of the guardrails and guidance that need to exist—because even strong practices can waste time and potential when they’re poorly implemented. Thanks for taking the time to share, and I’m excited to grab a copy of the book.
I had to learn this concept the hard way. As a young teacher, I thought I had to prove myself by soliloquizing to my students. In truth, the more honest I was about myself as a reader, and the reading experience, the better teacher I became. Students want to read WITH the teacher, not be lectured to about the reading.
I was not the best reader in high school, and I still remember how much the concept of a close read unlocked something for me.
I went into this piece thinking I'd read it as a teacher, but it really made me think about myself as a learner. I was so lucky to have teachers who gave me hard texts to read and kept challenging me.
This is such an informative piece! I appreciate you naming what veteran teachers intuitively know to be true when discussing a novel. Thank you for sharing your expertise here!
"Did we just need another graphic organizer?" - Made me laugh out loud. Oh, the grail of the perfect organizer! I love how clearly you lay out just how immersed you need to be as a teacher to get students to really swim in complex texts. Maybe some would say it's messy work, but well-worth the outcomes.
Beautiful comment. And yes it was after making my 50th nonsensical graphic organizer that I felt I was finally ready to put “proficient in Microsoft word” on my resume 😝
Wait, graphic organizers DON'T magically help every single student write?!? hahahaha
I love your metaphors here, particularly this line: "But when students finally face the real thing, it often feels like trying to lift a heavy weight after weeks spent studying pictures of the barbells in the gym."
This is why I get so frustrated with basal readers instead of real books-- it's not REAL, and has just about as much effectiveness as pictures of barbells. I appreciate that framing.
You might enjoy the book The End of Education as We Know It: Regenerative Learning for Complex Times by Ida Rose Florez. She talks about the difference between complication and complexity and how immersing students in the mess of complex problems with guidance and scaffolding is such a key pedagogy in many subjects-- because that is the way we learn as babies. Her thinking is very aligned with what you describe here.
Thank you for this insightful reflection!
Sounds 100% up my alley—thanks for the kind words and the recommendation!
Great post! In my opinion, very helpful guidance for how to do this can be found in the book Robust Comprehension Instruction with Questioning the Author: 15 Years Smarter by Beck, McKeown, and Sandora. They discuss some caveats/cautions about modeling.
They write:
"Although there are many examples of modeling that work well, there are also some tendencies that reduce the potential impact of modeling as a teaching strategy. For example, attempts at predicting an obvious event, such as “I think the wolf is going to blow the third little pig’s house down,” do little to illustrate what is involved in figuring out ideas. This example points to a common problem in examples of modeling that we have seen, which is that what gets modeled tends to be the obvious. It also highlights the contrived nature of some kinds of modeling. In contrast, modeling when done well can help students “see” things in texts they might not have noticed and can allow students to observe or “overhear” how an expert thinks through a complicated idea. Which parts or ideas in a text that a teacher chooses to model are determined by the text ideas that the teacher thinks students might need help with, as well as by the teacher’s spontaneous reactions to text—yes, modeling should be reserved for what one has authentically noticed as a reader. Modeling should be as natural in character as possible. It should also be as brief as possible; a long soliloquy by the teacher is unlikely to effectively communicate key ideas to students."
You express this concisely when you refer to the benefit of modeling "in the moments that truly call for it".
What a fabulous contribution. This profession really is riddled with caveats, isn’t it? This is a great overview of the guardrails and guidance that need to exist—because even strong practices can waste time and potential when they’re poorly implemented. Thanks for taking the time to share, and I’m excited to grab a copy of the book.
I had to learn this concept the hard way. As a young teacher, I thought I had to prove myself by soliloquizing to my students. In truth, the more honest I was about myself as a reader, and the reading experience, the better teacher I became. Students want to read WITH the teacher, not be lectured to about the reading.
The sound of their own voice really is the song of the young teacher, isn’t it 😆 been there!
I was not the best reader in high school, and I still remember how much the concept of a close read unlocked something for me.
I went into this piece thinking I'd read it as a teacher, but it really made me think about myself as a learner. I was so lucky to have teachers who gave me hard texts to read and kept challenging me.
I love this reflection. Thanks for taking the time to share 😊
This is such an informative piece! I appreciate you naming what veteran teachers intuitively know to be true when discussing a novel. Thank you for sharing your expertise here!