Posts published in February, 2016

Week 6: Writing is fundamental

This week’s reading focused on the role that storytelling and writing can have on a child. It’s so important to consider how and why someone wants to tell a story–sometimes it’s just a matter of giving a person the right tools in order to create a master storyteller. That might be a robot toy like… Read more Week 6: Writing is fundamental

Week 6 Response

In reading the Cassell (2004) article, one section stood out to me in particular: “Despite descriptions of the multicultural aspects of storytelling activities, and some descriptions of their link to children’s literacy and other aspects of development (Labov, 1972; Lee, 1992; Miller & Hoogstra, 1992), virtually no attempt has been made to integrate their benefits into… Read more Week 6 Response

Week 6: Curwood

Throughout my middle school years, many of my friends were drawn into the world of Harry Potter fan fiction, writing stories, reading work of other contributors, and actively finding solace in the community. Such interactions have always fascinated me. In Curwood’s publication, the author discusses the potential of such fan-fiction communities to “reflect the ways in which… Read more Week 6: Curwood

Week 6 Discussion - Juan G

It is clear that peer interactions enhance children and adolescents creative writing abilities. Children and adolescents tend to build on each other’s ideas and get motivated by having an audience. However, I am thinking about the role of parents in this area; I wonder that if instead of enhancing creative writing, parents might limit it because they may have the impulse of… Read more Week 6 Discussion - Juan G

Breaking the Symbol Barrier?

I found the breaking the symbol barrier to be very interesting but it left me with a number of lingering questions. The first is, the video narrator made a distinction between everyday math and higher order math. I wonder how he drew that distinction? Another question of mine is whether everyday math can translate into… Read more Breaking the Symbol Barrier?

Week 6 - Writing Socially

I found the Curwood-Magnifico-Lammer’s article to be incredibly interesting. Particularly because my middle school years were full of online writing. I utilized a cite called “Worthy of Publishing” that provided a platform for aspiring writers to post their chapters and have others comment on them. It truly demonstrated to me the power of having an… Read more Week 6 - Writing Socially

Week 6 - We are STILL social creatures

When reading the article “Writing in the Wild”, I couldn’t help but notice the striking similarity between fan-based and affinity spaces in promoting writing, growth and creativity. We are social creatures at heart, and these examples show the power of social interaction and feedback in empowering kids to become writers. The article does touch upon… Read more Week 6 - We are STILL social creatures

DQC - Week 6

Writing is an incredibly difficult subject to teach. As a first grade teacher, I constantly found myself toeing the line of teaching writing conventions without crushing their interest in writing. In Justine Cassell’s article, Towards a Model of Technology and Literacy Development, SAM really intrigued me as a “Vygotskian more capable peer, seeming to push… Read more DQC - Week 6

Week 6 response

I liked the Rogoff (1991) and Doise (1990) citations in Cassell (p. 78), where Cassell writes: “When two peers collaborate, the simple juxtaposition of their actions allows the peers to modify their understanding of their own actions, through appropriating the perspective of the other peer. That is, to apply Rogoff’s notion to emergent literacy, the… Read more Week 6 response

DQC Week 6 - Writing in the Wild

I’m curious about if and how the anonymity of the virtual affinity spaces affect motivation of children who use these spaces. Curwood et al. noted that motivation was increased when Sheena received “in-depth criticism”; however, I wonder for the general population- how often do these in-depth criticisms occur? I think these virtual forums do provide… Read more DQC Week 6 - Writing in the Wild