My font!  

This was an AWESOME activity!  I am so excited to share it with my elementary students and use it in art!  I love the way it turned out and can see how it would help students read their own writing a little better and get them engaged in their writing/typing assignments.

SPELLCHECKERS= Great tool to use with Scaffolding and Direct Instruction

           I found the CHECK strategy to be an excellent way to teach students to effectively use the spellchecker tool in their word processing using Microsoft Word.  I completely agree that the spell checking tool is almost useless for students whose spelling of a word is no where close to the correct spelling.  In fact, using the spell checker tool can almost be worse than not using it when students are misguided into using a word that does not at all fit the context or meaning of their writing.  Using the pnemonic CHECK device allows students to effectively use the spellchecker to troubleshoot their spelling of difficult words and successfully determine the accurate spelling.  Basically, spell check is a great learning tool if students are actually being directly TAUGHT how to use it so that it is not just a waste of their learning time.  Teachers could use the resources below to help teach their students and give them support with using the Word Spell Check tool.

Check	Check the beginning sound of the word. What other letter(s) could make that beginning sound?
Hunt	Hunt for the correct consonants. Have you included all the consonants in the rest of the word?
Examine	Examine the vowels. What other vowel(s) could make the same sound(s)?
Changes	Changes in suggested word lists may give hints. What words are being suggested? Is that the one you're looking for?
Keep	Keep repeating steps one through four. Need help? Try dictionaries and asking others for assistance.

This would be great to put on a book mark, a printable card or poster so that they can easily access and remember the steps.

See below!

NOTE TAKING BOOK MARKS

BACK OF BOOKMARK

FRONT OF BOOKMARK

Re-paragraph for reading ease

Jamie Wardley

Example Paragraph: ARTIST OF THE MONTH

               Our Artist of the month for January is Jackson Pollock. Born on January 28, 1912 in Cody, Wyoming, artist Jackson Pollock studied under Thomas Hart Benton before leaving traditional techniques to explore abstraction expressionism via his splatter and action pieces, which involved pouring paint and other media directly onto canvasses. He was both renowned and critiqued for his conventions.  Paul Jackson Pollock was born on January 28, 1912 in Cody, Wyoming. His father, LeRoy Pollock, was a farmer and a government land surveyor, and his mother, Stella May McClure, was a fierce woman with artistic ambitions. The youngest of five brothers, he was a needy child and was often in search of attention that he did not receive.  During his youth, Pollock's family moved around the West, to Arizona and throughout California. His older brother Charles was an artist, and was considered to be the best in the family. He had a significant influence on his younger brother's future ambitions. While the family was living in Los Angeles, Pollock enrolled in the Manual Arts High School, where he learned to draw but had little success expressing himself.   In 1930, at age 18, Pollock moved to New York City to live with his brother, Charles.  Pollock's most famous paintings were made during this "drip period" between 1947 and 1950. He became wildly popular after being featured in a four-page spread, on August 8, 1949, in Life magazine. The article asked of Pollock, "Is he the greatest living painter in the United States?" The Life article changed Pollock's life overnight. Many other artists resented his fame, and some of his friends suddenly became competitors. As his fame grew, some critics began calling Pollock a fraud, causing even him to question his own work. During this time he would often look to his wife, Lee Krasner to determine which paintings were good, unable to make the differentiation himself.

ARTIST OF THE MONTH paragraph#2 (size)

               Our Artist of the month for January is Jackson Pollock. Born on January 28, 1912 in Cody, Wyoming, artist Jackson Pollock studied under Thomas Hart Benton before leaving traditional techniques to explore abstraction expressionism via his splatter and action pieces, which involved pouring paint and other media directly onto canvasses. He was both renowned and critiqued for his conventions.  Paul Jackson Pollock was born on January 28, 1912 in Cody, Wyoming. His father, LeRoy Pollock, was a farmer and a government land surveyor, and his mother, Stella May McClure, was a fierce woman with artistic ambitions. The youngest of five brothers, he was a needy child and was often in search of attention that he did not receive.  During his youth, Pollock's family moved around the West, to Arizona and throughout California. His older brother Charles was an artist, and was considered to be the best in the family. He had a significant influence on his younger brother's future ambitions. While the family was living in Los Angeles, Pollock enrolled in the Manual Arts High School, where he learned to draw but had little success expressing himself.   In 1930, at age 18, Pollock moved to New York City to live with his brother, Charles.  Pollock's most famous paintings were made during this "drip period" between 1947 and 1950. He became wildly popular after being featured in a four-page spread, on August 8, 1949, in Life magazine. The article asked of Pollock, "Is he the greatest living painter in the United States?" The Life article changed Pollock's life overnight. Many other artists resented his fame, and some of his friends suddenly became competitors. As his fame grew, some critics began calling Pollock a fraud, causing even him to question his own work. During this time he would often look to his wife, Lee Krasner to determine which paintings were good, unable to make the differentiation himself.

ARTIST OF THE MONTH #3 (font-arial & size)

        Our Artist of the month for January is Jackson Pollock. Born on January 28, 1912 in Cody, Wyoming, artist Jackson Pollock studied under Thomas Hart Benton before leaving traditional techniques to explore abstraction expressionism via his splatter and action pieces, which involved pouring paint and other media directly onto canvasses. He was both renowned and critiqued for his conventions.  Paul Jackson Pollock was born on January 28, 1912 in Cody, Wyoming. His father, LeRoy Pollock, was a farmer and a government land surveyor, and his mother, Stella May McClure, was a fierce woman with artistic ambitions. The youngest of five brothers, he was a needy child and was often in search of attention that he did not receive.  During his youth, Pollock's family moved around the West, to Arizona and throughout California. His older brother Charles was an artist, and was considered to be the best in the family. He had a significant influence on his younger brother's future ambitions. While the family was living in Los Angeles, Pollock enrolled in the Manual Arts High School, where he learned to draw but had little success expressing himself.   In 1930, at age 18, Pollock moved to New York City to live with his brother, Charles.  Pollock's most famous paintings were made during this "drip period" between 1947 and 1950. He became wildly popular after being featured in a four-page spread, on August 8, 1949, in Life magazine. The article asked of Pollock, "Is he the greatest living painter in the United States?" The Life article changed Pollock's life overnight. Many other artists resented his fame, and some of his friends suddenly became competitors. As his fame grew, some critics began calling Pollock a fraud, causing even him to question his own work. During this time he would often look to his wife, Lee Krasner to determine which paintings were good, unable to make the differentiation himself.

ARTIST OF THE MONTH #4 (arial & size & space)

        Our Artist of the month for January is Jackson Pollock. Born on January 28, 1912 in Cody, Wyoming, artist Jackson Pollock studied under Thomas Hart Benton before leaving traditional techniques to explore abstraction expressionism via his splatter and action pieces, which involved pouring paint and other media directly onto canvasses. He was both renowned and critiqued for his conventions.  Paul Jackson Pollock was born on January 28, 1912 in Cody, Wyoming. His father, LeRoy Pollock, was a farmer and a government land surveyor, and his mother, Stella May McClure, was a fierce woman with artistic ambitions. The youngest of five brothers, he was a needy child and was often in search of attention that he did not receive.  During his youth, Pollock's family moved around the West, to Arizona and throughout California. His older brother Charles was an artist, and was considered to be the best in the family. He had a significant influence on his younger brother's future ambitions. While the family was living in Los Angeles, Pollock enrolled in the Manual Arts High School, where he learned to draw but had little success expressing himself.   In 1930, at age 18, Pollock moved to New York City to live with his brother, Charles.  Pollock's most famous paintings were made during this "drip period" between 1947 and 1950. He became wildly popular after being featured in a four-page spread, on August 8, 1949, in Life magazine. The article asked of Pollock, "Is he the greatest living painter in the United States?" The Life article changed Pollock's life overnight. Many other artists resented his fame, and some of his friends suddenly became competitors. As his fame grew, some critics began calling Pollock a fraud, causing even him to question his own work. During this time he would often look to his wife, Lee Krasner to determine which paintings were good, unable to make the differentiation himself.

ARTIST OF THE MONTH #5 (Arial & size & space)

        Our Artist of the month for January is Jackson Pollock. Born on January 28, 1912 in Cody, Wyoming, artist Jackson Pollock studied under Thomas Hart Benton before leaving traditional techniques to explore abstraction expressionism via his splatter and action pieces, which involved pouring paint and other media directly onto canvasses. He was both renowned and critiqued for his conventions.  Paul Jackson Pollock was born on January 28, 1912 in Cody, Wyoming. His father, LeRoy Pollock, was a farmer and a government land surveyor, and his mother, Stella May McClure, was a fierce woman with artistic ambitions. The youngest of five brothers, he was a needy child and was often in search of attention that he did not receive.  During his youth, Pollock's family moved around the West, to Arizona and throughout California. His older brother Charles was an artist, and was considered to be the best in the family. He had a significant influence on his younger brother's future ambitions. While the family was living in Los Angeles, Pollock enrolled in the Manual Arts High School, where he learned to draw but had little success expressing himself.   In 1930, at age 18, Pollock moved to New York City to live with his brother, Charles.  Pollock's most famous paintings were made during this "drip period" between 1947 and 1950. He became wildly popular after being featured in a four-page spread, on August 8, 1949, in Life magazine. The article asked of Pollock, "Is he the greatest living painter in the United States?" The Life article changed Pollock's life overnight. Many other artists resented his fame, and some of his friends suddenly became competitors. As his fame grew, some critics began calling Pollock a fraud, causing even him to question his own work. During this time he would often look to his wife, Lee Krasner to determine which paintings were good, unable to make the differentiation himself.

         ARTIST OF THE MONTH #6(More readable?)
         Our Artist of the month for January is Jackson Pollock. Born on January 28, 1912 in Cody, Wyoming, artist Jackson Pollock studied under Thomas Hart Benton before leaving old methods to study abstract expressionism.  This method was to splatter and action paint pieces, which involved pouring paint and other media directly onto canvasses.  Paul Jackson Pollock was born on January 28, 1912 in Cody, Wyoming. During his youth, Pollock's family moved around the West, to Arizona and throughout California. While the family was living in Los Angeles, Pollock enrolled in the Manual Arts High School, where he learned to draw but had little success. In 1930, at age 18, Pollock moved to New York City to live with his brother, Charles. Pollock's most famous paintings were made during this "drip period" between 1947 and 1950. The article asked of Pollock, "Is he the greatest living painter in the United States?" The Life article changed Pollock's life overnight. As his fame grew, some critics began calling Pollock a fraud, causing even him to question his own work.

EASIER TO READ?! YES!

    What is Literacy to me?

Wikipedia defines literacy as :the ability to read for knowledge, write coherently, and think critically about the written word.http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Literacy Wikipedia


For as long as I can remember, I have always enjoyed reading and felt that it came very naturally to me. Reading was a pleasurable and easy experience for me, which I attribute to assisting me to be able to excel in school and other content areas such as science and social studies. As a third grade teacher, I had to begin to understand the points of view of students who were not strong readers, did not enjoy reading and had extreme difficulty reading. It is a challenge to try to explicitly teach something that seemed to teach itself to me.

Literacy, and helping my students become strong readers was and still is a major priority for me as an elementary school teacher. Knowing how to read is such a crucial and powerful skill in our society that students are crippled and unable to perform even the most basic tasks and functions to live a productive life without them.

After third grade, the inability to read will begin affect a student's ability to understand and access content in all other subject areas as well, which is why literacy in elementary school is such a central aspect of the curriculum that it should be at the forefront of instruction and consideration. 

                      Even now that I teach art, literacy is at the core of my curriculum.  I find every possible way to infuse written work about what we are studying or the art projects that we are doing so that my students are being exposed to print and hearing literature as often as possible.  I believe that students have to see that reading and literature are an essential part of everything that we do.  Being a successful reader will enable them to understand and participate in the world in ways that would be impossible without the skill of reading.

I am excited that this course will allow me to understand the latest trends in literacy and how to harness the power of technology to improve literacy in the educational institutions that I am involved with.