Double Entry Journal #5

3 Things I learned:

• Writers often talk in order to rehearse the language and content that will go into what they write. I never really thought about this. Writing includes a lot of talk but I never really knew that.


• I learned about all the communication and networking and socialization and considerations that must come together and be utilized for good writing to occur.


• I learned that writing instruction needs to include all of the technologies that could be used as well.

2 Things I Found Interesting:

• That people can indirectly be involved in others writing and not even know it.


• That writers need to think about the physical design of the text, appropriateness and thematic content, integration of sound, etc. along with the actual writing.

1 Question I Have:

• How do you best utilize talk to assist with writng, what type of talk is the most beneficial?

Citation: NCTE Beliefs About the Teaching of Writing. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://docs.google.com/document/d/1kBob4rwoBfMr5KibZlGhE7RopH9ZVrXij2XWhbNzeVk/edit?hl=en_US&pli=1#

Resource: http://www.time4learning.com/teaching-writing.shtml This website gives steps to be used when teaching writing.

Double Entry Journal #4

Quote: "One advantage to studying 'human beings dynamically, within their social circumstances, in their full complexity,' Moll remarks, is that one can gain, 'a much more complete, and, we believe, a much more valid understanding of them.'" (Moll, 1992)

Response: I completely agree with this quote. In fact I completely agree with the entire article. I do think that sometimes students and parents know more than teachers believe they know and could be very beneficial to the education of the students. Sometimes children are exposed to many different methods of learning at home based on what their parents or other community members do for a living. I do think that by going to a students home or visiting the community you will be able to better understand the students and will probably be able to develop a better format for teaching. The fact that you need to know your students has been drilled into my head for a while now when discussing education and how to help a student succed. The teacher who did the building unit is a perfect example of this. This article makes total sense in that aspect.

Reference: Moll, L. (1992). Funds of Knowledge for Teaching: Using a Qualitative Approach to Connect Homes and Classrooms. Theory into Practice, 31(2), 132-141. Retrieved from http://www.jstor.org/stable/1476399

Resource: http://www.tolerance.org/tdsi/asset/explanation-funds-knowledge
This website has a video of Louis Moll explaining his Funds of Knowlege.

Where I am from Poem

I am from rolling hills, tinkling streams, and starry nights. I am from spring peepers and cricket song. I am from two parent homes full of love and from late night sister sessions. I am from yearly family reunions, knowing who you are and where you come from.
I am from Friday night football and Sunday morning church. I am from the faith that God can do ALL things. I am from having as much of a church family as your own family. I am from covered dish dinners, homemade pies, and homemade macaroni and cheese. I am from Sunday dinners at Mamaw and Papaw’s house and playing in the yard with my cousins.
I am from trips to Ohio to see Mammy and Pappy and the uncles. I am from summers at the beach or trips to the mountains. I am from hunting and fishing and spending time in the company of great friends.
I am from standing as the flag goes by, from showing our respect, and from saying thanks to our veterans.
I am from bleeding blue and gold from the Bearcats to the Mountaineers. I am from Chevy, the Heartbeat of America, because Pappy won’t stand for those foreign jobs.
I am from laughing ‘til you cry with aunts, cousins, and grandmas. From praying that my family won’t embarrass me in public but loving them anyway.
I am from weekends at Grandma’s learning the right way to make her coffee and sleeping on her arm at night.
I am from Love. The love of family, friends, and country.
West Virginia is my home and my family is my greatest blessing.

Double Entry Journal #3

Here is my own the word for cultural deficit theory.

Resource: Bolima, Donna. Contexts for Understanding: Educational Learning Theories. Retrieved From: http://staff.washington.edu/saki/strategies/101/new_page_5.htm.

Double Entry Journal #2

Quote: "....teachers and schools must accept, believe, and act upon the belief that children of poverty are learners, have been learning since birth, are ready to learn at any time, and will learn." (Purcell-Gates, V.)

Reaction: I really liked this quote. I completely agree with it and feel more teachers, administrators, and schools in general need to be informed of this. Too many children are ignored and lost in the shuffle because the people most responsible for their education feel they just can't do it. The more I read of this article, the more upset I got. The teachers and principle should have taken the fact that the mom wanted what was best for her son and listened to what she had to say. If the teachers would have listened and kept Donny in first or second grade and continued to help him he would have had a better chance of succeeding. I truly believe that children can, do, and will learn no matter what their social or economic status is. They just need their teachers to believe in them and help them find the strength and courage to succeed.

Reference: Purcell-Gates, V. (n.d.). "...As Soon As She Opened Her Mouth!": Issues of Language, Literacy, and Power. Retrieved from https://docs.google.com/viewera=v&pid=explorer&chrome=true&srcid=0B6DFAmexYq7vMGQxMjI1OTEtMjAyZS00NzJmLTg1OTUtODlmMGQ0ZDIxOTVk&hl=en_US&pli=1

Related Resource: This site is an article from the education information resource center. It talks about how it has been difficult to teach in Appalachia becuase of low SES and poverty. This article is Making a Case for a Cross-Cultural Approach to Literacy in Appalachia.
http://eric.ed.gov/ERICWebPortal/search/detailmini.jsp?_nfpb=true&_&ERICExtSearch_SearchValue_0=ED377997&ERICExtSearch_SearchType_0=no&accno=ED377997

Double Entry Journal #1

Quote: "As the mountains were denuded, the industrialists portrayed the families they were robbing as "backward people" and themselves as the prophets of progress." (O'Brien, May 10, 2003)

Reaction: This quote completely shocked and amazed me. I guess I just do not understand how the industrialists could come onto the people's land, destroy it without caring about the people or the land, and then blame those people. Who gave them the right to call the Appalachian people "backward" while awarding themselves the power to "fix" others (even though the Appalachian people really did not need fixed)? If the land, or timber, was that important, then the right thing would have been for the timber companies to speak with the Appalachian people and explain what would happen. Just because someone is different, does not mean their way is wrong. I love where I live and appreciate the land and the people who are here. I would not go somewhere else and tell them they are backward and wrong.

Reference: O'Brien, J. (2003, May 10). Tall Tales of Appalachia. Retrieved from http://www.nytimes.com/2003/05/10/opinion/tall-tales-of-appalachia.html

Resource: This website gives background information on where Appalachia originated from and some history on the people, culture, values, etc about Appalachia.
http://library.thinkquest.org/TQ0310443/Appalachian%20Culture.htm

Final Portfolio

Here is the completed version of my final portfolio.