Gibbons chp. 5 -- "A reason for turning the page"

I found this chapter by Gibbons was extremely beneficial for the Language Arts lesson we have to teach in 402 and future lessons. The chapter not only provided examples of activities to use in literacy lessons but it provided beginning, middle, and end activities to the lesson. As a future teacher a resource such as this chapter will forever be useful. The activities listed and described provide a range from acting literacy activities to time-lines. It is a list that a teacher can read through and decide the best for her class. Before-Reading Activities, I have observed to often be avoided, or non-existent. These activities introduce a book and allow students to activate their prior knowledge and gain an insight to what they are about to encounter. My CT in field always has an activity to introduce a book, or theme. After reading Gibbons I realize just how beneficial this is especially to her ESL students. Gibbons explains that ESL students are often categorized as poor readers and therefore "have often been fed a diet of remedial phonics instruction" (Gibbons 84). She explains that this is the exact opposite of what young ESL students need. They need to be "linguistically and culturally rich reading environment" (Gibbons 84). The best genre of books for second language learners is fairy-tales. Fairy-tales are culturally known. Most ESL students are able to understand a fairy-tale the best because they understand the plot, the structure, and the conclusion from their own language. By introducing a book students are able to understand the deeper meaning of the story rather than concentrate on words that they may not have known. This is because students know what to expect and have been introduce to any tough terms that they may encounter. Before reading this chapter I would not have known just the effect my CT is having on her students just by introducing her book. I knew most of the activities under middle and end, but the beginning activities are what stuck to me the most. I have flagged this chapter as one to keep returning to.