Listening to our classmates perform their own choral readings was an interesting new take on the subject. I was very surprised at the many ways one class came up with performing these choral readings. Some choose upbeat and cheery rhyming readings, to quirky partner readings. As my group planned our choral reading, we engaged in the GLCE Speaking (Discourse) engage in interactive, extended discourse to socially construct meaning as well as the Plan and deliver an informal presentation GLCE. As a group, we discussed possibilities of ways in which we could perform our reading focusing on the conventions which then incorporated the speaking GLCES use tone of voice and pace of speaking to enhance meaning and influence interpretation when presenting, as well as use enunciation and stress to emphasize key ideas and concepts when presenting. My group, specifically, used a variation of tone, pace and stressing certain words to add to our choral reading. The listening and viewing GLECs were also effective as the class listened to each other’s choral reading and engaged listening.
This choral reading activity, as well as comparing the GLCEs that apply, opened my eyes to the small ways in which I, as a teacher, can implement fun and simple literacy development into my classroom. When we did the activity in class, I did not consider what such an activity would be like for elementary school children. But now placing myself in the role of a teacher, I understand the ways that such readings can benefit all you students. Allowing the children to work in small groups offers the students more opportunities to share their thoughts and understandings. The students will work together in developing literacy regarding the specific readings.
As a future teacher, I hope to incorporate as much classroom talk and even choral readings into my classroom as possible. Literacy is a very important aspect of learning all subject area, so it is crucial to maximize the students understandings. Allowing children more time to work cooperatively as a group promotes a comfortable learning environment in which all student’s opinions are valued equally.