Strategy Lesson Reflection

I was hesitant about this strategy lesson because I personally prefer not to use graphic organizers when I am reading text or planning a paper. Because of this I wasn’t quite sure how to approach presenting the strategy. This is good, I think, because it challenged me to think outside of the way I learn about how other students learn. I like that when I started, Sarah pointed out that she used idea mapping graphic organizers every time she writes a paper. I didn’t know people did that, though it makes complete sense because not everyone learns, writes, or thinks the same way. It is important that, though I personally don’t think in that way, the students are exposed to a variety of ways of approaching learning. They should understand that they can think in their own way, and if it isn’t the way their classmates think, that is perfectly fine because they are unique and individual in their learning.

I feel the presentation itself was successful, and I feel the class had an understanding of what vocabulary trees are and how to use them. I like that I was able to incorporate the variety of ways of using vocabulary trees, even though we didn’t have time (or the attention plan) to model all of the numerous ways you can use it such as using roots, branches, group work, and the varying levels of guided work you can choose to use as the teacher. Overall, I think the class understands the strategy and will incorporate it into their future classrooms as they see fit.