Module 1 - Instructional Challenge

Hocked gems financing him, our hero defied the scornful laughter. “Think of it as an egg, not a table,” he said. Then three sturdy sisters sought proof, forging over vast calmness, and sometimes over turbulent peaks and valleys, until at last welcome winged creatures appeared, signifying monumental success.

 1.    What are the hocked gems?

The word hock means to pawn or exchange items.  Therefore, I think that the “hocked gems” are stolen gems and jewels/riches.

2.    What should we think of as an egg and not a table?

I think this might be an analogy on how fragile an item can be.  An egg is much more fragile than a sturdy table.  The writer might be referring to the gems being like an egg which means they can break easily unlike a table which is more durable.

3.    Who are the three sturdy sisters?

The three sturdy sisters may well be three specific groups that want to prove the hero is guilty of stealing these gems.

4.    What kind of winged creatures appeared?

The image of a flock of birds popped into my head when I read the “winged creatures appeared”.  These could possibly be doves being used to symbolize peace and justice because the hero was caught and brought to justice.  

This activity was difficult for me to complete because I did not have any schema for the passage.  I would first have to build my own schema before using this passage with my students.  After I completed my answers, I decided to Google this passage.  I found out that the passage refers to Christopher Columbus.  It now makes sense to me.  As a fourth grader teacher, I would love to use this after we researched several of the explorers.  I would ask my students to guess who the poem is about based on their knowledge of the explorers.

            I assist the student’s in building schema by offering them pictures to look at from encyclopedias, the internet, textbooks, etc. to match the text’s content.  I feel that it is important to set a strong foundation before diving into unfamiliar settings, time periods, culture, or sports in the various texts students may encounter while reading.  I also like to bring in objects from that unfamiliar topic so the students can manipulate them and fully grasp what we are about to learn.  Finally, I hold open discussions so we can share our ideas and findings about the new topic. 
            I believe that children should not read too much of something that they find neither interesting or relates to their life because they can become frustrated and abandon the book.  Reading should be enjoyable.  It is difficult for a child to comprehend a text if he/she doesn’t have the schema or the interest in that specific text.  This is why I try to use the student’s personal books as much as possible during reading workshop along with conferences, small group work, and strategy groups.  I make sure to develop the background knowledge of new texts by building their vocabulary and looking at pictures during strategy groups or read aloud.  I also try to make my lessons active and fun when presenting the students with new information that they might not find interesting at first.