Blog #5

            For this webcast, Pat Johnson gave a lot of advice on how to teach students to become better readers. Pat Johnson discussed that when teaching in small groups, we as teachers need to make instructional decisions.  When working with small groups, it is important that teachers teach students more than just how to read, but how to understand the material that is read. Teachers need to teach them strategies that help build their reading process system. When teaching children, the end goal is to have students self-iniate strategies and behaviors while they are reading. 
              During this webcast Pat discussed three main ideas about how students read using the methods of meaning, syntactic, and visual. The meaning method is when students use pictures to help understand what they are reading.  Syntactic is when students will just know the words in the book just from speaking them.  When students use the visual method they are using their phonics skills. When reading, students should grasp onto these methods and use whatever method that helps them become better readers. 
          Not all students will be great readers when they first start out, so that is why we as teachers will have to be motivated to help them develop the reading strategies they need. I like the idea of students working in small groups in the same reading level. When they are in the same reading level, it seems as if it easier to teach and connect with the students.