Chapter 1 and readings

I liked the idea of having statements at the beginning of the chapter to see where we stand on the topic of literacy. I tried to be honest based on my current knowledge and stance. I will say that our first class was enough to open my mind and change my stance some even before I began reading.
This chapter taught me how important our prior knowledge can be when comprehending a passage. It is something I do not think about when I dive into reading. The exercises in the book that had me read without a title really brought that to light. I could not figure out what the first passage was about until they title of washing clothes was revealed. The next passage was just as successful when viewing from the angle of a prisoner and of a wrestler. I showed both of those passages to my girlfriend to see what she thought. I am now more intrigued by this topic.
I also never thought about the difficulty of reading in science and math. It can be even more difficult than reading in an English/LA class. This reading and comprehension can be enough to discourage students and create more hurdles to their learning.
I almost felt as if this first chapter was a very condensed overview of so many concepts that will be further covered in this book. It was a lot to take in initially. I highlighted a lot and plan on going back through several of the sections to get a better idea of all the styles of reading. I am still not sure where I fall myself in terms of the style of reader.
This chapter also opened my mind to a much broader definition of literacy as well. The exercise we did in class along with this chapter showed me that I have a very narrow idea of what it means to be literate. The definition has opened up so many over the last few decades and has come to mean much more than I have ever envisioned. I am curious as to what kind of definition of literacy I will have by the end of this class.
After reading the article on ELL students, I tend to agree with their stance. I have had limited experience in this field so far. I was observing in a math class with a Chinese student last semester. She was stunted by her lack of English. She was gifted in math, but was not put in a gifted class because of her barrier. From my understanding, no one had the time to help her in any of the classes, so she was stuck making little progress. I believe that it should be a cooperative effort to help these students. Every academic class should provide some means to help a student in this situation. It is not fair for them to be left behind. I imagine a lot of times teachers put all the weight on the LA teachers to help these students develop their English and do no see this as their duty or responsibility. I have come to learn this last semester that it is the collective duty of every teacher to enhance the learning and literacy experience of each and every student. This is all necessary to allow the students to become productive citizens and employers in the future.
I am curious about a number of the books listed in the "Have you read?" article. I like the idea of focusing on phonics as they do in "Looking Closely." I am more interested in the idea of math being the subject that is left behind. "Read any good math lately?" seems like it has a good take on developing language in the math classroom. I can see why it is more left behind in math class. On the surface, math appears to be about numbers and symbols rather than works and reading comprehension. It has its own language and level of comprehension needed to be successful. I definitely want to learn how to one day incorporate that to the best of my ability if I am a math teacher. It is interesting how fiction has been so heavily used in teaching. Now there is a new wave of using nonfiction to teach it seems. I can see why it is the easier way out when teaching initial literacy and comprehension. I understand the argument for incorporating more nonfiction as a student develops and teaching them how to read and comprehend them accordingly.
The poem at the end reminded me of what it felt like to be in elementary school and learning to read. This was a process I felt I went through every time a read a book. It is something I still have to do even now at times. It is a process that should be bred into students as they are learning to read. It will help them take ownership and help their level of understanding.