Quest/Request

Quest/Request

An activity presented via email from Richard Pressinger

One of my favorite reading activities that is very effective in strengthening reading comprehension is sometimes called "Quest/Request and you can do it with one other individual or paired individuals or in a round robin with a small group. Here is how it works.

Everyone reads a short paragraph silently. Then one person starts by asking a question about something that was in the passage. Others try to answer it, looking back in the passage to find the answer if necessary. Then the next person asks a question, and the next and the next and so on, until no one can think of any more questions to ask.

You can get into different kinds of questions such as those of a graphophonic nature (e.g. How many sentences? How many five letter words? How many words that end in "tion?") or questions about the meaning of the passage, or you could highlight explicit questions or implicit questions.

The goal is to ask as many questions as possible. It is less important that the questions be answered than it is to simply ask them. It should not be a competition between students, but a group might wish to compete against its old record by increasing the number of questions it is able to ask about a passage. I've done it with my adult students and have filled a page writing down the questions we asked about a simple 100 word paragraph. Once we had asked more questions than there were words in the paragraph.

There are many things at work here. One is it encourages an active, rather than a passive reading style. Another is it gets students to reread the same text many times, thereby developing fluency. Another benefit, I feel, is it forces the reader to rework the meaning of the passage into new forms, statements into questions, for example. This seems to have a powerful effect on one's ability to remember the content and comprehend the meaning of a passage.

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“Tom Swifties”

“Tom Swifties” JUST FOR FUN: Reading or Composing Sentences

Just what is a Tom Swifty? It's a play on words that follows a pattern and relies for its humor on a punning relationship between the way an adverb describes a speaker and at the same time refers significantly to the import of the speaker's statement. The adverb ends with an -ly. Tom Swifties were originated by Edward Stratemeyer in a series of strip cartoons about a character called Tom Swift in
the 1920's. Here's a sample of Tom Swifties for your pleasure. I've kept them short to fit in the column. Have some fun and encourage your students to make up some of their own.

"Who turned out the lights?" asked Tom darkly.
"This river is rough," shouted Tom rapidly.
"I collect fairy tales," said Tom grimly.
"I must patch this coat," said Tom raggedly.
"I don't like hot dogs," said Tom frankly.
"Fire!" yelled Tom alarmingly.
"The boat is leaking," said Tom balefully.
"I fought with Geronimo," said Tom bravely.
"It's too cold outside," said Tom icily.
"Get to the back of the boat," yelled Tom sternly.
"The situation is grave," said Tom cryptically.
"Let's get married," said Tom engagingly.
"Elvis is dead," Tom said expressly.
"You have no bananas?" asked Tom fruitlessly.
"Is that radioactive?" asked Tom glowingly.
"I can't go on," panted Tom haltingly.
"Nay!" said Tom hoarsely.
"I like camping," said Tom intently.
"It's only average," said Tom meanly.
"My wheel is damaged," said Tom outspokenly.
"Nice looking glass," said Tom reflectively.
"Pitch me an easy one," called Tom strikingly.
"That's too much pineapple," said Tom dolefully.
"I mailed it twice," said Tom resentfully.
"I'm under pressure," said Tom flatly.
"That's a grand dam," said Tom coolly.
"I tied the score," said Tom evenly.
"That's the tiebreaker," said Tom gamely.

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Instilling Curiosity to Learn New Words

Instilling Curiosity to Learn New Words
by Don McCabe

The most important element in building a vocabulary is the desire. We are all seemingly born with an insatiable curiosity about words. But somewhere along the line, many of us become satisfied with our vocabularies and stop actively learning words. As teachers, we know that the best predictor of success in college, and indeed in most walks of life, is how well we score on a “simple” twenty-five word vocabulary test.

So, if we want our students to excel, how can we re-instill the curiosity necessary to learn new words?
Certainly it isn't by making students memorize a list of words and their definitions for a test on Friday. Just because they can match a word in one column to a definition in another successfully, doesn't mean they know the word. Nor is it by making children search for new words in a dictionary. Years ago when as a high school teacher, I did one of those curriculum required traditional dictionary assignments, one of my students came up with the word pilgarlic an archaic word not found in many dictionaries other than the Oxford English Dictionary (OED). It came from a spelling (misspelling, perhaps?) of “peeled garlic” which was used to describe a bald headed man.

One of the ways I have rather successfully used with students, including my own children and grandchildren, is playing with words and malapropisms. Part of American political lore is the Smathers "redneck speech," which Smathers reportedly delivered to a poorly educated audience. The "speech" was never given; it was a hoax dreamed up by one reporter. Smathers did not say, as was reported in Time Magazine as a “yarn” during the campaign: "Are you aware that Claude Pepper is known all over Washington as a shameless extrovert? Not only that, but this man is reliably reported to practice nepotism with his sister-in-law, and he has a sister who was once a thespian in wicked New York. Worst of all, it is an established fact that Mr. Pepper, before his marriage, habitually practiced celibacy." The Smathers campaign denied his having made the speech, as did the reporters who covered his campaign, but the hoax followed Smathers to his death. This hoax has often been elaborated on using such phrases as: Claude Pepper matriculated in public, as prominent homo sapiens are wont to do. He further prided himself as being an autodidact and once masticated in a hotel restaurant with pedagogues. Of course, if one knows the meanings of all these words, these accusations are simply true and harmless. However, they can be totally misleading and completely misunderstood as being terrible activities.

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Sequential Spelling DVD Tips

No two computers and dvd player software are the same. If you experience problems using the DVD, please try using a different computer DVD players software or a different computer.

Computer Tips:

1. The space bar can be used as the play and pause button on most computer DVD programs.
2. If a menu doesn’t appear to work make sure the DVD is not paused by pressing the space bar.
3. If the screen looks odd because you have resized the screen it will go back to normal when the next word is given or you can hit the chapter previous [P] or next [N] button to reload the screen.
4. If the screen goes black when you hit the pause button try and maximize your application.
5. Avoid the scroll button on your mouse as it can cause the DVD to exit as it is a fast forward command.
6. If you hit the next chapter button or [N] on the final word list in each day’s list you may get a black screen for around 7 seconds. This is not an error and the DVD will resume. To avoid this black screen delay, avoid pressing the next chapter button on the last slide containing all the words from that day.

If you are having issues with a Sequential Spelling DVD that is not listed here please send an email to the manufacturer at support@instructmi.com.. Include the DVD volume number, disc number, day number, word number, and the revision number found on the back of the DVD case in your email.

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How Do I Use Sequential Spelling

The basic structure of a Sequential Spelling Lesson is quite straight forward.

1. Say the word.
2. Use the word in a sentence.
3. Say the word again.
4. Give the student time to write the word down.
5. Write the word on a white marker board or a chalk board. (Paper will work if necessary)
6. Have the student correct any mistakes
7. Start the process over with the next word.

Helpful Tips and Reminders:

1. Each "lesson" of Sequential Spelling is really a test. If your child does not do well when something is called a test, simply call it a lesson.
2. You will get your best results if Sequential Spelling lessons/tests are given every day. It is recommended that you give one every day of the calendar year if possible, but every school day will work. Because the curriculum is laid out in approximately 4-day chunks, it is best for retention if you can give lessons four days in a row. If teaching time is an consideration, you might wish to look at the DVD version which enables the student to do the lessons on their own.
3. The student does NOT study or even see the words before the lesson or test.
4. Do not let the student see the previous days' words while taking the tests. It is particularly important that they not see the words from the lesson just before the current lesson as this will enable them to "cheat", even if it is subconsciously. For this reason, using the Student Response Book is helpful and convenient.
5. Aim for 10 minutes per lesson. Each Sequential Spelling test should not take longer than 15 minutes. At the end of 15 minutes, cut the lesson off, even if you have not finished all the words.
6. We generally recommend that everyone starts at level 1. This is an ungraded program. Tell your student that it is like learning to play a musical instrument. Everyone, no matter what their age, has to start at the beginning and progress through the levels of learning. A student in 6th Grade would not jump right into 6th Grade piano simply because that is the academic grade they are in. They would need to start at the beginning and work their way up.
7. It is helpful to have a white marker board or a chalk board. The instructor shows the correct spelling on the board (or a piece of paper) after giving the student time to write the word down. This should take place before going on to the next word. Do not give the entire list and then write the words on the board.
   
   If the word is misspelled, the student immediately corrects his own mistake on his paper. It is important that the student make the corrections as this will help to establish the correct spelling in his brain. Corrections need to be made before the next word in the test is given.
8. When giving the test, give the word, use it in a sentence if possible, and then give the word again. For ready-made sentences, consider using "Word Families in Sentence Context." This book is available as a free e-book for when you purchase an AVKO Membership.
9. Use different colors to delineate the patterns when showing the words. Show the word family's pattern first (generally the ending of the word) and then show the onsets and endings. For example, the word "spins" is in the "-in" family. Show in, then add sp to the beginning (in a different color than in). Then add s at the end (in a different color than in but can be the same color as sp.)
   -in
   spin
   spins
   
   It is important to write the words out using the two (or more) different colors for the student to see. Do not just do the lesson orally. Seeing the words as well as hearing them and writing them helps the brain to lock in the word patterns. You will not be nearly as effective if you do not write the words out for the student to see.

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