Katherine Hogsten

3. Portfolio of Implementation

I teach word mapping to a group of 25 sixth graders split into two groups and taught for 18 weeks.

  • December 13, 2017 at 7:56 AM
  • Visible to public
I have been teaching word mapping to groups of sixth graders for 18 weeks each year. The students are grouped into two class sections and each section comes to class every other day for 50 minutes each session. Students often have IEPs or ELL plans. Students have never passed a SOL test and are reading two or more levels below grade level.

Students often have organization and behaviour issues. Word Mapping skills help address these issues through notebook keeping and explicit instruction. My experience with word mapping has grown so much in three years. I have been able to make the program my own and use student feedback to instruct students in engaging and meaningful ways to make learning affixes, roots, and word meanings come to life and relate to other subjects. 

Through teaching, I have learned why word mapping is laid out the way it is and how to best instruct my students through the program to comprehend and remember skills. Memory is a huge issue for understanding, but questioning students about their thinking relates to reading, writing, speaking, and listening. Students are able to be questioned and think about their thinking with word mapping activities.

Coaching from Susan Trumbo has allowed me to problem solve and reflect on my pacing of word mapping, my instrucition, and my knowledge as a teacher. We have worked together to support each other and make sure the program is instructed, by me, with fidelity.