Activating background knowledge is one of the strategies I included on my professional development plan as it is something I find challenging to accomplish virtually.  When I previously taught in a brick and mortar school, I would tell an anecdote, ask questions,
read a short story, or show a short movie clip to help my students activate prior knowledge.

I like the strategy “Rethink Misconceptions: New Information Changes Thinking,” in Comprehension Going Forward (Keene, 2011, p. 98).  The teacher poses questions about a topic and the students write down answers based on what they think they know.   As the students read the story they fill in the “New Learning” column and can see if their views on the topic have changed.  

This strategy could be implemented virtually in a couple of ways.  I could create the chart and send it to the students to complete independently. Even better, students could attend my virtual class where we could discuss and share our thoughts on the topic. Students could even be separated into break-out rooms to share in small group setting and then we could complete the chart whole group.

Activating background knowledge is important to prepare students prior to reading a text, aid comprehension, and hopefully pique student interest as well.  This is why I am developing a plan to create and implement virtual strategies to use virtully so I am better able to assist my students in activating this prior knowledge. 

                                                         References

Harvey, S., & Goudvis, A. (2007). Strategies that work: Teaching comprehension
       to enhance understanding. Portland, Me: Stenhouse Publishers.

                                                      

While reading the texts and thinking about my role as a virtual instructor, I find myself wondering if technology promotes or prohibits my ability to monitor student comprehension.   When I taught in the classroom, I used computers for testing,
differentiation, and occasionally to provide brain breaks.  Now, my students rely on the computer for the majority of their direct instruction, practice, collaboration, and assessments.

With the new school year in full swing and our student enrollment doubled in size from last year, I have encountered students with varying levels of basic computer skills.  
  
 In the middle of reading the chapter “Thinking and Talking Our Way Through the Words” in Comprehension Going Forward (Keene, 2011, p. 106), I was intrigued by the example of the teacher who fostered authentic thinking in her classroom.  Students came to class prepared with their own questions pertaining to their book club novel allowing the teacher to be the facilitator for the student-led discussion.  To get to this point, the teacher spent the beginning of the year modeling reading strategies through think alouds.

I do have the ability to meet with students in a group setting via a virtual classroom.  Currently it is difficult to effectively use this resource to model reading strategies due to technology barriers.  In the virtual classroom it is possible for students to respond in a whole group setting, to participate in small group break-out sessions, and to take quizzes individually.  The technology is quite amazing, but not if the student are so focused on how to use it rather than on the message I am trying to convey.  

To try an overcome this technology barrier, a co-worker and I planned to do a joint virtual lesson face-to-face with our sixth grade students. I know this sounds like an oxymoron, but our goal was to have one teacher presenting the lesson, while the other teacher could walk around guiding students in using the program as well as reminding them of virtual classroom rules (no off topic discussions in the chat box, raising virtual hand to participate, not writing on the whiteboard unless directed to do so, etc.).   

In my idealistic virtual teaching environment, I see students learning at their own pace, using extra resources as needed to enrich their understanding of lessons, and students coming together in virtual classrooms to share ideas and practice new strategies; students would be interacting with their texts and each other allowing true comprehension to take place as defined in Strategies That Work (Harvey, 2007, p. 14).  
I believe this is possible and will continue to work through the technological obstacles until I am able to better serve my students by effectively modeling reading strategies and monitoring comprehension.  
 

                                                      References

Harvey, S., & Goudvis, A. (2007). Strategies that work: Teaching comprehension
       to enhance understanding. Portland, Me: Stenhouse Publishers.

Keene, E. O., Zimmermann, S., Miller, D., Bennett, S., Goudvis, A., Buhrow, B.,
       Cervetti, G., & Larner, M. (2011). Comprehension going forward: Where we are  
       and what\'s next. Portsmouth, NH: Heinemann.