Homework Assignment

Journal:
Respond to the following in your workshop journal:

Barry Hoonan states: "I think literature is learned in a community that embraces stories, embraces writing... You start with the community. And you start with humor and you start with relationships and you start by reading to kids."

How can teachers begin to create this type of community for students? How do you know when you have the support in place for kids to successfully participate in this kind of literate community? What do you think the cornerstones are of a literate classroom community?

Reading:
In preparation for Workshop 2, read "Building Envisionments," "The Classroom as a Social Setting for Envisionment Building," and "A Practical Pedagogy" in Dr. Judith Langer's Envisioning Literature from the Teachers College Press, Columbia University. Copyright 1995. ISBN 0-8077-3464-0.

Consider reading "A Response-Based Approach to Reading Literature," which summarizes some of Dr. Langer's research on envisionment building.

Finally, read the poem "Let America Be America Again" by Langston Hughes, which can be found in the anthology by Roberts, Edgar E. and Jacobs, Henry E. Literature: An Introduction to Reading and Writing, 5th edition. New Jersey: Prentice Hall. Copyright 1998. ISBN 0-13-010076-5.

For additional resources, refer to Workshop 2's Additional Reading section.

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