In this last post in the cRD thread, James asks a few questions with my responses below:
Two questions:
1) By “snowplowing through the boring parts” do you mean “translate the text into English out loud while reading the French/Spanish/German/whatever text in the book”? Like all the students follow along while the teacher or a volunteer translates? Should there be a choral translation with the text projected on the board? I think this part needs more explanation. Does the text just get translated as quickly as possible so that you can get the good bit for the day?
2) Do you think there need to be two versions of R&D, one for stories (from the third step of TPRS) and another for novels (by Blaine, Carol, et al.)? I think this has come up before, but we never really got to an answer. Or are the stories short enough that one should do cRD for everything in them?
My responses:
Question 1:
Susie thinks it is fine if the book is in their hands for the snowplow translation. It works fine. Sometimes the control freak that I am wants to see their eyes up where I can see them and grade them with jGR (an ongoing formative assessment process), which connects to your question, James, about the text being projected on the board via a camera. But, really they both work. Depends on the teacher.
Question 2:
I don’t use R & D for reading stories created by the class (Step 3). I created a different process – Reading Option A – for that about four years ago when I was at East High School. Reading Option A just seems to lend itself to more to readings of stories and R & D is better for novels. At least that is my opinion and is based on my own experience.