Preface: Go through chapters as designed. Note that there is an overlap between all of these chapters, but the flow is important. In the IM, have teachers select appropriate readings for their own students. They may want to bring in their own readings. Place Venn Diagram showing the three circles of personal, academic, and career worlds overlapping and the RTDW in the middle of all three.
At the start of each chapter, place the Read->Think->Discuss->Write flow chart and the circle of the Venn Diagram with the focus of the chapter in a different color. Example: red for personal, blue for academic, and green for career. The READ and Personal Circle would be in red for chapter 2, etc. Colors coordinate with each chapter heading.
Chapter 1 focuses on where students are comfortable: home, family, work, community organizations, religious groups, etc.
Chapter 2 focuses on reading about familiar things: pop culture, community, personal interests, people in their lives. What do you read? Provide examples of readings--music lyrics, poems in greeting cards, newspapers, magazines, movie clips, news stories with scrolling news bites, notes from children's teachers, journals, advertisements, bills and notices, business documents, etc. Reflect on the types of reading they do everyday.
Chapter 3 focuses on what they know from their life experiences. They bring background and knowledge to the classroom based on these life experiences. They will reflect in class on their life experiences, based on prompts. They will journal about what they bring to the classroom.
Chapter 4 will have the students discussing their discourse communities in which they speak, read, and/or write. They will discuss the relationship between their life experiences, their reading, and their communities to reflect on how they communicate already. In class, they will identify and draw a venn diagram that identifies at least four of their personal discourse communities. The students then will form small groups where they will explain their Venn Diagrams about their personal worlds. Their thinking about this will continue with assigning the students to discuss with others in their personal world (siblings, parents, children, coaches, bosses, friends, etc.) assigned topics, and then the students will journal by recording their thoughts as they think about what has been discussed.
Chapter 5 will have the students writing through reflection and response essays. Tell the students that they write best when they are invested in and familiar with the topic. They will develop an essay about their personal discourse community in class. Then they will write essay #1 about a quotation, music lyrics, magazine article, personal world. The essay will be a reflection or a response essay.
