Boarder Task, Sneaky Snake, and “Never Say Anything a Kid Can Say!”

This week I learned about the importance of quality in math problems (sometimes in lieu of quantity) and how exploration can be great way to foundational thinking before going to straight to the algorithm. The cooperative activities like Boarder Task and Sneaky Snake in class incorporated algebraic thinking and sharing in different strategies that I had not been exposed to before. This type of activity also met standards which was remarkable.

Reading the article “Never Say Anything a Kid Can Say” by Steven C. Reinhart, I learned it is not only important for math teachers to explain math well but it possibly more important for the students to “explain things so well that they can be understood” if students were truly going to learn mathematics. This reminds me of what was said in class about how kids will learn more from each other than they will from you- the teacher. Asking good question that produce thoughtful thinking and fruitful answers is another big idea presented in the article. I also learned to keep in mind that good questions take time, but a key principle is trying new things little by little so it becomes a norm. I like the quote on the definition of lecture: “The transfer of information from the notes of the lecturer to the notes of the student without passing through the minds of either (p. 480).” Ahh yes, this is one of the reason I disliked lecture so much in my past schooling.

The article also presented a lot of implications for classroom practice. A productive math lesson involves the teacher’s role as more of a facilitator and listener then a lecturer. The classroom environment should make students feel comfortable sharing, taking risks, and discussing ideas. “Students should understand that all their statements are valuable to me, even if they are incorrect or show misconceptions” (p. 480). I like the idea of providing a risk free environment and not using questions to embarrass or punish. I remember often feeling embarrassed in class if I did not produce the correct answer or if I did not understand right away. Another big idea in the classroom is for everyone to understand that “participation is not optional.” If students cannot answer a question, then students know then they are required to pose a question to the class to help in their understanding. Group work becomes more than finding the right answer but the members in the group are responsible for each other’s learning. This adds more accountability and hopefully more discussion on ideas and concepts. Instead of sitting back, listening to rules, memorization, worksheets, and tests this type of lessons makes math more alive via discussion and collaboration.

Questions:
I like the cooperative group work concepts. But for slow learners, sometimes the time allotted for understanding and doing group is still not enough. Wouldn’t this cause group work frustration? And for the slower learner, it may make him/her feel they are not fast enough, and then reinforce what we are trying to prohibit- that I am just not good at math. Realistically, is there really away to stop the status in math?

Some Thoughts

What makes writing memorable? Is it the conventions? These are the questions Routman reminds teachers and students to ask. While proper conventions are important to help the reader, the inspiration does not come from punctuations. Routman highlights the importance of the impact of words on the reader and the way the language is used (p.239). Lamott also shares in the intrigue of the words in her chapter, Finding Your Voice. “And the truth of your experience can only come through in your own voice. If it is wrapped in someone else’s voice, we readers will feel suspicious...” (p. 199). Combining Routman and Lamott’s views it is easy to see where standardized assessments falls short and where the teacher’s role becomes important in teaching kids about what good writing really means.

Digital Storytelling

I very much enjoyed writing a literacy vignette and then digitizing the story. I discovered something new with this assignment: I really like using technology! I found myself having fun learning how to play with the special effects of transitions, music, and voice over. This didn’t seem like homework to me after I had gotten started. I had a light bulb moment. I had always wanted to learn how to add pictures and music, but by forcing myself to also add my own voice from my writing gave it a personal touch and more meaning. I wish I had more time to play and work on it. Even though I had some trouble spots with volume and editing, I discovered something new that I didn’t know I could do, and may have found a new hobby.

I would also like to give my students lots of opportunity to discover interests they never thought they had. This also challanges teachers to find variety in lesson plans to develop different skills and exposure to a lot of different types of areas like technology and art. I can see students being very engaged with this type of assignment. Instead of an over focus on correctness with conventions, allowing students to read their writing and then listen to themselves can be an awakening and motivating facet for showing students the most memorable piece in their writing: the story, flow, word choice, and the message.

Reflecting

Our Autumn quarter is almost over and I can just taste winter vacation!  I have done more reflection on what I'm thinking and learning than I ever did in my entire life.  I absolutely see its benefits and how it enhances the learning experiences, helps put things altogether, but me thinking about my thinking is also exhausting. Ann Lamott's book Bird by Bird has helped me out a lot this quarter.  I try and do little by little.  This is a tip I plan on giving my students.  Just writing for ten minutes and putting my thoughts on paper with out worrying about conventions has helped me get things done.  And our snow days has helped too!

Big Ideas

There were a lot of big ideas I learned this week about teaching kids literacy. Here are a few:

- Reading is about comprehension in text
- Build on background knowledge
- Kids need to know word in speaking vocabulary for them to read the word
- Reading is a problem solving activity

For literacy class this week we read “What Kind of Text—For Whom and When? Textual Scaffolding for Beginning Readers” by Kathleen J. Brown. It is a good resource article on deciding which reading level kids were in and some book recommendations that would be good for each level. The article also talked about how texts can be used as a teaching tool for scaffolding. Scaffolding is important because “it helps learners accomplish what they are almost but not quite, able to do independently” (p.292). Scaffolding relates to a big idea we learned in class on building background knowledge. Working with our kindergarten and 2nd grade buddies I can see where showing kids where they are successful and building on their prior knowledge gradually can help with their confidence as readers. I am reminded that it is not always trying to read harder books. Therefore understanding how books flow and read with the types of words used is important as a teacher.

The 2nd grade buddy I am working with is a strong reader. It nice to see the correlation with the concepts we are learning in class and seeing them in practice. While my buddy was reading the only words she self-monitored were words that were unfamiliar to her in her reading vocabulary. New words included interrogation, groused, and agile. In addition, my 2nd grade buddy was able to self-monitor, self-correct, and cross check the words: regal, persistence, and handkerchief. She used graphophonic (letter-sound) mostly to figure out the words she did not know.

In class we talked about the Read Well program and then the next day, I was also able to observe a first grade literacy circle using Read Well. The children were learning how to focus their reading by pointing their finger throughout each sentence. I heard the teacher say, “remember to read the whole word.” The teacher and student part seemed to go well and the kids I observed were successful in this practice. I also watched the teacher hand out small slinky's to the kids to help them stretch out sounds of words and then bring them back.

As I watched the first graders in their literacy circles, I was also reminded of how short their attention spans were and how easily it was for them to get side-tracked. What’s the best way to handle this during reading so the teacher does not have to repeat directions over and over?

Sharing in the Writing Process

I recently watched a revise summary lesson given by my master teacher in a fifth grade class, and I thought it was a great example of shared writing. The method was called “Steps up to Writing.” I also learned a few new acronyms. IVF (topic sentence) stands for identify topic, vivid verb, and finish thought. TEDS (active verbs) stands for tells, explains, describes, and shows.

The students were given a handout with a summary of a story they had read. Students will understand how to edit and make sentences clearer for reader by looking for changes in verbs and/or adding more description was the objective of the lesson. The process involved taking a look at each of the four sentences in the summary and writing the first words of each sentence, locating the verb, and finding any dead or boring words. Examples of dead and boring words included “stuff” or “thing.”

As the teacher went through each sentence, she asked her students to think of ways to make the sentence more active for the audience. It was nice to hear students share their thoughts aloud on how they would spice up the paragraph. For example, instead of “The boy thinks,” one student raised his hand and said, “how about instead of the boy, we could change it to, the infamous youngster thinks…” My dyad partner and I were impressed with the creativity. This exercise related to what Regie Routman writes on page 85 in Writing Essentials, “The desire to share ideas and words is the impetus behind writing development.” I can also see how shared writing could tell a teacher strengths a student may have and in this case, strong in ideas. The students were also able to see the fun in editing and descriptions. This lesson was very engaging for the students and many volunteers wanted to share in the revision. At the end of the lesson, the teacher reminded the students that sometimes it does not take very much editing and revision to change and make a summary more appealing for the reader.

I never thought about doing a shared writing with students. I thought teachers should prepare in advance and show students the finished product. But, now I see its importance. There is value in showing the thinking process, thinking on your feet, scratching out material you don’t like, and the act of grabbing a dictionary to check spelling in front of students. Using a dictionary is part of being a resourceful writer and when teachers model this, grabbing a dictionary to check spelling or word use becomes part of the norm. Students can then understand that when they start writing it does not have to be perfect the first time around. Shared writing allows for mistakes and revisions.

Learning from my Experiences

Experiences and often mistakes are great grounds for learning.  This seems to be the case for me this past week as I video taped my first lesson, worked with my K buddy for the last time, and tried to figure how to use math manipulative's to add and subtract fractions.  New experiences sometimes takes us out of our comfort zone, but often brings us the most growth.  I sure cannot wait until my comfort zone expands and the tools in my "teacher tool box" (term my mentor teacher uses) becomes plentiful.

I recently did my very first lesson on homophones for their, there, and they're.  It is amazing what you can learn from a thirty minute lesson!  Below are a list of things I learned in just thirty minutes:

1.  Teacher should be at the front of the line if you want more control and so kids remember to be quiet in the halls.  If students are noisy while walking in line, the teacher can than stop the kids and remind them, "voices off."  (I was in the back of the line and the kids walked into the classroom loudly.  My master teacher and field instructor were there to witness this for me and let me know the best strategy to handle this.)

2.  Try to be more cognizant of what is going on in the back of the classroom.  As I watched my video taped lesson, there were girls in the back of the classroom waiving and smiling to the camera.  I laughed when I watched the tape, but I was totally unaware of their actions.  Changing position of instruction can help kids in the back of the room to pay better attention.

3.  Be aware if some students do not have a partner or neighbor to share their responses with.  Instead of "partner," use "turn to a neighbor" or "turn to someone next to you."

4.  During direct instruction, stick to your question.  During my lesson I asked a question and received a comment that did not relate to the question I asked.  I was advised to stop the student for the moment, and address her comment after my question has been answered first.  This helps with my train of thought and also acknowledges what I asked, and makes the presentation clearer for the rest of the class.  Some teachers also asks students to sign language what they want to share when they raise their hand: A for answer, C for comment, and Q for question.

5.  When working with kids using a white board, remind kids about white board etiquette.  Using a white board is a privilege and not for doodling, etc. For students that need think time, it is a good idea to have students turn over their white board at their desk.  This gives those students who need a little more process time, less pressure to write and answer so fast.  Then by the teacher prompt of "1,2,3, reveal" each student can hold up their white board by their heart, and then also share with their group or the rest of the class. 

6.  Never talk over students. 

7.  Don't forget a good closure for your lesson.  Leave students with something to think about.