Let's face it, whether you've been a teacher for ten years or for ten minutes, the beginning of the school year is stressful. There is so much that needs to be done before the students arrive and once they do, your to do list grows exponentially. As educators, we feel that beginning of the year crunch in August because in education, September is our "busy season".
As you move through your busy season this year, I'd like to suggest that instead of focusing on the big picture--testing, observations, standards--take a moment to think about all the little details that make your teaching and your classroom so special....
Greetings and Salutations
Each day your students arrive into your classroom from all walks of life, having had different mornings and different experiences with their family before arriving at your door. Take a moment to greet your students by name each day and personalize their arrival with a comment or a warm smile. This will instantly lighten their mood and connect them to you. Talk to them about a book you are reading or ask how the big game was last night. Something that let's them know you are interested in their life outside of your classroom.
Before your students leave, consider adding a wrap up to your day. Don't always focus on the homework and what is due the next time you see them. This they can tune out (and often do, as you already know). Engage them in the last 2-3 minutes about a hot topic. Ask them about some great new movie that you heard about. Have a discussion about if the local football team will win this Sunday. Talk about their opinions or their day.
Over time this will build a positive classroom culture, one that your students look forward to being a part of on a daily basis because they are active members of it. You, as their teacher, will understand more about their world and have a deeper connection to their life and their happenings. They will feel that its not all about school all the time in your room and that you care about them and their life.
Staking Their Claim
Allow your students to claim their space. Now, this doesn't mean , let them pick their seat because we all know how that can work out. Instead give your students the opportunity to contribute their ideas/vision to an area of your classroom during the year. Some ideas: decorate the door or bulletin board according to their design. Plan the room layout (from a list of options that you provide them). Name their group and create a poster for it. Create a class name or logo. These little details help your students feel like your classroom is their space, too (because it is, isn't it?).
Freedom of Choice
At the the beginning of the year, many of us provide our students with a list of required materials for our class. This list often includes tools that are meant to help them organize and keep track of the work they will be doing in your room. Well, what if this year, you allowed your students to choose this list? Instead of requiring them to to use a three-ring binder or a marble notebook, let each student pick which one works best for them. Now this can be a scary thought for some of us, but why not try it? If a student can't handle the freedom or is disorganized because of this choice, then we can step in and provide them with some guidelines and support. On the flip side, if they can handle it, you've just empowered them to learn something about their learning preferences and gave them choice in your room..
A Little Laughter
The school year is serious business and who would understand that better than you, but don't forget to take a moment to laugh with your students. Enjoy the silly moments and each other's company while you are learning. There is no rule that says that these things can't go hand-in-hand.
While sitting down to plan your next unit or the following week's lesson plans, take a moment to think about the details in your room. The details are what set you apart from all of the other teachers and educational experiences your students had before they got to you.
Remember, "it's the little details that are vital. Little things make big things happen."
~John Wooden, UCLA head basketball coach~
Wednesday, September 20, 2017
Monday, January 25, 2016
Totally Ten
If you are a classroom teacher, you already know how challenging differentiation can be! However, I hope you realize how important it is. I believe that the best way to begin with such an overwhelming concept is with baby steps! Learning a new way to differentiate can really change the way your students learn and increase their success in your class!
Totally 10 is an approach to differentiation that I stumbled upon a few years back when working with a co-teacher that thought that all students needed to complete the same assignments each day. While trying to avoid causing friction, but deeply believing that some students needs weren't being met by the one-size-fits-all curriculum, I set out on my search. I looked for ways to incorporate choice for all students so that in theory they were all provided with the same options. Totally 10 appealed to my co-teacher while meeting the needs of our diverse group of students. A true win-win.
Totally 10 Assignments
Totally 10 is a student choice format for differentiating projects, student work and/or assessment. Each task on the Totally 10 document provides your students with choice and a list of differentiated tasks. Each task is given a point value, ranging from 1-10, where the higher scores reflect a greater challenge and complexity or higher level thinking skills. Students must select either one project with a score of 10 or several that add up to a score of 10. The goal being that students need a score of ten from the Totally 10 handout, not as a grade. This means that some students will choose rigor to do fewer projects.
Totally 10 can also be used to design assessment. Here, a teacher will make a test with a question bank. Students choose which questions they will answer to reach their goal of 10. Using a Totally 10 for assessment adds choice to a practice that doesn't often offer options. In the end, they may be believe that they create the assessments in your classroom.
Some examples of Totally 10 can be found at the links below and their are many available for download by conducting a basic Google Search.
Totally 10 is an approach to differentiation that I stumbled upon a few years back when working with a co-teacher that thought that all students needed to complete the same assignments each day. While trying to avoid causing friction, but deeply believing that some students needs weren't being met by the one-size-fits-all curriculum, I set out on my search. I looked for ways to incorporate choice for all students so that in theory they were all provided with the same options. Totally 10 appealed to my co-teacher while meeting the needs of our diverse group of students. A true win-win.
Totally 10 Assignments
Totally 10 is a student choice format for differentiating projects, student work and/or assessment. Each task on the Totally 10 document provides your students with choice and a list of differentiated tasks. Each task is given a point value, ranging from 1-10, where the higher scores reflect a greater challenge and complexity or higher level thinking skills. Students must select either one project with a score of 10 or several that add up to a score of 10. The goal being that students need a score of ten from the Totally 10 handout, not as a grade. This means that some students will choose rigor to do fewer projects.
Totally 10 can also be used to design assessment. Here, a teacher will make a test with a question bank. Students choose which questions they will answer to reach their goal of 10. Using a Totally 10 for assessment adds choice to a practice that doesn't often offer options. In the end, they may be believe that they create the assessments in your classroom.
Some examples of Totally 10 can be found at the links below and their are many available for download by conducting a basic Google Search.
To learn even more, visit my Board on Pinterest Totally 10
Friday, March 6, 2015
Close Reading
What is Close Reading?
The Common Core
State Standards are encouraging teachers to engage their students in the task
of close reading, but many of us are not quite sure what that is.
–It is an interaction between the reader and the
text. (Douglas Fisher
“Close Reading the the Common Core State Standards” April 3, 2012)
–It is about making careful observations of text and then
interpretations of these observations. (Patricia Kain, Writing Center of Harvard University, 1998)
–It involves rereading; often rereading
short portioin of a text that helps a reader to carry new ideas to
the whole text. (Kylene Beers
and Robert Probst, Notice and Note, 2012)
Close
reading requires rereading a text three times for increased levels of
understanding. Each reading, during a
close read, has a new purpose and after completing it the reader has a new
depth of understanding. Typically a close read asks for three readings
of a selected text.
 |
| http://writenow21st.blogspot.com/2014/08/the-process-of-close-reading.html |
1st
Read: Get the Gist
During your
first read, readers are looking for basic understanding of what the text was
about—a main idea, a brief summary, asking questions about what was read.
2nd
Read: Dig a Little Deeper
The
second read is meant to increase and expand upon your students’ basic
understanding of the text. Before you
begin reading you should set the purpose for this read. The purpose can range from identifying the
author’s purpose to noticing text features.
Readers can be asked to notice how a character acts/feels or discuss the
words used by the author.
3rd
Read: Put it all Together
In the
third read, our goal is for reader to take their understanding of the text from
the first and second read and apply it to their existing knowledge to draw new
conclusions. You can ask readers
questions about text patters, similarities between this book and another book,
inferences and/or connections made.
Now that
you know what Close Reading is, how do you make it a successful experience for
your students?
First,
you should practice this strategy WHOLE group, several times. Use the same book for different purposes as
suggested in the Close Reading steps.
When you begin, pick books that you know well to increase your
experience with this new approach.
Next you
will want to take the time to plan your close reading lesson(s). You should think about how each level of
reading will be different. What will be
your focus?
To
increase your students’ success with this approach, you will want to provide
them with support. Use bookmarks, hang
anchor charts and provide organizers.
For resources, click here.
 |
| http://www.mshouser.com/teaching-tips/close-reading-anchor-chart |
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