I was just wandering around the internet and came across this site, mathplayground.com. I found it to be really helpful - a really good resource for math teachers. If you have computers in your room (and you are one of those teachers that actually turns them on and let's students use the computers), this would be a nice tool to use for those students who finish early or if you have free time (in my class, the teacher implements a "Friday Free Time" reward in which the students get about a half hour or so to play leggos, draw, play make-believe with stuffed animals. Being able to play math games would, in my mind, be more productive). It has games for kids, manipulatives, math work sheets for teachers, and math videos. I tried the manipulatives (thinking blocks) and it was really interesting. There are side notes to help tutor the student (if help is necessary). And it's okay to get the answer wrong! In fact, it's a safe place to mess up because the "tutor" helps you to see your error. It doesn't hurt your grade or embarrass you in front of other classmates during an actual lesson.
Thursday, February 24, 2011
Math Lesson (Observation)
My lesson went really well! I was a little bit surprised that it did because I was up all night worrying and fretting over how I might screw it all up. The day before my master teacher suggested that I teach the lesson before my observed lesson, just so the kids get used to me teaching math with them. That lesson didn't go well, so of course I was worried the observed lesson would flop as well. I suppose the extra nerves was in my favor because I studied my lesson plan over and over again...until the wee hours.
However, when I gave my master teacher my proposed plan, she basically told me to change the lesson. I had chosen not to go with the teacher's guidebook lesson and try a differentiated lesson (which is supplemented in that book) that involved a collaborative group project. On one hand, I do understand the pressure she is undergoing with math. I think she is a lesson or two behind schedule. On the other hand, I was hoping an internship would allow me to try out different ways of teaching so that I may be able to find out what kind of a teacher I would like to be. So far, I feel frustrated that I hardly ever get to try out new ways of teaching. I understand that it is her classroom and that I am a guest in her classroom, but I also thought the understanding was that I would get a chance to "mess up" here and there and experiment, try out different teaching methods.
We are learning about all the great ways to get students to learn in a collaborative group setting in our courses, but I feel very frustrated that I never get to try these methods out in the field. The students hardly ever get to do group projects or work together as teammates. Maybe this'll have to be something I try out after I get my tenure.
However, when I gave my master teacher my proposed plan, she basically told me to change the lesson. I had chosen not to go with the teacher's guidebook lesson and try a differentiated lesson (which is supplemented in that book) that involved a collaborative group project. On one hand, I do understand the pressure she is undergoing with math. I think she is a lesson or two behind schedule. On the other hand, I was hoping an internship would allow me to try out different ways of teaching so that I may be able to find out what kind of a teacher I would like to be. So far, I feel frustrated that I hardly ever get to try out new ways of teaching. I understand that it is her classroom and that I am a guest in her classroom, but I also thought the understanding was that I would get a chance to "mess up" here and there and experiment, try out different teaching methods.
We are learning about all the great ways to get students to learn in a collaborative group setting in our courses, but I feel very frustrated that I never get to try these methods out in the field. The students hardly ever get to do group projects or work together as teammates. Maybe this'll have to be something I try out after I get my tenure.
Monday, February 7, 2011
Assessment to Instruction
After getting to know two different buddies, I know have a third buddy to get to know all over again! Though I have enjoyed these students, it is very difficult for me to gauge each new buddy's ability, strengths, and interests. My new buddy, T, is an interesting kid. Based on our first meeting, he is very soft-spoken and appears to read and write fairly well. He has wonderful accuracy when reading, but does not retain a lot of information after the passage has been read. After reading both stories (Amelia Earhart and Early Railroads), he read with amazing accuracy, but his level of comprehension put him in the frustration category. A few things that caught my attention were his answers, word for word in the passages, when the questions related to technical or mechanical aspects of the story. Since I am getting to know T, this gives me a jumping off point as to the sorts of stories he may be interested in reading or writing about in the future.
As a result of our findings, it would be logical to consider implementing a comprehension lesson as a shared reading lesson. Because my first impression of him was shy and a little timid, I feel that shared reading would create a safe learning environment for him and the other students to to practice reading. The teacher will model the behavior that a good reader would do while reading. Tovani has many examples as to how she listens to her inside voice. She also models how she asks questions, makes inferences, predictions, and opinions. I also like how she promotes writing in the book (if allowed) to mark down these inside thoughts. She also admits to daydreaming or easily becoming distracted for pages or two before realizing she hasn't been paying attention. I think telling young readers that it is natural that things like that happen is important so that they don't feel like poor readers. The lesson for T could be very simple as having the teacher model his/her thoughts while reading a short passage (maybe a paragraph). While the students are following along, either on the doc-cam or reading from a class textbook, they can practice comprehension. When the teacher vocalizes his/her thoughts, the students can easily observe how a good reader has a conversation with himself about what has just been read. The teacher can place a sticky note on the page and write down any questions she had about the paragraph that may not have made sense or that more information is required to fully understand its message. Then the students can practice this one strategy in their own independent reading time with sticky notes. This would be a good start as an activity to build on reading comprehension.
As a result of our findings, it would be logical to consider implementing a comprehension lesson as a shared reading lesson. Because my first impression of him was shy and a little timid, I feel that shared reading would create a safe learning environment for him and the other students to to practice reading. The teacher will model the behavior that a good reader would do while reading. Tovani has many examples as to how she listens to her inside voice. She also models how she asks questions, makes inferences, predictions, and opinions. I also like how she promotes writing in the book (if allowed) to mark down these inside thoughts. She also admits to daydreaming or easily becoming distracted for pages or two before realizing she hasn't been paying attention. I think telling young readers that it is natural that things like that happen is important so that they don't feel like poor readers. The lesson for T could be very simple as having the teacher model his/her thoughts while reading a short passage (maybe a paragraph). While the students are following along, either on the doc-cam or reading from a class textbook, they can practice comprehension. When the teacher vocalizes his/her thoughts, the students can easily observe how a good reader has a conversation with himself about what has just been read. The teacher can place a sticky note on the page and write down any questions she had about the paragraph that may not have made sense or that more information is required to fully understand its message. Then the students can practice this one strategy in their own independent reading time with sticky notes. This would be a good start as an activity to build on reading comprehension.
Sunday, January 30, 2011
Mira! Mira!
Look! What a fascinating tool! After discovering that this math tool has been around for decades, I've wondered if I would have looked at math differently when i was in elementary and junior high school. I'm pretty sure I would have loved it! Math was always so boring and mundane. It wasn't until geometry that I (somewhat) enjoyed math. Before learning rules and theories, we found evidence with our rulers and protractors. All other math classes, math was just about memorizing formulas and plugging in numbers. School is all about experiencing, discovering, and learning. Tools like the mira make learning fun and interesting. It's a little sad that there are so many math tools and manipulatives for students, but they are seldom used or seen.
It is difficult, though, when you are a realistic teacher, with a realistic budget, with a realistic time line, and with an instructor's math guide with play-by-play steps. As a first year teacher, I am almost positive that I will do everything by the book. I just hope that I don't get used to or comfortable with that routine.
It is difficult, though, when you are a realistic teacher, with a realistic budget, with a realistic time line, and with an instructor's math guide with play-by-play steps. As a first year teacher, I am almost positive that I will do everything by the book. I just hope that I don't get used to or comfortable with that routine.
To group or not to group
After observing my classroom in math, I notice that the teacher never groups the kids together. I believe the reason for not putting the kids into groups is because the kids are chatty and get distracted easily. The para educator agreed with me in this observation. This worries me because after all our discussions and practices in our math course, I may not be able to implement it in my practicum.
Having the kids work in groups is something I really want to try, though, even if their teacher doesn't believe it will work out, at least for this group of kids that do not support each other (constantly tattletales on each other) and do not play with each other during recess. They do not work as a team in anything they do. I feel as if they start working together, and the teacher has made it clear that they are partners (as in sports, where teammates work together to win), they can teach each other about math strategies. Instead of me doing all the teaching, and risking some kids tuning out, the kids could enforce what I've taught by teaching themselves and discussing their strategies.
Having the kids work in groups is something I really want to try, though, even if their teacher doesn't believe it will work out, at least for this group of kids that do not support each other (constantly tattletales on each other) and do not play with each other during recess. They do not work as a team in anything they do. I feel as if they start working together, and the teacher has made it clear that they are partners (as in sports, where teammates work together to win), they can teach each other about math strategies. Instead of me doing all the teaching, and risking some kids tuning out, the kids could enforce what I've taught by teaching themselves and discussing their strategies.
Questioning Strategies
As I am counting the days to my first observed lesson (a math lesson), I am aware that I need to ask the right questions to engage my students, keep them interested, and help them to successfully organize their thoughts. I never realized how much energy and thought goes into asking the right kind of questions. The article, Never Say Anything a Kid Can Say! gives a plan to use specific questioning techniques when teaching math.
Of course, one of the techniques that I like is "Never say anything a kid can say." I see that this goal sounds simple, but my master teacher hardly ever does this in her class. It is very hard to find patience and time to let the students do all the thinking and questioning. Especially when you are a few lessons behind or trying to finish up the lesson before transitioning to another subject.
I have tried this technique as I'm walking around the room while observing, though. I really see how taking ownership in their own thought process, rather than listening to the teacher explain how to fix this and that, is more beneficial and rewarding for both teacher and students.
Of course, one of the techniques that I like is "Never say anything a kid can say." I see that this goal sounds simple, but my master teacher hardly ever does this in her class. It is very hard to find patience and time to let the students do all the thinking and questioning. Especially when you are a few lessons behind or trying to finish up the lesson before transitioning to another subject.
I have tried this technique as I'm walking around the room while observing, though. I really see how taking ownership in their own thought process, rather than listening to the teacher explain how to fix this and that, is more beneficial and rewarding for both teacher and students.
Tuesday, January 25, 2011
Analysis and Lesson Plan
My buddy’s story is about a cat that has a unique trait: it talks to her! Within her story, she speaks to the reader about how this talking cat shocks her, but also about how the cat is feeling in a human world. The author presents a pretty complex world of emotions and instances of empathy. She has a knack for words and writing funny scenarios.
6 Traits of Assessment:
IDEAS – She gives a great amount of detail to hold the reader’s attention. Her ideas are fresh and original. On her third page, she writes, “I leaned back and I heard, “Ouch! That Hurt!” Shocked, I looked up to see if anybody got hurt...” In this example, she uses onomatopoeia and anticipates and answers the reader’s questions.
ORGANIZATION - She is pacing her story fairly well, but her story details (page 5), though a funny detail, detracts from the main story line and what she’s trying to get across to the reader. In short, the details take too long to explain. For most of the page, her main goal is to express the cat’s sadness because he cannot play with the kids. She goes into detail about how the kids are playing ball and how the cat is physically unable to play such a game. She feels sorry for the cat because of his opposable thumbs, and decides it would be best to call for her mom to take the cat home from school. Though it is a funny story, it is very lengthy.
VOICE - . Her ideas and content is evident (how sad the cat was at recess because he could not play kids’ game, no opposable thumbs). She also uses engaging language: (page 7) She uses expressions such as full speed ahead and in a blink of an eye.
WORD CHOICE – She consistently uses lively verbs throughout her story. On page 6 she uses the word “grabbed” to describe how she was picking up a stick to defend the cat. On page 1, she used the word “fainted” after the cat started talking to her. On Page 3 the word “rushed” was used to express a sense of urgency, running down the stairs.
SENTENCE FLUENCY – Her sentence beginnings are not all alike; there is variance. In one instance, she uses “But” to emphasize something different as a beginning sentence word (page 2: The cat jumped at me and said,“Feed me now, stupid head!” But didn’t listen). She also uses descriptive words of time elapsed, such as for ten minutes after an hour, when I was sleeping in my bed.
However, sentences are awkward because they are very long. “I thote that was to rud to say so I did nothing but do my hair then the cat asked nicely then I rushed down stairs and expluned, you will get your way when you are nice to the person your talking to.”
CONVENTIONS - Spelling errors are frequent, even on common words (sight words, such as said). Punctuation is often missing (no periods) and paragraphing is missing, as well. Only one paragraph was made: the beginning paragraph.
OWNERSHIP:
My buddy is a writer, and she says that she enjoys writing more than reading. I have only seen one example of her writing, and it is evident that her ideas are full of detail and imagery. She accepts compliments about her good writing and recognizes that she has a skill for writing. She likes to read recipes when she is cooking with her grandmother (a response to my question: what other types of writing do you like to read?). If she does get to choose what she gets to read, she likes to read non-fiction just as much as fiction and fantasy books.
SPELLING TEST AND DEVELOPMENT FINDINGS:
As I had only one meeting with Julia, and it was a full one with many activities and introductions to each other, I was only able to get halfway through her spelling test. Based on my limited findings, she could be found on the middle Within-word Patterns (misspelling words such as flote, brite, and chooed) on the developmental continuum. More analysis and observation is necessary to make a more informed placement.
I also had her read to me, and she frequently made mistakes. She saw the first letter of the word and said a random word that started with the same letter. When I asked her to read the sentence again, or asked if she knew the meaning of that word, she either stopped at the word or asked me what it meant. Besides the words she does not know (and creates), she infers their meaning because at the end of each page, she is able to tell me what she just read. She has a good sense of comprehension.
LESSON PLAN:
Objectives:
Students will understand writing conventions and enhance word definitions by completing a spelling journal.
Standards:
3.3.4. Applies punctuation rules.
3.3.6. Uses complete sentences in writing.
Materials:
Journal notebook
Pencil
Sticky notes
Vocabulary from current literacy textbook
Instructional Strategies:
Student will listen to 3 vocabulary words per week, supplied by the teacher. As a class, the student will write in his/her notebook the vocabulary word and its definition. Together they will discuss the meaning of each word.
Independently, the student will draw the meaning or an example of the vocabulary word and use the word in a sentence, using his/her own words.
The teacher will monitor independent student work to check for correct definition, representation, and usage (capital and period).
Throughout the week, the student will be aware of these vocabulary words, inside and outside of class. When these words are used, the student will journal how the word was used or quickly jot down the example of its usage on a sticky note to transfer/stick on the page at a later time. Because these are vocabulary words taken from the literacy textbook, there will be at least one opportunity to journal about the word’s usage.
Assessment:
When notebooks are handed in at the end of the week, I will assess the student’s written work: spelling vocabulary terms correctly, punctuation, and sentence structure.
At the end of the week, a spelling test (including definition) will be administered. I will assess the student’s test for correct spelling, punctuation, and definition.
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