Sunday, July 29, 2012

The Story of Our Brain Books



Brain Books have become the anchor within our learning environment, for our students as well as us personally.  Ann and I have been excited to share this resource- a good idea that our students made great.  But as we have tried to put the idea in print we have struggled a bit…. Then Ann reminded me again of the great words of Simon Sinek, “People don’t buy WHAT you do, they buy WHY you do it.”  So here is the story of the WHY behind our Brain Books:

                                   
Ann and I have truly believed in the power of interactive notebooks and reflective journaling.  We have both been involved in purposeful notebook trainings to build our toolkit of instructional strategies in the areas of science, math, and literacy.  In the spring of 2011, though, we began to ponder with our students a better way to manage our daily thinking and stacks of journals and folders.  We were both notorious for organizing our students’ daily world around a math journal, a literacy journal, a science notebook, a gratitude journal, a portfolio, multiple folders, a planner, etc. (Sound familiar?) This system benefitted us personally in many ways, but we pondered the impact it had on our students, their learning, and communication with families.

In January of 2011, I had personally traded in my binder, multiple notebooks, and folders for one composition notebook with colorful, creative tabs (labeled Data, Books, ME, The Brain, Committees, etc.).  I carried it to all my meetings, PD, day to day interactions, as well as home and back.  I also had pages marked with ribbon and stickies to tab specific thinking.  Nonetheless, it was colorful, playful, and totally fit my personality.  My students, as well as Ann asked many questions about this personal resource.  I explained many times that it was “my brain” and my way of organizing information so I could quickly reference the important stuff.  I was tired of being overwhelmed by the surplus of hand-outs, lists, and information I was constantly acquiring on a daily basis.  My “Brain Book” became my storage place to write, glue, tape, and sketch information and thinking.

Ann decided to also embrace this “less is more” attitude and began her own personalized notebook.  She had tried tabs, but found that they did not fit her learning style in the same way they did mine.  Instead she found that she needed page numbers and a Table of Contents.  She also liked the use of a ribbon bookmark.  This was a big AH-HA moment for us.  We were both using our Brain Books in completely different ways, but essentially for the same purpose.  We began to think more deeply about the classroom notebooks and journals and how we were in essence using our own personal style of organization and not necessarily one that truly worked for our students and their individual needs.

So then we arrived at the big question:  WHAT IF we allowed our students to create a notebook that fit their own personal learning style?  So, we began pondering the possibilities for the next school year.  We discussed how they would look in my primary classroom compared to Ann’s intermediate classroom.  We brainstormed all the possible ways students could come up with organizational methods.  We ransacked our homes, classrooms, and the Dollar Store for materials students could use for their Brain Books.  Our plan was forming…

Then a student mentioned one day how nice it would be just to have one place to put his thinking just like I did (again remember we had MULTIPLE resources for this purpose and at the moment the third grader was digging for a math journal buried deep in a desk of “stuff”).  So, Ann and I decided to explore this endeavor with our students (her 5th graders at the time, and my 2nd and 3rd graders).  Leave it to us to try something new in May!  But to be honest we saw this as an opportunity to listen to the experts; who better to teach us about how Brain Books could work in our classroom than our students? 

Oh, the lessons were endless (and our plan that was forming basically went out the window)! They proved to us that age did not matter; this was a resource for all learners.  They showed us all the ways to organize their learning, ways that never had even occurred to us.  They even ransacked their own art supplies at home to bring to life their resource.  And in the end every single Brain Book looked differently and a variety of organizational systems had been used.  Essentially no two Brain Books were the same, matching the diversity in our classrooms.


Our students came to the conclusion that every learner should carry a Brain Book with them.  They explained that it allowed them to be their own person and do things that fit their learning style.  They even wanted to create a resource that gave students ideas for ways to use their Brain Books connected to the Multiple Intelligences (as they knew that we would be using Brain Books in our new Multiage Classroom).


For us, Brain Books have replaced the plethora of resources we hand out to our students each fall.  As our instructional philosophy has moved to about only 25% of our day in the whole group setting, 25% in small groups and individual conferencing, and 50% on PBL (which also involves one-on-one/small group interactions), we needed a resource that would provide cohesiveness to this style.  We have found Brain Books to be a resource that supports whole group instruction, differentiation strategies, individualized goals, and personalized learning.  It also goes home with the students, so parents don’t just see a list of the activities we did (as the previous planners we used displayed).  Instead they get an in-depth look at their child’s learning, personal goals, self-assessments, reflective thoughts, as well as self-management/organizational skills almost daily.

Interactive Notebooking is a great instructional strategy that we will continue to use, as there are elements that allow us to model different strategies and concepts.  A content based notebook, though, typically involves a more direct instruction method and is often more teacher controlled in terms of organization and content.  The mindset behind the Brain Books, however, allows us to be very intentional about transfering ownership of the learning process to our students.  We can ask them to recode and organize information in a way that works best for their brains.  They can choose from a plethora of notebooking strategies to incorporate into their personalized learning processes each day.  Learning becomes even less about sit-get-do, and more about explore-create-own. 

Our Brain Books have dynamically changed the way we all approach learning in our classroom.  Students have found having fewer materials to track decreases stress and their personalized notebooks allow them to celebrate who they individually are as learners.  As teachers, we have found this resource to empower learners, increase engagement and responsibility, facilitate integration of the content areas, and provide more opportunities for authentic reflection.

And why are they named Brain Books?  Well, again that’s one to credit the students for… As they all continued to joke with me about carrying around my brain every day, once they created their own notebooks they immediately commented, “These ARE like our brains!”  One 2nd grader even said, “When I leave my book at home, it’s like I left my brain at home.  We should call them our Brain Books!” And thus the name officially stuck. 

Brain Books have become the ultimate student-centered tool for our student-centered classroom.
~Celina
More to come involving how to incorporate Brain Books into your classroom with your students…

12 comments:

  1. What a wonderful tool for students to take control of their learning! I had a few questions about how you would recommend students structuring when I teach them every subject. Did some structure by subject, idea, ect? Also, if you run out of room, do you make a new book? Thanks for sharing your ideas!

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    2. Amber, Thanks for your questions. As a group we generated ideas around the different types and ways to organize information based on the way they think. Some students chose to tab their Brain Book by months, others chose by subject, and still others did their own unique thing. What was wonderful about this process was that our students were able to see what worked and what didn't work for them individually. Several times during the school year we would have a reflection period where they would go back through their Brain Book and re-tab sections, remove things that were no longer relevant and add to things as needed. Celina and I continued to encourage the kids to share their best methods, and found that it was rare that a student couldn't find what they needed within their books. The students would add to their Brain Books as their brains "grew", some students are even planning to bring in their book from last year to continue to add to their work this coming school year. ~Ann

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  2. Thank you Ann! How did you handle students running out of room? When you say remove, are you referring to the entire page or the tabs? If so, how would you add pages back in to a composition notebook? I am really looking forward to trying to make my own to share with students this fall!

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  3. Hi Amber,
    When our students decide they need more space they attach another comp book with duct-tape (and the variety of colors and designs just adds even more personality!). We have also noticed some students attaching a few pages within their Brain Book with masking or scotch tape when they want to expand a section a bit.

    Sometimes students will remove an entire page, if they deem necessary (maybe it was scratch doodling, a page they practiced a math target or spelling words, or a page that seemed suddenly out of place-which they they glued into a different space in their Brain Book). Other times students found it necessary to move/relocate tabs, or even rename them.

    The organization is truly completely up to them and what makes the most sense in relation to their learning journey.

    We are very excited that you are creating your own this summer! That has always been our very first recommendation. :)

    Please let us know how we can support you! (If you contact us through email I would be happy to share a PowerPoint we use with our students to introduce Brain Books the first week!)[breottmultiage@gmail.com]

    ~Celina

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    1. I LOVE the idea of attaching another one with duct tape! I was wondering that, too.

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  4. THIS is exactly what I've been looking for and thinking about allllll summer! I just started teaching 5th grade last year (after 16 years at grades 1 & 2) and dabbled a little with interactive notebooks - but the notebooks were under my direction, not the kids', and I wasn't happy with that lack of ownership. Thanks so much for posting about this and I would love to use your PowerPoint with my students. Do you have pics of the variety of Brainbooks created by your students? May I link to your blog within my blog? Thanks! ~Barb~

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  5. Barb,
    Thanks for your excitement! You willl absolutely love using Brain Books with your students, and they will take so much ownership in their learning through the process. Email us {breottmultiage@gmail.com} and I will send you the PowerPoint. It has sample pages in it. The only photos we have of the variety of Brain Books are with students in them, which we cannot post. However, in September we will be sure to capture photos to share, as 26 of our students are returning with their BB from last year...And yes, you may link to our blog through yours! Glad to have connected with you!
    ~Celina

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  6. I am looking forward to building this idea more with Barb and other 3-4-5 teachers in our school! Fabulous. I dread figuring out notebooks every year....not now! Leaving the organization to the kids is where it's at. :)

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    1. Absolutely!! Excited to hear you are going to work with a team through this endeavor! Enjoy the process and we can't wait to hear about your experiences :)

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  7. Hi this sounds interesting although I teach 8th graders history I am always trying to find better ways to help the students organize their notes, thinking and "stuff". Could I possibly get more information on brain books?

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  8. Thanks for the comment! We are actually in contact with several middle and high school teachers who plan to begin using Brain Books with students. An empowering resource for all ages! I know I don't leave home without mine (along with my iPad and iPhone). It is one of those tools I rely on daily!

    I also sent you an email reply. Let us know if you have any other questions :)
    ~Celina

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