More Great Reading Moments

Celina, as usual, inspired me to jump on the blog and reflect on what I have read so far this summer. So far my Kindle has been my go to resource for reading, as I can stay up and read as late as I like without complaints!

My first read was the book Well Spoken by Erik Palmer about teaching speaking to all students.

This book caught my eye when I was researching the CCSS in speaking and listening anticipating where we will be going in the fall with our next shift in instruction. Our kids have done a lot of speaking this year, as we chose to work with what they are really good at: TALKING!  We consciously focused on teaching our students how to turn & talk effectively. I quickly noticed a transformation in the way kids communicated with each other. Conversations were more purposeful and students began to add on to their partner's thinking as opposed to simply telling their one-sided point of view. We used more debate in our classroom, as well as building on our work with Arts Impact to help students more effectively express themselves in character.

Well Spoken is about teaching speaking skills and so much more, making it highly relevant for the 21st century classroom. Several things that stuck with me: Effective communication requires building and performing, not unlike reading, writing and skills in math. Speaking requires being mindful of audience, content, organization, using visuals effectively and the way in which you present yourself.  We work on many of these same skills in writing, building effective beginnings and endings, organizing our writing to explain or entertain and viewing our work through the lens of what makes writing interesting to read. When we presented our Passion Projects throughout the year, students also had the opportunity to use visuals and presentation skills, yet from reading Well Spoken I can see some areas where we can help our students to more effectively share their message. Palmer also suggests 6 Traits of effective speaking, otherwise knows as PVLEGS or Poise, Voice, Life, Eye Contact, Gestures and Speed. I saw many connections between these performance needs and building fluency in oral reading, such as expression (Life) and pacing related to what you are reading for effect (Speed).

I can't wait to use these ideas to effectively draw our students into effective communication, not only with speaking but also listening actively for these traits, writing clearly in building essays and speeches, as well as reading with expression and fluency.  When the work connects across more areas, I see my students finding greater relevance in the learning and more meaning in the strategies and ideas. Plus I love finding ways to prepare my students for the uncertain future, as Palmer says, "Now, let me make a radical statement: the mission of education should not be to make students better at school but rather to prepare them for life."

My second read was Who Owns the Learning? Preparing Students for Success in the Digital Age by Alan November, a recommendation I found via Twitter.

 This book pulled me in with thinking about the digital age and how students can be helped to take their learning on a larger scale. It speaks to a Digital Learning Farm model of instruction where students are doing authentic work with purpose, working as tutorial designers, scribes, researchers, and global communicators and collaborators. The model reframes the educational structure by increasing autonomy for students, publishing student work to a global audience, and creating a community of contribution within the classroom. November sees technology as a "transformational tool to change the culture of teaching and learning" not just pushing in lots of technology where it just becomes the "thousand dollar pencil". The significant take away was the shift in control, as November states, "Much of what used to be teacher directed in the traditional model is powered by students in the Digital Learning Farm model." This so fits my thinking about education, the more that students have the opportunity to direct their learning, the more they are engaged with the learning itself. ~Ann

A Star Moment for our Students and Us

Image found here

 

Yesterday, Celina and I had the opportunity to share what we do in our classroom with others at a presentation for empowering learners.  We spoke about the 5 powerful strategies that are the basis for our program: choice, reflection, self-assessment, students as teachers, and student voice.  The 4 ½ hour return trip was spent laughing and reflecting on all that we have been able to accomplish with our students in the last year and half.  How we have grown as teachers, how our students have grown and how our program has evolved into creating an environment for learning that could work in a multiage context or any straight grade setting.

Why does it work?  It is a mindset, a way of thinking.  It is not a canned program or a prescription, it is about starting with the students first, considering what they need, and focusing solely on all of the ways we can meet those essentials.   We start with our students, determine the standards they require, and then pull from our curriculum and other resources in order to meet those needs.

No matter what the standards are, or what the curriculum is, you cannot make it happen without starting from where the kids are and what they still need.

Thinking in this manner, with this mindset, means that the standards and curriculum you work from are basically irrelevant!  They just become a set of “building blocks;” they are those elements that you scale on the path to becoming an accomplished learner. We started our program last year with the state standards, but easily transitioned to CCSS when they were put into use.  In the past few years our district has implemented new curriculum in Art, Social Studies, Math, Spelling and World Languages.  While this could have easily overwhelmed us, we instead chose to look at these materials as just a new set of basic resources from which we could pull (or our students could seek) the knowledge that was needed.

We pass this mindset on to our students. The realization that they can achieve anything they set their minds to, they can grow from where they are, take charge of their learning, and be empowered in their abilities and choices.

We returned today to our classroom tired, but exhilarated and eager to share and celebrate with our students all that we have experienced, shared and received in response. Our students were so proud, so happy that their Brain Books were shared, so excited that “THEY” were our topic of conversations.  Overall though, I felt awe in them and from them, the awe in knowing that their words and work have the power to transform education for all the administrators and teachers who were at our presentation and eventually all the students who will be impacted by this new learning. They have the power to change the world for others as they have changed it for us. It starts with the students and the learning never ends.

~Ann

 

PS Thank you to "our people" for making it possible!

Brain Books: Everything but the Kitchen Sink

So you may be wondering, what all goes into a Brain Book anyway? To that wewould reply: almost EVERYTHING we do finds its way intothe Brain Books of our students. In the past Celina and I had both used journals,logs, folders, workbooks and teacher created notebooks for students, and likeCelina said it often became an organizational nightmare when a student wastrying to access the item he or she needed among the many!  So much of the work was created and directedby us, the teachers, and often we were the ones running around trying to findthat one copy or item that a student needed for a lesson.

With Brain Books our students gather all of the elements that they WANT to keep in one specific place.   Theycollect information they want to remember and add to their Brain Books piecesthat show their personal interests and needs. Celina and I believe when information is stuck intheir Brain Books, coupled with the constant daily access/review of this resource, student ownership intensifies.  Brain Books reside as an essential part of learningwithin our classroom.  Here are sample lists of ways students utilize this resource, along with items that end up finding their way into our students' Brain Books:

In Literacy students:

·        Generate summaries, story maps, and questionsabout what they are reading.

·        Create character trait maps and illustrations ofcharacters

·        Record interesting words and phrases

·        Plan out oral presentations, and public serviceannouncements.

·        Research and collect facts, anecdotes and connectionsto other content areas

·        Investigate elements of genre, gatheringessential category markers

·        Frame words in chunks for vocabulary developmentand spelling

·        Design rough draft of stories and collect futurewriting ideas

·        Collaborate with partners in Venn Diagrams andother graphic organizers that they either glue in or draw themselves.

·        Reinforce spelling words, conventions andediting elements through word work activities

In Math students:

·        Calculate problems, explain their thinking andshow their work

·        Develop alternative methods to solving problems

·        Formulate patterns, number sequences and equations

·        Create graphs and charts to collect and reflecton data

·        Draw and define important vocabulary andmathematical terms

·        Model their thinking in concrete and abstractways

·        Prove their attainment of learning goals

In Science and Social Studiesstudents:

·        Generate science experiments using thescientific process

·        Collect and record data

·        Draw and label illustrations of concepts, mapsand content rich vocabulary

·        Write hypotheses statements and conclusions

·        Summarized information from Brain Pop clips,maps and charts
·       Collect health information, including creating sample food pyramids and listing appropriate food choices
·       Illustrate the bones, muscles and tendons of the human body

In the Arts students:

·        Interpret different works of art and recordtheir thinking

·        Plan, sketch, and practice elements of design

·        Create sample compositions in music and record the musical notes

·        Highlight important vocabulary

In the area of assessment students:

·        Maintain target walls and goal sheets

·        Collect evidence of meeting and exceeding goalsand targets

·        Cut and paste samples from assessments in areaswhere they need further study

·        Showcase their learning and reflect on how theyhave made growth

·        Generate test taking strategies and ideas forreducing test pressure

·        Conference with teachers and note resources touse to meet goals

What wealso found too through our Brain Breakfast and Brain Snack activities was that our students usedtheir Brain Books to become highly reflective, creative and innovative thinkers. 

• They collected pieces about their learningstyles, multiple intelligences and Blooms Taxonomy to help them in accessingnew information and sharing what they were learning. 
• They doodled and came up with new ideas onusing color and shading, drawing to explain a concept and even to illustrateabstract thinking. 
• They collectedmotivational quotes and connected them to their own daily practice. 
• They planned future projects, kept lists of ideasand used their Brain Books to share thinking of which they were especiallyproud.  
• They collaborated with peers byoften sharing their own thinking, ideas, writing, pictures and collections ofpersonally meaningful items, often working in partnership to push their viewpointsand development.

But what made the most distinctive impressionon Celina and I was that they wrote their personal goals, dreams and aspirationswithin the pages.  They created newpieces of art and poetry, added pictures of people and events that weresignificant in their lives and connected their learning through a highly metacognitiveprocess.  They truly made their BrainBooks a reflection of themselves as learners and individuals.  Our students surpassed any vision or idea we couldhave had for Brain Books as a tool for learning and turned them into a tool forbeing! 
~ Ann

The Science Experience

Science inquiry through a Project-Based Learning approach is not a new concept, but the idea of tackling it in a multiage experience was new for Celina and me this year.  We approached it as we do any teaching and learning in our classroom through a lens of questions, not unlike the inquiry process:

1.       Students first: What would they need? We have three different grade levels that need high interest and engaging opportunities to build their learning.  They learn best through an active approach to acquiring knowledge, where they have ownership and are inspired.  Many also benefit greatly by building their social skills through interacting and conversing with others along the learning path.

2.       Standards:  Within the Earth Space Science strand there are standards in our state for grades 2-3 and 4-5.  Starting with the students and using the standards as a focus, the questions become around connections.  How could these standards connect to make a cohesive WHOLE to enhance the learning of all 3 groups? 

3.       Curriculum: What could we use to meet the needs of students and the expectations of standards?  Our district kits are big on process and thin on content, and in some cases the activities only connect tenuously to the standard they are supposed to be teaching.  Plus Celina and I feel to make strong connections the content needs to also be integrated across the content areas with authentic reading, writing, communicating, evaluating and thinking skills, just as the Common Core states reading and writing should be used to promote learning of the content areas.

Transforming Projects to Experiences

Project-Based Learning is a favorite instructional approach within our Multiage Program.  Our attempt, in the beginning, at developing purposeful projects to support science and social studies standards has truly transformed into meaningful EXPERIENCES.  We have learned to let go (a lot) in order to step back and let the students dig into the rich information using the variety of resources at their fingertips.  We have had incredible success thanks to Ann’s choreographed genius.  Students had complete choice during our most recent 3 week unit of focus, and we celebrated their amazing projects with a culminating event in which they had the opportunity to share their new knowledge and teach kindergarten students.  Their excellence was displayed through a variety of individual and partner presentations:  videos, PowerPoints, posters, paragraphs, discussions, experiments, songs, skits, and art.  Diversity, such a beautiful thing!!!

Fierce Conversations

Today I had the wonderful opportunity to attend a workshop called Fierce Conversations with Deli Moussavi-Bock.  It was incredibly inspiring and I was struck by the fact that so many of the truly fierce conversations that I have occur with Celina and our students every day as we build our community and our learning. 

Having a "fierce conversation" is one in which you are speaking in your real voice and to the heart of the matter (which by the way Deli shared that the french root of courage is heart!).  You are asking and listening, provoking learning, and enriching relationships.  But most importantly the definition by Fierce (2011) is that when the conversation is over YOU are different!  This was profound.  Every time we ask our kids about their thinking, their insights, their revelations, we are astounded, amazed and changed.

As if reading my mind, Celina sent me a text at recess of the whiteboard in our room where the Brain Breakfast of the day was students' reflections on the quote: "The secret of education lies in respecting the pupil." by Ralph Waldo Emerson.  One of our fifth graders added his thinking right next to the quote saying, "I find Ralph E's quote means that the better a student is treated the more they can learn and grow." One of our third graders wrote her reflection above his, saying, "What this means to me is that if you respect someone they will respect you back and learn the things you want them to learn and Bloom." 

The kid connections, discussions, thoughtful responses, collaboration, and even the noise just signifies to me that we are living a fierce experience within our classroom on a daily basis.  I prefer it to the alternative. Wouldn't you?  ~ Ann

Fierce Conversations (2011) Seattle, WA: Fierce, Inc.

Understanding themselves, AS LEARNERS

I think, believe, and feel deeply that a student's attitude directly affects their ability to learn. Negativity is a form of stress, so when students go to that "bad attitude place" it inhibits their ability to meet their potential. When students are in this place they shut down or check out from the discussions or activities at hand. However, when students are in a positive place it allows them a little perspective. They can think more clearly, be aware of the learning that is taking place, and participate with the conversation.

Our Daily Work is Student Driven...

As Ann and I reflect this weekend, we are continuing to devour literature based on the needs of our students.  Our conferences, thus far, have allowed us to articulate the perspective we have within our Multiage Program, as well as the individualized approach we are using, but also the future path we are projecting to travel through the course of the year.  And I say projecting because the bottom line is our path really is dependent on our students' needs and interests...

Our overarching philosophy continues to be:
STUDENTS first, then STANDARDS, then CURRICULUM/RESOURCES

Throughout conferences so far, students have been sharing personal highlights with their families, and these moments for us are priceless.  Their dialogue was not rehearsed, nor practiced, just purely from the heart.  They spoke of their goals, and each one displayed a unique passion for learning.  And can I say again outloud??-  "...And we are only in November people!!"  :)

Ann and I are thrilled with the milestones we have passed within just a few months; milestones we set for ourselves in developing our program.  What we have found over the course of the past 11 1/2 weeks is that our students (regardless of their academic standing or behavioral record) will rise to ANY occassion set before them, due to the environment we have established with them. We truly spent the first 6 weeks of school building a community: identifying learning styles/intelligences, celebrating uniqueness, exploring emotions, and building relationships.  These areas were discussed and practiced as we built the structure of our community and routines together.  The time spent on these endeavors has truly paid off!

We continue to explore the building blocks within each content area.  Our students prove to us everyday that they want to climb their individual towers, filling in their missing blocks as they go.  They know how to set a goal based on their own standards (individualized target walls), decide what resources they need, devise a plan, and accomplish the task (marking progress on their target walls on the standards-based continuum). They recognize what they know (GOT IT!) and what they don't (NEED IT!) based on their own evidence! It isn't about grades in our classroom community, but what building blocks they need to learn.  And if they have a particular building block, they become an expert within the community (aka "a resource"). 

This philosophy of student-driven learning is not new, but it does take a particular mindset.... to allow the students to be empowered by their learning.... to allow them to grow at them their own pace... to allow them to choose their daily goals/activities/resources... and to teach in a way that meets all learning styles within each whole group episode. We do not claim to be experts (as we are constantly in search of new ideas and strategies to further our own personal growth).  However, we do now how much "letting go" this process/teaching style/philosophy has required.

And just as we were searching and reading today, both of us became absorbed within the words of one teacher's blog... many of you may have already read his powerful statements and thought provoking dialogue.  http://stumpteacher.blogspot.com/ Thank you to Mr. Stumpenhorst! (And another thank you to Mrs. Ripp http://mrspripp.blogspot.com/ for nominating him on your blog, which allowed us to easily connect to his!) We are new to the daily following of blogs, but are really enjoying reading other educators' reflections about their daily work with students.  For Ann and I, finding Josh's words (as well as the numerous comments left by other educators on this path) was a full-circle moment for us....
***And Josh, we are at Phase 4 in general... thank you for putting this journey (mindset) into words! Ideas for moving to Phase 5???

~Celina