Alison.Board Assessment, Classroom Layouts, Differentiated Instruction, Diverse Learning Needs, Math, Planning, Professional Learning and Growth, Resources

Teaching Math

 

 

I have always considered myself more of an “English Language” teacher. So, when I moved into the junior and intermediate classroom, I felt less confident in my abilities to teach math. When planning for the year, I surveyed some other junior/intermediate teachers for recommended resources. And when planning for the classroom environment, I made sure to have a corner dedicated to math, which includes a gallery wall, manipulatives, math dictionary and texts as well as tools like calculators.

Although I was given a set of textbooks, I don’t plan or teach from the textbooks. I print the curriculum expectations specific to the grade for each strand, and use them as my guide in planning the units. Then I refer to some other resources for ideas in activities that involve group work or problem solving. Some of favourites to support my math program are:

  • Introduction to Reasoning and Proof, Grades 6-8: The Math Process Standards Series, by Denisse R. Thompson and Karren Shultz-Ferrell
  • Nelson’s Ontario Numeracy Assessment Package
  • Good Questions: Great Ways to Differentiate Mathematics, by Marian Small
By referring to these resources, I am able to understand the concepts that need to be taught and how to differentiate using broader questions for the range of math learners in my classroom. I enjoy providing mini-lessons on strategies to support the students as well as encouraging them to share their strategies with me and the rest of the class. Our math class has become engaging and interactive, not repetitive and boring as I had feared.
We use a gallery wall to display group answers to problems. This has become an invaluable way to quickly assess understanding. Students are given the opportunity to view the gallery, see how others have solved the problem, respond with their own ideas or suggestions and acquire new learning. A week of math classes includes a range of instructional strategies, independent work, paired and group work. One of our common “go to” questions is “Does this make sense?” We are aiming for understanding rather than rote learning of facts and steps (as I learned in elementary school). So, I am enjoying learning with my students as I discover new ways to approach and solve math problems.
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Alison.Board First Week Reflections, Learning About Your Students

Our Classroom Voice

At the start of September our classroom looked bare and generic. Although a few motivational posters would have provided some aesthetic visuals to liven the room up, I refrained. Instead, I waited to see how student voice and interest would fill the wall space.

In only one month, our room is taking shape with student work, anchor charts, and art that is unique to the community of students in Room 8. Included in the room is:

  • a row of self-portraits. These are simple line drawings with multi-coloured marker lines, similar to the style of John Lennon’s Imagine album cover. They provide a visual reminder of our diverse group and represent how each individual imagines their own image.
  • an array of clear plastic page covers stapled to the bulletin board. One display of each student’s current published writing. Using the plastic covers allows the work not only to be protected, but stored throughout the year as a tool to show development.
  • a large picture graph on grid chart paper. This graph shows the Multiple Intelligence strengths of each student in the classroom. In the first week of school we used a survey to determine our M.I. strengths. Then after photo day, we used one set of the small photo stickers to make a visual graph of our strengths. We have already referred to the graph on numerous occasions, and other teachers (French, Phys. Ed) have appreciated the graph as well to easily identify student strengths.
  • a math gallery. When students solve problems in small groups, they are all provided with the same size paper. After they complete their work, we hang it on a bulletin board (math gallery) where the other groups can view it, add sticky note responses, and refer to it when working individually.
  • an inquiry corkboard. This dedicated space grows as we add newspaper articles, photocopies of book covers, questions, photographs and data that support our inquiry questions. Our current question is “How are we all connected?” This question has led many discussions about water and our inquiry board is reflecting the questions and knowledge building of the students.
  • logos. The students created their own logo contest for Room 8. There is a display of six logos that were created, then the students voted. Although they selected one winner, all the logos will stay in the classroom on display. We are using the winning logo as our image for our class Twitter account.

There are still many blank spaces to be filled, but I would rather they get filled by student work that is meaningful and authentic, then just decorating the space. As I look around the classroom, I realize that what I see (and more importantly, what they see) is a reflection of their own interests and perspectives. It is their voice.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Alison.Board Classroom Layouts, First Week Reflections, Learning About Your Students, Planning

Adjustments in September

 

With all the plans we make for those first days and weeks in September, it is worth being open to making adjustments, for your benefit and the benefit of the students. Here are some examples of how I have adjusted the environment and the program in the first few weeks:

  • I have changed the layout twice. We were pleased to get 6 rectangular tables and 1 round table in the second week, but have rearranged them twice to suit the needs of the students. This means that there are two sets of tables put together seating groups of up to 12 students who like to work together, and one table seats only 4 students who require more personal space. I planned for an even distribution of students per table, but am responsive to their different requests regarding space and collaboration.
  • The area carpet was originally placed in one corner of the room for community discussions and knowledge building sessions. The students enjoyed these talks, but found it hard to get close when we are limited with only two accessible sides to the carpet for rows of chairs behind those who are seated on the carpet. So, I moved the carpet to the centre of the room and it connects to the small carpet area of our class library. Now there is less movement of chairs as students turn to the centre of the room for discussions and use the extended space of the class library to sit.
  • We took a Multiple Intelligence survey to get to know our own learning strengths and the strengths of all the students in the class. We continue to consider these and reflect on them by referring to graph compiled in the class to remind us.
  • I finally typed out my schedule last Thursday. It took me that long to juggle our literacy block and periods for Science and Social Studies with withdrawal for ESL and special education support. I have added 15 minutes of literacy to the end of our day when we review our agendas with a poetry cafe allowing dedicated time for the reading, sharing, and writing of poetry.
  • We introduced “Minutes for Mindfulness” each afternoon. After lunch and a transition for French class, some of the students had difficulty settling for a full-class discussion regarding our inquiry topic. I asked if they wanted to try some mindfulness techniques, and a new student shared a website/app called www.calm.com that his teacher used last year. This adjustment not only helps the students, but I benefit from the 2 minute relaxation exercises as well!
I am sure our class will continue to grow and change. Allowing for adjustments to your best made plans is necessary to be responsive in your teaching practice – and everyone will benefit.
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Mike Beetham Before School Starts, Classroom Management, Learning About Your Students, Student Ownership

Backward Planning To A Classroom Community

I would like to take a few lines to introduce myself to new readers or re-acquaint myself to regular bloggers. My name is Mike Beetham and I am entering into my 30th exciting year of teaching and look forward to the learning opportunities that will take place for me as I continually strive to enhance my best practice. I work with an area behaviour class of Junior age students and love to spend time in the outdoors.

 Each September a new group of students arrive in my classroom and our journey begins. Like any other trip, you have to know where you are going so that you can plan your journey accordingly.  In the first week of school we collectively complete the following activity. I create three charts with these titles:

What does a safe and peaceful classroom look like?

What does a safe and peaceful classroom feel like?

What does a safe and peaceful classroom sound like?

It starts with time for self-reflection, than moves to partner and small group discussion. Our final step is to post our ideas on chart paper. These sheets are visited throughout the first week. On Friday we take a final look at what our collective vision is and we complete the task by creating a classroom agreement that will help us create the community of learners we seek. I always accompany this with a good book such as ‘YO! Yes!’, ‘Wings’ or ‘Don’t Laugh At Me’.

As a teacher it is critical to take the time to visualize what your want your classroom to look like, feel like and sound like. From that point you put into action the activities and lessons that will move your group to the desired outcome. It is important to remember that this is a continual process and like any relationship, when the participants stop putting effort and time into the partnership, the bond starts to lessen.

Welcome back everyone and I hope you have a rewarding year!

 

Alison.Board Before School Starts, Classroom Management

Care for Materials

When reading Mike’s blog entry “I Lost my Pencil” I was struck with how I have struggled with the same dilemma this year. Coming from a Kindergarten class I was comfortable being a “Materials Manager” for the classroom. All the materials were shared and they were intentionally presented in an inviting way to encourage use, conversation, and expression. There was time in our day to return all the materials, and to do so as a whole class.

In my current grade 5/6 classroom, I started the year with a materials centre. This was set up with a few shelves to hold pencils, erasers, rulers, scissors, glue sticks, and markers, etc. I was surprised to discover that within a few weeks the items were no longer accessible for the whole class. I would find rulers twisted and bent on the floor. Pencils left on shelves and also dropped to the floor. The scissors had scattered as well.

I think my plan for the new school year is to be more explicit with the care of our class materials. In order for students to be interested in maintaining a materials centre, more time will have to be provided. Although I may model care for materials, I need to be more explicit in my modelling and give the time during our day to make it a priority. I also plan on acknowledging the students who maintain the materials. Mike has suggested in his blog that each group of students has a materials manager that looks after a kit. I may look for volunteers or rotate students in a group to work together to maintain the class materials centre. The care for classroom materials is connected to character trait education. It can also extend to care of the school and the community.

 

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Mike Beetham Before School Starts, Building Inclusion, Classroom Layouts, First Week Reflections, Student Ownership

I Lost My Pencil

If I had a dollar for every time I heard ‘I lost my pencil. I don’t have an eraser.” I would, well I wouldn’t be blogging about it. This is just one of many ways that off task time takes away from instructional focus. Over the last several years I have experimented with a communal focus in terms of supplies and materials. My intent was to reduce the energy spent and ultimately time lost  looking for basic working tools. I started by having containers that held pencils and containers that held erasers and they were placed on work areas. The idea was the students just had to get their book out and the writing tools would be there right in front of them. The students would just return it to the container where they borrowed it from. This produced immediate results in that as a group we seemed to be organized and ready to go sooner. This routine had to be taught and consistently applied. Of course students were allowed to use their own tools, but quick access was just an arm’s reach away.

As this plan evolved I had to figure out how to keep the pencils sharpened, rotation of old pencils out and new pencils and erasers in. Well, that ended being a great job for  a team of students (student helpers). The current edition of this strategy is where I create complete tool kits (pencils, erasers, glue, scissors, rulers and highlighters) and each team is responsible for caring for their work materials. This shift in thinking from individual to communal supplies also assisted with students who have difficulty supplying their own tools, it eliminates the competition in having the most creative or expensive pencils or pens and puts the students on task earlier and for longer periods of time.

I am very interested in other suggestions around this topic. Please add your experiences.

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Erin.Grewar Building Inclusion, Classroom Layouts, Classroom Management, Diverse Learning Needs, Students as Teachers

Reaching All Learners – Flexibility in Core French Class

Out of all the challenges you are confronted with as a teacher, it seems to me that one of the most difficult of all is making sure that you can meet the needs of all of your students (simultaneously!). Everything else seems to hinge on this; if your students can function/are sufficiently challenged, they are engaged. If they are engaged, they are motivated and will not cause problems in class. Seems like once you can identify the root problem, implementing a solution is easy…As we all know, this is seldom the case. Core French being a second/third language makes it that much more challenging. In essence, EVERYONE is needy and that much more dependent on the teacher. It can be exhausting and difficult to be pulled in so many directions. See if this sounds familiar (keep in mind, the key word is once again “simultaneously”).

 Do you have your project with you today?

What project?

 The one we worked on together yesterday? I had given you sentence starters and we spent 20 minutes working on key vocabulary?

 No, I lost it.

 (Great) Well, start it aga…(interrupted) 

I can’t find my sheet!/He stole my pencil and won’t give it back!/How do you say “is” in French?/If I write double the sentences, do I get a level 4?

  So on and so on. No matter how much experience you have (and I have a lot), it is still a difficult task that can leave you feeling overwhelmed. This year, I’m trying out a different approach with my grade seven class with the following scenario: 33 kids in a small space (not my classroom), 4 gifted, 3 on IEPs and 2 HSP students with identified learning disabilities. Already seated in groups of four, I have them now sitting with at least 1 “expert” per group. They are those students who are not only high functioning but are also good communicators. Their job is to make sure that everyone in their group is following along and if they are having difficulties of any kind, they are the “go to” people. I am hoping this will allow me to circulate more and really help those in need (for remediation or enrichment) in a focused way.

 

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Alison.Board Building Inclusion, Classroom Management, Differentiated Instruction, Equity, General

Top Ten for Maintaining Classroom Community

The other day one of my less participatory students described our classroom as “welcoming” in his writing journal. I was pleasantly surprised by his point of view and reflected on what might make it a positive space him and his fellow students. Here is a list of what actions, arrangements, and routines contribute to our positive classroom community:

  1. Greet the students as they enter the classroom every morning.
  2. Incorporate Tribes activities on a monthly basis, or when needed.
  3. Allow students a few minutes to chat and get settled before beginning the first lesson of the day.
  4. Arrange desks in groupings of different sizes to suit the needs and learning preferences of the students.
  5. Provide bean chairs/big pillows for students to use when reading or working independently or in small groups.
  6. Invite students for class discussions or read-alouds at the class carpet. They choose to sit on the carpet or bring their chair.
  7. Display student writing, math problem solving, art, and student book reviews or graffiti on walls around the room.
  8. When there is an issue, address it quietly in the hall or away from the eyes of peers.
  9. Provide a round table in the centre of the room for casual teacher-student conferences and peer meetings.
  10. Check in with students as they leave for home each day.
Alison.Board Building Inclusion, Classroom Layouts

Preparing for the First Day

This year I will be moving classrooms and divisions. Teaching a grade 5/6 class at the other end of school from the Kindergarten section will be a big change for me and also for my students. I am sure they will be looking for glimpses of the “Kindergarten Teacher” that they saw in the halls last year. So I am planning to bring some of what I have learned as a Kindergarten teacher to my new students in grade 5/6. Statistics show that over 90% of children in Kindergarten enjoy school. This number dramatically decreases as children reach the junior and intermediate grades. I want the children in my class to be engaged in their learning and enjoy coming to school.

When starting the new school year I always look through the practical information provided in “The Heart and Art of Teaching and Learning,” to find suggestions on setting up the classroom or planning for building inclusion. On page 22, in a section on Environment, it refers to the Reggio Emilia approach, which considers the children’s development and relationships with their environment. The chapter continues with, “Not only should the classroom represent your beliefs and values about teaching, it should also support them. In order to make the classroom engaging and inviting, consider what you want students to feel when they come in and how you might communicate this in a non-verbal way.”

I always find the environment a good place to start when planning for a new group of students. The layout, the materials, even the lighting can affect how the students interact with the resources and with each other. My goal this year is to have a classroom that is comfortable and aesthetically inviting, yet organized to foster responsibility and independence. I want to encourage collaboration and provide areas for movement within the classroom that focus on particular interests such as reading, art, science & technology, and math.

Alison.Board Homework, Literacy, Resources, Use of Technology

Reading in Kindergarten

Literacy is woven into our day. We do not have “literacy centres”, but we do have learning centres that include literacy. We have shared reading, independent reading, formal writing times that look like a Writer’s Workshop, and purposeful writing that happens around the classroom such as writing cards, letters, making books and recording observations.

There is no “language block”, instead language is used in our morning circle to share our feelings and connect with one another. It is used during read a-louds to teach conventions of books, visualization, sequence, and voice. We learn how to spell familiar words and we learn how to use rich language to describe and express our ideas. Books are connected to our math lessons and science inquiries. We share books that enjoy reading over and over again, and we read new books on the computers and listen to stories using BookFlix.

When I started my new classroom in September, there were limited literacy resources. I acquired a variety of picture books from family and friends and I used the books from our school library to fill the shelves and reading bins. To organize the books, we designated one display rack for hardcover books and another for softcover books. I remember the day that we discussed how to tell the difference. Even now, some children knock on their book to determine which shelf it should be returned to. This also provides a daily opportunity for sorting – see how literacy is never a stand-alone in Kindergarten!

One of the first things I noticed was how rough the children were with the books. It took months of reminders and practice for the children not to throw the books, step on them, or pull at them and rip pages. You would assume that by Kindergarten children would know how to handle books, but for many children in the class handling the books in a gentle and respective manner was not familiar to them. To assist in their practice, we modelled then asked the children to “close your books gently, carry them like a cake, and place them face out on the appropriate book rack”. Now the children are much more aware of the condition of the books, and often come to me with concern that a page has ripped or torn, and ask that it be fixed with tape.

Back in September, there were no (maybe a few) levelled readers for the Kindergarten classrooms. This was the biggest concern for me, as I believe in the consistent use of levelled books to develop readers in the classroom. Through the suggestion of an instructional leader, I was able to order paper copies of what are considered replacement books and use these for a book borrowing program and for work with individuals or small groups in the classroom. These books have been invaluable for my students. Although I do not assign homework in Kindergarten, I do set up a book bag program that allows children to take home a book at their level and write about their book in an accompanying journal. There are not assigned days to take or return a book, therefore it is a program that can suit the families and their schedules. I have some students who return their book bags every day or every other day, while other students may return their bag within a week or two. All of the SK students (and a few JK students) have moved up in levels, but most importantly they feel successful as readers. The levelled readers have not been a “requirement” of the childrens’ day or have they felt pressure to read. By providing them with a book at their level (mostly all at level 1 in September) they felt excited to take a book home and then felt successful because they could actually read it. This encouraged them to continue with the program and become independent readers!

 

 

 

 

 

Levelled books for Book Bag Program