Blog – Page 118

November 30, 2016 Tammy Axt General

Grade five dance

Sometimes getting our older students to dance with each other is a challenge. Being touched or touching others can be so uncomfortable for them. I know exactly how they feel. I was one of the first members of my class in grade four to hit puberty with the force of a train. I remember what it was like to be so uncomfortable with anyone in my personal space or to have anyone look, comment or touch my body in any way . As a result, I really empathize with my students when they are shy or uncomfortable about personal space. One idea my teacher partner and I came up with to help with this issue was to create a dance unit that required students to dance with props instead of each other. Below I have outlined the student and teacher instructions of our unit.

Grade Five Spatial Relationship Dance

Student Instructions

Learning Goals

Demonstrate the use of five different spatial relationships with a prop.
Demonstrate the form ‘Call and Response’

Spatial Relationships

Over/Under

Around

In-front/Behind

On/Off

Beside

Through

In/Out

Call

PARTNER 1 – performs a 4 or 8 count movement with a prop that demonstrates the use of a spatial relationship such as ‘over’. Partner 2 remains still while Partner 1 performs.

Response

PARTNER 2 – Then Partner 2 performs a 4 or 8 count movement with a prop that demonstrates the use of the same spatial relationship (such as over) as their partner but the movement must be different.

This call and response pattern is repeated five times.

Dance Plan Example:

Spatial Relationship	Partner 1	Partner 2
1. Over/Under	Jump and Spin	Twist and Gallop

Criteria

Dance with a prop using 5 different spatial relationships
Use the form ‘Call & Response’
Create movement that uses your whole body
Use both locomotor and non-locomotor movements

Next Steps: Show a preliminary performance to the teacher to get some next steps to help in the creative process

Student Reflection – Identify the two sections of the dance that you liked the best. Explain why these were your favourite.

Teacher Instructions:

Explain to students that spatial relationships have to do with how we relate to an object or person in space. Prepositions are used to describe spatial relationships. (Provide a list of prepositions.)
Introduce the concept of spatial relationships in any of the following ways: using a prop, using your own body, or using a partner.
Introduce the criteria for this dance emphasizing that the spatial relationships will be done with a prop.
Explain that the form ‘Call and Response’ is used when you see a dance battle. This dance will use the same form but is not meant to be a ‘battle’. Each partner will create their own movement.
Provide a variety of props for students to use to stimulate creativity.
When students begin to create their dances, watch to see if they are following the criteria listed on the student handout sheet.

Here is a picture that includes some of the props we used for our unit.

props-1

November 30, 2016 Will Gourley Challenging Topics, Constant Learning, Differentiated Instruction, General, Making a Difference Through Education, Modern Learning, Professional Learning and Growth, self reflection

Painting with the same brush.

https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/zero/1.0/deed.en — PublicDomainPictures / 18043 images CCO 1.0

Underlying
An artist was preparing to paint one day. First, she stretched and secured her canvas over its wooden frame. The artist continued by arranging her brushes, planning a colour scheme, and then by setting up her supplies. Finally, it was time to ponder her subject forever to be captured in a moment of time and occupied space – where her vision would be on display in pigment, oil or acrylic for evermore for all to enjoy.

The artist could already see her finished masterpiece. As if the picture had miraculously painted itself. Without anything left to imagine, conjure, or deliberate she began.

Un-(der) inpired
It was all right there in living, er um, cold dead colour. All she had to do was slather it onto the wintery whitewashed space in waiting. She pulled out the widest brush in her kit, dipped it into the first colour, white, and painted a perfectly straight line across the top of the canvas. She dipped her brush again and repeated, the same thing over and over, with the precision of her first strokes until she has covered the entire canvas. She felt satisfied, but did not have time to admire her work for long. There were 29 more canvases to cover just like the first one. She smiled, sighed, dipped her brush, and started on the next one. Yet, with a pallet of colours and brushes at the ready, the artist only knew how to paint with a single brush and to use white paint to do her work.

http://kaboompics.com/one_foto/880/brush-painting-the-white-wall CCO License

Under pressure
Does teaching ever seem like this to you? Do educators feel they are asked to paint blank canvases everyday, but are only given one wide brush and a single colour to work with? I wonder whether that is how some teachers have come to feel when a learning system is imposed on them which expects students to be taught to the test?

Teachers plan and prepare their materials to deliver a lesson much like the artist in the story above and in the end are expected to use the broadest brush and one shade of paint. What may be more disappointing, is that many only have time to paint one coat before feeling they have to move on.

Underwhelmed
I am not a huge fan of the traditional textbook. In fact I have called them “knowledge coffins” in the past. When traditional textbooks are at the centre of the instructional day, there is little option for learners to explore beyond its pages. Yes, it’s all in there, but at what cost are other things and ideas being left out?

First, consider the cost of purchasing texts/licenses per class. Math books alone can range upwards of $1500 to $2000 for a class set per subject. What happens when the curriculum gets revamped like what has recently happened in Ontario with the French(2013), Health/Physical Education(2015), and Social Studies(2013). Could the money schools, boards, and government pour into photocopies and textbooks be used to provide Chromebooks for every student instead? Imagine the cost savings in paper alone. If we did this, every learner from K to 12 could be equipped with a productivity and research tool for the classroom at their fingertips? And, at home too if WiFi is available.

Unrepentant
I am a fan of adaptive and hands on learning environments. In the classroom, I want students to have a voice in how and what they are being taught so we can democratize education. I believe all educators possess the means/ability to transform and tailor their instruction to suit their students. What they need now is a safe place to do so and that’s an issue of system and school leadership.

To paint a portrait of the future, educators need to use the prescribed curriculum as a pallet filled with colours that is not limited to a paint-by-number task. However, many are afraid to use other, less traditional brushes and materials to paint their masterpieces because the outcomes might not look resemble or match work gathering dust on the walls.

Yes, there are things to be taken from the past, but the world outside our classrooms has not remained fixed in space and time. Neither should it remain static inside. The classroom must become a vibrant and connected place where students have access to, and be able to contribute to a world of knowledge.

This requires courage to happen. It requires time for others to understand, accept, and embrace. It doesn’t have to look perfect. The mess is an important part of the process.

Ask yourself what or who inspires you to take chances as a learner? What new idea(s) would you try in your classroom if you knew you couldn’t fail? Start by giving yourself permission to change things up in one subject area, and then go from there.

I’ll be here to chat if you want to talk more about how we can change the portrait of education to a landscape of creativity, differentiation, and encouragement.

In the meantime I have some brushes to clean.

November 29, 2016 Beverly Papove Outdoor Learning, Play-Based Learning, self reflection

Organizing the Flow of the Day

We have clocked in three months in our kindergarten class so far, and on the whole, my ECE partner and I feel there are some really strong aspects of our day – the outdoor learning blocks at the beginning and end of the day, for example, and weather permitting, outdoor time in the middle of the day for a small group activity (today it was raining and the puddles were the big attraction).

Since we are with the students for the majority of the day, the two of us have worked at creating a ‘flow’ to the day. Nonetheless, we find we are still constantly making adjustments to the classroom set up, to activities, and to the overall schedule. For example, we have trimmed our circle times considerably since our students sit as a large group for music and games in French with their two other teachers each day. What we occasionally do now is have a quick everybody-to-the-carpet for a regrouping or a message before an event or activity, with the time spent sitting limited to about one or two minutes maximum. Sometimes it is just a chance to have a ‘huddle’ for a reminder that we are about to do something together as a class – tidy up, wash hands, get ready to go outside, or line up for library. The message is simple and clear and helps the students prepare for a transition, and we have sometimes used it as an opportunity to ground the group if the energy has risen towards the rafters.

Considering that the model of Full Day Kindergarten (FDK) is mandated to reflect the structure of the preschool day rather than a Grade 1 classroom, we often have to remind ourselves of the board directive for a play-based program as we leave behind longer, teacher-lead, large group lessons. However, this can sometimes lead us to feel as if we are not adequately preparing our students for reading and writing activities in the Grade 1 program. Thus, we are at odds as to the delivery of our program – preschool exploration or preparation for seatwork using alphabet and number systems, or a possible blend of the two? (for insightful articles discussing this conundrum in kindergarten, please see, “The Joyful, Illiterate Kindergarteners of Finland” from The Atlantic, as well as the blog, “Why I Don’t Like Play-Based Learning.”).

In our classroom, I guess you could say we have attempted a blend of large group circle time for music and games balanced with opportunities for individual inquiry and play-based (i.e. student-driven) learning. Keeping in mind that managing to get a whole group of jk and sk students to sit quietly in a circle while we deliver a lesson does not necessarily mean that the whole group will learn what we are delivering, we have found that we are more successful gathering a small group of students for a smaller, more intimate and focussed lesson where we can attend to and assess each one of them individually for a shorter amount of time. Expectations for group learning are still met and we can easily target what we want to achieve. To do this, we have designated a floating time during an exploration time block where we will invite a few students at a time to come and visit us for a short activity or task. We try to select the students who are ‘free’ to dedicate their attention to the activity, that is, those who may be travelling from one centre to the next, or those who are just finishing up a snack, so that their play is relatively uninterrupted. We have found that when we are set up for a task we regularly get visits from other students who may not have been invited but are curious as to what we are doing and ask if they can join in. As we observe them, we can see that this curiosity and voluntary participation is ideal to include on a report card as evidence of Problem Solving and Innovating.

So while we seek to achieve a balance between true, play-based learning and the expectations of a program ‘aligned with the curriculum’ in our classroom, my partner and I feel as if the flow to our day has genuinely begun to reflect the most positive aspects of both, offering the students as many opportunities to learn how to learn.

November 29, 2016 Tammy Axt General, Professional Learning and Growth

Getting ready for my first TPA- Evidence of the Competencies

Now that I have been teaching for five years, I have to complete my first complete TPA, including all competencies and all components. The whole TPA process can be overwhelming and stressful and preparing for it has caused me some anxiety, I won’t lie. Due to a mid-year change in administration, I haven’t set my date yet for my evaluation, but I thought it was time to start getting prepared for my pre-observation meeting. I figured getting prepared early would alleviate some of the anxiety I am feeling.

In preparation for my TPA, I have read two really helpful sources of information:

1. The Ministry of Education has written a manual that outlines the entire TPA process. You can download and read the manual at http://www.edu.gov.on.ca/eng/teacher/appraise.html. It is a long read, but it outlines the process in detail.

2. The Professional Relations Department at ETFO has written two really helpful bulletins on the TPA process. I really appreciated guidance around all of the pitfalls to try and avoid.

Advice for members

http://www.etfo.ca/AdviceForMembers/PRSMattersBulletins/Pages/Teacher%20Performance%20Appraisal%20For%20Experienced%20Teachers%20-%20Advice%20to%20Members.aspx

Overview of the Process

http://www.etfo.ca/AdviceForMembers/PRSMattersBulletins/Pages/Teacher%20Performance%20Appraisal%20for%20Experienced%20Teachers%20-%20Overview%20of%20the%20Process.aspx

I have also attending my local’s TPA workshop that was held earlier this year. At that workshop, the presenter encouraged us all to make our evidence of the 16 competencies really clear and accessible for our administrator. The presenter shared with us a variety of ways in order to present your evidence such as folders, a binder or photo books. I have decided to gather a binder of evidence that shows my ability to demonstrate the sixteen competencies within the five domains. Here are a few pictures of the contents of my binder and how I have organized my presentation.

I organized the contents into the five domains. Below is a peak into the fourth domain.

I used post it notes to highlight how the contents demonstrate the competencies.

Getting evaluated can be stressful, but gathering evidence of your success in the sixteen competencies can go a long way to guiding your conversation with your administrator in a positive direction. You already do amazing things every single day in your classroom! Just gather up some of those materials and get ready to shine.

November 23, 2016 Beverly Papove Outdoor Education, Play-Based Learning

Here we go with the snow

Monday morning, we went to school in the first blizzard of the year. It was bitterly cold, and the wind howled around, blowing the 20 centimetres of snow into small drifts. Was there ever a question that our outdoor learning block at the beginning of the day would be cancelled? I am not comfortable just automatically calling for an indoor morning during inclement weather, and usually tend to have a Big Think if I do. So, making sure that all my students had the requisite cold weather clothing, we set out in the morning as usual.

In a previous post, I mentioned how baking hot the kindergarten playground is during the warm and sunny months, but I had no idea how miserable it could be in the cold. With the cold weather, it turns into a wind tunnel, creating a crusty surface of snow and ice. WIth the climbing structure now closed, there is little to do when the conditions are so unfavourable. The only shelter is a small plastic playhouse in a corner, and the rest of the area is open to the elements as the wind whips up the hill from the river and blasts the yard. If a student drops a mitten, it creates mayhem as they run squealing after it before it gets pinned by the wind to the chain link fence at the other side of the yard. Hilarious.

So, I admit that while I was hollering the students’ names into the wind in order to be heard while I took attendance, I began to have second thoughts about the idea of staying outside for the morning block. I am glad to say that we decided to stay outdoors, but not in the kindergarten yard which was so inhospitable. We decided, instead, to go on a walk in the snow around the school where we could at least get out of the wind and allow the students to have some fresh air and fun. Having taught in an Inuit community at the top of Hudson’s Bay, I remember recess time on the tundra where it was often cold and blustery and staying indoors was not an option. You dress for it, and without making a point of whatever opinion you may have of winter, you get out into it and enjoy yourself.

As we trudged through the drifts, I was so impressed with the children’s resilience in spite of the cold. There are some students who have never been through an Ottawa winter and who have to borrow warm clothing each day for our outdoor block, and yet, there they were, laughing as they would try to walk in the deep snow and fall into their friends, or as they made snow angels for the first time. We climbed the mountains of snow the plow had pushed to one end of the junior yard, then rolled down the hill at the back of the school into a field of fresh drifts.

It took us over half an hour to navigate the complete school yard and make it back to the fenced-in kindergarten yard. The wind was still howling and a couple of mittens had fallen off during the climbing adventures, so, looking at the rosy cheeks and running noses, my ECE partner and I started a slow filter indoors for any students who were ready for a change of environment. While most children filed into the classroom, a handful wanted to stay outside and asked me for the toboggans. Since we were all well-dressed and well-prepared to continue staying outdoors for a little while longer, the tobogganing was a bonus activity that saw the students continue to independently explore a host of different ways to slide down the hill. Reflecting on what the students were learning, I easily made anecdotal notes for all for the Four Frames, excepting LIteracy and Mathematics Behaviours. What’s more, the students looked out for one another before heading down the hill, patiently took turns, and helped each other up the hill if they struggled with their sled. They were a very happy crew, and when we made our way back to the classroom, although many of them would have preferred to stay outside a while longer, everyone brought their sled back to the shed and stacked it properly without a complaint.

When we got inside and they were peeling off crusty mittens and snowy boots, you could hear sighs of, “That was so much fun!” from the cubby room. It’s only the first snowfall, but I am really happy that it was a positive experience for all the students. I will remember that the next time we get walloped by winter weather.

November 13, 2016November 13, 2016 Will Gourley Assessment, Celebrating Success, General, Mental Health, Report Cards

The upside of encouragement

Photo by Peter Kratochvil https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/zero/1.0/

It’s that time of year again. Autumn leaves have turned colour and fallen without a care to the ground. Halloween candy supplies are at seasonal lows and sugar fuelled misbehaviour incidents are subsiding.

There is a love-hate feeling attached to this time of year. A love of the beauty that nature has bestowed upon us, and a hate for the extra work it adds to the lives of many. How we see this season may define our perspectives in many areas of our lives. I will not be raking this year, but always take time to enjoy the changing colours.

Fall is also a time for appreciation and reflection. For many educators, it means time to write Progress Reports. It can also be a time of mild anxiety on both sides of classroom.

Teachers might be asking, “Have I assessed enough?”
“Did I give students enough opportunity to demonstrate their understandings?”
“Did I do everything I could to foster success?”
“Did I catch it when they were successful?”
“What will parents think of my assessment of their child?”
“What are the next steps in my class before the next reporting cycle?”

Students are probably wondering how they are doing too?
“Did my teacher notice that I am trying my best?”
“Did I do everything I could to succeed?”
“What marks will my friends get?
“Am I below, at, or above average?”
“Will my parents be happy with my marks?”
“Am I happy with my marks?”

Come to think of it, I have been thinking a lot about assessment lately. Educators assess for, as, and of learning. We use conversation, observation, and product to quantify student achievement and qualify our instructional methods. We have achievement charts, success criteria, and demonstrations of understanding all orchestrated to associate a grade, mark, or secure a checkpoint before moving forward. There is however, another key catalyst to move our students towards success. And that is encouragement.

Think of it this way. Have you ever been complimented by someone after something you did? I’m sure it was encouraging? Of course it was because you were noticed and validated for your efforts by someone else. I always value when someone takes the time share their appreciation for something I’ve done. Even when I didn’t see it myself. Each time I receive encouragement makes me want to work even harder. Our students respond this way too.
Why wouldn’t they?

When I look at what educators hold in their actions, words, and interactions with students – it is the power of encouragement that can make the biggest impact. So how can we use it to empower our students to succeed? Have you ever seen a student happy after receiving a mark, or feedback that only magnifies what was wrong with their work? How about after you complimented them after a job well done?

Students, usually, know where they stand in the classroom, whether they are budding on the tree, or withering. This could be emphasised for the better every time educators choose to acknowledge the good that is in each of their learners. Bandura shared that, “Teachers should also encourage students as a way to enhance their self-efficacies and thus improve their learning.” Some might call this Strengths Based Learning. For me encouragement is a simple, yet crucial instructional tool which promotes a positive outlook on effort, learning, and assessment.

When students are encouraged they are free to become risk takers who are safe to try, safe to make mistakes, safe to fail, safe to try again, and always safe to learn. As the marks fall on this year’s progress reports, with encouragement, students will see the beauty in their efforts instead of being raked over for their work.

November 6, 2016 Mike Beetham Celebrating Success, General, Inspiring Students, Inspiring Teachers, Making a Difference Through Education, solidarity

Remembering To Remember

Life is so busy that it sometimes takes an overwhelming effort to make time for yourself, let alone remembering all the sacrifices that have been made that allow us to live in such a free country. Yet we must and we must teach our children so they understand the why of remembering and not just the act of remembering.

Every year we make a concentrated effort to bring the community and school focus on Remembrance Day. Teachers and students put together emotionally compelling presentations to honour the generations from our past that made the ultimate sacrifice to make Canada the country it is. As part of our daily commitment to students we must commit to educating them not only about the world events that lead us to November 11, but also the small, day-to-day acts that make their world safer, healthier and provides them with a seemingly endless list of opportunities.

Take the time to have classroom discussions about the role of police officers, firefighters, physicians, crossing guards and any other key individuals that impact their life. Write letters of thank you and deliver them to those individuals or organizations. As a teacher (and key role model for your students) model for them on a daily basis how remembering can be demonstrated in such small ways as simply saying thank you.

Finally, as a teacher who has been in the profession for over thirty years, I must say thank you to the generations of colleagues before me. They spent days on the picket line, sacrificed family time and were the target of public scrutiny in order to make my profession what it is. I am blessed to have job security, benefits, peace of mind knowing my wife is treated equitably as a teacher and that my working conditions and student learning conditions are constantly being protected. This was not always the way for teachers.

“Remember For More Than A Day”

November 6, 2016November 6, 2016 Kelly.McLaughlin General

Flexible Seating

Working towards my student flexible seating classroom has been an interesting journey so far. The journey started in September with two bean bags, two carpets and one outdoor soccer chair. These items were interesting and were the go to spots in our room. The bean bags were always crowded and students enjoyed working on the carpets while reading or working in groups.

I started to bring in more items and we started to need more room for all of these items. The entire class designed a plan for our room (four in total) and I showed every class in the school their plan. Then, after a winner was chosen, we got to work to re-set up the room.

The final plan included a few new items:

an exercise bike for brain breaks
two more carpets donated by a grade eight student
a large purple bean bag donated by a student in our room
two blow up coaches that are hard to handle as they deflate every twenty to thirty minutes
one large rectangular table
one small hexagon table

We are now almost at our goal, we have seven interesting seating areas in our room. These areas are all different and are available to all students. Students are now choosing where they sit every morning, the seats are not permanent and they are a work in progress. I cannot wait to keep adding items and taking some away as they unfortunately break…

Students having a large say in the way their class looks I believe is the best way to set up a class. I encourage you all to give your class design over to your students!

November 6, 2016 Mike Beetham Before School Starts, Building Inclusion, Classroom Management, Communication Tools, Communication with Parents and Guardians

Positive vs Negative Student Balances

When you look at your bank account you work extremely hard to ensure you always have a positive balance. By having a positive balance you are able to pursue so many options in how you may use that surplus. When you are not able to keep a positive balance, you become very limited in the options you have and may in the worst circumstance go bankrupt.

I look at each and every child and each and every family in that way. I start in September with a zero balance as I am just opening up that account. From the first minute I interact with each child as well as their family, I am either making deposits or withdrawals. Each and every positive statement I make, word of encouragement I offer, inflating vs deflating statement said, either builds that account or reduces that account balance.

When a conflict occurs (and it will) you are now having to look at the account you have created and will make a withdrawal as you help that child understand the choice they made and how to learn from it. If you have a built up a strong, positive balance with that child you are able to make that withdrawal without having any ill effects on the relationship that exists between the both of you. If it is a call home in regards to a negative scenario that occurred at school, the family’s reaction will be either supportive or defensive depending on the balance you have established at home with the parent(s).

I use a variety of tools to help foster a positive balance. The two most effective for me are ‘Sunshine Calls’ and rephrasing my comments when I react to the day-to-day events that unravel in my room. In a sunshine call I am truly just trying to send a positive message to each family about their child. It can be as simple as a comment about a great writing effort that occurred today, how their child read aloud for the first time in front of his/her peers or what a positive decision they made not make a small problem bigger. Over time I can actually hear the change in how the parent reacts to me once they recognize their child’s teacher is calling. Within a few months, the calls home are very sociable and appreciated by the family.

The second strategy took me a while to develop. I had to literally think about how and what I would say when events occurred. First I had to examine my approach and found that my initial comments were deflating or withdrawing from that account balance. For example if a student made a mess, I would say, “ You need to be more careful and not make a mess”. This type of statement always puts a student on the defensive. I am learning to rephrase my comments to be able to send a message but not put a student on the defensive. I now say “ Are you okay, accidents happen to everyone. How can we clean it up?”

A very unintentional but amazing benefit of this approach was that I was modelling for my students each day how to be respectful to each other in the way they communicate. Soon, this type of positive communication becomes the norm of the class. There are less and less conflicts between students simply due to the way they learn to communicate with each other and the people around them.

October 31, 2016October 31, 2019 Will Gourley General, Teacher Wellness

What’s really scary

Ir’s October 31st, and in the chilling shrills of SCTV’s Count Floyd, “AAH-OOOOOOOOOOOOO, it’s very scary!!!!”

That’s right zomboys and ghouls, two months of school have flown past faster than a banshee in a frighter jet. Did you stop to breathe? Have you had a chance? Did the start of the new school year take your breath away? A new year can be full of tricks and treats for both new and experienced teachers alike.

Congratulations, by my calculations 20% of this year’s pumpkin pie has been sliced and served. What memories will you take away from these first two months. In my class we take some time to thresh out what’s been alright from the blight.

We had another reorganization due to rapid growth in our school. That meant quite a few changes. Some students had to be moved to new classes, we welcomed new staff, and in some cases routines needed to be re-established with a completely new classroom dynamics. Did you have to re-organize after prepping all Summer for a different grade?

Did you smile? Did you know that some teachers were taught not to smile until November? I couldn’t make it past the first day. Chris Emdin’s TED Talk Teach teachers how to create magic shows us a better way. Now this is something to howl about. AAH-OOOOOOOO!!!

Has your year been a fright or a delight so far? Beware as the chilling thoughts of report card writing are lurking around every corner. When I first started teaching I was tormented by minutia of learning the operating system, communicating learned, strengths, and next steps in parent friendly voice, administrative preferences, and to make sure I had enough data to back it all up. VERY SCARY!!!! With the support of my grade partner(s) and a cauldron of caffeine I have slain the very beast that haunted my early practice.

How are you balancing the tricks and treats of classroom life? Did you give yourself permission to enjoy the experience? I find that teachers get so caught up acting like humans doing that they forget to enjoy that they are human beings. Where’s the treat in that?

You owe it to yourself to take time to take it all in while taking care of everything in your classroom. You’re an educator who stands alongside a room full of time machines, each with boundless ideas and imaginations. So that if we’re going to be afraid of something it will only be the boundaries we try to put around ourselves and therefore our students. Now that’s something scary. Happy Hallowe’en.