Meaningful Morning Messages

This year I start everyday with a morning message. I have found this is a very good way to differentiate learning whole class. They begin with pair and share. Then students come up one at a time to tell us a word they already know, a letter they already know or a letter they want to learn. It has been amazing to watch some students read words I would have never known they could read. We talk about the strategies they use to figure out what they word is. This has also become a perfect opportunity for me to work on the components of the Reading Readiness Screening Tool. I Some of the activities that I  have been using with my morning message are:

• We circle the words they know and underline the letters they know. 
• We clap the words in the sentence. 
• Find rhyming words.
• Identify how many syllables in certain words.
• Breaking apart and putting together a word
• Oral Cloze

I have found that using a daily morning message has given the students a better understanding on why these skills are important to learn.

The students also love to count how many words they can read as a class. We count how many words are circled and do a few activities on this number. Showing the number in different ways etc. 

The following is a link with some information on the purpose behind a daily message and different activities that can be done with a daily message.

http://mrsjonesroom.com/jones/morningmessage.html

5B Best practices

Risktaking in the Classroom

I have learned that taking risks and overcoming failure is one of those powerful things that we need to instill in ourselves in and in our students. However in saying that, it is also true that this needs to be balanced with providing students a safe place where they can make mistakes and to build trust with each student. 

In order to take risks and overcome failure, students need to trust that they are not going to be mocked or punished for mistakes and failures. When I first started teaching, I found myself wanting to be the teacher who had students who never made mistakes or failed. It took me a while to figure out that their mistakes and failures were directly connected to me as the teacher. No matter how much I wanted them to succeed, if the foundation wasn’t there they were not going to succeed. And because they were terrified of failing, my students would not take risks or say, “I don’t understand this, can you help me?” I learned that this was not beneficial for my students.

So how do you teach students to take risks and overcome failure? The first thing you have to do is provide them with a safe learning environment and show them that they can trust you to make mistakes. At first it is daunting because you are met with huff and puffs and eyerolls as to why they can’t just give you what they have done and be happy with that. But as they are pushed to think, question, use trial and error on their own, they begin to push through the barriers and problem solve on their own. 

As educators, we have to let go of the control which is so difficult. We want to manage our students and our classrooms in a way that makes us feel comfortable and safe as teachers. But we have to show our students that we are willing to take risks and that sometimes, we will be learning alongside them. I truly love when the conversation goes like this:

Student: How does this piece fit in?

Teacher: I’m not sure, I’m trying to figure that out as well.

Student: *snaps together all the pieces and makes it work* Oh I got it!

Teacher: Wait, show me what you did!

Student: *repeats and shows me then goes around and teaches the other groups*

Yes, letting go of control can be daunting and classrooms should not be UNcontrolled. But when it comes to risk taking, teachers have to allow their students some control. The environment we create in our classrooms decides what kinds of learners we will have. Are we creating an environment that allows risk taking and problem solving to take place or are we limiting that potential in our classrooms and ultimately, our students.

http://teacher.scholastic.com/professional/bruceperry/safety_wonder.htm

Growth Mindset

KSA #3:

f) Teachers create and maintain environments that are conducive to student learning. Teachers establish learning environments wherein students feel physically, psychologically, socially and culturally secure...https://education.alberta.ca/media/1626523/english-tqs-card-2013_3.pdf

A personal passion of mine has always been neuroscience and studying how the brain works. When I got into education, I found myself particularly interested in how learning affects the brain. Reading the book Growth Mindset by Carol Dweck bridged both of these interests and spurred me to realize the importance of teaching the basic principles of how the brain works and empowering students with this knowledge. When I got the grade five assignment, I knew that division two kids would be a little more receptive to the science behind it and was excited to dive in.  I looked at the health program of studies and related the mindfulness teaching to the wellness outcome R–5.3 and the lifelong learning outcomes L–5.2 and L–5.4.

We started the year learning about the amygdala in the center of the brain that controls a person's emotions. They learned that "like elastic bands that stretch when you pull them, your brain stretches and grows as you take risks and make mistakes".  We talked about instances in their own lives when they felt frightened about taking a risk and how each time you find the courage to face your fear, your amygdala stretches a little more until it will help you overcome your fear altogether.  We then looked at the rest of the brain and the basic growth mindset principle that learning something new causes the brain to grow more connections among the neurons and with more connections the neurons can send and receive more messages.  In the classroom, we are constantly referring to these concepts and encouraging risk taking and brain growth.  Your Fantastic Elastic Brain by JoAnn Deak is a great picture book for teaching these concepts.

The other piece in teaching growth mindset that relates to KSA #3 f) and the above health outcomes is the concept of fixed mindset vs. growth mindset (see chart below for a quick overview). We read the novel Fish in a Tree by Lynda Mullaly Hunt and observed and analyzed how the main character 'Ally' started with a fixed mindset and changed to a growth mindset.  Students made text connections to themselves and reflected on how they could make mindset changes in their own lives.

In bringing these two concepts together, students in 5A understand that they have a safe learning environment where they are encouraged to take risks and nurture their 'growth mindset' and to NOT indulge their 'fixed mindset'.  Just because they can't do something, just means that they can't do it YET. 

Exploring with DoodleBots

Jennine came to me today to suggest that I write a post for our blog focusing on an activity we took part in about a week ago. Right now, we are studying Electricity and Magnetism as well as Mechanisms Using Electricity for Science and I spent a nice portion of my CIF on some new technology for this unit. The one item I have had on my bucket list since I attended ATLE last November are the maker kits from Logics Academy.

Logics Academy makes these amazing kits for students to explore and problem solve.

The Doodle-Bot (which is pictured above) is a battery operated bot with a motor and a bag of items. All the items are of use in some way but there are no instructions given so the students have to problem solve and use trial and error in order to make the bot work. 

Students were so engaged in this activity which ties in quite a few objectives from our science curriculum. Teamwork was not a problem as the students willingly shared and took turns to work to build this strange creature. One student immediately knew the one mystery piece was a motor and if he connected it to a battery they could get it to work. And they did. The motor bounced on the table for quite some time before they realized they needed to attach it to the bot. Once students began to figure out how each component worked or fit, they began to figure out different ways to use the bot. 

Students were able to set up circle battles, races and doodle competitions with each other during the next class. This was great activity that was hands on and really pushed students to think outside of the box. 

I can't wait for the next Maker Kit we break into. It's the Bumper Bot! And students again will have to create him from the pieces given and create a maze that allows Bumper Bot to show what he is capable of. As a teacher I am so thrilled when I see my students engage in an activity like this. It brings the concepts that we teach (which can be a little dry) come to life right in front of them. And even though it was noisy in the room, there was not one student who was not on task for the time we spent on this. 

If you are interested in coming in to watch the students, let me know and I'll give you some days and times. 

Click the link to see some of the DoodleBots in action. :) Doodle Bots

TQS 2 k)The purposes of student assessment. They know how to assess the range of learning objectives by selecting and developing a variety of classroom and large scale assessment techniques and instruments. They know how to analyze the results of classroom and large scale assessment instruments...and how to use the results for the ultimate benefit of students.

There´s no question that improving reading fluency and comprehension is an urgent need at our school. 

Melissa, Phil, and myself are posting this month on a measure we are taking in our class to improve student reading with the aim of bringing all of our students to grade level in reading.

Phonemic Awareness Assessment and Grouping Based on Specific Student Needs

Lana Laine talked to us at the beginning of the year about the gaps that struggling readers often have with their phonemic awareness. Sure enough, when I started getting the class to produce rhymes, some simply couldn´t! With regular practice, I saw a notable improvement, but it wasn´t until a conversation with Jessica after the literacy convention she attended, that things really clicked.

Jessica talked about a school where  literacy achievement had syrocketed and a huge aspect of that was continual assessment and targeted, small-group teaching based on the results. This has been missing from my literacy instruction. I have some global ideas of the problems my students are having, but I haven´t been assessing specific skills enough that I can actually correct them! 

As a result, I administered a Phonemic Awareness Screening to my class and the results were quite surprising. Many students had problems with skills I´ve never even THOUGHT to teach! I organized the class by areas of need on stickies and have created small groupings to target those skills. I am also doing fun little phonemic quizzes on washroom trips to give everyone practice. 

This week, I am planning to do a reading running record with everyone on a book at their Fountas & Pinnell level so that I can get data on both fluency issues and comprehension skills for other targeted lessons.  I am optimistic that I can become so much more successful in improving my students´s reading if my instruction is done with greater intention.

Erin

Mrs W's Best Practice for 3C

Hi my name is Melissa and I am a first time blogger 😕please excuse my newness.

As Erin mentioned we have chose to write about struggling readers. At first I knew exactly what I wanted to write and upon some conversations and reflections this week I have added to it.

As a lower elementary teacher and working with the younger kids the past few years I still go back to the R+ program. By no means is it the greatest program, but I am sure it has had many adaptations over the years. When I look at where my students are in their reading I can see the lack of phonemic awareness (which touches on Erins topic as well). It seems that most times I analyze problem areas I am almost always lead back to this same problem. I have been able to work with students individually or as a group with R+ to teach these skills.

Through some reflections this year being in a new grade I have thought about why the kids are where they are at. We are all amazing teachers, we all have our strengths; sometimes strengths we didn't realize. Sometimes these are easier for other to see, especially in our setting. It is interesting to look at my class this year and see which kids came from the previous teachers. I have been thinking about how if I was to go back to Grade 1 or Grade 2 and do it over I would be able to improve what I was doing based on what I see from the kids a year further. We often sit with our grade level partners and discuss what going on and where to go from this point and something I think we can start to practice is talking to other grade levels (not in September) and having them point out the class strengths they notice and areas of weakness. Something that would not take very long as I am sure we thinking about it anyway, and can be very different to each person you speak with. It may not even be academic but something else that changes the daily routine. I am sure there are grade 2 and 3 teachers that can look at my classes in the past and say wow, she really needs to up her game on _____ topic or she did a great job teaching this unit. I am sure this concept has been discussed but not always implemented. It is something I will be doing from now on to better myself and my class!
I hope I did not bore you to death and ramble on.

Grade 4 Best practices

For our Grade 4 Best Practices, we've decided on this TQS Standard:

2. h) the importance of respecting students’ human dignity. They know how to establish, with different students, professional relationships that are characterized by mutual respect, trust, and harmony

Since the beginning of this year, many staff (ourselves included) have noticed an attitude of disrespect among our students. We have found ourselves needing many more tools this year to help us handle these challenging situations. We both reflected on things that we do in the classroom and things we would like to do more of. The articles below highlight some key points that we find important and helpful to maintain a positive classroom environment.

How to Get Difficult students to listen

Why you shouldn't have to convince difficult students to behave

Below are some additional practices that we have been implementing this year:

1) Consistency: One of the most important things we can do to is to be consistent with our classroom rules. When challenging behavior is a constant problem it is tempting to sometimes ignore the behavior but there should always be consequences for ignoring the classroom rules.

2) Reset: It is essential to start each day anew. by mentally removing stressful thoughts of the previous day or week. Recharging at home with an activity that gets your mind off the chaos of your day and focusing on something you really enjoy is helpful. This may be difficult to do, but important not just to promote harmony in ourselves as professional teachers, but for the students as well.

3) Calm: It is important to remain calm when you dole out consequences. If a student acts up in class, calmly remind them of their consequence, and continue on with your lesson. This also allows students to know they don't have the leverage or power to get a rise out of you and ruin your day  (some students have learned over time to be very good at this). Try postponing a one-on-one discussion until you are in a calm state of mind where you are not going to lose your temper.

4) Positivity: Focus on encouragement and praise as much as you can. Making sure the child knows they matter to the classroom. Have little chats with your kids as they are coming in or doing work. Make sure it's not about the work itself but about them so they can feel they matter and are noticed. Minimize negative interactions and maximize the positive ones.

5) Community: As teachers, we need to remind ourselves that we do not work in isolation. We have a community of team members that include other teachers, EAs, support staff, and administrators.
As much as we'd like to have strong connections with ALL of our students, sometimes they feel a stronger bond with other adults in the school. These connections should be fostered and encouraged by the classroom teacher if they are beneficial to the student. Ask your challenging student who they feel is a trusted adult in the school. Look for opportunities for the child to engage with that adult role model. This can be something as simple as letting them eat lunch one day a week with the trusted adult.