5 AppyHour iPad Apps
I was lucky last year when my building gave me 4 iPads. I could use them any which way I wanted from data collection or give them to students to use in class. Well, most of my grade levels work at some level 1 on 1 with technology; most grades its Chromebooks.
I have talked before about using SeeSaw as our main platform for students to turn in work or to get assignments but I have not shared their favorite apps. With their help, here are my students' top 5 iPad apps. They are not in any order nor are all of them free but they are used on a regular basis by my students which means more than anything they are user-friendly and once students are taught how the app works are off to the races.
One other note: I give students time to play with any app I introduce. After which they are expected to use it as taught. I help with troubleshooting but I don't manage the tech as it takes away from the lesson, my teaching, and what I want my students to get from the lesson. It has to be student user-friendly, no passwords and no weird operating problems.
Why paperless? Well, I do tons with SAMR. This idea focuses on why they are using technology to do the task and is more than plug'n play. (Which has its place.)
There are rules to AppSmashing. Wait-what?? Rules? Yes!! They make sense.
- Limit to 3 Apps
- Limit Time to 10 Minutes/App (I push for them to turn in something they are proud of and shows off their learning.)
- Allow Student Choice
- Allow Creativity to Shine
- Require Audio and Images
For math, fact practice my student's LOVE is Mathtopia+. Yes, it's plug 'n play (substitution) but I can track their progress, have them go back to a specific number in a specific operation to restate practice. I start my math groups with 5 minutes or so of fact practice as a warmup. It's fun and fast-paced. Plus, they don't think twice about practicing or going back to work on a different number.
Make a Scene from Innivo can be used for just about anything from speech/language support, writing, and math. Pair it with Educreation and you are working Modification. Currently, my student's are creating multiplication story problems with Make a Scene: Farmyard, taking a screenshot, and then adding their work to Educreation to do the math work.
Educreation is freeish and can be found online and in the app world. I love this interactive whiteboard. Students can import a photo, do their work on it, add audio or a video, save it, and turn it in as either a video/audio clip or a photo. We also use Explain Everything and Chomp but not as often. Interactive whiteboards are important for students sharing their thinking and walk you step by step what they did to solve the problem.
for a free course coming soon.
Happy App Smashing!
Until Next Time,
Reading Comprehension Strategies 2.0
I do small group reading both decoding and comprehension strategies. It is explicit, intensive, persistent instruction. I do mine in small and large groups. Small groups allow me to focus in on the specific skill the group's needs. I find this is a great easy way to differentiate students because each student does not need to be in the same reading material--they are grouped to practice the specific comprehension skill.
To become good readers, most students require explicit, intensive, and persistent instruction. In explicit comprehension strategy instruction, the teacher chooses strategies that are closely aligned with the text students are reading. The teacher models and "thinks aloud" about what a given strategy is and why it is important, helps students learn how, when, and where to use the strategy, and gives students opportunities to apply the strategy on their own.
Modeling is followed by practice, guided by the teacher, who works with students to help them figure out how and when to use the strategy themselves. As students read, the teacher provides feedback and engages them in the discussion. In subsequent lessons, the teacher asks students to apply the strategy on their own to other texts.
I stumbled upon Padlet. I had used Padlet in professional classes but I had never taught about using it with students. It wasn't until I wanted to replace stickie notes with a paperfree version, I came back to Padlet.
I love not having a billion stickie notes "flying" around lose and getting lost as well. My students love using it on the iPads. I love they can share with each other and give feedback. I use Padlet to help them plan and monitor their comprehension. My hope is this will help them complete their non-fiction projects.
To improve self-monitoring, the teacher may model for students how to do one or all of the following:
- think about what they already know before they start reading and during reading;
- be aware of whether they understand what they are reading;
- employ strategies to identify difficult words, concepts, and ideas;
- ask themselves: "Does this make sense?"; and
- be aware of how a particular text is organized.
One of the most important features of explicit instruction is the teacher's gradual release to students of responsibility for strategy use, with the goal that students apply strategies independently. However, teachers do not ask students to work on their own until the students have demonstrated that they understand a strategy and how and when to use it.
The Primary Comprehension Toolkit from Heinemann (grade K-2) allows me to teach specific comprehension skills in a sequence that makes sense to the reader. The student does the work--I have to listen to how they are applying the strategies to text.
My students LOVE expository text (non-fiction). Most of the reading students do throughout their schooling — indeed, throughout their lives — will involve expository text. Without an understanding of the organization of such text, students often have difficulty understanding what they read. Unlike a narrative, an expository text has no familiar storyline to guide students' reading. To read expository texts successfully, students must learn that authors may use a variety of structures to organize their ideas, including cause-and-effect or compare and contrast relationships, time-and-order sequences, and problem-solution patterns. Indeed, students need to know that authors may use some or all of these structures in any given chapter or section of a text.
They need to learn that expository text can differ from narrative text in the way it is presented on a page. For example, expository text may be organized by means of text headings and subheadings and may contain extensive graphics, such as tables, charts, diagrams, and illustrations. Instructional practices that facilitate students' understanding of expository text include helping them learn how to:· chunk information in a text by grouping related ideas and concepts;
They need to learn that expository text can differ from narrative text in the way it is presented on a page. For example, expository text may be organized by means of text headings and subheadings and may contain extensive graphics, such as tables, charts, diagrams, and illustrations. Instructional practices that facilitate students' understanding of expository text include helping them learn how to:· chunk information in a text by grouping related ideas and concepts;
- summarize important information in a text by grouping related ideas and concepts;
- integrate information in a text with existing knowledge;
- apply information in a text to real-world situations;
- interpret and construct graphics such as charts, tables, and figures;
- synthesize information from different texts; and·
- develop presentations about the text
We have been working monitoring comprehension and knowing when you have fallin' off the road. When reading this lesson in the Primary Comprehension Toolkit, I was thinking no big deal, they've got it. Well for students how have never been asked to really think about what they are reading this was a huge shock.
My hope in using the Primary Comprehension Toolkit and Padlet is to have students think more critically about what they have read to in turn create new works that show how they created meaning strategically in reading and writing. This set of strategies being tied to their Personalized Learning Plans. I'm hoping to see great products but I'll have to wait until next week to see what students do. Be sure to checkout Padlet and play with how it can help your students monitoring their own comprehension.
I also use my Reading Strategy Posters. They are great for reminding students to use strategies while they are working on their own. They are perfect for ELLs, students who need additional language supports, and Depth and Complexity posters to challenge students as well. You can grab your copy below.
I also use my Reading Strategy Posters. They are great for reminding students to use strategies while they are working on their own. They are perfect for ELLs, students who need additional language supports, and Depth and Complexity posters to challenge students as well. You can grab your copy below.
Vocabulary Development Strategies
I’m not a Speech/Language Teacher. BUT I have many students how NEED way more language support than just a one-shot deal. Finding ways to embed extra language support without it taking up tons of extra that I just don’t have in groups is hard. This week I have collected a few ideas that I have helped me build more vocabulary and language support in my small groups.
1) Look them up. Certainly, dictionaries have their place, especially during writing, but the act of looking up a word and copying a definition is not likely to result in vocabulary learning (especially if there are long lists of unrelated words to look up and for which to copy the definitions).
2) Use them in a sentence. Writing sentences with new vocabulary AFTER some understanding of the word is helpful; however to assign this task before the study of word meaning is of little value.
3) Use context. There is little research to suggest that context is a very reliable source of learning word meanings.
4) Memorize definitions. Rote learning of word meanings is likely to results, at best, in the ability to parrot back what is not clearly understood.
All of these less effective approaches is the lack of active student involvement in connecting the new concept/meaning to their existing knowledge base. Vocabulary learning must include active engagement in constructing understanding and not simply on passive learning of information from a text.
Integration—connecting new vocabulary to prior knowledge
Repetition—encountering/using the word/concept many times
Meaningful use—multiple opportunities to use new words in reading, writing and soon discussion.
Teachers can get more out of direct vocabulary work by selecting words carefully. More time-consuming and complex strategies are best saved for conceptually challenging words, while relatively expedient strategies can assist students in learning new labels or drawing finer-grained distinctions around known concepts. Making wise choices about which words to teach directly, how much time to take, and when enough is enough is essential to vocabulary building.
WHAT DOESN'T WORK?
The key weakness in all of these practices is the limited or rote interaction students have with the new word/concept. Here is a short list of these less effective approaches.1) Look them up. Certainly, dictionaries have their place, especially during writing, but the act of looking up a word and copying a definition is not likely to result in vocabulary learning (especially if there are long lists of unrelated words to look up and for which to copy the definitions).
2) Use them in a sentence. Writing sentences with new vocabulary AFTER some understanding of the word is helpful; however to assign this task before the study of word meaning is of little value.
3) Use context. There is little research to suggest that context is a very reliable source of learning word meanings.
4) Memorize definitions. Rote learning of word meanings is likely to results, at best, in the ability to parrot back what is not clearly understood.
All of these less effective approaches is the lack of active student involvement in connecting the new concept/meaning to their existing knowledge base. Vocabulary learning must include active engagement in constructing understanding and not simply on passive learning of information from a text.
WHAT DOES WORK?
Reviewing the research literature on vocabulary instruction leads to the conclusion that there is no single best strategy to teach word meanings but that all effective strategies require students to go beyond the definitional and make connections between the new and the known. The research on effective vocabulary teaching as coming down to three critical notions:Integration—connecting new vocabulary to prior knowledge
Repetition—encountering/using the word/concept many times
Meaningful use—multiple opportunities to use new words in reading, writing and soon discussion.
Increase the Amount of Independent Reading
The largest influence on students' vocabulary is the sheer volume of reading they do, especially wide reading that includes a rich variety of texts. The following strategies can help motivate reluctant readers:- Matching text difficulty to student reading level and personal interests (e.g. using the Lexile system)
- Reading incentive programs that include taking quizzes on books read (e.g., Accelerated Reader, Reading Counts)
- Regular discussion, such as literature circles, book clubs, quick reviews, of what students are reading
- Setting weekly/individual goals for reading volume
- Adding more structure to Sustained Silent Reading by including a 5-minute quick-write at the end of the reading period, then randomly selecting three or four papers to read/grade to increase student accountability.
- Select the Most Important Words to Teach
- Students with weak reading skills are likely to view all new words as equally challenging and important, so it is imperative for the teacher to point out those words that are truly important to a student's academic vocabulary base. (THINK--picture walk)
- Teaching vocabulary is teaching new labels or finer descriptions for familiar concepts. In contrast, teaching concepts involves introducing students to new ideas/notions/theories and so on that require significantly more instruction to build real understanding.
Teachers can get more out of direct vocabulary work by selecting words carefully. More time-consuming and complex strategies are best saved for conceptually challenging words, while relatively expedient strategies can assist students in learning new labels or drawing finer-grained distinctions around known concepts. Making wise choices about which words to teach directly, how much time to take, and when enough is enough is essential to vocabulary building.
Tips for Selecting Words:
- Distinguish between words that simply label concepts students know and new words that represent new concepts.
- Ask yourself, "Is this concept/word generative? Will knowing it lead to important learning in other lessons/texts/units?"
- Be cautious to not "accessorize" vocabulary (e.g., spend too much time going over many clever adjectives that are very story specific and not likely to occur frequently). Rather, focus attention on critical academic vocabulary that is essential to understanding the big ideas in a text (e.g., prejudicial: As students learn the meanings of pre- and judge, they can connect to other concepts they know, such as "unfair.")
- Using State and Common Core Standards to see what is taught
- Use Tiered Vocabulary
- Tier 1 Academic Vocabulary: Basic words that commonly appear in the spoken language. Because they are heard frequently in numerous contexts and with nonverbal communication, Tier 1 words rarely require explicit instruction.Examples of Tier 1 words are clock, baby, happy and walk.
An Example:
I have a student who picks her own tough or challenging vocabulary as she reads.
She currently is an Instructional DRA K/20 and is a second language learning.
One task she has to complete while she reads is creating a list of 5 to 8 words she felt were hard.
She often has more than that but when I conference with her we talk about the words she found.
She then takes her 5 words, finds the pictures from Google or Bing, and creates a video to support
what she has learned.
She currently is an Instructional DRA K/20 and is a second language learning.
One task she has to complete while she reads is creating a list of 5 to 8 words she felt were hard.
She often has more than that but when I conference with her we talk about the words she found.
She then takes her 5 words, finds the pictures from Google or Bing, and creates a video to support
what she has learned.
Picture Walk Idea
“I Spy”: This activity is similar to reading books with your child. Label and point to pictures on the
pages of an “I Spy” book. Make it a game and see who can find the most objects on the page! Make
it more challenging by assigning specific items to you and your child that incorporate basic concepts
(“You find a small key and I’ll find a big one!”) You can also play “I Spy” without the book and find objects around the house or in your community.
Want to more ideas on Designing Effective Vocabulary Development Instruction Grab your Freebie
here. Click the image.
I’d love to hear what you do in your small groups to build in more language support in your groups.
Until Next Time,
pages of an “I Spy” book. Make it a game and see who can find the most objects on the page! Make
it more challenging by assigning specific items to you and your child that incorporate basic concepts
(“You find a small key and I’ll find a big one!”) You can also play “I Spy” without the book and find objects around the house or in your community.
Want to more ideas on Designing Effective Vocabulary Development Instruction Grab your Freebie
here. Click the image.
I’d love to hear what you do in your small groups to build in more language support in your groups.
Until Next Time,
How to Create an RTI Intervention
I set out to unravel and get to the heart of Response to Intervention (RTI) like I’ve done before with close reading. I was surprised to read on the RTI Network’s website that, “there is no single, thoroughly researched and widely practiced ‘model’ of the RTI process.” Of course, that would be too easy, ha!
I started looking at the triangle tier diagram wondering if I could improve on it only to discover that if you’ve seen one triangle diagram, you’ve seen one triangle diagram. There are a lot of differences from one to the other. Some show that tier 3 is special education services, some show that special ed is the next step after the triangle. Some indicate that tier 1 includes all students. The RTI Network says that tier 1 is low-level interventions in the classroom that not all students would need. They state that when these tier 1 interventions are successful, students are “returned to the regular classroom program.” So that would mean that students who never need interventions are actually not a part of tier 1.
Here’s what I concluded: each school/district is going to choose what RTI means to them and how it is implemented in their jurisdiction. One thing stays the same: teachers need a way to document interventions and create interventions regardless of how their schools define tiers. For example in my building special education is not on the pyramid and the only tier 3 support my building currently has is Reading Recovery for K-1. Classroom teachers have to create all interventions using what they have access to in their classrooms. This is the first year where I have been in a position to provide direct tier 2 support. (Even as a special education teacher, I do not have access to tier 3 interventions.)
My job this year is to help classroom teachers create successful, purposeful, data drive interventions that lead students either through the special education identification process or help them go
back to core instruction.
Big Picture
I help teachers take these data, guide them in creating an intervention, create a SMART goal, and determine how they will collect the data. I love this. It works no matter the size of the group. Here's a snapshot of how I do that.
For this example, if these guys are identified with learning disabilities and also receive tier 2 interventions from the classroom teacher in addition to the core reading instructions she provides.
As a result, the classroom teacher has a smart goal (Read plan & SLO). I have also created a smart goal for this group.
Goal #1: When given daily small group reading, Polar Bears will increase their guided reading level from 3/C to F/10 by March 1.
Goal #2: When given daily small group targeted reading, Polar Bears will decrease the number of errors on a DRA 4/C from 51% accuracy to 90% on running records by January 31 to demonstrate independence on a DRA 4.
The second goal was added once we saw they were not reading what was written in the book and felt they needed a separate goal to work on this particular skill with me in a group but this was layered with the 1st.
From their data, which we used their mid-year DRAs to set the baseline for the intervention. Then the SMART goal. So what did this intervention look like? We talked about not changing anything in their guided reading as we could see they weren't reading what was written, we theorized adding a reward for reading correctly was going to be our first stop. Hence, the short time frame for the goal.
The Plan: keep doing targeted guided reading in Level DRA 4s and add a reward for reading each word correctly. The other change--keep the same book for the week to really focus on decoding first and spend the last day on comprehension.
The Problem: Progress monitoring. The DRA was going to be the pre and post-intervention data. They needed to be Independent 4 in a month. I decided to pre/post each guided reading book. To not take group time on Tuesday, I’d pull them Monday for a cold read to create the pretest data. The post running record would be Friday. 4 days to work the text.
The Reward: My school psychologist always suggests using something that is highly motivating for the student. (I used beads to keep track of words read correctly.) With both of the boys: 1 word---candy. Yes, candy. (I know!) To help not let them walk off with 100 pieces apiece; I set up an exchange. I would also change that exchange each day as they got better. For example: first read--15 correct words equals 1 piece. Second read--20 pieces equals 1 piece. And so on. I also keep track of the beads they were earning. This would help me gauge what changes I needed to make to keep them moving. Remember the end goal.
If these two boys didn’t already have an IEP, this change could be added to their RTI data showing a change in intervention. For myself and the classroom teacher, the goal is larger--we want them to grow as readers and not move into 3rd grade as nonreaders.
They still have a couple of weeks to go before I know if this work. I'll update you on their progress. The thing is that even if it doesn't work--it's made them better decoders and we’ll have new information to use to go forward with, to change the intervention and make it even more tailored to them and more specific to help them become independent fours.
I hope this idea gives you an idea on how to change things up and help get very specific about what students need to move. Make sure to grab a copy of the workbook to help guide you in making small data-driven decisions to move students within the RTI framework.
Until Next Time,
I started looking at the triangle tier diagram wondering if I could improve on it only to discover that if you’ve seen one triangle diagram, you’ve seen one triangle diagram. There are a lot of differences from one to the other. Some show that tier 3 is special education services, some show that special ed is the next step after the triangle. Some indicate that tier 1 includes all students. The RTI Network says that tier 1 is low-level interventions in the classroom that not all students would need. They state that when these tier 1 interventions are successful, students are “returned to the regular classroom program.” So that would mean that students who never need interventions are actually not a part of tier 1.Here’s what I concluded: each school/district is going to choose what RTI means to them and how it is implemented in their jurisdiction. One thing stays the same: teachers need a way to document interventions and create interventions regardless of how their schools define tiers. For example in my building special education is not on the pyramid and the only tier 3 support my building currently has is Reading Recovery for K-1. Classroom teachers have to create all interventions using what they have access to in their classrooms. This is the first year where I have been in a position to provide direct tier 2 support. (Even as a special education teacher, I do not have access to tier 3 interventions.)
My job this year is to help classroom teachers create successful, purposeful, data drive interventions that lead students either through the special education identification process or help them go
back to core instruction.
Big Picture
I help teachers take these data, guide them in creating an intervention, create a SMART goal, and determine how they will collect the data. I love this. It works no matter the size of the group. Here's a snapshot of how I do that.
For this example, if these guys are identified with learning disabilities and also receive tier 2 interventions from the classroom teacher in addition to the core reading instructions she provides.
As a result, the classroom teacher has a smart goal (Read plan & SLO). I have also created a smart goal for this group.
Goal #1: When given daily small group reading, Polar Bears will increase their guided reading level from 3/C to F/10 by March 1.
Goal #2: When given daily small group targeted reading, Polar Bears will decrease the number of errors on a DRA 4/C from 51% accuracy to 90% on running records by January 31 to demonstrate independence on a DRA 4.
The second goal was added once we saw they were not reading what was written in the book and felt they needed a separate goal to work on this particular skill with me in a group but this was layered with the 1st.
From their data, which we used their mid-year DRAs to set the baseline for the intervention. Then the SMART goal. So what did this intervention look like? We talked about not changing anything in their guided reading as we could see they weren't reading what was written, we theorized adding a reward for reading correctly was going to be our first stop. Hence, the short time frame for the goal.
The Plan: keep doing targeted guided reading in Level DRA 4s and add a reward for reading each word correctly. The other change--keep the same book for the week to really focus on decoding first and spend the last day on comprehension.
The Problem: Progress monitoring. The DRA was going to be the pre and post-intervention data. They needed to be Independent 4 in a month. I decided to pre/post each guided reading book. To not take group time on Tuesday, I’d pull them Monday for a cold read to create the pretest data. The post running record would be Friday. 4 days to work the text.
The Reward: My school psychologist always suggests using something that is highly motivating for the student. (I used beads to keep track of words read correctly.) With both of the boys: 1 word---candy. Yes, candy. (I know!) To help not let them walk off with 100 pieces apiece; I set up an exchange. I would also change that exchange each day as they got better. For example: first read--15 correct words equals 1 piece. Second read--20 pieces equals 1 piece. And so on. I also keep track of the beads they were earning. This would help me gauge what changes I needed to make to keep them moving. Remember the end goal.
If these two boys didn’t already have an IEP, this change could be added to their RTI data showing a change in intervention. For myself and the classroom teacher, the goal is larger--we want them to grow as readers and not move into 3rd grade as nonreaders.
They still have a couple of weeks to go before I know if this work. I'll update you on their progress. The thing is that even if it doesn't work--it's made them better decoders and we’ll have new information to use to go forward with, to change the intervention and make it even more tailored to them and more specific to help them become independent fours.
I hope this idea gives you an idea on how to change things up and help get very specific about what students need to move. Make sure to grab a copy of the workbook to help guide you in making small data-driven decisions to move students within the RTI framework.
Until Next Time,
Instagram Challenge
As, I was reviewing my goals. I was getting lazy with my Instagram feed. I needed a change. I needed a challenge to help me.
So for January, I am upping the ante. I am taking actual photographs each day of the month. (I know, it's a crazy plan.)
I have come up with my own January Photo of the Day Challenge. Some are a theme for the day others are more specific, so get creative and think outside the box--just like I push my students too.
I hope you play along! I'll share my pictures on my Instagram feed at @toadallyexceptional.
Tag me at @toadallyexceptional and use the hashtag #toadallyjanuary so we can show you some Insta-LOVE all challenge long!
INVITE YOUR FRIENDS!! Tag your friends and feel free to repost this graphic! The more the merrier!
Until Next Time,
November Show & Tell
Today, I'll linking up with Stephanie from "Forever in 5th Grade" for her monthly Show and Tell about what's been happening in my room. It only seems like yesterday I was welcoming students back from Summer Break and now I"m thinking about January. AHHHH!!!
A big thing I have been working on this year is getting students to get and receive authentic feedback. Launch comes from John Spencer and AJ Julian. I went to Summer PD and learned about Launch and liked the idea but really wondered how I would make it work in a 30-minute IEP based session. At the same time of this presentation by AJ, my district rolled out a Design Thinking Cohort. Here's the thing--this idea was a direction I was hearing I needed to move my instruction to score really well on my evaluations because of the student voice, choice, and feedback. Even as a special education teacher these three ideas are the cornerstone of my evaluation.
Design Sprints also break up the day to day work they do as well. The pumpkins were done a couple of days before Halloween Parties. They loved the change of pace.
They are getting more used to giving themselves feedback in this system and have begun to get it to others. The work they turn goes in the hallway and is shared to an authentic audience. This has changed the quality of work they produce and they know t make several tries (aka prototypes) to get it just how they want it. I have chunked it out by chapter and given deadlines for when things need to be turned in so they aren't just spinning and have to get things done.
The big thing: The assignments target the chapters they have read but all the questions are based on Bloom's. Mind you they hate this but they rise to the challenge and figure out the answer and how they want to turn in the assignment. I do delete work that is not of high quality. (This is a very long and second conversation. But this solves my students who want to rush through everything.)
Here I have let go of everything. I conference with them just about daily--somethings it just a "Hey, tell me what your working on" or "Can I help with anything." I am a guide or somedays strickly an observer as they get the work done. (This is a huge step into--well I have no clue as I've never done anything like this. The big key to keep on going is 1--they are so happy to come to group each day. It's not a drag which in 3rd grade is can be a big thing for them. 2--the monthly grade level progress monitoring scores are raising. And 3--their chapter fluency reads and comprehension products student turn in scream growth. Mind you not all on my caseload an in this place. So we will see when their winter benchmark scores look like. I'm not stressed if they don't finish the book they are reading. I would to change it up and let them have more choice in what they are reading come January.)
Here again, we only had 45 minutes to do the activity. Students created 2 prototypes and got authentic feedback from someone who worked in the field was the best.
With each of these, I was able to target student voice, choice, and feedback in a short amount of time. It looks very different with the other students I work with but my 3rd graders asked for their IEP time to be something different and the asked for something outside the box. I'm not sure if I will get to do a whole LAUNCH cycle with them but to create something where they know their voice is heard, they are challenged to think outside of the box too, and get and give feedback is a back deal to a group of 3rd graders who thought none of this was possible.
I don't know what is around the next corner of them this year but they have the skills to ask the questions and work through the challenges.
Until Next Time,
Inspiration Needed to Innovate??
One of the podcasts I listen to regular is John Spencer from The Creative Classroom. His podcast from last month "We need to Trust Teachers to Innovate" had me thinking about other ways to bring in Design Thinking.
As with previous years, I only see students for 30 to 40 minutes. This means I don't have time to do a full Launch sequence with students. (John Spencer co-created "Launch" with AJ Juliani) We tend to do Design Sprints hitting pieces of the process (check out my Instagram for more). This last one creating a Jack O'Lantern. This lesson was more about feedback and using that feedback to create multiple prototypes before the final version was due.
Getting back to John Spencer's podcast, it got me thinking about how I could innovate reading fluency. It got me thinking about how I could take our choice board and think outside the box like many of my 3rd graders were wanting me to do. As I was thinking about this idea could it really live within my fluency group?
The thing a really like about John is that he is a teacher. He understands everything that goes on within our walls but is ideas push traditional thinking. My takeaway--Innovation of the little things, give voice & choice and take learning outside of the box and off road! My Fluency Choice boards give students a chance to be author, filmmakers, artists, and engineers I'm giving them voice & choice in how they want to build their reading fluency.
Its a blind leap based half in data and half in something needs to change with what they are doing to improve their reading fluency. I'm also stepping into the unknown as I experiment with this idea.
This image John helps me visualize and rationalize my idea in the hopes that I'm not in the weeds. "But here’s the thing: innovation requires you to step into the unknown. If we focus all of our attention on best practices and codify these ideas into tightly packaged curriculum, we will inevitably fail to experiment."
So, I ditched what most would consider a fabulous Tier 3 Reading Fluency technology based Reading Fluency trial based on the fact the data didn't support going and asking for the money to buy the licenses to continue using the program. Talk about being stuck between the data and the need to change my intervention--I went with innovation.
The Choice Board I created uses technology because it will force my students to think outside the box and will make them become artists and filmmakers. And I don't have a problem with this as it fits my students' strengths while they work on their weaknesses. (A bonus in my book!!)
Most of these apps they have used to support reading comprehension, others are new but with a tweak all with tackle fluency. All I added was a dice. Students will roll the dice at least twice over the 30 minutes I have them. All their work will be turned in to Seesaw each day.
One thing John points out is "Have your students publish their work to a real audience. For all the fear surrounding social media, we make a mistake when we say, “avoid this” without saying, “try out this.” Too often, the goal is to avoid a digital footprint at all cost rather than finding ways to create a positive digital footprint."
I have been toying with the idea of having them podcast--going back to Launch. I'm wanting them to see the purpose so they need to launch it to an audience other than me and mom. But I'm not sure.
As I move to paperless with groups, I'm finding ways to bring a touch of innovation to each group. It's the baby steps and knowing its ok to fail. My students and I embrace our mistakes. We use them an evidence that we are learning and work to learn from them. We are all learning to grow from feedback--just like they did with the Jack o'Lanterns.
In both cases, I wanted and found real audiences for my students. This needs to happen for reading fluency. I just have to keep looking. What can you give students voice & choice with to help you innovate in your classroom? Try something... and play!!
Until Next Time,
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As with previous years, I only see students for 30 to 40 minutes. This means I don't have time to do a full Launch sequence with students. (John Spencer co-created "Launch" with AJ Juliani) We tend to do Design Sprints hitting pieces of the process (check out my Instagram for more). This last one creating a Jack O'Lantern. This lesson was more about feedback and using that feedback to create multiple prototypes before the final version was due.
Getting back to John Spencer's podcast, it got me thinking about how I could innovate reading fluency. It got me thinking about how I could take our choice board and think outside the box like many of my 3rd graders were wanting me to do. As I was thinking about this idea could it really live within my fluency group?
The thing a really like about John is that he is a teacher. He understands everything that goes on within our walls but is ideas push traditional thinking. My takeaway--Innovation of the little things, give voice & choice and take learning outside of the box and off road! My Fluency Choice boards give students a chance to be author, filmmakers, artists, and engineers I'm giving them voice & choice in how they want to build their reading fluency.
Its a blind leap based half in data and half in something needs to change with what they are doing to improve their reading fluency. I'm also stepping into the unknown as I experiment with this idea.
This image John helps me visualize and rationalize my idea in the hopes that I'm not in the weeds. "But here’s the thing: innovation requires you to step into the unknown. If we focus all of our attention on best practices and codify these ideas into tightly packaged curriculum, we will inevitably fail to experiment."So, I ditched what most would consider a fabulous Tier 3 Reading Fluency technology based Reading Fluency trial based on the fact the data didn't support going and asking for the money to buy the licenses to continue using the program. Talk about being stuck between the data and the need to change my intervention--I went with innovation.
The Choice Board I created uses technology because it will force my students to think outside the box and will make them become artists and filmmakers. And I don't have a problem with this as it fits my students' strengths while they work on their weaknesses. (A bonus in my book!!)Most of these apps they have used to support reading comprehension, others are new but with a tweak all with tackle fluency. All I added was a dice. Students will roll the dice at least twice over the 30 minutes I have them. All their work will be turned in to Seesaw each day.
One thing John points out is "Have your students publish their work to a real audience. For all the fear surrounding social media, we make a mistake when we say, “avoid this” without saying, “try out this.” Too often, the goal is to avoid a digital footprint at all cost rather than finding ways to create a positive digital footprint."
I have been toying with the idea of having them podcast--going back to Launch. I'm wanting them to see the purpose so they need to launch it to an audience other than me and mom. But I'm not sure.
As I move to paperless with groups, I'm finding ways to bring a touch of innovation to each group. It's the baby steps and knowing its ok to fail. My students and I embrace our mistakes. We use them an evidence that we are learning and work to learn from them. We are all learning to grow from feedback--just like they did with the Jack o'Lanterns.
In both cases, I wanted and found real audiences for my students. This needs to happen for reading fluency. I just have to keep looking. What can you give students voice & choice with to help you innovate in your classroom? Try something... and play!!
Until Next Time,
Why First Sound Fluency Matters? {Freebie}
Letter-sound correspondences involve knowledge of the sounds represented by the letters of the alphabet the letters used to represent the sounds.Why is knowledge of letter-sound correspondences important? DIBELS has changed LSF to First Sound Fluency--(which is better.)
Knowledge of letter-sound correspondences is essential in reading and writing
In order to read a word:
What sequence should be used to teach letter-sound correspondence?
Letter-sound correspondences should be taught one at a time. As soon as the learner acquires one letter-sound correspondence, introduce a new one. I suggest teaching the letters and sounds in this sequence: a, m, t, p, o, n, c, d, u, s, g, h, i, f, b, l, e, r, w, k, x, v, y, z, j, q.
This sequence was designed to help learners start reading as soon as possible. Letters that occur frequently in simple words (e.g., a, m, t) are taught first. Letters that look similar and have similar sounds (b and d) are separated in the instructional sequence to avoid confusion. Short vowels are taught before long vowels. I teach upper case then lowercase. However, when I'm assessing the student they get both all the letters. (think DIBELS or AimsWeb Fluency probes.)
An example Instruction: For RTI and if I'm working 1 on 1 with a student. (I have had given this to para's or parents to do as well.)
Sample goal for instruction in letter-sound correspondences:
The learner will listen to a target sound presented orally identify the letter that represents the sound select the appropriate letter from a group of letter cards, an alphabet board, or a keyboard with at least 80% accuracy.
Instructional Task:
Here is an example of instruction to teach letter-sound correspondences. The instructor introduces the new letter and its sound shows a card with the letter m and says the sound “mmmm.” After practice with this letter sounds, then I review with the student.
The instructor says a letter sound.
The learner listens to the sound, looks at each of the letters provided as response options, selects the correct letter, from a group of letter cards, from an alphabet board, or from a keyboard.
Instructional Procedure:
The instructor teaches letter-sound correspondences using these procedures:
Model:
The instructor demonstrates the letter-sound correspondence for the learner.
Guided practice:
The instructor provides scaffolding support or prompting to help the learner match the letter and sound correctly.
The instructor gradually fades this support as the learner develops competence.
Independent practice:
The learner listens to the target sound and selects the letter independently. The instructor monitors the learner’s responses and provides appropriate feedback.
The Alphabetic Principle Plan of Instruction:
Teach letter-sound relationships explicitly and in isolation. Provide opportunities for children to practice letter-sound relationships in daily lessons. Provide practice opportunities that include new sound-letter relationships, as well as cumulatively reviewing previously taught relationships.
Give students opportunities early and often to apply their expanding knowledge of sound-letter relationships to the reading of phonetically spelled words that are familiar in meaning.
Amanda from Mrs. Richardson's Class has created a 20 minute Guided Reading Plan which I use with my Pre-A's and A's. The big piece is these guys are in books which is huge for them and makes their day.
Rate and Sequence of Instruction
No set rule governs how fast or how slow to introduce letter-sound relationships. One obvious and important factor to consider in determining the rate of introduction is the performance of the group of students with whom the instruction is to be used.
I tell the teachers I work with, think MASTERY. Start with the ones the student knows and then add no more than 5. Master and then add the next ones that make sense. Use your Probe data to drive your plan.
It is also a good idea to begin instruction in sound-letter relationships by choosing consonants such as f, m, n, r, and s, whose sounds can be pronounced in isolation with the least distortion. Stop sounds at the beginning or middle of words are harder for children to blend than are continuous sounds.
Instruction should also separate the introduction of sounds for letters that are auditorily confusing, such as /b/ and /v/ or /i/ and /e/, or visually confusing, such as b and d or p and g.
Many teachers use a combination of instructional methods rather than just one. Research suggests that explicit, teacher-directed instruction is more effective in teaching the alphabetic principle than is less-explicit and less-direct instruction.
Knowledge of letter-sound correspondences is essential in reading and writing
In order to read a word:
- the learner must recognize the letters in the word and associate each letter with its sound
- In order to write or type a word
- the learner must break the word into its component sounds and know the letters that represent these sounds.
What sequence should be used to teach letter-sound correspondence?
Letter-sound correspondences should be taught one at a time. As soon as the learner acquires one letter-sound correspondence, introduce a new one. I suggest teaching the letters and sounds in this sequence: a, m, t, p, o, n, c, d, u, s, g, h, i, f, b, l, e, r, w, k, x, v, y, z, j, q.
This sequence was designed to help learners start reading as soon as possible. Letters that occur frequently in simple words (e.g., a, m, t) are taught first. Letters that look similar and have similar sounds (b and d) are separated in the instructional sequence to avoid confusion. Short vowels are taught before long vowels. I teach upper case then lowercase. However, when I'm assessing the student they get both all the letters. (think DIBELS or AimsWeb Fluency probes.)
An example Instruction: For RTI and if I'm working 1 on 1 with a student. (I have had given this to para's or parents to do as well.)
Sample goal for instruction in letter-sound correspondences:
The learner will listen to a target sound presented orally identify the letter that represents the sound select the appropriate letter from a group of letter cards, an alphabet board, or a keyboard with at least 80% accuracy.
Instructional Task:
Here is an example of instruction to teach letter-sound correspondences. The instructor introduces the new letter and its sound shows a card with the letter m and says the sound “mmmm.” After practice with this letter sounds, then I review with the student.
The instructor says a letter sound.
The learner listens to the sound, looks at each of the letters provided as response options, selects the correct letter, from a group of letter cards, from an alphabet board, or from a keyboard.
Instructional Procedure:
The instructor teaches letter-sound correspondences using these procedures:
Model:
The instructor demonstrates the letter-sound correspondence for the learner.
Guided practice:
The instructor provides scaffolding support or prompting to help the learner match the letter and sound correctly.
The instructor gradually fades this support as the learner develops competence.
Independent practice:
The learner listens to the target sound and selects the letter independently. The instructor monitors the learner’s responses and provides appropriate feedback.
The Alphabetic Principle Plan of Instruction:
Teach letter-sound relationships explicitly and in isolation. Provide opportunities for children to practice letter-sound relationships in daily lessons. Provide practice opportunities that include new sound-letter relationships, as well as cumulatively reviewing previously taught relationships.
Give students opportunities early and often to apply their expanding knowledge of sound-letter relationships to the reading of phonetically spelled words that are familiar in meaning.
Amanda from Mrs. Richardson's Class has created a 20 minute Guided Reading Plan which I use with my Pre-A's and A's. The big piece is these guys are in books which is huge for them and makes their day.
Rate and Sequence of Instruction
No set rule governs how fast or how slow to introduce letter-sound relationships. One obvious and important factor to consider in determining the rate of introduction is the performance of the group of students with whom the instruction is to be used.
I tell the teachers I work with, think MASTERY. Start with the ones the student knows and then add no more than 5. Master and then add the next ones that make sense. Use your Probe data to drive your plan.
It is also a good idea to begin instruction in sound-letter relationships by choosing consonants such as f, m, n, r, and s, whose sounds can be pronounced in isolation with the least distortion. Stop sounds at the beginning or middle of words are harder for children to blend than are continuous sounds.
Instruction should also separate the introduction of sounds for letters that are auditorily confusing, such as /b/ and /v/ or /i/ and /e/, or visually confusing, such as b and d or p and g.
Many teachers use a combination of instructional methods rather than just one. Research suggests that explicit, teacher-directed instruction is more effective in teaching the alphabetic principle than is less-explicit and less-direct instruction.
FREEBIE TIME
This year I'm working towards being paperless. Why?? I' traveling to other rooms to provide services. As it is I'm a bag lady on the best of days but as a Special Education teacher you have to be ready for just about anything when it comes to planning inclass support. My way around this--technology. Not for everything but since I use Seesaw for communication and goal tracking; let's find other things to do with it. For this First Sound Fluency activity, you will need Seesaw and have your class setup. I tend to give students a page at a time to ensure it is correct. It can also be used as an assessment or as a center.
Until Next Time,
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Six Syllable Types
For years, my school district has pushed back on qualifying students with learning disabilities with reading fluency only. The stance has always been--there is always a reason for being disfluent. Go back and look for the reason. Well, time and time again--they have been right. The larger reason--the true root cause of the student's learning need!
For me, it always boils done to students needing phonics instruction. It might be the basics: sounds and letters or a Tier 2 intervention then the student is off to the races. However, most of the time it's an advanced phonics need. The student needs to work on vowel teams or open syllables.
When in doubt, look at the words the missed on a running record or oral reading fluency. The photo is the word level analysis of a student's oral reading fluency progress monitoring over 3 weeks. I can now the information to drive my instruction and see (if anything) needs to be changed. In this case, no but I do need to double check the scope & sequence of the phonics program she is in to ensure the advanced phonics she needs does indeed get taught in a timely fashion.
For many who teach reading the mere idea of advanced phonics or what do you mean there are 6 syllable types--its greek. FYI: when looking for a phonics program or intervention look for one with a scope & sequence that covers all 6 syllable types.
Students benefit from learning the concept of syllables, such as hearing them in words, understanding the syllable-spelling connection, and knowing that every syllable has a vowel. There are six common types of syllables found in English orthography. Direct instruction how these syllable patterns work in reading and spelling can be a powerful skill building activity for students, especially those who struggle to read, write, and spell.Knowing these help them learn to read and spell. Oh, and read fluently.
I teach the six syllable types starting with my 1st graders. For example, why are certain vowels used, when should you double consonants, and how does one know the correct way to pronounce sounds in words? Reading and spelling no longer feel so random and mysterious once children learn how words work. (My school's spelling program works students through the types--CRS.)
Breaking words down into syllables simplifies reading and spelling, especially for more fluent readers and spellers. Think about how you spell long, unknown words. You probably break the word down into manageable chunks as you spell it. Systematically teaching students how to hear syllables, then teaching the six syllable types, helps students read and spell challenging, multisyllabic words they previously would have misread or skipped.
The six syllable types are:
Closed Syllables
Vowels in closed syllables are usually short. These are typically the first words taught and learned, so this is a good place to start syllable type instruction. Closed syllables have a short vowel, followed by at least one consonant: much, vet, shell, insect, publish, sunset
Open Syllables
Open syllables end in a vowel that is usually long. Some examples of open syllables are: shy, go, me, silo, zero. Words can have more than one type of syllable, such as these words with both an open and closed syllable: rerun or robot.
Vowel-consonant-silent e Syllables
Vowels in these syllables are long and the final e is silent. Some examples are: lime, those, snake. Examples of words with an open and vowel-consonant-silent e syllable are: define, migrate, and beside.
Vowel Pair Syllables
Also known as Vowel Teams, these vowel sounds are spelled with digraphs such as: plain, coat, cowboy.
R-Controlled Syllables
These syllables have a vowel followed by an r. The r affects the sound the vowel makes, and both sounds are heard within the same syllable. Examples with or, ir, er, ar, ur are: star, bird, her, turtle.
Consonant-le Syllables
These syllables are also known as final stable syllables. Students will usually discover that when they see a consonant followed by le at the end of a word, the three letters form a syllable. Some examples are: bubble, maple, kettle, and fiddle.
Though I stick to phonics programs to teach syllable types you can do this in guided reading as you see students needing the support.
Until Next Time,
For me, it always boils done to students needing phonics instruction. It might be the basics: sounds and letters or a Tier 2 intervention then the student is off to the races. However, most of the time it's an advanced phonics need. The student needs to work on vowel teams or open syllables.
When in doubt, look at the words the missed on a running record or oral reading fluency. The photo is the word level analysis of a student's oral reading fluency progress monitoring over 3 weeks. I can now the information to drive my instruction and see (if anything) needs to be changed. In this case, no but I do need to double check the scope & sequence of the phonics program she is in to ensure the advanced phonics she needs does indeed get taught in a timely fashion.
For many who teach reading the mere idea of advanced phonics or what do you mean there are 6 syllable types--its greek. FYI: when looking for a phonics program or intervention look for one with a scope & sequence that covers all 6 syllable types.
Students benefit from learning the concept of syllables, such as hearing them in words, understanding the syllable-spelling connection, and knowing that every syllable has a vowel. There are six common types of syllables found in English orthography. Direct instruction how these syllable patterns work in reading and spelling can be a powerful skill building activity for students, especially those who struggle to read, write, and spell.Knowing these help them learn to read and spell. Oh, and read fluently.
I teach the six syllable types starting with my 1st graders. For example, why are certain vowels used, when should you double consonants, and how does one know the correct way to pronounce sounds in words? Reading and spelling no longer feel so random and mysterious once children learn how words work. (My school's spelling program works students through the types--CRS.)
Breaking words down into syllables simplifies reading and spelling, especially for more fluent readers and spellers. Think about how you spell long, unknown words. You probably break the word down into manageable chunks as you spell it. Systematically teaching students how to hear syllables, then teaching the six syllable types, helps students read and spell challenging, multisyllabic words they previously would have misread or skipped.
The six syllable types are:
Closed Syllables
Vowels in closed syllables are usually short. These are typically the first words taught and learned, so this is a good place to start syllable type instruction. Closed syllables have a short vowel, followed by at least one consonant: much, vet, shell, insect, publish, sunset
Open Syllables
Open syllables end in a vowel that is usually long. Some examples of open syllables are: shy, go, me, silo, zero. Words can have more than one type of syllable, such as these words with both an open and closed syllable: rerun or robot.
Vowel-consonant-silent e Syllables
Vowels in these syllables are long and the final e is silent. Some examples are: lime, those, snake. Examples of words with an open and vowel-consonant-silent e syllable are: define, migrate, and beside.
Vowel Pair Syllables
Also known as Vowel Teams, these vowel sounds are spelled with digraphs such as: plain, coat, cowboy.
R-Controlled Syllables
These syllables have a vowel followed by an r. The r affects the sound the vowel makes, and both sounds are heard within the same syllable. Examples with or, ir, er, ar, ur are: star, bird, her, turtle.
Consonant-le Syllables
These syllables are also known as final stable syllables. Students will usually discover that when they see a consonant followed by le at the end of a word, the three letters form a syllable. Some examples are: bubble, maple, kettle, and fiddle.
Though I stick to phonics programs to teach syllable types you can do this in guided reading as you see students needing the support.
Until Next Time,
What is Academic Rigor?
The term “academic rigor” has been making its way back through my building, but many teachers are not familiar with the concept or how to support rigor within their classroom. Understanding rigor is essential for understanding how to approach and measure the learning of students. It questions the standards and makes me think about what I really want students to know. (think 40 years from now)
“Rigor,” in the academic sense, is referring to that fine line between challenging and frustrating a student. It means that students are challenged to think, perform, and grow to a level that they were not at previously. It means that students must work, like an athlete at a team practice, to build their skills, understanding, and thinking power so that they can achieve at higher and higher levels. It means that the standards of the course are calibrated so that students are compelled to grow, but are not frustrated and overwhelmed in the process.
Academic rigor is commonly thought of in three different phases of the educational process. The first is setting the standard for students; the second is equipping students through instructional and supportive methods; the third is student demonstration of achievement.
Setting the Standard
We all know that there is a certain standard of excellence that we implicitly expect of our students. My students know that those expectations involve everything they do for me from writing assignments, pictures drawn, or speaking and listening to peers.
Sometimes these standards are made clear to students with examples, rubrics, directions, and instruction. Sometimes these standards are less defined. What is essential for establishing the appropriate degree of rigor in my classroom is making sure that you overtly demonstrate to students what the expected outcome is.
Not only is maintaining a high standard essential for student success, but excellent teachers must also make sure that they are supporting each and every student to move progressively toward the desired level of achievement. I make sure whatever content or skill is I'm are covering, I have the needed materials and instructional patterns.
It’s not enough for teachers simply to “teach” and expect students then to “learn.” The final step for assessment of academic rigor within the classroom is to provide students with various opportunities to demonstrate their degree of achievement in relation to the given standard.
So what are your standards in your classroom? How are those communicated, supported, and demonstrated throughout the year? Take time to consider how “rigorous” the academic requirements are for your classroom, and shape the environment to consistently demand of students higher and higher levels of academic progress!
Anticipate Difficulty
Use Graphic Organizers
Look for Clues
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“Rigor,” in the academic sense, is referring to that fine line between challenging and frustrating a student. It means that students are challenged to think, perform, and grow to a level that they were not at previously. It means that students must work, like an athlete at a team practice, to build their skills, understanding, and thinking power so that they can achieve at higher and higher levels. It means that the standards of the course are calibrated so that students are compelled to grow, but are not frustrated and overwhelmed in the process.
Academic rigor is commonly thought of in three different phases of the educational process. The first is setting the standard for students; the second is equipping students through instructional and supportive methods; the third is student demonstration of achievement.
Setting the Standard
We all know that there is a certain standard of excellence that we implicitly expect of our students. My students know that those expectations involve everything they do for me from writing assignments, pictures drawn, or speaking and listening to peers.
Sometimes these standards are made clear to students with examples, rubrics, directions, and instruction. Sometimes these standards are less defined. What is essential for establishing the appropriate degree of rigor in my classroom is making sure that you overtly demonstrate to students what the expected outcome is.
Not only is maintaining a high standard essential for student success, but excellent teachers must also make sure that they are supporting each and every student to move progressively toward the desired level of achievement. I make sure whatever content or skill is I'm are covering, I have the needed materials and instructional patterns.
- Lessons are systematically scaffolded from one to the next.
- Materials are consistently organized to clearly provide instructions and demonstration of task
- Intervention tasks or instructions are regularly utilized to ensure no students are left behind.
- I'm available for helping students individually at other points throughout the day.
- Parents are communicated with regularly regarding the academic goals of the course.
- Learning tools are color-coded, graphically organized, reinforced, and interactive.
- Content is made relevant and relatable to student background information and interest.
- Validation of Achievement
It’s not enough for teachers simply to “teach” and expect students then to “learn.” The final step for assessment of academic rigor within the classroom is to provide students with various opportunities to demonstrate their degree of achievement in relation to the given standard.
- A balance of formative and summative assessments intermittently provided.
- Student demonstration measured using a rubric or other standard-based assessment tool.
- Students allowed the opportunity to conference and revise work.
- Homework and class activities thought of as “practice.”
- Students work independently or collaboratively on a given project.
- Students connect material to real-life examples and situations.
- Students provide a written or spoken summative report.
- Students metacognitively apply a variety of content learned.
- Student performance compared to previous student attempts.
- Students provide high-level answers to high-level questions.
- Students do not give up or feel overwhelmed when faced with challenges.
- Students reflect on their learning progress and efforts.
So what are your standards in your classroom? How are those communicated, supported, and demonstrated throughout the year? Take time to consider how “rigorous” the academic requirements are for your classroom, and shape the environment to consistently demand of students higher and higher levels of academic progress!
Anticipate Difficulty
- Traditional remediation for struggling students imposes interventions after students have failed. It's more productive, however, if teachers anticipate areas of difficulty before students approach new material. Part of that anticipation includes the teacher considering the classroom population by knowing which students have identified learning disabilities, which have limited English proficiency, or how students have previously performed in class. Teachers should also be aware of which concepts and ideas have been difficult for classes in the past, where student misperceptions or confusions have been particularly strong.
Use Graphic Organizers
- Struggling students often need help organizing information in a coherent fashion to show how different parts relate to the whole and other kinds of relationships and connections. Graphic organizers can help, provided that teachers don't use them like worksheets. I demonstrate using them and make my student create their own. I only provide copies if I have a student that for whatever reason just can't--this is VERY rare. The point of the graphic organizer is to show kids how the facts are connected so they can organize them in their heads. Organizing information into a mental model or framework is the first stage of rigorous learning, and if you don't get that part right, it's harder to go farther in rigor. Ultimately, the goal is to get kids spontaneously creating their own graphic organizers—not on paper, but in their heads.
- A graphic organizer used in advance of a lesson gives students a heads up about key vocabulary, concepts, and skills, that they will encounter in a unit, showing the relationships of the upcoming information but also clarifying expectations of student learning. At the same time, such organizational tools can help teachers clarify in their own mind what kind of work they'll need to do to activate student's prior knowledge in a given area and fill gaps for some students, to better level the playing field as a new unit is undertaken.
Look for Clues
- During a lesson, teachers are constantly collecting information about students' learning through observations and other formative assessments, assignments, quizzes, tests, class participation, and behavioral cues. The feedback you collect all along from students gives you a lot of information about where kids are and where they're struggling but a lot of teachers make the mistake of seeing every struggling student as needing intervention without making the distinction between a productive struggle and destructive struggle.
If you are looking for more on Rigor or Supporting Struggling Students--check out Robyn Jackson. I love her insights and always find something new when I reread them. (Her website has great planning freebies.) My district is very big into 21st-century skills and knowledge with the 4cs--I found returning to her books the push I needed to rethink my reading instruction in a group wishing to "think outside--the box." (more on them later)
Until next time,
Why Progress Monitoring Students?
Raise your hand if you have gone back to school. I started back on the 1st. The beginning of the school year is ALWAYS crazy. Right!! #YesIknow #CRAZY
This year with my new team members and general education teachers, I have to remind them to progress monitor identified students, students in RTI, oh well I really mean more or less your whole class.
What are those reasons for progress monitoring? We have some right?
Progress monitoring has always been a best practice in teaching and learning. However, in an era of accountability ongoing, consistent progress monitoring is an essential component to determine the effectiveness of instruction and student learning. It is critical that we have routines for monitoring students’ growth and achievement that will support appropriate instruction. How do we know whether or not our instruction and our interventions are supporting student growth and learning? Progress monitoring helps us answer this question.
Another consideration is the frequency with which to monitor student progress. I want to give the student enough time to master the strategy, which means I don’t want the monitoring intervals to be too close together. At the same time, if the strategy is not working I want to discontinue it as soon as possible and replace it with methods that do work. This means I don’t want the monitoring intervals to be too far apart.
Without effective progress monitoring, I cannot determine whether or not our methods are working. Therefore, it is essential to think about how I monitor my students’ progress, how often I monitor, and how I use the findings to plan instruction so students learn and master the appropriate skills and strategies aka adequate progress.
Let's remember that progress monitoring is best implemented in a very realistic and sensible manner that can be sustained by the teacher. Using completed homework, class tests, learning/work station products, student share out time, oral presentations, conferences, and portfolios, to name a few, will provide you with the pulse of your students. And only you, as the classroom teacher, the professional, can determine which data and routines best serve you and your students for teaching and learning.
Until next Time,
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This year with my new team members and general education teachers, I have to remind them to progress monitor identified students, students in RTI, oh well I really mean more or less your whole class.
What are those reasons for progress monitoring? We have some right?
- Best practice
- Monitor progress to grade level benchmarks
- Adequate progress
- Know if intervention worked
Progress monitoring has always been a best practice in teaching and learning. However, in an era of accountability ongoing, consistent progress monitoring is an essential component to determine the effectiveness of instruction and student learning. It is critical that we have routines for monitoring students’ growth and achievement that will support appropriate instruction. How do we know whether or not our instruction and our interventions are supporting student growth and learning? Progress monitoring helps us answer this question.
Another consideration is the frequency with which to monitor student progress. I want to give the student enough time to master the strategy, which means I don’t want the monitoring intervals to be too close together. At the same time, if the strategy is not working I want to discontinue it as soon as possible and replace it with methods that do work. This means I don’t want the monitoring intervals to be too far apart.
Without effective progress monitoring, I cannot determine whether or not our methods are working. Therefore, it is essential to think about how I monitor my students’ progress, how often I monitor, and how I use the findings to plan instruction so students learn and master the appropriate skills and strategies aka adequate progress.
Let's remember that progress monitoring is best implemented in a very realistic and sensible manner that can be sustained by the teacher. Using completed homework, class tests, learning/work station products, student share out time, oral presentations, conferences, and portfolios, to name a few, will provide you with the pulse of your students. And only you, as the classroom teacher, the professional, can determine which data and routines best serve you and your students for teaching and learning.
Until next Time,
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