A few weeks ago I attended a workshop entitled "What's New with Literature Circles?" led by Harvey Daniels. When my department head offered me the opportunity to go in his place, I was pretty psyched as I had two of Daniel's books on my shelf at home, Minilessons for Literature Circles and A Community of Writers.
I tried literature circles / book clubs when student teaching and they could have gone better. I took away some new ideas from this workshop that I'll try this semester.
There were some pieces of the workshop that acted as helpful reminders - things that I knew or had read but forgotten when planning. One element is the direct instruction of social skills when starting students in book clubs. Building classroom community is important, but also teaching students what friendliness, piggybacking questions, extending discussion, and peer support look and sound like. Another is the use of short text before moving to full novels. A new resource for me mentioned was the book Micro Fiction , a collection of super short stories for students to quickly respond to and discuss. I had used short stories with my students to practice group discussion, but even these were too long to start with. The final element is one I will favor a great deal: having silent literature circles where students write and pass their discussion of the book to different members. I won't ask students to do it more often than discussion aloud, but I like the amount of control it gives me of the classroom, the record of discussion taking place, and that no one person can dominate or withdraw from the conversation.
Daniels also emphasized a few revisions to what had been considered book club requirements when I was in college. The biggest difference as Daniels saw it was the decreased use of role sheets for book club meetings, especially those that assign cooperative learning roles to the various group members because they are inauthentic. For me, the greatest change came in the new forms of assessment. Instead of using book talks, body biographies, or multigenre projects, Daniels suggests assessing the actual book club time for student preparation and participation, also for the sake of authenticity. Final projects are fine, but Daniels suggests reducing the weight they carry. How many real-life book clubs involve a culminating final project?
For me, however, the greatest blow to my current thinking was when myself and others asked Daniels whether literature circles were possible with district required reading. His answer was absolutely and that it could even aid students who are doing book clubs for the first time. I had attributed part of my previous failures to the district requirement that students had no choice in what they read; however, I now will drastically revise my design and try book clubs again with To Kill a Mockingbird .
In spring 2006, my students practiced literature circles with one short story before beginning a novel; this year they'll meet six times before beginning Mockingbird. In 2006, they had no more than four minilessons on comprehension tools and zero minilessons on social skills; this year the count is six and five (with some overlap, and I want the second number to grow depending on how I can fit it in. Social skills minilessons take about 10 minutes each, so I should be able to throw some more in at the beginning or end of some classes). In spring 2006, our prereading tool was a fairly schooly anticipation guide and one period of discussion; this year I'm reading aloud part one of Mockingbird while we practice with short pieces of text and then setting them loose on part two. I'm sure I'll be reflecting on my experiences a great deal, and I'll share my thoughts here when I can.
Saturday, December 27, 2008
Thursday, December 18, 2008
IEPs for Every Student
Years ago, I wrote about creating an Individualized Education Plan for every student whether they're required by law to have one or not. Next semester, I'm asking my students to do it for themselves and I need the help of my network. Below is my first draft of the assignment. Please help me make it successful by leaving your suggestions in the comments.
IEP Assignment
Starters (choose one):
- Complete the Multiple Intelligences Self Test and print the results.
- Complete the Modality Strengths Self Test and print the results.
Soup & Salad (optional):
- Interview a parent or former teacher. Ask them what they see your strengths and weaknesses are as a student and what things they believe help you to learn best.
Main Course (required):
Write a personal reflection that answers all of the following questions:
- What kind of student do you think you are (poor, fair, average, great)? Why do you believe this? What kind of student do you want to be?
- Identify at least three attainable goals you have for this semester in language arts. What do you need to do to meet them? How will you know when you've met them?
- Reflect on and write about a time in school (a year, a unit, a particular assignment, a class) when you didn't do well. How did you know you didn't do well? What made it difficult? Go into as much depth as possible.
- Reflect on and write about a time in school (a year, a unit, a particular assignment, a class) when you really succeeded. How did you know you did well? What made it possible? Go into as much depth as possible.
- Reflect on and write about a time in school (a year, a unit, a particular assignment, a class) when you had trouble at first, but eventually succeeded. How did you know you did well? What changes did you, your parents, your teachers, or your friends make that made it possible? Go into as much depth as possible.
- Read over your reflections from numbers 3, 4, and 5. Make a list of the things that make learning difficult for you personally, and a list of the things that make learning easy for you personally. Using those lists, create at least three accommodations you believe your teachers, parents, and classmates should provide to make it easier for you to learn and perform well in school.
- Review your goals from number 2. Make sure they match your accommodations and still seem attainable, but not so easy that you'll achieve them all in one week. Make any changes needed.
- Fill out the IEP Cover Sheet handed out in class.
Dessert (optional):
- Share your personal reflection with another teacher or parent and ask for their comments. Particularly ask if they would add any other accommodations or goals to your lists.
- Interview a licensed clinical social worker or a psychologist in an education related field. Ask them how they determine accommodations and goals for the students they serve in their IEPs.
Monday, October 20, 2008
My Philosophy of Education
On my first day of middle school, I wore my boy scout uniform.
To my innocent, sixth grade mind, this seemed like a logical idea. In elementary school, I wore my scout uniform every Monday, because Monday was the day we had den meetings. When I graduated from cub scouts to boy scouts in February of my fifth grade year, boy scout meetings continued on Monday. So I continued to wear my uniform.
I liked wearing my uniform. I was proud that I was in the boy scouts. Proud that I knew how to camp outdoors, how to cook, how to use a map and compass. Proud that the experiences I had were making me a better person, though maybe I wasn’t fully aware of it yet.
Wearing my boy scout uniform on the first day of middle school was probably one of the worst decisions I could have ever made.
Most teenagers know the detailed social rules and taboos of middle school culture would not permit the average student to wear a scout uniform, unless it could be construed as an anti-establishment statement. Instead, I was embracing the massive organization and the recruitment visions of my scoutmaster by wearing my earthy tan uniform with its bright badges and neckerchief. Unlike most teens, I had not yet learned those social rules.
I tried to be brave. A week after that first day the initial pain had dulled and my resolve had hardened. I wore my uniform again, thinking I or they would get used to it. I told myself that I couldn’t be the target of their emotional insults or physical assaults forever.
Eventually, however, I learned that the best way to avoid social conflict was to blend in, or better yet, disappear. It wasn’t just wearing my uniform that taught me this. But when I think of those first few days and wearing the uniform, it embodies that feeling of alienation I felt throughout middle school and struggled to overcome in high school before ultimately and finally defeating in college.
I teach to break down social barriers. To linguistically redefine the common usage of “gay” as an individual’s sexual orientation, rather than the superlative opposite of cool. To encourage the jock and the nerd to empathize with one another. To put the Latina and the White girl in each other’s shoes. To make the 6th grader in his earthy tan boy scout uniform feel that his individuality is valued and that his opinions and voice are an important contribution to his community and have the potential to change lives. All this can happen in the books we read and the thoughts we write and the discussions and interactions we have as learners inside and outside of the classroom.
While the social aspect may be what drove me into pursuing education as a career, I have a commitment to my chosen profession that makes me yearn to do it exceptionally well. Before studying education, I thought teaching was a simple mix of presenting information with enthusiasm. Mr. Keating from Dead Poets’ Society was my idol. When I took my first real education courses, I learned that while there is an art to teaching, there is a critical science that one cannot successfully teach without.
As the importance of pedagogy became central to my teaching, I began contributing to discussions with other educators online by writing my own blog and commenting on those of other educators. Edublogging has become my personal form of professional development where I can reflect on my teaching ideas and receive constructive feedback from peers. By writing about my thoughts on education, I’ve been able to process many of the methods I want to implement when I am a full-time classroom teacher.
Upon completing my college’s professional development program and graduating, I had had the opportunity to practice multiple intelligence theory, differentiated education, applied Bloom’s revised taxonomy, and other pedagogies in a number of classrooms in the middle and high school setting. My wife and I had applied for the Peace Corps, and I taught as a substitute while waiting for an invitation to serve, expecting a chance to teach English in another county. Instead, we were assigned to South Africa, where volunteers help to educate primary school teachers. Although we accepted the invitation, I was terrified – I was supposed to “teach” educators who had been working for up to 30 years when I had just finished college. What could I possibly teach these experienced instructors?
I arrived in South Africa to find that the majority of teachers received training from an Apartheid led government over 15 years ago. Those educated after the end of Apartheid fell to a similar fate: they teach as they had been taught. In a culture where age and experience is respected more than education, I had to be mindful of my youth and race, humble in my interactions with professionals who felt understandably vulnerable, and advocate for pedagogically sound methods. I had to teach proven methods to the toughest of critics, which further solidified for me the importance of pedagogy and its practice.
I believe I can best continue to explore my philosophy of education in a school environment as a classroom teacher. The coming of age social struggles drove me to education, but the study and implementation of pedagogy is what intrigues and sustains my love for it.
To my innocent, sixth grade mind, this seemed like a logical idea. In elementary school, I wore my scout uniform every Monday, because Monday was the day we had den meetings. When I graduated from cub scouts to boy scouts in February of my fifth grade year, boy scout meetings continued on Monday. So I continued to wear my uniform.
I liked wearing my uniform. I was proud that I was in the boy scouts. Proud that I knew how to camp outdoors, how to cook, how to use a map and compass. Proud that the experiences I had were making me a better person, though maybe I wasn’t fully aware of it yet.
Wearing my boy scout uniform on the first day of middle school was probably one of the worst decisions I could have ever made.
Most teenagers know the detailed social rules and taboos of middle school culture would not permit the average student to wear a scout uniform, unless it could be construed as an anti-establishment statement. Instead, I was embracing the massive organization and the recruitment visions of my scoutmaster by wearing my earthy tan uniform with its bright badges and neckerchief. Unlike most teens, I had not yet learned those social rules.
I tried to be brave. A week after that first day the initial pain had dulled and my resolve had hardened. I wore my uniform again, thinking I or they would get used to it. I told myself that I couldn’t be the target of their emotional insults or physical assaults forever.
Eventually, however, I learned that the best way to avoid social conflict was to blend in, or better yet, disappear. It wasn’t just wearing my uniform that taught me this. But when I think of those first few days and wearing the uniform, it embodies that feeling of alienation I felt throughout middle school and struggled to overcome in high school before ultimately and finally defeating in college.
I teach to break down social barriers. To linguistically redefine the common usage of “gay” as an individual’s sexual orientation, rather than the superlative opposite of cool. To encourage the jock and the nerd to empathize with one another. To put the Latina and the White girl in each other’s shoes. To make the 6th grader in his earthy tan boy scout uniform feel that his individuality is valued and that his opinions and voice are an important contribution to his community and have the potential to change lives. All this can happen in the books we read and the thoughts we write and the discussions and interactions we have as learners inside and outside of the classroom.
While the social aspect may be what drove me into pursuing education as a career, I have a commitment to my chosen profession that makes me yearn to do it exceptionally well. Before studying education, I thought teaching was a simple mix of presenting information with enthusiasm. Mr. Keating from Dead Poets’ Society was my idol. When I took my first real education courses, I learned that while there is an art to teaching, there is a critical science that one cannot successfully teach without.
As the importance of pedagogy became central to my teaching, I began contributing to discussions with other educators online by writing my own blog and commenting on those of other educators. Edublogging has become my personal form of professional development where I can reflect on my teaching ideas and receive constructive feedback from peers. By writing about my thoughts on education, I’ve been able to process many of the methods I want to implement when I am a full-time classroom teacher.
Upon completing my college’s professional development program and graduating, I had had the opportunity to practice multiple intelligence theory, differentiated education, applied Bloom’s revised taxonomy, and other pedagogies in a number of classrooms in the middle and high school setting. My wife and I had applied for the Peace Corps, and I taught as a substitute while waiting for an invitation to serve, expecting a chance to teach English in another county. Instead, we were assigned to South Africa, where volunteers help to educate primary school teachers. Although we accepted the invitation, I was terrified – I was supposed to “teach” educators who had been working for up to 30 years when I had just finished college. What could I possibly teach these experienced instructors?
I arrived in South Africa to find that the majority of teachers received training from an Apartheid led government over 15 years ago. Those educated after the end of Apartheid fell to a similar fate: they teach as they had been taught. In a culture where age and experience is respected more than education, I had to be mindful of my youth and race, humble in my interactions with professionals who felt understandably vulnerable, and advocate for pedagogically sound methods. I had to teach proven methods to the toughest of critics, which further solidified for me the importance of pedagogy and its practice.
I believe I can best continue to explore my philosophy of education in a school environment as a classroom teacher. The coming of age social struggles drove me to education, but the study and implementation of pedagogy is what intrigues and sustains my love for it.
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