Yesterday the reading and discussion went very well! This was the first time I had students read their own discussion questions during discussion. I wanted my students to become confident in their ability to formulate and ask good open-ended discussion questions. I structured this by first having students answer teacher-generated questions, then using student-generated questions in various ways, then having students ask their questions right after they write them.
What was also good practice for my students was the limited amount of time they had formulating their discussion questions. There were two students who were having trouble thinking of some, but it appeared that they were simply unmotivated, even though they knew that they would have to ask their questions during discussion. I handled this by redirecting students to the text and reminded them that they can pick out specific dialogue or a specific event and ask a question about it (instead of an "overall" question).
Friday, April 23, 2010
Thursday, April 22, 2010
Daily discussions
For the last two days, my students have been engaged in daily discussions. Since each chapter in FRIEDRICH is so short, it allows us to read it out loud as a class, then discuss what is happening in the chapter.
Yesterday, we started class by going over some open-ended questions the students completed the day before. I passed back their worksheets and we had a guided discussion using the questions they have already thought about and answered. It was beneficial for students to have their answers in front of them in case they "freeze up." I have already looked over and graded their answers (they were all very good!)so they knew that I "approved" of what they had written. This is also beneficial because students who say "I don't know" were then asked to read what they had written down.
After discussing those questions, students read the next chapter out loud. My eighth graders like the "Popcorn" way of reading, and I also like it because most students pay special attention to the book when doing this. After the reading, I led a discussion about what we just read. I started the discussion with "So tell me what is going on in this chapter." After this, students began to ask questions about the novel - both clarification questions and interpretive questions. Students appeared to enjoy the "circling up" and are excited to participate. I am going to try to make this a daily occurance and see if the excitement remains as high.
Today, I will do the same thing - discussion, but I am going to structure it a little differently. After students are done reading the next chapter out loud, I will pass out index cards and ask students to write an open-ended discussion question regarding the chapter. Then, students will have their own discussion questions to ask when reviewing the chapter.
I began by leading the discussion, but I am trying to make students comfortable enough sharing their thoughts and ideas that I do not have to be leading the discussion. We'll see how today goes!
Yesterday, we started class by going over some open-ended questions the students completed the day before. I passed back their worksheets and we had a guided discussion using the questions they have already thought about and answered. It was beneficial for students to have their answers in front of them in case they "freeze up." I have already looked over and graded their answers (they were all very good!)so they knew that I "approved" of what they had written. This is also beneficial because students who say "I don't know" were then asked to read what they had written down.
After discussing those questions, students read the next chapter out loud. My eighth graders like the "Popcorn" way of reading, and I also like it because most students pay special attention to the book when doing this. After the reading, I led a discussion about what we just read. I started the discussion with "So tell me what is going on in this chapter." After this, students began to ask questions about the novel - both clarification questions and interpretive questions. Students appeared to enjoy the "circling up" and are excited to participate. I am going to try to make this a daily occurance and see if the excitement remains as high.
Today, I will do the same thing - discussion, but I am going to structure it a little differently. After students are done reading the next chapter out loud, I will pass out index cards and ask students to write an open-ended discussion question regarding the chapter. Then, students will have their own discussion questions to ask when reviewing the chapter.
I began by leading the discussion, but I am trying to make students comfortable enough sharing their thoughts and ideas that I do not have to be leading the discussion. We'll see how today goes!
Wednesday, April 21, 2010
Ideas, ideas!
Although my commute is a long one, it offers me time to reflect on my teaching and to brainstorm new ideas regarding my teaching strategies. Some questions that come to my mind include:
-Are my students moving forward at a reasonable pace?
-Are there ways to switch-up my style of instruction to keep students actively engaged?
-What are some new ways to help my students interact with the material?
I was reflecting on these questions and how my classrooms have been acting during this stressful time (regarding PSSA testing, awkward bell schedules, and arena scheduling). Some neat ideas came to mind! Some include:
~Working backwards with my planning WITH my students. For example, "We need to finish the novel FRIEDRICH by May seventh. How do you think we should go about finishing the novel, starting with the week it needs to be completed? By having students involved in my planning, they may become more receptive to completing the work in a timely manner.
~Having students teach each other chapters of the novel. This (of course) will be carefully scaffolded so that students may be prepared for teaching. Students will be given a few days notice, where I will explain the activity and assign a chapter to be taught. Some questions that must be answered to assist in the teaching of other students include:
What is the main idea of this chapter?
What are the two most important events that happen in this chapter?
How do the characters react to these events? (What does this say about their overall characters?)
In regards to the overall novel, how important is this chapter?
By having students analyzing the chapter with these questions, they will have a better understanding of it as well. I can quickly assess their work before they begin teaching another student so they know they are on the right track.
As part of the activity, student "teachers" cannot just tell their partner what the chapter is about. Since both students will have read the chapter, it is the student "teacher"'s responsibility to have their "student" come to his/her own conclusions and help them with the process of analyzing the chapter.
I am in the process of designing this activity for my students and am looking forward to seeing the results!
-Are my students moving forward at a reasonable pace?
-Are there ways to switch-up my style of instruction to keep students actively engaged?
-What are some new ways to help my students interact with the material?
I was reflecting on these questions and how my classrooms have been acting during this stressful time (regarding PSSA testing, awkward bell schedules, and arena scheduling). Some neat ideas came to mind! Some include:
~Working backwards with my planning WITH my students. For example, "We need to finish the novel FRIEDRICH by May seventh. How do you think we should go about finishing the novel, starting with the week it needs to be completed? By having students involved in my planning, they may become more receptive to completing the work in a timely manner.
~Having students teach each other chapters of the novel. This (of course) will be carefully scaffolded so that students may be prepared for teaching. Students will be given a few days notice, where I will explain the activity and assign a chapter to be taught. Some questions that must be answered to assist in the teaching of other students include:
What is the main idea of this chapter?
What are the two most important events that happen in this chapter?
How do the characters react to these events? (What does this say about their overall characters?)
In regards to the overall novel, how important is this chapter?
By having students analyzing the chapter with these questions, they will have a better understanding of it as well. I can quickly assess their work before they begin teaching another student so they know they are on the right track.
As part of the activity, student "teachers" cannot just tell their partner what the chapter is about. Since both students will have read the chapter, it is the student "teacher"'s responsibility to have their "student" come to his/her own conclusions and help them with the process of analyzing the chapter.
I am in the process of designing this activity for my students and am looking forward to seeing the results!
Thursday, April 8, 2010
PSSA Figurative Language Review (Group work)
When thinking of how to incorporate PSSA prep into my class, I saw it as a challenge. How do I help students learn these concepts in an authentic way?
For the last two days I have started class with a "warm up." I explained to my students that it is important for them to have lots of practice because it will lessen the chance of them "freaking out" on test day! Also, my excitement level is very high - especially when teaching a new lesson for the first time (like today!)
We reviewed several different types of figurative language yesterday, including simile, metaphor, hyperbole, personification, and idiom. My eighth graders are familiar with these terms and know them pretty well. My intentions for this activity were - to help students who do not know the terms well to gain understanding, and - to help students who already know them to recognize and analyze them quicker.
On our Promethean board, I wrote instructions for a group activity. There were three groups: a simile group, a metaphor group, and a hyperbole group. Each group had to think about their specific type of figurative language and re-write three sentences using that figurative language. The sentences were:
Elizabeth is very pretty.
It is very hot.
I am so tired.
I broke the students into three groups and told them they have 10 minutes to re-write each sentence two different ways, using their group's figurative language. Here are some student work:
Similies:
Elizabeth is as pretty as a flower blooming in the meadow.
Elizabeth is as pretty as a deer walking in the snow.
It is as hot as the desert.
It is hot like an oven.
I am as tired as a bear in hibernation.
I am as tired as a kid coming out of school.
Metaphors:
Elizabeth is a ruby sparkling in the light.
Elizabeth is a golden sunset.
It is a steaming volcano outside.
It is so hot it's an oven outside.
I am so tired I am a hibernating bear.
I am so tired I am a sloth.
Hyperboles: (these were the "funniest" ones according to my classes!)
Elizabeth is so pretty every time I see her I fall over.
I am blinded by Elizabeth's beauty.
It is so hot I feel I am sitting in the desert and camels are passing by.
It is so hot I can make Crabby Patties on the ground.
I'm so tired if you threw a rock at my head I wouldn't feel it.
I'm so exhausted I could sleep for eternity.
I asked students to present their sentences to the rest of the class and it went very well! There were some particularly funny ones. I chose to have them re-write the same sentence for each group so they could see the differences between similies, metaphors, and hyperboles. Students worked well in their groups, coming up with examples, then saying "AH! That won't work...that has 'like' in it!" (said in a metaphor group).
I finished the activity by asking the whole class, "Why use figurative language?" Students quickly shouted out "Funnier," "To exaggerate something," and "To make it more memorable." Then students answered two questions and turned them in. The questions were:
Which re-written sentence stands out the most in your mind? Why?
What is your favorite type of figurative language? (simile, metaphor, hyperbole) Why?
I hope that in the process of doing this activity, students will remember the activity and hopefully one or more of the literary terms!
Tips for other teachers - Plan 20 minutes to a half hour for this activity, depending on class size. For students having problems with writing metaphors, have them think of similies first, then have them try to change them into metaphors using a direct comparison.
For the last two days I have started class with a "warm up." I explained to my students that it is important for them to have lots of practice because it will lessen the chance of them "freaking out" on test day! Also, my excitement level is very high - especially when teaching a new lesson for the first time (like today!)
We reviewed several different types of figurative language yesterday, including simile, metaphor, hyperbole, personification, and idiom. My eighth graders are familiar with these terms and know them pretty well. My intentions for this activity were - to help students who do not know the terms well to gain understanding, and - to help students who already know them to recognize and analyze them quicker.
On our Promethean board, I wrote instructions for a group activity. There were three groups: a simile group, a metaphor group, and a hyperbole group. Each group had to think about their specific type of figurative language and re-write three sentences using that figurative language. The sentences were:
Elizabeth is very pretty.
It is very hot.
I am so tired.
I broke the students into three groups and told them they have 10 minutes to re-write each sentence two different ways, using their group's figurative language. Here are some student work:
Similies:
Elizabeth is as pretty as a flower blooming in the meadow.
Elizabeth is as pretty as a deer walking in the snow.
It is as hot as the desert.
It is hot like an oven.
I am as tired as a bear in hibernation.
I am as tired as a kid coming out of school.
Metaphors:
Elizabeth is a ruby sparkling in the light.
Elizabeth is a golden sunset.
It is a steaming volcano outside.
It is so hot it's an oven outside.
I am so tired I am a hibernating bear.
I am so tired I am a sloth.
Hyperboles: (these were the "funniest" ones according to my classes!)
Elizabeth is so pretty every time I see her I fall over.
I am blinded by Elizabeth's beauty.
It is so hot I feel I am sitting in the desert and camels are passing by.
It is so hot I can make Crabby Patties on the ground.
I'm so tired if you threw a rock at my head I wouldn't feel it.
I'm so exhausted I could sleep for eternity.
I asked students to present their sentences to the rest of the class and it went very well! There were some particularly funny ones. I chose to have them re-write the same sentence for each group so they could see the differences between similies, metaphors, and hyperboles. Students worked well in their groups, coming up with examples, then saying "AH! That won't work...that has 'like' in it!" (said in a metaphor group).
I finished the activity by asking the whole class, "Why use figurative language?" Students quickly shouted out "Funnier," "To exaggerate something," and "To make it more memorable." Then students answered two questions and turned them in. The questions were:
Which re-written sentence stands out the most in your mind? Why?
What is your favorite type of figurative language? (simile, metaphor, hyperbole) Why?
I hope that in the process of doing this activity, students will remember the activity and hopefully one or more of the literary terms!
Tips for other teachers - Plan 20 minutes to a half hour for this activity, depending on class size. For students having problems with writing metaphors, have them think of similies first, then have them try to change them into metaphors using a direct comparison.
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