Nov. 23, 2011 I found this cool graphic organizer on the Internet, altered it and I am excited about trying it out tomorrow. For this organizer the idea is that the students fill out each box using the letter to stretch their thinking, as what they put in the box must start with the same letter. I think it would be great for brainstorming and would really encourage the student to think about the topic in a very deep way in order to complete this sheet. I am using it to guide the student's viewing of a movie, where the students will be looking for ways that humans are impacting the Earth in either a positive or negative way. Not only will this organizer engage the students in paying full attention to the documentary movie, but it will guide our post discussions on Friday. I will try to post the file here. I would love to here how you might use this organizer in your classroom.
Nov. 16, 2011 I am so happy with my iPad and the uses there are for the classroom, but today it became even more of a necessity in my classroom. I placed the iPad on a stack of books and then placed a book on top of it so it wouldn't fall and away we went with the camera activated and plugged into my data projector. Document cameras are a great way to show students a variety of things. Today, I was showing them an exemplar and a rubric for a project that they were starting. The students were able to all see the images at the same time and were able to follow along on the rubric. I have also used document cameras to get close-up views on topographic maps as well as showing fine crystals on certain rock samples. What do you use document cameras for in your classroom? Note taking, showing images, etc.
Nov. 15, 2011
That's right, why not have a snowball fight in your classroom. I have them all the time! I have found that the DI strategy "snowballing" is a great way for kids to brainstorm in a safe way. With this strategy, my students write down one idea at a time, related to our topic, crumple up the paper and together we toss the paper balls to others in the room. The students then add another point to the page and repeat. I find this strategy is great for doing group/class brainstorming as it forces everyone to write a point down and yet provides the safety net of participating without the stress of being wrong. After we have tossed the paper around for a bit, I then ask the students to either write what is on their paper on the board or I ask them to read their points to me and I write them out for them. Either way, we end up with a great list and discussion along the way. What you do with the brainstormed list at this point, depends on your lesson.
Obviously, rules need to be established prior to the learning, and all paper needs to end up in the recycling bin at the end of the session. (I actually find my room cleaner than before we started). A quote from my grade 9 applied student: " Are we going to snowball today? I love snowballing! ". If tossing paper around a classroom is what it takes to get a student engaged in creating a note with me or for inspiring discussion, then I am all for it! This is a super easy strategy to try! As a tip, I sometimes get involved too in order to spur on deeper thinking of the topic....and it's fun to throw paper balls around. :)
As many of my close friends have seen, last week I was bopping around the school showing off a cool new graphic organizer that my 1L students did. If you think I was overly excited about this organizer, you should have seen my students! They were keen to do the assigned task and to create a piece of work (or art) to show off what they know about places across Canada. The task was to tell me where you would like to live in Canada and explain why (pull factors for interprovincial migration). My options were to either ask the essential students to write about these places or to give me the details in this funky take on an organizer. I will post pictures of the results here.
Well, I have had this blog for about 24 hours and I keep thinking about all of the DIA strategies I could post about. I plan on posting new things every few days.
As I was lesson planning this afternoon, I realized that differentiating in a classroom to meet all of the student's needs takes a lot of work, but it pays off in the end with less classroom management issues, more engaged students and ultimately more successful students. Not only do these three things drive me to do what I can for my students, but it has increased my interest in lesson planning. What once seemed to be never ending, has become enjoyable and challenging. I love trying to think of new ways to teach a certain topic or skill. It is really the students who have driven this passion in me to create lessons that will amaze, entice and encourage students to want to learn more. I think my biggest feeling of success to this point in my career is watching the students in an essential level geography class discussing the topic of the lesson and genuinely excited about what they are learning. This is what DIA could do for you in your class!