Monday, March 19, 2012
Blog #7 Due March 22nd
We all know that students prefer to learn in certain ways. We also know that teachers like to teach in certain ways (usually mirroring how we like to learn). How are you going to become more aware of this in your classroom and find ways to be more open to teaching to their styles instead of your own? Remember the quote about the more risk we take, the messier it gets, but also the more profound the effect...
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I will not be at school at the beginning of the year, but I hope that my sub will be open to having students complete the learning inventories at the beginning of the year. This will allow him or her to start teaching to the students' styles of learning from the start. I plan on looking at the profiles closely when I get back to school. I would also like to send home the parent questionnaires to get the parents input on how they think their students learn best at home or from prior experience in K or 1st. It might be beneficial to have students complete the profiles mid-year to see if their preferences are consistent or if they have changed once they have adjusted to myself being there and gotten used to and comfortable with their peers.
ReplyDeleteI am definitely looking forward to completing the learning styles and interest surveys next year and following through with them. I had great intentions this year by having students complete a learning styles inventory on the computer and compiling the results, but then I never looked at them again. Although I have created lessons and activities that I use from year to year, I plan on tweaking those lessons to better meet their individual needs.
ReplyDeleteI found out through completing my own learning styles profile that I teach the opposite way I prefer to learn. I guess that's a good thing considering most students do not prefer to learn lecture style (based off of my most recent data analysis).
The quote about the more risk we take, the messier it gets...made me think of the first time I did a WebQuest. It was very messy and chaotic in my classroom. If anyone walked in, they probably would have immediately thought that I had lost complete control of my classroom. However, I knew exactly what was going on, it was planned, everyone was on task and everyone was learning. I was definitely out of my comfort zone simply because it looked and sounded as if I didn't have control. Although the activity needed tweaking, I still believe it was a valuable experience for both kids and teacher. I took a risk the the pros definitely out weighed the cons.
My subject (art) lends itself to projects, visuals and demonstrations and I myself am a visual learner. While most of my students preferred projects and simulations, there were a large number who also like teaching games and peer teaching. I will definitely try to create opportunities for this in my lessons. I think art history units would lend themselves to both of these styles of learning. The biggest risk this would involve for me is giving up the time the students spend actually producing works. But I think if I had them design art games themselves maybe we could meet more learning styles and still keep the "hands on" piece.
ReplyDeleteI wonder if you have units that would lend themselves to the students creating games (that included and were assessed based on information but also on the design/"artsy" part) and then kept the games for other students to play in order to learn information. You could keep the best of the best...and put them on display for the Arts and Science Festival.
DeleteFor several years now, I’ve reflected that as I develop as a teacher, I am moving farther and farther away from the methods I used when I first began teaching nine years ago. During my first years of teaching, I taught the way I had been taught sooooo long ago! It was what I knew, what came naturally. I also realized very quickly that it was extremely ineffective and frustrating for both me and my students. It has been hard to change the methodology and delivery of lessons, and just the way I manage my classroom. Thanks to curriculum coaches, mentor teachers, professional development classes (not to mention the class we’re all taking now!), I like how my teaching is changing and growing. I truly believe that responsive teaching is the only way to be a highly effective teacher. Why be a teacher if you do not strive to be highly effective? That doesn’t mean anyone can do this 100% of the time, but it is worth taking risks to change and grow. It does mean that as a teacher I will let my students and their needs shape how I am a teacher.
ReplyDeleteAt the beginning of next year, I will administer the student interest and learning style preference surveys during the first weeks of school. My students will understand why they are completing these surveys, and how I will use them. This year’s students really enjoyed seeing the results of the activity. I really want to use the information, along with the great techniques we’re learning now, to revamp all of the science units to include more differentiated lessons. It may be challenging to get this done all in one year, but if I add one differentiation activity to each unit, it’ll be a start. My goal is to have all the science units based on research, experimentation, problem solving, and peer teaching. Don’t know how long it’ll take to accomplish, and I imagine there will be quite a lot of “mess” along the way, but I do want to get started.
I am in the process of changing my math routine. I am collaborating with our math specialist to implement math stations. This is where two students work together in a tub activity which has been introduced to the class or in small groups. It takes a lot of modeling and repetition to make it successful. Once all 10 tubs are introduced the students will be able to work independently with their partner and I can monitor their progress, pull small groups, as well as differentiate the tubs according to their math ability. The tubs will be excellent review for all math standards learned throughout the year. Anyway, I feel as though I am losing time right now introducing and modeling tub procedure, but I know it will get better as soon as we get going with the program.
ReplyDeleteWhat a great question. I have always been very aware about the ways in which I learn best because I always feel so different. I'm the person that needs to draw or doodle to hear what your saying, can hardly ever sit still, and can NOT follow auditory-only directions without a visual. I really don't like "simulations" or any of that acting out stuff. I really LOVE the open-ended project concept. Once, in college, in an education course (of course) we had a final project/reflection to show what we’ve learned, and I was the only one who didn’t write a paper. I made a puzzle. It was a fun project to do. But it was embarrassing at first, me wondering if I hadn’t followed the directions correctly or if I was going to be penalized for not writing a paper. But when we got our projects back, I got an A. And I was so happy that I hadn’t had to write a paper like those other suckers! :) But on a serious note, it was a great learning experience for me to see that it is ok to be different and learn different as I saw that we all got to the same end learning result: success.
ReplyDeleteI'm very artistic/mathematical/pattern oriented and find myself frequently teaching this way. This has definitely transferred into my teaching. I think that it will be a change in my thinking to now gear my teaching towards their specific style. Is it selfish that this is a new idea to me? It seems obviously intuitive, but clearly I have not been gearing the majority of my instruction this way before now! Guilty!
I want to not only teach to their style but I want each learner to feel validated and comfortable with their differences. I plan to share with my kids the learning style inventory results; I think this will be a powerful lesson for them on how to think about how you think.
I am very much looking forward to administering the same series of interest and learning style inventories again that I just gave my currently students. I will have these same kids next year, so it will be so interesting to see how/if their interests and learning styles have changed over the course of the next(ish) year. And when it is time to get my new group of fresh fourth graders, I will definitely be administering this the first day they walk in the door.
Like Krista mentioned, for me as well, I have been incorporating math center rotations during my math period. (Think like reading rotations during reading groups). My assistant principal asked me to try it last year, so I thought, why not? No one else on my grade level had thought about this idea. They mostly were teaching whole group, and perhaps smaller groups here and there. So for me last year, I wasn’t sure where or how to start…or what math centers should look like, or how to manage them. Should I manage them like my reading group rotations, should I have four centers going on each day, and if so, how would I make or get the resources needed to have these centers up and running? Well, last year I got my toes wet. I was a part of “Eyes on Instruction” where selected teachers have the opportunity to take the day and explore other schools. Krista and I went to South Anna (I think it was), and they had this math center stuff down solid! I found an easy rotation chart, where you simply have 2 thirty minute rotations each day…and four math groups. In the first rotation, 2 math groups meet with you, and then another is at one center, and the fourth group at a different center. Then in the second rotation, it flips. This was fabulous. Getting the resources was the tough part. Both last and year, and this year (thank goodness for Pinterest and Teachers Pay Teachers); I have found some great stuff. I guess I should get to my point. My point is, I went from the traditional, stay at your seat, listen to me, whole group math instruction…to here are some hands-on games, manipualtives, go explore yourself (but still have some time with me…small group, even better!) This year having the math coach (who comes in twice a week for one rotation to challenge my higher groups), and the Title 1 math specialist (who can give my lower kids an extra dose of goodness); it has been really great this year. I am much better this year with the hands-on activities I have found, the manipulatives, how I manage things, and my release of control. I think it sunk it during our addition/subtraction unit, when one of my dear struggling boys really internalized the concept of addition and subtraction. We had practiced so much, he was getting a rotation with me (and my specialist), and then partaking in fun Investigations games, as well as some other activities I had come up with. And he just flourished. He knew doubles; he could count on in his head without using his fingers. I was so blown away. It was truly amazing, and he knew he had learned a lot too…you could see it in his face. So I have been convinced that math centers are a new way (21st century direction) of teaching math. And now that the control freak in me has let go of a lot, I enjoy watching my kids explore at the centers, and internalize things on their own. See for me (if you haven’t noticed) I like structure and to be told exactly what to do, and be a little overachiever. I have let go of this, in a lot of ways in my room (well not the overachiever part), but I trust that the materials, activities, manipulatives, games, etc I pull together will be beneficial enough to allow my kids to explore and learn without me standing over them the whole time. Huge change and a very good one. My grade level is exploring math centers as well…not sure if in the way that I am. But I like to think in comparison to others, I am being innovative (shhh don’t tell them I said that). Haha.
ReplyDeleteAll of my students took the learning style inventory. I found that as a whole they prefer peer teaching, discussion, teaching games, and lecture. Peer teaching, discussion, and lecture were not surprises. I already use these styles. Teaching games was a surprise since some students have told me that they do not learn anything from that style. However, those students are very good math students. I keep wondering if at some point a learning style might not lend itself to a subject. For example, would learning games really facilitate an adult learner studying calculus.
ReplyDeleteIn the future, I plan on using the learning style inventory at the beginning of each year. I know that their are other instruments the one we got in class. I am curious if any students preferred style is different from their style for other subjects.
I have always been a hand on type of learner. I find myself teaching my classes in more hands on methods. This works for my classes this year as they too prefer hands on activities. The learning styles inventory helped to clarify the way on which my students prefer to learn. I plan to give the inventories next year to build profiles and use them while planning activities for my class. I will have to continually check back to their preferences to prepare activities in insure the most impact I can. I will strive to not plan activities to my preferences, but to reflect upon my class data to develop and tweak activities for them. It is not always going to be easy, but the end result is worth it!
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