Last Cluster

The last cluster of the year was bitter-sweet for me. I had only been back from maternity leave for 2 weeks. I felt like I was only saying hello! However, as I stopped to look back over the year, I realize how much I had grown personally. Furthermore, I am overwhelmed by the growth I have seen in many of the teachers I work with. It was a year well worth it!

Some ways that we could improve came out during discussion. These included the following:

• We need to reveal the parts of strategies slower, allowing teachers time to develop the skill and properly implement it in their classrooms. One person suggested that we even do OPTIC one letter at a time.

• Most teachers look forward to more development time for two reasons: 1. Having help to implement the new strategy. 2. Being able to collaborate with their colleagues. Collaboration with other people who teach the same subject was a key concern for most teachers.

• Celebrate more often.

• Let people know how much they are appreciated--both publicly and privately.

Some ways that I feel I could improve were the following:

• In my desire not to treat adults like kids (a common complaint I heard from my peers last year), I ignored good teaching in cluster. Much of what we presented was brand new information. It would have been good to slow down and use some strategies to help people remember.

• I need to improve on communication. period. Sharing information once in one way is not enough. I never did that with students; I shouldn't do it with adults.

• Remember: If I am tired and frustrated, so are the career teachers.

So begins my list for next year...Here's to growing and learning!

ELA Field Testing

So yesterday afternoon I had a thought--why are we teaching students the types of context clues? Does it really help them? Could that be why students don't apply the context clue skills to other classes. I am an avid reader, and it's truthfully very rare that I stop reading and look up a word--I use context clues. When I do, I simply re-read the sentences around the word...I don't go think, "this is an antonym clue", or " this is a definition clue." Not only that, but most of the examples are confusing. Very often, authors use more than one type of clue in a sentence. It may not be effective to teach students to find "types" of clues. I believe that may be more of a testing strategy, as opposed to a skill.

As a result, today's field-testing looked a little different. I gave the kids a passage using an unknown word. We read it and identified a process for defining unknown words.

1. Identify the clues.

2. Make a logical guess (find a synonym).

3. Plug in the word.

4. Ask ourselves: does this make sense?

I wanted the focus to be on modeling the thought process.

We then practiced those two skills: determining meaning and identifying the clues.

The kids did a WONDERFUL job! In fact one student told me that she enjoyed class today! It definitely made my heart happy.

If I were to do it again, I would include more modeling of the thought process and reviewing the process above. Of course, a skill like this requires further practice, but overall, I think the students have a base.

7th Grade TX history; round 2

This round went smoother. First of all--a great group of kids! Second, timing was much better. This group had a higher number of ELL students. Levels 2 and 3 seemed to get the most out of the lesson, and seemed to be catching on the fastest. Level 1 students still struggled to grasp the concept...well, I'm not sure if it's the concept that they don't grasp, or if they don't understand enough of the language to find clues within a passage. My guess would be the latter. I go in to post test and wrap up today. I also field test in an ELA class. We'll see what happens...

Field Testing-7th Grade Texas History

Oh the joys of being in the classroom! How quickly I had forgotten the joys of dealing with 7th grade behavior, and the challenges that can bring. How quickly I remembered that I just LOVE the challenge of dealing with it anyway. Maybe I am crazy...kids have been saying if for years.

Being in a strange classroom really does bring its own challenges. I have just a few minutes to determine the best way to deal with challenging students--humor, consequences, etc.-- and may never get a tomorrow to try again.

My timing is also WAY off. It's been a while since I've taught 45 min. classes, and having to stop for discipline takes away from completing activities. It's definitely reminded that teaching is a well-honed skill. Just as you can improve with time, you can lose skills with time! A goal for next year: Teach a class once a month!

As far as field-testing goes, I was pleasantly surprised. Though they were rather talkative, most students did their work and did it well. As opposed to the first round of testing, I think this lesson went MUCH better. I am excited to return to the 7th grade ELA class and re-teach the strategy. I think I will see better results than the first time I went in.

Some key concepts that I need to remember for the next time I field test:

• Don't forget to pre-test.
• Set clear expectations with consequences before class begins.
• timing for 45 min. classes needs to be worked out. This sub-lesson, may need to be broken up over a week or so in order to allow for teachers to address content.
• Model thinking for putting definitions into own words!!!

We'll see what comes of it!

TCEA Day 1

Day one of the conference. I am overwhelmed. The world of technology seems to move so fast. I learned today that Epson is coming out with new "smart" technology. As opposed to the SMART boards/Promethian boards, they've created a projector that uses similar technology. You can project onto a wall, screen, whiteboard etc. and use an electronic pen to interact. It's pretty impressive. Still, I can't help but think about the fact that it really wasn't that long ago that I saw my first SMARTBOARD and how many teachers still don't have one in their classrooms. Now, there's new technology! Unbelievable.

One of the best sessions that I attended today (other than the one presented by our very own Kim Munoz and Cathy Sharp) was by Tammy Worcester. She had a lot of interesting ideas that teachers could use to increase engagement in the classroom. One thing that she showed us was this--the blogger website. I've played with it before, but never really utilized it. It triggered an idea. The other master teachers and I have been talking about ways to share our thoughts about school. I started a blog on Moodle, but this seems a little easier to use and maybe a little more inviting. I don't know; we'll see. As I grow as a teacher, I'm hoping to share my thoughts with you--learning and growing together.

Anyway, here is my first post. Ms. Worcester made her handouts available on her website. Below is a link to the website. Check it out! There were a lot of neat ideas with suggestions for use. I attended Wed. 1:00-2:00 session, but I'm sure all her handouts have good ideas.

http://www.tammyworcester.com/TWHandouts/New_Handouts/Entries/2010/2/9_TCEA_2010.html

Let me know what you find useful!

Shelly : )