Any teacher worth her (or his) salt knows that summer vacation isn't vacation. It's the offseason! You know, that time we spend reassessing our performance last season, setting goals to improve our game - good stuff. I start looking forward to it about the beginning of May and spend a fair part of the tedious hours stalking my classroom as children test considering it.
Here we go: Clarke's Semi-strategic Plan to Up Her Game and Have a Little Fun...
1. Weakness: Focus on Answer. Game Changer: Ask more and better questions. (Duh.)
I'm not awful that way; I know to answer a kid's question with, "Well, what do you think?" and wait. I need to script myself more purposeful questions on which to center instruction. I'd like to "live by questions and not by answers" as Bear puts it in Crispin. Much more engaging.
2. Weakness: Math instruction, aside from tutoring, is still largely whole-group and heavily teacher-paced. Game changer: Invent PPPPPPPPPPPPPDSA
In other words, create a way for kids to develop individual work plans for meeting learning goals. These plans should allow kids to largely pace themselves through units and choose methods and materials. Done correctly, this won't become a free-for-all, since regular reflection should help kids understand which methods and materials helped and which didn't. I'll also need to put together some flipped-classroom videos for those that can master work more quickly.
3. Weakness: Nonfiction reading is some crap we have to do before we can get to the actual good stuff. Game Changer: More smoothly incorporate relevant nonfiction into everyday reading instruction.
I don't know if it's because I'm a girl or because my drug of choice is fiction, but I largely suck at nonfiction reading instruction. I need to bring more relevant-to-what-we're-doing nonfiction in and get excited about it. #1, above, should help. Watch out, Beth and Carol. I'm coming after your stacks!
This also includes finding a better means of teaching vocabulary,
4. Weakness: When kids grade their own work, they tend to focus on aesthetics, rather than content. Game changer: Explicitly teach what a good project includes.
This revelation alone made allowing kids to grade themselves worth the time. They really do think that pretty projects are best. Now, I can't argue that attractiveness isn't a component of a well-done project, but it's a much smaller component than what's said within it. I'll need to create a few lessons on what makes a strong project to use during our launching-the-year sessions.
5. Weakness: The second round of FedEx projects involved a lot of reading Wikis from the screen. Game changer: Tweak the planning and presentation criteria.
FedEx Day is definitely worth the time, so I'm adding two days next year for a total of four. The go-round this past week involved kids linking a bunch of things that they read to us from the board.. That's not good. I need to add in that they are knowledgeable enough to become the primary source of information and use links, etc. as their secondary. As in, "I linked in this page so you could learn _____________. It basically tells you ____________________."
6. Weakness: After a strong first semester, Poetry Workshop instruction tends to peter out. Game changer: Plan a better second half. (Duh, again.)
'Nuff said.
... and one more:
Attend an EdCamp!
These are teacher-driven and led one-or two-day workshops with topics on innovative teaching strategies.. The big cities have them, and it just happens that Fort Worth, TX will be having one the week I'll be there, visiting my parents. Surely, it's fate.
Have I mentioned that, best of all, I can do (almost) all of this in my jammies? While eating what I like and using the bathroom whenever I please? Yes! I love the offseason!
Have a fabulous last day,
Lizzie (I even get my first name back!)
