Day 148I'm telling you, sometimes it is like Mark Chubb is reading my poorly constructed blogs and then spitting out eloquent blogs that capture all of my thoughts and beliefs. He says what I think and believe. He just seems to say it in a way that is far more clear. I've blogged about co-teaching before. Some of the points I've made are:
In his blog, "Co-teaching in Math Class", Mark Chubb distinguishes implications for co-teaching when one partner is a special ed. teacher versus when one partner is a math coach. I wanted to sing out an AMEN as I read specific sections. I'll leave you with these two screen shots from his blog but it is truly worth the time it will take you to read his work. He gets it and has a gift for communicating his thinking. Visit Mark Chubb's (@markChubb2) blog by clicking HERE.
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Day 147This is the perfect time of year to consider this question. My own children just received their report cards last week and I'll be completing report cards for my students next week. I was thrilled with my children's report cards. My son is a sophomore in high school who is taking all honors classes. All As and Bs for him...even in geometry and chemistry. My daughter is in eighth grade. She takes all honors classes too. She was recently inducted into the Junior National Honor Society. She received all As on her report card. Good grades are important to me and I've put some pressure on my kids to get good grades. So, my response to Will Richardson's recent tweet about grades might be surprising.
Good grades do NOT necessarily equal a good education. Higher grades do not mean that a student has learned more or knows more. High grades mean that the student has acquired some soft skills, like organization, time management, and perseverance. High grades say that he or she takes school seriously. High grades indicate that a student can use self-control and has developed the ability to make responsible decisions. Good grades, in my mind, actually say little to nothing about learning. Good grades say that a kid has figured out how to "do" school. However, despite the grade-grubbing culture at my son's high school, I witnessed a beautiful thing happen in his honors English class. It is an ungraded class. This is not to say that he doesn't get a grade at the end of the term, it just means that pieces of his work are not graded throughout the term. Instead, he submits work throughout the term and receives actionable feedback from his teacher. At mid-term, they conferenced and discussed his progress toward his goals. His goals were revised and his work continued. At one point he came home and, in an intense way, said that he had to up his game in English. I asked why. He explained that he had peer-conferenced with a girl from his class and her writing blew him away. She had given him some helpful feedback. However, it was her writing that motivated him. It was refreshing to see my son motivated by the talent of his classmate versus her grades. I hear so many parents, when we talk about the importance of learning versus grades, talk about competition and how motivating and healthy it is. I couldn't agree less. Just knowing that someone is getting better grades than you is not motivational. But for my son, seeing an example of quality writing and receiving some feedback from a peer was helpful, motivational, and inspirational. Inspired learning is what I desire for my kids. I don't want them to be competitive grade grubbers. So the quick answer: grades have nothing to do with learning. As teachers, we need to concern ourselves deeply with providing rich learning opportunities and then figure out how to measure that learning. I'm fairly certain that the way we measure learning today is actually having a detrimental impact on learning. We certainly have our work cut out for us! Day 146I had a sneaking suspicion that attendance was going to be down today. I have 22 students. I began the day with 17. Then, over the course of the morning, three were dismissed. Still, there was a lot of energy in the room. It was like the 14 students who remained were trying to fill the void the others left. It didn't make sense to introduce new material in math class. I toyed with a Math In Three Acts but I'd hate for so many kids to miss out. We started the day with a number talk. The strategy was to use partial products to solve more difficult multiplication problems. This strategy is truly connected with the math we're teaching in our core lessons right now. The kids are doing a great job of visualizing arrays and then decomposing the arrays into two or more smaller arrays that make solving the larger problem easier.
I knew we'd be trying something new during our main lesson and I was pretty excited. Steve Wyborney is a math educator who shares his work generously on Twitter (@SteveWyborney). My students have really enjoyed his engaging splat and fraction splat routines. I had recently seen a couple of tweets from 5th and 6th grade teachers endorsing Steve's latest creation, "Esti-Mysteries". I couldn't wait to check them out. They couldn't have been more perfect for my students and the day we were having. From the first moment, I had 100% engagement. The students loved how Steve rolled out the clues and the suspense building in the class was tangible. This routine, due to the clues Steve used, addressed quite a few of our fourth grade learning standards. The mysteries welcomed different approaches and demanded higher-level thinking skills. I knew that the learning had been meaningful when my students cheered at the first reveal. We solved mysteries #1, #2, and #3 today and the kids begged for more. Here is the thing. Math should be challenging. Math should require kids to dig deep and struggle. Math should be fun. It can be all of these things at the same time. Steve Wyborney has certainly figured out how to get it done. I'm thankful for his work and my students are too! Day 145I have a student who is struggling in math. What she is able to do is so interesting. It is even more interesting when I consider her struggles. It seems like the number sense that she should have gained in second grade is NOT intact. For example, she cannot move around the hundreds chart with ease. If asked what 24 plus 30 is she would have two strategies: standard algorithm and counting on by thirty singles! The problem with her standard algorithm use is that she has memorized the procedures with no understanding. Therefore, 26 + 6 is sometimes 86! She cannot count by ten from any number. She has little command of facts that sum to ten so she has a difficult time knowing that n = 6 when 34 + n = 40. She cannot respond accurately when asked, "what would you add to 8 to get a sum of 18?" Here is where it gets interesting. She knows her multiplication facts COLD. She can play "Big Array/Small Array" covering a larger array with two smaller arrays. She can generate algebraic notation showing her thinking (ex: 18 x 7 = (10x7) + (8x7) 18 x 7 = 70 + 56 and finally, 18 x 7 = 126) When given a problem to solve like the one shown in the assessment below, she struggled. Even though she works proficiently with the array cards, she is having a difficult time moving from the concrete to a more symbolic representation. Today, she wanted to decompose the 7. I asked her how she would break seven apart. She said she would break it into a 3 + 4. I asked her what her next move would be. She froze. At this point I wish I had her grab the array cards and work to find two array cards that would cover an 18 x 7 array. Instead I showed her the smaller array she was left with. The one we discussed was an 18 x 3. I asked her if she knew her three facts up to 18 or if she knew her 18 facts. There was a long pause. I was even hoping that she might suggest adding 18 three times but that suggestion didn't come. My next move was to ask her if there was another option, other than decomposing the 7. She was able to suggest decomposing the 18. When I asked her how she might break it up, she struggled. I asked what 7 facts she knew by heart. She suggested 7 x 5. I asked if she knew any larger facts. She knew 7 x 10. I asked her to partition the array so that one part was a 7 by 10. She was able to do this. When I asked the length of the remaining side, she couldn't tell me. After many attempts, she counted on from 8 and settled on ten as her answer. Once she was able to decompose the large array and label the array's dimensions, she was on her way and completed the rest of the assessment independently. I wish I always knew the best path to help students work through problems. I ask a lot of questions. I give think time. Still, I wish I had grabbed the array cards because she may have been able to make the connection between the physical arrays that she has worked with successfully and today's more symbolic representation. I wish I had a math coach or another adult who loves math as much as me, by my side in the classroom, so that we could strategize. I'd love to have more confidence in the math moves I make. I still have to think about how to fill some of those number sense gaps. I'll begin with an Investigations game called "Capture 5" and go from there. I hope that this game will help her to add ten to any number with ease and to learn facts that sum to ten and make the connection between these facts and figuring out missing addend problems or subtraction problems where knowing those critical facts is helpful. This is what I'm thinking. I just wish I was more certain.
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Day 141
I can't tell you how many educational leaders have made speeches on the days leading up to the beginning of a new school year about students getting a fresh start. Teachers believe that all kids deserve a fresh start each year. There is no wriggle room here. It is kind of an unchallenged belief. It is cast in stone. It just is. And you know what? They do! Every single one of them deserves a fresh start.
Here's where I struggle a little. Parents don't get a fresh start. On MANY occasions, teachers who have worked with a difficult parent of mine, in the past, will eventually ask how it is going this year. When I'm able to report that everything is going okay so far, I'm given a "just wait." I can think of numerous occasions over many years when administrators have done a similar thing. They've explained that certain parents were "difficult" and that I needed to be careful or worse yet, they've completely discounted the progress that the parent and I were making together. They devalued my effort and criticized me for not seeing the parent's true colors.
I've worked with lots of difficult parents over the years. I remind myself of one thing again and again. Parents reach out to communicate with educators when they are sincerely concerned about their child and his or her learning. Some parents are well-equipped to advocate for their kids. Other parents are extremely lacking when it comes to advocating for their kids. Most fall somewhere in between. All parents, who take the time to communicate with educators at their child's school, care deeply about their kids. They're not out to get us. They're not out to ruin our day. They're not out to "tell us off." Some parents connect with us better than they have connected with previous educators. Some don't. Sometimes the relationship between parent and teacher is worse than it has been in previous years. However, sometimes gains are made, trust is built, and the relationship becomes healthy and productive. Regardless, parents deserve a fresh start too!
Here's where I struggle a little. Parents don't get a fresh start. On MANY occasions, teachers who have worked with a difficult parent of mine, in the past, will eventually ask how it is going this year. When I'm able to report that everything is going okay so far, I'm given a "just wait." I can think of numerous occasions over many years when administrators have done a similar thing. They've explained that certain parents were "difficult" and that I needed to be careful or worse yet, they've completely discounted the progress that the parent and I were making together. They devalued my effort and criticized me for not seeing the parent's true colors.
I've worked with lots of difficult parents over the years. I remind myself of one thing again and again. Parents reach out to communicate with educators when they are sincerely concerned about their child and his or her learning. Some parents are well-equipped to advocate for their kids. Other parents are extremely lacking when it comes to advocating for their kids. Most fall somewhere in between. All parents, who take the time to communicate with educators at their child's school, care deeply about their kids. They're not out to get us. They're not out to ruin our day. They're not out to "tell us off." Some parents connect with us better than they have connected with previous educators. Some don't. Sometimes the relationship between parent and teacher is worse than it has been in previous years. However, sometimes gains are made, trust is built, and the relationship becomes healthy and productive. Regardless, parents deserve a fresh start too!
Day 140
On Sunday, November fourth and again on Monday morning, November fifth, I received an email from a very concerned parent. Actually, the email was also sent to my principal and our school guidance counselor as well as our special educator. This parent communicated concerns around her child's emotional well-being. She also communicated concerns around bullying. I responded to the parent's emails on Monday morning around 7:00 AM. I wanted to give the parent some feedback and I didn't want to begin my school week with this email hanging over my head. I responded to her concerns the best that I could. At the time of my response I did not have answers to her questions. I still don't. I shared my observations.
The parent wrote back, conveying her frustration but thanking me for my thoughtful response. I got the sense that she was truly thankful but frustrated by the situation. I get it.
No one else responded.
We received another email yesterday. This one was brimming over with frustration because the principal and guidance counselor didn't respond. I can see both sides. When I responded, I included everyone in my response. The team has discussed this child and her struggles continuously over that last handful of weeks. When I sent my response to all, I am sure that they inferred that I had responded on behalf of the team. I see the mom's point too. She had specific concerns around social-emotional health and bullying. She expected that the guidance counselor would weigh in on the social-emotional piece and the principal would weigh in on the bullying piece. It is not entirely unreasonable for her to feel this way. She emailed us all. No one was cc'd. The email was sent to all.
I've been that parent once. I wrote an email after a very difficult IEP meeting for my son. My email shared my very real concerns about the limited safeguards put into place for tier two students at the middle school. I hit send and waited. The email was addressed to the director of special ed, the team chair at our middle school and the principal of the middle school. I cc'd the superintendent. Nothing. Nothing for over two weeks. I couldn't believe it. Being that I'm an employee and colleague in the district where my son was being educated I thought I'd get a response. I remember feeling like a crazy person when I didn't. There was a very big part of me that wanted to follow up with a rage-filled email. I didn't. I work for the district. I stayed professional. I was let down though. I was big time disappointed in my district. In my opinion, people just weren't doing their jobs.
There is zero part of me that wants to respond to emails from angry parents. Thankfully I don't get all that many. I've gotten some though. I respond. It is my job. It doesn't matter what the parent writes. I work to ensure that each child has the best year possible. That means partnering with their parents. I have to partner with them even when they write angry emails. It is my job.
The parent wrote back, conveying her frustration but thanking me for my thoughtful response. I got the sense that she was truly thankful but frustrated by the situation. I get it.
No one else responded.
We received another email yesterday. This one was brimming over with frustration because the principal and guidance counselor didn't respond. I can see both sides. When I responded, I included everyone in my response. The team has discussed this child and her struggles continuously over that last handful of weeks. When I sent my response to all, I am sure that they inferred that I had responded on behalf of the team. I see the mom's point too. She had specific concerns around social-emotional health and bullying. She expected that the guidance counselor would weigh in on the social-emotional piece and the principal would weigh in on the bullying piece. It is not entirely unreasonable for her to feel this way. She emailed us all. No one was cc'd. The email was sent to all.
I've been that parent once. I wrote an email after a very difficult IEP meeting for my son. My email shared my very real concerns about the limited safeguards put into place for tier two students at the middle school. I hit send and waited. The email was addressed to the director of special ed, the team chair at our middle school and the principal of the middle school. I cc'd the superintendent. Nothing. Nothing for over two weeks. I couldn't believe it. Being that I'm an employee and colleague in the district where my son was being educated I thought I'd get a response. I remember feeling like a crazy person when I didn't. There was a very big part of me that wanted to follow up with a rage-filled email. I didn't. I work for the district. I stayed professional. I was let down though. I was big time disappointed in my district. In my opinion, people just weren't doing their jobs.
There is zero part of me that wants to respond to emails from angry parents. Thankfully I don't get all that many. I've gotten some though. I respond. It is my job. It doesn't matter what the parent writes. I work to ensure that each child has the best year possible. That means partnering with their parents. I have to partner with them even when they write angry emails. It is my job.
Day 139
I'm teaching science for the first time in a handful of years. I didn't know how much I missed it until I started teaching it once again. This year, I'm using Mystery Science as one of my major resources. I love the materials. I love how teacher friendly the site is and I love how visual and hands-on the resources are for my students.
Today's lesson really was amazing. It asked students to consider whether a volcano could pop up in their backyards. This essential question was supported by some pretty engaging video. The students watched a video that showed flowing magna up close. Students learned that magna is actually rock that has become so hot it is melted. The videos differentiated this disaster from flooding because waters recedes while the magma cools and hardens leaving the affected area forever changed. The students then used coordinates to map the locations of roughly four dozen previously active volcanoes around the globe. Students worked with a partner to map the volcanoes from one continent. At the end of the lesson, the maps are pieced together and the students see not only the pattern of volcanoes on their map but begin to see the pattern worldwide. The students discover the "Ring of Fire".
Big picture: the lesson was a huge success. Students learned how volcanoes are formed and they learned that they spring up in patterns. They learned about the devastating and lasting impact of volcanoes. It was a success but this is not to say that I'm not wishing for a do-over. Right now, I'm teaching science to a class that is not my own. They are great kids. However, I have not established the same kind of classroom culture with them that I've established with my own students. I have them for 16 lessons. I'll teach them for 45 minutes a day, four days a week for approximately four weeks. Given this limited teaching time, it didn't seem like I could afford to dedicate precious minutes to practicing routines, establishing norms and building that culture that is so important. I had it in my head that my colleague had done this with them and that the culture would just travel with them. She has done a ton to establish a positive culture but I have to earn my stripes with these kids. Despite the fact that I waited for their attention and clearly delivered instructions, the directions were not received. Completing the task was a challenge for quite of a few students in the class.
I definitely need to pump the brakes a little and focus on culture. Otherwise, these great resources will go wasted. These kids are smart. They're good kids. Given some focused attention on culture and these really great resources, I know they'll have a meaningful science learning experience.
Mystery Science offers science education materials aligned to the NGSS. Units are available from Kindergarten through grades 5. It really is an engaging resource. Check it out for yourself!
MYSTERY SCIENCE
Today's lesson really was amazing. It asked students to consider whether a volcano could pop up in their backyards. This essential question was supported by some pretty engaging video. The students watched a video that showed flowing magna up close. Students learned that magna is actually rock that has become so hot it is melted. The videos differentiated this disaster from flooding because waters recedes while the magma cools and hardens leaving the affected area forever changed. The students then used coordinates to map the locations of roughly four dozen previously active volcanoes around the globe. Students worked with a partner to map the volcanoes from one continent. At the end of the lesson, the maps are pieced together and the students see not only the pattern of volcanoes on their map but begin to see the pattern worldwide. The students discover the "Ring of Fire".
Big picture: the lesson was a huge success. Students learned how volcanoes are formed and they learned that they spring up in patterns. They learned about the devastating and lasting impact of volcanoes. It was a success but this is not to say that I'm not wishing for a do-over. Right now, I'm teaching science to a class that is not my own. They are great kids. However, I have not established the same kind of classroom culture with them that I've established with my own students. I have them for 16 lessons. I'll teach them for 45 minutes a day, four days a week for approximately four weeks. Given this limited teaching time, it didn't seem like I could afford to dedicate precious minutes to practicing routines, establishing norms and building that culture that is so important. I had it in my head that my colleague had done this with them and that the culture would just travel with them. She has done a ton to establish a positive culture but I have to earn my stripes with these kids. Despite the fact that I waited for their attention and clearly delivered instructions, the directions were not received. Completing the task was a challenge for quite of a few students in the class.
I definitely need to pump the brakes a little and focus on culture. Otherwise, these great resources will go wasted. These kids are smart. They're good kids. Given some focused attention on culture and these really great resources, I know they'll have a meaningful science learning experience.
Mystery Science offers science education materials aligned to the NGSS. Units are available from Kindergarten through grades 5. It really is an engaging resource. Check it out for yourself!
MYSTERY SCIENCE
Marie McManus Brigham
A public school teacher who gets to wonder alongside fourth-graders.
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