Daily Archives: January 21, 2014

Are You Smarter Than a 2nd Grader?

I know, you expected to see a different grade up there.  But in this case, it’s the 2nd grade that my 5th graders can learn from.

 

I’ve been meaning to share this picture for a couple of months now, because it’s such a great reminder of how to use punctuation correctly.

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This poster hangs outside Mrs. Driscoll’s second grade class. I know Mrs. Dix has a similar one that’s called “No More Weird Capitals!”

We walk by this everyday on our way back from our specials and lunch, and I keep thinking we need one in our classroom, too.  I know that kiddos learn these things early on, but have such a hard time remembering to show that in their writing!!

So maybe I need to ask my 5th graders that question when they are editing, did you show that you’re smarter than a 2nd grader? 🙂

Knowing the Standards

It’s probably a pretty obvious statement, but knowing what’s expected of you helps you make sure you do that expected thing, right?  Sure, of course.  So why don’t I spend more time chewing on rubrics with my students?  Why do they sometimes feel like the expectation for the end of the unit is a surprise to them? Well, the simple answer is that we should spend more time looking at rubrics.  Together.  Often.  Before, during and after learning happens.  And it’s my goal (but not my resolution!) to make that happen more this semester.

So fast forward to last week and the beginning of our focus on summarizing and main idea in Readers’ Workshop.  We started by checking out the rubric together.  I gave kiddos a copy of the rubric to chew on in pairs.  Along with the expectations, I also asked some questions, and had them look for certain things in the standards that would help them make sure they were doing what was expected.  Together we read, discussed and highlighted.  Our board (and their papers) looked like this when we were finished:

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I think it was important work that happened here.  I kept asking the what and why questions as we chatted.  I had them repeat the verbs.  We talked about the fact that these are understandings they need to demonstrate more than once.  And we focused on the reason behind why you need to know how to do this: to help you better comprehend your text, not because your teacher says you should.

Now we talk about this almost every day.  Before we begin anything reading, we review the words in this rubric.  We use the words.  We reflect on whether we’re identifying, distinguishing, supporting, referring and demonstrating.  And this image will hang in our room to help us remember what to do–and for a visual person like me, that’s an important step.  So many times things are out of sight, out of mind.  This way they will not be.

And so after this work in reading, we did the same thing in math with the beginning of our decimal unit.  And during that conversation I had another (saddening) aha moment.  As I handed each kiddo at my table the rubric book that is usually reserved for parents and teachers, I wondered why I didn’t give one to each STUDENT to have.  To read.  To digest. To reference and keep at the front of their minds (and binders!).  Why had it never occurred to me–in all of these years of teaching–that my STUDENTS are probably the ones that most need that book??  They are the ones, after all, that are responsible for making those things happen, right?  Man.  Humbling thought right there.

Moving forward I pledge to do more to make my students aware of their learning.  Don’t get me wrong–we talk about these things and I believe I am making them aware of our goals, but there is much I can do to make it more visible for them, so that they can take more of an initiative in their own learning.  Nothing here should be a mystery, and the outcome should not be a surprise.  And I’m vowing to take steps to unveil some of these things for my kiddos.  I only wish I would have done it a long time ago…

What do you do in your classroom to make your students aware of standards and expectations?  How do you involve them in the process?  What “aha”s have you had regarding these things? I’d love to hear from you!

Why I Don’t Make New Years’ Resolutions

Happy New Year!  Ok, well, yeah, I know–we’re three weeks into the new year already, but I’m just now getting time to sit down and write this post, thanks to another (unexpected!) snow day off from school.  Hope your 2014 is off to a bang!  I know mine has been great–although busy–so far!

As you probably expected from the title, I am not a fan of all of the resolutions that pop up around the end of December and beginning of January.  Not because I don’t think it’s a great thing to make decisions, or to vow to change things, but because I’m pretty sure that most people (man, I wish I had a statistic here–maybe I should look one up…) don’t keep those resolutions they make much past this third or fourth week of the year.  I guess there have to be some people who are really dedicated and last all the way into March or April, but there probably aren’t very many.

And so for those reasons I decided last year to NOT make a New Years’ resolution.  Instead, I make plans.  And yes, it’s probably just semantics, but since I’m a writer–and therefore a lover of just the rights words–I have chosen to do that instead.  I will make plans, take challenges and set goals.  I strive to change things so that I will be able to keep having my desired outcomes farther into the year than March.  Hopefully for more than just the year ahead–for many years to come.

This year my challenge comes in the form of running.  If you’ve been around this blog for a while, then you know that sometimes I can be labeled as a runner.  I know, it sounds funny, but I go in spurts.  Like I’ll be really gung-ho for 6 months (usually because I have a weight loss goal or race to drive me), and then I won’t lace up my shoes for the following 6 months at all.  Until another race or a few extra pounds motivates me again.

So that brings me to my challenge for this year: to run 500 miles in 2014!  I have many friends on Twitter and Facebook who are teachers, and the more I am there I am finding that many teachers are also runners–and  hard core runners at that.  I mean running-more-than-one-marathon-a-year runners.  Running-outside-in-a-blizzard runners.  Nothing-at-all-like-me runners.  But alas, I have taken the challenge to join this group of dedicated ladies and gents and give my all.  And my all is all I can expect, right?  I am probably not going to run a marathon this year (or maybe not ever), but I have taken a challenge, set a goal AND have a plan to make it work.  For me, it’s that last part that’s the most important.

Here’s the whole challenge:

2014 Run Teacher Run Challenge
*Run or work out at least 14 times a month in 2014.
*Post at least 14 times on run teacher run.
*Run at least 4 “real” or virtual races in 2014. (Or create your own with friends!)
*Run at least 400 miles in 2014. (Or create your own workout equivalent to miles.) (I guess somewhere along the way I changed this number.  Or someone else did, too.  No worries.  I’m in for 500!)

Sounds like a tall order since I haven’t run since before Thanksgiving (would you believe it was because I had a race coming up??).  But then my fabulous cyberfriend Shannon sent me a spreadsheet to use to log my miles and time and it was just what I needed.  So here’s how I’m doing so far:

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It’s not glamorous.  It’s not fast (just don’t do the math on how fast I run a mile, ok?), but it’s getting done!  And that makes me more motivated to keep getting it done.  I have to laugh actually, because today was supposed to be an “off” day because I have plans tonight, but then when we ended up with a snow day I got really excited because it means I can make time for a run today!  More miles for me!  And since there is accountability here (albeit “virtual” accountability via my Facebook group), I am pushed to make sure I do what I say I’m going to do.

So, yeah, it’s probably semantics, but hey, words have meanings for a reason, right?  And that’s what synonyms are for–making sure you have just the right word.  So join me in making plans and setting goals instead of making resolutions this year.

What have you planned to do in 2014?  How will you make that happen?  I would love to hear about your goals and dreams!  Believe, I’ll join your cheering section as you begin your journey!