The Benefits of Blogging

I started blogging with my third graders this fall, and our first purpose was to communicate with a classroom in Philadelphia about our Global Read Aloud book. 

I find that blogging can offer opportunities for students to develop their communications skills through meaningful writing experiences.  Our blog has been a great tool to motivate students to write, and to write well.

Our blog, Google Apps for Education and class twitter account have also helped to address the Common Core State Standards for writing.  Specifically standard six, which calls upon students to use technology to "produce and publish writing and to interact and collaborate with others." Homerun!

So how can you get started with student blogging?  These steps helped my students have successful writing experiences:

Establish a purpose.

Decide what you want students to write about.  Ask yourself:

Will you ask students to write reflective math or science journals, book reviews, or opinion pieces on current events?

How can the blog support learning objectives in the discipline(s) you teach?

We have blogged about reading, writing, science, social studies and Genius Hour.  Posts have ranged from book reviews to mystery biographies.

Decide on a format and an online platform.

I am using KidBlog for our classblog.  It is a free platform developed specifically for teachers and students.  As the KidBlog administrator, I have many options when it comes to privacy. Students' blogs are completely private, open only to class members, and are password protected.  Because I work with third graders, I chose to restrict our audience to parents and other adults parents choose to share the password with.

I also can enable comments moderation, so any comments on the blog posts are emailed to you before they are published for all to see.

Preparation, procedures and practice.

Structure your blogging and prepare your students to understand the fact that others will read their work.  We want to be thoughtful about what we publish on our blogs.

This generates a great deal of excitement and motivation, but also requires a great deal of responsibility on students' parts. Remind them that blogs offer readers a chance to see their work. Talk explicitly with students about the ramifications of negative blog posts and blog comments.

Also, think about:

How often you would like students to post?

How will they title posts?

Will you be posting a question and/or model response?

Determine Audience.

We have a narrow audience, our families and a classroom in Philadelphia.  For my third graders, this is enough for now.

Is it worth it?

Setting up a blogging project may sound like a hassle—but it's worthwhile.

It is important for students to have their writing read by more people than just their teacher. When they know that their families, their classmates, and people from around the world can read what they write, the impact is measurable. Students pay closer attention to everything from the mechanics of writing to word choice to structure to clarity. They read and re-read their own work before submitting. They asked their friends to read it, too.

My students are engaging in meaningful conversations about writing. They were asking questions and sharing observations more sophisticated than any I'd heard from them before. My students are writers, an ultimate goal for any teacher.

Other reasons to blog:

It provides students with supervised practice using social media. We learn about citizenship and copyright in blogging projects.

Learn about leaving "digital footprint."

Students think critically about the information they want to share.

As you can see, our classroom blog has been keeping me busy weekly and I have not visited my own blog for a few months.  Which leads me to think about my personal and professional blogging goals for next year. 

I hope you think about the benefits of blogging, twitter, and other online learning and writing opportunities.  They are worth the time.

Talking and Listening

Fostering Productive Talk

Creating a classroom driven by discussion, rather than distraction, requires planning and well-honed procedures. To create classrooms that talk, the latest issue of Educational Leadership suggests the following.

Offer meaningful and complex tasks.

Students need to understand the purpose of the task. If they don't, they'll talk about other things. The purpose isn't for students to complete an assignment or activity, but rather for students to learn something. And that something has to be relevant.

The task has to be sufficiently complex to garner students' collaborative attention and effort.

Model behavioral cues.

Nonverbal communication is as important as verbal communication. When students work collaboratively, we focus on their interactions. We observe the ways in which they point, lean in, hold their bodies, and stick together. These behavioral cues tell us that students are interacting well. When these behaviors are absent, the group is probably not engaged in productive discourse and may need some teacher guidance.

Encourage argumentation, not arguing.

In highly productive group conversations, members make claims, offer evidence for those claims, seek clarification, offer counterclaims, and reach consensus or identify points of disagreement. In other words, members of the group can disagree without being disagreeable, and they can interact in sophisticated ways as they solve problems.

This type of language has to be taught, and some teachers use language frames to do so.

Provide language support.

In the disability community, there's a saying, "Not being able to speak is not the same as not having something to say." Students often have ideas that they aren't sure how to frame linguistically—and when they don't know how to frame their ideas, they stay silent. That's why language support is so important in the classroom. It can come in the form of sentence frames, teacher modeling, word walls, audio devices, or peer supports.

Find the right group size.

Effective teachers can facilitate whole-class discussions, which is often appropriate. But whole-class discussions enable relatively few students to participate, which is why expert teachers use a combination of whole-class and small-group configurations.

Small groups should consist of two to five students. All of the groups don't need to be the same size. Some students who need to develop their social or language skills perform better with a partner. Others enjoy a diversity of opinions and work well in a larger group. However, in groups of more than five, some students typically won't talk or the students may self-divide into smaller groups. It's important to match the group size to the task at hand as well as to student needs.

Listen, question, prompt, and cue.

Listening to students carefully gives the teacher an opportunity to guide future understanding. Rather than simply giving students information, teachers should question, prompt, and cue their thinking. In addition, teachers should be aware that their comments can build students' sense of self—their self-esteem, agency, and identity—or damage it.

An Invitation to Speak

Students need to be fully engaged in speaking and listening in the classroom, beyond the need to just perform well on an evaluation or meet standards. Inviting students to talk in class improves the education experience and ensures that students learn at high levels.

Let's change the balance of talk in the classroom so that students speak more and teachers speak less. And when we do, there will be lots to talk about.

A Teacher's Conversational Moves

• Can you tell us more?
• Would you say that again?
• Can you give me another example so we can understand?
• I'd like to hear what others are thinking about Robert's comment.
• Take your time. I can see you've got further thoughts about this.
• Why do you think that?
• Where could we find that information you just brought up?
• I'll restate what you just said. Listen to make sure I got it right.
• That's a great question. Let's pose it to the rest of the class. What do you think?

From Speaking Volumes, Talking and Listening Pages 18-23

November 2014 | Volume 72 | Number 3 

Tonight I was visiting with my husband about his business trip and changes in his organization.  I shared with him that I believe that he has been placed in the organization for a reason and that he is there for the employees.  This made me tear up as I reflected on the many roles I have had in my career.  One role that made my soul sing was a one year position..... and then, it was gone. 
I told my husband I am still waiting for a sign for what I am to do and what my role is.  Of course, the response made tears burn in my eyes "Jess, you make a difference every single day to the children you work with and teach."  God bless the man I married, who over a decade ago wondered why I spend so many extra hours in my classroom.  He knows how much passion and energy teachers put in and how I have given of myself for the students, school and district I work in.  Promotion, soul-mate job or not - I put 200% in 24/7.  God bless teachers that work every single day for the benefit of their students:

You plan. You assess. You network. You collaborate.

You tweet, differentiate, administer literacy probes, scour 504s and IEPs, use technology, and inspire thinking.

And for all of this, you’re given bar graphs on tests to show if what you’re doing is actually making a difference. But there are other data points you should consider as well.

20 Signs You’re Actually Making A Difference As A Teacher

1. Your students are asking questions, not just giving answers.

Critical thinking does not mean thinking harder before giving an answer. It means being critical of all possible answers. If your students are asking more questions, and feel comfortable doing so, you can rest assured they will continue the habit outside your class.

2. You have used your authoritative role for inspiration, not intimidation. 

Monkey see, monkey do. I once had a writing professor who, as a best-selling novelist, was not too proud to bring his own raw material to class for the students to workshop. This was a great lesson in humility that I’ll never forget.

3. You have listened as often as you have lectured. Another lesson in authority.

Your students have respected your thoughts and ideas by attending your class; the least you can do is respect theirs. Lending an ear is the ultimate form of empowerment.

4. Your shy students start participating more often without being prompted.

Cold-calling may keep students on their toes, but it never creates an atmosphere of collaboration and respect. When the quiet ones feel comfortable enough to participate on their own, you know you’ve made an impact.

5. A student you’ve encouraged creates something new with her talents.

The simple act of creating is so personal, memorable, and gratifying that you can rest assured your student will want to make it a habit.

6. You’ve been told by a student that, because of something you showed them, they enjoy learning outside of class.

Even if it becomes a short-lived interest, your student will realize that learning outside of class doesn’t have to mean doing homework.

7. You’ve made your students laugh.

People like, and therefore listen to, other people who make them laugh. Showing you have a sense of humor about a topic will lubricate the learning path for your students.

8. You’ve tried new things.

Students, especially if they are older, can be critical of change. A new grading system or an unexpected group discussion session can easily lead to resentment instead of renewed interest. But your students will remember it. Whether the change succeeds or not, they will remember it years down the road when all their other classes, so similar to one another, blur together.

9. You’ve improvised.

Respect and inspiration result from going out on a limb, whether the limb breaks or not.

10. Your student asks you for a letter of reference.

Whether you get bombarded by requests for recommendation letters each year or have been asked for one in your entire career, you can’t deny the confidence you’ve boosted and the difference you’ve made.

11. You have taken a personal interest in your students. 

Your favorite student still may not get into college or achieve his career goals—it’s frustrating, but it happens—however, the chances that he will are infinitely higher simply because you showed an interest.

12. You’ve let your passions show through in your lessons.

It’s hard to stay animated when you’ve been teaching the same material for twenty-five years, but it’s also hard for your students to stay animated when they don’t know why your subject should excite them. Even if they never become excited by your subject, they have learned that different people have different interests and that it’s okay to share your passion regardless of what other people think.

13. You’ve made students understand the personal relevance of what they’re learning.

Psychologists have proven time and time again that people remember things much better if they are personally relevant. Perhaps the lone advantage in a self-centered culture.

14. You have cared–and shown that you cared.

Researchers at the University of Leicester have proven that students assign the most authority to teachers who care about them. If this is true, then you are demonstrating a wonderful principle: that respect comes from kind behavior.

15. You have helped a student choose a career.

Whether your student was already interested in your subject when she entered your class or only became interested once you started teaching, you know you’ve done a great thing when she asks you privately about careers in your field.

16. One of your students becomes an educator.

Maybe one of the greatest honors of all. You must know you had some part in the process, whether it was something you did or (yikes) didn’t do.

17. A parent approaches you with kind words.

Certainly too seldom the case, but reassuring when it happens. Sometimes you have no idea your student listened to a word you said until a relative comes forward to thank you.

18. Your students visit you when they don’t have to.

This is not a popularity contest. This is an accessibility contest. If your students feel comfortable approaching you outside of class, whether for help on an assignment or advice on a career, you’ve made a difference already.

19. You can be a mentor when you need to be.

Many students suffer from major obstacles to learning in the form of inner conflict or turmoil at home. While school counselors exist for a reason, you can’t afford to be completely closed off to personal issues. Learning is not independent from feeling, and this is something you can demonstrate to your students.

20. You practice strength and patience.

We’ve all reacted to current situations with emotions left over from the past, whether it’s trouble at home or personal strife. The ultimate lesson, at the end of a rough day, is not blaming anyone but yourself for your reactions. Students are always watching; someday someone will be watching them too.

Despite what administrators might drill into our skulls, educators exist to produce good people, not good test results. The true measure of our success is hard to record on paper but easy to recognize in a student’s behavior. Look for the signs and be open to improvement.

Parts of this post where  first published on opencolleges.edu.au

What is Genius Hour? - Introduction to Genius Hour in the Classroom

We are starting Genius Hour in our classroom this week.  Our first task is to create a topic list.  Each student has a Genius Hour folder.  In their folder they will create a list of possible passion topics to share with me.  Hopefully, by the end of the week, each child will have a solid list of topics to chose from.  I then will gather some resources for their research.

I am so excited to get started!  This is a big week for us in Third Grade:  Global Read Aloud, Blogging, and Genius Hour.  Exciting things to come!

Listening

On Friday, we had professional development.  The focus was on Common Core Literacy, specifically “Speaking and Listening”.  As I listened to the first speaker talk about listening with respect, I found myself thinking about her and if she listens to others with respect, does she listen carefully to herself, and more importantly to the message she is sending to others?  We are being charged with changing teaching and learning in multiple ways right now.  Telling teachers they have been doing it wrong, or missing the point, or that if we don’t have proficient learners by grade 3 we are sentencing them to prison isn’t going to work.

Real and lasting change begins with listening, and listening well.  Listening engages us in ways we are not always able to predict.  When we listen respectfully, by honoring the humanity in others, truly listen to the message they are sending, we can open the door to honesty and understanding.  Listening provides an opportunity to be heard.  

If I am respectfully listening, I am not:  critiquing, dismissing, challenging or otherwise engaging in disrespectful behavior.  I am not making assumptions, reading a “tone” or jumping to conclusions.  I am allowing the message to come in unfiltered and understood the way the speaker (or writer) intended it to be.

To get others engaged, try asking questions, then LISTEN.  If we want children to be good listeners, we should model the skill.

When a student wants to tell a story during instruction, make an appointment to hear it later.  And, keep the appointment.  You will be amazed at the relationship you will develop by just listening and following through with the promise to do so.

Take time to hear the full message:  The story, the emotion, the pain, the joy, the hurt, the plea, or the celebration.  Listen to build trust, relationships, and success.

Listen … until it hurts.  You may be surprised at what you hear.

Assessment for Learning

Fall in the classroom is a busy time!  We are learning procedures, rules, getting to know each other and we are gathering data.  Assessments, assessments, assessments…..

I have a large data sheet started for my class and have some great data collected at school and with the help of parents.  I am grateful for the great wealth of information I have for my kiddos in 6 short days!  I am also grateful that parents have shared their deep understanding of their child with me..

Why collect formative assessment data?

Assessment supports learning in two ways:

I can adapt and plan instruction on the basis of evidence, making changes and improvements that will benefit student learning.

Students can use this information to measure goals, activate prior knowledge and show a teacher what they already know.

All formative assessment practices have the potential to increase student learning, and offers a number of distinct benefits:

Lessons and Units of instruction tailored to the needs of the students.

The timeliness of results enables teachers to adjust instruction quickly, while learning is in progress.

The students who are assessed benefit from the adjustments.

The students can use the results to adjust and improve their own learning.

Improved real-time teaching and learning at every turn.

So, I will return to work tomorrow and continue to collect more assessment data on the adorable kiddos I share a classroom and my day with!

The first day of school…. there is nothing like it!  All teachers have stories of lack of sleep, crazy dreams the night before, the excited faces of students and teary eyes of parents.  Teachers know that they can maximize the learning potential of every student in their class by developing positive relationships. Building a trusting relationship with your students can be both challenging and time consuming.  But, it is essential for students to learn.  

Here are some tips that help foster the development of relationships and good classroom environments:

Provide Structure:  Children positively to having structure in their classroom.  It makes them feel safe and leads to increased learning. It is essential that teachers set the tone early by establishing clear expectations and practicing class procedures.  A structured classroom is one with minimal downtime.  Each day should be loaded with engaging learning activities with little to no downtime.

Teach with Enthusiasm and Passion:  Excitement is contagious! When a teacher introduces new content enthusiastically, students will buy in.

Have a Positive Attitude:  Everyone goes through personal trials that can be difficult to handle.  It is essential that your personal issues do not interfere with your ability to teach

Incorporate Humor into Lessons:  Laughter is good for our health! Teachers should incorporate humor into their daily lessons.  This may be sharing an appropriate joke related to the content you will be teaching that day.  It may be getting into character and donning a silly costume for a lesson or laughing at yourself when you make a silly mistake.

Make Learning Fun:  Learning should be fun and exciting.  Students love teachers who incorporate creative, fun, engaging activities into their daily classroom.

Use Student Interests to Your Advantage:  Every child has a passion for something.  Use these interests and passions to their advantage by incorporating them into lessons.  Student surveys are a fantastic way to measure these interests.  This will see increased participation, higher involvement, and an overall increase in learning.

Incorporate Story Telling into Lessons:  A good story will allow students to make connections that they may not have made otherwise.

Show an Interest in Their Lives Outside of School:  Talk to students about their interests and extracurricular activities that they participate in.  Also, be considerate when assigning homework. Think about the extra-curricular activities occurring on that particular day.

Love your student:  Enough said.

Go the Extra Mile:  Going the extra mile may mean donating clothing, shoes, food, or other household goods that a family needs to survive.  It is about recognizing and assisting in meeting student needs inside and outside of the classroom.

Good luck establishing relationships with your students and have a great school year!