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Dipsticks: Efficient Ways to Check for Understanding. What strategy can double student learning gains? According to 250 empirical studies, the answer is formative assessment, defined by Bill Younglove as "the frequent, interactive checking of student progress and understanding in order to identify learning needs and adjust teaching appropriately. " Unlike summative assessment, which evaluates student learning according to a benchmark, formative assessment monitors student understanding so that kids are always aware of their academic strengths and learning gaps. Meanwhile, teachers can improve the effectiveness of their instruction, re-teaching if necessary.
"When the cook tastes the soup," writes Robert E. Stake, "that's formative; when the guests taste the soup, that's summative. " Formative assessment can be administered as an exam. Alternative formative assessment (AFA) strategies can be as simple (and important) as checking the oil in your car -- hence the name "dipsticks. " Observation: A Key Practice in Alternative Formative Assessment. 11 Alternatives to "Round Robin" (and "Popcorn") Reading. Round Robin Reading (RRR) has been a classroom staple for over 200 years and an activity that over half of K-8 teachers report using in one of its many forms, such as Popcorn Reading. RRR's popularity endures, despite overwhelming criticism that the practice is ineffective for its stated purpose: enhancing fluency, word decoding, and comprehension. Cecile Somme echoes that perspective in Popcorn Reading: The Need to Encourage Reflective Practice: "Popcorn reading is one of the sure-fire ways to get kids who are already hesitant about reading to really hate reading.
" Facts About Round Robin Reading In RRR, students read orally from a common text, one child after another, while the rest of the class follows along in their copies of the text. Several spinoffs of the technique offer negligible advantages over RRR, if any. They simply differ in how the reading transition occurs: Why all the harshitude? Stigmatizes poor readers. 11 Better Approaches 1. 2. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10. Flipped-Learning Toolkit: Let's Talk Tech. Editor's Note:This post was co-authored by Aaron Sams, Managing Director of FlippedClass.com and founding member of the Flipped Learning Network. The greatest benefit of flipped learning is the restructuring of class time, which is more of a pedagogical solution than a technological solution. However, the in-class benefit is dependent upon the utilization of technology tools. So what technologies are necessary in a flipped classroom?
Content Creation Tools One of the most difficult challenges for some teachers to overcome is the mastery of a content creation tool. There are so many hardware and software options out there. Where does one begin? Screencasting A popular software category for flipped learning is screencasting tools. Tablet Software Many teachers seek a tablet solution. Document Camera-Based Solutions Many teachers have document cameras in their rooms.
Camera-Based Solutions Some teachers choose to forego software-based solutions and opt for the video camera. Distribution Tools. Boards by Jeff K. - Formative Assessment. Hour Of Code Hyperdoc. Flipped-Learning Toolkit: 5 Steps for Formative Assessment. Editor's Note: This post was co-authored by Aaron Sams, Managing Director of FlippedClass.com and founding member of the Flipped Learning Network. If you flip your class, you might be able to rid yourself of the bane of many teachers: grading papers late at night. Since the flipped classroom model moves teachers away from the "front of the room," they have more time to interact with students and implement a wide variety of instructional strategies -- including formative assessment. 5 Steps to Check for Mastery One formative assessment strategy has the side benefit of not taking papers home to grade.
This strategy, called a mastery check, has five specific steps: 1. Assign students work to complete based on one specific objective. 2. Students are told to solve either the even or the odd problems, or perhaps some other combination. 3. Once a student has completed his work, he asks the teacher to complete a check for mastery. They get it. 4. 5. Flexibility, Efficiency, and Accountability. 30 Techniques to Quiet a Noisy Class. One day, in front 36 riotous sophomores, I clutched my chest and dropped to my knees like Sergeant Elias at the end of Platoon. Instantly, dead silence and open mouths replaced classroom Armageddon. Standing up like nothing had happened, I said, "Thanks for your attention -- let's talk about love poems.
" I never used that stunt again. After all, should a real emergency occur, it would be better if students call 911 rather than post my motionless body on YouTube. I've thought this through. Most teachers use silencing methods, such as flicking the lights, ringing a call bell (see Teacher Tipster's charming video on the subject), raising two fingers, saying "Attention, class," or using Harry Wong's Give Me 5 -- a command for students to: Focus their eyes on the speaker Be quiet Be still Empty their hands Listen.
There is also the "three fingers" version, which stands for stop, look, and listen. Lesser known techniques are described below and categorized by grade bands: Call and Response. There's No Time to Differentiate: Myth-Busting DI, Part 2. The microwave oven is a great timesaver for getting any food on the table. Yet it's a taste killer. The more I use the grill and oven to cook meals for my family, the more I experience the diversity of tastes that come from grilled or baked salmon, chicken, and burgers, plus sautéed vegetables. A microwave oven dries everything out, and thus limits the tastes. There are days when I get home exhausted with work still to be completed, but I bypass the microwave most times. I value my family's need for flavorful meals over dried-out, tasteless food that I nuked just to check off a chore.
So why would I not do the same for my students by differentiating based on their needs, instead of using one-size-fits-all methods? Does one-size-fits-all really save time if students haven’t learned? In an earlier post, I looked at a few common differentiated instruction myths. Myth #1 I teach 180 students across five classes. The greater number of students means there is a higher urgency to differentiate. Flipping the Non-Flippable Classes. Editor's Note:This post was co-authored by Aaron Sams, Managing Director of FlippedClass.com and founding member of the Flipped Learning Network.
When the subject of the flipped class comes up, many educators see how it applies to academic subjects like math and science education, but don't realize that the methodology has applications in a wide array of other classes. According to a survey of 2358 teachers by the Flipped Learning Network and Sophia Learning (PDF, 1.2MB), 33 percent of those teachers who are flipping their classes are math teachers, 38 percent are science teachers, and 23 percent teach English language arts and social studies. But can you flip the other subjects?
Can you flip an elementary classroom? The answer is a resounding yes. To flip the non-flippable classes, teachers need to ask this key question: What is the best use of my face-to-face time with students? Physical Education Jason Hahnstadt is a K-8 PE teacher at the Joseph Sears School in Illinois. Woodworking. Supporting Behavioral Needs: A Multi-Tiered Approach. Lynda: If students aren't comfortable with who they are, or with their behaviors in school, if they're not succeeding in those kinds of ways, then they're not going to succeed academically. Ritzy: If the child is not behaving, there's a need not being met. My biggest goal is to make sure they're getting what they need. Ritzy: Do you ever have to make a decision? Do you know what a decision is? Ashley: The approach for Social-Emotional Learning within the Tier System mirrors our approach to learning in the academic system.
Ritzy: Just like for reading, and just like for math, you need a solid core for behavior, for expectation, common language. Ritzy: That's right! Lynda: The core instruction for Social-Emotional in elementary, a big part of that is during morning meetings every day. Ashley: You greet each other. Teacher: Put your thumb on your knee when you know what you want to share. Ashley: Our core instruction is Second Step.
Students: Repeated! Students: Uneven power! Student: Yeah. 3 Ways to Take Your Students Deeper With Flipped Learning. Editor's Note: This post was co-authored by Aaron Sams, Managing Director of FlippedClass.com and founding member of the Flipped Learning Network. Flipped learning is more than just an efficient way to teach. It is also an opportunity to take students to deeper levels of comprehension and engagement. One of the most important benefits of flipped learning is that it takes the teacher away from the front of the room. No longer is class focused on information dissemination, but instead, time can be spent helping students with difficult concepts and extending the learning to deeper levels.
Perhaps the greatest benefit of flipped learning is that it gives teachers more time to interact with students one-to-one and in small groups. Help With the "Hard Stuff" An integral part of the learning process is when we are stretched outside of our comfort zone -- without being stretched too far that we are incapable of succeeding. Correcting Misconceptions Students sometimes learn things incorrectly. Socrative, Quizlet, and BrainPOP Jr :Teaching with Google Play for Education. 7 Learning Zones Every Classroom Must Have. There are many elements to consider as you plan for the next school year. You always review critical pieces like standards, curriculum, instructional activities, and testing, but you also think about the classroom space and how to arrange desks, set up bulletin boards, and organize materials.
You can bring these seemingly disconnected components together in a system of seven learning zones. The discovery, news, supplies, community, quiet, teacher, and subject area zones will help you establish routines, save time, and maintain your sanity from the first through the last days of school. 1. The discovery zone houses all those items that spark imagination. 2.
The news zone will help you manage your classroom calendar, assignments and projects, school-wide events, holidays, upcoming celebrations, weather, temperature, and community and world news. 3. The supplies zone is sure to save your sanity. 4. A community zone serves multiple purposes. 5. 6. 7.
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