W&M School of Education - Frontloading Vocabulary in Core Content Classes: Instructional Strategies Scenario: Your students begin their cultural study of ancient Sumerians. You have provided a reader's guide for individual completion by the end of the class period in preparation for a whole-group discussion the following day. You anticipate a lively discussion as you construct questions requiring critical thinking skills and application of knowledge. Thus far, your students have given no indication that confusion exists. The following day you ask the first question. What do you do? Solution: Frontloading or preteaching vocabulary is a powerful before-reading instructional strategy to facilitate comprehension of a passage. Identifying Problematic Vocabulary The first step in teaching vocabulary involves prescanning the reading assignment to identify problematic vocabulary (Coffman, 2009). Instructional Strategies to Frontload Vocabulary The Frayer Model Figure 1: The Frayer Model Strategy Choiceboards Vocabulary Cards 1.
30 Surprising (And Controversial) Ways Students Learn Have you checked your assumptions about student learning at the door? People in general, hold onto beliefs that are shaped by early experiences, the media, and faulty influences. The following list is a compilation of research that may surprise you. Read on, and be prepared to put your traditional beliefs aside as science points to innovative methods that indicate future success. 1. Until recently, studies done with regards to children and video games usually centered on the negative impacts and consequences of prolonged use. She recognized several social motivations for playing video games including competition, a reason to hang out and casually converse with friends, and teaching peers how to play a game. In boys who struggle with stress, fear, and anger- negative emotions that can have violent consequences- video games acted as a safe alternative for the release of pent up emotion. 2. 3. 4. Patrick S. 5. Kids who garden show a better ability to concentrate. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10. 11. 12. 13.
Kids Speak Out on Student Engagement A while back, I was asked, "What engages students?" Sure, I could respond, sharing anecdotes about what I believed to be engaging, but I thought it would be so much better to lob that question to my own eighth graders. The responses I received from all 220 of them seemed to fall under 10 categories, representing reoccuring themes that appeared again and again. So, from the mouths of babes, here are my students' answers to the question: "What engages students?" 1. "Middle-school students are growing learners who require and want interaction with other people to fully attain their potential." "Teens find it most interesting and exciting when there is a little bit of talking involved. 2. "I believe that when students participate in "learning by doing" it helps them focus more. "We have entered a digital age of video, Facebook, Twitter, etc., and they [have] become more of a daily thing for teens and students. 3. "I believe that it all boils down to relationships. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10.
Three Steps for Improving Teacher Questions According to Robert Marzano's book, Classroom Instruction that Works, 80 percent of what is considered instruction involves asking questions. It makes sense then, that if we want to improve our effectiveness at teaching, of course we would start by improving our questions. I have thought a lot about this topic and I would like to share three specific actions that we can take to improve our questions. Step One The first action for improvement in reality is not an action, but a shift in thinking about our own concept of teaching. After understanding this definition of a true discussion, trying to "lead" a class discussion is a waste of effort and time, primarily because "leading" destroys the exploratory purpose of the "discussion", but also because the number of students that are able to participate in a whole-class discussion is limited to just a few. Step Two The next move is to prepare the questions you want to ask as an integral part of the lesson. Step Three
12 Amazing Ways to Teach During the Crazy Days of Christmas Some teachers are tempted to be babysitters during the holidays when, in fact, you can get some powerful teaching moments in your classroom. Take time to be creative and integrate holiday-themed teaching into your classroom. Please share what you like to do in the comments. 1 - Have a Social media activity relating to topics you're learning Two of my most tweeted things from last week were the Facebook template and Twitter template that you can download and use in Microsoft Word. This is a great alternative for those of you who cannot use the online Fakebook template from Classtools.net. Our AP Literature teacher has had students create a Facebook profile for their term paper author. These spark fun conversations and can be done offline or online. 2 - Make an Interactive Story This is a great time of year to teach students how to create interactive stories using PowerPoint. But you could take this further if you have older students. Share on your blog (like I've done here.) Teach!
Smart Classroom Management Helping Students Set Goals and Find Success Photo credit: iStockPhoto The idea of New Year's Resolutions is very appealing but their success rate is low. Cognitive psychologists know why: Resolutions tend to be too big (like losing 20 pounds), too vague (like getting more sleep), very hard to control (like having less stress), or something the person is ambivalent about (like becoming a healthier eater). When students come back for the second half of the school year, we often want them to "turn over a new leaf," or address particular difficulties they faced in the prior weeks. Focus on Short-Term Success So let's travel back to my blog in August and revisit the idea of the End-of-Year Legacy. For fourth to twelfth grade, ask each of your students to pick two things that it is important for them to learn, or to improve on, in the next three weeks. Then, have them share with a classmate and have the classmate help them write a plan for how they will be successful. Is It Worth It? Why is this worth the trouble?
21 Simple Ideas To Improve Student Motivation - 21 Simple Ideas To Improve Student Motivation by TeachThought Staff The best lessons, books, and materials in the world won’t get students excited about learning and willing to work hard if they’re not motivated. Motivation, both intrinsic and extrinsic, is a key factor in the success of students at all stages of their education, and teachers can play a pivotal role in providing and encouraging that motivation in their students. Of course that’s much easier said than done, as all students are motivated differently and it takes time and a lot of effort to learn to get a classroom full of kids enthusiastic about learning, working hard, and pushing themselves to excel. Even the most well-intentioned and educated teachers sometimes lack the skills to keep kids on track, so whether you’re a new teacher or an experienced one, try using these methods to motivate your students and to encourage them to live up to their true potential. 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10. 11. 12. 13. 14. 15. 16. 17. 18.
{12 Days: Tool 11} Infographic: Anchored Word Learning Strategy Anchored Word Learning: A Read Aloud Strategy Anchored Word Learning, by Isabel Beck, is one of my favorite strategies for integrated word learning. The Anchored Word Learning strategy uses the power of read alouds to introduce targeted words within context. Tradebooks and picture books provide excellent sources of higher-level, sophisticated words. Beck suggests selecting three, Tier Two words each time you read aloud. Tier Two words are high-utility, cross content words. Download today’s tool by clicking on the tag below the infographic. Like this post? Please read our Reblogging and Reposting Policies here before reblogging or reposting. Have you found these posts helpful in supporting your literacy efforts? The following two tabs change content below. Kimberly Kimberly is an educational consultant who works with district leaders to improve instructional effectiveness and student learning.
Oral Formative Feedback – Top Ten Strategies People who have read my #marginalgains blog posts will know I am going over old ground here – intentionally so – as I am looking to dig deeper towards the key marginal gains that have the biggest impact on learning. For me, formative oral feedback and questioning are the two key ‘hinge point marginal gains’ that make for great teaching and learning. My previous #marginalgains blog identified new teaching strategies for these tow key area ad pedagogy, but here I wanted to use this blog to reflect on what I view as the most high impact formative oral feedback strategies that I have been using in my everyday practice. I want to use my list as a reminder, each time I plan lessons, of the key strategies to use – as it is too easy to forget and slip into autopilot planning, forgetting even our most effective of strategies. In nearly all of these examples the feedback includes all three parties possible in the class: the learner, peers and the teacher. My Oral feedback Top Ten Guided Writing:
Activity Speaks Louder Than Words: Improving Student Engagement by KENDELL DORSEY Think about the level of cognitive engagement that occurs with each activity in this list: Watching/listeningNotetakingNotemakingDiscussingSummarizing The learning style of your students plays a key role with things like "watching/listening." For example, I realize as I get older that I am definitely a visual learner. I often can't remember a name until I see it in print. Teacher-led instruction and discussion have a place in the classroom. Here's a personal example of how learning can benefit from this cognitive demand. Imagine the power of this exchange of ideas with students in your classroom. The Down Side of Down Time As teachers, we lead classrooms filled with learners of all styles. The rule of thumb is simple. Here are some instances where down time happens: The teacher is asking specific "popcorn" type questions of one student at a time in a whole-group setting -- what are the other students doing? Strategies for Engagement Making It Stick
Reading (and Scaffolding) Expository Texts Introduction Expository text differs greatly from narrative text in tone, style, structure, and features.First, expository texts purvey a tone of authority, since the authors possess authentic and accurate information on the subjects they write about (Fisher &Frey, 2008). Second, these texts follow a style that is distinctly different from that of narrative text. Another aspect of expository texts is that they utilize specific structures to present and explain information (Burke, 2000). A final aspect of informational text is its features or those items that an author uses to organize the text. Scaffolding strategies for expository text Readence, Bean, and Baldwin (2004) suggest a simple procedure to help students recognize, identify, and utilize text structure as a way to better comprehend and recall reading from expository text: Steps to Recognize Expository Text Structure 1. 2. 3. Steps for Structured Notetaking 1. 2. 3. Downloadable graphic organizers
We Need a Pause for Reflection Reflection. The part after some learning where you think about it, connect with it, build a bridge to something new. The part that often gets skipped. Move on, keep going, more to do. In the midst of projects, discussions, and raw student collaboration, we need a pause. We need to think about the tech tool we’ve learned how to use and connect with how it might be used in other situations. Schools are built around schedules, bells, and time limits. We need a pause.