Pregame:
As I prepared the week’s lessons, I brought two takeaways from last week’s class. I applied both of these to the Google Certification class I teach. The first was to improve the Before section of my lesson plan. Students always question lesson validity, “How’s this going to help me?” While I can tell them my reason, it is more beneficial if they can identify the reason. In class, my peers shared tools they use for Daily Questions. Using Google Forms, I will pose questions to promote a Meaning-Centered lesson.
The second takeaway was based on the Quotation Mingle activity from class. In Google class, I address the Four Cs of twenty-first-century learning: Communication, Collaboration, Creativity, and Critique. Students present the previous week’s projects on the front board to receive peer feedback each week. Classmates provide 1 Glow and 1 Grow. This week students are presenting a four-frame comic strip. Rather than project the projects on the board, each student will open their cartoon on their Chromebook for a Gallery Walk. Students will mingle around the room leaving feedback for each cartoon. Not only does this include Social learning, but it also prevents opting out of presenting.
Halftime:
“Reading is about making sense of the world.” This week’s reading started with an introduction to the Five Reading Writing Talking Processes. My first reaction was that if there is no hierarchy in the processes, why are they numbered one to five? By numbering, the authors are creating a hierarchy. Additionally, in the diagram Learning to Learn is in an outer ring as if it needs the other four to occur.
As I transitioned to Chapter 5, it made sense why Transacting with Text was listed first. Even though there is no
hierarchy, Transacting with Text is a foundation for the other
four processes. Just like it is important to scaffold reading skills
to promote purposeful reading, it is important to scaffold learning
skills to promote Learning to Learn. In support of the dissolution of hierarchy, the authors claim that the learning process is contiguous. Bloom’s Taxonomy and Webb’s DoK do not need to be completed in order. Maybe the diagram needs to look more like the Simon Electronic Memory Game with the initial four Processes outside with Learning to Lean in the center. Just like the light bounces from one color to another, our lesson plans bounce from one Process to another.
Postgame:
These two strategies had mixed results in my classroom. The same lesson plan was taught during three separate class periods: 1, 3, and 4. First period, completely composed of 12th graders, was the most successful. Their only complaint was the tool used to complete the Do Now. Students’ feedback suggested I use Padlet instead of Google Forms. Padlet is used for the Exit Tickets, so students are already comfortable with the tech tool. Students also commented that they prefer it when I post the Exit Ticket questions directly on the Padlet to having the Do Now posted only on the front board. My complaint is also with Google Forms; either students must keep the Form open in a tab all week or submit it each day, leading to a sloppier spreadsheet. The other two sections did not provide any criticism, neither constructive nor destructive.
When comparing the two strategies overall, the Do Now was most successful across all three periods. This is partly credited to my colleagues who use Do Now questions. Students are used to the academic routine. The Gallery Walk experienced several challenges. First, students did not feel comfortable leaving their Chromebooks unattended on their desks, canceling out the Human lens. Secondly, not everyone completed the assignment due the previous week. Lastly, I did not provide a time limit. Students did more socializing than criticizing, and the activity ended sooner than I thought. In the future, I need to set a time. On the positive side, students were overheard discussing their feedback with their peer groups.
Botel, M., & Paparo, L. (2016). The Plainer Truths of Teaching, Learning and Literacy.
Comentários