I just loved the reminder about the massive amount that kids have to think about and process every day in school (and out) and all of it is “important”. I have long wanted to do what Kate did and follow a student for a day. I think all teachers and administrators should do this once in awhile. I believe it would be very eye opening.
TOOLS
- Charts help keep learning or strategies in the forefront for student
- Bookmarks - make the list yourself - much more personal for students
- Prioritizing & Micro-progressions: I am beginning to see how the micro-progressions can help students at all levels and move them along - there is always more you can do or add. I can see my students using micro-progressions for note taking. I think in the past I have done just a good/needs improvement type of thing on chart paper. Micro-progressions will lead to independence for your students.
- Demonstration notebooks - I love that these lessons can be referred to again and again. Model and then do it. Little tricks like using a sticky note as a reminder of which strategy they will use are great! Not only does it jog their memory, but it helps set their intention too.
THOUGHTS
Reflect! Over and over I find that reflection leads to using the best practices
Something that stuck with me was the idea of really selecting which lessons to hold students to. Very often, we want them to show evidence of everything we have taught. I love how they almost give permission to let some things go.
Formative assessments - I need to do these more - they are important and can be very quick since our library blocks are not long
Love these authors! Carol Dweck, Daniel Pink, Kylene Beers! Pink tells us that autonomy leads to engagement. So true! Given the right tools, they can do it on their own and will actually want to do so, not just to please their teacher, but so they can accomplish something.
Make clear what the hard work looks like through micro-progressions.
- Again, I notice the emphasis on kids being part of the process. On page 57, the 3rd and 4th levels are done collaboratively as a class and then in small groups.
- Reflection on which level they are most comfortable with and why with the teach acting as a coach when kids need a push. I can see that when this continues as part of conferring, it will be really powerful for students. They are part of the process.
- Transferring this work to beyond just 1 or 2 days - as they did with keeping the charts active, the micro-progressions are not just forgotten, but used over and over in various ways. Great ideas on p. 59 and 60
The teaching tool is not there forever!
Chap. 3: Timing, behavioral cues, and rigor all help you know when to move students away from the tool. Setting goals and challenging students reminds me of gamifying their learning. If they aren’t ready yet, no big deal. I also love how the authors state that if the student isn’t ready, to set a future date to try again without the tool.
Chap. 4: Working overtime, reflections on growth, helping others - 3 more signs kids are ready to move away from the teaching tool.
Final thoughts
Rigor and 5 ways to Culture Intrinsic Motivation - these were new to me, but how awesome! My school district is really taking a look at whether students are truly engaged or not and I think these 5 ways are good reminders of how to reach every child. Maybe you are good at one or two of these areas, but working to include more of them would be valuable.
Carl Anderson’s reminder (p. 69) that we should not be more tired than the students. There has been a lot of buzz lately about who is doing the work? That could be a tricky thing I suppose, but I understand the point. This happens with my son and I when I am helping him practice soccer - he should be doing more than me. I have to be planned out and know what skills he needs to work on, but when it’s practice time, he needs to be practicing the moves. Jan Burkins and Kim Yaris's book Who's Doing the Work: How to Say Less So Readers Can Do More is going to be another one of my summer reads.