Posts

Staying in the Groove

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 Spring seems to be here, and classroom routines are in place for the most part. I'm trying something new but also staying focused on emphasizing the ideas and concepts that I value in my classroom. Takeaways: Emphasize and reinforce what's important. For example, I often want my students to discuss our learning together. Whenever I see a student group want to default to working on a question independently I gently remind them that I learn from them everyday, and I've taught this subject for many years. I make it clear that if I can learn from them they can certainly learn from each other. I take the opportunity to reiterate the significance of academic discussions. I'm remembering to acknowledge student birthdays on or as close to the student's actual day as possible. Yes, it does take forethought and planning (I have 140 students) but it matters to me, and it seems to be appreciated by them. LEGACY . It's everything, especially in the spring as these 8th Grad

Teaching Regional Culture to Newcomers: the Power of Sports

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One of the most fun topics we've studied this year in Language Support-History is American Football. Teaching and playing flag football has been part of my LS 21st Century Michigan Thanksgiving unit every year since I've taught this class, but it's especially exciting this year because of the success of the Detroit Lions! There's no denying Michigan is sports-focused. We have one of the most dedicated fan bases around--whether it's football, basketball, hockey, or baseball. It's important for students new to America to feel part of the pulse of their new region, and in this case that definitely includes sports.  We spent time learning about some of the scoring involved in football, some of the positions, and understanding downs. We practiced vocabulary, watched a few clips, and set off to play! My students really enjoyed playing and we've talked a little bit about the historic nature of this year's season. Not every student watches football at home, and

If You're Not Yet Using Canva in Your Classroom, You Should

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Canva is such a valuable tool for educators and it's unbelievable we receive "pro" resources within the site. I've used it in the classroom for students to create graphs and infographics for a few years now, and it's now become a go-to resource for any type of information I need to give students. Here are some examples I've created in the past few weeks:  I've started to use it for changes in daily bell schedules: Spirit Week Information: To-Do Lists (I model these, students will begin to create their own): and Due Dates: I now start to think, "Is this information something I can put into Canva"? Students are creatures of technology, and using tech to find a way to reach them where they're at is definitely working smarter, not harder. If you haven't used it, give it a try!

When "I Don't Know" Becomes a Starting Point

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  I've always wanted to give my students the opportunity to learn about our National Parks and try podcasting with my students. Combining these two options has been proven successful, and the perfect antidote to end of the year motivational struggles. I researched and found a terrific podcasting resource from Spark Creativity . The author is has a Language Arts background, but so many of her resources, from blackout poetry, to one pagers, to hexagonal thinking, are very adaptable to our History curriculum. We began this unit on the last day of school before Winter Break but shelved it to create National History Day projects. A few Fridays ago it became evident we all needed a change. I decided from the next Friday forward we would bring back the National Parks podcast project to end our week. We started (again) by viewing a "See All of the National Parks in One Minute" clip. This built some excitement and curiosity for selecting a park. The next step was to think of a po

Harkness Success

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  Our first Harkness was a terrific learning experience for all of us. I was upfront and honest with my students that I'd never done this with a class before and we would all simply try our best.  It was recommended that I run three discussion groups during one class so that more students would have the opportunity to speak for a longer period of time. I divided students into groups and students not in Harkness had individual work to accomplish. The groups moved their desks into an oval, I read the essential question, and put 10 minutes on the timer.  Essential Question: Why is it important for people living in America today to live up to citizen responsibilities? Students were asked to consider the Three Branches, the Bill of Rights, and their roles as citizens. I also asked them to connect citizen rights to the history we had already learned this year (for example, what life was like in the colonies before and during the American Revolution). My historians were encouraged to use

Working on a New (For Me) Classroom Discussion Model

 School is going well this year--it's been very busy!  In the search for new activities and assessments that will provide deep learning opportunities for all students I've decided this year to attempt the Harkness discussion. This type of discussion is a student-centered model that especially benefits English Language Learners. I observed a teacher in my department that is adept with this model and she gave me a lot of insight and ideas as to how I can bring it to my students. I was also fortunate to see how her students successfully and impressively take control of their learning while experiencing this discussion. Detailed planning really helps students feel comfortable, especially before their first discussion, and this is in my mind as I decide what and how we will use this in History. My research and insights are compiled in a power point reference:  Harkness Discussion Guide.pptx  I've learned so much, and I will update as we take on our first Harkness discussion soon

Successful Strategies for Newcomers

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 It's been a very busy start to the school year. We are building community and laying a foundation for a good year in US History and Language Support-History. Today's post is about the success we are finding in LS History, specifically with listening, speaking, reading, and writing practice activities. My students in this class are very capable and strong learners, but they struggle with the English language. Striking the balance between finding and creating age-appropriate materials for newcomers that are challenging, yet language-appropriate, is always essential. Two activities my Historians have really enjoyed so far are playing Gimkit to review the concepts related to the 5 Themes of Geography, and, to my surprise, performing in front of their classmates! I created a short two-person skit related to ordering food in a restaurant (we are going out to breakfast as a Language Support team early next week). Students watched my co-teacher parapro and I perform the skit first, th