Mrs. Slaviero's Blog

Student Historians recently presented their National History Day projects to our school community. Thanks to the support from our 6th and 7th Grade Social Studies teachers, 8th Grade students were able to successfully defend their theses to their peers. The 7th Graders can see what they will be asked to do next year and the 6th Graders can use these projects as a spring board for their student-centered projects they will complete within the next month. Each grade reflected on the event and related it to what they knew, as well. It was also a wonderful community-building activity. National History Day projects are so meaningful to me because they are, at heart, Genius Hour projects within the content area of History. I promised myself this year's focus would be on helping students hone their passions and I believe this was achieved. Middle Schoolers need to find who they are and what they're about. Delving into what's important to them will help on their journe...

Student Historians have been busy reflecting on their project and thinking about their work so far as they completed "The State of My Project" reflections. (The title is a take on the Presidential  "State of the Union" Address.)  Students were asked to let their classmates know what topic they've settled on, what the approximate start and end date of their project topic is, how they feel their research is going so far, showing us their 4 Ts graphic organizer work at this point (especially the "triumph" and "tragedy"), and to let us know about any Aha moments or tips they may have for their classmates. These quick presentations are really going well (we're doing a few each day). It's providing us the opportunity to celebrate the learning that's taken place, giving students the chance to publicly reflect on their work, and to learn from one another as they provide tips or share moments when things started to "click...

Student Historians have been overcoming challenges related to their in-depth, student-centered National History Day projects while persevering and finding success as they wind up their research and continue their note taking. I have noted with interest how so many students (and teachers) lately seem to be focused on the finish line and completing these projects when, to me, the process, not necessarily the product,  is essential.  It's natural, I suppose, to want a project completed and "checked off" of a To Do list, but the true test for these Student Historians lies in the multitude of steps that must be taken to get to this end result. These steps should be celebrated and acknowledged. Rushing this process doesn't give students ample time to be mindful of the many components of the project or have the chance to reflect upon their work, step by step. Time can even demonstrate the worthiness of an assignment. We model this worthiness by continuing this work ...

Every spring I observe my 8th Graders responding to the impending end of their Middle School years at Boulan Park.  Almost all become nervous but their nervousness manifests in different ways--a few may act out more, others try to act cool and put on a brave face. I have been searching for a way to help my students process these feelings but haven't found anything when the idea suddenly came to me last week! I tried it out and believe it was successful. We analyzed the concept of "legacy". Students defined the term and then wrote several reflections on different aspects of their legacy at Boulan over the course of a week and a half and culminated on the last day of school. We had 20 minute classes and that time was the perfect opportunity to write thank you notes.  I started the class by asking for highlights of their promotion assembly and party the previous day. I pointed out that the day was about them and that all of the hard work and effort from parents and s...

National History Day projects have wrapped up for all but a few students in my classes. Six students are competing next Saturday in the Michigan History Day State Competition and had time to reflect and enhance their projects between the March 4th District competition and the State Competition. These students represent three different projects: a group website centered on Supreme Court Justice Thurgood Marshall and his work toward equality for African-Americans, a poem about the achievements of the Culper Spy Network during the American Revolution, and a dramatic performance about former First Lady Jackie Kennedy's stand to save Lafayette Square from demolition. As I've previously written, the National History Day process has been a new endeavor for me and for my classes this year. Since none of this process is familiar to me I've had to reflect on each component during and after in order to put it into context and, more importantly, decide if it was a worthwhile project...

Presenting a project-based learning opportunity to my students is always interesting for me but I had an epiphany this week.  I was explaining a persuasive iMovie trailer project to my first class of the day and noticed that while students were viewing this rubric the room got quiet-- very quiet . The normal sounds you would hear with 25+ adolescents in the room were non-existent. I realized then it was because the students were internalizing the work they would be doing over the next few days.  I observed this "Thinking Time"--these students were wondering how they would complete their project with group members I chose for them. It was a very cool moment but I wanted to see if it was just this particular class. Sure enough, the rest of my classes that day did the very same thing--they got really quiet and internalized the requirements. (I will now be looking for this phenomenon every time I present a project!) This made me realize, once again, the necessity of gro...

I'm grading the blackout poem video reflections and definitely feel these should be incorporated into more classrooms' grading procedures! Some insights: Students are (for the most part) quite comfortable taking video of themselves. I thought they might be self-conscious but that's not the case (I must be thinking about my generation, not theirs!). Young people have little to no trouble formulating their thoughts in front of a camera and should be asked to do this more often. Video reflections are an excellent way to quickly get to know students and match names to faces. Most secondary teachers have well over 100 students--the sooner we get to know them, the better for our classroom community. The insights they have on camera  just may be more powerful than if they were asked to write. I sense a maturity and ownership of their thoughts while I'm viewing these reflections, as well. The answers to the questions I have requested are short, typically under 30 seconds...

My first week back to school each year centers on two days of district-wide professional development. I truly enjoy learning and growing and it's crucial for me to take the time to process what I've learned. I'm writing this year's reflection here so that I can make my learning visible to others. (I am, of course, assuming someone reads these posts!) My biggest takeaway centers on deepening learning, the central theme of the sessions (and our school year). I am always humbled listening to my colleagues--as much as I pride myself on cultivating deep learning in my classroom I realize I still have more to accomplish. I will add Socrative Seminars to my list of activities and I will delve deeper into Advanced Placement History concepts (not to mimic AP classes but rather use more strategies so that my students will be familiar with it should they decide to take them in High School). My students complete many reflections on their work throughout the year but I've n...

Summer is a time for rest, relaxation, and reflection. As I reflect, I've realized one of the most successful changes I've made in my classroom over the years was to change the desk configuration to tables two years ago. It may seem like a small change but, as I've stated in previous posts, I now have 5 mini-classrooms of 6 students. I can get to know students and monitor their understanding of the subject matter so much better than with my previous setup of mini-rows, with students facing one another.  I now truly feel like I have a  community  of learners in our room (we have, in the past, made table coats of arms and mottoes to emphasize this concept). This setup also means that students have the opportunity to interact with one another more than ever before.  Increased student interaction has motivated me to work with, not against, the numerous student conversations that occur when students are facing each other. My plan: increase the use of classroom statio...

               The students and I really learned a lot from this project. The final budget presentations allowed students to not only expand their technology capability but also their social studies skills and were able to present their findings the same way a real city council would during a city council meeting. A test on the material would not have had the same impact on students because it’s not a real-world example like the presentation was.             Students found the iPads to be user-friendly, but still take some getting used to. They said the touch screens were what they liked most about them but the screen’s sensitivity was also frustrating at times. Learning how to use the Numbers, Pages and Keynote applications will greatly benefit my students, should our district decide to purchase more iPads in the future. Students are now familiar and comfortable...