Things I am Thinking About

Since our last class I have been thinking about several things that came up in the presentation and the discussion. Rachel & Ashley's presentation was great. It got me thinking about the way I physically organize my classroom. For the past few years I have primarily used table groups ALL the time. However, that may not be the betting setting for all students to learn. This year I have a lot of students who have told me - I need to sit facing forward. I also have noticed many students who are highly distractible when they are sitting in a table group. I feel I arragned my room this way because it is the politically correct way to arrange it, it looks like we are doing cooperative learning if you (or an administrator) were to walk in for one minute. However, I have come to realize that just because the students are sitting in a group does not mean they are cooperative working. And when we are working in groups, having 2 desks between students is not conducive to whisper or low voices that are needed, so I usually move kids around the room anyway - like to the book corner, or sitting at the reading table. Maybe I don't need my desks in groups just to have it look like I do cooperative learning. I think I am going to be brave and try something different in January. If I seat my students in pairs, they have someone to work in partners with. Also they can turn around and easily be a group of 4 when needed, and they will be much closer to each other, so they can actually hear each other when they are working in groups. I have used table groups for so long, it seems strange to do something else, but I am going to try it.

I keep rereading parts of the book Teach Like a Champion, because I really like many of the strategies. Some I was already doing, so it feels like a pat on the back. Other strategies I have started using with more frequency this year include the Cold Calling and No Opt Out. The strategy I need to practice more is Right is Right. I am the teacher who often rounds up. I can't seem to stop myself. Even this week I have caught myself doing that. I don't know if it is because I am in a hurry because time is limited, so I feel I have to push through and not slow down to get every part. I need to keep working on this with oral responses. I am much better at Right is Right when students are writing down answers, particularly for reading response.

At Bats...I have had a lot of discussion with other teachers about the concept of At Bats. I feel like in math (facts) especially, students need a lot of at bats. But I feel if we do that, I am doing contrary to what I have been told is good teaching in math. For example, to learn subtraction with regrouping students need lots of at bats. Our math program does not provide for lots of at bats. I have even been told lots of practice is detrimental because it is boring. Yet it seems like more and more students are going through elementary school not being comfortable subtracting with regrouping. Or even comfortable with basic subtraction facts. I feel guilty if we practice, guilty if we don't. There seems to be no middle ground. Practicing math facts is low level tasks, but won't students be more successful on higher level skills in upper grades if they come with a strong foundation? And please don't think math facts is all I do, just because I happen to think it is important. I teach math out of the box, I teach the standards, and we practice story problems daily.