Hello again!
Time for the performance task.
While watching the videos on mini-lessons, we were to look for what worked and what didn't work. Here are my feelings:
1. Ricks Reading Workshop:
Rick modeled for the students what he would want them to be doing later. Telling students what they're going to be doing is very important. By showing the students how he read the book, it drew attention to what they should be doing/focusing on. He then allowed for the students to talk to each other about what they were thinking. By making them think, you're furthering their understanding of their own opinions. Then, he walked around and took pieces of what they were saying to use to teach them more.
2. First Grade Lesson:
This teacher had a whole group mini-lesson where she made the students answer her questions together. Even though the teacher took control of the lesson, she was taking input from her students. The only issue that I see with this is that the same students could always be answering the questions while the same questions sit there quietly. Unless there was something put into place regarding the amount of time individuals speak, then I don't believe that this is a lesson to reach all students needs.
3. Poetry Mini-Lesson
In this lesson, teacher provided the students with the purpose of the lesson. Especially with students in middle school, this is very important to point out. As I've been saying throughout a lot of my posts/annotations, students should be informed as to why they're learning what they're learning. This could help to motivate them in their learning. I also like how the poem was shared together along with each student having their own copy. This is helpful for the student who struggles to follow along to an orally spoken story/poem. The teacher also checks in to be sure students are understanding what they're doing. They always ended with a group discussion.
4. Reader's Workshop
In this workshop, the teacher was teaching the importance of re-reading a book and why it was helpful. They had a whole group discussion where the teacher re-read a book and explained why it helped. From here, she sent the students to their desk to choose (important) a book that they have read once before to re-read. I like this idea because it's allowing for the student to choose a book on their own but they're restricted in a way. It's not too open but it's also not a situation where the student gets no say in their learning. I value students choices and think it's an important aspect in their learning.
5. Kindergarten Writer's Workshop
This teacher began her lesson with an initiation to get her students thinking about a book they read earlier. Initiations are key to a good lesson plan. They thought about a time they felt silly and then were able to share and draw their feelings on paper. By relating to the students and their lives really keeps their interest/motivation high. Personally, I do feel that the teachers explanation of her story was a little lengthy for the age group she was working with (kindergarten). In my own opinion, maybe it would've been more effective if she spent less time on her own story and maybe choose a students to use as the example. I only think this because one 5 year olds story will relate to another 5 year olds thinking better than an adult teachers story. Or, maybe they could have completed the writing workshop in a more interactive way for the students being that they are so young and jittery.
These are my personal reactions to the readings. People may agree or disagree but regardless of your stand, let me know what you think! I look forward to reading and commenting on other peoples views on the videos.
Module 4: COMPLETE! & WMW LE #5
1 min read
Hello class!I actually completed all components of Module 4 much earlier in the week than usual. I had a day off from work (due to no power, score!) and was able to catch up on all of my homework.First things first, here are the links to my Walk My World Learning Event #5:1. https://
Samantha Monaco, Feb 27 2016 on edu307.networkedlearningcollaborative.com