The completion of homework remains a point of focus for some students when analyzing their achievement in particular courses. Some students find it challenging to complete assignments for a variety of reasons. When class grading policies incorporate homework grades this can have a significant impact on a student's grade. This can also be a point of frustration for parents, teachers and counselors.
Typically the goal of homework is to apply a concept that was introduced in class or to enter class the next day with prerequisite knowledge necessary for productive class discussions or group work. The goal is not to produce a grade, but to further student learning and understanding. Grading homework is an extrinsic motivator that does not impact some students. Homework that does not focus on student learning and understanding is graded for compliance.
I like the idea of providing students who miss an assignment the opportunity to complete the assignment. Myron Dueck, Assistant Principal of Summerland Secondary School in British Columbia shared an incomplete assignment form that he has students submit. This was shared in the March edition of Educational Leadership. When students complete this form they must select from a list of Interventions that are available to them. These may include extra help sessions, study hall, viewing a tutorial, or any other intervention that they will utilize to complete the assignment.
By providing an incomplete grade and a clear intervention plan to complete the assignment the student is provided with choice and a motivation to not have an incomplete for the course grade. There are many variations to this idea, but I believe this is a concept that is worth exploring with our at-risk students.
How do we effectively convey information/content to students to ensure that they not only comprehend it, but can then represent this new knowledge in meaningful ways? How can we accommodate students that struggle with curating important information and managing abstract ideas? What strategies can we employ to aid information retention? The use of Graphic Organizers provide students and teachers with a tool to organize important ideas logically and visually.
Graphic organizers provide student and teachers with a resource to visually present important information in a logical format that can simplify the transition of applying that knowledge. For example, aHistory Frame graphic organizer may be useful to aid in comprehension of Social Studies topics. A History Frame will ask students to identify when and were an event took place, the problem, the stakeholders, the key events, what was the result and what was the future impact.
Graphic organizers may also be useful for students to better understand what they already know and still need to investigate. A KWL chart is a great resource for students to identify what they know about a topic, what they would like to learn more about and then what they have learned. This type of graphic organizer can be used for a Do Now at the beginning of the lesson and then again during the closure as they identify what they learned and would like to explore further.
There are many types of graphic organizers that can serve a variety of purposes. These valuable instructional tools are widely available on the web for free downloads. Completion of graphic organizers by students may serve as a formative assessment for teachers as they uncover the thought process of students as well as their level of understanding. English language learners will benefit from being able to visually organize small chunks of text in a logical order to complete a task or demonstrate understanding.
In latest issue of Educational Leadership Marilyn Burns (founder of Math Solutions, (www.mathsolutions.com) wrote an article that highlights an assessment strategy in Mathematics that departs from our more recent assessment strategies. She discussed how the Common Core State Standards for mathematics will require teacher to strengthen students' numerical reasoning and mental math skills.
After reading this article and reflecting on my observations in classrooms I started to make a connection to the significance of assessing mental computation. Knowledge of how a student mentally computes math problems would provide a wealth of information for teachers. This formative assessment strategy would not only provide insight into the strategies utilized by your students but it would also assess their development of this important life skill.
"Solving math problems mentally too often receives limited attention in classrooms compared with paper and pencil computation. Although developing written computation skills is important, mental computation helps develop facility with many of the practice standards - for example, reasoning quantitatively, constructing a viable argument, and looking for and making use of structure." (Burns, 2012)
Ms Burns has developed a free online tool to assess math reasoning. This tool requires short 10 minute interviews as well as independent paper based computation by the student. At the completion of the assessment the teacher is provided with an analysis of the students math reasoning skill. The entire program includes video tutorials, assessment rubrics and explanations of reports.
This individualized, verbal assessment strategy appears to be a great resource for teachers in grades 5-8.
How can we provide individualized instruction, independent learning opportunities, targeted review and supports?
These are the questions and the demands of today's classrooms. How can we differentiate, facilitate learning and utilize technology to simplify the process. The Flipped Classroom Model of instruction is one example.
Student and teacher made tutorials or recorded lectures can be used to provide the supports needed in today's classrooms. The Khan Academy is the model example of how web-based recorded tutorial/lectures can meet the needs of many of our learners. The Khan Academy provides concise video screencast tutorials for topics in math, science, and humanities. Many of the videos also link to independent practice exercise that students may progress through.
There is a feature called "coach" in which a teacher registers themselves as a coach. The students may then login to Khan academy with their Google Apps user name and password and link themselves to a coach. This allows the teacher to monitor their progress. This provides an opportunity for enrichment were students may progress beyond the current topic to more advanced topics that they are ready for. I have written about the Khan Academy in previous blog posts. I would like to provide some examples of how this can be used immediately with students.
1. Flip the classroom - Students watch the instructional video for homework on their computer, ipad, ipod touch, or any other web enabled device. When they return to school the students apply what was in the video to class problems and projects. The teacher acts as the facilitator in the room to assist students who need help. Students may work in groups to apply and discuss what was learned.
2. Extra- Help and Support - Teachers may provide links to a tutorial on their class website or Moodle course. Students may access this tutorial at home or during class time from a class computer, personal cell phone or any other web-enabled device. Students may pause, rewind and fast forward depending upon their needs.
3. Test review - Teachers may link to a tutorial on their website to provide a review opportunities for students.
4. Enrichment - Teachers may assign students who have a strong grasp of the content the opportunity to create their own screencast tutorial using free recording services such as Jing.
In our district teachers have been successful utilizing our Moodle course management software. On Moodle, teachers can create topics within a course. In those topics they provide links to tutorials, discussions, work submissions and quizzes.
By utilizing these resources we not only provide the type of individualized learning necessary, we also incorporate technology which results in increased student engagement and college career readiness.
Below is a screencast tutorial the introduces the Khan Academy.
We all know the typical method of timeline creation in schools. "Draw a line, add some dates and document events in chronological order". Students will typically use poster boards, markers and possibly cut out images. The students in Mr. Papa's grade 8 social studies class in our district are putting a new spin on the age old practice of timeline creation! They are utilizing a website called Capzles( www.capzles.com) . Capzles is a web 2.0 site built around a social networking framework. Users are provided with the ability to tell a story using pictures, video clips, audio tracks and text. Capzles refers to these items as "moments". The 'moments" are able to be placed together chronologically to develop an interactive timeline. The end result is what is referred to as a "Capzle".
Capzles can be viewed online using a computer or on an Apple mobile device such as an Iphone or Ipad using their free app. Capzles replaces the age old practice of organizing timeline's on paper. It provides an interactive and engaging opportunity for students to organize content. Each multimedia file supplies an area for students to provide descriptions and further information. Information can be organized in a manner which delivers a truly interactive story.
Classroom Implementation
The ability to add audio provides an opportunity for students to put a voice to their presentation. This may be a useful feature in classrooms. By having students record their narration it eliminates the need to use valuable class time having students orally present their Capzles to the entire class.
A teacher may want to provide an opportunity for peer review. Small groups of students may be supplied a rubric or questions to answer. They may be charged with reviewing a specific student made Capzle and then scoring the rubric or answering the questions. This type of peer review opportunity may spark a rich dialogue in your classrooms. It also does not require every student to have a computer to take part in this. Students may use their cell phone or ipod touch to view the capzles in the group using the free web app.
World Language classes may use Capzles to develop an intersciplinary project. Students may design a "moment" that represents a particular topic in science, social studies, current events or even mathematics. The audio narration my be recorded in the language the students are studying.
In language arts, students may design a Capzle that offers a review or insight into a novel, specific chapter or short story. The Capzle may also show the development of a character, events or story plot. Capzles may also be used to make a connection between a particular reading and events whether personal or current events in the world.
Although Capzles is free, it does require an email address to create an account. In Mr. Papa's class the students designed Capzles in groups. One member of each group used their email address to create the account. The students were provided a rubric and a document that outlined the components that must be included in their Capzle.
I recently helped organize a video conference session for one of our grade 4 classes. The students were learning about the restaurant business.
The students in Mr. Rowe and Ms. Hollack's class in White Rock Elementary School had a special visit with Chef Jeffrey Steelman. Chef Steelman is the corporate chef for Todd English. Todd English is a celebrity chef who currently owns 26 restaurantsaround the world. Chef Steelman is in charge of the oversight and opening of all of these restaurants.
This was an interdisciplinary project in which the students learned about the restaurant business. They researched what is involved in the process of starting and opening a restaurant. Students were given the task of developing their own restaurant. They developed a theme, a menu and a slogan. The next step was to write a descriptive essay about their restaurant. This included details about the foods they serve. The students used Microsoft Publisher to create menus for their restaurants during their time in the computer lab. They were also charged with the task of creating 'pizzas' as advertisements. The students had to develop equivalent fractions for each slice. They then decorated their pizzas with toppings according to those fractions.
The final activities of the project included a video conference with Chef Steelman. The students prepared and asked the chef a number of questions about the restaurant business, cooking and the life of a chef. Following the video conference the students hosted a tasting in their classroom in which they all provided samples of foods from their restaurants.
A short video clip of the video conference can be found below.
Financial responsibility, goal setting, savings options and of course technology, are just a few topics covered in a White Rock elementary school fourth grade classes. Students in Mrs. McLeod and Mrs. Brzostowski’s collaborative classroom enjoyed learning about financial decision making using a program called “Feed the Pig”. Students worked in groups to create financial plans for piglets. They discussed their own goals and how to accomplish them. Students even created digital posters and digital stories for their peers as a campaign for proper financial decision making.
Students used technology almost every day in the White Rock classrooms. This included digital posters using Glogster, interactive storybooks using Story Jumper and interactive simulations that reinforced what they are learning in class. These activities not only developed 21st century skills, but students were provided with a authentic learning opportunities. They were provided with multiple avenues for assessment. The technology options allowed them to display their creativity. It also provided an opportunity alternative assessments and increased student engagement. This is the recipe for a successful project.
The finale of the project was held Wednesday May 18th when Mr. Ray DePalma a Certified Public Accountant Skyped with the class and discussed how to save money. Students asked Mr. DePalma what taxes were, how to become a CPA and of course, how to be the most efficient with money. Below is a clip from the event.
By using Skype to connect with subject area experts we are able to make authentic connections to the curriculum. Students can receive information, ideas and opinions from experts in a field. By combining access to individuals as well as the world wide web we move away from a classroom environment where the teacher is the only purveyor of knowledge. This new model has the teacher facilitating the learning in the classroom and providing multiple means of representing content and assessing content.
I have written about the Khan Academy many times in my blog postings. It is a tremendous resource and one that I believe can greatly impact student achievement. The "flip the classroom" model of instruction involves having students review teacher or student made tutorials at home for homework. They then work on applying problems in the classroom. The benefits of this method of instruction are discussed in one of my previous posting "Are you ready to flip the classroom".
If you are planning on testing this method of instruction, the Khan Academy is a great place to start. Here is a brief overview of the site from the publisher:
"Our library of videos covers K-12 math, science topics such as biology, chemistry, and physics, and even reaches into the humanities with playlists on finance and history. Each video is a digestible chunk, approximately 10 minutes long, and especially purposed for viewing on the computer.
"I teach the way that I wish I was taught. The lectures are coming from me, an actual human being who is fascinated by the world around him."—Sal"
The site now offers new features as well as integration with our Google Apps for Education Accounts. After students watch the tutorials they can also work on practice problems in a virtual environment. Each problems can be broken down into individual steps with a the click of a button. Students are able to track their progress as they progress through an interactive map of knowledge.
Managing this progress has now gotten even easier. They have added an entire new Student/Class manager. Teachers can monitor and report on student progress. Information regarding these features can be found here. ( You will be prompted to login with your Google Apps account.
Students and Faculty who have access to Google Apps for Education accounts can sign directly into Khan Academy with their accounts. The site is well organized and easy to navigate.
Here is a video from TED that discusses Khan Academy
What do you do when workbooks, handouts, and class problem sets are not connecting with your students? What do you do for those students who have a solid understanding of a topic before you begin the lesson? How are you differentiating for them? Can you address the needs of your advanced students as well as your struggling students with one activity?
Student made tutorials should be a welcome addition to any classroom. Students may be assigned to work independently or in small groups. Their task is to develop a video tutorial that explains a topic, problem or concept discussed in class. The completed video will be published online for all students in the class to reference as a study guide. By providing such an activity you are allowing your more advanced students the opportunity to apply their knowledge of the topic and better grasp the material by developing a lesson to teach the topic. Your struggling students will then have access to this tutorial online. They can pause, stop, rewind and replay the videos at home while working on homework or studying for an assessment.
There are a number of options for creating tutorials. Paper Slide Tutorials is a simple, cost effective method. It is no intrusive in the classroom and can be easily integrated in all subjects. The process is simple. Students plan a storyboard for the lesson. They prepare paper slides that will be used to present the topic. Once they are organized they will begin recording their tutorial. A Flip Video Camera or any Web Cam can be used to record the tutorial. Once completed the video can be published on the teachers website, Blog, School Tube, YouTube or any other video sharing site.
Here is a video made by a teacher for his students, introducing the process of Paper Slide Videos:
There is a new paradigm shift occurring in classrooms. Many of the most innovative teachers are turning the traditional K-12 classrooms upside down in an effort to individualize the learning experience for students. They are "Flipping" the classroom in order to make classroom instructional time more valuable to students.
"Flipping" the classroom refers to a new approach to teaching in which the students view videos, podcasts or vodcasts of classroom lectures at home for homework. In the classroom, students apply what is learned by completing what is typically identified as "homework" in the classroom.
This innovative approach to instruction offers many instructional advantages. By viewing video lectures in Math and Science, students may pause, stop, rewind at their own will. They may also engage in the lesson at a time that is right for them in their own environment. In the classroom students are provided the opportunity to apply what was learned in the lesson. Students work through the problems during class time. The teacher acts as a facilitator by circulating the room and providing assistance where necessary. Students also work with peers or in small groups to collaborate on problems. This model allows the teacher to be available when the students need him or her most. It creates a student centered personalized learning environment.
In a typical classroom students would sit through a lecture in order to learn the content. They would then be assigned homework for that evening. Many students who did not grasp the lecture would struggle with the homework. When this happens they would just quit or not do it. They would return to class the next day having to learn something new. By flipping the classroom, teachers can see who is struggling and provide immediate help for those students. The application of this new teaching style has presented fantastic results in student achievement and engagement.
Where do you start?
There are a number of free video screencasts available for math and science online. One example is The Khan Academy. This site, created by Salman Khan houses thousands or screencast lectures from basic math to advanced calculus. It also includes interactive practice sessions for students to apply what they have learned. In the video below, Salman Khan explains how he created Khan Academy and how it is being used by educators.
In our district we have access to MOODLE. MOODLE is an online course management software. Teachers can post links to videos and other online tutorials that students may access from any computer with internet access. We also use Google Sites or Wordpress Blogs. Each of these allow teachers to embed or link to videos that students may access over the web. There are also a number of free tools that allow teachers to record screencasts of their lectures. Screencast.com and the Smart Notebook Software all offers these features.
My recommendation is to start small. One or two a month is a great way to get students exposed to the process and to measure its impact.
Have you been to the Google Docs template gallery lately. If you have, you will notice that the available templates are continuing to grow. I recently searched for a template that could be used to create a fictitious Facebook Profile. The first returned result ended up being exactly what I was looking for.
Take a look at this Google Presentation template below.
Creating a Facebook profile is a great project idea for all grades and subjects. Students may create a profile for a historical figure, a scientist, philosopher, mathematician, or any other person of interest. You can start creating a Facebook profile using this template by accessing the Google Docs template gallery or by clicking here.
In my most recent newsletter I wrote an article about the benefits of students blogging. In that newsletter I mentioned a number of web-based tools that we have available in our district to support this initiative. One of the sites I discussed is Kid Blog.
I have found Kid Blog to be a very easy to use tool for creating blogs for your students. All of the student accounts and blogs are created by the teacher. A teacher can select different levels of moderation for the blog. Unlike other blogging platforms where a teacher would have to organize various website addresses to view student blogs, kid blog displays all of the student blogs on one screen. The features available with Kid Blog simplify the process of blogging with students.
When students publish blog postings it is up to the teacher to decide if the postings remain private between the teacher and student or can be viewed and commented on by the entire class. There is also options to make the blog postings public for the world to see.
If you are looking to work on digital stories with your students or would like to engage your students in the writing process the following will be helpful. In our district we incorporate the writer's workshop framework. We are also looking for innovative ways to implement writing across the curriculum. The RAFT STRATEGY is one of the strategies that we have been exploring.
The document below provides some great examples of how writing can be implemented in various subjects. Each example provides examples of non-traditional purposes for writing. You will see a variety of audiences that students may write for. My Digital Writing Wiki provides resources that can be used to create and publish these writings and stories.
I recently came across the PhET website project that was developed by the University of Colorado. I have found it to be a really great resource for all grade levels. Here is a description of the site taken directly from their about page:
PhET provides fun, interactive, research-based simulations of physical phenomena for free. We believe that our research-based approach- incorporating findings from prior research and our own testing- enables students to make connections between real-life phenomena and the underlying science, deepening their understanding and appreciation of the physical world.
To help students visually comprehend concepts, PhET simulations animate what is invisible to the eye through the use of graphics and intuitive controls such as click-and-drag manipulation, sliders and radio buttons. In order to further encourage quantitative exploration, the simulations also offer measurement instruments including rulers, stop-watches, voltmeters and thermometers. As the user manipulates these interactive tools, responses are immediately animated thus effectively illustrating cause-and-effect relationships as well as multiple linked representations (motion of the objects, graphs, number readouts, etc.)
The website contains simulations for math, earth science, chemistry, physics and biology. They are organized by subject and grade level. They can be used on an interactive whiteboard, linked to a website or Moodle course , or as part of a lesson or classroom center. By providing resources of this type for our students we are providing them with multiple means of representation of information. This is a key component of the UDL framework.
Students may become inspired by reviewing these simulations. Through the use of screencasting or digital storytelling they may decide to create their own visual representations of topics.
Our district subscribes to Study Island for its grades 2-8 students. The software started out primarily as a NJ Ask test prep tool. It has evolved into much more. Although there are many features that i could highlight I would like to talk about the Custom Assessment tool in this posting.
The custom assessment option allows teachers to create online assessments for one student in a class, a group of students in a class or an entire class. The faculty member can browse through questions by topic. He or she can select a topic question and tell the system how many of that type of question he or she would like included in the test.
The software will andomize the numbers in a math question or change the text in a language arts question. This allows the teacher to have multiple questions that assess the same skill.
By having the ability to create custom assessments, faculty members are able to quickly develop formative assessments that will help guide instruction. The fact that these assessments can be taken online, with a student response system or on paper provide a number of options.
When implemented correctly, study island is a valuable instructional tool. The software offers numerous reports, customizable options and an intuitive interface. I must say I am very happy with our subscription.
I came across this website from a blog that i follow called "free technology for teachers". The site has a fantastic collection of resources for teaching math. It was created by the National Council of Mathematics Teachers. The content is broken down into categories. You will find activities, lessons and web links. Each is segmented by topic and grade. There are complete lessons and activities for grades K-12. The web links section links to over 700 pre-qualified external activities for math instruction.
I found some great lessons and activities on this site. Take a moment to sift through some of the resources available. I welcome your comments and feedback.
I have come across a few great websites that host free math tutorial videos. The videos on these sites are great teachers and students. Many of the videos break down complex math topics into small pieces. They can be used as an instructional tool or a study guide for students. These videos can be embedded or linked into Smart Notebook Lessons, Glogs, PowerPoints or Digital Stories.
I will be adding to this list from time to time as I am introduced to other great sites.
www.khanacademy.org - A huge collection of Math and Science tutorials. Created by an MIT graduate this site is a terrific resource for students and teachers. The videos are hosted on Youtube so Youtube access is required.
www.mathtrain.tv - a collection of math tutorial videos created by students for students.
http://teacher.tenmarks.com - math video lessons - free. They have loads of math video lessons - 3-5 minutes long - perfect for sharing with kids and parents for grades 3-10. What I like most is the wonderful way they have explained complex math problems by breaking it into smaller pieces.
Today I was introduced to a fabulous website called Khan Academy. The address of the site is http://www.khanacademy.org. Khan Academy hosts over 1000 math and science video tutorials. All of the videos are categorized and hosted on Youtube. Here is a quote from their site
"We have 1000+ videos on YouTube covering everything from basic arithmetic and algebra to differential equations, physics, chemistry, biology and finance which have been recorded by Salman Khan."
The videos provide a very easy to follow explanation of basic and advanced topics. Salman explains these concepts in a manner that is attractive to students. Each video is supplemented by software that dynamically generates exercises and captures data on student usage and progress. You can read this document to understand the vision of this site and to review student and teacher feedback.
Another highlight on this site is the SAT review. Khan works out every problem found in a common SAT study guide. This is a free SAT study guide with step by step video tutorials!
This site is a tremendous resource for students and teachers. The tutorials can be integrated into lessons, posted on Moodle pages, linked to teacher web pages or provided to students for review. The tutorials have proven to be an effective tool for special education students. Teachers may decide to incorporate these videos in center activities in the elementary school. I could also envision these tutorials added to a Glog.
I hope you enjoy this resource. I welcome your comments on this post and would love to hear your feedback or implementation experiences regarding this resource.
I came across the website the other day. It is called analyze math http://www.analyzemath.com/. I found it to be a great resource for creating interactive math lessons. Here is a description from the website:
"The site includes several java applets to investigate Graphs of Functions, Equations, and Algebra. Topics explored are: equations of line, ellipse, circle, parabola, hyperbola, polynomials; graphs of quadratic, rational, hyperbolic, exponential and logarithmic functions; one-to-one and inverse functions and inverse trigonometric functions; systems of linear equations; determinants and Cramer's rule; inverse matrix and matrix multiplication; vectors, complex numbers, polar equations; absolute value function; slope of a line; angle in trigonometry, unit circle, solutions to trigonometric equations; graph shifting, stretching, compression and reflection. Applets used as Online Math Calculators and Solvers and Online Geometry Calculators and Solvers are also included"
1. The interactive applets can be used on an interactive whiteboard. 2. Teachers can create an interactive assignment on Moodle with links to the applet for practice, links to instructional videos and discussion forums. 3. Create an interactive assignment using Glogster. One section of the Glog could be practice using one of these applets. 4. Advertise the availability of this resource for students to use as a homework helper or study guide.
Jenuine Tech has opened up a new online project called "Everyone Counts" The theme of the project is the US Census that will be happening this year. She has setup a website with information regarding the project. There are two question sheets that can be used as well as a number of extension activities. This seems like a great project to work on with your class. I have a few ideas regarding extension activities as well. Here is the link to the project information and registration info. I listed some extension activities that I thought were interesting. http://www.jenuinetech.com/Projects/ec20/welcome.html
Global Collaboration - We are starting to make a number of connections with schools in the US and overseas for video conferencing and collaboration. A comparison of census data that the students collect would be an interesting idea. I can help make the connection with another class. Jen also offers the opportunity to find another class through her Ning site.
Math - The collection of census data is a great way to incorporate MS Excel into your curriculum. Students can add the data to a spreadsheet and create graphs to display and interpret the results
Social Studies / Geography -After reviewing census data for locations students can take a trip on Google Earth to visit these locations. They can identify the type of community and take note of the physical characteristics of each location in relation to the census data (i.e suburban, vs. rural, vs. urban communities)
As always I am available to assist with and plan all stages of such a project! I would also appreciate it if you would share any additional ideas you have to add to this project.
