Reflect after you have implemented a task in your thinking classroom:
Give it a try! Implement the strategies that you have learned to provide your students with a rich math experience in your thinking classroom.
Consider the following questions:
- How did it go?
- What did you learn?
- What might you do differently next time?
Respond and Interact
After implementing a task in your classroom, please post your response to one {or more} of the prompts above. Read our colleagues' reflections. Feel free to respond to someone by sharing a comment, insight or interesting possibility.
ReplyDeleteIf I was teaching in my own classroom, I definitely would have implemented the 3 practices in the 1st toolkit by now. Since I don’t have my own class, what I can do is implement these strategies to increase engagement and thinking in professional development sessions or meetings I lead. The idea in chapter 15 about how changing the norms in a classroom or situation really can upset the balance and requires changes in our behaviors and habits really resonated with me. As I have tried some of the practices from this book I can see and sense the uncomfortableness in the room because things seem different than usual. An example is when I use random groups. People get used to working with those they are close with and I am guilty of this too. However, I do notice that when I use random groups, I see more on task behaviors. As I have been a participant in different trainings (especially zoom training where people are from all over the country), I have come to expect this and it is more comfortable for me. I am also trying to incorporate more thinking activities using vertical surfaces such as carousel activities and gallery walks. I am trying to shift my practice to incorporate more thinking and discussion time in small groups rather than me being the giver of knowledge. This is a work in progress and something I keep in mind as I plan for any training or professional development.
I focused on chapter 8 which talked about student autonomy. I liked the terms "borrowing and asking" and "mobilizing knowledge". I've really been working this year on stronger partnerships and student-talk. So the first time I allowed partners to go to another partner to ask for help, of course they just asked for the answers. Then came the discussion about how just asking for the answer doesn't help you to understand how to do the problem on your own. We created a list of sentence stems that they could use like, " Where did you start?, What did you do after you found xyz?" and so on. It's hard for them but I see growth. I do have a 10 minute partner trying time before they can go and ask. We've used this strategy with the How Many Squares activity from the book and from the math lessons where you had to match a diagram to a word problem. I've also been trying to answer questions with a question. Sometimes when a child asks if their problem/answer is correct, I ask them if they used the correct operation. Almost all will start erasing their plus or minus sign. I hope to get them all to the point where erasing isn't their first impulse but instead explaining why their sign is correct.
ReplyDeleteI have been focusing on how I answer questions. During one of my groups, I tallied the number of questions/comments that stopped thinking or resulted in wasted time and the number was staggering. I discovered that we were wasting five to ten minutes of instructional time daily on random questions that didn't relate the material being taught. As a group we developed a nonverbal signal that showed that I heard their question, but I wasn't going to answer it yet. I then gave them the opportunity to ask any non-thinking questions after our grouped ended and before they headed back to class. It's amazing that they didn't want to use their time to ask the question. While this didn't eliminate all non-thinking questions, they have been drastically reduced.
ReplyDeleteWow Terran...that is really impressive. I love how you involved them in developing the signal to help each other stay focused. You are a star.
DeleteThere were so many great ideas in this book and I often found myself overwhelmed in TRYING different ones. Unfortunately, so many ideas, so little time and space in my head to do it well! I do feel like I was successful in changing up the classroom and used macro and micro moves, especially during math! It was fun to see the kids adapt quickly and be successful with change! They loved using the vertical space.
ReplyDeleteI am also moving toward giving students opportunity to "check your understanding questions" in place of homework! I have done this the past 2 weeks. Sadly, many did not do it. I had a higher turn in rate with "homework". Not sure how I will move forward but I will continue to be open minded!
I also gave out the first "highly engaging thinking task" to the students! They loved it and wanted to know the answer right away. They really struggled when I wouldn't tell them whether they were right or wrong and it was a great way to practice my response so that they would continue to think and problem solve!
ReplyDeletepatient problem solving...they'll get there! Way to go, Cindy!
DeleteWith not having my own classroom, I have been trying a few of the moves when I am covering a class or working with teachers. Recently, I had students stand while I was giving a task and there was a noticeable shift in the energy and engagement. It wasn't perfect as I just decided to give it a try. At the same time, I was able to see it in action and see the impact on student thinking. As I mentioned in my last post, I am working with a teacher who is doing Illustrative (IM) this year and she has been trying many of the moves from the book including random groups, vertical surfaces, etc. I taught a math lesson in her class and wished I had all of the macro/micro moves in written form with me! So many of these ideas are what IM is trying to accomplish, but not all of them come natural based on my past experience in the classroom. Because of that I like that there are many things you can try right away with students in order to build the norms in a classroom and the skill as a teacher. I am looking forward to diving into more moves after break!
ReplyDeleteSomething that I would like to implement into my classroom is more standing thinking tasks during math. As mentioned in chapter 3, it can have a huge impact on the amount of time students are willing to spend thinking, and can help to eliminate faking or stalling habits. I think I give students a lot of opportunties to move around the room during our work time, but often they're sitting not standing. I was hoping to spend some time implementing during snow days but ran short on time. One idea that came to mind, was taking our Illustrative "warm up" and posting a handful of copies on the wall around the room. Put students into groups, and have them walk over to one posted and record their thinking on the whiteboard they're holding. Then, meet at the carpet as a whole group to discuss. I really enjoyed this book-so many great ideas!!
ReplyDelete