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Words matter. This is a sentiment that is near and dear to my heart as both a human and as an educator. I firmly believe that if we listen to our students (and others in our life) we can figure out what they are learning and experiencing. Today my class started our first maker experience where students were challenged to make something from the limited materials we had. As they worked, I collected their quotes to see what the experience was producing. Here is their list: "I Failed" "It didn't work yet" "I started with.....but now I have...." "You need the right tape to make it work" "Next time I would..." "I need to find..." "Our original idea was too...." "I think this looks cool." "I started down this track and it wasn't working. So then I started...." "I learned that wiring is way more complicated than I thought." "It didn't do what I wanted, so then I changed it to...." Was this lesson with our time today? I believe the evidence supports that it does. Students worked on their creativity, collaboration, and communication skills. They exhibited grit, persistence, and growth mindset as they worked through their challenges. They learned to fail fast and pivot. We created a common experience that we can build off of through out our year as we begin to prototype real world solutions to multiple problems. And the best part? My students left today feeling valued for their own creations. They can now all say that they are Makers. Want to see what they made? Click HERE
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ach year, I set up expectations with my students for what our classroom should look like/feel like. Our school is a PBiS school so we use a framework of the 4C's to help students make connections to behavior in various classes and common spaces. Thus, each year, my students create a set of norms for Composure, Compassion, Collaboration, and Communication to use each and every day. This year, I decided to "liven" up this process by incorporating a teamwork challenge. It was based on an activity I did years ago in a cooperative learning training and it turned out great! Students were each given a set of tangrams on a piece of colored card stock. Blue represented composure, Green represented communication, Red represented compassion, and Orange represented collaboration. Students first generated a list of characteristics for each of the C's and wrote one per piece of tangrams. Next, students cut out their tangrams and then as a group, they created a piece of art to show what they wanted our classroom to feel like. The caveat? They could only touch their color. Here is what they came up with: I was amazed at their creativity. Some groups talked about shooting for the stars. There was outside of the box thinking and love represented. One group created "paradise"-vacation on the beach.
What do you want your classroom to feel like? Down time. It is the enemy of a productive classroom. But what do you do with your students when they are finished with an assignment before their peers? This year, I have decided to try having more maker activities in the classroom, so I am introducing Mini-challenges as an option for students who finish early.
Today was they first test drive and we took on Lego Challenges. After students finished their MAPS benchmark test, they had down time while waiting for their peers to finish. I printed the Lego Challenge cards from The Stem Laboratory (see links below) and students worked quietly to build as many as they could while they waited. And the results? Amazing! When we debriefed the activity, students were asked how this helped their brain grow. Here were some of my favorite responses: -"I had to think of new ways to use what I already had" -"It was ok to fail--i could just try a new way." "This really made me plan out my idea before I started." "I had to problem solve within my criteria and constraints." "We authentically had to Communicate and collaborate about our parts and our ideas." Want to try it out? Here are a few links to get you started! Lego Challenge Links http://thestemlaboratory.com/lego-challenge-cards/ http://www.freehomeschooldeals.com/free-printable-lego-challenge-cards/ http://lifeovercs.com/lego-stem-challenge-cards/ https://www.pinterest.com/explore/lego-challenge/ Unless you have been living under a rock, you know that today was the great American eclipse. For the first time since 1979 (when I was 6 weeks old), the entire continent was able to experience this phenomenon. It was amazing to experience this learning with my students today! We hosted a K-8, school wide picnic today at my school. Here are my top five takeaways from this experience!
5. Pacing charts must be interrupted for real life! With it being so early in the school year, I was very nervous about focusing time on day 4 of the year on something rather than setting up students for the year with rituals and routines and reassessing their skills. However, after going through this, I am once again reminded that real life is often our best teacher. Today I had students engage in the thinking of scientists in a truly authentic way. They observed that shadows were "squished", they wondered why it didn't get that much darker if 93% of the sun was covered, and were in awe of those filtering glasses. As we move on in our studies of energy, physics, and space science, today will give us all a common experience to go back to and hold up our thinking. By stopping for a moment to enjoy the best life has to offer, my students learning was greatly enhanced. 4. Students will step up to lead when given the opportunity. Today 157 middle school students stepped up to be the leaders of our school. In just under 2 and a half hours of instruction, they learned about the eclipse, how to be safe, and then delivered the lessons to our K-5 students. They took on the responsibility of being role models, thinkers, leaders, friends, and teachers and did so with amazing poise. We all say we want our students to do these things--and today reminded me that we must come up with multiple avenues and ways for them to have these experiences. One of my most challenging students from last year came up to me after our picnic and shared that he was so proud that he had helped a first grader. It was a side I had never seen--and wouldn't have--if not for providing this opportunity to shine. 3. Totality in 2024 (or 2045) or bust! With all of the hype for the eclipse of 2017, I spent a lot of time and effort making a special day for kids. As we watched the eclipse, many were disappointed that we didn't get darker with 93% of the sun covered. As pictures, videos, and experiences started flooding my twitter and Facebook feed, I realized that my goal as a science learner is to see totality in one of our next two eclipses--2024 on the east coast or 2025 in Denver. One of the students in our school was disappointed about today and I overheard another student say, "Today was special because we got to experience it together. Next time can be special to see totality." Such wisdom from a young learner--something to aspire to for sure! (PS-The 2024 eclipse will be in Mexico in April--I feel a vacation coming on!) 2. The science of eclipses is amazing. The web has been alive with amazing science stories. The one I was most curious about was the reported observable drop in temperatures that would occur. I was able to go outside right before the eclipse and it was HOT out for our brain break. About 30 minutes into the eclipse, it was a bit cooler. Right before our maximum coverage, I went back outside and it was NOTICEABLY cooler! It was amazing. I am so curious now about the other phenomenon that others have reported--wind ceasing, nocturnal animals appearing, etc. I can't wait to learn more with my students in January when this phenomenon comes back around in our learning! 1. When we are excited about learning, it rubs off on our students. One of my students today gave me my most important learning. My advisory class was in a 1st grade classroom helping the young learners think about eclipses. I must have had a smile on my face that wouldn't stop when one of my autistic students walked up to me and asked, "Mrs. Noffsinger, why are you so joyful? You look like you are about to explode with happiness." I was excited and it rubbed off on him. When we went outside for viewing, he kept coming over to tell me what he saw, what he wondered, and asking me if I was still going to explode with happiness. And the answer? Yes. I wanted to explode with happiness today because I got to spend it doing my favorite thing--getting students excited about science! It rocked Seventeen years ago, I walked into the classroom for the first time as a teacher. The very first assignment that I put in front of students was to draw a picture of a scientist doing their work. I was shocked at the results of that activity. I taught in a very diverse school and yet all but one student drew a picture of a scientist that suspiciously looked like Albert Einstein--older (as seen by white, wild hair), white, and male. Each year of my career I have revisited this activity and slowly over time, I have seen more and more diversity creep into the pictures drawn by my students. This year was no exception.
What was different today, however, was what I did to discuss my students drawings. Today we collected demographic data on the scientists that my students drew--their gender, age, race, and field of study. Again, the majority of students drew scientists who were old, white, and male. Students then discussed four key questions: 1) What are the patterns in this data? 2) Why do you think these patterns were observed? 3) What does this data make you wonder? 4) Do you think this data is representative of science today? Why or why not? As students discussed these questions, they brought up repeatedly that the only scientists they felt like they see in pop culture were white men. They also discussed that they felt that science was starting to open up to more diverse communities, so the demographics were slowly changing. This lead us into our question of the day--what are scientists and engineers really like? To answer this question, each student selected a STEM professional from the Secret Lives of Scientists and Engineers from NOVA and created a trading card for their subject. Students were amazed at the wide variety of topics studied to the cool secret lives that were discussed. Students then shared about their scientists with their classmates to learn about the diversity in the Scientific community. Following sharing, we once again collected demographic data and discussed the four key questions. This time, students began to open up that science needs all voices at the table and that they were hopeful for their generation to make this change. Students talked about how they all had the power to be STEM professionals if they believed they could. Talked turned to Charlottesville and that we should not exclude people in science because of any "-ism." We finished the lesson today by students creating their "secret" identify of what special gifts they bring to our science class. I discovered that I have world travelers, bilingual students, chefs, artists, programmers, gammers, and many, many other creative souls. By the end of the lesson, my heart was filled that my students saw themselves as scientists with gifts to bring to the table. This is the first step towards a positive, inclusive feel in our classroom. Interested in trying this lesson with your student? Check out the power point here! Today I got to walk into my classroom for the first time for the 2017-2018 School year and was struck by the metaphor that "Teaching is an art." If you walk into the classroom of a masterful teacher, you can see it right away. Just as a world renowned artist creates amazing pieces using the tools and skills of their trade, a teacher creates beauty in the lesson they hone. As I stared at the blank canvas of my newly cleaned classroom, I reflected on this metaphor and realized that I plan my school year in much the same way that an artist plans for the creation of a new piece.
Select a Topic Every piece of art starts with a topic. What will I create a work of art around? This year, my answer to this question is "Think, innovate, and Improve". Creating a classroom where these three elements drive our work is my work. We live in a world where information doubles every 12 months. My students are preparing for jobs that do not exist and where they can use the smart phone in their pocket to find out anything. So, my goal this year, is to teach them to think about what they find, innovate with this information to solve problems and improve their skills no matter where they are at. Idea Generation How will I create this work? What will be my medium? How big? Idea generation is where these and many, many other ideas are considered on the way to creating a work of art. My idea generation this summer has taken on many forms. Most influential was my attendance at the National Summer Teacher Institute hosted by the United States Patent and Trademark Office. During this week long immersion experience, we were exposed to the latest research in the Maker movement and design thinking in the classroom. We learned about Intellectual Property (Patents, Trademarks, Copyrights and Trade Secrets) and the importance of our students protecting their thinking as we move into a world were "everything is a remix." I was inspired by guest speakers who created innovation solutions to solve real world problems. I worked in a group to create the Sensodesk to solve the classroom management issues associated with fidget spinners and pitched to a authentic panel of experts. As I left the week, I was invigorated at the possibilities of adding these ideas to Problem Based Learning (PBL) this year. I also read a LOT this summer. Books on growth mindset, learning spaces, making, tinkering, engineering, and formative assessment also inspired me towards the idea of "Think, Innovate, and Improve." Explore and Develop This is where the rubber hits the road--putting the ideas into action. As I go through my journey this year, I will share with you on this blog how my work of art is coming. The biggest change I will be making to my classroom this year is that I will be doing a year long PBL called "Innovation Nation" where students will go through the process of innovating to solve a problem in their lives. Each Wednesday we will come back to our work and come up with products that will be pitched publicly in May. The details are still being sketched out, but I am excited to see how this process plays out. Refine Along the way, it will be essential that I reflect to see how my work of art is coming along. Are students learning? growing? excited? passionate? bored? Each indicator will inform my next strategy, my next lesson, and how my students will grow and flourish. I will share my thoughts, successes and challenges along the way as I learn lessons along the way Final Piece The beauty of education is that there is never a final piece. Instead, next year will roll around and it will be time to start a new work that will be built on the lessons learned along the way. I love that in the 16 years (how has that happened) I have gotten to create and recreate and revise each and every year to get better at my craft. I will never know the full implication of my art in my life time--it will show up in my students for years and years to come. Let's go! |
AuthorMrs. Noffsinger is the 8th Grade Science and Engineering educator. Archives
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Photos used under Creative Commons from Howdy, I'm H. Michael Karshis, r.nial.bradshaw