She's Scared to Ask

Last quarter, as I conferred one on one with Christine (not her real name), she confided in me that she's scared to ask for help.

On her own, she wrote a new goal for fourth quarter: Ask for help when I don't understand.

This past Friday, she hadn't turned in an in-class assignment. I went to her and asked, "Do you need help on the assignment you haven't yet turned in?"

Her reply was a head nod.

I then asked her, "Do you remember what your goal for fourth quarter is?"

She softly replied, "Ask for help."

I asked her to take it out so I can help her with it, and help her get closer to achieving her goal.

Penciled in - right on the assignment - she'd written, "I'm still scared to ask for help."

I looked her in the eye and reiterated, "I'm here to help."

-----

I'm so glad she was able to tell me her thoughts in our meeting at the end of third quarter. What great feedback for me!! I was aware that it was something to celebrate. However, I still confided in a coworker how meeting with Christine was upsetting to me, and that I didn't know what to do to fix it or help her. How can she be scared of me? ME? I feel as if I'm very compassionate in class. I feel as if I praise so many little things students are doing so we have a positive relationship. I feel as if I'm approachable and allow time for students to talk with me. How could she be scared of ME? My coworker tried to assure me. She, too, was scared (maybe that wasn't the exact word for her) to ask for help from any teacher. She, too, didn't participate. She, too, did her work, did well, and then went on with her day.

Yet here it is again. That feeling that I can't do enough. That feeling that I need to do much more.

I will continue to sit and chat with each child. I will continue to make great eye contact, smile, and praise for efforts, word choice, patience, etc. Yet it looks like I'll always need to do more.

I'm reaching out to my PLN today - what can I do to help students who are scared to ask for help?

Question of the Day - Magnetic Strips

I keep getting asked about how I use magnets with students' names...



And here is the original post with similar information. When I made this post in 2014, it must have been the year I transitioned from printed names (using the printer) to students writing their own names in a certain color for each class. As of 2017, students use the color of their choice. Some even choose to decorate this small space! They can also take their names home over the summer. If they bring them back the next school year, I let them in on the fun of answering the questions when they stop by to visit!

Please share with me what YOUR question of the day looks like in your class(es)!

Want to see more about the question of the day? Check out the Shift This blog posts about them here! More are sure to be added.

One Thing Differently...

"While we can't continue to do more things, we can do things differently." ~Unmapped Potential, by Julie Hasson and Missy Lennard, pg. 109

Ain't that the truth!

This is one point that made me go "Ooooh! I have an idea for our T-Wolves of the month!"

What? You might not know what I mean, so let me back up... First off, Julie and Missy (authors of the above quote) want teachers to uncover - and tap into - the limitless potential of their students. Secondly, this was in the chapter right after the chapter about better ways to lead a team. My brain, therefore, was on my team and a struggle we often have - coming up with "T-Wolves of the month."

We currently have six teams at my middle school (two in 6th, 7th, and 8th), and each team chooses two boys and two girls (I'm waiting for the gender stipulation to be lifted soon) to receive the designation of "T-Wolf of the month." Usually our team starts the year by making a list of students that have made an impact on their class right away, and then we go from there. Some months (March or April, anyone?!) are tougher than others, when it seems even the students who are excellent in character all year suddenly are... how should I put it... not living up to their potential. Remember - this is middle school. They have a lot of growing still to do. During our 40 minutes of team time, this decision could take up to 20 minutes - as we all see students in different situations, and (even though it's a team of ELA, math, PE/health, science, and social studies) we don't each see ALL students.

As I read the above quote, I had an "aha" moment - let's invite the students to help!

First, we'd have to explain to students what the process is that the team goes through to choose this person ("character counts" traits, consistency, etc.), and then we can let them know there is a spot for them to nominate someone - this form, ideally, would be on each of our homeroom web pages. When it comes time to choose, we can use their responses as a resource! Their ideas will be taken into consideration. We'll need to let them know that the team will look at every response, and the person they nominated may or may not be chosen that month, depending on our discussion and other student names we're bringing to the table.

You KNOW the kids see a lot of what we don't see - and I'm excited to see the more quiet students step up in this fashion. I've made the form only for students in our district (yes, it will collect their name automatically), so you cannot view it, but I took a screen shot of it here for you to see the simplicity...

Thoughts? Ideas to add? Wording to change? I thought I'd bring it to my online PLN before I share it with the team school in August, so let me know! Thanks for the spark of inspiration, Julie & Missy!

Predictions - Students Grading Themselves...

I have many fears, and yet I know this pilot with one of my three classes will be successful in many ways. Here are my predictions for this coming year with my 9/10 block - one week before school begins!

• No matter how transparent I make our plans, some parents won't get the letter I send out, and will express concern (putting it lightly?) when I do not put grades in the online grade book.
• Many parents will not look at the research I share behind the idea of feedback instead of grades.
• Some students will need hand-holding when it comes to deciding on a portfolio and adding artifacts to show their learning.
• Some students will not check their documents or the online grade book for feedback. I hope to have these students in before or after school (or lunch) to explain the purpose of revisions and give them time to revise.
• After a few weeks, some students will not have work that proves that they are learning. Or... they'll have work, but decide to not revise it. These may be the students that answer me with an "I don't know - you tell me" when I ask them to prove what grade they earn and why.
• Some students will try to prove that they deserve an A - for effort, even if they have not met the standards. I wish I could give them a grade for effort, and we will include that reflection in written form, by asking students to fill in this self-reflection (inspired by Paul Solarz in Learn Like a Pirate). This reflection will go in the envelope alongside their progress reports, and hopefully it will be a catalyst for a conversation with parents at home.
• First quarter will be tough. For everyone. Me, students, and parents. And my husband! We'll all be figuring out how this is going to go.
• After first quarter, students will be more motivated to be able to prove the grade they think they should earn.
• I will be frustrated, and yet learn a lot as the year goes on.
• No matter how it goes, I'll have a lot of material to work with when writing for my renewal for my National Board Certification! (WHY am I doing both in the same year?!)

I'm prepared for some struggles, but I'm also excited for successes. What's the point of all of this anyway? I'll keep my thoughts on my goals - I do not need to "give" grades. I'm in the classroom to help children LEARN.

My resources so far: "FaR" tabs of our classroom Weebly
                                  Feedback Instead of Grades LiveBinder for parents to inspect

Side note: I will learn something in the first few days about what students think of the idea... We're using this quick Google form as part of our QR code scavenger hunt! (For my students only, please.)

Student Station Success

Still hiding behind a teacher's desk?

Try transforming it!

I've had this since 2012, and it's a dream. 

What you don't see:

     The side of the desk says (largely) "Student Station." Visitors can easily see the name.

     There are various magnets on the side of the desk.

Why is it successful?

     Students don't ask me for supplies that are - rightfully - theirs.

     Students keep it neat, as it's their space.

     Students sit here by choice when they feel they need to sit by themselves.

Hints for those who want to convert their teacher's desk:

     Make sure students know that not all teachers have a student station.

       (Other teachers expressed disgust when my students took things off their desk!)

     Fill it up with supplies - students will police each other when it comes to using "too many."

     Provide time for students to explore each drawer so they know where supplies are.

     The "shoe shelf" is nice. I found the one pictured at a garage sale for $5.

     Keep a vase filled with live flowers or even weeds (cattails pictured).

Consider trying it! You won't be disappointed.

In one sentence...

My husband is retired, so he lives vicariously through my school work, I believe... ;)

He asked me this earlier this week -

In one sentence, how would you sum up all this stuff you've been studying? Methods, Genius Hour, Teaching in General... What's the secret? What would make it perfect? What's the ultimate goal?

In one sentence?

Let's see... finding ways for peers and me to give LOTS of feedback so that one class of my students may grade themselves each quarter, and figuring out what ELSE (besides Genius Hour and what I'm already doing) I can do to help students learn how to learn on their own. That's really it, in a nutshell. It's a TON of work, but it's coming along slowly. He still wants ONE sentence...

I want my students and I to execute class in a way that helps them learn 7th grade ELA standards with and from each other, while simultaneously learning how to be caring human beings who communicate effectively so they become lifelong learners.

Leave in the comments or create your own blog post -

What's your ultimate goal for all the time you spend learning this summer?

Graphic created with Paper 53 & TextsPhoto apps