Along with the middle of the year in my district, comes midpoint diagnostics. Since fifth grade gets state wide testing for reading, math, and science, our midpoints are in these three areas as well. My biggest fear starting teaching in my own room this year was that my students would not show much, if any, growth in any content area. I really lacked confidence in my own teaching.
Well, I was so surprised and excited when I completed the grading of these diagnostics because my class average in all three content areas showed growth. In some content areas more than others, but growth nonetheless! I could not be happier. I am finding myself celebrating this little success and anxious for the next one to come around the corner.
I found it to be funny that I showed this growth because lately I have been feeling like there are so many things I want to change in how I run my classroom daily. I have talked about my Daily 5 structure during reading workshop time, and have really been wrestling with this concept. I loved it when I taught 4th grade last year in two long terms (4 months and 3 months). I loved it when I started the school year, but now am feeling like it is not sufficient enough for my students. It almost seems too easy for them and like a boring routine that we continue.
All of that being said, I want to change this part of my day, but am nervous to do so because it took us so long to set up this structure. Some things I do know about what I want to keep: the workshop model, lots of reading and content practice during this time, and of course small and individual student work time with me. What are some things you are doing in your classrooms? I am anxious to begin thinking about this, but also want to put a lot more thought into this part of my day than I currently do.
Math is another area that I am finding myself wanting to really make changes. As part of my resident educator program, I had to write a unit plan and my first one was on a math topic: decimals. I took our current math program and re-wrote the entire unit. What did I find? My students did so much better than they have ever done! The scored the highest on our unit assessment today than they have ever done, but more importantly, they can explain to you how decimals work and why they work that way. They have a deeper understanding of the concepts! I could not be happier, but I want all of my math units to be this way.
This makes me super nervous, because it has taken me forever to re-create that unit and put all of the pieces together. To do this with every remaining unit (13 to be exact), seems so daunting. I know the end result will make it so worth it, but finding the time seems almost impossible. I am going to have to re-read my balancing time post from much earlier this year!
On top of all this newness running around in my head, I am taking part in a new technology pilot program in my school. It starts in about a week. I am excited about parts of it and a bit skeptical about other parts. I am anxious to see how my teaching changes for the better from this and anxious to see what I find works with my teaching style and my classroom routines. Some things seem like they will be very challenging for me, particularly because of my having to give up some control and that is not a strong suit for me. I will have so much more to share on this in the near future. But, in the meantime, how do you use technology in your classroom with your students daily?
Friday, January 25, 2013
Thursday, January 17, 2013
The Midpoint
Today officially marked the end of the first half of the school year. I think that it has finally set in that this is my classroom. Over winter break a few weeks ago, I found myself excited to go back to my classroom and students. Now that we have been back for the last few weeks, I have finally felt a bit more settled in for the year. I feel like I know my students well and I know ways that I can support them in the classroom to help them learn the most they can.
As part of being this far into the school year, I am deep into my first year resident educator work (a mentorship program required for four years to earn a full five year teaching license). At this point in the year I have to plan, conduct, and reflect on three lesson cycles (mini units). I have fully completed one entire cycle and have been so thrilled with the deep learning that all of my students have had. I have been even more thrilled with how much my more challenged students have not only learned but retained. It was a definite proud teacher moment. :-) This has really inspired me to continue this work with the remainder of my math instruction this year. The only challenge: it was a lot of prep work and planning. I want to do this, but I am not sure where I am going to find the time on top of my already busy schedule with all of my other job to dos. I am going to have to get super creative.
To mark the end of the first half of the school year, my team had a release day to work on data review and planning from here. I was so happy that we completed so much work and planning. We created an assessment to continue to track student growth and planned a series of 8 lessons that we will conduct as a team in the 8 weeks leading up to our state testing. Today was so productive and I have a work day again tomorrow. I am hoping that tomorrow can be just as productive.
I certainly did not think that I would be feeling this calm at this point in my first year teaching full time. I certainly did not think that I would have been learning so much this year either. If you had asked me at the start of the school year if I thought I would grow a lot as a teacher and learn a lot about being a better teacher, I would have said no, but I am finding that I am a much better teacher than I ever was 4.5 months ago. I cannot wait to see what the next half of the year brings!
As part of being this far into the school year, I am deep into my first year resident educator work (a mentorship program required for four years to earn a full five year teaching license). At this point in the year I have to plan, conduct, and reflect on three lesson cycles (mini units). I have fully completed one entire cycle and have been so thrilled with the deep learning that all of my students have had. I have been even more thrilled with how much my more challenged students have not only learned but retained. It was a definite proud teacher moment. :-) This has really inspired me to continue this work with the remainder of my math instruction this year. The only challenge: it was a lot of prep work and planning. I want to do this, but I am not sure where I am going to find the time on top of my already busy schedule with all of my other job to dos. I am going to have to get super creative.
To mark the end of the first half of the school year, my team had a release day to work on data review and planning from here. I was so happy that we completed so much work and planning. We created an assessment to continue to track student growth and planned a series of 8 lessons that we will conduct as a team in the 8 weeks leading up to our state testing. Today was so productive and I have a work day again tomorrow. I am hoping that tomorrow can be just as productive.
I certainly did not think that I would be feeling this calm at this point in my first year teaching full time. I certainly did not think that I would have been learning so much this year either. If you had asked me at the start of the school year if I thought I would grow a lot as a teacher and learn a lot about being a better teacher, I would have said no, but I am finding that I am a much better teacher than I ever was 4.5 months ago. I cannot wait to see what the next half of the year brings!
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