Plickers

This past week I was catching up with one of my friends who is a teacher in Cobb County. She informed me about an app called Plickers. This is a quick way to use formative assessments in the class. Each student has a card that has a unique visual code with four sides to answer a, b, c, or d. The teacher projects a question and the students hold up their card to respond. The teacher uses his or her device to take a picture through the app, and it reports the results to the teacher! Instant feedback! This is a good way to assess reading and comprehension across all content areas. The teacher can decide whether more time should be spent on a topic, problem, or concept before moving on with the class.

WC 134
https://www.plickers.com/
https://jonathanwylie.com/2014/03/18/plickers-classroom-assessment/

How Should I Use A Textbook In My Class?

When I first read the question, the first thing that came to mind is how I have never enjoyed textbooks in a class. The assigned readings were something that always got pushed to the bottom of my list to do, if I ever got to doing them. The only time I would make sure to read was when there was a possibility of a quiz. Even then, I never did well on the quizzes even when I read. With such a bitter taste in my mouth about textbooks, I want to find a way to use the textbook that allows students to benefit and not suffer or dread the text. The sections in this weeks readings about math caught my attention because that is one of my content areas. It is quoted that, "Math textbooks have the highest content load per sentence of all the secondary textbooks (Barton and Heidema, 2002)"(Daniels and Zemelman, 2014, p. 189). This is overwhelming to students, especially students who struggle with reading, math, or both! As a teacher, how to use the textbook can seem daunting and tricky because there is so much information packed into each topic, explanation, or chapter. It can be such a beneficial resource if its used properly.  So what can I do? The main point I think is most applicable when it comes to math teaching and textbooks is being selective (178). Picking the parts of the text that are "enduring" and allow students to then "act upon" on the topics being presented through the book. This makes me wonder, how can I know whether the textbook I am using is most beneficial to my teaching practices and students? And how do I engage students who are not strong readers or have bad blood with textbooks from previous classes?

WC: 299

Resource Blog #2

Motivating the Unmotivated

This article provides statistics and steps to assist teachers in helping their young students become more engaged and active in their learning. Focus on motivation, time commitment from teachers and staff, reinforcement through repetition, provide effective motivators, and provide fun for the students are the five components to leading students to motivation in the classroom. The part that stood out to me about this program is while these steps aim towards elementary and middle school students, there is an opportunity for community service for high school students. This online chat service, founded by the nonprofit organization, On Giants' Shoulders, allows younger students to engage with older students each week, have something to drive their learning, and provides each student with something unique and special. This brings teachers of all grades and students of all grades together to form a powerful and impactful learning community.

https://www.edutopia.org/blog/motivating-unmotivated-chelsea-dale?utm_source=twitter&utm_medium=socialflow

WC: 140

How Do I Help Struggling Readers?

This idea of a struggling reader is something that I have definitely had thoughts and fears about as a future teacher. I hated reading growing up nor was I that great at it. This picture embodies the kind of reader I was. Reading was not one of my leisurely activities growing up as a student.  

The first thing that stood out to me from my experience as a student and the readings this week was the using tapes/podcast of books to engage students into reading. Growing up, I would have to go home and buy the podcast of the book we were reading in order to be able to stay on top of assigned readings or to be able to understand what was going on in class group readings. I was a very slow reader. Podcast allowed me to engage in more of a story-telling than trying to read the words for completion and not understanding. From my experience, this improved the reader I was.

Another huge strategy that really might be the greatest thing a teacher can do is creating a supportive relationship with the students. The line that resonated with me the most was the following: "...people who have repeatedly failed at something usually cope by focusing their lives elsewhere to avoid still more failure." (Daniels and Zemelman, 2014, p. 280) I would not say that this is 100% true about my reading experience, but applies to multiple experiences in life. As a future teacher, I need to be sure that my students are able to move forward from past failures, establish their trust early on, and feel confident that there is the ability and time to improve their reading abilities. Being intentional about getting to know each students does seem a lot more work for a teacher, but it will set up for a much more successful and potentially an easier year, because of the initial time and effort to show support for the students.

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