Anne Giles 20 April 2012

Teaching As Inquiry Effective Formative Practice:
What worked well Term 1?    Goal setting/Feedback in literacy. Standing back and handing more over to pupils.
Moving through slide show presentation:
Pedagogy – the how of learning.
Handing over to pupils -kids putting stuff on walls - write Learning Intentions
"Our Room"
P34-35 NZ Curriculum
What makes me interested, means something for me, I can use it, I can follow up with it -time to process it.
What does successful learning look like?
Talk -helpful/unhelpful talk - Diana Pardoe book
Learning Intention -what does this mean to kids?? Do they understand the why? Can they show how it is embedded  in their work.
Do kids expect not understand -
Class discussion - do the pupils really know what is the focus?? They may look engaged -are they?
Talking Partners -means engaged -the partner/s are able to talk about what they think about...

FOCUSING INQUIRY:
Are we giving the right message? - too much focus on surface feedback
RESPOND TO THE MESSAGE -what they have written.
KIDS TO SEE WHERE THEY ARE SUCCESSFUL.
Don't write down -LI's do it orally.

THE IMPORTANT THING ABOUT WRITING IS THE MESSAGE!

At Years 5-8 the trick is for kids to learn how to manipulate texts for a variety of purposes and audiences

So what is the overall learning intention for writing?
To communicate a message effectively to a reader.
It will require effective and accurate use of the feature areas - both deeper and surface features - to create an effective message.
Determining the purpose and the audience is critical to achieving the overall learning intention.

•          At Years 5-8 the trick is for kids to learn how to manipulate texts for a variety of purposes and audiences
•          What are the students ‘getting better at’?
•          Think about the genre as the text form or the type in which to practise the skill
•          So what is the overall learning intention for writing?
•          To communicate a message effectively to a reader.
•          It will require effective and accurate use of the feature areas - both deeper and surface features -to create an effective message.
•          Determining the purpose and the audience is critical to
•          achieving the overall learning intention.
Audience and Purpose
•          Who was the intended audience?
•          Who was the writer aiming this piece at?
•          Who was it written for?
•          What was the author’s purpose?
•          Why did the writer write this?
•          What message did the writer want to communicate?
Writing learning intentions and success criteria
•          Criteria need to be co-constructed with students based on looking at some models or exemplars
•          Each one of the criteria may become a learning intention for explicit instruction e.g. ‘WALT put   our ideas in order’ breaks down to:
•          number my plan
•          have a beginning, middle and end
•          use paragraphs to develop each point
•          start with the main information
•          add detail to elaborate on the main points
•          new paragraph when you have a new point to make

Assessment:

Year Five and Six:  Key Purpose  Writing and AUDIENCE - write for two different audiences.of

Best Pets:

Text organisation vs quality features

We are learning to persuade

 Framework:

• Persuasive language - may use emotive vocab - my own voice

• Ideas/reasons in paragraphs
• Use conjunctions like ‘because,’ ‘although’ and ‘however’ to justify
• May use exclamation marks to emphasise points
• Correct spelling and grammar

Quality Features:

• ideas in order
• voice
• different sentence/structures/ BUT !! = imperative! oral reading
• language features - vocab -adjectives (use of highlighters) correct punctuation , spelling grammar and layout.
• compound,complex sentences.

Get kids to look at other kid's work

Have a piece of writing to glue into their books -kids then highlight/annotate -I highlight/you highlight.

Give feedback around the way the writer has used -vocab or voice..

Reflecting on models/exemplars.

Text Organisation vs Quality Features

We are Learning to Persuade.  Anne will send to us

Pupils need to see factual description and poetic writing -Y5 and Y6s especially need to be able to see the difference. Understanding of audience.

Feedback Prompts - Shirley Clark

Designed for distance marking

1. Reminder
2. Scaffolded prompt - the best kind
3. An example Prompt

Do prompts with your worst writer for the first week and see what  happens.. improvement !

Success improvement strategy:

Highlight 2 places where you think the writer has described the person particularly well.

Reminder prompt:

put arrow in margin and underline the part you want the pupil to improve

then put an arrow underneath where you want the improvement...-say more about his good attitude.

Scaffolded prompt.. (unfinished sentence is a good one.. one day I played.....) must have ......

He ....... which shows he has a good attitude. He showed he has a good attitude when.....

Two unfinished sentences is enough.

Or for a limited writer set up unfinished sentences.

On the weekend ........

We......

It was.....

pick on a special aspect

The kites were.....

Picture plans:

3 step picture plans with arrows in between -gives order,paragraphs sequence..write about one today one tomorrow and finish the last the next day. 

Example Prompt

Gives the kids an actual choice of words or phrases:

He has a good attitude because he is always plays fair.

He is respectful and supportive to other when he

Children will often use something that they have revised - teach how to insert - use and arrow. 

Kids highlight what they have done well and looking at their next step to do -comments on Post Its

have you used any smart verbs?
Self assessment -highlighting the elements of success e.g.:
Pink if you have used emotive vocab
Green -different sentence beginnings - highlight first two words of the sentences

Discussion - show me the smart verbs you have used.

Get parents to give feedback as well -give them scaffolds - I like the way .. has.....

Ask kids what good learning looks like..
Get them to be learning detectives - times when there is good talk

This week ask the pupils:
How do we learn things???
Not just a school -tying shoelaces etc...
What does a successful learner do..
P6 of slide show sheets - conversations
Learner's need:..
to know what they are learning, the purposes for learning and how it 'fits' into the bigger picture
to know what is expected of them
to be fully involved on the learning process developing skills they need to identify how they are doing,what they need to do next and how to close the gap
time to reflect, to ask questions and to seek solutions, to talk to and to collaborate with peers and adults.

Puzzle pieces exercises -talking partners are SO important but give them good criteria, models, and scaffolding feedback comments.
Shirley Clarke -Active learning through formative assessment -talking buddies.

Kids can make up own codes for editing -paragraph spelling etc..

Mimio Magic 19 April 2012

Have experimented using scribd as a host to link to. I tried to embed by notes as html and also as a page flipper -no result. Have yet to learn how to embed pdf into blogger if this is possible??

Anyway click on graphic to read my notes:

End of Term Reflection

What an overloaded term, Term One seemed to be with so much happening and all we covered over a short time. There were some real highlights such as camp, leading the Support Staff through using the mimo (-what a great group of ladies they are and really interested and motivated to have a go) and some of the writing the kids are producing. Also the way the kids are goal setting and being more reflective about their work is really great. I have had good feedback about Storybird -especially fromTC's mum.
However, I feel I need to get some real continuity going this next term especially in my reading programme which has been OK but not really humming.
 I feel pretty down about getting my target kids up to scratch - the boys that is -hopefully the agencies -such as the C& A M H Support and RTLB will be helpful in giving strategies that may be effective. It is also hard when one child can have such a negative effect on the class -myself included, because of his unpredictable behaviour.
This week is the last week of the break and I have to get geared up with syndicate organisation -newsletter, etc.., mimio PD etc.. back to school shortly I think.
I need to look at what needs to go on the kids blog - not much has been done here, perhaps get a digital toolkit going for the kids -thanks to Jacqui Sharp, also get a handle on Google docs for Ed.

Learn, Create, Share

It was well worth attending the presentation by Dorothy Burt about the Maniakalani network she is involved in - a cluster of low decile schools in Auckland. her school Pt England is firmly committed to ICT's and is certainly made me wonder where our staff see the place of ICT's. I was interested to see the use of Google apps and I certainly need to continue sorting out access etc.. for my class. I really need to do the on line tutorials -maybe these holidays...??
I found it fascinating to see what the cluster is doing but it also made me keenly aware that in terms of technology I am blundering about in a dark room -literally feeling my way, with the occasional light showing under the door!
I was interested to see that mimio's did not seem to feature in classroom practice but I could be wrong.
It was great to see video making, music, animation being included as part of the literacy programme -a good re look at what I do with my class. I did ask my class about having individual blogs but there was sort of a horrified hush when I mentioned it - they prefer to have a class blog -(not so much work involved was the consensus).
It was good to see how Google docs are being used and how pupils take screen shots of on line programs they are using to show where they are up to. I found it interesting also the sharing of  Google docs rather than one pupil producing their work.
Freeware mentioned was: Mathwizz; pixlr -photo editing ; vimeo ;animoto - video slideshare.
A good presentation but the fourth meeting for the in the last week of term...........

Thank You Kate!

It is so wonderful to have such a special writer as Kate in my class. It is uplifting to appreciate where she is going as a young writer -especially after working with my target writers! Interesting choice of genre - I wonder what she will produce next!

Grimalkin

View more documents from Jan Pickett.

February Update

It is has been a full-on task with our goal setting interviews in week 3 this term. I was delighted though to hear the kids have such confidence when verbalising their writing goals. This reflected on the class program that I have been trialling using self and peer assessment and next steps. The tally system is working well alongside the use of highlighting the areas of focus. I have had only one pupil who so enjoys using the highlighter that it was featuring through out the writing -not just the aspects he was trying to improve! Great to see such enthusiasm!?
We had our second PD on mimio this week and Mark has shown us some really interesting things to try and use. The free download OE Cake is a load of fun (gimmick also)
I had my class program ready hum with the mimio this week especially in literacy but was dealt a tecky blow and couldn't use my laptop! It was a real shock as I have become so dependent on digitally planning and running my programs.

A New Year . The first week

It has been like the creation of a tornado when I think of beginning the year and getting things underway with my new class.

I started slowly enough during the holidays reading Alison Davis (Building Comprehension Strategies in the Primary Years) as I lay in my hammock which is stretched between two old plum trees, (this gives the benefits of both shade and sustenance) and  started making mental then scribbled notes as I became more interested in her ideas -the first gentle stages of a tornado in the making.

The tornado gained more energy as more notes, ideas and jottings, followed meetings and talking with my colleagues resulted in 'memos to self', gotta and gunna lists etc.

The momentum has now geared up to quite an impressive speed as we throw in getting to know the new class, setting routines, finding starting points, checking in with the R.T.L over last years strategies for this years pupil's, early assessments, getting ready for goal setting interviews, and the class camp! I am probably at an F1 rating - just knocking over a few chimneys and dislodging a few cars of the road at this time.

I am however trying to keep true to my aims of trying to get out of the way of my students -letting go so they can then take on more ownership of their learning. it feels a bit like that Pam Ayers poem when she is holding on to a cliff edge with her fingernails and God says to let go (Is anyone else there?) and also implementing purposeful interaction with learning partners.

I have sorted out my writing groups and have lined the children up with buddies about the same ability -yes they could choose from within that group. I have also devised a sheet for them to refer to when they are giving feedback etc.. I am hoping that it will be well received and understood.  I have tried to write it in 'kidspeak' to make it more user friendly than the 'Hands" system we have used in previous years.

I have been delighted with the enthusiasm the class shows towards writing and sharing their ideas. It all looks very positive! Let's hope this is not the 'eye of the storm'!

Copy of the sheet #1