Purposeful Questioning

This week's readings were about purposeful questioning. Purposeful questioning is so important in the classroom. Not only does it extend our students thinking, it also leads to authentic learning. Engaging students deepens their understanding and helps them reach new levels of learning.

This concept of engaging in purposeful questioning got me thinking about how I teach and question my students. This week concluded my first formal observation. I was thrilled to be rated effective in all areas. What got me thinking was their feedback about how I question my students. In class, I am constantly questioning my students. When they ask me a question, I respond to them with a question. I think this is really important because it makes them think through their responses.

Another question I ask my students a lot is to explain their thought process. As a teacher, not only am I assessing their answers, I'm also assessing how they got there. Seeing how students work through problems helps me see where they take wrong turns and I can better assist them in getting the correct answer in the future. My goal is to grow my students and the best way to do this is to question them and have them develop thought processes that require critical thinking skills. Practicing these skills in a controlled environment, like a classroom, helps students become more comfortable and helps prepare them for the world outside of school.

Teaching Reflection - Week 3

This week brought on exciting and interesting challenges. On Tuesday and Wednesday, my classes performed their first lab. Going into the lab, I posed the activities as a trial run for them. The lab itself was easy and involved no potential hazards, except the use of glassware, and I told my students that I was watching them for their adherence to safety practices. I allowed students to pick their own lab groups as well. Allowing them this freedom allowed me to see a few things. First, I noticed how some students were eager to work with others while other students were more reluctant to group with peers. Also, it allowed me to see which students should work together and which students should be separated. Finally, I was able to see which students were leaders and which students needed leading. For the most part, students worked well through the activity and adhered to safe laboratory practices. A few students had to sit out unfortunately because they were unable to follow safety protocols. I explained to them individually the importance of following the rules and that if I allowed them to keep their safety at risk, that I was not doing my job properly.

Also this week, I began preparing for my observation next week. I was able to sit down with my department chair and start hashing out ideas for a good observation. We focused on the 5E model and were able to incorporate some of the E's into the lesson ideas. During my observation, I will be working a reading into my lesson. This is exciting to me because I do not think there is enough reading done in science classes and the article I found seems pretty interesting. We will be working on significant figures during that class and there is an article that discusses why there are so many ties in swimming. After students read the article, I have designed an activity where students are going to measure the room and chart their values on a graph. I'm relying that there will be some variance in the measurements achieved so that it ties into significant figures and why these are important. I also found an activity that has students working in teams to build numbers using cards that answer the rules I give them.

For this observation lesson, I started with the end in mind. I built my objective of reinforcing the importance of significant figures first and then loaded in activities that would allow my students to actively engage in their understanding. So far, my students have been significantly more engaged when they are manipulating the curriculum with their own hands, participating in activities that get their bodies moving and their brains working.

Additionally, this week I asked my STAT teacher to come in a informally observe one of my classes. This class has been difficult for me behavioral wise and I was interested in getting another set of eyes in there and someone who could offer suggestions. Based on the feedback I received, I am looking forward to my formal observation this week. My STAT teacher was pleased with the way I moved around the room, how I approached students directly to address a problem, and how I used proximity control when needed. He was impressed that I felt like this was my most difficult class and felt like if this was my biggest struggle, then I was doing pretty good. I really like having a STAT teacher because he is able to offer feedback without the pressure of evaluation. After he is done observing, we are able to chat freely about the issues.

Second week reflection

It is interesting to reflect on a week where only two days of instruction happened. With my school falling under the category of non-air conditioned schools in Baltimore County, I was off Thursday and Friday. While these was a much needed break in order to wrap my head around a crazy beginning to the school year, I find myself longing for a sense of normalcy. All these interruptions, although helpful from a purely planning standpoint, create a very disruptive environment that keeps both my students and myself on edge. I will be thankful when the weather cools, helping ease the limitations the heat provides and the normalcy of a routine forming.

One thing I was looking forward to this week, which is now bumped to next week, is the lab that my students will be participating in. We are currently working on the metric system and I am hopeful that the hands-on experience that the lab provides will encourage deeper and more thorough understanding of the metric system. I like this lab as a first lab because there are limited potential hazards, mostly the possibility of glassware breaking. There are no chemicals involved, just water and some food coloring, so my students will be able to practice their safety measures without the fear of a resulting injury. This lab will also provide a baseline for their ability to complete future labs. Based on their performance during this lab, and their adherence to safety procedures, I will be able to better determine the level of participation that my students will have with more difficult and hazardous labs. I think it will also be fun and more relaxed for my students so that they can focus more on the content.

After this class, I am going to try something new this year. As a way for students to take charge of their own learning, I am offering my students the opportunity to complete the metric system assessment or to complete additional metric system review. I am working on developing extension activities for those that chose the first option as the next class, students choosing to participate in additional metric system review will be taking their metric system assessment. Depending on student reception and success, I will determine if this is something I would like to continue during other points in time throughout the year. I also want to make sure the extension activity is meaningful and not just "extra work" to keep students busy. I haven't decided if this will relate to the next unit or something that will extend their thinking on the metric system. Currently, I am leaning towards extending their thinking because having them move forward will cause a rift within my classroom.

Another idea I am interesting in trying is to cover all topics, for example metric system, significant figures, and scientific notation. Then providing students with a deadline that assessments need to be completed by and having them work at their own pace. I would introduce the topics in a successive manner, probably spending two to three days on the topic, and then providing time for them to work through the topics that are most difficult for them. I might not try this with all my classes but maybe start with one or two, especially where I notice vast differences in abilities. When students are done with their assessments and unit assessment, they can move onto a project based learning opportunity. This opportunity could be far reaching and extend throughout the year, with time devoted as applicable.

In the Beginning...

With the new school year beginning this week, I have been doing a lot of reflection. It has been interesting to me the shift in dynamics that I am noticing from the end of last year and the beginning of this year. I believe I was apprehensive about the start of the year because I felt like I was fighting a losing battle with my classes last year. I should start off by saying that not only did I enter in a difficult situation, I also entered with three months left in the school year. As the fourth long term substitute, and a revolving door of daily substitutes, the students in my classroom had been left with little to no structure since October. Everyday felt like a battle against classroom management and behavior. Lots of behaviors remained "okay" while I picked and chose which fights to enter. I honestly had days when I didn't know what to expect and days where I felt like the battle wasn't worth it. But among the hard days there were always good days that reminded me why I chose to become a teacher.

With such a difficult situation, I as apprehensive about the start of the new school year. I felt like I was constantly questioning myself. What if I truly struggled with classroom management? Is this something I want to do for the rest of my life? Was it the situation or was it me? I spent a significant amount of time discussing these questions, and others, with my department chair, STAT teacher, and fellow colleagues. All the time, everyone was reassuring me that the start of a school year presented a wonderful opportunity to me. I would be able to start with a group of students, develop ground rules, although I like the word expectations better, and keep behaviors in check from day one. With this boost of confidence, I began planning and entered the my classroom feeling confident.

And you know what, my days have been successful thus far! I know that eventually I will run into a bad day but for the time being I am stocking up on the good so that I can make it through the not so good. One activity I have attempted to incorporate every class is movement. Whether it is an icebreaker or a group activity using stations, I have gotten my students out of their seats once a class. I think this has been really important to keep my classes interesting and to keep the attention of my students. I have even been told, by a student, that they enjoy my classes because they are interesting and not full of busy work. I remind myself that eventually there will be a class that will feel like busy work but I hope my students can reflect back on classes that were more energized and look at the bigger picture.

The final thing that has been amazing to me this year is the amount of previous students that have come back to visit me! This has been the greatest feeling of all. It let me know that I was able to build relationships and get through to these kids that had a rotten year in Chemistry. I was not just another face to them but I was their teacher. I am looking forward to the year ahead!