Inspiration

Teaching Research Techniques

by Laura Groves on January 22, 2013

We have all the information we need at our fingertips, right?

Well, sort of. Thanks to the internet, there’s plenty of information out there. But students still need to be taught how to use that information responsibly.

My high school sophomores write a research paper using MLA endnote citation, and it’s not their first. Our high school requires an acceptably written research paper each year, and our students move on well prepared. It’s not an easy task for students or teachers — lots of grading, as you can imagine.

How do you successfully teach research techniques? Here are some suggestions:

1. Consider your students’ level and ability. Ours is a unit school (PK – 12), and research techniques are introduced in the lower school. Don’t expect students to know it all, obviously. Consider this a building block project; raise the bar a bit every year.

2. Break the project down into bite-sized bits, and communicate the schedule clearly.

3. Communicate your source expectations clearly and early. If using internet sources, teach students how to discern between the good and the bad.

4. Check student work each step of the project so you can catch big problems while they can be more easily fixed. It’s a lot easier for a student to fix source problems early than it is when the weight of typing the entire paper is on his shoulders.

5. Be flexible but consistent. Flexible with those of differing abilities and those with less exposure to this kind of project. Consistent with deadlines, especially with those familiar to the project. If you start moving deadlines around, it’s harder for the students and the teacher.

6. Talk about the problem of plagiarism, and take it seriously. CBS News did a great story on the subject, and Youtube has a number of good videos you can show your students. Watch and pick one that will speak to them.

7. Be sure your students understand documentation at the appropriate level – or they’ll find themselves plagiarizing. Show them how to give credit where credit is due. Choose the method that will work best for you and your students and give them examples. There are many websites that show examples and some that even put the information into citation form for you, but choose one for your students so they can be sure they’re following your instructions.

8. Reward them on the day the paper is due! A research paper is a lot of work. Your students will have learned a valuable skill and worked hard, so bake some them brownies!

No matter what field they enter, all our students will have to handle information. They’ll have to discern between credible and bogus sources, and as people of character, they should all know how to give credit where credit is due.

What about you? Do your students undertake a research project? Share some of your suggestions with us.

Laura Groves

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Integrating Subject Areas

by Shelley Gray on January 11, 2013

Integrating subject areas is a must if you want to cover the entire curriculum in depth throughout the year. And really, it does not have to consume your planning time to integrate your curriculum. It will also save you valuable assessment time if you can assess for more than one subject area at one time.

For example, you can integrate health-related standards such as goal-setting, empathy and safety into a cooperative Language Arts assignment or Science investigation.

Rather than having students learn and practice transition words in isolation as a language arts skill, have them use them to write the steps to solving a multiplication equation. In this instance, you can assess multiplication skills and writing skills at the same time!

Integrating is really quite simple once you get into the habit of actively looking for ways to do it. Next time that you create an assignment for your students, ask yourself how you can target at least two different subject areas within it.

For more ideas on integration, you can view my blog post about Social Studies integration by clicking on the image below.

Have a wonderful day,
Shelley
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Power, Fun and Freedom

by Shelley Gray on November 14, 2012

Power, fun and freedom. These are three little words that can take any lesson or classroom experience from boring to engaging with just a few minor adjustments.

As adults, most of us look for opportunities to have power over our choices and express our individuality. Additionally, we naturally perform tasks that are fun or interesting over boring, unengaging tasks. (Wouldn’t you rather surf Pinterest than fold laundry?!) Children are no different. Your students crave the opportunity to make their own choices and take responsibility for their own learning. They crave learning opportunities that teach, but that also allow them to have fun!

But how do you achieve this when you have curriculum to get through and teach a class full of varying ability levels and interests? Here are just a few ideas that will help you infuse power, fun and freedom into your classroom:

  • Allow choice. Always. The easiest way to do this is to choose two or three tasks that all cover the curriculum standard that you are trying to achieve and allow students to choose between the tasks. For example, you might have students choose to do a presentation using a PowerPoint slide show, orally, or by writing an essay. Regardless of the option they choose, learning is being presented; however by offering diverse choices you allow students to tap into their multiple intelligences and choose the task that is most appealing to them.
  • Run your classroom as a democracy. Rather than telling students the rules and consequences, develop them as a class. Rather than telling students what they will be learning, ask them what they want to learn about a specific topic. Students will be more receptive to what you want them to do when they feel that they are in control.
  • Make learning fun! There is always a way, regardless of how dry subject matter may be. Incorporate cooperative learning, gallery walks, or interesting projects. The extra planning time that you put into this will pay off in the long run.
  • Think like a kinesthetic learner. A percentage of your students will learn best in a kinesthetic manner, meaning that they learn best when performing hands-on tasks that allow moving around, manoeuvring objects or cutting/pasting/gluing. Despite the fact that not everyone is primarily a kinesthetic learner, this style of learning and teaching is very effective and will appeal to almost everyone. If you can start planning your lessons so that they utilize hands-on learning, you will immediately see higher engagement and fewer classroom management issues. Hands-on learning is fun!

So the next time that you are planning a lesson or trying to boost engagement in your classoom, think to yourself, “How can I incorporate power, fun and freedom into this lesson?” I promise you that you will be amazed how it changes your teaching.

Have a great day,

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Why I don’t REQUEST Compliance

by Kendal Privette on November 12, 2012

 

Pencil and Paper on Desk

I don’t say, “Please,” anymore. Or not as much anyway. This school year has proven to be the most challenging for me in nineteen years, and one of the reasons is a handful of defiant, confrontational students. After sleepless nights and tears at the end of the day, I knew I would have to change some of my behaviors to encourage change in my students’ behavior. So I began reading, and one article I read  at Intervention Central  forced me to analyze how I speak to students when I assign them a task:

Commands have less impact when stated as questions or requests, because the student may believe that he or she has the option to decline.

Instead of asking, “Will you please stop tapping on your desk?” I choose to give a command (with a thank you), “Stop tapping. Thank you.” This seemingly trivial change has helped me establish myself as the person in control of the classroom, allowing me to teach and students to learn.

Looking for more ideas for managing difficult students or managing your classroom? I’ve found Scholastic’s Managing your Classroom and Intervention Central’s Behavioral Interventions helpful.

kendal’s personal blog is a spacious place

photo credit

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Overheard in my Classroom

October 23, 2012

One sophomore girl to another: “My parents go on and on about things I’ve done wrong…but they never say anything about all the things I do right!” If you’re a parent, your first reaction to this quote is likely, “Oh, come on. They NEVER say ANYTHING about what you do right?” Your reaction may be [...]

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When They Learn Differently

August 20, 2012

Some call it lazy. Others think it’s a lack of discipline. If that kid could just get organized, stop talking, understand facial expressions, and do the assigned homework, success would follow. Right? But that kid in your class, the one with the learning disability, the one you like, but you struggle to reach, can’t seem [...]

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Recurring Back to School Checklist

August 14, 2012

I am in the thick of Back to School preparations right now, and I’m the type of person that needs a list, otherwise I get sidetracked doing non-essential tasks. Pictured above is my Back to School checklist from years past. It’s set up for elementary as that is where I’ve been teaching for the past [...]

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Why I’m Participating in the Staff Back-to-School Picnic

July 30, 2012
Table

  When I read or watch the news these days, I learn about climate change. And how it affects me. And what I can do to affect it. This is a little overwhelming, really to think of just one person having an effect on, oh I don’t know, the entire atmosphere, but it has made me think of [...]

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Start Class with a Handshake {And Other Tips That Just Might Work}

July 16, 2012

Looking for some fresh ideas for effective {and positive} classroom management? Take a few minute to watch the following video compilation by The George Lucas Foundation’s Edutopia site for educators. I personally loved the first idea given of beginning each class with a firm handshake, one-on-one interaction with each student, and a random pop quiz [...]

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Creative Classroom Decorations

June 15, 2012

More and more teachers are visiting our store as the summer starts, and they are all after one thing—- they want that perfectly decorated classroom. You know, the classroom that has all of the other teachers in the building drooling with envy! The classroom that has the parents on Open House Night thinking that you [...]

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