Sunday, September 29, 2013
Blog Post #6
The type of questions that we as teachers ask is one of the most important parts of our job. Questions can determine the understanding of a topic.
The article Three Ways to Ask Better Questions was the most helpful to me. It showed the importance of preparing questions, playing with their wording, and asked them at the right time. Before reading this, I don't think I would have even thought about preparing questions ahead of time to ask during my lessons. I would have always figured I would ask them as they came to me in that moment. However, I do think it is a good idea to plan these questions ahead of time, this way you can be sure that they go with the lesson and that they will benefit the children. The wording of questions is also a factor in whether or not the children will benefit from them. Questions should be worded in a way that the students will understand it, but it should also make them have to think. open-ended questions benefit the students more than close-ended questions do. Open ended questions require more thought and explanation from the children. The last point that was made was timing of the question. It isn't always necessary to ask questions about a topic right away. Sometime it is good to wait until the next day so the kids have had time to process the information, and thus they will be able to better answer an open-ended question.
I also really liked the article by Ben Johnson The Right Way to Ask Questions in the Classroom. He talked about the fact that in almost all cases, kids let the "smart kids" answer all the questions. The rest of them just sit back and listen. This is very true. Once it is figured out who is smart and who is not, the smart kids always take the floor and raise their hands to answer questions while the other children just sit back and let it happen that way. Teachers are also guilty of just letting that happen. Teachers should take the TPR approach. we should call on different students each time a question is to be answered. This way all students are involved, and all students are thinking about the answer to the question. Every student should have to answer a question verbally almost every class period.
The video Questioning Styles and Strategies also demonstrated many good strategies for asking children questions. This video showed the importance of asking questions that are mastery, understanding, interpersonal, and self expressive. This particular class was answering questions on the book "Bridge to Terabithia". The teacher asked questions that would test their understanding of the book. He also asked them questions to check their mastery of concepts in the book. He asked them what they thought it would have been like there. He also asked them how they got closer by playing there. Then at the end he got them to draw a picture of what the believed Terabithia could have looked like.
I would have never guessed the importance of asking questions in the right way. I always knew it was important to ask them, but I wasn't aware that there was a right way of doing so. It all makes sense to me however, that the way questions are worded and the understanding children have of them, helps them to learn and comprehend the answers.
The article Three Ways to Ask Better Questions was the most helpful to me. It showed the importance of preparing questions, playing with their wording, and asked them at the right time. Before reading this, I don't think I would have even thought about preparing questions ahead of time to ask during my lessons. I would have always figured I would ask them as they came to me in that moment. However, I do think it is a good idea to plan these questions ahead of time, this way you can be sure that they go with the lesson and that they will benefit the children. The wording of questions is also a factor in whether or not the children will benefit from them. Questions should be worded in a way that the students will understand it, but it should also make them have to think. open-ended questions benefit the students more than close-ended questions do. Open ended questions require more thought and explanation from the children. The last point that was made was timing of the question. It isn't always necessary to ask questions about a topic right away. Sometime it is good to wait until the next day so the kids have had time to process the information, and thus they will be able to better answer an open-ended question.
I also really liked the article by Ben Johnson The Right Way to Ask Questions in the Classroom. He talked about the fact that in almost all cases, kids let the "smart kids" answer all the questions. The rest of them just sit back and listen. This is very true. Once it is figured out who is smart and who is not, the smart kids always take the floor and raise their hands to answer questions while the other children just sit back and let it happen that way. Teachers are also guilty of just letting that happen. Teachers should take the TPR approach. we should call on different students each time a question is to be answered. This way all students are involved, and all students are thinking about the answer to the question. Every student should have to answer a question verbally almost every class period.
The video Questioning Styles and Strategies also demonstrated many good strategies for asking children questions. This video showed the importance of asking questions that are mastery, understanding, interpersonal, and self expressive. This particular class was answering questions on the book "Bridge to Terabithia". The teacher asked questions that would test their understanding of the book. He also asked them questions to check their mastery of concepts in the book. He asked them what they thought it would have been like there. He also asked them how they got closer by playing there. Then at the end he got them to draw a picture of what the believed Terabithia could have looked like.
I would have never guessed the importance of asking questions in the right way. I always knew it was important to ask them, but I wasn't aware that there was a right way of doing so. It all makes sense to me however, that the way questions are worded and the understanding children have of them, helps them to learn and comprehend the answers.
Sunday, September 22, 2013
Sunday, September 15, 2013
Blog Post 4; Podcasting
Prior to this assignment, I couldn't have told you a thing about podcast. I have never really heard much about them, and I have never been exposed to them. However, after watching some of these videos and reading the Langwitches blog, I have discovered that they can be very useful and fun classroom tools.
Langwitches - Podcasting with 1st Grade
Langwitches Podcasting with 1st Grade was really interesting to me to read. I would think that podcasting would be something to do with upper elementary students, or even middle and high school students. I would never think to podcast with 1st graders. It is so great to me to think that even at 6 years old, students would be that excited for a podcast. The first graders that he taught a group of students so excited to read for people to hear their voices. I think he did a great job at incorporating every student into the podcast by letting them take turns being the voices of Annie and Jack. I also think that is a good way to get students excited about reading in general. Podcasting is another way to assess listening, reading, cooperation, story telling, comprehension, and so much more without giving regulars tests and assessments.
Benefits of Podcasting in the Classroom
The video I watched was Benefits of Podcasting in the Classroom. This video showed me all the ins and outs of podcasting. It really helped me see everything that you can do with podcasts. I think it is a great tool to have, especially when children are out sick like showed here. They can be uploaded straight through iTunes and accessed from a computer anywhere. This way students never really miss anything. They can just log onto iTunes and hear the same information given in class that day. Podcasts can also be posted for parents, this way they can help their children learn, or study for a test.
Flat Stanley
I also read the blog Flat Stanley. This is just an example of another way podcasting can be used in a fun way with elementary students. After they read the book Flat Stanley, they wanted to know what it would be like to be mailed and travel from place to place. Their podcast was each student describing where they would travel to, what it was like to be mailed, what it smelled like, what it looked like. This is a great way to incorporate podcasting into elementary classes. They get to do all the talking, and it is a learning process since they read the book first. They all got to pick their own place, and read a book about the place they chose. They then got to share their "experience" in their place of choice with everyone across the world via their class podcast.
What I Learned About Podcasting
Like I stated before, I never knew much about podcasting prior to this assignment. It was very educational to me to read all these blogs and watch the videos. I never would have imagined all the benefits there are to using a podcast with lower elementary students. I really want to teach first grade, and this gave me so many great ideas. Hopefully I will be able to come up with cute ideas like these to incorporate into my teaching when I finally have my own classroom!
Langwitches - Podcasting with 1st Grade
Langwitches Podcasting with 1st Grade was really interesting to me to read. I would think that podcasting would be something to do with upper elementary students, or even middle and high school students. I would never think to podcast with 1st graders. It is so great to me to think that even at 6 years old, students would be that excited for a podcast. The first graders that he taught a group of students so excited to read for people to hear their voices. I think he did a great job at incorporating every student into the podcast by letting them take turns being the voices of Annie and Jack. I also think that is a good way to get students excited about reading in general. Podcasting is another way to assess listening, reading, cooperation, story telling, comprehension, and so much more without giving regulars tests and assessments.
Benefits of Podcasting in the Classroom
The video I watched was Benefits of Podcasting in the Classroom. This video showed me all the ins and outs of podcasting. It really helped me see everything that you can do with podcasts. I think it is a great tool to have, especially when children are out sick like showed here. They can be uploaded straight through iTunes and accessed from a computer anywhere. This way students never really miss anything. They can just log onto iTunes and hear the same information given in class that day. Podcasts can also be posted for parents, this way they can help their children learn, or study for a test.
Flat Stanley
I also read the blog Flat Stanley. This is just an example of another way podcasting can be used in a fun way with elementary students. After they read the book Flat Stanley, they wanted to know what it would be like to be mailed and travel from place to place. Their podcast was each student describing where they would travel to, what it was like to be mailed, what it smelled like, what it looked like. This is a great way to incorporate podcasting into elementary classes. They get to do all the talking, and it is a learning process since they read the book first. They all got to pick their own place, and read a book about the place they chose. They then got to share their "experience" in their place of choice with everyone across the world via their class podcast.
What I Learned About Podcasting
Like I stated before, I never knew much about podcasting prior to this assignment. It was very educational to me to read all these blogs and watch the videos. I never would have imagined all the benefits there are to using a podcast with lower elementary students. I really want to teach first grade, and this gave me so many great ideas. Hopefully I will be able to come up with cute ideas like these to incorporate into my teaching when I finally have my own classroom!
C4T Summary
My assigned teacher for these two weeks was Mrs. Edna
Sackson’s blog What Ed Said
The first blog post of hers that I commented on was about
student ownership. This idea first started in a planning session for year 6
students. This one session led to this huge idea of letting students have the
opportunities to take ownership of their learning. In a social justice
conference two years ago, the teachers established the PYP exhibition process.
This is a way to introduce students to the range of issues relating to inequality,
raising awareness, and to discourage thinking of inequalities. It also gives
students the opportunity to talk to people who have been around or involved in
acts of inequality. Lastly, it was to help students decide what they think is
right or wrong, and help them develop ideas to take action. Each year, last
year and this year, she has been trying to find ways to get the students more
involved. Last year they let the students have time to talk amongst themselves
after each speaker. This year, they are allowing students to write down what
the speaker talks about, take pictures of the conference and then tweet, blog,
or publish it in their own way. They also have the chance to be the welcome
committee and the thanking committee for the speakers. They are also the ones
making and handing out the flyers. Next year, her plan is to let the students
run the whole conference. (Student Ownership Blog)
In my response comment, I told Mrs. Sackson how much I liked
the idea that they are getting the kids involved and basically letting them run
this conference for themselves. I think it is a great way for them to learn and
practice their skills. It is a great chance to improve people skills,
organization skills, and their writing skills. She along with others worked
hard to get this conference to the place it is today. I think it is a great
thing they are doing. Student involvement is so important to effective
learning.
The second post of hers I commented on was the post 10
questions to help you become a better teacher. In the blog she summarizes the
10 questions she finds important to ask yourself when becoming a teacher. Her 10
main questions were all based on the students. Is the learning environment
formed around the students? Will they all learn in this setting? Do I know my
students? Am I teaching them effectively? Am I still learning new ways to teach
my students? Am I giving them enough say so in the classroom? Am I incorporating
art and fun activities into my teaching? All of Mrs. Sackson’s questions are
very important in the teaching world. They classroom should be based on the
students and the students’ way of learning. We are there for them. (10 Questions to help you become a Better Teacher Blog)
In my comment I told Mrs. Sackson how helpful I thought all
of the questions she purposed in her blog were. I think they would help me now
as I finish my classes, while I am in candidacy, and in my first few years as a
new classroom teacher. They are very insightful questions that will definitely
make you think about how you are helping your students as a teacher.
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