Chapter 13

Summary:
Look beyond the classroom. The great outdoors makes for an amazing place for students to expand upon their learning and cement ideas that they are learning about. Students will become engaged and involved if they work outside on educational lessons. The author found that the level of confidence students had in themselves rose, and student had more trust in their peers. While outside lessons take more planning and sometimes you need access to people other than school staff, they are worthwhile for the students. The author gave many great ideas for incorporating the outside into your teaching in all different subject areas..

Reflection:
The idea of incorporating the outside into students learning was a really great idea that everyone in the group liked very much. Incorporating nature is a way for students to see the world around them, see their teacher as a real person, and the real-life expriences will help students recall what they learned. Teachers are not dictators, they should be facilitators. Students need to see this difference in their learing. When students and teachers have experiences such as those in the book, relationships in the classroom will be stronger, students will feel more comfortable with their teacher making asking questions, getting help, or talking through things much easier.

Chapter 4

Summary:
As adolescents are growing, their bodies are meant for loads of movement. By incorporating movement into lessons, students are more likely to participate, pay attention, and behave. This technique also helps students who cannot grasp abstract concepts without some sort of visual stimulation. Movements can be made into relevant, real examples of what they are supposed to be learning, such as types of physics, science, math, etc. Students also can become their own study guides. By incorporating facts with movements and/or body parts, students will create more connections within their brains because more than one area is being stimulated. Some of the ideas put forth by the authors are putting up a huge mirror in the classroom to create more "space" and an area for practicing oral presentations, using butcher paper to draw out their bodies or to write "tall tales," letting students get up and turn in their papers, and designing graphics organizers for artistic representations.

Reflections:
As a group, we are all excited to incorporate learning through physical activity, especially with youth obesity on the rise. If we model these activities as fun hobbies, students may be more inclined to get a workout without even realizing it. Students do seem preoccupied with their bodies during adolescence, so why not embrace that fascination and teach them by using it appropriately? The story of Fasih was really cool. Alyssa pointed out that that was a student who struggled with an abstract concept, but as soon as the teacher put it into real world perspective and physically showed the student the concept, he completely understood it. This makes sure that students are not put on the spot for not understanding something inside the classroom. One cool example might be to learn vocabulary by associating it with a movement or a sequence of events. They could spell the words with their bodies on the floor, or play basketball while practicing the definitions. The clarity movement creates in the mind, as Michael pointed out, the student will be much more willing to participate and focus. I completely agree, and think that it is a fantastic idea that too few people take advantage of. In Aly's words, if you incorporate it into the classroom everyday, it won't be such an anomoly for your students.

- Erin B

Chapter 9

Abstract:

The chapter was about block scheduling. This kind of scheduling makes it important to start and end the class on a good note, since students are more likely to remember those sections of the lesson in such a long period. This kind of scheduling gives teachers more time to do meaningful activities and also time to plan properly so students get the most out of the lessons. Teachers can also give more to individual attention, then they could in a shorter period; plus students won't feel as rushed through their classes and will feel more relaxed and open to learning at school. Also, the extra time gives teachers a chance to plan co-teaching lessons and collaborate with each other on inter-disciplinary units. When teachers are preparing for increased periods, they should remember to use the backward planning model to identify objectives, create authentic assessment, use supporting activities, find specific modifications that are needed and have the right materials on hand for use.

Reflection:
The longer class periods are better for student learning because unlike in a forty minute class where the first and last minutes are spent with kids staring at the clock, in a longer setting more teaching time is utilized because students have fun doing longer activities and having a break in between now that the teacher has time for it. Teachers need to remember to study their plans, though, and ensure that the time spent on everything is appropriate for understanding, since review can find mistakes or misunderstandings that might have been present after the first draft. Teachers have a chance to use a variety of teaching methods and perhaps even try a new idea or a technology piece they were afraid to use, or did not have time to use, before the schedule grid arrived to their classroom. The reading also mentions the Backwards planning model, which is really important to student learning because ensures that students believe there is a purpose to the supposed madness thrown at them. Take special needs into consideration, because even though the period is going to be longer with block scheduling, it does not mean that increased learning activities will hit every child.

Chapter 2

CHAPTER SUMMARY

In this chapter, the author puts forth some creative ideas for motivation. The keys to motivating students correctly, according to the author, are the teacher's attitudes and tones, the students' ability to be comfortable in the classroom, and the level of interest or suspense created by a lesson or unit. While this can be a tricky task to establish, students need to know that they have the ability to learn and that what they are learning is important to them, and to the real world. The teacher's attention also plays a crutial role in getting students to pay attention during class. If the teacher acts as if he or she does not want to be there, or is simply teaching just to get the paycheck, students will see that the classroom isn't a place of exploration, but a place of forced assignments and false sentiments. By giving students choices in the cirriculum (where appropriate) and by allowing them to get excited over their learning and projects, they are more apt to behave and what to contribute to the class. By doing what a teacher can in a timely manner, students are more likely to respond in a positive way.

REFLECTING ON OUR READING

I thought that some of the author's creative ideas, like wearing a velcro jumpsuit and having class props attached to you, were brilliant. Nothing gets yound adolescents going like something where the teacher is doing something outside of the box. By taking a risk of looking silly, students may be more likely to try different things by themselves and laugh at their mistakes. We're modeling what we would like them to do in a very unique way. Aly pointed out that making the students' learning and performance tasks is important in getting students excited about their learning because it has a point to it. Students can see that their work is meaningful. I fully agree with Aly, as does Alyssa. Alyssa pointed out that it allows students to see education as an intrinsic motivation, not just for grades or graduation. Also, by creating a sense of intrinsic motivation, students will want to attend class to see what will happen next.

Michael and I also thought that it would be interesting to explore the Dunn and Dunn Learning Styles Inventory. It could be a helpful tool for exploring the likes, dislikes, and strengths of our classrooms.

Posted by Erin B.