EduBlog Insights

Kim Douillard shares her National Writing Project “Reflective Friday: Time Out to Think.”

Kim is a codirector of the San Diego area writing project. She sums the lesson up with the following:

My students have pushed me to “go past done” when it comes to thinking
about their learning. Rather than depending solely on educational research or
learning theories to tell me what they are able and not able to do, I turn to
them for answers. They have shown me that in a multiage class such as ours,
they can benefit from reflective activities during the school day. They have
shown me that reflection is not just for adults, not just for university students,
or pre-service teachers. Reflection helps us to remember, to make connections,
and to make thoughtful, informed decisions. Reflection is a process for living.

Kim was prompted to action when she heard a teacher-researcher from Alaska talking about the volume of information that teachers are supposed to impart to students and about the lack of time in the school schedule for thinking. Kim developed a schedule for Fridays that really incorporated time to think and reflect. You can see the detailed schedule for the day in her document but it includes brainstorming, activity time when students let their subconscious minds reflect while their bodies are moving, recess, writing, free read time followed by sharing with questions and discusssion, portfolio work and goal setting, thinking time, dialogue journal, recess again (Yea!), writing time and silent reading, read aloud. Now this sounds terrific! Think how well it would fit in with our blogging.

Kim gives great examples and charts the types of thinking and how they change. There is much to absorb and think about in this and it reminds me once again how important it is that we blog about it and take time to comment/talk/share with the students. This is one of the best articles I have read about really giving more ownership of their learning to the students. Kim reiterates that:

Students who set goals and evaluate their progress have more ownership of their
learning. Through realistic, short-term goal setting and evaluation, students
recognize their successes, become aware that they are responsible for their
own progress, and are more motivated to work toward the goals they set.

I have plenty to reflect on from this article. Thanks Kim, for sharing! If you have not browsed through all the terrific resources from The National Writing Project you are missing out!

Photo Credit: Flickr Photo from BaSak’s photostream

I’m going to try to start a series of think-alouds on various aspects of blogging that I feel are relevant to classroom blogging, areas where I want to do a better job next year when I return to J. H. House to do another blogging project with a classroom teacher. These think-alouds are going to be places where I do quick writes that will hopefully help me on this journey. Perhaps I can then put them together later (after I have done some reflecting) in a wiki or some other source.

Reflection by students on their learning is key and I have posted about this before.

Blogs are great spaces for students to reflect on what they are learning. I remember an instance in my classroom years ago when I asked a student to tell me what was going on inside his head, what was he thinking? He just gave me with a blank look and did not understand what I was asking. Many times we assume students are doing certain things as they are “thinking” . We need to figure out ways to check this more often with our students. If we talk with students more we can help them learn how to do some “self-talk” inside their head that will help them learn from their current experiences and in the process help them build a model of how they might want to learn from future experiences. We could help them with questions that they might want to ask themselves. If we listen and acknowledge and respond to their answers, it could help them understand the internal audience that they could speak to when they are ready to reflect about their learning. I believe we need to give our students many opportunities to practice this.

We need to encourage our students to tell the story of what they are learning - not just a regurgitation of the facts but one where they explore how they might use these facts or share how they have applied those learning of facts to something that is going on in their lives. Students need help putting their experiences into words.

A previous posts on reflections:

Reflection articles

(Revisit some of the questioning “possibilities” in this post.

Write down the most pressing question that is on their mind after a
lesson. If they don’t have one have them imagine what another peer’s
question might be? Then the next day have them comment to one of their classmates’ questions.

Re-state something said during class discussion and add something to the conversation.

Could there be another point of view on resolving a problem or an issue? Develop it.

Pose one multiple choice question and one essay type question for the
material we covered today. Which one would assess learning better and
why? This could make for a great classroom discussion on assessment.
Imagine yourself as the expert of this subject. Predict what will change in the next five years and give your reasons.

If you had only a few minutes to summarize the lesson today what
would be the best way to do that so someone would remember what you said?

Can you give an example of how we could check to be sure if the information we are using is accurate?

State what is unclear to you about what we discussed. Have another student try to clarify for you.

Write down a “think aloud” about something you are interested in
learning about that you believe is relevant and is related to what we
are studying in class.

I need to think about adding to this list. Think more on what might work best.

Feedback is welcomed!!

Photo Credit: Sunset & flowers by Powi…(ponanwi)’s photostream

Hi James,

I wish i understood why all classes aren’t AP classes. It
doesn’t make since to me. I’m in fifth grade and I can’t get a
challenge. How many AP classes are you in? I will probably not have
any. Even though I am at the top of my class, I’m going to a private
school next year. It costs $12,000.00. They don’t give homework, there
is no “No Child Left Behind” and no standerdized testing. How awsome.
Would you like to go there and why?

Jordan

I pulled this comment from one of my elementary students who had made a comment on one of my high school student blogs.  This is what kept ringing in my head….

They don’t give homework, there
is no “No Child Left Behind” and no standerdized testing.

Hmmmmmm, maybe we’re not smarter than our fifth graders.