tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-73111385345274027552024-03-14T13:39:03.186-07:00The Deskless ClassroomFocusing on the nuts and bolts of Comprehensible Input/Acquisition Driven Instruction/No desks/language acquisition/Equity and JusticeEliciahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17014283811911497554noreply@blogger.comBlogger129125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7311138534527402755.post-5627340650267177452024-03-07T07:42:00.000-08:002024-03-07T07:42:20.521-08:00Listen up! New Podcast with Claudia Elliot! <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://growingwithproficiency.com/what-we-may-have-not-learned-in-our-method-class-about-second-language-acquisition-with-elicia-cardenas/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank"><img border="0" data-original-height="3000" data-original-width="3000" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEitKe70NPepSbnHLcPtL2H8vuWMlVGIs_NxA1h7GUsqKhlpd0Q8SkD2DBrfvOVwpsAg4y13HFTStv3Kxf0zoPUMYl0zLn-zhMbaGonz5FVPpq2revJStj5N2MPpFEID9U2-qkMKscwudC2dlQJ86ezuAzys_Jzu2OGVhKLobAWIjf2UoIAnoJBBkcs7Y9Q/w400-h400/Copy%20of%20Podcast%20Cover%20Template.png" width="400" /></a></div><p><span style="font-size: medium;">My friend and collaborator (also vice-chair of the Comprehension-Based Communicative Language Teaching Special Interest Group (CCLT SIG) for ACTFL) Claudia Elliot, of the Growing With Proficiency podcast and training resources, kindly invited me to join her to talk about the things I didn't learn in methods classes (one of my favorite subjects!) and other topics of interest to world language teachers. </span></p><div class="gmail_default"><a href="https://growingwithproficiency.com/what-we-may-have-not-learned-in-our-method-class-about-second-language-acquisition-with-elicia-cardenas/"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;">https://growingwithproficiency.com/what-we-may-have-not-learned-in-our-method-class-about-second-language-acquisition-with-elicia-cardenas/</span></a></div><div><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><p><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;">You can listen to it on all your favorite podcast streamers:</span></p><div class="gmail_default"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;">Apple: <a href="https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/episode-80-what-we-may-have-not-learned-in-our-method/id1647436152?i=1000648329195">https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/episode-80-what-we-may-have-not-learned-in-our-method/id1647436152?i=1000648329195</a></span></div><div class="gmail_default"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div class="gmail_default"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;">Spotify <a href="https://open.spotify.com/episode/2RVOaSLJ1fcsAOOppny3RQ">https://open.spotify.com/episode/2RVOaSLJ1fcsAOOppny3RQ</a></span></div><p><br class="Apple-interchange-newline" /></p>Eliciahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17014283811911497554noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7311138534527402755.post-45901743934754586562024-01-14T11:50:00.000-08:002024-01-14T11:57:22.086-08:00Caregiver -Teacher Conferences (Parent-Teacher Conferences)<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhhvKkFP23Y-ZGoaM4rbUnTFegE_SkwddeiTOV8fxm80zI6nXbeidEKsTl5_QrqfxnFiwiv3GnFQ1X4eARFSVOXkeskceB2LXnUIt51-KWecMM0JBa-1VIJOgyFBhnGYsYfXMvwEL4QaISRiQDE8tBQoTze7SeXR1FExxOU2jr0ksICZn8Ru403F4UiVho/s1080/Caregiver%20teacher%20conferences.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1080" data-original-width="1080" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhhvKkFP23Y-ZGoaM4rbUnTFegE_SkwddeiTOV8fxm80zI6nXbeidEKsTl5_QrqfxnFiwiv3GnFQ1X4eARFSVOXkeskceB2LXnUIt51-KWecMM0JBa-1VIJOgyFBhnGYsYfXMvwEL4QaISRiQDE8tBQoTze7SeXR1FExxOU2jr0ksICZn8Ru403F4UiVho/w400-h400/Caregiver%20teacher%20conferences.png" width="400" /></a></div><p><i> </i><i>This is a post that I have had planned for YEARS but never actually wrote. I was planning on writing it during the 4th week of March, 2020. And we all remember how that went down...</i></p><p>Here is the plan that I used for nearly every caregiver conference after I jumped into an acquisition-driven, comprehension-based framework (and started using <a href="https://comprehensibleclassroom.com/products/the-original-somos-1-spanish-curriculum-for-novice-spanish-courses" target="_blank">Somos</a>), and it made conferences more of a pleasure than a pain. *Usually.*</p><h4 style="text-align: left;">A quick word about my context: </h4><p></p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li>Expected to be available to meet for 10 minutes with every student's caregivers, 2x a year, October and March.</li><li>About 85% of families and caregivers chose to meet with me.</li><li>*Not* student-led. In fact, caregivers were told that students were not welcome. </li><li>Middle school. </li><li>Our conferences were *not* about grades. We were explicitly told to focus on other things- if grades came up we could address them but teachers were not supposed to bring up Little Johnny's grades and talk about them to use up our 10 minutes. </li><li>We had marathon sessions of conferences- like 4-5 hours straight, and they went until after my bedtime. They were so exhausting that I had to figure out how to make them very formulaic so that I didn't make terrible mistakes. (Like that time I told a caregiver that the kiddo was doing great, no concerns, and she emailed me the next morning saying "then why does she have a D in your class?" That was just plain exhaustion.) </li></ul><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgYj4fBuOEmL1LeRMwUvEEuLtaFX4s8tj2w8Cdh2-djjPOe1xp5HygBM1PsEt0TTsPFQco9nSyVB62pc2wyDsMBuhn597okQqJChAQ7OZsqn9rUALxFu2uMgREnsVklFCrsGlHzcDO0SQ_yoaFdXHuBQafwAlB48uPVEjOClBjhRGjI-UkIhTW0GLI-Wg4/s1080/1.png" style="font-weight: 400; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1080" data-original-width="1080" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgYj4fBuOEmL1LeRMwUvEEuLtaFX4s8tj2w8Cdh2-djjPOe1xp5HygBM1PsEt0TTsPFQco9nSyVB62pc2wyDsMBuhn597okQqJChAQ7OZsqn9rUALxFu2uMgREnsVklFCrsGlHzcDO0SQ_yoaFdXHuBQafwAlB48uPVEjOClBjhRGjI-UkIhTW0GLI-Wg4/w400-h400/1.png" width="400" /></a></div><h3 style="text-align: left;"></h3><h3 style="text-align: left;">Plan Ahead</h3><div>Martina Bex and <a href="https://comprehensibleclassroom.com" target="_blank">The Comprehensible Classroom </a>created a couple of resources that became really important to me for conferences. I had to be very intentional and plan how to use them with students throughout the year to maximize their usefulness. Here's a brief plan, with links to the products and very detailed descriptions. </div><h3 style="text-align: left;"><br /></h3><h3 style="text-align: left;">Week 1, Beginning of the Year</h3><div><ul style="text-align: left;"><li>Assign a the Syllabus homework to students and caregivers</li><ul><li>Location: Available as a free download, <a href="https://comprehensibleclassroom.com/products/somos-1-unit-1-novice-spanish-curriculum-dice" target="_blank">Somos 1, Unit 1</a></li><li>Pro tip: use different colored paper for different sections- easier to file later! </li></ul><li>Collect and actually read them as they came back, and follow up as needed/make notes of information.</li><li>File those very valuable pieces of paper in files with student names (or have them file them for me!). </li></ul></div><div><i>You might be wondering why I do this on actual paper? For one, I like paper. I like having something physical, and in order to share it for conferences, we need something physical. For another thing, it was more likely to get seen if it was an actual thing rather than a link. </i></div><h3 style="text-align: left;"><br /></h3><h3 style="text-align: left;">September, Beginning of the Year</h3><div><ul style="text-align: left;"><li>Follow up with any students/caregivers who didn't turn it in. I need this before Fall Conferences! </li><li>Bulletin Board prep:</li><ul><li>These are located in the hallway where caregivers wait, and are *very* valuable in sharing information passively with all school stakeholders!</li><li>Proficiency Descriptions Bulletin board, created with students. Read about that and see some photos here: <a href="https://www.desklessclassroom.com/2019/03/teaching-about-proficiency-levels.html" target="_blank">Teaching about Proficiency Levels</a></li><li>Start to create the Reading Board to be ready by conferences. (This is a post that is coming soon...once I find the pictures! You can get a sense of what they look like at the start of the "<a href="https://comprehensibleclassroom.freshdesk.com/support/solutions/articles/64000254714-fun-club-classroom-tour" target="_blank">Classroom Video Tour</a>" Fun Club Episode. starting at 9:56-11:30 or so.) </li></ul></ul><div> </div></div><h3 style="text-align: left;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0GWCbFTZgWqfhjGOlGRoLQ8QSNn2Uz6rxD_BNAVe_GZjnTPz10t6e9t1ktWLPG2s_VOwAaLncpCKVTAZOT6ecKrR0aWzrRHN9nEaes9dWdJ0z7c47NQrXIMrI6piecKjIJ5ANaQaZjZFxu-3gOGtue7iR4tG84-MUxWw_Ub-zCLHoPSlDYoc8hEqeQOE/s1080/2.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1080" data-original-width="1080" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0GWCbFTZgWqfhjGOlGRoLQ8QSNn2Uz6rxD_BNAVe_GZjnTPz10t6e9t1ktWLPG2s_VOwAaLncpCKVTAZOT6ecKrR0aWzrRHN9nEaes9dWdJ0z7c47NQrXIMrI6piecKjIJ5ANaQaZjZFxu-3gOGtue7iR4tG84-MUxWw_Ub-zCLHoPSlDYoc8hEqeQOE/w400-h400/2.png" width="400" /></a></div></h3><h3 style="text-align: left;"><br /></h3><h3 style="text-align: left;">October, Fall Conferences</h3><div><b>For each scheduled conference, have:</b></div><div><ul style="text-align: left;"><li><a href="https://www.desklessclassroom.com/p/interactive-ish.html" target="_blank">Interactive-ish notebook</a> with any assessments /readings glued in</li><li>(paper) file with any <a href="https://www.desklessclassroom.com/2020/11/timed-free-writes-one-practice-that.html" target="_blank">timed freewrites </a>(for level 1B and up)</li><li>(paper) syllabus homework from week 1, in paper file </li></ul></div><div><i>Note: I just put these in tubs that I bought at the dollar store, in order of the conference time because we had no time between meetings. We were scheduled minute by minute- like one conference would end at 10:10 and the next one would begin at 10:10. </i></div><div><br /></div><div><b>In my meeting place, have:</b></div><div><ul style="text-align: left;"><li>2-3 chairs of different sizes (so that different bodies and preferences felt welcomed!)</li><li>Table</li><li>My list of conferences/attendees</li><li>Tub of student materials</li><li>Copy of the syllabus with proficiency levels on them, for each level.</li><li>Digital clock to keep us on time!</li></ul></div><div><b>Flow of meeting</b></div><div>Each conference would go pretty much the same way (with variations, of course):</div><div><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">"Thank you, I'm Elicia, and I'm, happy to meet/see you again.</div><div style="text-align: left;">Since we have only have 10 minutes, I want to go over any questions and information you provided on the syllabus homework, show you a short sample of Little Johnny's work, and answer any other questions you have. What is Little Johnny saying about Spanish at home?"</div><div><br /></div><div>I would listen, respond, and then:</div><div><ul style="text-align: left;"><li>I would go over their version of the syllabus homework, </li><li>show them a work sample (usually from the interactive-ish notebook),</li><li>share whether I had any concerns about them progressing or anything else, </li><li>Finally answer their questions.</li></ul></div><div>Usually, their questions were some variation of "how can I help at home if I do not speak Spanish?" or "How can I help at home if I do speak Spanish?" My answers were: </div><div><ul style="text-align: left;"><li>ask your student about Spanish class, </li><li>ask your student to read something from our Canvas page or their notebook and tell you about</li><li>read something with them from one of those sources. </li></ul><div><br /></div></div><h3 style="text-align: left;">November-December-January</h3><div>As we do timed freewrites, have students file them in their portfolio whether they are graded or not. </div><div>As we start our free voluntary reading program (FVR), have them keep track of their reading with sticky notes, and periodically, add to the sticky note graph on the Reading bulletin board. </div><div><br /></div><h3 style="text-align: left;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiIoeu96h3azOhG7QrjEGPkrWA4TZ7KilWc24Tv51LVfJxHFJ2vcV4fW0ogj_tZcNy_zvmZfb2hRDDn8ln_vhBVJyB77BtfXuZSUsoN1D9C0-N63xyxXdw0S6FRRMpHaL3nm9VuJOg5bntLG7zyVNo2jTLQFeVI_SSFwMcdlE8w9cISCdUI0pHAwf0wzrg/s1080/3.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1080" data-original-width="1080" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiIoeu96h3azOhG7QrjEGPkrWA4TZ7KilWc24Tv51LVfJxHFJ2vcV4fW0ogj_tZcNy_zvmZfb2hRDDn8ln_vhBVJyB77BtfXuZSUsoN1D9C0-N63xyxXdw0S6FRRMpHaL3nm9VuJOg5bntLG7zyVNo2jTLQFeVI_SSFwMcdlE8w9cISCdUI0pHAwf0wzrg/w400-h400/3.png" width="400" /></a></div></h3><h3 style="text-align: left;"><br /></h3><h3 style="text-align: left;">Mid February, prepping for Spring Conferences</h3><div>Plan a day in my schedule for every class to do some reflections. This will take at least the full hour, so maybe do it on a day when they are all too tired (or I am!) to do anything else! <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div></div><div>Print out a reflection packet for every. single. kid. (Do this on the same colored paper as the syllabus homework! You will thank yourself later!) </div><h4 style="text-align: left;">Reflection packet: </h4><div>I used the two reflection forms from The Comprehensible Classroom and added another page to ask about their reading. </div><div><ul style="text-align: left;"><li>Student Self-reflections (2 pages) <a href="https://comprehensibleclassroom.com/2022/07/25/150-free-resources-for-language-teachers" target="_blank">Subscriber library</a> / Administrative Items: CC Subscriber Library / Student Self-reflection form</li><li>Reading form: (<i>to be added!) </i></li></ul></div><div>Students were asked to get their portfolio files and their interactive-ish notebooks, and fill out their reflection sheets. One was about their behavior and engagement, another was about what they were learning, what helped them learn, and most importantly, a piece of work that they were most proud of. </div><div>They marked this with a sticky note in their notebooks or put it on the top of of their portfolio (so I didn't have to search in their file). They also had to explain why they chose this and how it demonstrates their increasing proficiency. </div><div><br /></div><div>I did stipulate that the work they picked was a graded assessment, so that I knew that I had seen it and graded it. If they *really* wanted something that I hadn't graded, I asked them why and if it was a good reason, I would assess it using the same rubric that I use for that type of work. They usually didn't need this option. I did this because some would pick some really silly activity that didn't showcase their learning, where the assessments were very much designed to show what they knew and could do in the target language, and assessed accordingly. </div><div><br /></div><div>This type of reflection was really, really, really hard for a good number of students and also for me. It took SO. MUCH. TIME. Some would write no-no-no-I haven't learned- nothing on every page. I had to be constantly circulating, keeping an eye on the ones who would try to do the minimum, cajoling, modeling what to write, doing brain breaks with them, practicing patience, and pointing out what I thought was amazing from their work. This was always a very trying day for me, but the payoff was 100% worth it. It was even worth giving up an entire class period to not doing something input focused.</div><div><br /></div><div>When they were finished, I had them bring their file back with their reflections on top and their work sample clearly marked. Some had to finish the next day. </div><div><br /></div><h3 style="text-align: left;">Spring Conferences</h3><div>I had the same things as before:</div><div><ul style="text-align: left;"><li>Tubs of portfolios and notebooks</li><li>Chairs</li><li>Table</li><li>Digital Clock</li><li>Syllabus for each level with proficiency descriptors. </li></ul></div><div><br /></div><div>I started each conference in much of the same way, with this difference: </div><div><div>"Thank you for coming and I'm happy to meet you/ see you again.</div><div>Since we have only have 10 minutes, I want to share with you some work that Little Johnny chose as the work they are most proud of in Spanish, share their reflection on their work so far, and answer any other questions you have."</div></div><div><br /></div><div>From that, I let the students' words speak for themselves.</div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhID9L5po7zNOYld2EBlWUV9k6sAHjsXSjeNUfbmcRMNiTmFSGfH7bOsXYrGEKfnKnp-J7r_CeXxgmrUwKRS9JRiK7_DLs9w-k5vhg-LoyvvdW4-RrdgsdgWhJBlETcMU7Hzy8wuYLJF0wR-JSYii2knnAqceXc4v0OVsvwD819tGBOtiEdLcRR5N7L3s/s1080/4.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1080" data-original-width="1080" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhID9L5po7zNOYld2EBlWUV9k6sAHjsXSjeNUfbmcRMNiTmFSGfH7bOsXYrGEKfnKnp-J7r_CeXxgmrUwKRS9JRiK7_DLs9w-k5vhg-LoyvvdW4-RrdgsdgWhJBlETcMU7Hzy8wuYLJF0wR-JSYii2knnAqceXc4v0OVsvwD819tGBOtiEdLcRR5N7L3s/w400-h400/4.png" width="400" /></a></div><h3 style="text-align: left;"></h3><h3 style="text-align: left;">Celebrating Success</h3><div>Here's the thing: most kids, when they are supported in being reflective, are incredibly aware of themselves. They know when they need improvement, and where, and they also know when they have done good work. </div><div><br /></div><div>It was so incredibly joyful to show caregivers what students CAN DO. Sometimes the kiddos picked two pieces of writing to compare and wrote about how much more they could write, or how they were really proud that they could correctly infer meaning from a reading quiz, etc. </div><div><br /></div><div>Instead of conferences being something to dread, they were (usually) little celebrations that left me feeling motivated and successful and caregivers feeling proud. </div><div><br /></div><div>Of course, I also had to have hard conversations and I had caregivers be mean and tell me that I was a terrible teacher, but that's part of of the job too. I had a LOT more positive interactions when I prepped for conferences this way, and I grew relationships with caregivers that was based on positives, which made any negative conversations easier overall. </div><div><br /></div><div>And the best one? When that one family apologized, years later, for being so unkind in prior conferences, saying that their older kiddo had learned more in my class than any other, and they were grateful to me. </div><div><br /></div><div>I hope that reading about how I set up conferences can give you some ideas for how to make these opportunities easier and positive. <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br /></div><p></p>Eliciahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17014283811911497554noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7311138534527402755.post-21580290020760066722023-12-29T11:24:00.000-08:002023-12-29T11:24:18.018-08:00The New, Updated "Secret Input"<p> I have totally been neglecting this little blog, but not because I haven't been working!</p><p><br /></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhn7_2L7JP9xSpC-xEUH2sa_fVmMTckQLJFiB0ihyZCrWaEl0wQU1VZLMvDJh8zW8HjxWz8HD_iOnV0LNkIueaykxTKnsQWx47xSz0o2GjAALoLwfuo0IxsR_oO9OivppgQ4HpKjH3tMKsZ4RzrEuMnUJ0jPXgO9mhPsuQaZin1IfxlNF7xuYdREO7S3u8/s1190/Caption-this-to-provide-secret-input-blog-post.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="670" data-original-width="1190" height="360" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhn7_2L7JP9xSpC-xEUH2sa_fVmMTckQLJFiB0ihyZCrWaEl0wQU1VZLMvDJh8zW8HjxWz8HD_iOnV0LNkIueaykxTKnsQWx47xSz0o2GjAALoLwfuo0IxsR_oO9OivppgQ4HpKjH3tMKsZ4RzrEuMnUJ0jPXgO9mhPsuQaZin1IfxlNF7xuYdREO7S3u8/w640-h360/Caption-this-to-provide-secret-input-blog-post.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><p></p><p>Take a look at the updated information and directions for Secret Input! This is a new blog post on The Comprehensible Classroom, by me. </p><p><a href="https://comprehensibleclassroom.com/blog/caption-this-activity-to-provide-secret-input">https://comprehensibleclassroom.com/blog/caption-this-activity-to-provide-secret-input</a></p><p>More soon! </p><br /><p><br /></p>Eliciahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17014283811911497554noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7311138534527402755.post-65009604530551711742023-05-16T08:56:00.001-07:002023-05-16T09:39:03.523-07:00Input-Based Children's Books! <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg29-2KFG_KAKghvsVe-IDP329j9gSuF-6CC9HZsbzQId-BURf6JI3PSCxbU1K4Fs15u5WgoS9XJiHt213jFjIlkduSP9savlJh1V7W4-hrWJxqHtDCfLhcDjtK925YHPbLY9TGbrLDgWcozqhUMRt_3gPdlRX2sHVCzTg8Ooq_t61pvv8QFfAfbnQV/s1080/1.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img alt="Input Based Book Projects: a guest post by Caitlin McKinney" border="0" data-original-height="1080" data-original-width="1080" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg29-2KFG_KAKghvsVe-IDP329j9gSuF-6CC9HZsbzQId-BURf6JI3PSCxbU1K4Fs15u5WgoS9XJiHt213jFjIlkduSP9savlJh1V7W4-hrWJxqHtDCfLhcDjtK925YHPbLY9TGbrLDgWcozqhUMRt_3gPdlRX2sHVCzTg8Ooq_t61pvv8QFfAfbnQV/w400-h400/1.png" width="400" /></a></div><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;"></span></p><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Hello everyone! My name is Caitlin McKinney, and I am really excited to be writing as a guest blogger for The Deskless Classroom.</span></p><h1 style="text-align: left;">About Me:</h1><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;">I teach 5 different levels of French in a public high school. I am one of six French teachers in my district and currently the only French teacher in my building. I am just wrapping up my ninth year teaching and have been teaching with Acquisition Driven Instruction (ADI) for 5 years. ADI to me refers to a collection of teaching strategies that uses comprehensible target language in an interesting, repetitive manner so that students acquire the language (rather than relying on memorization of vocabulary and grammar rules).</span></p><h1 style="text-align: left;">The Challenge: Ending the Year and Testing and Block Schedules<br /></h1><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;">It’s the end of the year. What that means in my district is that we are in the middle of standardized testing season.</span></p><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Instead of our typical 50 minute class periods, 5 days a week schedule, we are on a block schedule.</span></p><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;">For those of you that teach on blocks, wow! It’s a challenge for me and my students. My students are not at all accustomed to listening to French for 105 minutes, so this is always a struggle, especially with my lower levels.</span></p><h1 style="text-align: left;">Past Plans for Block/Exams and the End of The Year<br /></h1><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;">In the past I have used this time (or at least part of it) for a class project in which my students write, illustrate, and publish their own children’s books in the target language.</span></p><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><i>Note from Elicia: this book project thing is *not* a project that is aligned with acquisition driven instruction- that's my personal opinion (and it is my blog!). </i></span></p><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhbXGK7q-dDiWyE0WH0hwTWnkGb5N_bBehwEdkySXXOYmB9XROy9Nr_g-vCVwZ3mP1-MS9sejzsQwGZpubdnu8XWm9o-44VhkKbGqNh_vTLtgbiOQTuxPjFkXw-D7ElgvjJqxZBDlRRJRx2OsrYx8gFMVAazLCigFCADpl3rzuJ75mPMXhv4BjyJroO/s1080/2.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1080" data-original-width="1080" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhbXGK7q-dDiWyE0WH0hwTWnkGb5N_bBehwEdkySXXOYmB9XROy9Nr_g-vCVwZ3mP1-MS9sejzsQwGZpubdnu8XWm9o-44VhkKbGqNh_vTLtgbiOQTuxPjFkXw-D7ElgvjJqxZBDlRRJRx2OsrYx8gFMVAazLCigFCADpl3rzuJ75mPMXhv4BjyJroO/w400-h400/2.png" width="400" /></a></span></div><span style="font-size: medium;"><i><br /></i></span><p></p><h2></h2><h1 style="text-align: left;">Rethinking, Reflecting<br /></h1><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: medium;">I was recently perusing The Deskless Classroom when I saw Elicia’s post about <a href="http://www.desklessclassroom.com/2021/12/projects-in-world-language-classes.html">classroom projects</a>. The whole time I was reading her analysis and critique, I was nodding my head.</span></span></p><span style="font-size: medium;"><ul style="text-align: left;"><li>Was the task above my student’s proficiency level?<b> Yes. </b></li><li>Was the project focusing more on output? <b>Yes. </b></li><li>Did I spend a lot of time doing error corrections? <b><u>Absolutely.</u></b></li></ul></span><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Even so, I was in desperate need of a class period where I could be hands off, and my students were in desperate need of a quiet creative outlet. </span></p><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Then it struck me: Why not make an input-based project?</span></p><h1>Input-based Children’s Books!<br /></h1><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhkcMMIimAsMg3Xq5ca5WCntEo6NfoMs4fdoBjp8BI54r96zffn45XRcKAMxCq572y7nooMG4BLKvXvQCgUi4SjlGwDmjaRLHScTS7z3nVFQrIEYE2HL1iuPkmJo2rknl40rPBT_rwsyJBd_pt0xxPKDLXYJeL1TXBsCD0CKoA7tD8QsI33v3L3ap9I/s1080/3.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1080" data-original-width="1080" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhkcMMIimAsMg3Xq5ca5WCntEo6NfoMs4fdoBjp8BI54r96zffn45XRcKAMxCq572y7nooMG4BLKvXvQCgUi4SjlGwDmjaRLHScTS7z3nVFQrIEYE2HL1iuPkmJo2rknl40rPBT_rwsyJBd_pt0xxPKDLXYJeL1TXBsCD0CKoA7tD8QsI33v3L3ap9I/w400-h400/3.png" width="400" /></a></div><br /></div><span style="font-size: medium;">Instead of having my students write a children’s book, I would have them create a wordless picture book for their class and then USE THOSE BOOKS FOR INPUT.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-size: medium;">Even my level ones could benefit from all of the great things that come with projects (e.g. an outlet for creativity, an opportunity for student input, and just plain novelty) in the classroom routine - without having to worry about their proficiency levels. </span><p></p><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Plus, I can break up our long class periods by using their wordless picture books for picture talk! </span></p><p style="text-align: left;"><span><span style="font-size: medium;">To create the actual book, I plan to add words to the text as we created the story together using a Write and Discuss format (read more about that here: <a href="http://www.desklessclassroom.com/2020/01/write-discuss-sometimes-i-win-sometimes.html" target="_blank">Write and Discuss</a>). Since this is something we do regularly, it’s easy to incorporate.</span><br /></span><span style="font-size: medium;"><i>Note: If you ever get a chance to see Caitlin present about Write and Discuss at a local or regional conference, you should! -Elicia</i></span></p><div><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhgM3_hDbMinxImd9q9WPi4pLMOMDSTbX_AkiTIo9noUnF5_qH0bEY6_jYmpG818pqIm5mqMR2fFBBuhzif0QmktWLLx2rCiJdzex-dkXbaxdrLth1xrDiCbQaUi9v-BLybU-w7f4GI45VIji3csdPigyrRGtbUsnLAopc4-ZZAyJeqcekzenCBWe1u/s960/Screenshot%202023-05-16%20at%209.33.11%20AM.png" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="960" data-original-width="960" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhgM3_hDbMinxImd9q9WPi4pLMOMDSTbX_AkiTIo9noUnF5_qH0bEY6_jYmpG818pqIm5mqMR2fFBBuhzif0QmktWLLx2rCiJdzex-dkXbaxdrLth1xrDiCbQaUi9v-BLybU-w7f4GI45VIji3csdPigyrRGtbUsnLAopc4-ZZAyJeqcekzenCBWe1u/w400-h400/Screenshot%202023-05-16%20at%209.33.11%20AM.png" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>Translation: One day, Jimmy is sitting next to his dog and he thinks "I want to go to the park one day."</i><br />Here is an example of one page from a level 1 student after I went through the write and discuss / picture talk process. I loved that I could add dialogue for another repetition of first person perspective! </span></td></tr></tbody></table><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;">By the end of class, the book *should* be ready for printing. </span></p><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;">And the best part? I don’t have to sit down and edit it, because as we are co-creating the text and I am writing it up, I’m editing in the moment! </span></p><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><b>There is no extra step of editing student work! </b></span></p><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Oh, the other best part, and the thing that’s most relevant to this blog, is that students are getting input, that they understand, about something that is super interesting and engaging to them: their wordless books and their friend's wordless books. </span></p><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span><p></p><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Afterwards, I can simply send the fully illustrated, co-created story to the printer and add it to my library the next day.</span></p></div><div><h2 style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: x-large;"><u><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh3xfkDaj9P5QlAdBToPz85EAilIDiHNqlL29R6jWc8eW1y9jejjNo8BA9ATAVXROG92_tXJDZrqi6rZv8qAC34-U5EnWNAwN_vPWYoR7ufi07zh8N3xOhWUIZKBJRdWQ2iNpij5vQNgaD4u36xRMAhtJKV7FBWiaHHXWkzxiInyJ4XNr9GYiAD3X3n/s1080/4.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1080" data-original-width="1080" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh3xfkDaj9P5QlAdBToPz85EAilIDiHNqlL29R6jWc8eW1y9jejjNo8BA9ATAVXROG92_tXJDZrqi6rZv8qAC34-U5EnWNAwN_vPWYoR7ufi07zh8N3xOhWUIZKBJRdWQ2iNpij5vQNgaD4u36xRMAhtJKV7FBWiaHHXWkzxiInyJ4XNr9GYiAD3X3n/w400-h400/4.png" width="400" /></a></div></u></span></h2><h1 style="text-align: left;">What do you need?</h1><ul><span style="font-size: medium;"><li><a href="https://www.canva.com/education/" target="_blank">Educator’s Account in Canva</a>- FREE</li><li>Time (60 minutes or more) for students to create wordless books</li><li>Time to conference with students as they are working to create their wordless book</li><li>Time to picture talk and add text (after they are created)</li></span></ul><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;">I decided to upgrade my Canva account to an educator’s account for free. (<a href="https://www.canva.com/education/" target="_blank">Click for more information on getting a free Canva educator's account.</a>) This allows both myself and all my students access to all the educator features in Canva, which means that students have a lot of images and graphics to use!</span></p><span style="font-size: medium;"> Canva allows teachers to create an assignment and assign it to a class, so I used that function and created a blank assignment using a storybook template. <br /></span><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;"> We use a Learning Management System (LMS) like GoogleClassroom so I posted the link there for students to join the Canva environment.</span></p><h1 style="text-align: left;">Guidance for Students </h1><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;">On our first day, students joined my class in Canva. </span></p><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;">After that, I really didn’t give them a whole lot of guidance. I simply said, you need to create a title page with a French title (this was the only language requirement) along with 10-20 illustrated pages that tell a complete story. The story is required to have a clear beginning, middle, and end. Students had about an hour to make their books and submit them. As they turned them in, I was able to conference with them and make suggestions about how to make their stories more clear. I also took this opportunity to preview the stories and make sure they were appropriate and didn’t rely on stereotypes or offensive plots. Keep reading to learn about how I figured out that I needed *more* and *more specific* guidance for my students. </span></p><h1 style="text-align: left;">Requirements for the Wordless Books</h1><ul><li><span style="font-size: medium;">Title Page with a title in the Target Language.</span></li><li><span style="font-size: medium;">10-20 illustrated pages.</span></li><li><span style="font-size: medium;">No words (other than the title) </span></li><li><span style="font-size: medium;">The story has to have a clear beginning, middle, and end, and tell a complete story.</span></li><li><span style="font-size: medium;">It must be submitted by the end of one block period. </span></li></ul><h1 style="text-align: left;"></h1><h1 style="text-align: left;">Creating the Text<br /></h1><span style="font-size: medium;">The next day in class proceeded as normal. After doing some of what I had already planned, curriculum-wise, I displayed one student’s story on the board. <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div></span><p></p><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;">We talked about what we saw and how the characters were feeling, and eventually a story emerged.</span></p><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;">I wrote the text of the story that we came up with in the target language, making sure that all students were understanding. <br /></span></p><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><i>Note: For a great primer on the skills that Caitlin used, take a look at this blog post: <a href="https://comprehensibleclassroom.com/2018/07/26/how-to-teach-such-that-they-understand/" target="_blank">How to teach such that they understand, </a>by Martina Bex -Elicia</i></span></p></div><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;">What was really cool is that several books already had blank speech bubbles in the illustrations. This provided the perfect opportunity for scaffolded partner speaking opportunities and collaboration</span></p><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgehUpXL5pi8w7SyKczCz4TiLh_L3vmyHssGJqtgOWU-IEHyBkl9_LMDJTKW-QFUR4SnnM6UvxMvSwCEdSUT0d4FQDFM9ituHectOKd85G6NaP-SHqJbVPGjnhOala_QBi0w-uz6vJ-TY7MpzRw9U9DZMJuKVwqk9UflHT4vKJDcKaCO3B8FbTW09_g/s996/Screenshot%202023-05-16%20at%209.33.34%20AM.png" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="990" data-original-width="996" height="398" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgehUpXL5pi8w7SyKczCz4TiLh_L3vmyHssGJqtgOWU-IEHyBkl9_LMDJTKW-QFUR4SnnM6UvxMvSwCEdSUT0d4FQDFM9ituHectOKd85G6NaP-SHqJbVPGjnhOala_QBi0w-uz6vJ-TY7MpzRw9U9DZMJuKVwqk9UflHT4vKJDcKaCO3B8FbTW09_g/w400-h398/Screenshot%202023-05-16%20at%209.33.34%20AM.png" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>Translation: There is a dog who is named Todd. He wants to shoot the ball. </i>Even the simplest designs can be a source of rich input for storytelling. This is an example of one of my students who doesn't love artistic pursuits. He made a minimalist illustrated book, and after a little bit of coaching on how to tell a <b>complete</b> story through illustrations, we were able to write a great story in class. </span><br /><br /></td></tr></tbody></table><br /><div><span style="font-size: medium;">I simply had students turn to a shoulder partner and give suggestions for what the characters could be saying in French, and then we chose the best/most interesting/funniest options and I added them to the text.</span><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span><span style="font-size: medium;"></span></div><div><h1 style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: x-large;">The results</span></h1><p><span style="font-size: medium;">The process has been going very well. The student buy-in is great and my classes are excited to share their creativity and humor!</span></p><h1 style="text-align: left;">The Reflection and Lessons Learned</h1><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;">I am learning some lessons along the way. First, I need to be more clear in my instructions about avoiding stereotypes. I had a few students who were required to start over but thankfully I had that class time to review them before sharing them on the screen.</span></p><p></p><span style="font-size: medium;"><i>This next section is more-or-less a transcript of Caitlin and me (Elicia) talking through these messy topics because a) it made more sense to make it a dialogue, b) it was a really interesting discussion and one that is SUPER relevant to teaching and moving towards equity in our classrooms, and I am so thankful to Caitlin for engaging in this type of deep reflection and making her thinking public. T/W: Discussion of violence, guns, fatphobia, and gun violence. </i></span></div><div><span style="font-size: medium;"><br />Elicia: </span></div><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px;"><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Caitlin, can you tell me more about these stereotypes? What did students do that you had to redirect? </span></p></blockquote><div><span style="font-size: medium;">Caitlin: </span></div><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px;"><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Violence. I realized that I needed to do some self-reflection about how much violence I was comfortable with seeing in my class stories.</span></p></blockquote><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px;"><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Storytelling with high school students can often lead to endings that are violent. For example, all the characters die or solve conflicts with violence.</span></p></blockquote><div><span style="font-size: medium;">Elicia: </span></div><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px;"><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;">In middle school too!</span></p></blockquote><div><span style="font-size: medium;">Caitlin: </span></div><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px;"><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;">I allow a certain degree of this in my class, but what I realized-when I was seeing these fully illustrated texts- is that my comfort level with violence changed slightly when presented with images.</span></p></blockquote><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px;"><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;">While I might say “he attacked the monster” during storytelling, seeing one character shoot another with a gun in an illustrated text elicited some different emotions for myself.</span></p></blockquote><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Elicia:</span></div><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px;"><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Oh wow. Yeah. I have to say that for me, as a survivor of a school shooting, that would freak me out. My students all knew that guns were only to be discussed in context in my classroom (and pretty much that never came up) and never included in stories, but I imagine other teachers may not be so…specific! </span></p></blockquote><div style="text-align: left;"><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi9b6kwMDA-Iq1iBGLdRnCcFKbWvY7ps5FOjebFfZbLChQtALqBUD7ELkDCX5avTPWsXo9R08DtZKWXoj2zfPX5i74j7LvN7KVgBjjzfZI4EPAMTUccPWrum83cE3CSmkWxeTw2nh54AzPhRxLiNvs0gzxpu12ZuqN7tRw-Ycv9b50AlPmqOjLcurAD/s984/Screenshot%202023-05-16%20at%209.33.20%20AM.png" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="976" data-original-width="984" height="396" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi9b6kwMDA-Iq1iBGLdRnCcFKbWvY7ps5FOjebFfZbLChQtALqBUD7ELkDCX5avTPWsXo9R08DtZKWXoj2zfPX5i74j7LvN7KVgBjjzfZI4EPAMTUccPWrum83cE3CSmkWxeTw2nh54AzPhRxLiNvs0gzxpu12ZuqN7tRw-Ycv9b50AlPmqOjLcurAD/w400-h396/Screenshot%202023-05-16%20at%209.33.20%20AM.png" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>Translation: Now the mean bully can no longer bully others.</i><br />This was a book illustrated by a level 2 student about a school bully. This is about the level of violence I allow them to include. It is not uncommon for characters to die in their stories, but I carefully consider how much violence is acceptable, and then I communicate those expectations. </span></td></tr></tbody></table><span style="font-size: medium;"><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div>Caitlin: </span></div><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px;"><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;">So in the middle of the project, I asked students to avoid using firearms and come up with a weapon that was more school friendly, such as enraged unicorns, poisonous marshmallows, or an army of piranhas. I would probably have even more stringent guidelines about violence if I taught younger children.</span></p></blockquote><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Elicia: </span></div><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px;"><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;">I love these examples! In my classroom, I started every year with “the world is a pretty dreadful place sometimes, so in this room, we are going to celebrate puppies, rainbows, unicorns, and glitter. While bad things do happen and are real, when we are telling stories and creating in this classroom, it’s going to be all puppies and rainbows.”</span> </p></blockquote><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px;"><p style="text-align: left;"></p><span style="font-size: medium;"> It seemed to work for my context and students tended to respect that- and would even remind each other by saying “puppies and rainbows” if they felt like a suggestion was too violent.</span><p></p></blockquote><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px;"><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;">And..sometimes I would let them end a story with someone eating someone else…as a surprise.</span></p></blockquote><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px;"><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;">So other than violence, what else did you see that made you step back?</span></p></blockquote><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Caitlin: </span></div><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px;"><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Well, one student made a story with an overweight character who was sad and had to lose weight in order to find a girlfriend who loved him because he was beautiful.</span></div></blockquote><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px;"><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;">To be honest, the story just didn’t sit right with me, and I had a hard time communicating this to my student. What I ended up saying was that sometimes it is hard to balance humor and honoring the dignity of other people. I felt like his story leveraged a negative image of his character in order to get his readers to laugh, but there were more positive ways to be funny.</span></p></blockquote><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Elicia: </span></div><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px;"><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Yikes! That’s a tough one. This is a great example of a stereotype that flies under the radar and is still socially acceptable, and it’s rooted in white supremacy and fear of the fat body.</span></p></blockquote><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Caitlin: </span></div><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px;"><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Yes, in the moment it was hard for me to find the right words. In the end he chose not to change his story, and I felt a degree of helplessness, like I didn’t have leverage. So I simply didn’t use his story for my classroom library or as the text for our write and discuss as a class. I certainly didn’t want to give that kind of thinking a stage in my classroom, but I wish I would have handled it more directly.</span></p></blockquote><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Elicia: </span></div><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px;"><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;">I really appreciate that you found a way to communicate this without shaming your student for his fatphobia. Talking about this stuff is really hard- especially if it is something that is personal- which it really is for me!</span></p></blockquote><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px;"><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;">I think I would likely have made a different choice because I feel so strongly about this. And because I feel so strongly about it, I might have damaged my relationship with that kid because of my own emotional reaction, which is really interesting for me to think about. Would my own feelings have gotten in the way of helping that kid see their bias? Should they have? Hmmm…I need to think about that.</span></p></blockquote><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px;"><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Was there anything else?</span></p></blockquote><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Caitlin: </span></div><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px;"><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Yes. I had to give very clear expectations for the co-created story telling in class. Students had MANY opinions and reactions when they saw each other’s stories for the first time. Occasionally the laughter and side conversations took away from the input. For example, when the images were really outrageous or unexpected, there was an explosion of commentary. So much so, that I felt like students were no longer engaged with the language. I was getting frustrated (as many of us are at this time of year!). </span></p></blockquote><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px;"><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;">What ended up working was this: I had to give a 5 second countdown for giggling before we could refocus. This solved the issues in most of my classes.</span></p></blockquote><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Elicia: </span></div><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px;"><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;">OMG I love this so much. The structured giggles and commentary break! When I taught 5th grade and had to teach health/intro to being a teenager, I had to do the same thing!</span></p></blockquote><div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgUEFmAbx2BncKJcqrKO3IngoNDoAQNwS7DNzWAjTjYaDHzO4nGIAGLEBa3YuWrtRblz3oKM1AS0hNWkn64EzGye7obwCmyI6tddl1Fwqa5t1oRjkOL_e0e4c61g-KIJymHWoZLYZSwKuWvcQcrNfTtWhWopV6kG_hjEhLQ05PhDLGUitoSD7nJt3hz/s1028/Screenshot%202023-05-16%20at%209.33.44%20AM.png" style="font-weight: 400; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1026" data-original-width="1028" height="399" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgUEFmAbx2BncKJcqrKO3IngoNDoAQNwS7DNzWAjTjYaDHzO4nGIAGLEBa3YuWrtRblz3oKM1AS0hNWkn64EzGye7obwCmyI6tddl1Fwqa5t1oRjkOL_e0e4c61g-KIJymHWoZLYZSwKuWvcQcrNfTtWhWopV6kG_hjEhLQ05PhDLGUitoSD7nJt3hz/w400-h399/Screenshot%202023-05-16%20at%209.33.44%20AM.png" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial;">Translation: <i>Now they are no longer afraid of Bart. Everyone hugs. Bart finally has a lot of friends. </i><br />Sometimes students DO write a story with a happy ending! </span></td></tr></tbody></table><h1 style="text-align: left;">Back to Caitlin:</h1><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;">My favorite thing about this process was that after each story, we applauded the author and thanked them for their work. Every single one of my students was able to share something no matter their proficiency level, and I had so many great comprehensible texts to add to my classroom library.</span></p><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzNbZEE6ChaAQgWBYIi11tiK4-mGh64Rak258pU6mVYKmRS3jFuJYnYSYfvHfFLl3uBO7m3-LfpevGun9fBSEzgEq_4xw7QUU2Z3o7arvrxjLiZklXTYsxsS9AO4oI4kSBxRbuByLCKue7y8uwAiyTwY_lfaffmFvP2iIUqsyE5ukYEHM_KMvz-NH9/s1080/5.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1080" data-original-width="1080" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzNbZEE6ChaAQgWBYIi11tiK4-mGh64Rak258pU6mVYKmRS3jFuJYnYSYfvHfFLl3uBO7m3-LfpevGun9fBSEzgEq_4xw7QUU2Z3o7arvrxjLiZklXTYsxsS9AO4oI4kSBxRbuByLCKue7y8uwAiyTwY_lfaffmFvP2iIUqsyE5ukYEHM_KMvz-NH9/w640-h640/5.png" width="640" /></a></span></p><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;">During each class period, I had students begging for their story to be the next one. The only downside is that the school year might run out before we can experience everyone's masterpieces! Fortunately, I will have many of these students in class next year, so I can continue this process at the beginning of the next level for a review. For next year, however, I might want to move faster or start earlier if time allows.</span></p></div>Eliciahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17014283811911497554noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7311138534527402755.post-54957612756766962702023-02-23T10:15:00.004-08:002023-03-08T11:43:50.615-08:00Supporting the New-to-Language Kids: Differentiation in Action<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEih4poutW87IfUQPbxg64MvOPPfR5rQ9rrD8Xw3sF5nHwdIAu1l5dfPqDiLtXxRfx_GZZEDT1zn8okJvzgolXrY-vim5i9ZPr1_928tQffCx76tyYdXaduvHObPLUGFrS7WH4IwI22nxKotMCd55s7bkNVQil_nXLvfmG57QbJQ2vmLFo3Bjwig4U_6/s1080/1.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1080" data-original-width="1080" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEih4poutW87IfUQPbxg64MvOPPfR5rQ9rrD8Xw3sF5nHwdIAu1l5dfPqDiLtXxRfx_GZZEDT1zn8okJvzgolXrY-vim5i9ZPr1_928tQffCx76tyYdXaduvHObPLUGFrS7WH4IwI22nxKotMCd55s7bkNVQil_nXLvfmG57QbJQ2vmLFo3Bjwig4U_6/w400-h400/1.png" width="400" /></a></div><p style="text-align: right;"></p><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Something that comes up a lot for teachers who have been using an acquisition driven, comprehension based approach is this: <b>what do I do when I have a student who has little to no language in a class of students who have had a year or more of comprehension-based instruction, and have a lot of language under their belts?</b></span></p><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;">We have to accommodate them.</span></p><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Now, I want to be clear: accommodating them is my job. It’s hard. And to some degree, a little unfair for them- I mean, who wants to be the person with a kindergarten reading level in a 6th grade class? (Which is a close equivalent.) </span></p><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;">As a teacher, it’s reasonable to differentiate about 3 sub-levels; like Novice Mid, Novice High, Intermediate Low.</span></p><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;">It is a big ask to do 4 or more levels in one class. And in 2022-23, it's totally normal.<br /></span><span style="font-size: medium;">So in this sub job that I went to in Fall of 2022, students were put in language class without regard to their level. They were just lumped in. </span></p><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Which meant that students with 0 language were put in a class with students who had at least a year (or more if they were in 8th grade!) of solid comprehension based instruction. And just to add some more challenge, I wasn't told which of the students were completely new. </span></p><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;">It was REALLY hard! </span><span style="font-size: medium;">For them and for me. </span></p><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;">However, there are some things that I did that are a) good practice, and b) allowed them to successfully read an ENTIRE page of text at the end of our time together. And frankly, I’m really proud of these interventions. </span></p><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;">So what did I do? What were my teacher moves and strategies? How did I think ahead to start to address this situation? </span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-9ePpuE1bUo9Yc914RiOGXq1B3AATPlWVJfzv8YwGoWk5wv6G87Wmyln302fbvpQ0am6IavDkWN4QpQJv-IgrzBpY5r7-Rc-hK9S3S0UZhxVGtWf2sMNkGMwn2Deq6qwWwBk6Y0vXWv1jA_hGXF3iSLrUzTYgkI0O8b4Uzw7BSVtNT6E03ajvEjQy/s1080/2.png" style="font-weight: 400; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1080" data-original-width="1080" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-9ePpuE1bUo9Yc914RiOGXq1B3AATPlWVJfzv8YwGoWk5wv6G87Wmyln302fbvpQ0am6IavDkWN4QpQJv-IgrzBpY5r7-Rc-hK9S3S0UZhxVGtWf2sMNkGMwn2Deq6qwWwBk6Y0vXWv1jA_hGXF3iSLrUzTYgkI0O8b4Uzw7BSVtNT6E03ajvEjQy/w400-h400/2.png" width="400" /></a></div><h1 style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: large;"></span></h1><h1 style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: large;">WHOLE CLASS: Establishing Meaning</span></h1><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;">What this means is that I told kids what words meant. This looked mostly like me putting the most important words on the board in the target language and in our shared language.<br /> Was it possible to put every word I was going to use on the board? No.<br /> It was possible for me to put the most important words up, and with the support of the question words, cognates, and adding words as needed, I was able to keep our conversations pretty “sheltered”.</span></p><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;">But wait! What about the recommendation from ACTFL that says that 90% of the language in class should be in the target language? By telling kids what things mean, aren't I depriving them of "productive struggle"? </span></p><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;">First, ACTFL's recommendation is just that: a recommendation. It's not the law. There are no ACTFL police that are going to come around and fine me. </span></p><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;">While it is absolutely true that I want my students to be hearing (and reading, and interacting in) the target language a whole lot, if I am just speaking in the target language and they are not understanding, they aren't going to acquire anything. And frankly, using a shared language to link meaning is the simplest, most efficient way to make sure that students are able to comprehend the target language. Efficiency is important when we have limited hours of contact. You can read more of my opinion about this here: <a href="https://comprehensibleclassroom.freshdesk.com/en/support/solutions/articles/64000253273-90-target-language-use">90% Target Language.</a></span></p><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;">"Productive struggle" is one thinly veiled way to make sure that some kids succeed and some don't. It's also a concept from traditional education contexts that just doesn't apply in a language classroom. If the goal is for students to acquire language, intentionally making things difficult for them to understand (or making it such that only a select few, or a certain kind of learner can understand) is both elitist and a waste of time. It also leads to the belief that only certain people are good at learning languages, minimal enrollment in upper level classes, and eventually, program closure. </span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiP3G-nM2JLiJGt84wvQNPafB1zhWnwMbOu99zxpPDBCjjgiTI-wbSc_0G4Kt-5f0iYl9_yBGu3GZBX-8eePd_7m35tl13qG4qwMn0UhKzeFFkiZmvOHCjvFmxxwqcBSCElnAwpfZjMTbflNV66wghz8Nky6jdXapUl-01y6Ob6_183eXXxdA3QCrGG/s1080/3.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1080" data-original-width="1080" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiP3G-nM2JLiJGt84wvQNPafB1zhWnwMbOu99zxpPDBCjjgiTI-wbSc_0G4Kt-5f0iYl9_yBGu3GZBX-8eePd_7m35tl13qG4qwMn0UhKzeFFkiZmvOHCjvFmxxwqcBSCElnAwpfZjMTbflNV66wghz8Nky6jdXapUl-01y6Ob6_183eXXxdA3QCrGG/w400-h400/3.png" width="400" /></a></div><h1 style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: large;">WHOLE CLASS: Sheltering Vocabulary</span></h1><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;">When I say “sheltering”, I am referring to the skill of “shelter vocabulary, not grammar.” I was focused on sheltering vocabulary- or as Martina Bex puts it: “protecting students from the words they don’t know and the negative emotions that come from not knowing them.” (And for what it’s worth, this is one of the most challenging skills for a teacher to develop.)<br /> </span><span style="font-size: medium;">I planned ahead as much as possible and pre-wrote words and their meaning on the board as well - which in turn helped me remember what words to use- it helped me shelter better. It meant that I had a reminder in front of me about which words to use (and if it wasn't on the board, I should really try to not use it!) </span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEihmAvt5g2Gt2po6xyfP9ZRN2d1O_GLzsdzkj-rKGfHhdglYWABn5HLpWJsVjLmnfAsgHTtN1GHO2ZhlmI5EHe_DajuWdlrTb6K6uRteBML0dlWOF_aWTrBkxfTskPTY0EeBo5jrv-Tui3_F1tAxvZqjYlxgjJPTJffgpe-dqPMb3rtEZ-zr-ivqUAz/s1080/4.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1080" data-original-width="1080" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEihmAvt5g2Gt2po6xyfP9ZRN2d1O_GLzsdzkj-rKGfHhdglYWABn5HLpWJsVjLmnfAsgHTtN1GHO2ZhlmI5EHe_DajuWdlrTb6K6uRteBML0dlWOF_aWTrBkxfTskPTY0EeBo5jrv-Tui3_F1tAxvZqjYlxgjJPTJffgpe-dqPMb3rtEZ-zr-ivqUAz/w400-h400/4.png" width="400" /></a></div><h1 style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: large;">WHOLE CLASS: Pause, Point, Slow</span></h1><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium; font-weight: normal;">I worked really, really hard to speak slowly and point to the meaning of words as I said them. Of course, they had to be looking at where I was pointing, and paying attention to the English meaning. That was tough- but I'll deal with that in a minute. </span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhzd9ebDl187WVxQnzQC0cYCTFIuWlO3vjtRhq9GXl5cXgUr4FvnFQwofNBaKkRUtbfp-kLGRf8DAiLnu82jbiFHwMiNSED8yGxekdwfixhny1eMrG3eGpd1itfBZO0Pvl0J787juSej5ZgTEa-4QunWvcoMfAt-t_1AoyrclNXYZ9flpfdALcv1vd-/s1080/5.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1080" data-original-width="1080" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhzd9ebDl187WVxQnzQC0cYCTFIuWlO3vjtRhq9GXl5cXgUr4FvnFQwofNBaKkRUtbfp-kLGRf8DAiLnu82jbiFHwMiNSED8yGxekdwfixhny1eMrG3eGpd1itfBZO0Pvl0J787juSej5ZgTEa-4QunWvcoMfAt-t_1AoyrclNXYZ9flpfdALcv1vd-/w400-h400/5.png" width="400" /></a></div><h1 style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: large;">WHOLE CLASS: Glossing everything</span></h1><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Glossing means adding the meaning of words- like a glossary. If I gave the students a reading, I put the core vocabulary on the top with meaning, and other words that I would not expect them to know as footnotes. </span></p><h1 style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: large;">Reminders to myself</span></h1><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;">I had to constantly remind myself: I can not assume that they know anything. I certainly can not assume that they remember anything because I have no idea who was in class before. So thinking that they "should" know a word or meaning is just not fair. As <a href="https://magisterbracey.com">John Bracey,</a> a colleague and amazing Latin teacher reminds us: there are no "shoulds" in class.</span></p><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;">This is such an important thing to remember- and one that I feel so deeply as I sit in my Chinese class and ask about the meaning of the same word...every. single. week. (OK, I ask for one word like 3 weeks in a row, then I ask about a new one.) If my teacher made me feel ashamed for asking, I'd never show up again. </span></p><h1 style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: large;">What it looked like:</span></h1><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Here's an example: I knew that we were going to be doing a ClipChat about a man, on a sofa, who opens and closes the door. On the board, I put up every word that I thought would be unknown- mostly it was verbs (opens, closes, walks, runs, there is, etc.). I tried to do this ahead of each class- this is why I love having a lot of whiteboard space. </span></p><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Here's a picture of my white board:</span></p><div style="font-size: medium; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgGYvDJZJYWdzwi5HBl9PNBDlgJ5H7AP8IaHRj9F71aqtya8s-qX7s0T5bVSTAZhQgBeKfZHeAqGXT1yyW82uCfTFyxdM4dasoYWZz4Qa1M2-LwQAoXHEA2In5TTFBkPUT4hp0XuVRhiVdLBYOwxy1lO0OFzLO9_Mj2JgR20l73hsb6WW7reLJLvzzG/s4032/2022-09-15%2010.25.15.jpg"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgGYvDJZJYWdzwi5HBl9PNBDlgJ5H7AP8IaHRj9F71aqtya8s-qX7s0T5bVSTAZhQgBeKfZHeAqGXT1yyW82uCfTFyxdM4dasoYWZz4Qa1M2-LwQAoXHEA2In5TTFBkPUT4hp0XuVRhiVdLBYOwxy1lO0OFzLO9_Mj2JgR20l73hsb6WW7reLJLvzzG/w480-h524/2022-09-15%2010.25.15.jpg" /></a></div><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><div style="text-align: center;">Image of a whiteboard with Spanish words, underlined, and English meaning written in blue</div></span><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;">For another story, using the EXACT same vocabulary, I made sure that all the words were on the board and on the copy of the text that they were going to read.</span></p><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;">We did a gallery walk style reading, where they had to decide who said what based on the reading. Again, all the words were on the board. </span></p><h1 style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: large;">This is differentiation</span></h1><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;">I want to be clear: making sure that everyone is able to understand is differentiation. It is so easy to teach to the top tier of student- the motivated, the ones with tons of language, the ones that are engaged because they love it. But our job is to teach all the students, and this is the first step: making sure all students understand the target language input. </span></p><h1 style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: large;">The Results</span></h1><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Was it perfect? Nope. Not at all. I was imperfect because I am not a mind reader, and I had no idea what they did and didn’t know, and who knew what, and so on. I was imperfect because it’s been since last May that I was in a classroom. I was imperfect because I am human!</span></p><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;">It was messy too- because the students who had no prior language experience really struggled with believing that they could understand. They didn’t believe that I was pointing to the meaning of the words as I used them, and they didn’t believe that they were going to succeed. They arrived tuned out, turned off, and disconnected. </span></p><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;">And slowly, they started to come around. The magic really began to happen in 7th grade, when I started using an early unit from Somos. The thing about Somos is that it is structured in such a way that students get a lot of repeated exposure to the same vocabulary and it is written so that it is very easy to shelter vocabulary for the teacher.</span><a href="https://www.desklessclassroom.com/p/full-disclosure.html" style="font-size: medium;"> (Read about my relationship with Somos here.) </a></p><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;">The students really responded to the structure of the unit plan, but more importantly, we were keeping the language really focused on just a few key terms. </span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhALUn0NLDWWqJCaRZZV6tHRR8xVGFJ9NPWPdF2Sc_FZtaqF0EevpQj_wmN2qz6_QATQBslNnFdvjBDGPjHB4fuj_O7kCzwztyqfaRSdz4llddMAJCX3PYLUtP2oV6IlhrMkCMr6s6e-SStOxcb-4ayW87XPKWd9Lg-YR8fqREyB8srhqLb_wpSamab/s1080/6.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1080" data-original-width="1080" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhALUn0NLDWWqJCaRZZV6tHRR8xVGFJ9NPWPdF2Sc_FZtaqF0EevpQj_wmN2qz6_QATQBslNnFdvjBDGPjHB4fuj_O7kCzwztyqfaRSdz4llddMAJCX3PYLUtP2oV6IlhrMkCMr6s6e-SStOxcb-4ayW87XPKWd9Lg-YR8fqREyB8srhqLb_wpSamab/w400-h400/6.png" width="400" /></a></div><h1 style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: large;">INDEPENDENT WORK: Individual interventions and Small Groups</span></h1><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Any time I had students doing independent or partner work (reading a story, responding to questions about that story, etc.), I tried to either modify the task for the newer students or pulled them in a small group to work with them separately, or both. (Of course, it took a few days for me to figure out who was brand new.)</span></p><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Sometimes this looked like having them just read the first paragraph with me and translating it. Or just reading highlighted sentences (that I highlighted as they sat down to work- no prep.) Another option was to not answer all the comprehension questions, or not complete the entire task. Remember: all students need not be doing the exact same thing. This is differentiation!</span></p><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;">I also had them working together in a homogenous (same level) group so I could work with them and the other students could work independently. </span></p><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;">In 8th grade, I had one student new to language, and she sat with me and read some stories from the very first units of Somos (that I happened to have from previous classes). She translated them or drew them while everyone else was working on a more appropriately leveled activity. </span></p><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;">When we did Quick Draw, a partner activity that I did want her to participate in, I had already created two versions of a text (one in present tense, one in past tense). I put her in a homogenous group and modified the task: I invited that group to play with just 5 of the 10 sentences from the present tense, familiar version. </span><a href="https://senorachase.com/2018/01/24/quick-draw/" style="font-size: medium;">(Read more about quick draw, from AnneMarie Chase, here.)</a></p><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;">In another class, I had my 7th graders do a fun variation on a volleyball reading: one I first saw demonstrated by</span><a href="https://www.tprsbooks.com/presenter-bios/" style="font-size: medium;"> Craig Sheehy of TPRS Books</a><span style="font-size: medium;">. Note: this was a text that they had listened and read along with me already- it was familiar. </span></p><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;">In this activity, I arranged chairs to be in the formation of a small airplane, 2 by 2. Students were seated with a partner and had to do a volleyball reading: one person read the target language sentence, then the other translated it, and then read the next target language sentence. Then the first partner translated that one. </span><a href="https://comprehensibleclassroom.com/2015/09/22/volleyball-translation/" style="font-size: medium;">Read more about volleyball translation here from The Comprehensible Classroom (Martina Bex). </a></p><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;">The twist is this: I put up a map of different countries, put on my best flight attendant voice, and every few minutes, announced that we would be landing in a different destination, and the first 2 or 3 people in first class (either on the left or right) had to move to economy. Everyone else moved up. I alternated what side of the "plane" had to move so students would get different partners. They had to go back to the earliest part of the text of either partner, even if one of them had already read that section. </span></p><div style="font-size: medium; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiSvA_pjmxkkJjSaMhGu_qlV3uKoFzdB1J-eBIOEYXTGIbP9QBsJwCymUF2niGiXWF_YWYW8wGcICnFeuDxT3K02RJlH4lSiM8dLJZR0wIktOb74KibSwNC_2HweflxP8_wL9S1T1tTyaZ5Uipe1o0n3cPSYoNqlWQCPuuBpUlPJz_-2jaPdvLTqd0K/s4032/2022-09-16%2011.06.07.jpg"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiSvA_pjmxkkJjSaMhGu_qlV3uKoFzdB1J-eBIOEYXTGIbP9QBsJwCymUF2niGiXWF_YWYW8wGcICnFeuDxT3K02RJlH4lSiM8dLJZR0wIktOb74KibSwNC_2HweflxP8_wL9S1T1tTyaZ5Uipe1o0n3cPSYoNqlWQCPuuBpUlPJz_-2jaPdvLTqd0K/w300-h400/2022-09-16%2011.06.07.jpg" /></a></div><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><div style="text-align: center;">Image: students sit with their backs to the camera in rows of 2, reading out loud</div></span><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;">SUCCESS: Two out of the 3 new-to-Spanish students were able to read and translate the ENTIRE page with their partners.</span></p><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Note: Only 2 of the 3 did it. I had not managed to convince the 3rd kiddo that I was there to help them succeed. But that’s not too bad for 3 (shortened) weeks of instruction! </span></p><h1 style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: large;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiynb2cwwusFxmSWact__StNv5P2TNNDWDsj0UXk75nlLsvYBmvJ6f-rI1d_dqAE3FG-OLhN6EN8LOCnjgQte-h2-VnaGyX51-4xyECyw6sUTWq8ywd1-apchKBBIWK0OI7CdA0juYieOz44aq4YG0_rgOBb9rOBZsHQNfF3LCv-GPngTfg1FK6SZM0/s1080/new%20kids%20b%20log%20post.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1080" data-original-width="1080" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiynb2cwwusFxmSWact__StNv5P2TNNDWDsj0UXk75nlLsvYBmvJ6f-rI1d_dqAE3FG-OLhN6EN8LOCnjgQte-h2-VnaGyX51-4xyECyw6sUTWq8ywd1-apchKBBIWK0OI7CdA0juYieOz44aq4YG0_rgOBb9rOBZsHQNfF3LCv-GPngTfg1FK6SZM0/w640-h640/new%20kids%20b%20log%20post.png" width="640" /></a></div><br />What would I do next? </span></h1><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;">In practical terms, moving forward, I would plan on giving the new students nearly the same assessments, but I would discuss a few different options for reporting their assessments with them and their caregivers.</span></p><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;">One option would be that they would take the assessment but I would not report their scores for the first trimester or 2. Since my grades are standards-based, this is something that has worked for me before, with admin and caregiver approval. </span></p><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;">I hope this helps you get some ideas about what to do with different levels, new students, etc.! </span></p>Eliciahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17014283811911497554noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7311138534527402755.post-11865262478613317672022-10-25T12:33:00.002-07:002022-10-25T12:37:42.931-07:00Hard Reset: A whole class intervention<p><span style="font-size: medium;">I want to talk a little bit about a<b> whole class intervention</b> that I have used when things in class are going off the rails. But first: </span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjElO44t6VoYXaT-BzFT3VCibNwTO2y6sgN9h8e2Cg3e1eVe5uC5DirB0YWm2FJbKQg2QDY9toqvKEjn9mXuHNVj8cjjIxKzXsGqGm10Rxi4E4hHej1CyVAle6nGOP6Wb5IZt-DEezWxj7zFRuCqREaOD2K63JKIRrV1qhHkOdFcaDZ5MO_xTMh82UG/s1080/3.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1080" data-original-width="1080" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjElO44t6VoYXaT-BzFT3VCibNwTO2y6sgN9h8e2Cg3e1eVe5uC5DirB0YWm2FJbKQg2QDY9toqvKEjn9mXuHNVj8cjjIxKzXsGqGm10Rxi4E4hHej1CyVAle6nGOP6Wb5IZt-DEezWxj7zFRuCqREaOD2K63JKIRrV1qhHkOdFcaDZ5MO_xTMh82UG/w400-h400/3.png" width="400" /></a></div><h2></h2><h2>Who's responsibility is classroom engagement and cooperation*? </h2><p><span style="font-size: medium;">Now, I am not a fan of anyone telling teachers that classroom management challenges are their fault- by any means- and I also know that <b><u>my</u></b> own actions and beliefs can lead to power struggles and problems. They are also in <b><u>my</u> </b>control. </span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">This article by Angela Watson (Truth for Teachers) is a very good read about this topic: <a href="https://truthforteachers.com/truth-for-teachers-podcast/power-struggles-and-unnecessary-work/" target="_blank">Is your "invisible throne" creating power struggles and unnecessary work?</a> I also went back and re-read this article (also by Angela Watson): <a href="https://truthforteachers.com/truth-for-teachers-podcast/respond-rude-disrespectful-student-attitudes/" target="_blank">How to respond to rude, disrespectful student attitudes.</a> </span></p><p><span style="font-size: large;">Ideas about controlling students (coercing them, manipulating them) is one way that White Supremacy manifests in classroom management, and in my work to dismantle systems of oppression and find places where White Supremacy is guiding my actions, I choose to reframe how I think about kids and behavior. </span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">*I prefer the term <b>classroom engagement and cooperation</b> </span><span style="font-size: large;">over classroom management. It makes more sense to me. I don't want to manage students. I want to cooperate with them and engage with them</span><span style="font-size: medium;"><i>.</i></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjs73mfesYavFUOvwhqvc2LukdckAy5bnM0I-fUrD8EaJVol9-Ptwoa88AMEsHYfCLUZbgW4UxyUuTlskKPtK2A-nvDRChfAn7J4tnqWUD6plrKxuoGzGHq1VHRIBiMBwSN9okDyFoPwqlIxN9sdx-L76ldIl09hnM2950ZwCP-cfSJjE3WgjjAjv_1/s1080/2.png" imageanchor="1" style="font-weight: 400; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1080" data-original-width="1080" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjs73mfesYavFUOvwhqvc2LukdckAy5bnM0I-fUrD8EaJVol9-Ptwoa88AMEsHYfCLUZbgW4UxyUuTlskKPtK2A-nvDRChfAn7J4tnqWUD6plrKxuoGzGHq1VHRIBiMBwSN9okDyFoPwqlIxN9sdx-L76ldIl09hnM2950ZwCP-cfSJjE3WgjjAjv_1/w400-h400/2.png" width="400" /></a></div><h2 style="text-align: left;"></h2><h2 style="text-align: left;">Individual interventions</h2><p><span style="font-size: medium;">I get a lot of questions in workshops ab<span style="text-align: center;">out </span><i style="text-align: center;">individual</i><span style="text-align: center;"> kids and their behavior, and my response is always the same: approach with curiosity. Why is that kid doing that thing (usually blurting)? Do they know they are doing it? Is there a need not being met? Is there a relationship to develop? Depending on the answers, the interventions are going to be different. Kids are kids- and one strategy is not going to support every student. Also- consider: if it is just one or two kids that you are struggling with- how awesome is that?!? Celebrate that! Then approach those kids with curiosity. In my </span><a href="https://www.desklessclassroom.com/2019/11/implementing-plan-b-when-classroom.html" style="text-align: center;" target="_blank">Plan B post</a><span style="text-align: center;">, I have a long list of possible individual and whole class interventions- take a look. </span></span></p><p></p><h2 style="text-align: left;">Whole Class Intervention</h2><div></div><p><span style="font-size: medium;">This intervention is one I learned from<a href="https://joncowartteaching.com" target="_blank"> Jon Cowart</a> (I think) and mad props to him for his amazing work on classroom management. This is my version of a <b>hard reset. </b></span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">However, please know- this is one intervention in a whole menu of interventions. And like many items on a menu, they are best when served with other items. I suggest adding a heaping serving of <a href="https://www.desklessclassroom.com/2022/09/more-structure-creating-plan-minus.html" target="_blank">Plan A Minus</a> or <a href="https://www.desklessclassroom.com/2019/11/implementing-plan-b-when-classroom.html" target="_blank">Plan B</a>, if you're asking! </span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">This whole class intervention came about because I could not successfully teach a lesson. Students were interrupting me <i>and</i> disengaged (how is that even possible? They managed it!) and talkative and off task. This was a situation where the majority of students were not cooperating nor were they engaged- not just one or two- so I needed to approach the class as a whole. Mind you: I was a "long term" sub with a very firm end date. I was not their "real" teacher and that was made perfectly clear, and not just by the students. So there were some factors that were out of my control. </span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjSp6gknN2VXMHTZYUQ2k8ZSxzGESU04Yg1qYQTkK4_U0NRqiya0WNZdEH2p2pH_3Ab9kddtcfGDWnmidYL_najNwc41OYAFyvM_zyI-3-OsGGT8WnPHW0Nh9Zw5RbTirTJ5CWSZP0E4eEz3lmm-oeFE9Twwu_isezmLsIlfqrDQjFal65qETvw_SE2/s1080/1.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1080" data-original-width="1080" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjSp6gknN2VXMHTZYUQ2k8ZSxzGESU04Yg1qYQTkK4_U0NRqiya0WNZdEH2p2pH_3Ab9kddtcfGDWnmidYL_najNwc41OYAFyvM_zyI-3-OsGGT8WnPHW0Nh9Zw5RbTirTJ5CWSZP0E4eEz3lmm-oeFE9Twwu_isezmLsIlfqrDQjFal65qETvw_SE2/w400-h400/1.png" width="400" /></a></div><p></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">I had to focus on what I could control: <b>my own practice. </b></span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">I started with curiosity.</span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjCgBc_nyNdiLjgEYqL_S35gZnueiU_IoFa9wSUfC6YQa8s8dLolWgkG4A30k3qDyzAbUKdt2VcUJk-4QCK5qHY76sFPL6ts9bQP3VhFZdYfoURtDMUMMClgs1SaydDmNmq69Z2UTgAR0PxK6sJ5D3BwNGgWzCPxrE92U3JRXvWeSSG_aMMyYEgXahK/s1080/5.png" imageanchor="1" style="font-weight: 400; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1080" data-original-width="1080" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjCgBc_nyNdiLjgEYqL_S35gZnueiU_IoFa9wSUfC6YQa8s8dLolWgkG4A30k3qDyzAbUKdt2VcUJk-4QCK5qHY76sFPL6ts9bQP3VhFZdYfoURtDMUMMClgs1SaydDmNmq69Z2UTgAR0PxK6sJ5D3BwNGgWzCPxrE92U3JRXvWeSSG_aMMyYEgXahK/w400-h400/5.png" width="400" /></a></div><h2 style="text-align: left;"></h2><h2 style="text-align: left;">Self-Reflection</h2><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;">So my reflective, curious questions to myself were:</span></p><p></p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li><span style="font-size: medium;">Had I done a good job explaining the expectations? Did I go over the expectations ALL the time? </span></li><li><span style="font-size: medium;">Did I give students the chance to practice meeting expectations? </span></li><li><span style="font-size: medium;">Did I celebrate when expectations were met?</span></li><li><span style="font-size: medium;">Were my expectations culturally responsive and appropriate? </span></li><li><span style="font-size: medium;">Was I consistent or inconsistent? </span></li><li><span style="font-size: medium;">Was I using the target language so that students were understanding the input? </span></li><li><span style="font-size: medium;">Was I talking to the students or with the students? </span></li><li><span style="font-size: medium;">Was I teaching content that was at all interesting to the students, or including them and their interests? </span></li><li><span style="font-size: medium;">Were there relationships that I could develop? </span></li><li><span style="font-size: medium;">Were there opportunities to develop relationships (with students and caregivers) that I could take advantage of? Examples would be sending a positive email home, or talking to the student's coach to find out more about them and their interests. </span></li><li><span style="font-size: medium;">What did the students -as a group- need that they weren't getting? </span></li><li><span style="font-size: medium;">Could I provide that with my time and energy and means? </span></li></ul><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;">It became clear to me, upon reflection, that I had not taken enough time to set and practice expectations, and in fact, had not considered their input at all. Since I was a substitute and had limited time with them, I made the decision at the beginning to use the classroom teacher's expectations. With some classes that seemed to work fine. But with the 8th graders, it was not working. Lots of things weren't working.</span></p><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;">I also realized that in addition to expectations, students needed more structure- they were used to one thing, and they needed scaffolding to be able to do something different. Thus: the More Structured Input plan, aka Plan A minus. I implemented both interventions more or less simultaneously, and although I didn't have a lot of time with students, it made the last few days with them more successful and more fun for everyone. </span></p><h2 style="text-align: left;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiBUEulf-HVX7zFS6NHw8pSITt3QLXVNpZYaECLj40TQ7wJy4f40NTY6wZnkP0BRqf_oi24jHiwCPBPILHYp8gdiZ2eHq5xc-oBHFLL5NH_He-ixK0TIw2EasyTU1UOsag86sZxnGiX99kVaS1HmIEo0Cfb2ZO3r8XYWA6NR7zehklAnljampUC26nX/s1080/6.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1080" data-original-width="1080" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiBUEulf-HVX7zFS6NHw8pSITt3QLXVNpZYaECLj40TQ7wJy4f40NTY6wZnkP0BRqf_oi24jHiwCPBPILHYp8gdiZ2eHq5xc-oBHFLL5NH_He-ixK0TIw2EasyTU1UOsag86sZxnGiX99kVaS1HmIEo0Cfb2ZO3r8XYWA6NR7zehklAnljampUC26nX/w400-h400/6.png" width="400" /></a></div><br />Hard Reset</h2><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;">When students walked in, I had some kind of starter on the board, but instead of reviewing it, I sat on a stool in front of them and I said something like "I don't feel like class has been going well, and I think we need to come up with some norms and agreements so that I can do my job of teaching and you can do your job of learning. I have been very frustrated because I don't feel like I am doing a lot of teaching, and I get the sense that you all are frustrated too. So we are going to start over." I did this in our shared language (English). </span></p><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;">I made a classic T-chart on the board with the titles Student and Teacher. I asked them what their job was. Some shouted out, but most were happy to raise their hand and offer their ideas. For each student job they came up with, I said "so what does that mean for me?" and added my job. </span></p><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: large;">There was some negotiation, and some explaining on my part. Like when I had to say "the thing that I am most frustrated about is when you talk over me. I can't do my job when that happens. So how can we address that?" </span></p><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;">I learned that one student thought I was really mean and unreasonable- I had no idea- because of a comment I'd made that they misunderstood. I also learned that, for the most part, they wanted to be there and learn Spanish, and were incredibly frustrated with their peers that were being mean. </span></p><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;">This is important: Jon Cowart reminds us that expectations need to be OBSERVABLE. "Respect" is not an observable behavior. "One person speaks at a time" is observable. </span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgYVGcXVj97eYT9vgpmbROpg562nWC5NVmOTB7QJ2s91S_-JBIh-KsmSb6SL6ImZpdrPY0nMi5MKDN87n0Xb3Rt-XlgH49nBNvtTbfaTDA5GbPPpJTnznS0bQ3r51_dPlZemxjmFCWwa0XC4yk1CqM-Bfx0l01TMK4Z-Va_WjknSEIdq7rPk0EJzp5c/s1080/4.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1080" data-original-width="1080" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgYVGcXVj97eYT9vgpmbROpg562nWC5NVmOTB7QJ2s91S_-JBIh-KsmSb6SL6ImZpdrPY0nMi5MKDN87n0Xb3Rt-XlgH49nBNvtTbfaTDA5GbPPpJTnznS0bQ3r51_dPlZemxjmFCWwa0XC4yk1CqM-Bfx0l01TMK4Z-Va_WjknSEIdq7rPk0EJzp5c/w400-h400/4.png" width="400" /></a></div><p style="text-align: left;"></p><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;">I had to work with them (not entirely successfully as you will see) to keep behaviors observable. </span></p><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;">This is what we came up with in one class:</span></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhcrCdRRrVYsV69lkxFLbp-3MC3jCkvRDVTlgWGzZYkVbI9yTaujVi9zFov3tg9WtCB4ryLNGfMtqFjWnB4mOpThHs5UwLl0Wqs_MdtTPiesu8N4pX9c4T2Jm14_S5CFtQBAP-yGx0XdNQ-he7hb0tODI0X_eGZzZ3mg5vtlWkGHfAbTY0X7dtIE0l9/w480-h640/2022-09-12%2015.11.49.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" width="480" /></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">Image ID: T-chart with student jobs (listen the first time, focus, move quickly, Don't be attention seeking, use Spanish*, Hands to self, ask a friend) and teacher job (Give clear instructions, 2nd chances, give support, brain breaks, use Spanish*, be nice/flexible, use a kind tone)</span></td></tr></tbody></table><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;">This took most of the class time. We even did a brain break game in the middle. Or maybe more than one!</span></p><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;">I let the students know that we would be signing a document with these new norms in the next couple of days. (I wanted to live with them and see if there was anything missing or problematic before committing to them, honestly!)</span></p><h2 style="text-align: left;">Then what? </h2><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;">The following day as a <a href="https://www.desklessclassroom.com/2015/12/starters-bell-ringers-and-objectives.html" target="_blank">starter (bell-ringer)</a>, students were shown the list and asked to pick 2 agreements to focus on. They had to use a sentence frame to write about why it was important. They did this in English, our shared language. </span></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1427" data-original-width="2500" height="366" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgeU2L_0Xaa3vs38SlBLVRyvcNCj28lSQfdn2H_Q5owQki5XzFhM-dVn_Pq7_emzKDrcxH7Qmk-X1YHqg6Sl9qG2r4JgXgXP8g5m4BHi_EeBS8NckeFVmLjcHIcfTCiMZJhyTF_eaIwjGpDhYhAgcRm18gLFpZiCjk8Z6e1nvztlTfLr1yJLMMHXAc4/w640-h366/8th%20PEs.png" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" width="640" /></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Image ID: A slide with directions for the starter, sentence frames "I will (choose one from the list). This is important because..." and a picture of class agreements. </td><td class="tr-caption"><br /></td></tr></tbody></table><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Before starting any language instruction, I went through the Norms in English and let them know that at the end of class, they would be reflecting on what they chose. </span></p><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;">At the end of class, I had them use the same scrap of paper that they wrote on to reflect-I asked them to put one to five stars on each sentence, one star being "nope, I didn't really succeed at this" and five being "I succeeded at focusing on this agreement". I collected these reflections but I did not ask them for names. I was curious to see if their self-reflections matched my perception of how class went- and it turns out, it did...mostly.</span></p><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;">The following day, we signed the agreements, one at a time, and put them on the board, and again, I started class by reading them. </span></p><h2 style="text-align: left;">Moderate Success!</h2><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;">And you know what? Between this hard reset and giving them more structure in class, I began to see improvement in both engagement and cooperation. It wasn't what I had hoped for- it wasn't the 8th grade class of March 2020, those dreamy kids who did everything I asked and then wanted more- it was the <i>actual kids in front of me,</i> being somewhat successful. More successful, at least.</span></p><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;">I could see that there was an upward trajectory- progress was being made, and with patience and work, we could have a lot of fun and use a lot of language.</span></p><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;"> Unfortunately, all that happened the last week I was subbing, so I didn't get a chance to let it play out in the long run. That's ok. I think small successes add up to big ones, and being able to have some discussions and do some things in class, in the target language, is actually a pretty big success!</span></p><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;">I hope that this look at a Hard Reset, paired with some other <a href="https://www.desklessclassroom.com/2022/09/more-structure-creating-plan-minus.html" target="_blank">structured input plans</a>, help you! </span></p><p></p>Eliciahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17014283811911497554noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7311138534527402755.post-89660882683211624902022-09-27T14:13:00.000-07:002022-09-27T14:13:01.116-07:00More Structure: Creating a Plan A Minus*<h1 style="text-align: left;"><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgMUgzd1Mu7wEDTZ5C5G9Ol4RG7B0M0ySIIxz5EY60TSkK3US-YVgDQTwPGRlJ0J9vaFCMAaMSZQQNBmbrJLK56waymI2n6CryzR1O9p3FVAFOQvs0eopMTmeec0U-A-FPf3VeAIHF44OhZB2jsEKFA3S2IXgfGKT0NKBZgHx23hu9ThxguLkhXy1VA/s1080/Green%20Blue%20Cream%20Informative%20Abstract%20Nature%20Earth%20Day%20Instagram%20Post%20(2).png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1080" data-original-width="1080" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgMUgzd1Mu7wEDTZ5C5G9Ol4RG7B0M0ySIIxz5EY60TSkK3US-YVgDQTwPGRlJ0J9vaFCMAaMSZQQNBmbrJLK56waymI2n6CryzR1O9p3FVAFOQvs0eopMTmeec0U-A-FPf3VeAIHF44OhZB2jsEKFA3S2IXgfGKT0NKBZgHx23hu9ThxguLkhXy1VA/w400-h400/Green%20Blue%20Cream%20Informative%20Abstract%20Nature%20Earth%20Day%20Instagram%20Post%20(2).png" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"></td></tr></tbody></table></h1><h1 style="text-align: left;">Plan A-Minus*</h1><p><span style="font-size: medium;"><i>*Not quite Plan B, not quite low-fun input plan, but something else: when it's becoming clear that having conversations with students about something is something they are not yet ready for. Adding more structure. <br /></i></span></p><h2 style="text-align: left;">The Background</h2><p><span style="font-size: medium;">Two of my classes in my recent role as a long term sub needed something...a lot more of something. Or less of something. Or just...SOMETHING. </span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">They were CHATTY. Like I couldn't say a sentence without being interrupted by something totally unrelated or by students having side conversations about whatever they felt like. It was not fun. There were some other behaviors as well, but it was the CHATTY that was making me insane. </span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">They also were very used to an output-heavy class and were very reluctant to engage with input. </span></p><h2 style="text-align: left;">My Thinking</h2><p><span style="font-size: medium;">I had to make 2 interventions/shifts in my teaching in order to meet the kids where they were. </span></p><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><b>Mindset Shift 1: Teach the kids you have, not the kids you want</b></span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">I was a little caught up in my pre-pandemic teaching brain- pretty much constantly wondering why they weren't like the other classes, or why were they so completely unlike the class that I last had...the middle school kids that I adored and had so much fun with! It is so easy to dwell on wanting to teach the kids I wanted...not the kids that were actually in front of me. </span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">But I had to teach the kids in front of me, not some idealized version of the kids I wanted. Which meant I had to make some changes to the class structure because what I was doing was not effective. And that, my friends, <u>was on me. </u></span></p><p><i><span style="font-size: medium;">This was a mindset shift that I had to work through- teaching the kids that were there. (Thanks to <a href="http://blog.heartsforteaching.com" target="_blank">Laurie Clarcq</a> for naming this shift.) Once I made that shift though- it became a lot easier to manage.</span></i></p><h3 style="text-align: left;">Mindset Shift 2: MORE STRUCTURE</h3><p><span style="font-size: medium;">I realized within the first week that I needed to give them a LOT more structure. Some of this was the group of kids, some of it was because as a long term sub they were not interested in investing in me or my class, and some was just...well, I guess because. </span></p><h2 style="text-align: left;">The (Original) Plan</h2><p><span style="font-size: medium;">My lesson plans were to teach the song <a href="https://youtu.be/VMp55KH_3wo" target="_blank">La Gozadera,</a> using <a href="https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Canciones-contagiosas-1-Song-bundle-for-Spanish-classes-3244783" target="_blank">plans from The Comprehensible Classroom </a>(please read <a href="https://www.desklessclassroom.com/p/full-disclosure.html" target="_blank">the disclosure</a> about my relationship with The Comprehensible Classroom here.) I thought a song unit with lots of reading and culture would be just the right amount of content to finish during my time as a sub. Plus, I've never taught the song before and wanted to try it. </span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">The lesson plan (simplified) looks something like this:</span></p><p></p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li><span style="font-size: medium;"><a href="https://comprehensibleclassroom.com/2011/11/07/card-talk/" target="_blank">Card talk</a></span></li><li><span style="font-size: medium;"><a href="https://comprehensibleclassroom.com/2017/10/25/dip-your-toes-in-ci-try-a-movietalk/" target="_blank">Clip Chat </a>(movietalk) for beginning of music video</span></li><li><span style="font-size: medium;">Watch video</span></li><li><span style="font-size: medium;">Discuss video</span></li><li><span style="font-size: medium;">Read about meaning of the title</span></li><li><span style="font-size: medium;">Students do some reading activities related to the reading</span></li><li><span style="font-size: medium;">Read more about video and song </span></li><li><span style="font-size: medium;">More reading activities</span></li></ul><h2 style="text-align: left;">The Reality</h2><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;">When I looked at the plan, I saw a big looming disaster.</span><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Nope. That was NOT going to work!</span></p><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;">These students did not seem to be able to handle any kind of class discussion, and the free-form nature of Card Talk or Clip Chat seemed like a recipe for frustration and disaster. I believe that there would be very little input happening and a lot of frustration. </span></p><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;">I did some reflecting about what the challenges were in class, and what actually was going well (when it was!), and I decided that I needed to give students more structure. I also decided that it would be a good thing to trick them into thinking that they were creating with language (output) while getting them to attend to the input. I framed this in my own head as "the illusion of output". </span></p><h2 style="text-align: left;">Credit</h2><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span>All of these ideas came from a mix mash of <a href="https://joncowartteaching.com/2019/02/24/chunking-managing-your-classroom-with-the-weekly-packet/" target="_blank">Jon Cowart'</a>s Weekly Packet, the <a href="https://comprehensibleclassroom.com/2012/10/30/plan-b-reading-activities/" target="_blank">Plan B plan from Martina Bex,</a> </span><a href="https://www.desklessclassroom.com/2019/11/implementing-plan-b-when-classroom.html" target="_blank">Implementing Plan B</a> (from me!) and <a href="https://senorachase.com/2021/12/30/anatomy-of-a-low-fun-lesson-plan/" target="_blank">Low Fun Input Plans</a> from AnneMarie Chase, and my own experience as a teacher. </span></p><h2 style="text-align: left;">Modification For Card Talk</h2><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;">I created a little response sheet- it was 6 or 8 open ended sentences: </span><i>En la opinión de ____, _____ es/no es divertido/a.</i><span style="font-size: large;"> (In ___'s opinion, ____ is/is not fun.) </span></p><p><span style="font-size: large;">When I say <i>little response sheet</i>, that is exactly what I mean. Since I print everything "2-up" (or 50% sized) and then copy it on recycled paper from the copy room- copy paper that has already been copied on one side- it was quite small!</span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">Telling them that we would discuss each picture then fill out the form was like magic. Suddenly they were listening, and mostly responding to my questions! Engagement! <br /></span><span style="font-size: medium;">After discussing someone's card, I filled in the blanks on the board and they copied them. (illusion of output, actually input!)</span></p><p></p><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><div style="text-align: left;"><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhrovh7DbCDqzbPjC54AfII25DzabytKEKpVEwydIzewNQwvG_iPzjU-rVkOQsrXYdTLpQH9gc8vH0_AHwKw9QVRYp7CQQ6Fds4kGp8CMsRplBGiUdOcZURze5IDzOUKvF3p84TpVRGhiYB_j67o0jOBuwonpfDOTcZsXgnysp5JvOqHi4_HpHw26sN/s882/Screen%20Shot%202022-09-27%20at%206.00.23%20AM.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="702" data-original-width="882" height="319" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhrovh7DbCDqzbPjC54AfII25DzabytKEKpVEwydIzewNQwvG_iPzjU-rVkOQsrXYdTLpQH9gc8vH0_AHwKw9QVRYp7CQQ6Fds4kGp8CMsRplBGiUdOcZURze5IDzOUKvF3p84TpVRGhiYB_j67o0jOBuwonpfDOTcZsXgnysp5JvOqHi4_HpHw26sN/w400-h319/Screen%20Shot%202022-09-27%20at%206.00.23%20AM.png" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The Response Sheet for Card Talk </td></tr></tbody></table><p style="text-align: left;">At the end of the form, I had two open ended sentences for them to finish themselves, and then we discussed how they finished the sentences (also more illusion of output, but with the focus on me leading the discussion- that is, input). </p></div><div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhfFXarooDFTjAwSEaqurybfrehMmHxbOR8PxPKJmOD0oJTu9XPNC9NOmwHHtNrGZZKtmtgwelTNcOmZmv-bfcwSwyAMurJrvirSJATjsyBadio_tiMVSe9A9ScVoZMAA2WTsn7QxsaQBm0BdFwZ9xJ9UdpgRDWsqi4YMj4knU4dt_4sekx7UoSURs1/s844/Screen%20Shot%202022-09-27%20at%206.00.28%20AM.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="424" data-original-width="844" height="201" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhfFXarooDFTjAwSEaqurybfrehMmHxbOR8PxPKJmOD0oJTu9XPNC9NOmwHHtNrGZZKtmtgwelTNcOmZmv-bfcwSwyAMurJrvirSJATjsyBadio_tiMVSe9A9ScVoZMAA2WTsn7QxsaQBm0BdFwZ9xJ9UdpgRDWsqi4YMj4knU4dt_4sekx7UoSURs1/w400-h201/Screen%20Shot%202022-09-27%20at%206.00.28%20AM.png" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The bottom of the response sheet for Card Talk</td></tr></tbody></table></div><div><br /></div><h2 style="text-align: left;">Modification for Clip Chat (MovieTalk)</h2><p style="text-align: left;">For the movietalk portion of the lesson plan, I created a slideshow with screenshots. Since the lesson plans ask the teacher to just use the intro to the video, I only used 3 stills for this part. </p><div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhS-Q3FOU2dGGJhmylJT6fjo7_uUgWbFvUjSYhde9cjvLRvuFFrL_3GHl9LEDHUKc4GIfNhHJJB-lSI2Jz9wMX4k4I9TovDKqoHhQYKf6tQLY2dB8VpuaFrUPLsuHtkis-_CNMbSruh3dszvubmZv6aFZfzeKqSxNUDUhLcjB5nGUspgON8FdBePoew/s1962/Screen%20Shot%202022-09-27%20at%206.01.19%20AM.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1102" data-original-width="1962" height="225" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhS-Q3FOU2dGGJhmylJT6fjo7_uUgWbFvUjSYhde9cjvLRvuFFrL_3GHl9LEDHUKc4GIfNhHJJB-lSI2Jz9wMX4k4I9TovDKqoHhQYKf6tQLY2dB8VpuaFrUPLsuHtkis-_CNMbSruh3dszvubmZv6aFZfzeKqSxNUDUhLcjB5nGUspgON8FdBePoew/w400-h225/Screen%20Shot%202022-09-27%20at%206.01.19%20AM.png" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A screengrab from the La Gozadera video plus vocab to use instead of a video </td></tr></tbody></table></div><div><br /></div><p>I also created a little response sheet. <br /></p><p>Question 1 was <i>¿Qué ves?</i> (What do you see?) <br />I gave them some input first, then let them tell a partner what they saw, then I talked about their responses, and THEN I let them write. See how the input came first? <br /></p><p>Question 2 was <i>¿Dónde están las personas?</i> (Where are the people?). Again, I showed the slide, talked about it, let them make predictions, talked about their predictions and why they thought that, and then let them write. Since I noticed that they weren't very good explaining how they reached their conclusions (which is an important skill in any language!) I lead the discussion down that road: What's your evidence? Why do you say that? Why do you think that? <br /></p><p>The third question was something like <i>¿Cómo están las personas</i>" (How are the people feeling?) and again I got their ideas, led a conversation, asked them for some evidence for their thinking, then let them write. <br /></p><p>I also added a space for them to copy the Write and Discuss, just in case I decided that they needed that. (They did not, and I am not a fan of having students copy them in general, but I thought I might need that space!) </p></span><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgjyxEIWVaZhIIsjdUYRTqAGABwSjbZGsgB0Ah98uYeADxUyXEaBNtCzBTQfPCZsHeH0xcpvVAKmc9g5JnNqaEnH4NaiAcsBF9a1IwRH6z0b2b7sOTFBkWq0B9oV8qG1a4TO3KuCyfiWE3V4DRjytg55LPl0qMxEpU_XeP_ghZiTY78cd1OXei0Accr/s862/Screen%20Shot%202022-09-27%20at%203.49.06%20PM.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="758" data-original-width="862" height="351" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgjyxEIWVaZhIIsjdUYRTqAGABwSjbZGsgB0Ah98uYeADxUyXEaBNtCzBTQfPCZsHeH0xcpvVAKmc9g5JnNqaEnH4NaiAcsBF9a1IwRH6z0b2b7sOTFBkWq0B9oV8qG1a4TO3KuCyfiWE3V4DRjytg55LPl0qMxEpU_XeP_ghZiTY78cd1OXei0Accr/w400-h351/Screen%20Shot%202022-09-27%20at%203.49.06%20PM.png" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Part of the ClipChat response sheet </td></tr></tbody></table><h2>Watching the Video</h2><span style="font-size: medium;"><p style="text-align: left;">For the actual watching of the video, I gave them a <a href="https://comprehensibleclassroom.com/2014/05/05/five-senses-video-notes/" target="_blank">5 Senses Video Viewing Form from Martina Bex</a> and they had to fill it out while they were watching. After, I led a discussion. I really like this particular sheet because it allows them to write at the level that they wish- single words, phrases, and sentences. </p><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjlLNuBXdySnnqREw6gP3T2HCxYNKghhFrnyko3pW9eaHbZDW8nDGYULCMHDtY_rTCy_brZ4cUltbjyMk0dQGCPua0FRRj8fil53YH8M2nhu2dnbuju9eJj_3u4vAB0GzpAFgmLeTqW9f6yRAX2KyfOU7u-fgS0Jpj5uGYtgUXOEi-GAN2erbE1zKdY/s1982/Screen%20Shot%202022-09-27%20at%206.01.32%20AM.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1130" data-original-width="1982" height="228" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjlLNuBXdySnnqREw6gP3T2HCxYNKghhFrnyko3pW9eaHbZDW8nDGYULCMHDtY_rTCy_brZ4cUltbjyMk0dQGCPua0FRRj8fil53YH8M2nhu2dnbuju9eJj_3u4vAB0GzpAFgmLeTqW9f6yRAX2KyfOU7u-fgS0Jpj5uGYtgUXOEi-GAN2erbE1zKdY/w400-h228/Screen%20Shot%202022-09-27%20at%206.01.32%20AM.png" width="400" /></a></div><h2 style="text-align: left;">Prep Time</h2></div><p style="text-align: left;">Now, it took me less than 10 minutes to make those response sheets- which may sound fast (and it was! Remember- I'm pretty experienced!). I hoped they would work - I thought they might be exactly the ticket- but I didn't want to spend a ton of time on creating. I was using the MVP principle in creating these: the <a href="https://truthforteachers.com/truth-for-teachers-podcast/figure-whats-good-enough-satisfied/" target="_blank">Minimum Viable Product</a>. Basically, the idea is to create the thing that you think will work, and after you use it, <i>then</i> reflect, touch it up, change it, make it pretty if that's your thing. (I learned this from <a href="https://truthforteachers.com" target="_blank">Angela Watson</a> and it has been a HUGE timesaver mindset for me!)</p><h2 style="text-align: left;">What Happened in Class</h2><p style="text-align: left;"><b>To my everlasting joy, it went pretty well.</b> I was able to give them the input because they felt like they were getting output. (Illusion of output, very structured output, lots of input!)</p><p style="text-align: left;">Once they bought in to the illusion of output, I was able to do the more free-form activities (Card Talk, Clip Chat) with much less difficulty. The response sheets gave exactly the right amount of structure to let the input still be about the students (their cards, their interests, their ideas). </p><p style="text-align: left;">The reading activities were pretty straightforward and although I was surprised that they had never done activities like the ones I was asking them to do, once they figured out what I was asking for (reading, re-reading, reading closely, interacting with the text in a way (that forced them to make meaning), they were pretty cooperative. </p><div>Note: I did a major behavior intervention as well- which I will post about at a later date, but I think the structure is what allowed them to settle in and let input happen. </div></span></div><p></p>Eliciahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17014283811911497554noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7311138534527402755.post-82382199310501670712022-09-21T13:10:00.004-07:002022-09-21T13:32:25.240-07:00Differentiation and more: Back in the classroom!<h3 style="text-align: left;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjIZUeJcRKSxhx3QIWVDr2nUCLOEuZ9VAjIh2lEFmVNPbHoI1vqDNqNNTph49XHePD6CP1nyPtn580Vcr3fTsdefTrirHKt5Nv65h0jvfHYwXU1oD9eFJK8y5KFiWuHZkrysxe5GqUqpYORuv3MkikkyK750C4_A4vw0ThSjYaq-ham-H2cYFtsV3X5/s1080/Green%20Blue%20Cream%20Informative%20Abstract%20Nature%20Earth%20Day%20Instagram%20Post.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1080" data-original-width="1080" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjIZUeJcRKSxhx3QIWVDr2nUCLOEuZ9VAjIh2lEFmVNPbHoI1vqDNqNNTph49XHePD6CP1nyPtn580Vcr3fTsdefTrirHKt5Nv65h0jvfHYwXU1oD9eFJK8y5KFiWuHZkrysxe5GqUqpYORuv3MkikkyK750C4_A4vw0ThSjYaq-ham-H2cYFtsV3X5/w400-h400/Green%20Blue%20Cream%20Informative%20Abstract%20Nature%20Earth%20Day%20Instagram%20Post.png" width="400" /></a></div><br /><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></h3><h3 style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;">BACK IN THE CLASSROOM!!!</span></h3><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;">I spent the first three weeks of school…in school! I was invited to take over for 3 weeks while a teacher was out on paternity leave- so I got to start the year with students! </span></p><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Some students were those that I knew from way back in the Before Times- when I was teaching one section of 5th grade, writing curriculum for grades 3-5 as I went, and mentoring an elementary teacher in addition to teaching my regular schedule of Spanish 1 honors, Spanish 2 honors, and Spanish 1b. Then the pandemic hit, and the rest was…well, you all know.</span></p><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;">I did a week-long sub job last year for a colleague in Texas as well, but it was a short, quick week at the end of the year, and while it was wonderful and worthwhile, I didn’t really get to try a lot of new things. </span></p><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><br />I got to try A LOT of new things this time! <br /><br /></span></p><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;">And wow, I had a lot of new things to try! I was so lucky to get to spend time in the language labs at IFLT this summer with <a href="https://anchor.fm/cuentamemarta" target="_blank">Marta Ruiz Yedinak</a>, <a href="https://tcimainenewenglandandbeyond.weebly.com" target="_blank">Skip Crosby</a>, <a href="https://www.lamaestraloca.com" target="_blank">Annabelle Williamson</a>, <a href="https://ignitechinese.org" target="_blank">Hayiun Lu</a>, and others, and to be a facilitator-coach at the <a href="https://theagenworkshop.com" target="_blank">Agen Conference</a> (IN FRANCE!!!), embedded in Spanish with <a href="https://www.youtube.com/c/TPRSStorytelling" target="_blank">Adriana Ramírez</a>. From all of that came a list of things that I wanted to try, observations, things I wanted to think about, etc. However, the theme of the summer for me seemed to be Differentiation. I watched as some incredibly masterful teachers modeled a TON of different differentiation techniques- some that were familiar and some that were totally new to me. <br />In my next few blog posts I am going to share some of the things I saw, learned, and tried. Let's start with Differentiation and the Amazing Skip Crosby!</span> </p><h1 style="text-align: left;">Differentiation: Skip Crosby Style</h1><div><span style="font-size: medium;">Skip was a language lab teacher at IFLT this summer. </span></div><div><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-size: medium;">I should mention that Skip is a master at differentiation. It’s so subtle that if you aren’t looking for it, you will likely miss it, which is incredibly impressive because the students don’t even notice it. All they seem to notice is how successful they are any time he asks them something. If you ever get a chance to watch Skip teach, treat yourself. </span></div><div><span style="font-size: medium;">(Side note: He hosts the annual TCI Maine conference, which is open for registration as of September 2022 and although I am not going, I am 100% sure it will be amazing. Click here for more information: <a href="https://tcimainenewenglandandbeyond.weebly.com" target="_blank">TCI MAINE 2022</a>)</span></div><div><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-size: medium;">Some things that I observed him doing included (some are very differentiation focused, some are just Skip being amazing). </span></div><div><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><h4 style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Accepting non-verbal answers</span></h4><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;"> As a learner (of Chinese) myself, I can not stress the amazing value of this practice. There are many times when I understand a question and even know the answer, but may not be able to or confident enough to verbalize. I have seen this over and over again. </span></p><h4 style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Using cognates</span></h4><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;"> Cognates, if you teach a cognate-rich language, are great *so long as everyone understands them!* Cognates are a literary skill and can backfire- imagine being the person in the class who doesn’t know the word that is “obvious”. Making meaning clear for cognates is one trick. <a href="https://mygenerationofpolyglots.com" target="_blank">Mike Peto</a> taught me this: use a gesture (I use my two index fingers coming together) to indicate a cognate. When I do that, students can shout out what they think it means in English. Then I confirm. </span></p><h4 style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Changing the question when it was not understood</span></h4><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;"> I watched Skip ask a question and then realize that it wasn’t a good question for that student- that is, they weren’t able to understand or answer it- and smoothly repeat the question in such a way that it was understandable. I can’t quite wrap my head around how to do this in such a way that it isn’t obvious-like Skip did- but it is something that I aspire to. </span></p><h4 style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Letting one student repeat and translate to the shared language any time it was needed</span></h4><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;"> This practice is something that I have really struggled with. It was really eye-opening for me to see and hear Skip model this and to recognize how it didn’t interrupt or disrupt the flow of teaching or language. I know, based on research and practice, that using the shared language in class does not do harm to student acquisition of the target language, but I have always stopped this when it happened in my class. (Like last week.) Re-reading my notes from watching Skip, I wish that I had just let it run its course, and recognized that the student was getting what they needed in that moment.</span></p><h4 style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Personalizing</span></h4><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;"> Personalizing our classes is one of the core practices of a comprehension based classroom - after all, getting to know our students and talking with and about them is in our standards! And it takes a while- and practice- to use the information we get from them in a way that works in class. Skip reminded me of the importance of this. Some of the things he did included referring to their pets and their interests and hobbies throughout the class.</span></p><h4 style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Staying in-bounds- only using language that had been used in class and referring only to what had happened in class that day. </span></h4><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;"> Out of all the skills that are necessary for a comprehension based class, staying “in bounds” is maybe the hardest. ESPECIALLY when you have students who are at widely differing levels of proficiency. (Like me, last week, with an 8th grader who had never had language instruction and the rest of the class who had 2+ years of proficiency driven instruction…) It takes a lot of intention and work to make it automatic, and compassion for ourselves when we don’t get it right. </span></p><h2 style="text-align: left;">Differentiation in the Moment: A Game </h2><h3 style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><b>Overview</b> </span></h3><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Using a simple game format, the teacher asks questions of students that they are confident they can answer. The teacher asks different questions of students depending on the student. </span></p><h3 style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;">What’s the point? </span></h3><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Teachers can use a game format to build student confidence and motivation by asking differentiated questions during the game. Plus, this is a great “sponge” activity to use when only a few minutes of class remain. </span></p><h3 style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Teacher Directions: </span></h3><p style="text-align: left;"></p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li><span style="font-size: medium;">Students stand or sit in a circle.</span></li><li><span style="font-size: medium;">Teacher throws a soft object at a student OR students pass object around until music stops. </span></li><li><span style="font-size: medium;">Teacher asks a question about the day’s input (or other known information) that the student can answer.</span></li></ul><p></p><h3 style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Student directions</span></h3><p style="text-align: left;"></p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li><span style="font-size: medium;">Catch or pass the object as directed.</span></li><li><span style="font-size: medium;">Answer the questions. </span></li></ul><p></p><h3 style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;">For some ideas of differentiated questions:</span></h3><div><ul style="text-align: left;"><li><span style="font-size: medium;">What does ___ mean in English? </span></li><li><span style="font-size: medium;">How do you say ____ in [the target language] ?</span></li><li><span style="font-size: medium;">Where did [person] go first in the story?</span></li><li><span style="font-size: medium;">What is one fact about [topic]? </span></li><li><span style="font-size: medium;">[in target language] Yes or no: ______. </span></li><li><span style="font-size: medium;">“You ask me a question” (for more advanced students, in the target language) </span></li></ul></div><h3 style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Tips </span></h3><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;">You can play this with a lot of different kinds of games- any game where you ask questions about something that you make up on the spot. I have done it with<a href="https://senorachase.com/2018/03/20/the-lucky-reading-game/" target="_blank"> The Lucky Reading Game</a> and also with a variation of 4 Corners.</span></p><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;">STAY TUNED FOR MORE - Coming soon I hope! <br />Differentiation and observing Adriana Ramírez, <br />The Student who is new to Class and how she read a whole page of a story after 3 weeks<br />Not Quite Plan B, Not Quite Anything goes (adding structure when kids are squirrely) </span></p>Eliciahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17014283811911497554noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7311138534527402755.post-77600847763792033212022-07-19T12:51:00.001-07:002022-07-19T12:51:25.032-07:00Live! In Person! Two-day training! Salt Lake City, here I come...<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmL8oGzkIrjgac796rmikQSeYdXRBO6x8PbaWS2fiv-qGUCUMXwpmPaiJo9R4EBxF7XNCNJZ0bXDWD2Wn493DZhevtdc4pW4mT5OLzr5tr9J3i_T2pbCtk92fRX-Lij6w-fOKypYdwapAAAcZjJF85P4dTpd_4VoZXQeo2feF3R8hZZkx5Ep_G8Ao3/s1500/1.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1500" data-original-width="1200" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmL8oGzkIrjgac796rmikQSeYdXRBO6x8PbaWS2fiv-qGUCUMXwpmPaiJo9R4EBxF7XNCNJZ0bXDWD2Wn493DZhevtdc4pW4mT5OLzr5tr9J3i_T2pbCtk92fRX-Lij6w-fOKypYdwapAAAcZjJF85P4dTpd_4VoZXQeo2feF3R8hZZkx5Ep_G8Ao3/w320-h400/1.png" width="320" /></a></div><p><span style="font-size: medium;">Warning: Shameless pitch about a workshop that I am leading. </span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">(It's my blog, I can pitch if I want to!) </span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">I am so excited to be able to bring a 2 day workshop to our Mountain West region. I have been working very hard at creating trainings that actually mean something- and frankly, I am really proud of the work I've been doing. I'm really proud of the aha moments I see from teachers, from the feedback that helps me grow, and of the confidence that teachers have reported feeling after the workshops. I'm also (and yeah-I am tooting my own horn here) really proud that teachers of languages other than Spanish (我 看 你们 中文 老师)feel supported. </span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">I also tried to make this particular workshop as easy as possible for people coming in from out of town- based on all the things that I find hard and expensive when traveling! </span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">The workshop location is in a downtown hotel, easily accessible by quick and simple public transportation (direct ride) from the airport, near places that I would actually want to eat. (I know, because I actually eat at the near by restaurants.) We were also able to negotiate a reasonable hotel rate. Finally, I designed it so that participants could potentially fly out on the second day (workshop ends at 1:00, with optional coaching in the afternoon), because who needs to spend another night in a hotel unless you want to? </span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">Oh, and you can earn graduate credits too! </span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;"><i><b>Here are the details:</b></i></span></p><p><b><a href="https://www.eventbrite.com/e/teaching-and-assessing-for-acquisition-salt-lake-city-2022-tickets-362465793947" target="_blank">Click here for registration</a></b></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">August 10-August 11, 2022</span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">Teach and Assess for Acquisition </span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">Salt Lake City, UT </span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">Cost $150.00</span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">If you are interested in doing some in-person training with me, please take a look at the information on this link- all the details are here, including information about the hotel, what's included, more about the workshop content, contact info, and more, check out this link: <a href="https://www.eventbrite.com/e/teaching-and-assessing-for-acquisition-salt-lake-city-2022-tickets-362465793947" target="_blank">Teach and Assess for Acquisition in Salt Lake City </a></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><p></p><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjS6ETTLN1YbL5F2CVfjiotVQ8hR05XOyZOG5K31c2XbVv_LBJuCOfuIQZNIETvsL3MAAnFCjVIeJkkGKSavIyT1Vjt6HoSsJBwgv_fmwy5YwImhsRXyPRsFDLLxoTXPYk_u-qfs-ANj4z3JHfGiITJDpG6qZeUEQ014uMIjyf33d1LgD9tZ1WdjUly/s1500/2.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1500" data-original-width="1200" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjS6ETTLN1YbL5F2CVfjiotVQ8hR05XOyZOG5K31c2XbVv_LBJuCOfuIQZNIETvsL3MAAnFCjVIeJkkGKSavIyT1Vjt6HoSsJBwgv_fmwy5YwImhsRXyPRsFDLLxoTXPYk_u-qfs-ANj4z3JHfGiITJDpG6qZeUEQ014uMIjyf33d1LgD9tZ1WdjUly/s320/2.png" width="256" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiOdNl6DLa6Bh5mGMDLvyxZsnzFvB1RhagJbphJ2wzO1glLGnrr5tA6UiNI9VtOSKvTSWXFtZcTuC4sgFfAtltgE0MIv1f-P9XAc0qom5sxz2e67lONfF71QfR8dW77dcJz73AfXJ4zwlXRH95I69kJHUzJY_tQpcpaLp2SVIH_iekJ15UNxB41sX1Z/s1500/3.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1500" data-original-width="1200" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiOdNl6DLa6Bh5mGMDLvyxZsnzFvB1RhagJbphJ2wzO1glLGnrr5tA6UiNI9VtOSKvTSWXFtZcTuC4sgFfAtltgE0MIv1f-P9XAc0qom5sxz2e67lONfF71QfR8dW77dcJz73AfXJ4zwlXRH95I69kJHUzJY_tQpcpaLp2SVIH_iekJ15UNxB41sX1Z/s320/3.png" width="256" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjwIfLQaWusQwPog5m2tHEzLxo0Gtr0mHh0gje0izPS-NpR_wLxbr7EUJpp5jkelrTu6wcQYMu651HPecBBbyK5pbGy16PSjgAb5elKDPOfnG2Gjq04BATfnsCzOOGahahYFnRRHZIfRSkjkgGkFmakC_qKnIxF0pV0RLUfqrljYGWlTUhWV3k8HJLc/s1500/4.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1500" data-original-width="1200" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjwIfLQaWusQwPog5m2tHEzLxo0Gtr0mHh0gje0izPS-NpR_wLxbr7EUJpp5jkelrTu6wcQYMu651HPecBBbyK5pbGy16PSjgAb5elKDPOfnG2Gjq04BATfnsCzOOGahahYFnRRHZIfRSkjkgGkFmakC_qKnIxF0pV0RLUfqrljYGWlTUhWV3k8HJLc/s320/4.png" width="256" /></a></div><br /><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p>Eliciahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17014283811911497554noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7311138534527402755.post-59632605061577059772021-12-26T12:13:00.001-08:002021-12-26T12:13:00.167-08:00Projects in World Language Classes: An Opinion<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEh6CGN09qoq0qwRY-xGhiD-Z2birWaNEvkSXHCdDZOYxAsHmTwuy0gnSJa1gZCqPMV-2ypfudLwd3veGiyJCG9_-_vaPfSr8E59FzBLF4bhXkxVcpTAxEutU8gQFIB-L1MWZfTBSQsn667bekEA2PCaDCe126SKftVvmx8AKOB7_xgw3V3lY3ZFT1Eq=s1080" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img alt="image: classroom background with text overlaid that reads: Do projects support language acquisition?" border="0" data-original-height="1080" data-original-width="1080" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEh6CGN09qoq0qwRY-xGhiD-Z2birWaNEvkSXHCdDZOYxAsHmTwuy0gnSJa1gZCqPMV-2ypfudLwd3veGiyJCG9_-_vaPfSr8E59FzBLF4bhXkxVcpTAxEutU8gQFIB-L1MWZfTBSQsn667bekEA2PCaDCe126SKftVvmx8AKOB7_xgw3V3lY3ZFT1Eq=w400-h400" width="400" /></a></div><div><span style="font-size: medium;"></span></div><span style="font-size: medium;"><div><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div></span><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Let's talk about projects, shall we? </span></p><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;">It's something that comes up a lot. I am basing this on the number of posts about projects in every language teacher forum, even those that are dedicated to comprehension based teaching. <br /></span><span style="font-size: medium;">Important: I am writing this piece, on my blog, about what <u>I</u> think. I am not intending to judge anyone for their instructional choices. I *do* want to explore some ideas that have been sloshing around in my brain around projects and their various purposes. Again, I am not writing this to say that anyone is bad or less good or anything else. And maybe, you might find some ideas that support you in your journey to be a little bit more comprehension based and/or a little bit more equitable, which *is* what I hope to do. </span></p><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Some teachers build their whole language curricula around projects. Others use projects to manage an otherwise unmanageable set of school expectations and duties (e.g. coaching, directing a school play, etc.). Others have such fond memories of their own projects in language class that they can't imagine not doing them! And, finally, some kids love them, parents and admin often love them, and they do seem to part of the unspoken list of "Important Things to Do In Language Class."</span></p><h3 style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: large;">What are projects? </span></h3><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;">When I think about projects, I am thinking of things like:</span></p><div><ul style="text-align: left;"><li><span style="font-size: medium;">Students write, edit, illustrate, and publish a text to share or include in the class library. </span></li><li><span style="font-size: medium;">Students make a craft of some sort, usually culturally relevant. They might present about the craft as well. </span></li><li><span style="font-size: medium;">Students research a topic and produce something- a written or oral presentation or product on that topic. </span></li><li><span style="font-size: medium;">Students work together to create a skit to perform in front of other students. </span></li></ul></div><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Project Based Learning (PBL), a super hot New Thing, has a lot going for it too, and many schools are jumping on the PBL bandwagon to show how their students are using real world skills to solve real world problems. Now, I have some love in my heart from project based learning as a general educator, and I have a lot of questions and critiques of it as well- again, as a general educator. Having watched my colleagues move to an integrated project based learning system (and being dragged along for the ride), I see how it *can* result in meaningful learning. IN GENERAL EDUCATION CLASSES. As a language teacher, I have a lot of concerns. </span></p><div><span style="font-size: medium;">A recent post in a language teacher group got me thinking about what the purpose of projects might be, why kids (and admin) ask for them, and how we can meet that purpose in a way that supports language acquisition. </span></div><h3><br />My Opinion: <span style="font-size: large;">Most projects do not support language acquisition. Especially for novice and intermediate leaners. </span></h3><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: large;">Teachers might choose to do them for other reasons, so again #nojudgement. </span></p><div><span style="font-size: medium;"><span> I have written before on this subject, but here's a summary of my thinking: </span> (<a href="https://comprehensibleclassroom.freshdesk.com/support/solutions/articles/64000253418-does-somos-include-projects-?fbclid=IwAR0F7h2hiHjH825Y2iDtV2NbElnWeQcabz-R_InJuuOFXpA9o5D8OrsX4_U" target="_blank">excerpted from this article</a>):</span></div><div><ul style="text-align: left;"><li><span style="font-size: medium;">Projects are usually not level appropriate. Most teachers overestimate what their students can and “should be able to” do, and most projects involve specific, contextualized vocabulary that will require time to look up and memorize, as well as discourse beyond their level. A good rule of thumb is “if they struggle with the activity, the task is too challenging.”</span></li><li><span style="font-size: medium;">Projects are incredibly time consuming for both teachers and students, using time that could alternately be used to do things that help students acquire language (e.g. input). </span></li><li><span style="font-size: medium;">If the students have to produce something to share with others, either it is fairly low quality (because they don’t have the language yet) or it requires a great deal of time- consuming editing and correction on the part of the teacher.</span></li><li><span style="font-size: medium;">Dr. Bill VanPatten talks a bit about project based tasks in chapter 6 of <u><a href="https://www.amazon.com/While-Were-Topic-Acquisition-Classroom-ebook/dp/B08FCNF81L" target="_blank">While We're on the Topic,</a></u> and points out that <i>project based tasks are not intended to practice language,</i> <i>nor are they appropriate for beginners. </i>He gives some solid examples of tasks that might work in upper levels. He also speaks very specifically about Project Based Learning (PBL) in Target Language. </span><span style="font-size: large;"> </span></li></ul></div><div><blockquote><span style="background-color: #f7f7f9; font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-size: 16px; font-style: italic;">Most PBL is beyond what students of language can do at the lower levels. Imported from educational contexts, PBL assumes ability with language. This is why it is a popular approach for learning science, history, and other subjects; speakers work in their first language to complete PBL projects, but beginning students don't have skills in the second language equivalent to their first language skills. So PBL in languages might be better for more advanced language proficiency levels." (VanPatten, 2019)</span></blockquote><ul><li><span style="font-size: medium;">Research in second language acquisition (SLA) tells us that practice is unnecessary for language acquisition. Students do not need to speak or practice to acquire. They need to listen to messages and read messages, that they understand. </span></li></ul><div><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEg-Rqk7RYgSJKuY3e_2EzDwMYn4OMm81SbfPxlZAGPLyp--qsdfDme-eY_narx3iy9zfKDgjXmbnHLeCRw7Sk8gpDCMQU7KYK8cI1xxpLYB3zyaYj-AjXzUoNjEQe15s6IUoBJaz8KehxkoHFtcRC2855Oga1yY4cXRp8ce38MGZqIjVM7W6VO-7Ldt=s1080" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="Background of bookshelves with text that reads: What need is not being met when stakeholders ask to do projects?" border="0" data-original-height="1080" data-original-width="1080" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEg-Rqk7RYgSJKuY3e_2EzDwMYn4OMm81SbfPxlZAGPLyp--qsdfDme-eY_narx3iy9zfKDgjXmbnHLeCRw7Sk8gpDCMQU7KYK8cI1xxpLYB3zyaYj-AjXzUoNjEQe15s6IUoBJaz8KehxkoHFtcRC2855Oga1yY4cXRp8ce38MGZqIjVM7W6VO-7Ldt=w400-h400" width="400" /></a></div><div></div><h3 style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></h3><h3 style="text-align: left;">What do projects accomplish? </h3><p><span style="font-size: medium;">This is some new thinking for me: to really consider what it is that projects accomplish. </span></p><p style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: medium;">When kids/parents/admin ask for projects, what is the purpose? </span></p><p style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: medium;">What need is not being met (or not being visibly met)? </span></p><span style="font-size: medium;">In asking for projects, stakeholders might be asking for:</span><p></p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li><span style="font-size: medium;">more "fun"</span></li><li><span style="font-size: medium;">opportunities to follow their interests and personalize learning</span></li><li><span style="font-size: medium;">opportunities to create with language</span></li><li><span style="font-size: medium;">more time interacting with peers</span></li></ul><div><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEjuXZ7qpsFSNHWX-bugXMOTASTHH6Oj53qdTt4gir-QFlNZrweFfM-nLu5Qtja4vc4SzZE8HVfoWh0T8Rw40-N7Rc5-X2IoyI_ZtN_QA3OcpNs0D8TddxEaXU3cBqXY5-i_wWOepifhNOdbHsThA2Jhj2SNOtMf40WwzogDq9BiMEAXwnQXzMfumBjW=s1080" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="Background of classroom with text that reads "How can we meet those unmet needs in a way that DOES support language acquisition?"" border="0" data-original-height="1080" data-original-width="1080" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEjuXZ7qpsFSNHWX-bugXMOTASTHH6Oj53qdTt4gir-QFlNZrweFfM-nLu5Qtja4vc4SzZE8HVfoWh0T8Rw40-N7Rc5-X2IoyI_ZtN_QA3OcpNs0D8TddxEaXU3cBqXY5-i_wWOepifhNOdbHsThA2Jhj2SNOtMf40WwzogDq9BiMEAXwnQXzMfumBjW=w400-h400" width="400" /></a></div></div><h3 style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><div style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: medium;">So my question becomes: are there other ways to directly meet some of those needs, while still giving students lots of input?</span></div><div style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Yes! I think there are! </span>My first idea is centered around reading, aka Free Voluntary Reading / Self-Selected Reading / Free Choice Reading. </div><div style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div style="font-weight: normal;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhNQwljyA2SP_oNm1u133LRgH90G0s2uUXcesJ9Zqgg9beU7gcAxstXk-n-3kuoCPqiCV0PJMf8ESEFkebTv1yNQ_q5rhS6WaKmPMEGlUntoNHIYv0uFnOfF6FPm8KRCRJAoX1Du27k48xUQhw8C7DodvDZkgLH5uDBYLNCyiNQViQXKYWqJTQffV7Z=s1080" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="Background of books with text that reads "Free Choice reading accomplishes many of the same goals as projects"." border="0" data-original-height="1080" data-original-width="1080" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhNQwljyA2SP_oNm1u133LRgH90G0s2uUXcesJ9Zqgg9beU7gcAxstXk-n-3kuoCPqiCV0PJMf8ESEFkebTv1yNQ_q5rhS6WaKmPMEGlUntoNHIYv0uFnOfF6FPm8KRCRJAoX1Du27k48xUQhw8C7DodvDZkgLH5uDBYLNCyiNQViQXKYWqJTQffV7Z=w400-h400" width="400" /></a></div></div></span></h3><h4><br /></h4><h3 style="text-align: left;">Personalize Learning & Following Student Interests</h3><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: large; font-weight: normal;">Free reading is a great way to let students personalize their learning, follow their interests, acquire vocabulary that is relevant to them, and of course, to differentiate. When one student is reading about music, another is reading a story about immigration, and another is reading about a favorite sport, students are personalizing their learning. </span></p><div><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-size: medium;">And remember- you don't have to have a huge budget to buy readers in your target language. There are many ways to get free and low cost texts in your classroom. (Hint: a printer and dollar store page protectors can go a long way!) </span></div><div><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-size: medium;">You can read more about how I set up my free reading program <a href="https://www.desklessclassroom.com/2016/11/sustained-silent-reading-free-voluntary.html" target="_blank">here</a>, and from Alina Filipescu here: <a href="https://tprsforchinese.blogspot.com/2018/01/ssrfvr-reading-program.html?view=classic" target="_blank">SSR/ FVR Reading Program</a>. Bryce Hedstrom recently wrote an entire book about it (which I have not yet read but plan on it!): </span><span style="font-size: medium;"><a href="https://www.brycehedstrom.com/product/hi-impact-reading-strategies/" target="_blank">High Impact Reading Strategies</a> </span></div><h4 style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></h4><h4 style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: large;">More time interacting with peers</span></h4><div><span style="font-size: medium;">Letting students talk about their books with each other is a very simple, quick way to let students socialize. Yes, I *do* let them speak in the shared language (English, in my case) because I only want them to do this for a couple of minutes. The payoff is <b>huge</b> as they get excited about their books, hear about different books, and engage in the habit of readers everywhere: telling people about their favorites. Andrea Schweitzer has a great activity for this as well- you can read that here, on Martina Bex's blog: <a href="https://comprehensibleclassroom.com/2020/02/24/speed-dating-class-library/" target="_blank">Speed Dating your classroom library.</a></span></div><div><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-size: medium;">What about <a href="https://senorachase.com/2019/01/19/game-of-quotes-a-free-reading-game/" target="_blank">Game of Quotes</a>? This game, from AnneMarie Chase, is social, fun, and lets students feel like they are creating with language...while re-reading. It's brilliant.</span></div><h3 style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></h3><h3 style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: large;">More Fun</span></h3></div><div><span style="font-size: medium;">Have you ever played<a href="https://senorachase.com/2019/01/19/game-of-quotes-a-free-reading-game/" target="_blank"> Game of Quotes</a>? Go do that. Have you ever gotten pleasure from telling someone about a book that you enjoyed? Let your kids do that! </span></div><div><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><h4 style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhvl-9YsxxMb-G0_-LHco0yUmNotvrSLg0HbWjP_gCWtuLiz8-WNLQoFayditxd_Bv0y4K0FiGRebfvFGDfvDXvcVyaLgJWEJJIbaeaUvrIghylt8h0WcS4pjzc83Wwf-cVk1rOPcPRkb6q_tqTuIVDSbTFA6hXFQWNZGd76Z2LF-fzI0p1e_n0ni75=s1080" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="Background of school hallway with lockers with text that reads: "Co-creating narratives is fun, community building, personalized, and interactive."" border="0" data-original-height="1080" data-original-width="1080" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhvl-9YsxxMb-G0_-LHco0yUmNotvrSLg0HbWjP_gCWtuLiz8-WNLQoFayditxd_Bv0y4K0FiGRebfvFGDfvDXvcVyaLgJWEJJIbaeaUvrIghylt8h0WcS4pjzc83Wwf-cVk1rOPcPRkb6q_tqTuIVDSbTFA6hXFQWNZGd76Z2LF-fzI0p1e_n0ni75=w400-h400" width="400" /></a></div></span></h4><h3 style="text-align: left;"><br />Co-creating narratives (aka Asking a story, story asking, TPRS)</h3><h4><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: large;">For some teachers, asking a story is really stressful and doesn't work for them. I get that, and also, it works for me and it one of my favorite things to do with students of all ages. You can read more about story asking </span><a href="https://www.desklessclassroom.com/p/blog-page_10.html">here</a><span style="font-size: large;"> and watch me do it with students </span><a href="https://www.desklessclassroom.com/2020/01/story-asking-video.html" target="_blank">here</a><span style="font-size: large;"> and </span><a href="https://www.desklessclassroom.com/2020/02/new-video-raw-and-uncut-reading-from.html" target="_blank">here</a></span><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-weight: normal;">.</span> </span></p></h4><div><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-size: medium;">When I co-create a story in class, I have a script outline (usually, but not always!). I ask the students for details about who the story is about, specific events in the story, and often the end of the story. Students contribute their ideas, and often these ideas are glimpses into what they are interested in. </span></div><h4 style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></h4><h4 style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: large;">Personalize Learning and following student interests</span></h4><div><span style="font-size: medium;">When you co-create a story and are able to incorporate student interests in that story, it is all about them. I know it seems like story asking is very teacher directed, but when student suggestions and interests are incorporated, the story really does become their story. From watching Storage Wars to riding on the backs of giant bison (a reference to some popular animated Netflix show), their ideas that are included (and even the ones that aren't included) create a sense that the language in the classroom is theirs. </span></div><h4 style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></h4><h4 style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: large;">More time interacting with peers</span></h4><div><span style="font-size: medium;">I ask students to interact with their peers in a lot of ways, both during the process of story asking as well as after. During story asking, I might let them turn to a shoulder partner to do a quick recap of what happened so far (in our shared language or in the target language, depending on the level), or to make a prediction, or to decide what happens next. After the story is done, I might do any one of a variety of interactive activities. <a href="https://www.desklessclassroom.com/2019/05/play-doh-day.html" target="_blank"> Play doh scenes </a>comes to mind, as do any of the small group variations of <a href="https://www.desklessclassroom.com/p/ufla-19-prese.html" target="_blank">Secret Input</a>. (You can even see a video of my kids doing some interacting here: <a href="https://www.desklessclassroom.com/2021/10/breathing-space-resting-space.html" target="_blank">Breathing Space, Resting Space.</a>) Some of my favorite activities from the <a href="http://www.somoscurriculum.com" target="_blank">SOMOS Curriculum</a>, like <a href="https://comprehensibleclassroom.com/2011/06/29/running-dictation/" target="_blank">Running Dictation</a>, <a href="https://comprehensibleclassroom.com/2012/09/28/write-draw-pass-a-better-way/" target="_blank">Write Draw Pass</a>, <a href="https://comprehensibleclassroom.com/2017/10/02/fan-n-pick-the-possibilities-are-endless/" target="_blank">Fan N Pick</a>, and <a href="https://comprehensibleclassroom.com/2011/05/04/ninesquare/" target="_blank">9-Square and variations</a>s all involve some level of peer interaction (depending on how you do it). And don't forget all the <a href="https://comprehensibleclassroom.com/category/cooperative-learning/" target="_blank">input focused Kagan activities and cooperative learning</a> that Martina has adapted! <a href="https://senorachase.com/2018/03/20/the-lucky-reading-game/" target="_blank">The Lucky Reading Game</a>, from AnneMarie Chase, is a blast and is virtually no prep. </span></div><div><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-size: medium;">Heck, I have even been known to let students write, with a peer, their own version of the story (I give them 20 minutes and very specific directions). Although they spend their time speaking English during the process, the payoff is a bunch of different stories that I can type up (correcting any irregular language), and that we can then read, illustrate, vote on (funniest, most probable, least probable, most creative, etc.), and add to our class library. </span></div><h4 style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></h4><h4 style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: large;">More fun</span></h4><div><span style="font-size: medium;">Story asking is usually pretty fun, in and of itself. And playing with play doh? Yep, also fun. Any of the post-reading activities I listed above are pretty fun! Some are more prep, some are low prep, and some are no prep. </span></div><h4 style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></h4><h4 style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: large;">Creating with language: Some musings </span></h4><div><span style="font-size: medium;">Now, you may have noticed that I haven't really mentioned a lot about giving students more opportunities to create with language, although that may be one reason why projects are requested. </span></div><div><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-size: medium;">Here's the thing: I think that it is possible to give students lots of opportunities to create with language, but I tend *not* to create activities that force them to do so. The one glaring exception to this is when I ask students to do <a href="https://www.desklessclassroom.com/2020/11/timed-free-writes-one-practice-that.html" target="_blank">Timed Free writes (Fluency Writes).</a> Please read more about why I choose to do these, if you are curious. </span></div><div><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-size: medium;">The reason I don't force them to create with language (with that one exception) is that I strongly believe that forcing them to create won't help them acquire, and it has the strong potential to raise their affective filter- that is- to make them stressed out, which will inhibit their acquisition. <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div></span><span style="font-size: medium;">I will work on a future blog post about how I create opportunities to create with language at some point. Annabelle Williamson (La Maestra Loca) has a lot of brain breaks that support students creating language as well- take a look at <a href="https://www.blogger.com/u/1/#">her blog</a> for some ideas. </span></div><div><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-size: medium;">One way that allows students to create with language is to give them rejoinders. </span></div><div><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-size: medium;">I use rejoinders all the time, and I find that they are a great way to let students express themselves, even when they are beginning language students. For more about rejoinders, hop over to <a href="http://www.grantboulanger.com/rejoinders-getting-started/" target="_blank">Grant Boulanger's blog</a> and learn more. </span></div><div><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-size: medium;">So, to sum up: when stakeholders ask for projects, it's worth it to ask ourselves: what needs are not being met that they think projects will meet? How can I meet those needs in a way that will support language acquisition? </span></div><div><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-size: medium;">I hope this blog post has given you some food for thought! </span></div><div><br /></div><div><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div><br /></div>Eliciahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17014283811911497554noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7311138534527402755.post-77684967345997501432021-10-28T12:23:00.003-07:002022-10-28T08:35:36.192-07:00Breathing Space/ Resting Space<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYqpncXrz2F6YquYzfhw8LZX7QDt33yLOlubqivJGbxMDDQtPYiXlpeg0Z31rjoWXeJZ7rNRlQ-ZTDXHqorxMwx8VI7jmwvgbWATnoKDpIe3ZyKG2_Lw4eMbziscyJ79Qu1MLCjcFWJRU/s1080/1.png" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img alt="Image: desert sunset. Text reads: The Exhaustion is REAL. How do I provide input and give myself a break?" border="0" data-original-height="1080" data-original-width="1080" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYqpncXrz2F6YquYzfhw8LZX7QDt33yLOlubqivJGbxMDDQtPYiXlpeg0Z31rjoWXeJZ7rNRlQ-ZTDXHqorxMwx8VI7jmwvgbWATnoKDpIe3ZyKG2_Lw4eMbziscyJ79Qu1MLCjcFWJRU/w400-h400/1.png" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"></td></tr></tbody></table><h2 style="text-align: left;"></h2><h2 style="text-align: left;">The Exhaustion is REAL</h2><p><span style="font-size: medium;">Over the last few months, I have been getting a lot of requests from teachers for activities that give them a break- activities that are still input-focused but let students work independently or in small groups. I hear you!</span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">The feeling of being<span style="font-family: inherit;"> on all the time, of being the one who has to guide the conversation, to monitor every kid's comprehension, and the sheer emotional weight of taking care of every person in the room is exhausting. The thousands of decisions we make each hour are overwhelming. Deciding which word to use, when to walk over to that student to check in on them, when to ask a question, when to stop and give students a break, all the while that we are managing the actual humans in the room, while speaking in a different language and navigating between languages...it's really, really hard.</span></span></p><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgcZEu3CQzWqaYWfHrkq6OoFfZG-EfTHpGEdlG6tISQ8NqY0nYcuKTWaKmhBg0D26Nn-acnrBYZ-pPm6QFr2GbIA-p46LTBVEYIYktIyOutL2TtDIn08EKi6muQZV7Y7OTbZh48gfNrOIM/s1080/6.png" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img alt="Image: Desert sunset. Text reads: Breathing Space, Resting Space" border="0" data-original-height="1080" data-original-width="1080" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgcZEu3CQzWqaYWfHrkq6OoFfZG-EfTHpGEdlG6tISQ8NqY0nYcuKTWaKmhBg0D26Nn-acnrBYZ-pPm6QFr2GbIA-p46LTBVEYIYktIyOutL2TtDIn08EKi6muQZV7Y7OTbZh48gfNrOIM/w400-h400/6.png" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br /></td></tr></tbody></table><h2 style="text-align: left;">Breathing Space/ Resting Space</h2><p><span style="font-size: medium;">So what do we do to make it feel like we aren't on all the time in a comprehension-based classroom? How can we give students input, that they understand, and not feel like we have to be captivating their attention 100% of the time? </span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">Luckily, there are a lot things we can do! Some things require some up-front work- either in finding or creating texts that are 100% comprehensible to your students. Here is an article that addresses that: <a href="https://comprehensibleclassroom.com/2017/09/21/how-to-write-comprehensible-texts/" target="_blank">How to write texts that your students understand</a> (The Comprehensible Classroom)- but if you are working with a curriculum or novel that has texts that you are confident that your students understand, or you work to co-create a text (through strategies such as Asking a Story, Card Talk, Write & Discuss, etc.) you have a TON of options.</span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">I decided to dissect a lesson, filmed when I was recovering from a major knee surgery, and share exactly what I was doing to give students input, allow for super low energy on my part, and get through a really rough time in my life. (You can read more about some of the lessons I learned during this season of being on crutches here:<a href="https://www.desklessclassroom.com/2019/04/mindset-reminder-as-new-trimester.html" target="_blank"> Mindset Reminder</a>)</span></p><br /><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEihDmXSQYsN4AA05lBb1mbi5XSy2PpckZkjjbu63RzoXPsMiyYYHFP-PqQDEb__KFhn8MfCQqYegdHyqVQyionaULqaKYahI4drCBcUZ7WTWzntGHTmogXNT25TCWznaPf2aosC1t9qwxU/s1080/2.png" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img alt="Image: polaroid photo with colored pencils. Text reads: Listen and Draw. Teacher reads a familiar text. Students draw events from the story. Activity Credit: Laurie Clarcq, Hearts for Teaching" border="0" data-original-height="1080" data-original-width="1080" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEihDmXSQYsN4AA05lBb1mbi5XSy2PpckZkjjbu63RzoXPsMiyYYHFP-PqQDEb__KFhn8MfCQqYegdHyqVQyionaULqaKYahI4drCBcUZ7WTWzntGHTmogXNT25TCWznaPf2aosC1t9qwxU/w400-h400/2.png" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption"><h2 style="text-align: left;"><br /></h2></td></tr></tbody></table><h2 style="text-align: left;">Strategy 1: Listen and Draw</h2><p><span style="font-size: medium;">I had students draw while I read. I asked a handful- a very small handful- of comprehension questions to make sure that they were really understanding, but what I was reading was the typed out text of a story that we had co-created, so it was familiar and easily understood by students. In this activity, I had students use whiteboards and markers, but any kind of paper/writing utensil combination would work. I also had them draw 4 pictures, dividing the whiteboard in 4 boxes. Read more about that here: <a href="https://www.desklessclassroom.com/p/ufla-19-prese.html" target="_blank">Secret Input</a></span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">Activity Credit: Laurie Clarcq, <a href="http://www.heartsforteaching.com" target="_blank">Hearts for Teaching</a> <i>Honestly, I don't know where I learned about this, but it seems *likely* that I learned it from Laurie. It is one of several strategies that fall into what I call "secret input" strategies, that I have presented on a few times. If I learned it from you, please let me know so I can credit you! </i></span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">See this strategy in the video below at 0:22. </span></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhY2brtKvJaahiF_w9pJOMLVukJQB3hqRAaexegGbtvKepqGzHKAEUJAjdiYXfyQ6SSisk7c0h68mqIB4O0gwACvYide1krQ9tvfEhTBi1OfSgzvHIKqSSbn-g4s2Wn65mBUf6LWrGkmEg/s1080/3.png" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img alt="Image: Polaroid with an image of a stamp that reads Top Secret. Text reads: Secret Input. Students: find the text that matches the picture. Underline it in your copy of the text." border="0" data-original-height="1080" data-original-width="1080" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhY2brtKvJaahiF_w9pJOMLVukJQB3hqRAaexegGbtvKepqGzHKAEUJAjdiYXfyQ6SSisk7c0h68mqIB4O0gwACvYide1krQ9tvfEhTBi1OfSgzvHIKqSSbn-g4s2Wn65mBUf6LWrGkmEg/w400-h400/3.png" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"></td></tr></tbody></table><h2 style="text-align: left;">Strategy 2: Secret Input</h2><p><span style="font-size: medium;"> Find the text that matches the picture (Secret input variation)</span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">Once we had pictures, I had students prop their whiteboards on their chairs, find someone else's whiteboard, pick a picture, and, using a written copy of the text, find the best sentence to describe the picture. Then they had to underline the sentence in the text that matches the picture. They had to do this five times. </span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">See this strategy, including how I give directions in the target language, in the video at 9:24. </span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiAL5uEFVWggq8KIgMrDqnYju433WkB0eZ4FjlVkNTJ2623GLGwu4k1nFP55jOUF9EZzJR-ocOH5uhChNOX5_uo9LYFaWx702rOmXjG02rvdYNT0jIxA_tqL6Zv5xUGWpK0qTCrXucjBXw/s1080/4.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img alt="Image: Polaroid with students of color at a table looking at pictures. Text reads: Picture Share. Students highlight their own or another's picture and read the accompanying text" border="0" data-original-height="1080" data-original-width="1080" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiAL5uEFVWggq8KIgMrDqnYju433WkB0eZ4FjlVkNTJ2623GLGwu4k1nFP55jOUF9EZzJR-ocOH5uhChNOX5_uo9LYFaWx702rOmXjG02rvdYNT0jIxA_tqL6Zv5xUGWpK0qTCrXucjBXw/w400-h400/4.png" width="400" /></a></div><h2 style="text-align: left;"></h2><h2 style="text-align: left;">Strategy 3: Picture Share</h2><p><span style="font-size: medium;">Students highlight their own or each other's art.</span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">After students glued their copy of the story in their <a href="http://desklessclassroom.blogspot.com/search/label/Interactive-Notebooks" target="_blank">interactive-ish notebook</a>, they were invited to share their own or someone else's art. My role was calling on the kid, clarifying which picture, and listening. The kids did all the work AND celebrated each other! </span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">In video: 15:46</span></p><h2 style="text-align: left;">Brain break!</h2><p><span style="font-size: medium;">Brain break: <a href="https://www.lamaestraloca.com/2018/02/23/brain-breaks-part-11-pikachu/" target="_blank">Pikachu (From La Maestra Loca)</a> </span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;"><b>Bonus! </b>Practicing when students did not meet my expectation of going back to their seats silently. </span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">In video: 18:50</span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7Cv4a6v0IAPLFbKlFdPuEpIGbYIqju7nW5vP7udEaqGpBk62W40FEPgUOjvoGujNRS9MajWtKK5g0_joBcLcgT8pFYpCIkmEHJEjjVkmVXdtPUmVADRO9FcxbQstH7aenIfi-Oa5_VnE/s1080/5.png" style="font-size: 24px; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img alt="Image: Polaroid of chrysalis becoming a butterfly. Text reads: Before or After? The teacher reads an event from the story, and asks students to write what happened before or after. Activity credit: The Comprehensible Classroom" border="0" data-original-height="1080" data-original-width="1080" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7Cv4a6v0IAPLFbKlFdPuEpIGbYIqju7nW5vP7udEaqGpBk62W40FEPgUOjvoGujNRS9MajWtKK5g0_joBcLcgT8pFYpCIkmEHJEjjVkmVXdtPUmVADRO9FcxbQstH7aenIfi-Oa5_VnE/w400-h400/5.png" width="400" /></a></div><h1 style="text-align: left;"></h1><h2 style="text-align: left;">Strategy 4: Before or After</h2><p><span style="font-size: medium;">This is a low-to-moderate energy activity. While it is teacher led, it feels very low energy to me because all I am doing is asking students to re-read the text and find the answer to one of two questions (which required no prep on my part), then copy the answer on their white board. I think that it feels low energy to me because while students are writing, I am drinking coffee, futzing with the music, reading over their shoulders, providing hints or support, etc. You can read a detailed description of this activity here: <a href="https://comprehensibleclassroom.com/2011/11/16/before-and-after/" target="_blank">Before and After</a>. I learned it from Martina Bex. </span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">In video: 20:20</span></p><h2 style="text-align: left;">Another Brain Break</h2><p><span style="font-size: medium;">Brain Break: <a href="https://youtu.be/m0uiA6UITDw" target="_blank">Toe Tapping Brain Break</a></span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">I have NO idea where I learned this from, sorry! If I learned it from you, please let me know and I will credit you! </span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">In video: 29:18</span></p><h2 style="text-align: left;">Strategy 5: Draw and Write a prediction</h2><p><span style="font-size: medium;">This strategy only works for some teaching contexts- specifically, when one is teaching a novel. In this class, we had read chapters 1-5 of Brandon Brown Quiere un Perro, then diverted a bit from the novel to ask a story. To bring us back to the world of the novel, I asked students to draw and write what they thought would happen next in the novel. This activity was adapted from the Teacher's Guide. </span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">Note: That day, before I went home, I picked 7 or 8 of the best predictions, corrected any language errors, and put them in a slide show to print out. When we next met as a class, I put the printed slides around the room and had kids walk around, read the predictions, and then vote for funniest, most probable, most improbable, and most creative. This was another way for me to get them to interact with input without me leading the class- but it did require prep on my part. </span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">In the video: 30:15</span></p><h2 style="text-align: left;">High Energy Strategy: Weekend chat</h2><p><span style="font-size: medium;">For the last few minutes of class, I asked students what they did over the weekend. So you can see what it looks like! Read more about weekend chat here: <a href="https://comprehensibleclassroom.com/2018/05/22/weekend-talk-language-class/" target="_blank">Weekend Chat</a></span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">In the video: 34:28</span></p><h2 style="text-align: left;">The Video</h2><p><span style="font-size: medium;">Here is a *very* long, unedited, un-captioned, imperfect video in Spanish that shows most of the this lesson. I am sharing this so if you want to see what some of these strategies look like, you can! This video is unique in that I was about 4 months post-knee surgery, and I was on and off my crutches throughout the video. I was a real mess during this time period (because of the surgery and accompanying massive pain levels and stress of not being able to do anything that I wanted to do, e.g. ride my bike), and I think the video really shows how you *can* provide tons of input without being captivating or high-energy. </span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">About this video: Students are in a Spanish 1B class in April of their 8th grade year. For most, this is their 2nd year of Spanish in a comprehension-based program. All students have permission to be used in this video. </span></p><h4 style="text-align: left;">Minute by minute guide </h4><p><span id="docs-internal-guid-54ca60aa-7fff-41d8-cf2d-7e0736fca8ff"></span></p><div align="left" dir="ltr" style="margin-left: 0pt;"><table style="border-collapse: collapse; border: none;"><colgroup><col width="143"></col><col width="261"></col></colgroup><tbody><tr style="height: 0pt;"><td style="border: 1pt solid rgb(0, 0, 0); overflow-wrap: break-word; overflow: hidden; padding: 5pt; vertical-align: top;"><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.2; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">0:22 </span></span></p></td><td style="border: 1pt solid rgb(0, 0, 0); overflow-wrap: break-word; overflow: hidden; padding: 5pt; vertical-align: top;"><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.2; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">Directions for Secret Input: Read and Draw</span></span></p></td></tr><tr style="height: 0pt;"><td style="border: 1pt solid rgb(0, 0, 0); overflow-wrap: break-word; overflow: hidden; padding: 5pt; vertical-align: top;"><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.2; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">9:24</span></span></p></td><td style="border: 1pt solid rgb(0, 0, 0); overflow-wrap: break-word; overflow: hidden; padding: 5pt; vertical-align: top;"><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.2; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">Directions for Secret Input: Find the Text </span></span></p></td></tr><tr style="height: 0pt;"><td style="border: 1pt solid rgb(0, 0, 0); overflow-wrap: break-word; overflow: hidden; padding: 5pt; vertical-align: top;"><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.2; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">15:46</span></span></p></td><td style="border: 1pt solid rgb(0, 0, 0); overflow-wrap: break-word; overflow: hidden; padding: 5pt; vertical-align: top;"><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.2; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">Secret input: Picture Share</span></span></p></td></tr><tr style="height: 0pt;"><td style="border: 1pt solid rgb(0, 0, 0); overflow-wrap: break-word; overflow: hidden; padding: 5pt; vertical-align: top;"><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.2; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">18:50 </span></span></p></td><td style="border: 1pt solid rgb(0, 0, 0); overflow-wrap: break-word; overflow: hidden; padding: 5pt; vertical-align: top;"><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.2; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">Brain Break: Pikachu</span></span></p></td></tr><tr style="height: 0pt;"><td style="border: 1pt solid rgb(0, 0, 0); overflow-wrap: break-word; overflow: hidden; padding: 5pt; vertical-align: top;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></td><td style="border: 1pt solid rgb(0, 0, 0); overflow-wrap: break-word; overflow: hidden; padding: 5pt; vertical-align: top;"><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.2; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">Practice returning to seats quietly!</span></span></p></td></tr><tr style="height: 0pt;"><td style="border: 1pt solid rgb(0, 0, 0); overflow-wrap: break-word; overflow: hidden; padding: 5pt; vertical-align: top;"><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.2; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">20:20</span></span></p></td><td style="border: 1pt solid rgb(0, 0, 0); overflow-wrap: break-word; overflow: hidden; padding: 5pt; vertical-align: top;"><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.2; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">Before or After reading activity</span></span></p></td></tr><tr style="height: 0pt;"><td style="border: 1pt solid rgb(0, 0, 0); overflow-wrap: break-word; overflow: hidden; padding: 5pt; vertical-align: top;"><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.2; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">29:18</span></span></p></td><td style="border: 1pt solid rgb(0, 0, 0); overflow-wrap: break-word; overflow: hidden; padding: 5pt; vertical-align: top;"><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.2; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">Toe Tapping Brain Break</span></span></p></td></tr><tr style="height: 0pt;"><td style="border: 1pt solid rgb(0, 0, 0); overflow-wrap: break-word; overflow: hidden; padding: 5pt; vertical-align: top;"><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.2; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">30:15</span></span></p></td><td style="border: 1pt solid rgb(0, 0, 0); overflow-wrap: break-word; overflow: hidden; padding: 5pt; vertical-align: top;"><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.2; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">Make a prediction: Draw and write</span></span></p></td></tr><tr style="height: 0pt;"><td style="border: 1pt solid rgb(0, 0, 0); overflow-wrap: break-word; overflow: hidden; padding: 5pt; vertical-align: top;"><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.2; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">34:28</span></span></p></td><td style="border: 1pt solid rgb(0, 0, 0); overflow-wrap: break-word; overflow: hidden; padding: 5pt; vertical-align: top;"><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.2; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">Weekend Chat (brief!) </span></span></p></td></tr></tbody></table><br /></div><div align="left" dir="ltr" style="margin-left: 0pt;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="401" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/UTrWsFKNpHo" width="482" youtube-src-id="UTrWsFKNpHo"></iframe></div><br /><p><br /></p>
Eliciahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17014283811911497554noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7311138534527402755.post-86142705868813035952021-08-18T08:35:00.001-07:002022-05-23T08:48:58.438-07:00Becoming, always becoming, a MORE Equitable Educator: Reflections on my learning<h2><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiwa5qzYkE98_w2EL7uFhpRuYt86LOVGBLgDtDvzdeFL6CzX8TZA6AGzt2jJah3xNdJWEwqqfzdj72iMs-lAizgR8pz-dNL_xub7Yc4WngHi03OSl9r6Y9PPSyZRrkseD0B7DgMy1PcAH8/s1080/MIT.png" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1080" data-original-width="1080" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiwa5qzYkE98_w2EL7uFhpRuYt86LOVGBLgDtDvzdeFL6CzX8TZA6AGzt2jJah3xNdJWEwqqfzdj72iMs-lAizgR8pz-dNL_xub7Yc4WngHi03OSl9r6Y9PPSyZRrkseD0B7DgMy1PcAH8/w400-h400/MIT.png" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span face="-webkit-standard" style="font-size: x-small;">Image of a woman with a handbag on a purple background.</span><br style="font-family: -webkit-standard;" /><span face="-webkit-standard" style="font-size: x-small;"> Text reads: MIT Teaching Systems lab Becoming a more equitable educator.</span></td></tr></tbody></table><br /><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></span></h2><h1 style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">ABOUT THE COURSE AND MY ROLE</span></h1><p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;">In my role as a community teaching assistant for the MIT Teaching Systems Lab course <b>Becoming a More Equitable Educator</b>, I have learned a lot, interacted with a great variety of educators, and written more than I could have ever imagined.</span></span></p><p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;">However, my learning, both from being a student in this course and from participating as a teaching assistant, has been wide ranging and also very action oriented. This is the place for me to talk about what I've done with some of that learning. </span></span></p><h1 style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">USING COMMUNITY ASSETS</span></h1><div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"><br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhb657RAE1cxb6_Eku_Nggl2ickTkJ4Ih6hXTBsydyMUYbLE8xeR5vHj72e-y5rcoCXL80jKYg0STn-EiosEvlUO_24quo4Pm8jmrCHAHZPtlYe-lvrLzPBKzpqFE9WtIzDPTWs2FGbVks/s1080/2.png" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1080" data-original-width="1080" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhb657RAE1cxb6_Eku_Nggl2ickTkJ4Ih6hXTBsydyMUYbLE8xeR5vHj72e-y5rcoCXL80jKYg0STn-EiosEvlUO_24quo4Pm8jmrCHAHZPtlYe-lvrLzPBKzpqFE9WtIzDPTWs2FGbVks/w400-h400/2.png" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;">image of a two people chatting on a computer and table. <br />Text reads: Using community assets. Who are the experts in my community? <br />What assets do I have?</span></td></tr></tbody></table>During the course, educators are asked to develop a map of community assets. I did not realize that this asset map would serve as a foundation for a great deal of the work that I would do for this past year. I found allies and tapped into an amazing community of educators who had a lot to share about their own work in becoming more equitable.</span></div><p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;">I felt empowered- because of a new job and a strong sense of wanting to do something- to bring some educators together and create some trainings and resources to address equity in my teaching community. </span></p><p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"><b>Here are some of those trainings and discussions:</b></span></p><p></p><div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://comprehensibleclassroom.freshdesk.com/support/solutions/articles/64000253675-fun-club-connecting-with-students-of-color-with-john-bracey" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img alt="" data-original-height="431" data-original-width="772" height="179" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgUauHzGuu2Dk2FNtF-3cN6JQaGepPCgMR8pp4zruA76M1qNtQgsnFtYzc-XyXwBhsDGmiMImma5WmxSjvNLTil0b-F3uAKZurYYdZ4vEPznwgvGuapGPWCZXBZavinJ2bfH5ipaV4dmcE/" width="320" /></a></div><p style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://comprehensibleclassroom.freshdesk.com/support/solutions/articles/64000253675-fun-club-connecting-with-students-of-color-with-john-bracey" target="_blank"></a><a href="https://comprehensibleclassroom.freshdesk.com/support/solutions/articles/64000253675-fun-club-connecting-with-students-of-color-with-john-bracey" target="_blank">Connecting with Students of Color with John Bracey</a></p></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://comprehensibleclassroom.freshdesk.com/support/solutions/articles/64000264668-funclub-understanding-and-using-inclusive-language" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img alt="" data-original-height="429" data-original-width="764" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiooS1ykhNh_R3a80Z7_LV53T0apeSQ7gxvaYs444HAECbHopkuYmoOsLuWwVKmDtoZW2jGGdZTCiVdAoMDsUDeO6Q4Bx4cqvFlEUXWmjIpqa3BbPkITxYALcCW8XDTBhqaYE8O4tWEbLs/" width="320" /></a></div><p style="text-align: left;"><a href="https://comprehensibleclassroom.freshdesk.com/support/solutions/articles/64000264668-funclub-understanding-and-using-inclusive-language" target="_blank">Understanding and Using Inclusive Language with Abelardo Almazán-Vázquez</a></p><div style="text-align: center;"> </div></span></span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://comprehensibleclassroom.freshdesk.com/support/solutions/articles/64000265108-fun-club-staying-true-to-you" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img alt="" data-original-height="434" data-original-width="767" height="181" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbiUPF13haamxvwYKKQgprac2TMLvBo-xj3nxCGmX6lNrS6XQfdVbW4R22lIsw_Zh-vWRsFn-1TZUlk1NmO43qLF7dxpgo7dKbkrfPDyxFFhIrVi1n8W5N1dq7XviRMWecgOLPik9PyDk/" width="320" /></a></div></span></span><p style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;"><a href="https://comprehensibleclassroom.freshdesk.com/support/solutions/articles/64000265108-fun-club-staying-true-to-you" target="_blank">Staying true to yourself </a>(with Elicia Cárdenas)</span></span></p></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia;"><span><i style="white-space: pre-wrap;">This is equity related, just not directly. It is about making principled choices in teaching, albeit in a very specific context of comprehension based communicative language teaching. The more I explore this topic, the more I am sure that this is about equity.</i><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://youtu.be/DffhnpcvvFA" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; white-space: pre-wrap;" target="_blank"><img alt="" data-original-height="403" data-original-width="614" height="210" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh4hld5Rz386ZweYv3koLnsLunpiyjozHlJfm90qkstjkaEhWRVp_knPo7U8vM7PxiRW-a-oMixKBI8eP_KTRVmIPrlQe0g9K1Vg97whtzvFPCOQCTz7MMoruC993FHP1QZpvenpFsQrhU/" width="320" /></a></div></span></span></span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><p><a href="https://youtu.be/DffhnpcvvFA" style="white-space: pre-wrap;" target="_blank">A conversation on equity and engagement: what does it look like in 2020<br /></a><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;">with Bob Patrick, Meredith White, John Bracey, Dahiana Castro, and Elicia Cárdenas</span></p></div></span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhdJT8A4CRSet2ONuR1kgs6C3bSfLRkxS8EYL3xGTdiQhvTrfKwl4zXwpN4ItNTUuAbcNTjnZMq9bvaRE_pObm6s68gRdt4l-7XGEBRikLM7I07C3TckqVgTrTS9w8Km2csDpIEj4enDEM/s1082/Screen+Shot+2021-08-18+at+9.26.07+AM.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: right;"><img border="0" data-original-height="565" data-original-width="1082" height="167" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhdJT8A4CRSet2ONuR1kgs6C3bSfLRkxS8EYL3xGTdiQhvTrfKwl4zXwpN4ItNTUuAbcNTjnZMq9bvaRE_pObm6s68gRdt4l-7XGEBRikLM7I07C3TckqVgTrTS9w8Km2csDpIEj4enDEM/s320/Screen+Shot+2021-08-18+at+9.26.07+AM.png" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://comprehensibleclassroom.com/2020/07/02/becoming-anti-racist-educator-where-to-begin/" target="_blank">Becoming an anti-racist educator: where to begin? </a>by Elicia Cárdenas</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div></span></div><h1 style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">EXAMINING OUR STATUS QUO</span></h1><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEilWosyapzxlC48SxS3kTiHGZoqbSZ5VTkkY8fJofeoOsASFbOLTJd6RH4NVkiD7GKWhr4tYwBqw8gec2pBjVPJhlq6389xm29O4gjJ1Je1ja3kdTIfSKXvpqKLI-m8Ylnf_2EeGHcBJdM/s1080/3.png" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1080" data-original-width="1080" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEilWosyapzxlC48SxS3kTiHGZoqbSZ5VTkkY8fJofeoOsASFbOLTJd6RH4NVkiD7GKWhr4tYwBqw8gec2pBjVPJhlq6389xm29O4gjJ1Je1ja3kdTIfSKXvpqKLI-m8Ylnf_2EeGHcBJdM/w400-h400/3.png" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;">image: stack of books. Text reads: examining our status quo. <br />What are commonly accepted practices that no longer fit with my goals of becoming more equitable? </span></td></tr></tbody></table><div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;"></span></span></div><p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;">There are a lot of commonly accepted practices in world language classes, especially around assessment, that I felt like I needed to really dig into and ask if they were practices that were in line with my goals of becoming more equitable. It turns out that I had a lot to say about engagement, grading accuracy, participation, and more. I *still* have more to say, so when I write more, I will add it. </span></span></p><div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjkSi_MmDdprpZSsxCGW7mfLruOn751qZ7NCnHe-r5CustiwQ3IQ-u04NWXq4sHxL8cYEKUwK_MiR3FsWT2BsZa72TdahL8sXOLHaScwcGLWEhWm7YLqGjjN4pvXTfxVIalhoJz6ufejJ0/" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" data-original-height="444" data-original-width="443" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjkSi_MmDdprpZSsxCGW7mfLruOn751qZ7NCnHe-r5CustiwQ3IQ-u04NWXq4sHxL8cYEKUwK_MiR3FsWT2BsZa72TdahL8sXOLHaScwcGLWEhWm7YLqGjjN4pvXTfxVIalhoJz6ufejJ0/" width="239" /></a></div><p style="text-align: left;"></p><div style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.desklessclassroom.com/2021/06/title-grammar-teacher-goal-language.html" target="_blank">Title: Grammar teacher Goal: Language Acquisition</a></div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"><div style="text-align: center;"><i>Addresses equity in our choice of pedagogy </i></div></span><p></p></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"><a href="https://www.desklessclassroom.com/2021/03/things-to-avoid-part-1-grading-accuracy.html" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; white-space: pre-wrap;" target="_blank"><img alt="" data-original-height="419" data-original-width="421" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEggainxm1FMaYNzcGF6uwWBaigxaECNoz-jrvnxXGxCOuSSEM2zTOEh3s9qj_PQgMlGF12BY_ATQ2KMAYb83yAsUTBJ7fxxI27oc6e9QkUqF3-E8MawWkDOurRWY_eehLRR4nxsGSWNZKI/" width="241" /></a></span></div><p style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"><a href="http://www.desklessclassroom.com/2021/03/things-to-avoid-part-1-grading-accuracy.html" target="_blank">Things to Avoid: Grading Accuracy, Participation, and Engagement/Effort</a></span></p><div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://www.desklessclassroom.com/2021/01/part-1-a-word-accountability.html" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img alt="" data-original-height="397" data-original-width="402" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgIUYyHlpVxBCHRLaiOl3d39VDliVq2dH-0sTE9kSFCpKSo309Bef_ESqkGnPScDpTRcE181ml2IeYUmtRXD1UPKLl58q5hInIoYkXZ5e1BSGkAer5Hj1fosoRX6S3aw8Z00Ta3M-FGL7c/" width="243" /></a></div><p style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.desklessclassroom.com/2021/01/part-1-a-word-accountability.html" target="_blank"></a><a href="http://www.desklessclassroom.com/2021/01/part-1-a-word-accountability.html" target="_blank">The A Word: (Accountability) Part 1</a> and <a href="https://www.desklessclassroom.com/2021/01/part-2-reframing-accountability-in.html" target="_blank">Part 2: Reframing Accountability in a comprehension based classroom</a></p></span></div><h1 style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">UNDERSTANDING THE ROLE OF SELF CARE IN EQUITY WORK</span></h1><div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;"><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhv7nWcYqArQK1gCLFW23JF5Gx2VK0i8xgHBMTR5BSarJAUoiZp88HfNm1s2pZSI4BKldL9x2mLIJH3PaSqjOi0lc2jggobWS03F7D1bhJ0vNgRrceHwtzSEwhw1jJmBAkL2s-uUc8rDIY/s1080/4.png" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1080" data-original-width="1080" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhv7nWcYqArQK1gCLFW23JF5Gx2VK0i8xgHBMTR5BSarJAUoiZp88HfNm1s2pZSI4BKldL9x2mLIJH3PaSqjOi0lc2jggobWS03F7D1bhJ0vNgRrceHwtzSEwhw1jJmBAkL2s-uUc8rDIY/w400-h400/4.png" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;">image of a woman with a large heart. Text reads: Understanding the role of self care. <br />How does taking care of myself help me be more equitable?</span> </td></tr></tbody></table></span></span></div><p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;">This idea has been slowly coalescing and is still in its infancy. It started with a truly transformative experience at the People of Color Conference in a session about the trauma of equity work. I realized that I was carrying around a great deal of trauma from my experiences in working as part of an Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion team. Like- A LOT. While that workshop was specifically focused on healing from trauma, it made me start to wonder: </span></span></p><p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;">How can taking care of myself and putting myself first help me be a more equitable educator? Here's what I came up with: </span></span></p><p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;"><b>I can be my best self, more often.</b></span></span></p><p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;">If I am well rested and not stressed, I am less likely to react, and more likely to either notice a situation that is going off the rails before it happens or respond in a way that is kind and patient. <i>Hangry</i> me just snaps, gets annoyed, and kicks kids out or shamed them (we have all done it, and I am not proud of it). </span></p><p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;">When I show up with my best self, I am much more likely to have an equity mindset. I am more likely to look at any student in any given moment with an asset based and context centered mindset. </span></p><p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"><b>I can focus on what is important, more often. </b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;">If I am taking care of myself and not spending every extra minute doing things that I hate (e.g. grading for the sake of grading, marking errors, etc.), I might also be taking more time to plan better lessons, to create time in my lessons to check in with students, creating or finding better resources, or (gasp) even connecting with other teachers to support my practice. </span></p><p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;">This has played out for me in some really significant ways: by being more intentional about how I spend my contract hours, by setting clear boundaries with myself and with others (and still keeping my job!), and being intentional about how I spend my time at school, I found that I had a lot more energy to plan better lessons and find amazing resources, with which to plan better lessons. Prioritizing a manageable work-week was a game changer. Also, it made me sleep better, spend more time doing the things I love, which led to less stress and me being my best self.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"><b>I have more energy and resiliency.</b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;">I have more energy and resiliency to have hard conversations, to take risks as an educator, and to practice being aware (instead of avoidant). </span></p><p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;">I started to explore this idea in a handful of earlier blog posts (<a href="https://www.desklessclassroom.com/2019/08/what-matters-most.html" target="_blank">What Matters Most</a> and <a href="https://www.desklessclassroom.com/2019/10/simplify.html" target="_blank">Simplify</a>) but the difference between what I wrote then and what I am thinking now is that self care is not just a nice thing to do, it is vital to be able to engage in the day-to-day work of becoming a more equitable educator. </span></p><p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhxFsnXa9ey1jJ-YVvUPwTQ6t84UuZm5c9ic7mzF2_wYepW7BFXghmF6juZWEJjGKQMZBavSvFnYBL52Hv6v5U4-OPDDOW5EK8-7D02lePFS6_U-Rvenbc-aEJrlmNomIUEsN-ev96pvOU/s1080/MIT+%25281%2529.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1080" data-original-width="1080" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhxFsnXa9ey1jJ-YVvUPwTQ6t84UuZm5c9ic7mzF2_wYepW7BFXghmF6juZWEJjGKQMZBavSvFnYBL52Hv6v5U4-OPDDOW5EK8-7D02lePFS6_U-Rvenbc-aEJrlmNomIUEsN-ev96pvOU/w400-h400/MIT+%25281%2529.png" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;">Image: people dancing with joy. Text reads: I can be my best self, more often. I<br /> can focus on what is important, more often. I have more energy and resiliency.</span></td></tr></tbody></table><br /><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p><h1 style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">CONCLUSION</span></h1><p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;">What a funny thing to write! There is no end. It's not like I have magically reached "equitable". It is a life-long process. I am constantly learning and un-learning. I am exploring the intersection of anti-blackness, fatphobia, and the role of white supremacy in eating disorders and the thin ideal. I am examining my own intersectional identities as a white skinned <i>chicana, </i>as my family digs out evidence of our very near indigenous roots, and looking at my role as a descendent of colonizers and of those who were colonized. I am grappling with social media activism (and its harm) and growing my own capacity to be a leader. These are not easy things. </span></p><p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;">So, no conclusion, sorry! </span></p><p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;">(The course from MIT Teaching Systems Lab ends on August 26, 2021.)</span></p>Eliciahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17014283811911497554noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7311138534527402755.post-23191357877427488372021-07-31T10:27:00.005-07:002021-07-31T10:27:57.394-07:00Simplify: A blast from the past<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-hresV-759tL7SdDebKCqiMzYJoC7sQ_C2FE_Yir89hNPk60SbFlsra44aBENTUN4GoLZxVa8B-TOyK43W-zl39wV22vvaplCAtH5BuczVeIiAnq96qnMppyyJFEt1d1qQZEw2kHPGgo/s1080/1.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1080" data-original-width="1080" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-hresV-759tL7SdDebKCqiMzYJoC7sQ_C2FE_Yir89hNPk60SbFlsra44aBENTUN4GoLZxVa8B-TOyK43W-zl39wV22vvaplCAtH5BuczVeIiAnq96qnMppyyJFEt1d1qQZEw2kHPGgo/w400-h400/1.png" width="400" /></span></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">Image:Light pink background with a cassette tape.</span><br /><span style="font-size: x-small;">Text reads:Blast from the past: An unpublished post from 2019</span></span></td></tr></tbody></table><h2 style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">BLAST FROM THE PAST</span></h2><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"><b>I was digging around in my blog recently and found this post. Whoa! It is from late October, 2019. Pre-Covid. Yeah, remember that? </b></span></p><p style="text-align: left;"><b><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;">I was teaching 5th, 7th, and 8th grade- exploratory Spanish, Spanish 1 Honors, Spanish 2 Honors, and Spanish 1B. I was also mentoring a new teacher and teaching a graduate methods class as an adjunct. I think I was too busy to actually publish this! So I am publishing it now, almost 2 years later. </span></b></p><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"><b>Interesting fact: I didn't change anything in the post, other than to do a bit of light editing and add some images and links. This is one way in which I don't think my thinking has changed. Except to add this:</b></span></p><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"><b>If you love any of the things that I recommend against, it's ok! You are the expert in your life, in your community, in your classroom. My suggestions are based on my years of mentoring teachers who are trying to implement comprehension based teaching in their classroom, observing trends and common concerns from teachers. #NoJudgement. </b></span></p><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"><b>Now, in 2022, as I have transitioned to a <a href=" https://www.comprehensibletraining.com/about" target="_blank">formal training role</a>, I am trying to create resources and trainings to support teachers. Thinking about these things continues to be a good use of my energy. As we move into the 2021-22 school year and yet another year of unknowns, I hope that the idea of simplifying might help someone out in making their teaching and lives more joyful. </b></span></p><h3 style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">October, 2019</span></h3><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;">I have a lot of half finished posts, and a lot of chores on my to-do list. In fact, I am leaving to go camping for 5 days with the whole 7th grade...tomorrow morning! And I haven't started packing.</span></p><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;">
But today, instead of focusing on that, I want to offer a #mindset shift for those of my colleagues who are feeling overwhelmed.</span></p><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;">
Because, frankly, starting anything new is overwhelming. And hard. And rarely 100% successful.</span></p><div><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;">
I recently responded to a post on the SOMOS Collab facebook page from someone who's admin wants data to back up their new approach. I wonder..would the principal ask the math department for data immediately after adopting a new text? Would the principal expect significant gains in writing directly after adopting a new program, or would they invest in training, time, and let the teachers do their best? Why is language any different? </span></p><p><span style="font-family: georgia;"><span style="font-size: medium;">
Anyway, here is my advice: </span><span style="font-size: medium;"><b>Simplify. Simplify your planning. </b></span></span></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEixPLf31gDOObMKjrvzy5b26E0TeiTPE5GYz3dDDSKTXB10VKtI-jhD6vth8AesrFzLzIchRMR92ZeiPrfyKAzDRUcKtjCa-9GoEDCYUwNdwz62yITqnUEWFKr8dzRTaYTa8vO0iY5lJwY/s1080/2.png" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1080" data-original-width="1080" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEixPLf31gDOObMKjrvzy5b26E0TeiTPE5GYz3dDDSKTXB10VKtI-jhD6vth8AesrFzLzIchRMR92ZeiPrfyKAzDRUcKtjCa-9GoEDCYUwNdwz62yITqnUEWFKr8dzRTaYTa8vO0iY5lJwY/w400-h400/2.png" width="400" /></span></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">Image:Light pink background with 80's geometric shapes. </span><br /><span style="font-size: x-small;">Text reads: Simplify.</span><span style="font-size: large; text-align: left;"><br /></span></span></td></tr></tbody></table><p style="text-align: left;"></p><p></p><h3 style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"><span style="font-weight: normal;">Stop creating more work for yourself- we have so much to do already! Here are some things that I see teachers doing that seem to make things harder: </span></span></h3><h3 style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"><b>
1) Powerpoints (or Presentations)</b></span></h3><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;">Feel like you have to have a powerpoint for every minute? Reconsider. Making powerpoints is a huge time suck. What would it be like instead to step away from the projector and sit down with your students? What would it feel like to give them a text and read it with them, without projecting? What would it be like to orient your room away from a screen? Can you just project the page that you want to share instead of putting it into a slideshow? What would the time savings be? </span><p></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhI77uiAXZYOwiA1E55v0P8o0jIUlSPEXrxn8uVGOSrcgpyKYOTtARLs9vhcy6YDeLp-xVQbIe68E9Ayf_-VbfnYog4mL6xZBiw-wIkO3AOeTL_wJJ-pBU9EFVHOX5hjtJBTjlEqKYj3Dc/s1080/4.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1080" data-original-width="1080" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhI77uiAXZYOwiA1E55v0P8o0jIUlSPEXrxn8uVGOSrcgpyKYOTtARLs9vhcy6YDeLp-xVQbIe68E9Ayf_-VbfnYog4mL6xZBiw-wIkO3AOeTL_wJJ-pBU9EFVHOX5hjtJBTjlEqKYj3Dc/w400-h400/4.png" width="400" /></span></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: xx-small;">Image:Light pink background with 80's geometric shapes. <br />Text reads: Do you really need that presentation?</span></td></tr></tbody></table><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;">Note: I did make a master powerpoint for one class, for a book study. I did it to see if I liked it since it seems to be the main format for so many teachers, especially language teachers. While it is nice to have that resource now, the time investment overall seemed to be not really worth it, for me. Others are different, so take this with a grain of salt. </span></p><p style="text-align: left;"></p><h3 style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"><b>
2) The search for more resources</b></span></h3><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;">First, I suggest that you find a curriculum. Or if you are teaching a novel, get the teacher's guide.</span></p><p></p><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;">
Then teach the curriculum. Unless you absolutely MUST add content because of things you can't control, just teach it. Live with it for a year or two. See how that goes. Do some reflection. Then...start adding.</span></p><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;">
Don't like the song that was suggested in the curriculum? Consider skipping it or, try teaching it. I mean, it was put in the curriculum for a reason. Decide if your gut was wrong- later. Rather than spending time looking for or creating new materials, maybe just don't. It won't kill the students to not listen to a new song every week. (We do one song about every 3-4 weeks. My kids are ok!) <i>Of course, use your professional judgement and don't use materials that will get you in trouble.</i></span></p></div><div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjv-T9PPLyu3_EeVTSoIWEtOgyRR6TN0OgTvjU4EtqIWQqwJf7dWBfCenI2nuqtA9dObFCyXIEowgSK_xQw_QwcbvUnyjCaBk-689KzJnDlz9bbFnDkDiw4MXakrmpNrDMrvnHr799iJFo/s1080/3.png" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1080" data-original-width="1080" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjv-T9PPLyu3_EeVTSoIWEtOgyRR6TN0OgTvjU4EtqIWQqwJf7dWBfCenI2nuqtA9dObFCyXIEowgSK_xQw_QwcbvUnyjCaBk-689KzJnDlz9bbFnDkDiw4MXakrmpNrDMrvnHr799iJFo/w400-h400/3.png" width="400" /></span></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">Image:Light pink background with 80's geometric shapes. </span><br /><span style="font-size: x-small;">Text reads: Pick a resource. Stick with it.</span></span></td></tr></tbody></table><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;">Feeling overwhelmed by resources? Take a look at this blog post that I wrote with some helpful links (I think!): <a href="https://www.desklessclassroom.com/2019/03/ci-overwhelm-practical-tools-for-coping.html" target="_blank">CI Overwhelm: Practical Tools for Coping</a></span></p><p></p><h3 style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">3) Theme days</span></h3><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;">
Joke Thursday, Cat Wednesday...they are great ideas! But wow, the amount of work to collect those resources, and then make them comprehensible to different levels...that sounds absolutely overwhelming. And if you use them in every class, then you have to keep doing it- day after day, year after year. </span><p></p></div><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;">While I love the idea of using the same resource for each class (and I have done this), what that means is that each year, you have to find new resources. That is lot of work! </span></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh7IQoOXqe8ni7eTXjd5oSTfyTijPNFgBK4r7kHUslcgujDMo5S-pRIb0kGTacxwcIsynN52dg7hXwZ2blMtV0ruh5kJozMbLlqwboru-AVFAgykLrTTfrdmjlF1UC3TIcroVNkKbM7oKg/s1080/7.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1080" data-original-width="1080" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh7IQoOXqe8ni7eTXjd5oSTfyTijPNFgBK4r7kHUslcgujDMo5S-pRIb0kGTacxwcIsynN52dg7hXwZ2blMtV0ruh5kJozMbLlqwboru-AVFAgykLrTTfrdmjlF1UC3TIcroVNkKbM7oKg/w400-h400/7.png" width="400" /></span></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">Image:Light pink background with VHS tape.</span><br /><span style="font-size: x-small;">Text reads: Are theme days worth it? What could you do instead?</span></span></td></tr></tbody></table><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"></span></p><p></p><h3 style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">4)Assessment Data Tracking for Planning</span></h3><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;">I am not saying that we should eliminate assessment. (But imagine! What would that look like???) I am saying that some of the things we do, e.g. some kinds of data tracking, and using that information to plan, may not be a good use of teacher time. </span></p><p></p><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><span style="font-size: medium;">
I have written a lot about assessment. I really like talking and thinking about assessment. <br /></span><span style="font-size: medium;">(Most of my assessment writings are linked <a href="https://www.desklessclassroom.com/search/label/Assessment" target="_blank">here</a>, and <a href="https://comprehensibleclassroom.freshdesk.com/en/support/solutions/articles/64000253750-assessment-in-somos" target="_blank">here</a>.) But really, I feel like we spend WAY too much time talking about assessment when we know it doesn't really help with language acquisition. In fact, it doesn't even help for us to see what the students don't know- not really! </span></span></p><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;">Since language acquisition is stage-like and ordered, there is pretty much nothing to do but...give more input, and make sure it is comprehended. That's it. So, again, try to simplify. This is a video I made with Martina Bex about how I simplify assessment- and more. Take a look!<a href="https://comprehensibleclassroom.freshdesk.com/support/solutions/articles/64000253682" target="_blank"> Assessment Hacks and Hope in SOMOS.</a> </span></p><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;">In all seriousness, I used to use a data tracking form where I listed an objective at the top (e.g. uses time indicators correctly- <i>son las 3:00, es la una, a las 2:00) </i>and then listed the kids who could do it and the kids who couldn't. It looked great in terms of admin data requirements. And took a TON of time. Like SO MUCH TIME. And that time- well, I can say with all seriousness that it was wasted time. Wasted for me, wasted for student learning. </span></p><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;">And this is why: The present-practice-produce-assess-reteach cycle that is drilled into teachers doesn't fit so well in a comprehension based framework. We <b>know</b> that explicit instruction does not lead to implicit language. And those features will develop in stages, in a particular order, and those features will be developed independent of instruction! So, tracking that information *only* shows me what students can not yet do. </span></p><div><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;">Re-teaching how to use time indicators is not going to help students use it in the long-term. It will certainly be boring and not really affect their language system at all, except maybe to impede acquisition of that form. There <i>might</i> be <i>some</i> <u>short term </u>effects for <i>some</i> students. If I re-teach it, then re-test it, how much time am I spending? How much time am I giving up that could be spent doing something that does help them acquire? And what about the kids who have brains that are not yet ready to get it (which is NORMAL)? What will it feel like for them to fail an assessment-again? Ug. I feel kind of gross just thinking about that. <i> </i></span></p><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;">
If you are in a district that requires you to read every word that students write, assign fewer words! Instead of a 10 minute freewrite, do a 5 minute freewrite. Don't assign them to every class at the same time! Interested in reading more about freewrites? Take a look- <a href="http://www.desklessclassroom.com/2020/11/timed-free-writes-one-practice-that.html" target="_blank">Timed Freewrites: One Practice that Serves Many Purposes</a></span></p></div><div><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;">If your district requires you to track data, here is an article that might help: <a href="https://comprehensibleclassroom.freshdesk.com/support/solutions/articles/64000253541" target="_blank">Teacher Goals and SLOs.</a></span></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_mOhSlGhqdWDMJeFZ7vZgBtIse9oYDPGtXr5vE2s_lKW1XbpHzcaNOdUAmD2ecesnr0NfWsDfbt6A9sFN0vMC3loi2gPs_KuuMoteSvEqZiFOyaDFcx-ck0IH-8U7bJ_je9IklJapwOo/s1080/5.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1080" data-original-width="1080" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_mOhSlGhqdWDMJeFZ7vZgBtIse9oYDPGtXr5vE2s_lKW1XbpHzcaNOdUAmD2ecesnr0NfWsDfbt6A9sFN0vMC3loi2gPs_KuuMoteSvEqZiFOyaDFcx-ck0IH-8U7bJ_je9IklJapwOo/w400-h400/5.png" width="400" /></span></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">Image:Light pink background with a cassette tape labeled Tea with BVP: Ordered Development and a walkman. </span><br /><span style="font-size: x-small;">Text reads: Keep SLA principles in mind when using assessment data. </span></span></td></tr></tbody></table><p style="text-align: left;"></p><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">People are often surprised that I don't bring work home with me. I don't, even with having fewer planning hours and more preps, because I am trying to keep things as simple as possible. I found a curriculum. I like it, I teach it, and I rarely supplement it because it's pretty robust. If I do supplement it, it is because I have something I really want to try out, or I am really passionate about something, and it only takes a little bit of time and effort to prep. </span></span></p></div><p style="text-align: left;"></p><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;">How can you simplify? What are the time sucks in your planning process? </span></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiiXwkpw3-Xy_SbzEqv2r3e60Gc3PretIDv6Nl3ug9C8QGDP5zCf63WuwCQs97BujKB7NAzg9PgE2aLubNA6MWDzutBj0_Mp1ky6Sz82ANFYhJcIQhoFDd9AN2Y9xRElpk33c9iEDJgabY/s1080/5.png" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1080" data-original-width="1080" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiiXwkpw3-Xy_SbzEqv2r3e60Gc3PretIDv6Nl3ug9C8QGDP5zCf63WuwCQs97BujKB7NAzg9PgE2aLubNA6MWDzutBj0_Mp1ky6Sz82ANFYhJcIQhoFDd9AN2Y9xRElpk33c9iEDJgabY/w400-h400/5.png" width="400" /></span></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">Image:Dark pink and black background with 80's sunset, cityscape, and palm trees.</span><br /><span style="font-size: x-small;">Text reads: How can you simplify your teaching?</span></span></td></tr></tbody></table><p></p><div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;">
This post was inspired by the book <a href="https://fewerthingsbetter.com/" target="_blank">Fewer Things, Better, by Angela Watson.</a> I *HIGHLY* recommend her work, and this book in particular, for focusing on what matters. I am not an employee or in any way recompensed for recommending this book. </span><br /></div>Eliciahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17014283811911497554noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7311138534527402755.post-79116576421439072422021-07-03T12:40:00.007-07:002021-07-08T07:44:44.067-07:00Part 2: What I taught as a Grammar Teacher<span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: medium;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">If you have not yet read part 1 of <a href="https://www.desklessclassroom.com/2021/06/title-grammar-teacher-goal-language.html" target="_blank">Title: Grammar Teacher, Goal: Language Acquisition</a> to see my context as well as the planning process that I used to arrive at this unit plan, please take a moment to do so as that is key to understanding why I made the instructional choices that I made! </div><br />This post is meant to address the question of "What did you actually do in your class?" as well as outline some of the differentiation techniques that I used to manage a split level class. It is *really* long. No apologies. This stuff takes time to explain! And I wanted to include what I did for differentiation (faster and slower processors) as well as modifications for an adult class. <br /><br />Quick recap: I had 2 levels of students placed in a class called "grammar class". I had a bunch of grammar concepts that I needed to teach but I know that isn't the best thing for the students. I had to make some instructional choices to balance the syllabus, student expectations, and what I know as a professional. </span><div><span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;"></span></span><h1 style="text-align: left;">Day 1</h1><h2 style="text-align: left;">Introduction</h2></div><div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmuDojqxrVp6xXLr-w3BVVxaHtiaOpZI9q2LBruBnM58mDNbLSbhLiJR59uhRD724lVGKXfAWNx4yUkO3hyq4n4Se4XYLnpDSmNh1DR_kAlDUhh1fjwZ2msS8LORHMSMnpbmMxovimtyU/s1118/Screen+Shot+2021-07-03+at+11.46.04+AM.png" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1055" data-original-width="1118" height="302" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmuDojqxrVp6xXLr-w3BVVxaHtiaOpZI9q2LBruBnM58mDNbLSbhLiJR59uhRD724lVGKXfAWNx4yUkO3hyq4n4Se4XYLnpDSmNh1DR_kAlDUhh1fjwZ2msS8LORHMSMnpbmMxovimtyU/w320-h302/Screen+Shot+2021-07-03+at+11.46.04+AM.png" width="320" /></span></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: 11px; text-align: start;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">Image Description: photo and text on a light green background. Photo shows a family photo from the 1950's. <br />Text reads Soy Mexicana-Americana. La familia de mi padre es del norte de México y el sur de Colorado.</span></span></td></tr></tbody></table></div><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px;"><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;"><span style="font-size: medium;">I took the time to introduce myself, share some class norms, gave an introduction to my teaching philosophy and did a little bit of myth busting of some common misconceptions about how language acquisition works.</span> </span></p></blockquote><p></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEieegQHOBRAdTkoniJUvshghwz_XFZTbX7bufWDvfK3kYnNSz6bOSFj5sRw78RKXzypdUpsi97DDnpNfQAkymdxiHYLzaUgwlJrwZncsGMJ5HKQSpTpc_Udyi48M_DOtbgwPrbx6Y9AGKE/s1327/Screen+Shot+2021-07-03+at+11.44.14+AM.png" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1025" data-original-width="1327" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEieegQHOBRAdTkoniJUvshghwz_XFZTbX7bufWDvfK3kYnNSz6bOSFj5sRw78RKXzypdUpsi97DDnpNfQAkymdxiHYLzaUgwlJrwZncsGMJ5HKQSpTpc_Udyi48M_DOtbgwPrbx6Y9AGKE/s320/Screen+Shot+2021-07-03+at+11.44.14+AM.png" width="320" /></span></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;"><span style="font-size: 11px; text-align: start;">Image description: text on a green background. Text reads: 1. Have fun. Smile. Laugh. <br /></span><span style="font-size: 11px; text-align: start;">2. Tell me when I am unclear or you are unsure. 3. Short answers in Spanish are GREAT! <br /></span><span style="font-size: 11px; text-align: start;">4. 2-3 words in English are ok! 5. Don't expect to speak much </span><span style="font-size: 11px; text-align: start;">until you have heard and understood a lot of Spanish.</span></span></td></tr></tbody></table><p></p><h2 style="text-align: left;">Five minute timed free write</h2><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px;"><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: medium;">I did not collect this paper, so it isn't a formative assessment for me. It *is* a tangible piece of evidence to answer "What Did I Learn in Spanish Class" and when I have been an adult in a class and later as a teacher in an adult class I thought this was super valuable.</span></div></blockquote><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px;"><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Read more about Timed Freewrites here: <a href="http://www.desklessclassroom.com/2020/11/timed-free-writes-one-practice-that.html" target="_blank">Time Freewrites: One Practice that Serves Many Purposes</a> by Elicia Cárdenas (Deskless Classroom) </span> </span></p></blockquote><h2 style="text-align: left;">2 Truths and A Lie (Preparation) </h2><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px;"><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Students filled out a google form to share 2 Truths and a Lie about themselves. I *really* did not want them to use any kind of translator so I gave them explicit directions to not do so, encouraged 1-2 words in English, and gave them a list of sentence starters with definitions. This was also a bit of a formative assessment for me, because I know that when I look at it later I will get information about the students. My job is to create slides with each student's statements to provoke conversation.</span><span style="font-size: large;"> </span> </span></div></blockquote><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px;"><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;"><span style="font-size: medium;">You can <a href="https://docs.google.com/forms/d/1IMDn1HhQlTYOoHZzOionndTRNWPvNOLnlYIvRVRAtQ8/copy" target="_blank">make a copy of the google form</a> that I used to edit and share with your students. </span><span style="font-size: medium;"> If you tried to make a copy of this earlier, my apologies- I had my settings set incorrectly! </span></span></p></blockquote><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px;"><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Read about 2 truths and a lie here: <a href="https://comprehensibleclassroom.com/2011/12/02/mentirosopq/" target="_blank">¡Mentiroso!</a> by Martina Bex (Comprehensible Classroom) </span><span style="font-size: large;"> </span></span></p></blockquote><h2 style="text-align: left;">Reading activity disguised as Song/Music</h2><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px;"><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: medium;">I knew that I wanted to include at least one song activity that was really a reading activity in disguise because songs are fun and I wanted to see what kind discussion might be sparked by the reading. (It turns out that students were super nervous and we didn't have much of a conversation, oh well.)</span></p></blockquote><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px;"><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: medium;">I introduced the title of the song (<a href="https://youtu.be/z9HwpFdC6tE" target="_blank">Oye como va</a>) and, as outlined in the lesson plans from SOMOS 1, Unit 21 (<a href="https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/SOMOS-Spanish-1-Unit-21-Storytelling-Una-aventura-de-camping-1377868" target="_blank">free download</a> from Martina Bex's Teachers Pay Teachers store), discussed the meaning and then shared the chorus. I went on to share a reading about Celia Cruz, the artist, and a little bit about meaning of specific words used in the song. Then I gave students a choice of just listening, counting instances of the word oye, or a more challenging task of counting instances of a handful of words. Instead of giving them a printout or computer activity to do while listening to the song, I decided to keep it simple and just invite them to count (if they wanted). </span></p></blockquote><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px;"><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: medium;">If you are familiar with the sequence of SOMOS units, you might notice that I did this sequence of learning activities out of order- usually, plans call for establishing meaning, translating, asking personalized questions, then doing a song. I decided to change the order up because I wanted to start with a bit of a splash, and music is always a great way to get buy-in. </span></p></blockquote><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px;"><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><b>Modification for adult class:</b> none, really, except maybe to re-order the activities from the suggested outline.</span> </span></p></blockquote><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px;"><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;"><span style="font-size: medium;"> </span><span style="font-size: medium;"><b>Differentiation:</b> I made sure that the text was written to be as comprehensible as I could, and included glossed words, cognates, and made available the meanings of many high frequency words (<i>Being comprehensible</i>). I also asked processing questions to check for comprehension while I was reading (<i>Asking processing questions</i>) and started to ask differentiated questions to students who seemed to have more language. (<i>Differentiated questions</i>). Finally, I gave students the choice of how to interact with the song (<i>Student choice</i>). </span></span></p></blockquote><h2 style="text-align: left;">Establish Meaning</h2><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px;"><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;"><span style="font-size: medium;">I introduced vocabulary from SOMOS 1, Unit 21 by telling them what the words meant, then we translated sentences to see the words in context.</span></span> </p></blockquote><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px;"><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;"><span style="font-size: medium;"> </span><span style="font-size: medium;"><b>Modification for Adult Class:</b> I did change some of the sentences that were caregiver/child focused to be more adult focused.</span></span> </p></blockquote><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px;"><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;"><span style="font-size: medium;"> </span><span style="font-size: medium;"><b>Differentiation:</b> students worked individually with think time (P<i>rocessing time</i>), then volunteered to be the translator (<i>Inviting participation</i>), and all had access to the meaning of the words (<i>Being comprehensible</i>). For faster processors, I started inviting responses to questions based on the sentences once I clarified the meaning (<i>Asking differentiated questions</i>). And always: Accepting responses in any way- gestures, one word answers, L1 within reason, and full sentences (<i>Accepting all responses</i>).</span></span></p></blockquote><h2 style="text-align: left;">Think Time for Personalized Questions and Answers</h2><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px;"><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;"><span style="font-size: medium;">I had questions prepared that used the core vocabulary (goes to sleep, wakes up, and hears). I asked the questions. They answered. Sounds simple? Keep reading.</span> </span></p></blockquote><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px;"><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: medium;">This activity was very intentionally designed to give a ton of support because I had no idea how much language these students actually had, and I knew this would be the first time that I would be asking them to create with language. Balancing the need for input with having a conversation (which, by definition, means at least 2 people talking), keeping the affective filter low, and also not knowing how much language students already had was incredibly important to me. </span></p></blockquote><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZ-4dBSTdbOSoxH3lKuXkM_59PEoV_VrTobBH5yTu_Cq3XJS4pooyyijbONNv0c0daSPdh79E-zoFzflVQfQeukOPUM-_rLFo7OmmrX4JE3Ps6s2dCfgVrOP_Mwk6n2yq_GEq6oxPDBgM/s1020/Screen+Shot+2021-07-03+at+12.15.00+PM.png" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;"><img border="0" data-original-height="656" data-original-width="1020" height="413" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZ-4dBSTdbOSoxH3lKuXkM_59PEoV_VrTobBH5yTu_Cq3XJS4pooyyijbONNv0c0daSPdh79E-zoFzflVQfQeukOPUM-_rLFo7OmmrX4JE3Ps6s2dCfgVrOP_Mwk6n2yq_GEq6oxPDBgM/w640-h413/Screen+Shot+2021-07-03+at+12.15.00+PM.png" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span id="docs-internal-guid-7d9b3c1f-7fff-1425-8cae-fa859656086a" style="text-align: start;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: xx-small;">©The Comprehensible Classroom, used with permission and adapted by The Deskless Classroom
Image description: black background with a yellow tent and yellow & white text with sticky notes and
vocabulary words in English and Spanish. Text reads: ¿A dónde vas para acampar?
and the sticky notes include responses to the question.</span></span></span></td></tr></tbody></table><p></p><h2 style="text-align: left;">Personalized Questions and Answers (Discussion) </h2><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px;"><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: medium;">Finally, I led a discussion. I showed the questions and asked "who said that they get up at 8:00?" (in the target language) based on a response from the Jamboard or asked open ended questions, e.g. "When you wake up in the middle of the night, what do you hear?" (<i>Differentiated questions, Accepting all responses</i>). To facilitate the discussion, I had first, 2nd, and third person forms of the core vocabulary as well as high frequency verbs, and question words. I established meaning as new words came up. (<i>Being comprehensible, Establishing meaning</i>). I did all the typical things that I do when doing this activity, including reporting to the class, talking about myself, clarifying (did you do that or are you going to do that), asking processing questions, and more. </span></p></blockquote><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px;"><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: medium;"><span><b>Differentiation:</b> I prepared a Google Jamboard with all the first person forms of the verbs (and their meaning) and any other vocabulary in the question that they might need to understand and answer the question. (<i>Establishing meaning, Being comprehensible</i>). </span><span>I stated explicitly that answering in English, in 1 or two words, or in complete sentences was ok (<i>Accepting all responses</i>). I also mentioned that they respond to the questions that they chose and that there was no expectation that they respond to every question (<i>Student choice</i>). Then I gave private think time. (<i>Processing time</i>).</span> </span></p></blockquote><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: medium;"><b>Modification for Adult Class:</b> I modified the questions from those suggested in the lesson plans- again, focusing less on caregivers from a child's perspective and more on adult perspectives.</span></blockquote><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px;"><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: medium;"><span>You can read more about Personalized Questions and Answers in this article: <a href="https://comprehensibleclassroom.freshdesk.com/support/solutions/articles/64000256304-personalized-questions-and-answers-pqa-" target="_blank">Personalized Questions and Answers</a> by Elicia </span>Cárdenas (The Comprehensible Classroom Solutions) </span></p></blockquote><h2 style="text-align: left;">Some reasons why I decided to do kind of activity on the first day: </h2><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px; text-align: left;"><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: medium;">1) While there is a perception that comprehension based classes are all about input, that doesn't mean that students don't have opportunities to speak and create with language. It just means that they invited to do so, at their level, when they are ready, with appropriate scaffolding. <br /></span><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: medium;">2) I really needed a way to do some formative assessment and discover if my unit plan was on track or if I needed to re-do the whole thing. <br /></span><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: medium;">3) Personalized Questions and Answers is a great way to get to know each other and start to build community. <br /></span><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: medium;">4) My class was not a beginner class. Yes, I am going to focus on input, but also make space for creating with language (like I do in a beginner class!). </span></p></blockquote><h2 style="text-align: left;">Write and Discuss</h2><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px;"><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: medium;">Oh, how I love Write and Discuss in virtual classes. I have become a lot more comfortable with it over the past couple of years and while I use it sparingly, it is truly one of my favorite ways to end class. In this case, I asked "What did we learn about each other or the world?" in L2 and L1. As students replied (with me asking leading questions, especially at first when they didn't really get what we were doing), I wrote out their answers.</span></div></blockquote><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px;"><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: medium;"> Read more about <a href="https://www.desklessclassroom.com/2020/01/write-discuss-sometimes-i-win-sometimes.html" target="_blank">Write and Discuss</a> by Elicia Cárdenas (Deskless Classroom)</span></p></blockquote><p></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEieeChRB6SWPkdMyTRV4DsC9rqgbFIdNKg5PkIo06DaWMRV7rcbBQioHoF_liE-Dd1rOuZgZt7J8avRcsJiTZAlEhco9StmHfo3_8ldZnf3O_f_DxlJ7Ix-joiqgPotmtcTT3wLL2tbJK0/s570/Screen+Shot+2021-07-03+at+12.30.10+PM.png" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;"><img border="0" data-original-height="446" data-original-width="570" height="501" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEieeChRB6SWPkdMyTRV4DsC9rqgbFIdNKg5PkIo06DaWMRV7rcbBQioHoF_liE-Dd1rOuZgZt7J8avRcsJiTZAlEhco9StmHfo3_8ldZnf3O_f_DxlJ7Ix-joiqgPotmtcTT3wLL2tbJK0/w640-h501/Screen+Shot+2021-07-03+at+12.30.10+PM.png" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: xx-small;">Image description: Text on white background. <br />Text asks "¿Qué aprendimos sobre la clase o el mundo? and then describes <br />various members of class in Spanish and other information with names greyed out.</span></td></tr></tbody></table><p></p><div><h1 style="text-align: left;">Day 2</h1><h2 style="text-align: left;">Ask a Story</h2></div><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px;"><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: medium;">Oh how I love to ask a story. I mean, story asking is what really inspires me and has brought me un unimaginable amount of joy in my classroom. It is the one thing my students beg for. I have to admit that I was pretty nervous to do it with adults but wow- once they got into it, it was an absolute blast. We created a fantastic story about a woman, some owls with a penchant for vegetarian pizza, a troupe of dancing rodents, competition between the rodents and puffins, and synchronized swimming.</span></p></blockquote><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px;"><p style="text-align: left;"></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjvs0gRsWQ7rccTauUvWxJPVXy_nuPrG7NV21e38kzbGUoSa9esPIxyxBYCYR10JITMzB206BdZIyclPY50KPq_sfaC3j0SDz8xTvq2OOHffAK8iA_2_8YNIQoCymNWVKQ3ywoVPYQkn2U/s518/Screen+Shot+2021-06-22+at+3.35.56+PM.png" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;"><img border="0" data-original-height="393" data-original-width="518" height="304" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjvs0gRsWQ7rccTauUvWxJPVXy_nuPrG7NV21e38kzbGUoSa9esPIxyxBYCYR10JITMzB206BdZIyclPY50KPq_sfaC3j0SDz8xTvq2OOHffAK8iA_2_8YNIQoCymNWVKQ3ywoVPYQkn2U/w400-h304/Screen+Shot+2021-06-22+at+3.35.56+PM.png" width="400" /></span></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: xx-small;">Image description: Black text in Spanish on white background. Text reads: Alicia agarró su carpa y su saco de dormir,<br /> y corró del bosque a su carro. Pero tenía un problema: los búhos tenían las llaves. <br />Ellos tomaron al carro para comprar pizza vegetariana y todavía las tenían.<br /> llaves-keys todavía still </span></td></tr></tbody></table><p></p></blockquote><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px;"><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: medium;"><span><b>Differentiation: </b><span>Differentiation with story asking is something that I have been working on for a long time. I provided think time when asking processing questions (<i>Provide think time</i>, <i>Ask processing questions,</i> <i>Comprehension checks</i>), and went back to the beginning to recap several times. (<i>Spiral information</i>? <i>Restate</i>? <i>Going slow</i>). I invited students to submit ideas for story details (S<i>tudent voice, Student choice</i>, <i>Accepting all responses</i>) and I made all the vocabulary comprehensible by making sure they could see all the words I was using (<i>Being comprehensible</i>). I asked some different kinds of questions to faster processors and yes/no questions to those who needed more support </span></span>(<i>D</i><i>ifferentiated questions</i>). </span></p></blockquote><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px;"><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Here is a collection of ALL the story asking resources that Martina Bex and I have compiled: <a href="https://comprehensibleclassroom.freshdesk.com/support/solutions/articles/64000253671" target="_blank">What is Story asking and How do I do it? </a>by Elicia Cárdenas / Martina Bex (The Comprehensible Classroom Solutions)</span><span style="font-size: large;"> </span> </span></p></blockquote><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px;"><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: medium;">Read more about differentiation techniques: <a href="https://www.desklessclassroom.com/2017/08/differentiation-in-tprsci-classroom.html" target="_blank">Differentiation in the TPRS/CI Classroom </a>by Elicia Cárdenas (Deskless Classroom) </span></p></blockquote><h2 style="text-align: left;">Cooperative Mural</h2><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px;"><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: medium;">I love this activity for when the story is over but you want to keep working with it. Although I have tried a few different ways to do it online, my gut told me that trying to do it with any kind of tool might not go so well, so I decided to use Zoom annotations. I don't love it, but *most* of the class could do it. (Some struggled a bit with just opening a google doc, so I didn't want to push it.) Basically, in this activity, students have a short amount of time to draw a moment from a story and then I narrate it or ask questions about it. It is SO fun! </span></div></blockquote><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px;"><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: medium;">You can read more about cooperative murals here: <a href="https://comprehensibleclassroom.com/2013/08/23/cooperative-mural/" target="_blank">Cooperative Mural</a> by Martina Bex (Comprehensible Classroom) </span></p></blockquote><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px;"><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;"> <span style="font-size: large;">You can see me doing this in person in the video here: <a href="https://drive.google.com/file/d/1lPijxocn5gDI3o4MTSumKtKyYLypECfc/view" target="_blank">Cooperative Mural Short Demo </a>by Elicia Cárdenas (Deskless Classroom)</span></span></p></blockquote><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px;"><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: medium;">Here are some of the pictures we drew!</span></div></blockquote><p><span style="font-family: trebuchet;"> </span></p><div style="text-align: left;"><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgtgbF5qGRpJGn9xTQ07u29qDpdT9-6nlshO8Ju0A-CIWiEpuijBzDCqX-PfYl-jzfRzSWt9TrQGveVWSIaS7-KcJpPxQ1OzpkvkKeZDpcdFS-MbvZSVQcPWWB_b5un-GNtYYscLjDiIcM/s600/Screen+Shot+2021-06-22+at+10.36.43+AM.png" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;"><img border="0" data-original-height="433" data-original-width="600" height="231" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgtgbF5qGRpJGn9xTQ07u29qDpdT9-6nlshO8Ju0A-CIWiEpuijBzDCqX-PfYl-jzfRzSWt9TrQGveVWSIaS7-KcJpPxQ1OzpkvkKeZDpcdFS-MbvZSVQcPWWB_b5un-GNtYYscLjDiIcM/w320-h231/Screen+Shot+2021-06-22+at+10.36.43+AM.png" width="320" /></span></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: xx-small;">Image description: white background with sketched images of a car with owls, <br />a figure in a tent seeing rodents, and another car. </span></td></tr></tbody></table><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px;"><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: medium;"><b>Differentiation: </b>In this case, I don't think I did much to differentiate except for making sure that I was continuing to point to language on the board (<i>Being comprehensible</i>) and probably asked some processing questions. I invited rather than required participants as well. </span></p></blockquote><h2 style="text-align: left;">Read parallel text</h2><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px;"><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;"><span style="font-size: medium;">After the collaborative mural, I shared a short reading with similar language to the story we had just asked and we read it together, clarifying for meaning. I got the text from the original story script, included in the curriculum.</span> </span></p></blockquote><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px;"><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: medium;"><b>Differentiation:</b> <span>I asked processing questions as necessary (<i>Ask processing questions</i>), did comprehension checks, and made sure the meaning of words was available for students to look at during the reading (<i>Being comprehensible</i>).</span></span></p></blockquote><h2 style="text-align: left;">Horizontal Conjugation</h2><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px;"><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: large;">This is one of my favorite activities to do, but this one kind of bombed due to the lack of tech skills and me not taking time to explain one really important thing well.</span></p></blockquote><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px;"><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span><b>Here's a breakdown of how it went:</b></span><br /></span><span style="font-size: medium;"><span>After reading the parallel story, I switched to English and explained that we were going to change the perspective of the story from 3rd person to 1st person. We did the first paragraph as an example together, then I gave students a choice: work on a story in a breakout room changing from 3rd to 1st person or changing from past to present. The part I missed saying was that there was a word bank on the last page activity for support. So my differentiation plan was this:<i> student choice</i>, <i>homogenous groups</i>, and the word bank for support (<i>establishing meaning,</i> <i>being comprehensible</i>).</span> </span></span></p></blockquote><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px;"><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: medium;"><span>What actually happened was that two of the students couldn't even get into the breakout rooms nor could they view the document, so they stayed with me in the main room and we worked together. That wasn't terrible, but the other students struggled because I didn't tell them about the word bank, because they chose the task that was too challenging for them, and because I couldn't join them to offer support as I had planned.</span> </span></p></blockquote><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px;"><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: medium;"> Upon reflection, I could have done this differently, or saved it for later in the week once I had a better sense of what would and wouldn't work, and which students were likely to bite off more than they could chew.</span></p></blockquote><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px;"><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: medium;"> This is one challenge with giving students choice if you don't know them very well, but hey, live and learn, right? They still got some Spanish input, and I learned a lot about them as learners.</span></div></blockquote><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px;"><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: medium;">Read about horizontal conjugation here: <a href="https://comprehensibleclassroom.com/2011/12/08/horizontal-conjugation/" target="_blank">Horizontal Conjugation</a> by Martina Bex (Comprehensible Classroom) or how I use it to differentiate here: <a href="https://www.desklessclassroom.com/2019/05/the-great-grammar-compromise-part-1.html" target="_blank">The Great Grammar Compromise</a> by Elicia Cárdenas (Deskless Classroom)</span></p></blockquote><h2 style="text-align: left;">Wrap Up</h2><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px;"><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: medium;">I listed the "grammar" things we had done that day in English. It was a pretty long list and they were surprised. It included: preterite/imperfect, present progressive, reflexive verbs, stem changing verbs, verbs with irregular yo forms, and ser/estar.</span> <span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: large;"> </span></div></blockquote><h1 style="text-align: left;">Prepping for the next day</h1><div><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: medium;">That night, I typed the story in present and past tense versions so that I could use it for some games (below) and so that students could read it if they chose, and I finally got answers to the first day's 2 truths and a lie (because some folks had tech problems, so they had to email me), typed those out, and made slides of each person's information.<br /><br /></span><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: medium;">Wow! This amazingly long blog post has gotten *really* long, so to finish up, I am going to just bullet point the rest of the week. I think you all probably get the idea of how I differentiate and plan. Ask questions in the comments for more information!</span></p></div><div><h1 style="text-align: left;">Day 3</h1><h2 style="text-align: left;">Played 2 Truths and a Lie</h2></div><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px;"><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;"><span style="font-size: medium;">I prepped slides with each person's statements, and encouraged them to ask each other questions to find out more information. I saw this twist- the asking questions part- done in a Mandarin Chinese lesson recently and was BLOWN AWAY by how awesome it was. We spent an hour in my class on this activity. To vote for the lie, we used the "polls" function in zoom in a way that I learned from Diane Neubauer (<a href="https://tprsforchinese.blogspot.com/2020/07/five-ways-to-interact-in-zoom-part-1.html" target="_blank">read about that here</a>). We applauded the good liars and learned a ton about each other. It was amazing. Note that because I prepped the statements before class, they were in comprehensible language. </span> </span></p></blockquote><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px;"><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: medium;">This was SUCH a blast and lasted the best part of the hour, with much laughter and strategy to ask the best questions. </span></p></blockquote><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px;"><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: medium;"><b>Differentiation: </b>I provided word meanings for high frequency words and <i>established meaning</i> for any new words that came up (<i>Being comprehensible</i>). I also pointed to words on the board as support, and asked faster processors for more information. I invited students to create with the language by asking questions, but I did not require anyone to do so (<i>Inviting responses</i>).</span></div></blockquote><h2 style="text-align: left;"><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUr5cTpsgnQy_iyG7HLgElOp4pLXcx6WzHkugENCb3DjzVn-NAF0vo2z72jPM8Il2Jb_VdMX_f8sK_AgD0mnM2a54Vzo5HeECkIKc16-eSwLDuUgQGfIihX-kHv4SwHD_8p458q4HzqYo/s858/Screen+Shot+2021-07-03+at+12.57.38+PM.png" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;"><img border="0" data-original-height="483" data-original-width="858" height="225" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUr5cTpsgnQy_iyG7HLgElOp4pLXcx6WzHkugENCb3DjzVn-NAF0vo2z72jPM8Il2Jb_VdMX_f8sK_AgD0mnM2a54Vzo5HeECkIKc16-eSwLDuUgQGfIihX-kHv4SwHD_8p458q4HzqYo/w400-h225/Screen+Shot+2021-07-03+at+12.57.38+PM.png" width="400" /></span></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: xx-small;">Image description: Text boxes Gray background with hanging plants. Text reads: Elicia escribió: <br />Me gusta ir a los casinos. En el pasado, he trabajado con un elefante, un serpiente, <br />El String Cheese Incident, y Dra. Maya Angelou. Trabajo por MIT.</span></td></tr></tbody></table>Worked with Story: Read Together and Before and After</h2><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px;"><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: medium;">We read the story in past tense from the previous day together. I shared the text and we literally went through it sentence by sentence. Then I gave them each a digital copy and asked them to tell me: what happened *immediately* before [event from story]? What happened immediately after [event from story]? I love this activity because it requires strong understanding of the text, re-reading, and inference. At one point, we had to go back and reconstruct a chronology of the story because the narrative jumped time frames (like stories do sometimes) and we had to discuss what happened first, second. </span></p></blockquote><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px;"><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: medium;"><span><b>Differentiation:</b> <i>established meaning of new words</i>, <i>being comprehensible</i>, a<i>sking processing questions, comprehension checks, differentiated questions,</i> and...using a familiar story (from the day before) and providing it for students to read in present or past tense.</span> </span></p></blockquote><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px;"><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: medium;">Read about Before and After here: <a href="https://comprehensibleclassroom.com/2011/11/16/before-and-after/" target="_blank">Before and After</a> by Martina Bex (Comprehensible Classroom) </span></p></blockquote><h2 style="text-align: left;">Circumlocution game</h2><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px;"><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: medium;">I had prepped an <a href="https://comprehensibleclassroom.com/2011/11/15/emotions-analysis/" target="_blank">emotions analysis</a> activity as well (well, it is super low prep!) but enthusiasm was waning, so we played a game from Kristy Placido called the <a href="https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/ORIGINAL-Circumlocution-Game-for-Spanish-French-German-and-MORE-2239839" target="_blank">Circumlocution Game</a>. I LOVE this game. </span></p></blockquote><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px;"><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: medium;">To play it on Zoom, I prepped a slide with sentence starters (<a href="https://lamaestralocablog.com/2017/11/03/yayyyy-no-more-como-se-dice/" target="_blank">similar to ones suggested by Annabelle Williamson here</a>) and modified it to be a whole class activity. I private messaged a volunteer one of the words to be guessed, and they had to describe that word in Spanish without using the word (even if they knew it, which pretty much they did not). Other students in the class had to guess in English what the word was. Words like "safety pin", "snowman", and "garden hose" are the kinds of words that we used. I finished the class by sharing with them that this skill of circumlocution is incredibly valuable because it's hard to know all the words, but being able to explain an idea even when you don't have the language is great to know how to do!<span></span></span></div></blockquote><h1 style="text-align: left;">Day 4</h1><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: medium;">This was the last 2 hours of class and it got here much too soon! I had probably another 8 hours of lesson plans prepped, but I sat down and looked at where we had been and what I still wanted to do, and decided on the following:</span></div><h2 style="text-align: left;">Picture Talk:Hedgehog Goes Camping </h2><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px; text-align: left;"><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: medium;">I showed adorable pictures that I found somewhere on the internets of a hedgehog going camping. We started developing a little narrative about Herman the Hedgehog) and how he was camping to get some space from his ex, he was afraid of water, and more. Mind you, at this point, the students were driving the narrative. I was asking questions like "what happened immediately before this moment?" and "what is he doing right now?" to continue to encourage instances of past/ present/ progressive/ narration in a natural way. I also wanted to expose them to some vocabulary that was important for the final reading, and the pictures gave me a very natural way to use those words. </span></p></blockquote><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: medium;"><b>Differentiation:</b> <i>established meaning of new words, being comprehensible, asking processing questions, comprehension checks, differentiated questions</i>...the usual! </span></blockquote><h2 style="text-align: left;">Picture Talk 2: Comparison of camping in the Western US and Patagonia</h2><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px;"><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: medium;">I knew that I wanted to finish our discussion of camping with a comparison of camping culture based on pictures and experiences from my own time spent camping for several months in Patagonia, as I had some materials that I had already created and because it was pretty interesting. I used pictures of camping in Patagonia and camping in the Western US (where I live) and discussed them. </span></p></blockquote><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px;"><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: medium;">This was less of an open ended picture talk in that I wasn't trying to develop a narrative; I already had the narrative and text; it was more like me telling a story using pictures to clarify and compare/contrast. </span></div></blockquote><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px;"><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: medium;"><b>Differentiation</b>: <i>established meaning of new words, being comprehensible, asking processing questions, comprehension checks, differentiated questions.</i></span></p></blockquote><h2 style="text-align: left;">VolleyBall Reading</h2><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px;"><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: medium;">I wanted students to do some more reading, preferably in a small group or independently, so I had a text ready that was a write up of the 2nd picture talk. I also wanted them to do something social, so a volleyball reading, something I don't often do, seemed like an easy, low tech way to check off all the boxes. Plus, I could do some homogenous group differentiation, which was something I really wanted to do since I had a strong sense of their levels of language at that point. </span></p></blockquote><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px;"><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: medium;">I shared the document and modeled the activity with a student who is also a colleague. I started assigning groups, making sure that one person in each group could share the screen and had the document open, and sent them off. </span></p></blockquote><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px; text-align: left;"><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><b>Differentiation: </b>homogenous groups: higher level students together, mid together, lower together, and the lower level students got more attention from me. The reading included a glossary of all the words.</span><span style="font-size: large;"> </span></span></p></blockquote><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px; text-align: left;"><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: medium;">Read more about VolleyBall Translation here: <a href="https://comprehensibleclassroom.com/2015/09/22/volleyball-translation/" target="_blank">Volleyball Translation</a> by Martina Bex (Comprehensible Classroom) </span></p></blockquote><h2 style="text-align: left;">Scaffolding Vocabulary</h2><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: medium;">Notice how I scaffolded camping vocabulary to be able to read this article that focused on cultural comparisons. This was very intentional. </span></p><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: medium;">First, I found a resource that allowed us to talk about the most important vocabulary in a natural way (Hedgehog camping picture talk). Then I used that language again, very contextualized, to give oral input and discuss the cultural comparisons in a large group, then I sent students to do a reading, again using the same language. In this case, it was camping vocabulary, but it could have been any list of vocabulary. </span><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Consider how different this is from giving them a list, or a quizlet/kahoot/etc. of camping vocabulary to memorize. Consider how my students heard the language in context, connected first to a narrative then in a non-fiction text. This is how I take advantage of how our brains acquire language and honor all my students' brains, rather than privileging those who can or choose to study and memorize. </span><br /></span></p><h2 style="text-align: left;">When was the last time you...?</h2><p></p><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px;"><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: medium;">After reading, I decided to do a little interview style game called "When was the last time you...?" I shared a slide with a question in the target language such as "When was the last time you went to a shopping mall?" and "When was the last time you went to a restaurant?". The discussions that ensued were rich! Useful language was used in a meaningful way! We learned who does the grocery shopping, who went shopping for a dress to wear to their child's wedding, and who at outside at a restaurant vs asking for carry out. This was basically another Personalized Questions and Answers activity. </span></p></blockquote><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px;"><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: medium;"><b>Differentiation: </b>you guessed it! I <i>established meaning</i> of new words, was <i>comprehensible</i>, asked <i>processing questions</i>, did <i>comprehension checks</i>, and <i>asked differentiated questions.</i> Also, I asked for volunteers to share rather than putting people on the spot without warning (<i>invited participation</i>).</span></p></blockquote><h2 style="text-align: left;">Timed Free Write</h2><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px;"><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: medium;">It was nearly the end of class and I wanted students to do the identical activity that we started with. They had 5 minutes to write about anything. Again, I didn't collect it or even look at it, although I invited students to share it with me. </span></p></blockquote><h2 style="text-align: left;">Where next: a discussion to continue the journey of acquiring Spanish</h2><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px;"><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: medium;">This was such a hot topic for the students that it made sense to spend the last 15 minutes of class talking about it. It is tricky to help students, especially adults, reframe the idea that speaking with other students to practice will grow their language. But of course, this is unlikely to be successful unless they are getting input that they understand. Add to that the fact that two learners are likely to be exhibiting a bunch of developmental forms (aka errors) and giving each other junky input (junkput, throughput, as described by Terry Waltz), and there are better ways for students to use their time. But saying that isn't necessarily going to be helpful. </span></p></blockquote><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px; text-align: left;"><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: medium;">Instead, I suggested that reading a book together and meeting to talk about it might be very fun. I did quick book previews of some of my favorite books for language learners (ok, by favorite, I mean the ones at the top of the pile!) and shared some <a href="https://cpli-bookstore.myshopify.com" target="_blank">resources for purchasing those books</a>. I reiterated again and again that practice does not lead to language acquisition and reading and listening to things that are comprehensible does. I did this all in English, by the way, because doing it in the target language would have been incomprehensible. </span></p></blockquote><p></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEilBbCRX4i4qDzilUttXGIYHuiWxHVGUL2zzGNpvcJpuCTLfEKNuKa1aCRMmzptWQvFwAwaUTrjfoR4gAJQ9chQb3O6bXwjHsd4tJ33_QPcif5nS3m_54QiSIOOh2rRB0DzoWYYvjLBFOM/s1154/Screen+Shot+2021-07-03+at+1.13.47+PM.png" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;"><img border="0" data-original-height="654" data-original-width="1154" height="362" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEilBbCRX4i4qDzilUttXGIYHuiWxHVGUL2zzGNpvcJpuCTLfEKNuKa1aCRMmzptWQvFwAwaUTrjfoR4gAJQ9chQb3O6bXwjHsd4tJ33_QPcif5nS3m_54QiSIOOh2rRB0DzoWYYvjLBFOM/w640-h362/Screen+Shot+2021-07-03+at+1.13.47+PM.png" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption"><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: x-small;">Image description: Green text on a gray background with hanging houseplants. </span></div><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: xx-small;"><div style="text-align: center;">Text reads: We acquire spoken fluency not by talking but by understanding input, by listening and reading. </div><div style="text-align: center;">Dr. Stephen Krashen, Principles and Practices of Second Language Acquisition</div></span></td></tr></tbody></table><p></p><div><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: medium;">And it was time to go!</span></p><div><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: large;">I hope this extremely long post was helpful to you! Thanks for getting to the end! Great work! </span></div><div><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: medium;"><br /></span><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px;"><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: medium;"> </span></div></blockquote><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px;"><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: medium;"> </span></div></blockquote><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px;"><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: medium;"> </span></div></blockquote><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px;"><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: medium;"> </span></div></blockquote><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: medium;"><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /></span><br /></div></div>Eliciahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17014283811911497554noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7311138534527402755.post-32021342464772619332021-06-27T12:16:00.006-07:002021-07-03T12:50:59.008-07:00Title: Grammar Teacher. Goal: Language Acquisition.<p><b><br /></b></p><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjFrJOSekHxGZUEbjxgZhQldjbp45VdpjcwranDtDcOzZA8PbU3lzWToUWqUZYQvssLCiPy2FYBsTNghiaNNjM9irlbYmSksYbK_UC4KxQ4w6nQtSdCfHQrBenM89BOK05j-O55qq4F3WY/s1080/grammar.png" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1080" data-original-width="1080" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjFrJOSekHxGZUEbjxgZhQldjbp45VdpjcwranDtDcOzZA8PbU3lzWToUWqUZYQvssLCiPy2FYBsTNghiaNNjM9irlbYmSksYbK_UC4KxQ4w6nQtSdCfHQrBenM89BOK05j-O55qq4F3WY/w400-h400/grammar.png" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;">Image description: beige background with hanging plants. <br />Text reads: Title: Grammar Teacher Goal: Language Acquisition</span></td></tr></tbody></table><h2 style="text-align: left;"><b><br /></b></h2><h2 style="text-align: left;"><b>Teaching Spanish Again (online)</b></h2><p><span style="font-size: medium;">I got to teach Spanish last week! This past year, I have not really been teaching consecutive language lessons aside from short (5-20 minute) demonstration lessons. And you know what? I REALLY LIKE TEACHING SPANISH. I had so much fun. </span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">But the intention of this post is to talk about the part of the job that initially terrified me: I was hired with the title of "Grammar teacher." </span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">I was handed a workbook/textbook with a syllabus that included an extremely long list of discrete grammar points, explanations in English for each, cultural information in English (!!!), and activities such as "verb conjugation Battleship" wherein students utter verb conjugations to try to win. No communication involved. (Also, #nojudgement if you played this game in your class. I did when I first started teaching, or some variation of it.)</span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">I was invited to teach in an adult Spanish immersion program, taught this year virtually. So yeah, I was seriously walking the walk that I talked about all year long- re: teaching online. Fun fact: I don't feel like a hypocrite! I think my workshops for teachers teaching virtually were spot on, because I was using everything that I talked about. </span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">Plus, due to low enrollment, I was also supposed to teach a split two levels: "intermediate low" and "intermediate mid". I am using quotes because these levels are not in any way aligned with ACTFL proficiency descriptors. So, two workbooks/syllabi/sets of grammar topics to teach. In 8 hours total. </span></p><h1 style="text-align: left;"><b>Program Disconnect</b></h1><p><span style="font-size: medium;">As an experienced acquisition based teacher who spends most of her time talking about how language acquisition works and what we can do in classrooms to make it happen (that is, <a href="http://www.comprehensibletraining.com" target="_blank">Director of Training for The Comprehensible Classroom)</a>, I know that following the workbook will not help students reach any kind of language goals, and furthermore, will likely cause anxiety and/or frustration in many- even if it is what they are expecting. </span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">Read that again- even if the "paying customers" are expecting explicit grammar instruction, even if the school expects it, I know that teaching and practicing explicit grammar is not going to actually meet the goals of the program or the students. The fact that there is such a huge disconnect between the goals and the expectations and reality is a problem that I think many teachers can identify with. Right? </span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">This teaching job was a new role for me- my first time teaching in this program. I was invited in thanks to some wonderful mentors <a href="http://blog.heartsforteaching.com" target="_blank">Laurie Clarcq,</a> <a href="https://tcimainenewenglandandbeyond.weebly.com" target="_blank">Skip Crosby</a>, Michele Whaley) but I was totally the new girl on the (virtual) block. </span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">So what do I do? How can I do the best for the students and their wonderful brilliant brains? How can I convince them that acquiring a language is joyful and not about hard work and studying, while still meeting the expectations of the program? How can I help them acquire language and hopefully get invited back? Again, these are questions that I think many teachers struggle with. I know I am not the first to be in this position! </span></p><p></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmgEBQoCs6xDjgjcGmwjAl_e_x6tqEczaXQtGAIXdGMqJDoEB8CkgEyLxsxOJPiHg5__SjPpMTtJqRh0syp-WssNBwDPBR2v1RJcndCABD6BKhey2vGuhr4Nx1LI_YzSokAlVI3tZTEC4/s1080/practice.png" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1080" data-original-width="1080" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmgEBQoCs6xDjgjcGmwjAl_e_x6tqEczaXQtGAIXdGMqJDoEB8CkgEyLxsxOJPiHg5__SjPpMTtJqRh0syp-WssNBwDPBR2v1RJcndCABD6BKhey2vGuhr4Nx1LI_YzSokAlVI3tZTEC4/w400-h400/practice.png" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;">Image description: green background with houseplants. <br />Text reads: I know that teaching and practicing explicit grammar will not meet the program goals.</span></td></tr></tbody></table><p></p><p></p><span style="font-size: medium;">And also...I do have strong opinions, based on research, experience, and evidence, about what will help students acquire language. I feel confident that I can make a real difference in their Spanish acquisition if I am given the chance to do so. </span><p></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">Now that you know the context of my teaching and the constraints, read on for the thought processes I went through to decide what and how to teach, and a little bit about what ended up happening and what a unit looked like (in part 2). </span></p><h1 style="text-align: left;"><b>Considering Expectations </b></h1><p><span style="font-size: medium;">In order to even begin planning out instruction for the class, I had to stop and ask some important questions about the program: </span></p><p><b><span style="font-size: medium;">#1: What are the true expectations (spoken or unspoken) of the administrators and/or other teachers? </span></b></p><p><b><span style="font-size: medium;">#1a: What are the consequences of not meeting the expectations? </span></b></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">Well, it turns out that although the textbook lays out a daily plan and scope and sequence, there is not a lot of clear expectation from the administration about how to follow it. In this case, there is also not a lot of expectation from the teacher "above" me (next level) because there is a general understanding that we teach the students that we get, not the students that we want. Since students self-select into these classes, there doesn't seem to be much blaming other teachers. </span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">(Which is a whole other issue- I mean- does blaming the level 1 teacher for students not being able to do something that is developmentally inappropriate really help anybody? That is probably another blog post, and we will be doing a whole <a href="https://comprehensibleclassroom.freshdesk.com/support/solutions/articles/64000253684-video-trainings-fun-club-" target="_blank">Fun Club</a> episode about it later this summer. Stay tuned.) </span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">What are the consequences of not meeting the expectations? As far as I could tell, in this context, the worst consequence would be to not be invited back. After speaking with other acquisition focused colleagues who dispensed with the textbook as well, I decided that was unlikely. </span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">You know why? <b>Because success builds motivation,</b> and when students are happy and feel confident, like they learned something, they are very likely to tell administrators (or in school situations, their caregivers, who in turn tell administrators). Administrators like happy students & caregivers. </span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">One thing that I have learned from teacher-leader <a href=" https://thecornerstoneforteachers.com/blog/" target="_blank">Angela Watson</a> is to really ask questions like this rather than assuming that we know the answers. Teachers are often mistaken about expectations and consequences- sometimes because no one really cares, or sometimes because administrators really do have our back and trust us to be professionals. I encourage everyone to make instructional decisions based on actual facts about your teaching context. </span></p><p><b><span style="font-size: medium;">#2: What is really possible to achieve in the time frame?</span></b></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2FxNY7yQhFabh-XgOURtJp6xmoRwDoeNNea-3440NFHQEdmfAPq-oLRBCASgT_ft_eLKHxVNnT5oAl6NEFPaDLGc1RIkz02xCH8zZMRXDsRzCOLvUgeLAASJ-7rQJovTTdWCD_IwRjmI/s1080/realistic.png" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1080" data-original-width="1080" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2FxNY7yQhFabh-XgOURtJp6xmoRwDoeNNea-3440NFHQEdmfAPq-oLRBCASgT_ft_eLKHxVNnT5oAl6NEFPaDLGc1RIkz02xCH8zZMRXDsRzCOLvUgeLAASJ-7rQJovTTdWCD_IwRjmI/w400-h400/realistic.png" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;">Image description: off white background with houseplants. <br />Text reads: How much is realistic to do in the given time frame? </span></td></tr></tbody></table><p></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">Pretty much every scope and sequence from a textbook about what to do in a certain time frame is completely bananas. My two syllabi were no exception. Plus, contact hours were cut due to being online, and I had a total of 8 hours with students. </span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">More importantly: we know that explicit instruction does not turn into implicit learning. There is a great deal of evidence for this. You can take a look at this very recently published paper: <a href="https://www.researchgate.net/publication/352710658_Was_Krashen_right_Forty_years_later?fbclid=IwAR1imxzVWINCvyoVJvPPBHAtHmwR8WhQxEGja5KOHvRgd0dP3K97_1Mlfbw" target="_blank">Was Krashen Right? </a> published by Dr. Karen Lichtman and Dr. Bill VanPatten for a fascinating discussion of this research and other extremely relevant ideas if you are into that sort of thing. </span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">Other sources for information about second language acquisition that are quick to read include my very favorite books for language teachers: <a href="https://my.actfl.org/portal/ItemDetail?iProductCode=BVP_NOL" target="_blank">The Nature of Language: A short guide to what's in our heads </a>(VanPatten 2019), and <a href="https://my.actfl.org/portal/ItemDetail?iProductCode=BVP-LACP" target="_blank">While We're on the Topic</a> (VanPatten 2017), both published by ACTFL. </span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">So if I spend time teaching these discrete grammar points, even if I could teach all of them in the few hours I have (which is totally impossible), <u>it's not going to help students acquire. </u></span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">It will likely be boring (for them and me), frustrating because the "rules" don't really make a ton of sense (because they are simply descriptors of incredibly complex systems and don't adequately describe what is really going on in our language systems), and the end result will continue to be "wow, I just spent all that time studying Spanish but I can't communicate." </span></p><h1 style="text-align: left;"><b>"But I learned that way"</b></h1><p><span style="font-size: medium;">Some of you reading this might be thinking "Wait. I acquired my language with grammar explanations. I know the rules for ser & estar /imparfait & passé compose/ subjunctive / stem-changing verbs, so what are you talking about?" </span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">I ask you this: are you teaching you? Or the students in front of you? </span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">There is a very small percentage of students who can glean enough information from grammar instruction and practice to start acquiring a language. Language teachers tend to have been those students. In addition, I have observed that many teachers, when they reflect on their acquisition journey, discover that they really began to acquire when they studied abroad or were otherwise immersed in the target language.</span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEizzFaC3et8oxzyPHc-6gkoZWGhzaUSQmemXu2jRI7HbWZ3fnMwePEHMaJ80BWCxXl1fdSQXmM_eZoTaCeoYWqcuq6xDAuqtfCW8ooKPd_AypeTdN5FGskjuihu3NN_lASKeXZpvHlzveI/s1080/students+or+you.png" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1080" data-original-width="1080" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEizzFaC3et8oxzyPHc-6gkoZWGhzaUSQmemXu2jRI7HbWZ3fnMwePEHMaJ80BWCxXl1fdSQXmM_eZoTaCeoYWqcuq6xDAuqtfCW8ooKPd_AypeTdN5FGskjuihu3NN_lASKeXZpvHlzveI/w400-h400/students+or+you.png" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;">Image description: green background with houseplants. <br />Text reads: Are you teaching the student you were? Or are you teaching the humans in front of you? </span></td></tr></tbody></table><p></p><h1 style="text-align: left;"><b>Equity</b></h1><p><span style="font-size: medium;">To me, this is an equity issue. Some kids might be the ones who get motivated by grammar exercises, who can memorize and have strong study skills (and all the privilege that goes along with those things) and can pass tests and get into upper level programs (where there often is more reading & communication, which lead to acquisition) and eventually study abroad. </span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">But what about all the others? How many kids make it from level 1 to AP? And are they representative of the school's population? Why don't all the kids go on and feel like they can acquire another language? I mean, they already acquired communicative competency in at least one, effortlessly. Why are those upper level classes reserved for a certain kind of student? </span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">And...I think it's important to ask ourselves: Are we teaching just some of the students or are we teaching *all* of them? There is some fascinating evidence for rethinking how language classes are taught from an equity perspective. Take a look at<a href="http://www.grantboulanger.com/a-nail-in-the-coffin-part-1-ci-increases-enrollment/" target="_blank"> Grant Boulanger's work with AP classes.</a> My work as a Teaching Assistant with <a href="http://bit.ly/TSLEquityE" target="_blank">MITx's (free) Becoming a More Equitable Educator</a> class has shown me that teaching the students in front of us (and many other common practices in an acquisition based classroom) are in line with principles of equity focused teaching. I hope to write more about that soon! </span></p><h1 style="text-align: left;"><b>So what did I actually do?</b></h1><p><span style="font-size: medium;">I looked at the two syllabi: (click on the images to see bigger versions) </span></p><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><span style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><a href="https://drive.google.com/file/d/1Hi_FcbwGoW7CredWmbjsYGX588IX3ism/view?usp=sharing" target="_blank"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1583" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiR1h7Q45FDIBCaAvD-cC-t6j_cHBgOzm2s_V75eyW9sfkkQsOMuLL5YHI49KI9b08XEbBnyJMfsBcqUcGgt5vtToRCLtkv7cIIX0OGnP9wqPRFYpBIC0hyJRkAyJgzRUwV93S_IkCDEs0/w309-h400/Level+4_Intermediate+Low+Syllabi+COSSI.jpg" width="309" /></a></span></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://drive.google.com/file/d/1Hi_FcbwGoW7CredWmbjsYGX588IX3ism/view?usp=sharing" target="_blank"><span style="font-size: xx-small;">Image description: Grammar syllabus.<br /> Click on the image for pdf</span></a></td></tr></tbody></table><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><br /></span><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><span style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><a href="https://drive.google.com/file/d/1tDSj3nVA_V2Yqz1F__kSdLk8XHSaK5Dk/view?usp=sharing" target="_blank"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1583" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjc1X1DWOu_UgnMMSe8swxrmOADfQKAA3XGwTAtTO4DiY-1BvDX-5kuoev-1b8yEEJCAIYLiPV2NpyLjqTd2w7aoHzKmqPmDDx1micqd_T9h8qjcLPmPJ117MMI1IWGQuFXmhiLPuh3sXU/w309-h400/Level+5_Intermediate+Low+Syllabi+COSSI.jpg" width="309" /></a></span></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://drive.google.com/file/d/1tDSj3nVA_V2Yqz1F__kSdLk8XHSaK5Dk/view?usp=sharing" target="_blank"><span style="font-size: xx-small;">Image description: Grammar syllabus for level 4.<br /> Click on the image for pdf</span></a></td></tr></tbody></table><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p> </p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">I started a list of the big ideas in the grammar sequence: reflexive verbs, stem changing verbs, preterite/imperfect, ser/estar (to be in Spanish), irregular present tense verbs, present progressive. I glanced at the themes (weather, professions) but decided that those were less important than the verbs. Although it is common knowledge that vocabulary lists are an important part of language study, I know that the most frequently used words are much more important, so, as the expert (the teacher) I am going to choose to focus my energy on the most important things from the list. </span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">How did I decide these things were more/less important? And why did I even start looking at the syllabus with this in mind? </span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">Well, I was thinking about power standards and the idea of Marie Kondo-ing the curriculum. What is truly the most important to teach, and what can I let go of? This article from Carrie Toth: <a href="https://somewheretoshare.com/2014/01/07/the-chuck-it-bucket-choosing-your-enduring-understandings/" target="_blank">The Chuck-it Bucket </a> (Somewhere to Share) is a great resource, as was this article about using a textbook and still providing input that students understand:<a href="https://comprehensibleclassroom.com/2012/12/08/textbooks-and-tprs/" target="_blank"> Comprehensible Input from your Textbook</a> from Martina Bex (The Comprehensible Classroom). I was also thinking about the most frequently used verbs and the words that I use in conversations and see in books vs. the words in the textbook. </span></p><h1 style="text-align: left;">Choosing a Resource</h1><p><span style="font-size: medium;">I thought about the <a href="http://www.somoscurriculum.com" target="_blank">SOMOS</a>* units that I love that were appropriate for intermediate low students- and then thought about how the students were probably a mix of novice mid, novice high, intermediate low, and intermediate mid, based on the "placement test" which did not in any way assess communication or acquisition. </span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">Hmmm...<a href="https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/SOMOS-Spanish-1-Unit-21-Storytelling-Una-aventura-de-camping-1377868" target="_blank">SOMOS 1 Unit 21</a> has reflexives, irregulars, and stem changing verbs. Oh- and present progressive, irregular verbs, ser and estar (because they are used all the time!) and has a theme that is pretty fun to talk about for adults, especially adults in an outdoorsy place (Bend, OR). And I have some authentic resources that I can use to do some higher order thinking activities (e.g.compare and contrast) and some other resources that are just fun. Also, I have taught the unit a few times and found it to be a really fun one. That's important for me! As far as adding in preterite/imperfect, well, that's easy- we can do some activities in the past tense- discussing yesterday, reading a story in past tense, doing a picture talk and asking "What happened immediately before x happened?" and that sort of thing. </span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">Now, if you don't know the SOMOS curriculum like I do, this might be more of a challenge. You could ask colleagues for recommendations, ask on a collaborative facebook group, or check out a curriculum map. (You could do this with any curriculum!). </span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">You could also backwards plan from a favorite resource or theme by thinking of the most important words that make sense in that theme that *also* include reflexives, irregulars, etc. </span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">The thing is, you can can use almost any resource with almost any kind of language. If you focus on high frequency words, you get irregulars and stem changing verbs. If you are a little creative, I bet you can add direct object pronouns, indirect object pronouns, and of course, our old friend the subjunctive tense. Or anything at all. </span></p><h2 style="text-align: left;"><b>To recap:</b></h2><p><span style="font-size: medium;">I decided to use the textbook syllabi as guidance, but use SOMOS 1 Unit 21 as a framework, because there was no way I was going to be able to teach everything that was listed anyway, but I could use a lot of the kinds of grammar points included in the syllabi quite easily. </span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">Here is the syllabus with the grammar points that were going to be included in my lesson plan. The highlights are instances of words that we used again and again, in context. The notes to the side indicate either the activities that included that language feature or function or specifics about what I was going to focus on. </span></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><span style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><a href="https://drive.google.com/file/d/1D-8iSqIEb8oLoUvAKytslegTqFQRRnGE/view?usp=sharing" target="_blank"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1583" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj288RWpxXGe9fxve08FW7Y0dju5RRfJqolwWnrrTOgY9pjvwAs71gGaYEwKPx4zGoGrZtaRB6Tncl40H-kszC_I1kH9upbMoIKVkUiFZJDcRWfFVJdBfLvcYaun8fBUqJi5jqUgRt3hHM/w494-h640/Level+4_Intermediate+Low+Syllabi+with+notes+COSSI.png" width="494" /></a></span></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://drive.google.com/file/d/1D-8iSqIEb8oLoUvAKytslegTqFQRRnGE/view?usp=sharing" target="_blank"><span style="font-size: xx-small;">Image description:syllabus with highlights and notes; click on image for pdf</span></a></td></tr></tbody></table><br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><span style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><a href="https://drive.google.com/file/d/1J_p8-0uLEgeQoQm_O4bJ7apb4L5LFiey/view?usp=sharing" target="_blank"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1583" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhLsEy5RVcJYmYoD-Wz1hBxNsKC1RSz9BHlRslY467Oqn3zxxekmFDCUlUTZ5a0vyPZednW0FIxQM7NrTS4eX6raizOEvlbCbK7aR2EGaz0F6b8qILlPeTUjxNv_iLbYnXwCQaFICT9ExY/w494-h640/Level+5_Intermediate+Low+Syllabi++with+notes+COSSI.png" width="494" /></a></span></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><a href="https://drive.google.com/file/d/1J_p8-0uLEgeQoQm_O4bJ7apb4L5LFiey/view?usp=sharing" target="_blank">Image description: syllabus with highlights and notes; click on image for pdf</a></span></td></tr></tbody></table><p><span style="font-size: medium;">Notice that not everything is included. In 8 hours, it would be completely impossible to do everything, and some things are more important. This is where experience and judgement come in: deciding what to keep and what to get rid of. </span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">Did I get it perfectly right? I have no idea! But again, the important thing is that students hear and read a ton of target language that they understand, and that is the plan. </span></p><h1 style="text-align: left;"><b>Setting student expectations</b></h1><p><span style="font-size: medium;">Once I had my plan, I also had to consider how to set expectations for the students in my class who were literally sent the textbook/workbook ahead of time with an email saying "Elicia will be using it". </span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">A colleague recommended that I create a workbook with an answer key, and offer students the opportunity to do the exercises on their own time, which I did. For both levels. </span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">I also decided to be very up front with students and explain that time together with me was going to be spent using the language, rather than talking about the language. I took about 5 minutes to talk about how language is acquired when we understand messages and when we communicate, and that is something that we can only do together, and that the workbook was there for them to use on their own. </span></p><p></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdKN8aRqnpzzdiLeEvLpg7sTIOv06fbl1dGpZVjWl835CoRVXerAt5O8NAolDkqsfmcPDeit-tD2V3GOKfrYKJF7ZR1WQakRWKZWnUelXEUlHFVLd7LvKLwmd8xqZQUwCpjLl5FN_G5R0/s1080/time+spent.png" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1080" data-original-width="1080" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdKN8aRqnpzzdiLeEvLpg7sTIOv06fbl1dGpZVjWl835CoRVXerAt5O8NAolDkqsfmcPDeit-tD2V3GOKfrYKJF7ZR1WQakRWKZWnUelXEUlHFVLd7LvKLwmd8xqZQUwCpjLl5FN_G5R0/w400-h400/time+spent.png" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">I<span style="font-size: xx-small;">mage description: light brown background with houseplants. <br />Text reads: We spend time in class using the language instead of talking about the language. </span><br /><br /></td></tr></tbody></table><p></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">Each day, I shared another quote about language acquisition (e.g. "Students studying language have the best chance of success through reading-Dr. Stephen Krashen") at the beginning of class. It took about a minute. When one student (who was not there for initial introduction) asked if I could provide them with lists and rules, I paraphrased the introduction and shared the workbook again. I directly addressed the difference between using the language (listening, understanding, reading, writing, speaking) and learning about the language, and reiterated that we were going to use the language since that was what we were there to do. (And yes, I did all this in English because I wanted to make sure they understood!</span></p><br /><span style="font-size: medium;"><a href="https://www.desklessclassroom.com/2021/07/part-2-of-title-grammar-teacher-what-i.html" target="_blank">Read part 2 for a detailed discussion of my "Unit Plan" and some reflections.</a></span><p></p><span><span style="font-size: medium;"><a name='more'></a></span></span><p><a href="https://www.desklessclassroom.com/p/full-disclosure.html" target="_blank"><span style="font-size: medium;">*Click for information about my financial relationship with SOMOS and The Comprehensible Classroom. </span></a></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p>Eliciahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17014283811911497554noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7311138534527402755.post-38055529626037430392021-03-20T12:52:00.003-07:002021-05-25T08:05:10.887-07:00Things to avoid Part 1: Grading accuracy, participation, and engagement/effort <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: medium; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="Things to avoid: grading for accuracy, participation, effort. Text is overlaid on a terracotta and lavender background." border="0" data-original-height="1080" data-original-width="1080" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEifv5DJU53oEEFxZ5CNZgPC8acEQkUt8G9DZ3aybvPLsDMMITn7qC_rrbF8KZIgnZLpqvPyS-c2aUp2dUDiFwoWRGjILUEtVYlg3UrFBiucmeDB9hFCksfGxOZuujAz28E2fVH_3ZPQ9WU/w400-h400/1.png" width="400" /></span></div><p><span style="font-size: medium;"> </span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">There was a discussion on a Facebook group page that asked for guidance regarding grades and grade books. I was surprised to see the number of teachers who count things like accuracy, participation, and effort. </span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">Now, my thinking has changed a bit, especially on participation and effort, as I continue to decolonize my classroom, my teaching practice, and my curriculum in my journey to become a more equitable educator. </span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;"> (Update on that: I am also a Teaching Assistant now for the MITx class, <a href="https://www.edx.org/course/becoming-a-more-equitable-educator-mindsets-and-practices" target="_blank">Becoming a More Equitable Educator,</a> that was so impactful for me last year, and it is just as impactful going through it again and working with learners from ALL OVER THE GLOBE in their pursuit to become more equitable educators. It is *free* and great.) </span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">I am really struggling with where classroom management, white supremacy and systems of oppression, and my classroom practice intersect, but I have no clarity, so I am going to keep struggling on that and asking questions and seeing what I can think of.</span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">However, over the course of my work and collaborations with amazing educators, I have really come to understand more about the role that grading for effort, accuracy, and participation/engagement play in a comprehension based classroom. I don't think I have all the answers, but I have some strong thoughts! </span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;"> In terms of grading for participation, effort, and accuracy, I would say that all of those concepts may allow teacher bias to strongly interfere with grades. They create systems of rewarding some students for being better at "playing school", and reinforce a "numbers=learning" mindset. And of course, if some students get rewarded, other students are going to be penalized. </span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">As I continue to work with teachers on assessment and grading practices, this student (and caregiver) mindset about numbers (percentages, points) being the equivalent of learning is consistently the number one issue that teachers have, so it is worth considering how our classroom practices play into creating the situation in the first place. Remember that effort and participation might look a lot like compliance, and grading for compliance is never a good idea. <a href="http://www.desklessclassroom.com/2021/01/part-1-a-word-accountability.html" target="_blank">Read my previous posts about grading for accountability, which is another way to say compliance.</a></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: medium; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="Text reads: Students have no control over the rate at which they acquire language. Grading for accuracy on a daily basis rewards faster processors and punishes those who are not. Image of a girl with an afro sitting and smiling on a terracotta and lavender background." border="0" data-original-height="1080" data-original-width="1080" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEglaH87RQQHnr2F4XZtM6wj3c8Zk6f0wxRVSAs80a74H3HkYeWvPpQjurRMfhnPpbMK-sfPZG-QhDDiGmW_vtWuxSELS2XCDgN-ncPQDyHYOBAUoR_xpUjFNl3pezJroHcpUZXoVe4XFB4/w400-h400/2.png" width="400" /></span></div><h2 style="text-align: left;"><b><span style="font-size: medium;">Grading for Accuracy </span></b></h2><p><span style="font-size: medium;">Since students have no control over the rate at which they acquire, grading for accuracy on a daily basis is going to reward only faster processors and punish other students for not being faster processors. </span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">Research about Ordered Development tells us that language features (verbs, word order, what we think of as grammar, etc.) is acquired in an order that is independent of instruction. </span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">That is to say, it doesn't matter how many times or how creatively a Spanish teacher teaches the difference between <i>ser </i>and <i>estar </i>(<i>to be</i> and the other <i>to be</i>) or the difference between the preterite and imperfect past tenses, students will not produce them until their brain is ready, and when they have traversed the developmental stages of acquisition for that word (or language feature). Furthermore, learners move through those stages in a non-linear fashion! They may be able to use a feature accurately one day, then in another context revert back to an earlier phase of development. This developmental order plays out in every language, for every language feature, no matter what the learner's first language is. We see it in first language development as well. For more information about ordered development, <a href="https://www.jstor.org/stable/25703391?seq=1" target="_blank">there is a paywalled article in Hispania </a>by Dr. Bill VanPatten, as well as his great books available from <a href="https://my.actfl.org/portal/ItemDetail?iProductCode=BVP-LACP" target="_blank">ACTFL: The Nature of Language and While We're On The Topic". </a> </span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">Accuracy is probably the least important component of proficiency. Consider: for those of you that have very young children, can they communicate with you? Of course! It is usually imperfect and often adorable, but it is communication. For those of us who prefer four-legged furry friends, do you know when your dog or cat wants something? I sure do, and I speak terrible Dog and her English is just as poor. But we communicate! (Usually.) </span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">Why would we expect our students to communicate about something accurately after mere tens of hours of instruction? Even after hundreds of hours (600+) of instruction, the rather small percentage of students who reach a proficiency level of Intermediate Mid (<a href="https://www.actfl.org/sites/default/files/guidelines/ACTFLProficiencyGuidelines2012.pdf" target="_blank">ACTFL proficiency scale)</a> can only do so much. For example, they can handle concrete, familiar, and predictable situations but might have difficulty linking ideas and time frames, and they are not expected to be accurate speakers of the language. <a href="https://casls.uoregon.edu/wp-content/uploads/pdfs/tenquestions/TBQHoursToReachIH.pdf" target="_blank">Read about that study here,</a> and my analysis of it when published: <a href="https://comprehensibleclassroom.com/2021/03/26/standards-based-grading-standards/" target="_blank">What Standards Should I set for my students? </a></span></p><p><span style="font-size: large;">In short, we should not grade students for accuracy, especially on a daily or weekly basis. </span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: medium; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1080" data-original-width="1080" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjfmmD63_eYnCyK77FkIv4C64si0L7hQRmd30YuXFDtiSXCV4Gsewb7f_0Zdtgv86ZWg4R1kQYMHuqOGzax62E_ew8t4P2pyEYtnVyqUgjUN-WZnvkNbxAC3sBPG1_kxlMWV-Q7QfhtBMM/w400-h400/3.png" width="400" /></span></div><h2 style="text-align: left;">Grading for Effort</h2><p><span style="font-size: medium;">Effort is another tricky concept. Many teachers say that if students are trying, then they are making the effort. But what does that look like? Does "trying" look the same across cultural contexts? Does my "trying" look the same as someone else's? And if the teacher sees someone trying, but doesn't see someone else, who gets the reward (the grade)? </span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">This goes right along with the familiar teacher practice of "well, little Johnny tried really hard so I will just bump up their grade because they deserve it." Now, that is coming from a place of love and support, but wow- there are so many issues with that! </span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">First, if we bump up one kid's grade, why don't we bump up another? Who are we to judge how hard one kid tried and value that over another? Do we have the right to make those calls? </span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">Again, I guarantee that our implicit biases are going to come into play. If we bump up the grade, do little Johnny and their caregivers have an inflated idea about what they can do in the language? Or does it mean that little Johnny gets credit despite not being able to meet a performance target? </span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">Grading for effort is a dangerous road, fraught with opportunities to let implicit biases reward students who understand the dominant cultural norms of the classroom and/or fit the teacher's definition of trying hard. </span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p><h2 style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi4Ml-ld9CKFxV5PL1gIGEyrXW8V0KZ76CCX0H2ihhud6yky9vR3GWhQaPmRza_T5S42rWLZkd_-06toz-ZZ-ZP3s4DC5hn41lmtOAUesUscRH8CUlcLrMl8SluLi5PVST7ifu6PJOVb7g/s1080/4.png" style="font-size: medium; font-weight: 400; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><img alt="Text reads: PARTICIPATION: Learners don't have to speak in order to acquire language. There is an image of a black man with a beard holding coffee, in terracotta, yellow, and beige." border="0" data-original-height="1080" data-original-width="1080" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi4Ml-ld9CKFxV5PL1gIGEyrXW8V0KZ76CCX0H2ihhud6yky9vR3GWhQaPmRza_T5S42rWLZkd_-06toz-ZZ-ZP3s4DC5hn41lmtOAUesUscRH8CUlcLrMl8SluLi5PVST7ifu6PJOVb7g/w400-h400/4.png" width="400" /></span></a></h2><h2 style="text-align: left;">Participation</h2><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Participation is also one of those concepts that needs to be carefully considered. The silent period (lasting 6 months to two years) is a documented stage of language acquisition. We also know that students do not need to be speaking in order to acquire language (they do need to be participating in communicative events, but that doesn't mean speaking!) </span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><span style="font-size: medium;">Students who are not neuro-typical may demonstrate participation differently, as might students from other cultures. Again, teacher bias may strongly affect these grades, rewarding kids who are good at "playing school" and/or who understand the norms of the dominant culture. </span><div><h2 style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;">But What About Engagement?</span></h2><p></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">But wait! Don't you ask students to engage in class? Don't you expect them to take risks and try to use the language? </span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">The answers to those concerns are COMPLICATED.</span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">Engagement and participation are DIFFERENT in my book. Participation often looks like forcing kids to speak before the words come pouring out of them, or to speak in complete sentences. It also might be coupled with the belief that students must take risks in order to acquire language. </span></p><p><span style="font-size: large;">I do not believe that students should feel like they are taking risks in speaking in my class. My goal (and it *is* a high bar, I recognize) is that they feel like they have so much to say and they want to say it so badly that words just pour out. </span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">Engagement is something that I am really working through. In order to meet the need for enough grades in a grade book, in my last school placement I asked students to self-assess on behaviors that support language acquisition, then I recorded that grade. (You can read more about what I used to do in this blog post: <a href="http://www.desklessclassroom.com/2018/10/what-goes-in-gradebook.html" target="_blank">What goes in the Grade Book.</a>) After a while, I continued to ask students to self-assess, but recorded it less and less. The practice was useful in some ways, but now I am really asking myself some hard questions about how I was rewarding those kids who played school (and penalizing others, including students from different cultural backgrounds and those who would be considered to be neurally diverse), and how I can try to reach the same goals (helping students self-regulate and attend to the input) while eliminating white supremacist culture in my classroom. This is an ongoing exploration for me. Whew! </span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: medium; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="Text reads: the ways we grade can help us become more equitable educators. The ways we grade should help all students believe that they are capable of acquiring another language. Text is beige on a terracotta and lavender background." border="0" data-original-height="1080" data-original-width="1080" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEijQKPLN0UFSJYyar3Zu8bVxdUgevMDp6Ql5ETMwG3dpcmCsVNZBt_9P9WnGu6G6doBZP7J808uiIpHbGgLn_6CysFeJ19WqkbAivCFvjxtlMwnS222WM5ZnlFkoluYmDwhNYx7vaPWu5Y/w400-h400/5.png" width="400" /></span></div><p></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">I truly believe that the way we grade can help us become more equitable educators, and that the way we grade should help all students believe that they are capable of successfully acquiring another language. </span></p><p><br /></p></div>Eliciahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17014283811911497554noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7311138534527402755.post-74307631200324994562021-01-29T10:21:00.003-08:002022-05-23T08:49:23.616-07:00Part 2: Reframing Accountability in a comprehension based classroom<p></p><h2>If you haven't read <a href="http://www.desklessclassroom.com/2021/01/part-1-a-word-accountability.html" target="_blank">Accountability, Part 1</a>,<br />please do so! </h2><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.desklessclassroom.com/2021/01/part-1-a-word-accountability.html" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" target="_blank"><img alt="Image description: geometric figures in dark blue, brown, and light green with the words Let's talk about accountability." border="0" data-original-height="1080" data-original-width="1080" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg8D2kSL2GarSeYgkN7KWSNMeTPzzP-UeJGvzhOqNcP_pvzmWDRmC-5b3PsgUt9e0RZDe8EwmSlAzvFz_5RQBUagtBExjr4JikvywF61y8NKH0ZpMx4psD9_srPoCTJjoYxvQYzDspAEsc/w320-h320/1.png" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br /></td></tr></tbody></table><h2 style="text-align: left;">What does it mean to reframe accountability for a comprehension based classroom?</h2><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Thanks for asking! I think there are some very concrete steps that we can take to support learning for the sake of learning and move away from the point based transactions in our classrooms. </span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span><span style="font-size: medium;">Please remember that changing the culture of a classroom, department, school, and community is not going to happen at once. Sometimes, all you can do is start behind your closed door, and that's ok. Sometimes you might have to be<br /> </span><span style="font-size: medium;"><a href="https://thecornerstoneforteachers.com/truth-for-teachers-podcast/subversive-teaching/" target="_blank">quietly subversive-</a> which is OK too because being subversive might mean doing what is best for your students behind closed doors. </span></div><h2 style="text-align: left;"><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhVMsbCs4ujYDWJxQ7z9PgeYvKOO3Ap1F6TYeUT_94VxZyrbhipfy3_-K2tQPwa5pdmNLdiykne_HlpPVZT-ZeKoFqNAlY7QhOLxtQ1TVf6IZVZceSrlIBpsDaZ4YSHBt8MQTUN01VxqKQ/s1080/Holding+students+accountable.png" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Image description: geometric figures in dark blue, brown, and light green with the words 1. Grade and report on mastery. 2. Set achievable standards. 3. Change the focus from points to proficiency. 4. Build relationships and community. 5. Teach content that is relevant." border="0" data-original-height="1080" data-original-width="1080" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhVMsbCs4ujYDWJxQ7z9PgeYvKOO3Ap1F6TYeUT_94VxZyrbhipfy3_-K2tQPwa5pdmNLdiykne_HlpPVZT-ZeKoFqNAlY7QhOLxtQ1TVf6IZVZceSrlIBpsDaZ4YSHBt8MQTUN01VxqKQ/w400-h400/Holding+students+accountable.png" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br /></td></tr></tbody></table><br />But what do I do??? </h2><h3 style="text-align: left;">1) Grade and report on mastery of standards. </h3><p><span style="font-size: medium;">This is also known as <a href="https://www.desklessclassroom.com/2019/02/standards-based-grading-and-my.html" target="_blank">standards based grading.</a> You can do this even if your school reports grades on an A-F scale. A key idea in standards based grading is that teachers report accurate information about mastery of standards, and exclude information about engagement, timeliness, behavior, and practice in the mastery grade. </span></p><p></p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li><span style="font-size: medium;">For tons more resources on standards based grading, take a look at this article: <a href="https://comprehensibleclassroom.freshdesk.com/en/support/solutions/articles/64000253750-assessment-in-somos" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Assessment in SOMOS</a>. </span></li><li><span style="font-size: medium;">For some ideas of what goes in my grade book: <a href="https://www.desklessclassroom.com/2018/10/what-goes-in-gradebook.html" target="_blank">What goes in the grade book?</a></span></li></ul><p></p><h3 style="text-align: left;">2) Set standards that your students can reach, and celebrate what they can do! </h3><div><span style="font-size: medium;">Here is a brief article with suggestions for reasonable standards in a comprehension based classroom: <a href="https://comprehensibleclassroom.freshdesk.com/support/solutions/articles/64000259984-performance-targets" target="_blank">Performance Targets</a>. </span></div><h3 style="text-align: left;">3) Change the focus from points to proficiency.</h3><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Teach what different levels of proficiency look like to your students and share that information with administrators and parents, and be transparent in how you grade and assess. Put rubrics directly on assessments and use consistent language for all assessments. This helps change the conversation from "how many points is this worth?" to "look what you can do"! <a href="https://www.desklessclassroom.com/2019/03/teaching-about-proficiency-levels.html" target="_blank">Here are some ideas and a lesson plan to address how I did this with students. </a> I am proud to mention that the head of the school used the display that we created from this lesson as a regular stop on tours for prospective families and school visitors. It helped frame expectations for all stakeholders and create a common language. </span></div><h3 style="text-align: left;">4) Build relationships and community. Connect with students.</h3><p><span style="font-size: medium;">Use all the wonderful comprehension based strategies that you learn in workshops (or wherever you get training!) to build relationships, connect with your students, learn about their interests, and build a community where students feel seen, safe, and joyful. </span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">These strategies might include: <a href="https://comprehensibleclassroom.com/2014/02/27/special-person-interviews/" target="_blank">Special Person Interviews</a>, <a href="https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/One-Word-Image-Imagination-Lab-OWI-4722018" target="_blank">One Word Images</a>, <a href="https://senorachase.com/2019/04/22/spring-break-chit-chat/" target="_blank">Chit Chat</a>, <a href="https://comprehensibleclassroom.com/2011/11/07/card-talk/" target="_blank">Card Talk</a>, <a href="https://comprehensibleclassroom.com/2018/05/22/weekend-talk-language-class/" target="_blank">Weekend Chat</a>, <a href="https://comprehensibleclassroom.freshdesk.com/support/solutions/articles/64000256304-personalized-questions-and-answers-pqa-" target="_blank">Personalized Questions and Answers</a>, and my all-time favorite: <a href="https://comprehensibleclassroom.freshdesk.com/support/solutions/articles/64000253671" target="_blank">Story Asking</a>. There are SO many more things that can be done in comprehension based classes-don't be limited by my imagination! </span></p><p><span><span style="font-size: medium;"> Remember that learning how to do this kind of collaborative teaching takes some skill, practice, and might feel different for you as the teacher and very different for students. That's ok! Give yourself some grace. </span></span></p><p><span><span style="font-size: medium;">Also remember that these strategies, when grounded in a framework of communicatively embedded input, are based on a principled understanding of the mechanics of language acquisition. While it may look like just talk and play, these principles truly meet the definition of "student centered."</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.2; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: medium; font-style: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">CARLA (The Center on Advanced Research for Language Acquisition (CARLA) defines student centered instruction as “Instruction that builds upon what students need, already know, and can do.” Note that the definition does not dictate roles or activities in a lesson, but instead tells us that the content of the lesson is what makes something student centered. In our framework, what students need is consistent and comprehensible target language input, what they already know is about their own lives and interests, and what they can do is communicate (which includes interpretation) about those interests. Thanks to <a href="https://comprehensibleclassroom.com" target="_blank">Martina Bex</a> for making this important and relevant connection and her explanation in her article <a href="https://comprehensibleclassroom.com/2018/08/14/proficiency-oriented-language-instruction/" target="_blank">Proficiency Oriented Language Instruction</a>. </span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.2; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: medium; font-style: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.2; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Garamond, serif; font-style: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Here are a couple of video resources about connecting with students: </span><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; white-space: pre-wrap;"><i>(Although I have been ignoring this little blog quite a lot lately, I have been incredibly busy doing other things!) </i></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.2; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"></p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: medium; white-space: pre-wrap;"><a href="https://youtu.be/DffhnpcvvFA" target="_blank">Equity and Engagement in 2020 Online Teaching</a>, with <a href="https://magisterbracey.com" target="_blank">John Bracey</a>, <a href="https://sites.google.com/view/meredithwhite/meredith-white" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Meredith McDonald White</a>, <a href="https://latinbestpracticescir.wordpress.com" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Dr. Robert Patrick</a>, <a href="https://fluencyfast.com/product/2021-intermediate-spanish-mondays-with-dahiana-castro-and-karen-rowan/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Dahiana Castro</a>, and Elicia Cárdenas. </span></li><li><span style="font-size: medium;"><a href="https://youtu.be/0MvsOUWRGyo" target="_blank">Connecting with Students of Color</a> with <a href="https://magisterbracey.com" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">John Bracey</a>, <a href="http://www.comprehensibleclassroom.com" target="_blank">Martina Bex</a>, and Elicia Cárdenas.</span></li></ul><p></p><h3 style="text-align: left;">5) Find and teach content that is relevant and moderately interesting.</h3><p><span style="font-size: medium;">Use the information that you learn to find and create comprehensible content that is moderately relevant and interesting to your students. You don't have to have a home run story or unit each day or week or month- but trying to keep class personalized and connected to their lives is important. </span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">Even if I know that I want to teach about something that is content-related, I am going to try to use student experience and background knowledge to build interest and connect them to the content. Pro Tip: The SOMOS / Nous sommes / Sumus curriculum uses this framework for all units and it works incredibly well. </span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">A concrete example from my own classroom might be a learning sequence that looks something like this: </span></p><p><b><u>Novice Spanish </u></b></p><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px;"><p><i><span style="font-size: medium;">Note: I have done variations of these activities in Spanish 1a, 1b, and 1 honors. </span></i></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;"><b>Content:</b> <a href="https://fluencymatters.com/product/brandon-brown-quiere-un-perro-reader/" target="_blank">Brandon Brown Quiere un Perro,</a> by Carol Gaab (Fluency Matters)</span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;"><b>Connection/relevance:</b> Pets that students have or want to have/have had. Responsibilities and fun/not fun parts of pet ownership. </span></p></blockquote><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px;"><h4 style="text-align: left;"><u><span style="font-size: medium;">Ideas</span></u></h4></blockquote><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px;"><p><span style="font-size: medium;">Students submit 1-2 pictures of their pets (or pets they want/have had, stuffed & mythical animals included) and a short L1 paragraph about their pets. I put together a slideshow of their pets with L2 sentences that I am confident that we can read together. I show 1-2 slides each day as a warm up and lead a comprehensible L2 discussion about the information.</span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">Discussion: Which pet would you rather have? I present 2-4 different types of animals as pets and we discuss the pros/cons of each, in a scaffolded L2 discussion. </span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">Story: We co-create a story or two (TPRS©) to pre-teach vocabulary from the book that is unfamiliar. Using actors, pictures, and student ideas, we build the story then play with it. The story becomes part of our community narrative- relevant, personal, and usually hilarious. </span></p></blockquote><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px;"><p><span style="font-size: medium;">Having created some community experiences around pets, shared opinions and laughter and probably disagreed about pets, moving into the book (the content) suddenly feels more relevant. When Brandon's dog chews his favorite pants in the narrative, we can relate that to the time Luis' snake ate his sister's hamster, and then perhaps have a whole discussion about gross things that pets eat and shouldn't. (True story. One of my best classes ever!) </span></p></blockquote><p></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhbApFsjNkVkYkw3zWe_6ivHS6Le6p7SIy-evoeddKAubiZH9sIshl6CHo22LmFgaq1zWbGdBFCC0wfgsfmGyy06pq7UKAjSmuentAFYGA9WiptVUELWjUiABq-1Lxqb9XAZPet6zNfy8U/s1080/Holding+students+accountable+%25281%2529.png" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Image description: geometric figures in dark blue, brown, and light green with the words My Vision: All students feel like they can succeed. Classrooms are places of joy, language acquisition, and equity." border="0" data-original-height="1080" data-original-width="1080" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhbApFsjNkVkYkw3zWe_6ivHS6Le6p7SIy-evoeddKAubiZH9sIshl6CHo22LmFgaq1zWbGdBFCC0wfgsfmGyy06pq7UKAjSmuentAFYGA9WiptVUELWjUiABq-1Lxqb9XAZPet6zNfy8U/w400-h400/Holding+students+accountable+%25281%2529.png" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br /></td></tr></tbody></table><br /><span style="font-size: medium;">But wait! Don't you have to give grades? Sure, of course! The difference is that I don't want to trade points for behavior. I want students to be interested in what we are doing in class because they are motivated by relationships and relevant content. (For more great information about motivation, please check out Liam Printer's <a href="https://www.liamprinter.com/" target="_blank">The Motivated Teacher</a> resources and podcast.) </span><p></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">You can read about what goes in my <a href="https://www.desklessclassroom.com/2018/10/what-goes-in-gradebook.html" target="_blank">grade book</a> if you like. Notice that I had to fit my beliefs about standards based grades and what should go in the grade book into the culture of my school (and make compromises). </span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">I recognize that all 5 of these steps are big. None of them can be accomplished over night, but I do think that in reframing accountability and points-as-motivation,</span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">I am positive that we can make sure that <b>all</b> students feel like they can succeed and center our classrooms as places of joy, language acquisition, and equity. </span></p><div><br /></div>Eliciahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17014283811911497554noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7311138534527402755.post-33167818324298451872021-01-29T10:09:00.006-08:002022-05-23T08:49:15.545-07:00Part 1: The A word (Accountability)<h2 style="text-align: left;"><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEifBDBrEJOLBzXrQ77JJEIt6u2T8lDxTcHeHJDPcLKLkSXxY0G5_p2k0Ylu_xpw6lbCuEN2NEb2nFmgz6s37AgxHJuWwuwxcpQf1Jbwe5FyYl_rc04uJb7JQM2yjoZeoIYMVswuc1PCcnM/s1080/1.png" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Image description: geometric figures in dark blue, brown, and light green with the words Let's talk about accountability." border="0" data-original-height="1080" data-original-width="1080" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEifBDBrEJOLBzXrQ77JJEIt6u2T8lDxTcHeHJDPcLKLkSXxY0G5_p2k0Ylu_xpw6lbCuEN2NEb2nFmgz6s37AgxHJuWwuwxcpQf1Jbwe5FyYl_rc04uJb7JQM2yjoZeoIYMVswuc1PCcnM/w400-h400/1.png" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><span style="text-align: left;"><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Let's talk about the A word. I'm talking about <b>accountability</b>, friends. I have been chewing on some ideas about this word for a long time, and have recently been able to put to words some concerns I have about this idea. </span></div></span></td></tr></tbody></table></h2><p><span style="font-size: medium;">Holding students accountable for their learning is not inherently bad. Conflating compliance with evidence of learning (or in our case, acquisition) is not the same as holding students accountable for their learning. And in fact, the whole idea of accountability might have some problems, at least the way it is used when applied to students. </span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">Accountability often comes up in discussions about student engagement. It usually sounds like this: "How do I hold them accountable for ___?" and when teachers are more frustrated (sometimes feeling defensive, especially when we are talking about the intersection of grading, assessment practices, and equity), "but they won't do it if I don't hold them accountable/give them a grade for it." </span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">First, I hear you, and I feel you, and I am not in your context, and I am not here to judge. We are all just trying to get through this crazy year, and all the crazy years. </span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">Second, I want to unpack a few ideas wrapped up in what teachers mean by student accountability. </span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">Finally, I hope to offer some fairly concrete ideas for how to reframe accountability in a comprehension based classroom. (<a href="https://www.desklessclassroom.com/2021/01/part-2-reframing-accountability-in.html" target="_blank">See Part 2.</a>) </span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">Since this is my blog, this is real talk. This is me, unfiltered, and asking hard questions. It's ok if you don't agree with me, but I do think it is worth asking hard questions about our classroom practice. Don't give up on me. </span></p><h2 style="text-align: left;"><b>What "holding students accountable" looks like (based on observations and discussions with teachers) </b></h2><p></p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li><span style="font-size: medium;">Assigning point values to every thing done in class and collecting and grading it all, e.g. collecting and grading bell work/starters.</span></li><li><span style="font-size: medium;">Requiring that students complete "proof of learning" such as graphic organizers (that don't prove anything, really) or filling in guided notes. </span></li><li><span style="font-size: medium;">Giving students assignments to complete that have little-to-no relevance for learning or acquisition, e.g. assigning busy work to be completed after free voluntary reading to prove that students did something.</span></li><li><span style="font-size: medium;">Believing that students won't do work unless there is a grade attached.</span></li><li><span style="font-size: medium;">Rewarding compliance (doing the work) and conflating compliance (or lack thereof) with learning.</span></li></ul><p></p><p><i><span style="font-size: medium;">(Please know, I have done most of these things and held these beliefs, and I am not in your context nor do I have to comply with your school's expectations. These are just examples. #nojudgement)</span></i></p><h2 style="text-align: left;">Who gets held accountable in our general adult world? </h2><p><span style="font-size: medium;">Well, I am accountable for being licensed to drive and having insurance- or at least, if I was caught without those things, I would have some kind of consequence. Often, our society talks about holding people accountable for misdeeds and violence against others. In fact, accountability seems to be very closely related to punishment or consequences for doing harm. </span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">I am sure that there are a million other ways to consider accountability, so please forgive me if this is just one facet of this complicated concept. But- as we are seeing such a disproportionate rate of students of color receiving behavior referrals<sup>1</sup>, it does seem pertinent, right? Holding a kid accountable for their behavior/compliance often results in punishment. This punishment might be low grades, which research shows is not a motivating factor<sup>2</sup><span>.</span></span></p><h2 style="text-align: left;">Why do you do your job? What makes you accountable? </h2><p><span style="font-size: medium;">Then there is the idea of holding people accountable for doing their job. I am expected to show up to events and workshops and classes that I have scheduled and contracted, and provide the services that I have agreed to provide. I am held accountable by the very real consequences of losing my job. But that's not why I show up. I show up because I chose this work, I like this work, and I am motivated to engage in this work. </span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">Few teachers are motivated by money (although there is *no* doubt that we should be paid fair and equitable wages, and not be shamed into working 60+ hours a week or risking our lives "for the children"). And if you are just motivated by having a job- that's ok- we all need a job! </span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;"> So what motivates you to be accountable for your work? Is it fear? Is it the paycheck/health benefits (no judgement!)? Is it the sense that you are doing something bigger for your community? Is it that you adore the students and love what you do? Is it your love of your school community and colleagues? Are you motivated to show up for work or are you held accountable? Are those factors in balance? </span></p><h2 style="text-align: left;">Let's talk about the kids in the classroom</h2><p><span style="font-size: medium;">Considering a few different reasons to be held accountable and some motivations for doing what we are asked to do- as adults-is it reasonable to expect kids-to be motivated by external factors? I mean- we are talking about kids, not fully formed adults. And to be clear- I am speaking now very specifically about kids in a classroom context, and how they are held accountable or not for doing their job of learning in the classroom. </span></p><p></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhiwQJukVIaFHlAYvFBPK5JgBP57i_7u5m-l4zjE_Blk5D3TWd9rznqmEndVXYKsAPNYhF1qhrt4jene1mvkGttHK8IO93_S8fYe7aa9T_ey5MRSD3wVkcDGWuUcnylHpuwpezWXA36CSk/s1080/2.png" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><img alt="Image description: geometric figures in dark blue, brown, and light green with the words External Motivation (low grades) is not effective motivation." border="0" data-original-height="1080" data-original-width="1080" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhiwQJukVIaFHlAYvFBPK5JgBP57i_7u5m-l4zjE_Blk5D3TWd9rznqmEndVXYKsAPNYhF1qhrt4jene1mvkGttHK8IO93_S8fYe7aa9T_ey5MRSD3wVkcDGWuUcnylHpuwpezWXA36CSk/w400-h400/2.png" width="400" /></span></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br /> </td></tr></tbody></table> <span style="font-size: medium;">This leads me to consider motivations- my own and those of students. Giving grades to increase motivation really comes from a behaviorist framework of punishment and rewards. This framework, also known as extrinsic motivation, has some problems. Joe Feldman shares this critique:</span><p></p><p></p><blockquote><span style="font-size: medium;">[...] <i>extrinsic motivation is not an effective motivation strategy for authentic learning. While extrinsic motivation yields benefits for menial and repetitive tasks- such as offering prizes for stuffing the most envelopes [...]extrinsic rewards and consequences have been found to be wholly ineffective to engage people in tasks that require higher-order and creative thinking [...]. (Feldman, Grading for Equity, 2019)<sup>3</sup> </i></span></blockquote><i></i><p></p><h2 style="text-align: left;"></h2><h2 style="text-align: left;">Grades as Rewards </h2><p><span style="font-size: medium;">This idea of grades as rewards- also known as a points economy- is so deeply embedded in our school culture that it is incredibly hard to reframe. But consider: do we want students to be engaged in learning for the sake of learning? (Also, do we want them to be engaged in order to contribute to their community, to develop connections with each other and their community, and all those things we talk about when we create vision statements for learning?) Or, do we want students to be engaging in points transactions in classrooms? Are we, as teachers, the brokers of points or guides for learning/language acquisition? <a href="https://www.rickwormeli.com/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Rick Wormeli</a>, a teacher and leader in supporting teachers in implementing equitable assessment practices, wrote <a href="https://core-docs.s3.amazonaws.com/documents/asset/uploaded_file/280043/Wormeli_Response.pdf" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">this amazing response </a>to a concern about moving to standards based grades. Take a moment and read it. </span></p><p></p><h2 style="text-align: left;">OK, welcome back to talking about accountability. </h2><p><span style="font-size: medium;">When we talk about giving points for assignments (because otherwise students won't do the work) and rewarding the "good" behavior, we are doing harm. Grades should not be rewards for compliance.</span></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0xioiWvTfT3Umtkk5_ZqLrGiq33cKMQ5hfp-CLZvsbBc80oaAN5DKagWZFs2v-kLjht-LhqAYrIOPVkB2yMV1CprrJTzJmIDo653-B8vgXKo9oZh4D5XdF8bppVEZRR3MCxS8tKAj8Z0/s1080/3.png" style="font-weight: 700; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><img alt="Image description: geometric figures in dark blue, brown, and light green and an image of a standardized test, with the words Grades are not rewards for compliance. They are indicators of progress." border="0" data-original-height="1080" data-original-width="1080" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0xioiWvTfT3Umtkk5_ZqLrGiq33cKMQ5hfp-CLZvsbBc80oaAN5DKagWZFs2v-kLjht-LhqAYrIOPVkB2yMV1CprrJTzJmIDo653-B8vgXKo9oZh4D5XdF8bppVEZRR3MCxS8tKAj8Z0/w400-h400/3.png" width="400" /></span></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br /></td></tr></tbody></table><p></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">We are engaging in points transactions rather than engaging learners. And, if students aren't engaged in the work, if they are not "paying attention" or "just turning in blank papers", isn't that a big neon sign pointing to the lack of connection and relevance of the learning to their lives? Or...perhaps something else that is really important to know about the learner? </span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">This is a BROAD statement- but dig in with me here. I know that teachers are social workers, food providers, emotional support providers, nurses, therapists, tech support, and all the other things that have been put on our plate. And I know that it might feel like I am telling you that you have to do more. And it might feel overwhelming-especially this year, especially with remote and hybrid and roomies and zoomies and the global trauma that we are living through. Give yourself some grace, but please, keep reading. </span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">When a teacher says to me "but I have to hold them accountable" by assigning a grade to each piece of learning, I want to ask the following questions:</span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">1) Do you know why the student is not engaged? Have you asked them or their care givers? Have you listened to the answer? Have you used that information to support that learner within your means? (And if the answer is yes, or I have done all I can, that's ok! Read this great article: <a href="https://thecornerstoneforteachers.com/truth-for-teachers-podcast/okay-say-youve-done-enough-student/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">When is it ok to say you've done "enough" for a student?</a> from Angela Watson.) </span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">2) Is what you are asking the students to do something that they can and wish to engage in? Is your content relevant to their lives or at least moderately interesting? Do they feel respected as learners? Do they feel like they are capable of doing the task, and that it has a point? Do they feel like they are part of a community? Do they believe that you care for them and see them as for who they are? </span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">3) How deeply are you and the students engrained in the points transaction universe? </span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">4) Do students think that they have a reasonable path to success in your class, despite not having the requisite points or making the choice to not do work? Can they recover? </span></p><p></p><h2 style="text-align: left;">The Hard Work</h2><p><span style="font-size: medium;">I know. I KNOW. I am telling you the hard stuff. I am asking you to think and dig in and reflect and perhaps admit something uncomfortable, and yes, work more, and harder. </span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">But this work- developing engaging curriculum, connecting withs students and building relationships, and giving students the opportunity to succeed- this is good work. It is important work. If you can focus on this, and try to minimize (or even eliminate) the work that doesn't serve students, then you will have more time for building connections and creating curriculum that is truly engaging and relevant. <a href="http://www.desklessclassroom.com/2019/08/what-matters-most.html" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Here are some thoughts about focusing on what matters.</a></span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">OK, you've made it this far. Thank you. In my next post, I will talk about reframing accountability and what this looks like in a comprehension based (acquisition driven, proficiency oriented, CI) classroom. This is getting REALLY long! </span></p><h3 style="text-align: left;"><i>References</i></h3><p><span style="font-size: medium;"><span><sup>1</sup></span>Riddle, T., & Sinclair, S. (2019). Racial disparities in school-based disciplinary actions are associated with county-level rates of racial bias. Proceedings of the National Academy of Science of the United States of America, 116(17), 8255-8260.<i>)</i></span></p><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span><sup>2</sup></span>Selby & Murphy, 1992 as referenced by Tom Guskey, "Five Obstacles to Grading Reform," <i>Educational Leadership, </i>ASCD, November 2011</span></div><p><span style="font-size: medium;"><sup>3</sup><span style="text-indent: -1cm;">Feldman, J. (2019).</span><span style="text-indent: -1cm;"> </span><i style="text-indent: -1cm;">Grading for equity: What it is, why it matters, and how it can transform schools and classrooms</i><span style="text-indent: -1cm;">. Thousand Oaks, CA: Corwin, a Sage Publishing Company.</span></span></p>Eliciahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17014283811911497554noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7311138534527402755.post-53462541948164579412021-01-09T08:39:00.044-08:002021-01-09T08:57:31.871-08:00ASSESSMENT: a new three-session course focused on learning to love assessments<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.bit.ly/c2teacherlabs" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img border="0" data-original-height="1152" data-original-width="2048" height="360" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjNsgu2-vb57KiCL6DHe-gcRup_OAzOmu736r7IGFw4uF1zPAfoB3G5wox28rpvEtCv3IMV4uciqOzIIMdeVaDKsOfKAK2NBs8QyHwM8Pvheorm24L4DDvIxsoTSe17b21FTP7EmUPv0p4/w640-h360/ASSESSMENT+%25281%2529.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><span style="font-size: medium;"> I am super excited to share this news! In February, I will be launching a new Teacher Lab series focused on assessment and grading. This has been in the works for a LONG time but it has taken me a while to figure out how to fit the content into something that actually makes sense for teachers. </span><p></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">I truly believe that the way we assess and grade students can help us become more equitable educators and I want to share the work that I have done with teachers. I also believe that grading doesn't have to be the worst part of the job. Did you know that for most teachers, grading is the #1 least-satisfactory part of their job? It doesn't have to be! It *is* something that we have to do, but we can at least take the agony out of it. </span></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><span style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><a href="https://gradingforequity.org/" target="_blank"><img border="0" data-original-height="536" data-original-width="951" height="225" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5U3GMLnzzvVnTDcsvOqCYE9-yBn9nDVVCHsVhrdTOMgVsjLsQ6YaktlecKbl4MqQoeKipVBXkpq2CgTVTV3TCmEYtfofF3jZlFuhkXfA5faIFPhOv298NqfD96aQExolob3Hsx1Hz2fo/w400-h225/Screen+Shot+2021-01-09+at+9.51.33+AM.png" width="400" /></a></span></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://gradingforequity.org/" target="_blank">Grading for Equity</a> (Joe Feldman) is a book that I recommend to all teachers.</td></tr></tbody></table><p><br /></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">We will look at some research about language acquisition (how our brains acquire language) and consider the implications, take a deep dive into what traditional grades don't do well and why (and look at alternatives), and finally, dig into assessments can we give in comprehension based classes. We will also look at how to grade so that our reporting is accurate, representative of what students *can* do, and resistant to bias. WHEW! It's a lot for 4.5 hours. </span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">Plus, I get to stretch myself and see how to make some Zoom classes more interactive and collaborative. </span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">Click on the picture above or <a href="http://www.bit.ly/c2teacherlabs" target="_blank">visit our page </a>for</span><span style="font-size: large;"> more information. I am also revisiting a couple of great workshops from 2020, including Teaching for Acquisition (90 minutes) and All About the Texts (60 minutes) in January. Please join me! </span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p><p><br /></p>Eliciahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17014283811911497554noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7311138534527402755.post-6752626601991599642020-11-20T15:51:00.007-08:002020-11-21T13:52:41.438-08:00Timed Free writes: one practice that serves many purposes<p><br /></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhndbOpZ5safVd_k0pNmMwKuyp8z42ag35zaxhIUSnwClx-uMZRy3tWzYa8eBZO3LHWNh04fSWPcs0ut_ByqLPAlk9mDBvV7xukSB_e78c_U076AJzO3SySYx5KMKPCN4QXF4egJvU5NAE/s940/Pink+and+Dark+Green+Photo+Artists+%2526+Illustrators+Influencer+Asymmetrical+Facebook+Post+Set-2.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="Timed Freewrites" border="0" data-original-height="788" data-original-width="940" height="335" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhndbOpZ5safVd_k0pNmMwKuyp8z42ag35zaxhIUSnwClx-uMZRy3tWzYa8eBZO3LHWNh04fSWPcs0ut_ByqLPAlk9mDBvV7xukSB_e78c_U076AJzO3SySYx5KMKPCN4QXF4egJvU5NAE/w400-h335/Pink+and+Dark+Green+Photo+Artists+%2526+Illustrators+Influencer+Asymmetrical+Facebook+Post+Set-2.png" width="400" /></a></div><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /> I have been thinking a lot about timed free writes lately. Like, a lot! I have been thinking about how they are a fairly simple, easy to implement practice that solves a rather large number of challenges in a comprehension-based classroom.<b> While timed free writes (aka fluency writing) do not help students acquire language (only input that students can understand does that!), they are an amazingly useful tool.</b> In this post, I will share some of my big reasons for loving them, ideas about logistics for implementation, some frequently asked questions, and finally, some resources to help you. </span><div><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhztZX2gKxdytyB0G-dtxyfCS-tzQBlZ1jEVEEA6fnjcikTJTOL5wLX5K8cdtY6-l1KPctN8ex2c9dEsx7RaDYyke3rzUAQn3ohlwW7TsZKP5J1Lx3I6xXoaDfaCUvKbmiFB3s6LK7nH3s/s940/Pink+and+Dark+Green+Photo+Artists+%2526+Illustrators+Influencer+Asymmetrical+Facebook+Post+Set-3.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="788" data-original-width="940" height="335" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhztZX2gKxdytyB0G-dtxyfCS-tzQBlZ1jEVEEA6fnjcikTJTOL5wLX5K8cdtY6-l1KPctN8ex2c9dEsx7RaDYyke3rzUAQn3ohlwW7TsZKP5J1Lx3I6xXoaDfaCUvKbmiFB3s6LK7nH3s/w400-h335/Pink+and+Dark+Green+Photo+Artists+%2526+Illustrators+Influencer+Asymmetrical+Facebook+Post+Set-3.png" width="400" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><p></p><h4 style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Here are a few common challenges that I feel like timed free writes have the potential to resolve:</span></h4><p></p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li><span style="font-size: medium;">Students, families, and/or administrators feel like they are not "learning" without having long lists of vocabulary and conjugation practice. </span></li><li><span style="font-size: medium;">Teachers need to write measurable goals for student learning (because they can't be trusted to just teach and assess, they have to do more than that...but that's another issue.)</span></li><li><span style="font-size: medium;">Teachers need students to produce written work in order to comply with department, school, or district assessment requirements.</span></li><li><span style="font-size: medium;">Departments want valid assessment that focus on student performance while allowing teachers the professional autonomy to teach in the way that they feel best serves their students. </span></li><li><span style="font-size: medium;">There is an increased pressure on teachers to create portfolios and evidence of student learning; in particular, for student reflection and evidence of growth. </span></li></ul><p></p><h4 style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Timed free writes have other benefits too, based on my observations and experience:</span></h4><p style="text-align: left;"></p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li><span style="font-size: medium;">They help students feel a sense of ownership of language; they can look at a page, or a chart tracking word counts, and see their growth. This builds confidence, which builds motivation, which is, of course, a great thing. </span></li><li><span style="font-size: medium;">The freedom to just write about anything can be pretty joyful for many students.</span></li><li><span style="font-size: medium;">Sometimes, students are willing to share what they really think and feel, and their writings provide a window into their lives and wellbeing.</span></li><li><span style="font-size: medium;">The teacher ends up with a whole lot of very personalized writings that are student-centered and usually very comprehensible. These are a goldmine if you choose to use them. You can just type up a few and add them to your class library, or perhaps share them in class the following day.</span></li></ul><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhlWL5IEY6er0tXrzg24cxxu4WTdgBrDnvVfmQAkPwi7TVvd3cHios3iLYgptSnLFjIuQ4tab3zM_IsxLIvmEATApZW8Swx4is1U-daXd7QHSWUSgcs5X-Iw__3V1pPtc_wd6oRjJVixsQ/s940/Pink+and+Dark+Green+Photo+Artists+%2526+Illustrators+Influencer+Asymmetrical+Facebook+Post+Set.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="Timed Freewrites: A glimpse into the language in students' heads" border="0" data-original-height="788" data-original-width="940" height="335" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhlWL5IEY6er0tXrzg24cxxu4WTdgBrDnvVfmQAkPwi7TVvd3cHios3iLYgptSnLFjIuQ4tab3zM_IsxLIvmEATApZW8Swx4is1U-daXd7QHSWUSgcs5X-Iw__3V1pPtc_wd6oRjJVixsQ/w400-h335/Pink+and+Dark+Green+Photo+Artists+%2526+Illustrators+Influencer+Asymmetrical+Facebook+Post+Set.png" width="400" /></a></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><span style="font-size: medium;">So, aside from all these amazing benefits of Timed Free Writes, why do I love them? Giving students the pressure of a time limit is the best way that I can think of to see what is really in their head. This leads to...</span><ul style="text-align: left;"><li><span style="font-size: medium;">Evidence, evidence, evidence. Evidence of what they really have in their head! On paper! </span></li><li><span style="font-size: medium;">The joy of giving students their first writing from the beginning of the year on the last day of school: let them compare it to their most recent writing; there is truly nothing more incredible than listening to them share about their own growth. </span></li><li><span style="font-size: medium;">The joy of having a predictable routine: this is how we spend 15 minutes a week. No planning necessary.</span></li><li><span style="font-size: medium;">When students write, so do I. In the target language! If I knew the plot of the novel I am working on, it would probably be complete by now! </span></li></ul><p></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">Here's the nuts and bolts of timed free writes, as I use them in my classroom. I learned most of what I do from Scott Benedict (<a href="https://immediateimmersion.com" target="_blank">Immediate Immersion</a>), who deserves ALL the credit for helping me think this through and implement in my classroom.</span></p><h2 style="text-align: left;">Logistics</h2><h4 style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;">1) Teach the kids the expectations.</span></h4><p><span style="font-size: medium;">Mine are: write the whole time, it's ok to use the word supports on the walls but I want you to write as many words as possible and that will slow you down, the prompt I give is optional, write one word per line, and your story does not have to make sense. If you don't know how to say it in Spanish, say something else. Absolutely no talking.</span></p><h4 style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;">2) Give an optional prompt. </span></h4><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Sometimes, I used a silly picture from the internet. (<a href="https://www.comedywildlifephoto.com/" target="_blank">Here are some great ones</a>!) At other times, I created a little scene from <a href="https://www.desklessclassroom.com/2019/06/props-short-presentation.html" target="_blank">props</a> and stuffed animals. Students who needed ideas could use the prompt as a starting place, OR they could write whatever they chose.</span></p><h4 style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;">3) Use special paper. </span></h4><p><span style="font-size: medium;">This paper that has a space for each word so it is easy and fast to graph word counts. I downloaded mine from <a href="https://immediateimmersion.com" target="_blank">Scott Benedict</a>. I copied mine on the back side of copies from the recycle bin in our school's copy room to save paper. </span></p><h4 style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;">4) Don't grade them at first. </span></h4><p><span style="font-size: medium;">When and if you decide to grade them, read this first: <a href="https://www.desklessclassroom.com/2018/03/grading-writings-it-does-not-have-to.html" target="_blank"> Grading Writings. </a> If you prefer to watch a video, here you go: <a href="https://comprehensibleclassroom.freshdesk.com/support/solutions/articles/64000253682" target="_blank">Assessment Hacks and Hope.</a></span></p><h4 style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;">5) Start when students have a lot of language in their head. </span></h4><p><span style="font-size: medium;">My advice: start with novices about 9 weeks into the year, after a very rich diet of tons of listening and reading to language they understand. I usually start 2nd year students writing in about the 3rd or 4th week of school.</span></p><h4 style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;">6) Be consistent. </span></h4><p><span style="font-size: medium;">Do this once a week. If students complain, remind them that the expectation is to smile and be positive. In fact, I tell them that they are expected to cheer. I have also been known to tell them that if they groan when I announce a free write, they have to do another one tomorrow. That usually ends the groans very quickly. </span></p><h4 style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;">7) Write for a predictable, short amount of time.</span></h4><p><span style="font-size: medium;">10 minutes is a good amount of time for students to write. From start to finish, the whole activity, once we got into the swing of things, takes about 15 minutes. </span></p><h4 style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;">8) Set a goal- but remember it is just a goal, not a requirement. </span></h4><p><span style="font-size: medium;">A common goal is for all students to be able to write 100 words in the target language in 10 minutes, and then reduce the minutes while keeping the goal. So, after everyone can do 100 in 10, try 100 in 9. The purpose of this may be because a reasonable goal for fluent speakers is to write 100 words in five minutes in their first language. </span></p><h4 style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;">9) Students track word counts.</span></h4><p><span style="font-size: medium;">Ask students to keep track of their word counts in a graph and save their writings!<b> </b>These portfolios are immensely powerful. (Scroll down to download a data tracking sheet.) </span></p><h2 style="text-align: left;">Frequently Asked Questions</h2><p><span style="font-size: medium;">Here are some questions that I see all the time about implementing timed freewrites. Hopefully my answers will help you feel like you can do this in your own classroom!</span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;"><b>What if a kid just writes one or two words over and over? </b>Honestly, I have never had this happen. My students with IEPs and 504s, students who struggled with writing, students who hated writing...they all were generally able to produce a few sentences. But, if this happened, I would consider the following: the student does not yet have much of a mental representation of language, so the task is not appropriate for them, yet. Maybe while everyone else is writing, you sit with them and read texts that are comprehensible to them. </span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">There could also be other reasons for this- did they just have a terrible day? Is this more evidence that they need support and relationships rather than an assignment? Did their dog just die? I would look at the whole picture of the student and decide how to respond based on a lot of different kinds of information. </span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;"><b>Do you let students look at the word walls in your room?</b> Yes! But..I tell them that if they are relying on the words in the room to impress me, they are going to write less, and I want them to just spill out all the words. But it's fine if they do!</span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;"><b>Do you read all of them? </b>Nope. Not at all. *If your district requires you to read everything that students write, I would consider doing something different than what I suggest.* I did choose to read one group's worth of writing a week. And I tell them that! They didn't know which class's writings I was going to read! However, after a few weeks, students started asking if I would read their writing, even if it wasn't for a grade, because they were proud of what they had written. So, I invited them to put a star on the top, and when I collected them, I made sure to read those and either comment or talk to the writer. </span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;"><b>How do you grade them? </b>Read this:<a href="https://www.desklessclassroom.com/2018/03/grading-writings-it-does-not-have-to.html" target="_blank"> Grading writing </a>for details about rubrics, error correction, and keeping the workload manageable. </span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;"><b>Do you let kids type? </b>Actually, no. Even when teaching virtually, I asked students to hand write their free writes and submit pictures of their writing immediately afterwards to our Learning Management System. I know that for some teachers, this might be madness, but I don't want to open the box of translation/accents/etc. Handwriting is just fine. </span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">Finally, I will leave you with <a href="https://www.desklessclassroom.com/2017/05/when-it-is-worth-it.html" target="_blank">this joyful piece of writing</a> from a very special young lady. Because it makes my day! </span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">Here is a collection of my favorite resources about timed writing. Please leave questions below if you wish! </span></p>
<h2 style="text-align: left;"> <a id="resources"> Resources</a></h2>
<p><u><span style="font-size: medium;"><b>THOUGHTS, IDEAS, PROCESSES, and IMPLEMENTATION</b></span></u></p><p></p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li><span style="font-size: medium;"><a href="https://comprehensibleclassroom.freshdesk.com/support/solutions/articles/64000253541-student-learning-objectives-and-teacher-goals" target="_blank">SLOs and Teacher Goals</a> (article by Elicia Cárdenas)</span></li><li><span style="font-size: medium;"><a href="https://magisterp.com/2016/03/15/ci-program-checklist-11-of-13/#more-2899" target="_blank">CI Program Checklist</a> by Lance Piantaggini (Magister P)</span></li></ul><p></p><p><u><span style="font-size: medium;"><b>RUBRICS, PAPER, GRAPHS</b></span></u></p><p></p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li><span style="font-size: medium;"><a href="https://immediateimmersion.com/resources" target="_blank">Quick Write Paper</a> from Scott Benedict (Immediate Immersion)</span></li><li><span style="font-size: medium;"><a href="https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Universal-Screener-writing-form-for-world-language-classes-314181" target="_blank">Universal Screener </a>($) by Martina Bex (Comprehensible Classroom) </span></li><li><span style="font-size: medium;"><a href="https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Free-Write-form-with-rubrics-for-World-Language-classes-322815" target="_blank">FreeWrite form with rubrics</a> ($) by Martina Bex (Comprehensible Classroom)</span></li><li><span style="font-size: medium;"><a href="https://drive.google.com/file/d/1gAN9NhJariklaV3Jq5jF5NkZXJULNhHz/view?usp=sharing" target="_blank">Graph for Word Counts</a> by Elicia Cárdenas (Deskless Classroom) </span></li></ul><p></p><p><b><u><span style="font-size: medium;">EXAMPLES </span></u></b></p><p></p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li><span style="font-size: medium;"><a href="https://magisterp.com/2015/06/11/2014-2015-fluency-writes/" target="_blank">Fluency Freewrites in Latin</a> by Lance Piantaggini (Magister P)</span></li><li><span style="font-size: medium;"><a href="https://eliciacardenas.com/student-work-with-reflections/" target="_blank">Student portfolio examples</a> by Elicia Cárdenas (EliciaCardenas.com)</span></li></ul><p></p></div></div>Eliciahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17014283811911497554noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7311138534527402755.post-30569293588314706812020-10-09T10:12:00.003-07:002022-10-25T12:45:29.601-07:00October, 2020: Really? Just...REALLY? A reminder and an update<p><span style="font-size: medium;"> I haven't written much for a long while. Well, that isn't true- I have been writing a lot, and thinking a lot, and trying new things- A LOT- but not over here on this blog. Truth be told, I miss this old friend, but I am struggling a bit with a) who wants more screen time? and b) what this blog is, now that I have <a href="https://comprehensibleclassroom.com/services/" target="_blank">this whole new job</a> (Director of Training, Comprehensible Classroom).</span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">And, just like so many of you, I am overwhelmed by the new unexpected demands placed on teachers right now. I never expected to be training teachers how to use Zoom, or advising teachers on how to connect and build community with students that they have never met, online. I never expected to be working in my 8 x 11 foot office, with a (new) obnoxiously green wall (my green screen) and a whiteboard. But I am surviving. Not necessarily thriving, but right now, survival is enough.</span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">I swing day by day between relief that I have a job, a home, and that my family is healthy and safe, and all the other really big, scary emotions that living in a pandemic has brought. I still grieve for the goodbyes I didn't get from my graduating students, from the farewell party that I never got when I left my school, and for the teaching I didn't get to do in the spring. Oh, and all the conferences and weddings that I didn't get to go to in person. I know I am supposed to focus on the positive, but sometimes it is REALLY hard. You feel me, right? I keep reading and re-reading this article: <a href="https://thecornerstoneforteachers.com/truth-for-teachers-podcast/teachers-who-are-not-okay-right-now/" target="_blank">For Teachers Who Are Not OK right now</a>, Angela Watson (Cornerstone for Teachers).</span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">So, what is going on with me? I am teaching. A LOT! I have been running small cohort style <a href="https://mailchi.mp/comprehensibleclassroom/c2-teacher-lab-registration2" target="_blank">virtual classes</a> to support comprehension based teachers teaching online/hybrid/whatever, and adapting the courses as new realities are hitting us (<a href="https://www.cultofpedagogy.com/scattered/" target="_blank">scattered</a>, anyone?). I have been thinking a lot about the kinds of issues that come up again and again, and trying to create resources to help address those issues. I have been busy! </span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">Here are some of the things that I have collaborated or created in the past few weeks. </span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;"><a href="https://comprehensibleclassroom.com/2020/07/02/becoming-anti-racist-educator-where-to-begin/" target="_blank">Blog about Becoming an Anti-Racist Educator </a>- <a href="https://comprehensibleclassroom.com/2020/08/31/example-assignments-learning-management-systems/" target="_blank">Blog about assigning work in different Learning Management Systems-</a> V<a href="https://comprehensibleclassroom.freshdesk.com/en/support/solutions/articles/64000253750-assessment-in-somos" target="_blank">irtual Assessment Video</a>- <a href="https://comprehensibleclassroom.freshdesk.com/support/solutions/articles/64000253676-fun-club-unboxing-flex" target="_blank">Unboxing Flex video</a>- <a href="https://comprehensibleclassroom.freshdesk.com/en/support/solutions/articles/64000253675-fun-club-connecting-with-students-of-color-with-john-bracey" target="_blank">Conversation with John Bracey about Connecting with Students of Color</a>, tons of short articles and resources about really important things, like <a href="https://comprehensibleclassroom.freshdesk.com/en/support/solutions/articles/64000253273-90-target-language-use" target="_blank">90% Target Language</a> and <a href="https://comprehensibleclassroom.freshdesk.com/support/solutions/articles/64000253270-resources-for-distance-learning" target="_blank">Distance Learning Resources </a>and <a href="https://comprehensibleclassroom.freshdesk.com/en/support/solutions/articles/64000253418-does-somos-include-projects-" target="_blank">Projects in Comprehension Based classes</a>- Upcoming: <a href="https://mailchi.mp/comprehensibleclassroom/c2-teacher-lab-registration2" target="_blank">Trainings abut SOMOS Flex, Pear Deck, Differentiation</a>- Rewriting the curriculum of my Methods of Secondary World Language Class and making it 100% virtual / synchronous, and creating all my assignments to be virtual (some synchronous, like our starters, and some asynchronous), and adding demos to every class. Playing with new tools like <a href="https://goformative.com" target="_blank">Go Formative </a>and Interactive Digital Notebooks- Planning a really extensive series of courses on assessment (coming in the new year, probably)- doing a small # of district trainings- trying to stay active and not get too sad.</span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">On the other hand, even if my summer was spent in front of a screen, I had a blast at the various virtual conferences in which I participated and presented/moderated. I had the joy of attending Latin class with <a href="http://indwellinglanguage.com" target="_blank">Justin Slocum Bailey</a> and Chinese with <a href="https://tprsforchinese.blogspot.com" target="_blank">Diane Neubauer,</a> two of my favorite humans and brilliant teachers who were using the teaching labs to experiment and push their own practice. I watched a ton of other teachers teaching kids in a few different languages, including one memorable class where the students had no cameras, some had no mics, and they *still* created community and acquired language and participated. (Note- they were there by choice, and highly motivated, but STILL!) </span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">I attended some mind-blowing sessions from brilliant presenters and teachers and started to remember that all we need to support language acquisition is a way to talk to our students (or give them things to read) and a way to check that they understand the input. Input, that students understand, works. All the other things are shiny and pretty and may or may not actually support learning. (And they ARE a huge time suck for teachers.)</span></p><p><span style="font-size: large;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgOP4fZYtEG2Eqz7H7ewcdro08_G4jfWBxgn6p_718LveHKoxWzlY14xPXyaVdvrsoKpY7N7JnCCB5udTwWHWewEPhZURrkJmEmtO0MrULK2A-Doo_MZb8og2edi5H8lNY_osa_Jy6uAC0/s940/all+we+need+to+support+language+acquisition+is+a+way+to+talk+to+our+students+%2528or+give+them+things+to+read%2529+and+a+way+to+check+that+they+understand+the+input..jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="788" data-original-width="940" height="536" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgOP4fZYtEG2Eqz7H7ewcdro08_G4jfWBxgn6p_718LveHKoxWzlY14xPXyaVdvrsoKpY7N7JnCCB5udTwWHWewEPhZURrkJmEmtO0MrULK2A-Doo_MZb8og2edi5H8lNY_osa_Jy6uAC0/w640-h536/all+we+need+to+support+language+acquisition+is+a+way+to+talk+to+our+students+%2528or+give+them+things+to+read%2529+and+a+way+to+check+that+they+understand+the+input..jpg" width="640" /></a></div><p><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></p><span style="font-size: medium;">Also, I made some new friends and collaborators. That was really lovely! <br /></span><p></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">Anyway, as we all struggle through the pandemic and the new realities of teaching, I hope you will give me grace as I find the new identity of this blog and my own teaching practice. </span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p><p><br /></p>Eliciahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17014283811911497554noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7311138534527402755.post-60494543265048168082020-07-02T17:28:00.000-07:002020-07-02T17:28:51.681-07:00Becoming an Anti-Racist Educator: Where to Begin<br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://comprehensibleclassroom.com/2020/07/02/becoming-anti-racist-educator-where-to-begin/" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img alt="Becoming an Anti-Racist Educator, guest post" border="0" data-original-height="576" data-original-width="1103" height="326" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiwl21x-KqShOQOQzzok3y9ye4GNrWGtNhSx622BM4Li5BJzWDd8R1uhyphenhyphenbb_xVeRWnkwElnGucXhL62DcHsBiY_zTbv5Cw54dqAtsgf5EChPlK1H9ky0fINIqCqCcE0CyEOWLS_tsUrDoU/w625-h326/Screenshot+2020-07-02+18.22.04.png" title="I wrote a blog post at a *different* blog!" width="625" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><p style="text-align: left;"><font size="5">I two-timed the blog world, sorry! Click on the link to see my post about <a href="https://comprehensibleclassroom.com/2020/07/02/becoming-anti-racist-educator-where-to-begin/">Becoming an Anti-Racist Educator</a> over on the Comprehensible Classroom's blog.</font></p><p style="text-align: left;"><font size="5"><br /></font></p>Eliciahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17014283811911497554noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7311138534527402755.post-81863721597253194202020-06-18T13:57:00.003-07:002020-06-18T14:30:11.069-07:00Quick update: CANVAS LMS meet and greet<br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiewF2VWPwpAbU1a2oVhez9LExfyMerlH3Fw3cf7YnyozN_UckwjnLxuC3QbC4Hevl4n1QpwclqqXhEZu6Y1XGMqjzHmtR1GMUt66_mUiBidqMGBysE4PU19Yk7W_G0zQ959cyNgljYPrA/s940/UPDATEDcanvasmeetandgreet.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="788" data-original-width="940" height="655" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiewF2VWPwpAbU1a2oVhez9LExfyMerlH3Fw3cf7YnyozN_UckwjnLxuC3QbC4Hevl4n1QpwclqqXhEZu6Y1XGMqjzHmtR1GMUt66_mUiBidqMGBysE4PU19Yk7W_G0zQ959cyNgljYPrA/w781-h655/UPDATEDcanvasmeetandgreet.png" width="781" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://forms.gle/qj4y5DHGvXvzLhxe6" target="_blank"><font size="5">https://forms.gle/qj4y5DHGvXvzLhxe6</font></a></div>Eliciahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17014283811911497554noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7311138534527402755.post-7460046500433290452020-04-19T12:35:00.002-07:002020-07-06T15:50:42.819-07:00Stay strong, Stay Input-Focused (with some ideas)<span style="font-size: large;">Staying input focused in a distance learning world where almost every on-line company seems to want you to use their platform to teach the subjunctive, give speaking assessments, and study vocabulary is really hard!</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiyzrBu4TqbhKoTMbzeoIwT-D3mnHEs-0Ttlpq4LyxLf84R001A4MxfdXYjeLpmEiZfXz4crDNEgngL2ic8xT7hrCM2QX3NIuB_cP-QjeyINIEXgXU6o0y7wx4O7DbvwvK8Lu1lOtEIibM/s1600/focus+on+the+input.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="800" data-original-width="800" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiyzrBu4TqbhKoTMbzeoIwT-D3mnHEs-0Ttlpq4LyxLf84R001A4MxfdXYjeLpmEiZfXz4crDNEgngL2ic8xT7hrCM2QX3NIuB_cP-QjeyINIEXgXU6o0y7wx4O7DbvwvK8Lu1lOtEIibM/s640/focus+on+the+input.png" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">I have been a little discouraged by the trend I see in teacher collaborative groups to move away from input focused, comprehension based teaching to...well, the opposite.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">And teacher friends, please don't take this as an insult- we are all just doing the best we can with the tools we have. If you are struggling to remain input focused, please know that you are not alone!</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">For me, </span><span style="font-size: large;">staying input focused means rejecting all the tools that are being thrust at me that don't align with what I know about how languages are acquired</span><span style="font-size: large;">. </span><span style="font-size: large;"> It means staying strong against the pressure to give speaking "tasks" and grammar study. </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">It means going back again and again to what is known about language acquisition. </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">It means working harder- because to make something comprehensible that students can do independently is really, really hard. </span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_k2q19Etql3v0Bv6LhY_JMAV2mL8wFYNsLTIRkReCbzPKmTwDPb2cOQRnQE0Pgl0zngCpwJ6tXCmYdki7sDGghviMKDTwYYeSDa-yDIrb6Y0PmIxxAXW4cuKf1pF0k432XKw8iRh8NUY/s1600/STAYING+INPUT+FOCUSED....png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="800" data-original-width="800" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_k2q19Etql3v0Bv6LhY_JMAV2mL8wFYNsLTIRkReCbzPKmTwDPb2cOQRnQE0Pgl0zngCpwJ6tXCmYdki7sDGghviMKDTwYYeSDa-yDIrb6Y0PmIxxAXW4cuKf1pF0k432XKw8iRh8NUY/s640/STAYING+INPUT+FOCUSED....png" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">But I refuse to give up. I refuse to send out grammar packets and I refuse to give busywork and I refuse to make students speak before they are ready. This is where the part of my personality that is stubborn and sometimes downright contrarian comes in: I have to say no. A lot. But, being a comprehension based teacher in a system that is designed for something else has never been the easiest road, and I accept it. I accept the challenge! </span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhRPDdq9TilHv7lkyUJrxFD86rCdiA3y3QyhkMDtkUvf_On3H7JMfiX5aNWOeotpCy5FfDMnHpOQW8zGdvOFXUyaJTah5X2ddQlYqeMSjWzghvTH3PsRX6I1tazmcFmG8hkbvFfAJ9OBMM/s1600/being+a+comprehension+based+teacher.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="800" data-original-width="800" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhRPDdq9TilHv7lkyUJrxFD86rCdiA3y3QyhkMDtkUvf_On3H7JMfiX5aNWOeotpCy5FfDMnHpOQW8zGdvOFXUyaJTah5X2ddQlYqeMSjWzghvTH3PsRX6I1tazmcFmG8hkbvFfAJ9OBMM/s640/being+a+comprehension+based+teacher.png" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">Now, what on earth am I going to do in m</span><span style="font-size: large; text-align: center;">y synchronous sessions?? What kind of work can I assign students that will be input focused and comprehensible...independently?</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">At the end of last week, <a href="http://www.talkinl2withbvp.com/" target="_blank">Dr. Bill VanPatten</a>, a leading researcher, teacher, and author (as well as being the Diva of SLA!) hosted a webinar for the <a href="https://fluencyfast.com/store/cisos/" target="_blank">CI SOS</a> group. I was fortunate enough to participate, and during the Q & A, I asked him: how do we keep input comprehensible? How can we do our best to make sure students are understanding the input? </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">His answer was surprisingly simple<b>: </b>give learners easy short texts, broken up very frequently with questions that help them understand the reading, and follow that with some kind of meaningful reading task, such as a discourse scramble (or <a href="https://comprehensibleclassroom.com/2011/05/04/ninesquare/" target="_blank">9-square</a>).</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjltB1I6iA8-kW_nf3bAfCBbPd-GYRPuCRCeZiUR7hYmzrTQ05kcnj3lHU0UR2yZAzvTxNwPzlbKTSIBqYyRhdSEJLi6lnz55Aa-UJGkErVzXmIYrwibcIGUYjdWu8s99q7dsGo7l0hSek/s1600/Goal%253A.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="800" data-original-width="800" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjltB1I6iA8-kW_nf3bAfCBbPd-GYRPuCRCeZiUR7hYmzrTQ05kcnj3lHU0UR2yZAzvTxNwPzlbKTSIBqYyRhdSEJLi6lnz55Aa-UJGkErVzXmIYrwibcIGUYjdWu8s99q7dsGo7l0hSek/s640/Goal%253A.png" width="640" /></a><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Wow! So, basically, doing what I already do. Cool. Now...which of the BILLION platforms will do this? </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">And of those platforms, which has the easiest learning curve for me and my students, has strong privacy protections, is compliant with any kind of copyright requirements, and works with few headaches? </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Well, <a href="https://www.desklessclassroom.com/p/full-disclosure.html" target="_blank">Garbanzo</a>* comes to mind. Short bits of text, with comprehension questions...check! What else....hmmm...<a href="http://www.senorwooly.com/" target="_blank">Sr. Wooly</a> works like that too. <a href="http://www.fluencymatters.com/" target="_blank">Fluency Matters</a> e-books certainly fit. <a href="http://www.textivate.com/" target="_blank">Textivate</a>, which I have never used, but hear great things about seems like a great idea, but a) it is a new tool, b) it costs $, and c) do I really need to learn how to do something else???? I might explode. <a href="http://kahoot.com/" target="_blank">Kahoot</a> is offering free premium subscriptions right now, and they offer a puzzle feature....maybe? Google Slides? Nearpod...GoGormative... Edpuzzle... Peardeck....</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">Flipgrid...SeeSaw...TeacherTube...oh wow. Just typing this makes me feel overwhelmed.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Back to square one, so to speak. What can I do right now, that feels manageable for me and my students, that is input based? </span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjxVDa3CVvA6GiD23GKdrjUS5WvXEOMEYHmGXN32cTpaiur6PNf6K5DG4Bxaz5P_eJaKVHXYE2nCK4EqlwAg1Gxi7bih_OPevDb0RY0Af9Hr4yOUpUA68qSZcNnZxH7XGk6w5ezjFfadBw/s1600/what+can+I+do+rightt+now.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img border="0" data-original-height="800" data-original-width="800" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjxVDa3CVvA6GiD23GKdrjUS5WvXEOMEYHmGXN32cTpaiur6PNf6K5DG4Bxaz5P_eJaKVHXYE2nCK4EqlwAg1Gxi7bih_OPevDb0RY0Af9Hr4yOUpUA68qSZcNnZxH7XGk6w5ezjFfadBw/s640/what+can+I+do+rightt+now.png" width="640" /></span></a><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Here are some ideas that have worked so far: </span><br />
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<b><span style="font-size: x-large;"> <a id="storyaskingadaptations">StoryAsking Adaptation for Synchronous Classes </a></span></b></h2>
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<span style="font-size: large;">I took a story from a previous year's class and instead of doing a more open-ended story-ask, I did more of a story-listen, where I basically re-used an old story (from a previous class) and let the kids decide character names. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">I used Zoom and created a document camera from my phone- just google "Document camera hack for zoom" and find a million ways to do it. It worked *really* well. I also used a whiteboard that I brought home from school, but my colleague did it on paper with a sharpie and it worked fine for her. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">I modified the classic <a href="https://www.tprsbooks.com/what-is-tprs/" target="_blank">TPRS</a> story in a couple of ways as well- instead of being a 3 scene story (like most TPRS stories), ours was 2 scenes to keep it short. I also made sure that the elements in the story were things that I could draw quickly on a whiteboard. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">I used the chat function for kids to give suggestions and comprehension checks (e.g. what was the character's name? </span><span style="font-size: large;">What did I just say? What does </span><i>x</i><span style="font-size: large;"> mean in English?</span><span style="font-size: large;">).</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"> </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">Finally, I had them draw along with me. I would draw something and say a couple of sentences, do a comprehension check, then I gave them 10- 15 seconds to draw it too. They held their drawings up to the camera and we all had a good laugh. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Now, I have a story that is familiar to our class, and we can do a few things with it! Plans for the next couple of weeks: CHECK and DONE! </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">So, how to do this yourself? Here are some tips and ideas for how to use the story in later lessons, both live and for independent work.</span><br />
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<u><span style="font-size: x-large;">StoryAsking Adaptation for Live Zoom Class</span></u></h2>
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<li><span style="font-size: large;">Find a story. Here is a link to some stories to adapt: <a href="http://bit.ly/SOMOScollab" target="_blank">Collab Drive Unit Files</a> or <a href="https://www.brycehedstrom.com/product/ebook-tripps-scripts-by-jim-tripp" target="_blank">Tripp's Scripts</a> (<a href="https://www.desklessclassroom.com/p/blog-page_10.html" target="_blank">click here for TONS more resources about StoryAsking</a>).</span></li>
<li><span style="font-size: large;">Simplify the story. </span></li>
<li><span style="font-size: large;">PRACTICE the drawing once ahead of time with thick markers or whiteboard. </span></li>
<li><span style="font-size: large;">Make a document camera out of your phone/ipad. (Google it.)</span></li>
<li><span style="font-size: large;">Have kids draw along- but only give them 10-15 seconds to do so, and intentionally pause for drawing time. </span></li>
<li><span style="font-size: large;">Instead of asking for all the details, just ask for new names.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-size: large;">Use the chat function for student suggestions and to check comprehension. </span></li>
<li><span style="font-size: large;">When you are done, use the story in a few different ways. </span></li>
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<u><span style="font-size: x-large;">Ideas for SYNCHRONOUS adaptations using the same story</span></u></h2>
<span style="font-size: large;"><i>Make sure that students have read and understood the story before doing any of these activities! </i> </span><br />
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<li><span style="font-size: large;"><a href="https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/1CXmstQ_eExbKyeS4_Iln50mTfYwc-_upUbXF0JX5FIs/edit?usp=sharing" target="_blank">Quick draw Online Version</a> (<a href="https://senorachase.com/2018/01/24/quick-draw/" target="_blank">link to original activity</a>) </span></li>
<li><span style="font-size: large;"><a href="https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/12PIR2xFnw6pzwGfwYX75IVrV3bovht66JUrflwwmV0Q/edit?usp=sharing" target="_blank">Who said it Online Version</a> (<a href="https://comprehensibleclassroom.com/2013/01/18/who-said-it/" target="_blank">link to original activity</a>) </span></li>
<li><span style="font-size: large;"><a href="https://comprehensibleclassroom.com/2015/10/27/the-unfair-game/" target="_blank">Unfair game</a> </span></li>
<li><span style="font-size: large;">Comprehension-focused Kahoot* </span></li>
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<u><span style="font-size: x-large;">For Asynchronous lesson adaptations using the same story</span></u></h2>
<span style="font-size: large;"><i>Make sure that students have read and understood the story before doing any of these activities! </i> </span><br />
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<li><span style="font-size: large;"> 9-square on google slides with story (<a href="https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/1eFVxDepjqLGVq5Bc6oVNzNiUTw4mLccNWPlcX-VmooI/edit?usp=sharing" target="_blank">blank template to use</a>) (<a href="https://comprehensibleclassroom.com/2011/05/04/ninesquare/" target="_blank">original activity</a>) </span></li>
<li><span style="font-size: large;">Comprehension focused Kahoot* </span></li>
<li><span style="font-size: large;">Read the story and illustrate it (as a mural, as a comic, etc.) </span></li>
<li><span style="font-size: large;">Any of the activities from the <a href="https://comprehensibleclassroom.com/2020/03/05/school-closure-lesson-plans-spanish/" target="_blank">COVID-19 Revista Literal Choice Board </a></span></li>
<li><span style="font-size: large;">Edpuzzle reading of the story with questions and your delightful whiteboard illustrations. (This seems really work-intensive because you first have to record yourself reading the story, but it would work AND provide listening input!) </span></li>
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<u><span style="font-size: x-large;">Some Resources to use and adapt </span></u></h2>
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<li><span style="font-size: large;"><a href="https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/124NzOg2I4AgS7kq5HOZB-Mer1Dpmcjof9yUtNbFGYl8/edit?usp=sharing" target="_blank">SOMOS 1 Unit 7 Reading in Slides with illustrations (Toni)</a></span></li>
<li><span style="font-size: large;"><a href="https://drive.google.com/open?id=1wm-n2vRWDpQ1dhdVpaiknZDRmMoakRAT" target="_blank">SOMOS 1 Unit 7 Reading text</a> (Toni)</span></li>
<li><span style="font-size: large;"><a href="https://drive.google.com/open?id=1PLNZt61EqPLHIWBpT9wzzQ2uxKcOO-OF" target="_blank">Todo Es Posible reading text</a> (I use this to pre-teach vocabulary from <a href="https://fluencymatters.com/product/brandon-brown-quiere-un-perro-reader/" target="_blank">Brandon Brown Quiere un Perro, by Carol Gaab</a>). </span></li>
<li><span style="font-size: large;"><a href="https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/1geDDpdEMOTeIndYB5SochLZa-XfNhxmnFrEtoEgRWe4/edit?usp=sharing" target="_blank">Todo es posible slides with illustrations</a></span></li>
<li><span style="font-size: large;"><a href="https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/1REfRgN3TUjE-lX0HR8tD_JozViwr1lMaJqDLaElrdL4/edit?usp=sharing" target="_blank">Todo es posible 9 square</a></span></li>
<li><span style="font-size: large;"><a href="https://create.kahoot.it/share/todo-es-posible-kahoot/21325430-867a-47f7-80ad-11bd421dd925" target="_blank"> Todo es posible Kahoot</a> *Note: this Kahoot premium was a TERRIBLE use of my time. Kahoot was not meant for this use. It took hours, but once I started, I felt like I had to finish it. But never again. Plus, to use Kahoot as an individual assignment, you have to download the app on Chromebooks or on a device. GRR!!! </span></li>
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<span style="font-size: x-large;"><u>What's missing? </u></span></h2>
<span style="font-size: large;">What is missing from these lists? That's right. Any kind of speaking or writing. Why? Well, in class, we do speak. We speak a lot! We talk and discuss and connect and we write too. But, we are not in class. (Obvious, but that has actually been incredibly helpful to remember!) I have a limited amount of time that students are supposed to spend on language class, and a lot of levels to prep for, and I know that speaking does not help them acquire*. Nor does writing. I am going to stay input focused for the rest of the year. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">*For some research and reading to back this up, please see <a href="https://www.actfl.org/publications/books-and-brochures/while-were-the-topic" target="_blank">While We're On the Topic</a>, by Dr. Bill VanPatten (a publication from ACTFL), as well as <a href="https://www.amazon.com/Research-Talks-Motivating-Acquisition-Centered-Classrooms/dp/1073118800/ref=sr_1_2?dchild=1&keywords=research+talks&qid=1587662059&sr=8-2" target="_blank">Research Talks,</a> by Eric Herman (available from Amazon).</span><br />
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<br />Eliciahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17014283811911497554noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7311138534527402755.post-64092063159752216172020-03-29T11:44:00.004-07:002021-04-16T13:45:59.268-07:00The New Normal Part 2: Synchronous Teaching<div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjqF5oxTnCUkMtD9SAPUhNZzMXufB4SveUPsba9IMJBNMHVgE-xy9NE4LePzrnfK3pcXIMtBfCNm1Q6qS1XnnBcgCMx1IIHmXmf3ItZzSWCsHAmH1zUQn4-4IcmjbU8KA0HtFOdFVgVPkM/s1600/Screenshot+2020-03-29+11.45.14.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="500" data-original-width="497" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjqF5oxTnCUkMtD9SAPUhNZzMXufB4SveUPsba9IMJBNMHVgE-xy9NE4LePzrnfK3pcXIMtBfCNm1Q6qS1XnnBcgCMx1IIHmXmf3ItZzSWCsHAmH1zUQn4-4IcmjbU8KA0HtFOdFVgVPkM/s400/Screenshot+2020-03-29+11.45.14.png" width="397" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">(If you want to read part 1, my outlook and what I actually assigned to the students, click on <a href="http://www.desklessclassroom.com/2020/03/the-new-normal.html">"The New Normal Part 1: Shifting Gears"</a> post.) </span><br />
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<a href="https://www.desklessclassroom.com/2020/03/the-new-normal.html" target="_blank"><img border="0" data-original-height="1080" data-original-width="1080" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQ07LqFudpsgHSJFtBFY0TOTnorPC4R3T1NrOUBt4M7LI_toM1QdG0IbsU0FaXi_WOozrFxAzvVFgwW0t4n4ymtdOrxkFHdfnfX0jKA9v4Nw_OVcwsbjqxMM1A1pO-MUPcu7Y_LwzEE9Y/s200/the+new+normalpt+1.png" style="cursor: move;" width="200" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">This is the 2nd part of my personal process of dealing with the new "normal", trying to keep it simple, and accepting that this is my life. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">And also teaching online in a synchronous 30 minute slot, </span><span style="font-size: large;">three levels, three times a week. (3 total; one for each level.) </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">Before all this happened, I had planed some cool activities. Like- I was super proud of them and spent a little extra time prepping because it was Parent/Teacher conferences, and by the end of 8th grade, there aren't a ton of parents that really need to meet with me, so I had some time. </span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjcdYEKUaTSly0n3xACstoQ9FKMbVYBtxDK7JqtTyak0iUQ1xCBeJt5vC3adwIgTjosx6jTtEkrMbVgGWFPUGXDI4HIcFlKvHvySyE4kLowKZYMvwfLyEs6RPBO3VaZ57ANjf6gFPWeD4U/s1600/Screenshot+2020-03-29+11.47.43.png" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="362" data-original-width="533" height="217" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjcdYEKUaTSly0n3xACstoQ9FKMbVYBtxDK7JqtTyak0iUQ1xCBeJt5vC3adwIgTjosx6jTtEkrMbVgGWFPUGXDI4HIcFlKvHvySyE4kLowKZYMvwfLyEs6RPBO3VaZ57ANjf6gFPWeD4U/s320/Screenshot+2020-03-29+11.47.43.png" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Storyasking is actually the most fun ever.</td></tr>
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<span style="font-size: large;">I had <a href="https://www.desklessclassroom.com/p/blog-page_10.html">story asked</a> in two different levels (three classes total) and we had not yet spent much time with the stories. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">In another class, w</span><span style="font-size: large; text-align: center;">e finished the story and interacted with it in a few ways, and had moved on to more content-based discussions and resources. </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">My plan *was* (pre COVID-19): </span></h3>
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<span style="font-size: large;">Spanish 1 Honors: Re-read class story, play a quick round of <a href="https://senorachase.com/2018/01/24/quick-draw/">Quick Draw,</a> do a mash-up of "<a href="https://www.desklessclassroom.com/2019/09/day-2-2019-some-lessons-about-going-out.html#aroundtheworld">Around the world</a>" and "<a href="https://comprehensibleclassroom.com/2013/01/18/who-said-it/" target="_blank">Who said it</a>?"- only with all the sentences in 1st person, a quick listening assessment, and then have students fill out a <a href="https://comprehensibleclassroom.com/2011/12/02/mentirosopq/" target="_blank">2 truths and a lie</a> form about the story, to be played later. This was probably going to take a couple of class periods, and I would have added on some weekend chat with a <a href="https://www.desklessclassroom.com/2020/01/write-discuss-sometimes-i-win-sometimes.html" target="_blank">write and discuss</a>, and maybe finished the week with another story. All in all, a lot of reading and re-reading our (incredibly hilarious) class story. We were working in <a href="https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Spanish-1-Storytelling-Unit-06-Sientate-917711" target="_blank">SOMOS 1, Unit 6</a>. </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">ADAPTATION for SYNCHRONOUS teaching: </span></h3>
<span style="font-size: large;"><i>(I am teaching, they are joining in a zoom/meetup)</i></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><a href="https://drive.google.com/open?id=1YFNmys4pYWFDtBJCMmQr0fAM3yoMbHaV" target="_blank">Story document: Esteban</a></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><a href="http://www.classtools.net/qwikslides/75_j7DRff" target="_blank">Class tools slides with story</a></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><a href="https://drive.google.com/open?id=12PIR2xFnw6pzwGfwYX75IVrV3bovht66JUrflwwmV0Q" target="_blank">Who Said it Adaptation for Online Teaching</a></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><b>Bonus Documents: </b></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><i>(because I made them, might as well share them; directions are linked in the documents) </i></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><a href="https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/1wCfB0i6z6FOlhRPjUQG2KbwJNsBsHPMHfjUIqzUND0M/edit?usp=sharing" target="_blank"><span id="goog_1637993715"></span>A/ B listening quiz about the story with illustrations</a></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><a href="https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/1CXmstQ_eExbKyeS4_Iln50mTfYwc-_upUbXF0JX5FIs/edit?usp=sharing" target="_blank">Quick Draw sentences</a></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><a href="https://comprehensibleclassroom.com/2011/12/02/mentirosopq/">Link to 2 Truths and a Lie form, from Comprehensible Classroom**</a></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">REFLECTIONS: </span></h3>
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<span style="font-size: large;">Changing the Around the World/ Who Said It activity to the new format was awesome. </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">Reading the story in breakout rooms worked pretty well. I need to try to work out at least one way for them to do that each session, and also remember that it is kind of time consuming for me to jump in and out of breakout rooms. </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">I needed to do more brain breaks. Like more than one. Seriously- how could I forget this? </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">Comprehension checks are HARD. It is really hard to see if they understand. I did ask them to move so that the light wasn't behind them if possible so I could see their faces. Using the chat function on Zoom for students to do L1 comprehension checks worked out pretty well- all I did was ask them to type what I just said in English. They did. </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">*Note- if you use Zoom, you can change the settings on Chat- you can make it so that participants can only chat with host, can not chat at all, can only chat with everyone...I decided to try "only message everyone". I might play with that so that they only message me if I continue to use that function, but maybe not.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">And in the "kids say the darndest things" category: One kid told me that another kid's internet was out, and wanted to know what to do about it. Um...I told him that was part of this new normal and he needed to be patient. </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">Spanish 2 Honors: </span></h3>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><b>Pre-COVID-19 Plans</b></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">Continue with the <a href="https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Spanish-1-Storytelling-Unit-17-El-Viajero-La-inmigracion-679770" target="_blank">SOMOS 1, Unit 17 Past Tense</a> lesson plans. We just finished the reading assessment and discussion about immigration to the USA, and I was planning on using the video suggested in the lesson plans, doing a gallery walk for students to respond to some questions, then leading another discussion based on the gallery walk. Students were going to work on reading and responding to a PDF document about border controls, and then we were going to do a writing assessment. We were also going to do a cool jigsaw activity using some texts from <a href="https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/EL-MUNDO-EN-TUS-MANOS-News-summaries-for-Spanish-students-2018-2019-WEEKLY-3775688" target="_blank">Mundo en Tus Manos</a>. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">*This class is more like a Spanish 3+ class in terms of their abilities to create with language- I would *NOT* do something like a jigsaw activity in a lower level class. </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><b>ADAPTATION for ONLINE: </b></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">This was the first class I actually taught online this week. It was the least smooth, but also the class that I have had the longest, so I felt confident that they would be supportive and understanding if it was a massive fail. I really missed them!!! </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">We did a little check in chit chat, then I adapted the video activity from the lesson plan and we did that. The original activity had a series of phrases from the video for students to mark off as they heard them- a very challenging activity!- and then questions to provide input that is more comprehensible than the video dialogue. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">I decided to play a variation of <a href="https://comprehensibleclassroom.com/2014/10/27/el-dia-de-los-muertos-strip-bingo/" target="_blank">(st)RIP BINGO</a> and had them write down 6 of the phrases, making sure they were comprehended. Then I played the video twice, and students marked what they heard. Then the input came from a discussion.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Despite the fact that these kids have a TON of language, I would say this was a bit of a flop. Chit chat/ small talk was pretty hard. Having a discussion was hard- it was hard for kiddos to come up with contributions to the discussion even though I am actually 100% sure in this case that it was comprehensible. More about how I will do that differently below. I mean, they demonstrated their understanding of the main points of the video, but when it got to the meatier parts of the discussion (do you agree with what the people are doing, would you do it, etc.) I realized that I couldn't use the same scaffolded techniques that I use in class (e.g. turn and talks, gallery walks) to give everyone a chance to form thoughts and contribute. In this case, I couldn't do a gallery walk, for instance. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">What I can do for next time is to give them the questions in advance, put them in breakout rooms to talk to each other about the questions, and then come back to a big discussion. (Hey, this is why I am writing this blog- reflection time!!) </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">It wasn't a total failure- having them do something with the video was good and I think they liked that it felt like work, and that it felt like a bit of "normal class". </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">OK, I am done writing. This post has been more screentime than I wanted...more later! </span><br />
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Eliciahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17014283811911497554noreply@blogger.com1