Becoming an Anti-Racist Educator: Where to Begin

I two-timed the blog world, sorry!  Click on the link to see my post about Becoming an Anti-Racist Educator over on the Comprehensible Classroom's blog.

February Blues: Resources for Classroom Management

Lately, I have seen a lot of posts about classroom management, and the general feeling of classrooms falling apart. I know this week was rough as anything for me!  

So, I gathered up all my favorite resources about classroom management.

Remember- just because it feels like nothing works doesn't mean that's true. Take each day with a deep breath. Treat yourself with the same compassion that you treat your kids. Treat your kids with as much compassion as you can, and forgive yourself when it doesn't work out. This is a tough time of year for everybody who teaches in the western hemisphere.

With love, having survived another Friday in February, Elicia

To read:

How to respond to rude, disrespectful student attitudes:

https://thecornerstoneforteachers.com/truth-for-teachers-podcast/respond-rude-disrespectful-student-attitudes/

Is your "invisible throne" creating power struggles and unnecessary work (brand new!)
https://thecornerstoneforteachers.com/truth-for-teachers-podcast/power-struggles-and-unnecessary-work/?utm_source=drip&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=When+you+regret+that+power+struggle+with+a+student...
When you just can't- Plan B

https://comprehensibleclassroom.com/2012/10/30/plan-b-reading-activities/

When all my classroom management strategies weren't enough: Implementing Plan B

https://www.desklessclassroom.com/2019/11/implementing-plan-b-when-classroom.html

All of AnneMarie Chase's classroom management posts

https://senorachase.com/?s=classroom+management

Cecile Lainé's incredible reflection on a tough group

https://towardproficiency.com/2018/05/20/hard-learned-lessons-in-classroom-management/

Why your best efforts might be failing

https://comprehensibleclassroom.com/2019/08/08/why-your-best-classroom-management-efforts-might-be-failing/

$

Jon Cowart's Classroom management book and class - I keep going back to this book over and over again. It is the only book I can think about that truly addresses management in a comprehension focused classroom. Jon has a wide variety of experience in different, primarily urban, settings, and offers so many important tools for management.

https://fluencyfast.com/product/classroom-management-for-the-ci-classroom-ebook-jon-cowart/

https://joncowartteaching.com

To watch (Fun Club episode!)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DjLLeLZrMUg&feature=youtu.be

Story asking! Video! Friday Afternoon!

So, you remember that Plan B class? They have made big improvements. HUGE, in fact. Not perfect. Far, far from it.  But...they have come a long way. 

So much that I asked a story in class today!!!  Since storyasking is one of my very favorite things to do in class, I was pretty joyful. Since it was the end of the day on a Friday, I was pretty exhausted.  

In fact, I asked the same story with two different sections of my Spanish 1B class of 8th graders.  

Level Up your Learning

 Use this form (and read the article while you are at it) to observe.  (This was a collaboration between Martina Bex and I.)  

Real talk

Please forgive any and all language mistakes- I am human.  And for a minute, I started to ask the story in past tense, then remembered mid-word what class I was in front of. 

Notes: The first THREE minutes are in English! Gasp! I was setting expectations.  That, to me, is a very good use of L1.   Also, for the first couple minutes or so of the actual story, the camera is on its own personal journey of discovery in my classroom.  It decided not to focus on me at all.  Skip to about minute 5 if you feel like you must, but the sound is pretty good in those first couple of minutes.  

You will see me mouth the words "pollo frito" a few times.  I am doing this because we established (ages ago) that when we say it, one kid leads us in his favorite dance. Thus, I use the magic of the fried chicken dance very carefully.  

At about 13:20, a kid starts to have a side conversation and I have to send them out of the room.  (They are going to work on a written assignment.) 

I also did this story with another class, but for now, here is one video. My apologies for not taking the time to add subtitles.  It's Friday night.

Click here if it won't start playing. 





This lesson is the Story asking part, day 2, of SOMOS 1, Unit 10.  Used with permission.  




Resources about story asking:  
Story asking: Summer SOMOS Fun Club Video
Story asking: bit.ly/storyaskingsupports  
Blog post and more info:  https://comprehensibleclassroom.com/2019/07/24/tprs-storyasking-made-simple/

#StoriesConnect Tips
#1-Set expectations
#2 Managing Choral Responses
#3- Teaching how to make suggestions

What is TPRS™?  

Upcoming: two amazing opportunities to grow as a comprehension based teacher.

So, this is a little bit of shameless self promotion. Forgive me.  This blog *is* my platform to share some great opportunities coming up.  

First, Martina Bex and I are doing our very first SOMOS (and Nous Sommes) training.  We have been very busy creating new materials and reflecting on how to best support teachers implementing SOMOS/Nous Sommes.  I have been moderating our collaborative Facebook group for a long time now, and there seem to be common questions and concerns.  Our goal is to try to help teachers understand why SOMOS/Nous Sommes is written the way that it is, and how to use the curriculum as a guide to create joyful connections in language class.  We are so excited to finally do this- it has been my dream for a LONG time!  We are going to have coaching, social time, and a fantastic day and evening of training and support.  

http://bit.ly/SOMOSWorkshop2020

Seriously, this is a big deal.  At least for me!  And then, there is Comprehensible Online.  

The second opportunity upcoming is Comprehensible Online.  This is my third year presenting as part of this amazing conference, and I am so proud to be included.  The thing about this conference- well- there are so many things.  PD in your PJs?  YES!!!  A TON of presenters who are presenting on their areas of expertise and passion? That too.  The list of topics is breathtaking and vast.  I *know* that I will not have enough time to even watch a portion of these, and I also know that they will have an immediate impact on my teaching.  Also, you can watch them on a treadmill or exercise bike. BONUS!  

As a presenter, I try to go deep into a classroom practice and use live video of my students and I in the classroom to model and explain that practice.  For me, seeing actual teachers in their classroom is some of the most impactful training I can get.  

This year, I decided to dig deep into what differentiation looks like in my classroom.  Because we have to teach the kids that we have, not the kids we wish we had.  

Somehow, I feel like it has become a core part of my practice, so I decided to present on it.  I have two presentations this year. 

The first one, called Differentiation in the Moment, includes lots of footage of my classroom (grades 7 and 8, Spanish 1 honors, 2 Honors, and Spanish 1B) and presents a few strategies that I use to differentiate during story asking, classroom discussions, games, and whole group reading.  

www.desklessclassroom.com 

My second presentation is also about differentiation, but more focused on input based tasks and activities that are pre-planned. 

I will be sharing templates and resources for participants to download and implement in their classroom.  I will also be talking about how I adapt some of the resources for elementary FLEX classes and how that has gone.

This one doesn't include classroom footage because, well, it was incredibly boring to watch the students work on things, but it does have a lot of content- so much that I had to cut out 10 minutes! 

If you sign up before Jan 15, you will get a $25.00 discount AND better pricing, and will help me recoup some of the 40+ hours spent making the video with the kids. Sheesh- it takes HOURS to edit!! Thanks! Use code ELICIA.     


Please consider joining me (and my dear colleagues) at one of these trainings. You will not be disappointed!   

Implementing Plan B: when the classroom management strategies just aren't enough

Plan B: I wanted to share a little bit today about how I have two classes that are really challenging this year- for different reasons- and how they have become my Plan B classes.  

First, here is what I mean by Plan B.

https://comprehensibleclassroom.com/2012/10/30/plan-b/

A little background:  

One class is the class that I have not yet been able to finish a story with. There are constant interruptions. I have a personal belief against sending kids out of class, and in general none of the interruptions are truly horrible or worth sending a kid out for- they are just unbelievably frustrating. Like dozens, or hundreds of low-level constant interruptions and annoyances that bring everything to a screaming halt. 

I have tried a bunch of different strategies and interventions over the last 5 weeks, but finally at the beginning of this week, I decided to go to Plan B.

So, why am I doing it? Well, I realized I was being drained. I was trying everything in my toolbox of classroom management strategies.  

Here are those tools and interventions I used:

• I taught and practiced procedures. Over, and over, and over again. I refused to move forward until everyone was doing what I expected them to do. With a smile! (I smiled- them, not so much.) (In L1)
• I responded quickly, and positively, to every single instance of a student not doing what I wanted. I have posted rules, and each time a student spoke out of turn or had a side conversation, I walked over to the rules and waited, patiently, smiling, until I had the full attention of everyone.  (Rules are in L1.) (This is a strategy I learned from here.)

• I narrated the positives constantly. In L1.

• I reviewed the expectations before each new activity. I asked students to volunteer to be positive examples and model the desired behavior, and narrated it. In L1.

• I used proximity, seating charts, and secret signals to indicate to a kid that they were going off the rails.

• I found something positive (behavior wise) to write home about and emailed or called the caregivers of the most challenging kids, to show that they *could* be successful in my class. Sometimes I wrote about how Little Johnny had a rough day on Thursday but really turned it around at the beginning of class on Friday. It was *something* positive, right?

• I met with the kids who just didn't get it, individually, and tried to connect, build relationships, find what they are interested in, etc. I even paid attention to student athletics- which for me, is a big deal.

• I sought help from other teachers in our student support meetings, documented behaviors so I could try to see patterns within myself, time of day, activities, and/or students.

• I implemented different interventions such as rocky stools, weight belts, fidgets, and bouncy sensory chair pads. (One kid sliced one of my homemade weight belts with scissors. That was not awesome.)

• I changed the kinds of brain breaks I did in those classes (from energizing to focusing and silent).

Whew! That's a lot of interventions!  

But NOTHING WORKED. And I was miserable. And I hated that it felt like a power struggle. I know that no one wins a power struggle.

Worse? I was spending so much time redirecting, responding, and eventually reacting, that there just wasn't a lot of input happening. And for the kids who want to be there? For the kids who are controlling themselves? Who crave the input and the fun? They were getting nothing except frustration.

Now, an earlier version of me might have justified throwing out the ringleaders. And yes, on a day with one of them absent, well, we got a TON accomplished.  

But I have to ask myself: will kicking them out solve the problem? Sort of, but only in the short term. And also, won't that eat up a ton of time in meetings with parents and admins, follow up meetings, documenting, writing plans, etc.? And you know that time will come right out of my planning and/or after school hours.  And will it change the behaviors?

Will it just turn our relationship into kid vs. adult? Will it cement their identity of "bad kid" and trouble maker? Can I break that cycle? Don't I have a responsibility to teach all kids, even the ones who make it the most difficult?  

But don't I have a responsibility to the other kids too, those who are losing out due to the poor choices of the few?  

This, my friends, is the eternal teacher question. And also why Plan B makes so much sense to me.  

In short, Plan B means that students get input that they understand, but the interaction as a community is missing. The input might be from a story, a pre-written text, a video, or whatever else was in my plan for the day. The activity to deliver input is altered so that students do it all independently. It is very heavy on reading. 

What it looked like: 

This week, the plan was to Clipchat (Movietalk) Sr. Wooly's video for Qué asco, read a more complex version of the video written up to be like a story, and invent our own gross combinations (like the song) to see who had the grossest and which one would smell the worst.  

I knew that at this point that students would not be able to manage a ClipChat/MovieTalk. Their interruptions would be too much, so I had to let that go. Oh well.
Instead, I decided to have them read and interact a bit with the reading (available with a Pro subscription) and then we would watch the video, then I would have them write (instead of draw and eventually use their illustrations for card talk) the gross combinations. Rather than trying to have a discussion about their gross combinations, I would have them respond ONLY with hand signals. If they could handle it. 
It has been more work. I had to create slides (ugh! I HATE creating slides! I hate working from slideshows in general!) with very clear directions.  

It has been work that I am, frankly, not used to doing. I have to very carefully plan out each activity and write it out- then make sure there is a text to read, a way to support their comprehension, and then something to do for fast finishers. 

Now, I do all these things normally, but I do them in the moment, based on how I am feeling and how the class is going. (This is one advantage of being experienced. I give directions on the fly and change how we use a reading or activity based on what is happening that day. That does NOT fly for Plan B.)
It is boring- while they read, I circulate. I monitor. It is NOT interaction. I am even more strict than usual (absolutely no talking. None!).  
I hate it. It is not my personality and it doesn't feel right to me. It is *not* an interactive classroom. It is not wacky, memorable, and it is really not fun. For any of us.  
But...it is working. Kids are getting input. I am not super frustrated at the end of the day. (Bored, but that is better than angry.) 

Kids who didn't get input because of all the distractions are getting input. Kids who were distracting are...getting input. Is it as rich and compelling as it would be if we were acting out the movietalk and exploring what they think are gross combinations? Not at all. But..it is input, and it feels a lot more equitable in that I am able to do my job and not spend most of my time and energy on just a few kids.  
And at the end of class yesterday, I tried a turn-n-talk. (This has not yet worked consistently.) They managed it. It felt nice. We reflected on the feeling of class in L1. It was a better day. One kid in particular got a positive email home.  

The next day, I tried another turn and talk and lead a short discussion. Each day, I want to give the class back to interaction, just a bit more, so that we can get back to the fun. But for now, Plan B is going to let me stay sane and keep doing my job of providing comprehensible input, so I am very thankful.

Storyasking! Videos!

Here are some videos of StoryAsking (part 1 and 2). This is Camina y Corre, SOMOS 1, Unit 2.  I am working on videos of PQA and our collaborative mural, but one thing at a time!

For more resources about story asking, including what it is, how to do it, and tips to make it go smoothly,  take a look at this episode of SOMOS Summer Fun Club and these resources.    

I *did not* take the time to subtitle these in English, sorry folks.  I just would not have the time to do this until...summer, and then I would forget.  Please accept my apologies to folks who are not Spanish speakers, and take a look at some of my other videos for subtitled versions.

IMPORTANT:  These students are NOT novice level students. They have had one solid year of comprehension based teaching with a focus on communicative embedded input.  (They are CI taught.)  This group is Spanish 1 Honors, and were assessed at the end of last year to go into standard or honors tracks.  I don't yet have too many videos of me teaching novices because my only novice class is fifth grade, and I do not have video release forms for them.  Sorry!

What you will not see: TONS of classic "circling" questions.

What you will probably see: lots of comprehension checks, brain bursts (quick brain breaks), some routines and procedures, and a lot of language.  And one class clown.

Want to get better at asking stories? Martina Bex and I collaborated on this resource to help.  Watch this video and use one of the organizers referenced in the post.  This is a great way to start training yourself!

PART 1  For some reason, this preview is not functioning.  Use the button on the upper right hand of the screen to open it in a new window, or click here.  



PART 2 - click on the link or use the button in the upper right hand corner below to open in a new window.  Sorry!

Free PD: Interactive-ish notebooks!

Hope to see you there!

For all the interactive-ish notebook resources on this site:  bit.ly/interactive-ishnotebooks