Flexible Grouping and A Great Question to Ask Your Students

Excellence in Education: Flexible Grouping   

In overseeing special education, I’m blessed to see many examples of flexible grouping, but this isn’t a strategy that is limited to special education classes.

Most teachers deliver information in a consistent manner that usually involves whole class, small group and individual student opportunities. Recognizing that each student is different, flexible grouping allows teachers to match students and their instructional needs.*

Advantages to flexible grouping:

• Differentiates and individualizes learning
• Motivates students because students are placed in groups where they can be successful and through peer influences
• Addresses social needs
• Promotes student collaboration
• Provides different experiences with different outcomes

Some Flexible Grouping Strategies

Group Pass: The teacher poses a question (this could be factual recall or an open-ended statement) and each student responds by writing an answer down. Students then pass the paper to a peer who checks the answer. The process is then repeated. In using this with factual/recall information type questions, students can be grouped with similar ability students and different questions can be asked to different groups, or students can be grouped in differing ability groups where stronger students help struggling students.

Student vote: A question is posed to the group with different possible answers. In a history class this could be an opinion question with strongly agree-agree-disagree-strongly disagree answers. In a math class a question can be posed with different answers or solving strategies and in another class this might be would you like to learn more / read about topic A, B, C, D. Each student then goes to one of the corresponding four corners. This can be used to group students by interest.

Readiness: Students are grouped by proficiency.

Administrative Notes

Flex tomorrow.

Learning Walks on Wednesday.

Positive Referral Link: http://goo.gl/s0KXRB

Work Order Request Form: http://goo.gl/H7hFwK

Comment Box: http://goo.gl/forms/KAHNoGf5D2

Some upcoming dates:

April 18: Prom

April 30: Honor Breakfast (Top Decile)

May 17: Scholarship Banquet

May 18: Senior Picnic

May 26/27: Now sent in stone: Senior Exams

May 29 @ 6pm: Graduation

Some upcoming edcamps (opt-out credit can be earned):

May 9: Edcamp MetroDC (Potomac, MD)

Worth Your Time

Distracted by Rewards: Moving Away from Carrots and Sticks

The Real Stuff of Schooling: How to Teach Students to Apply Knowledge

An Open Letter to My High School Self  This might be worth sharing with your students. 

Pew Survey Results about Teens, Social Media, and Tech

Tweet of the Week

This has been circulating on Twitter for a while. I think it’s a great idea and worth sharing.

Give your students an opportunity to complete this statement, “I wish my teacher knew…”

Making Points in a Lecture, PEEL

Excellence in Education: Major Points in A Lecture  

I’ve seen several examples of this strategy used by several teachers, and based on a couple of conversations with teachers I’ve had recently I wanted to share it with everyone.

First, please allow me to explain the conversations frequently centered on teacher frustration with students not taking notes during lectures. While we each have different strategies: guided notes, PowerPoint presentations posted on BlackBoard, etc. the simplicity of this strategy works in all instances.

1. At the beginning of the lecture the teacher briefs the students on the key points of the lecture (somewhere between 3-6 ideas). This, of course, is a great way of sharing the learning target with the students!
2. Students are then responsible for completing an outline or a graphic organizer (web diagram, chart, etc.) for each of the main points. With younger students, it may be beneficial to discuss ways for students to organize their notes.
3. After conclusion of each main point, students may be given time to jot down key ideas, to think-pair-share, for formative assessment, etc.

Excellence in Education: PEEL Graphic Organizer  

A highly rigorous, college-prep class requires students to analyze and support their analysis with facts and reasoning. The PEEL strategy is a graphic organizer that can be used by itself, as a pre-writing strategy (especially DBQs and other shorter, social studies essays), in preparation for a class discussion/Socratic Seminar, or more. Simply, it’s a great way to get students started because it helps them determine a main idea and find supporting details.

What is PEEL?

PEEL stands for Point-Evidence-Explanation-Link

Point: provide an opening statement for your argument

Evidence: provide evidence (this can be direct quotes, facts, etc.)

Explanation: explain the evidence through purpose and context

Link: a statement that links back to the main point

Here’s a link to a PEEL Graphic Organizer: http://teachingrocks.ca/wp-content/uploads/2012/05/peel.making.connections.pdf

Administrative Notes

Hall Coverage: We must do a better job of being in the hallways before school, between classes, and after school. àThis is a blanket (shotgun-type) statement that I try to avoid, but I feel comfortable making it because I’ve tried to thank teachers who I consistently see in the hallway. It really needs to improve! In addition to being a student safety issue, I’ve blogged about other reasons to greet students at the door http://goo.gl/kMh3xA We understand that things come up at the end of the class and that often you need to prepare something for your next class, but please make a concerted effort to be in the hallways. Thanks!

Flex tomorrow.

Learning Walks on Wednesday.

Open enrollment meeting : Thursday

Positive Referral Link: http://goo.gl/s0KXRB

Work Order Request Form: http://goo.gl/H7hFwK

Comment Box: http://goo.gl/forms/KAHNoGf5D2

Some upcoming dates:

April 18: Prom (Chaperones needed)

April 30: Honor Breakfast (Top Decile)

May 17: Scholarship Banquet

May 18: Senior Picnic

May 26/27: Now sent in stone: Senior Exams

May 29 @ 6pm: Graduation

Some upcoming edcamps (opt-out credit can be earned):

May 9: Edcamp MetroDC (Potomac, MD)

April 18: Edcamp Delaware (Wilmington)

Worth Your Time

Support Struggling Students and Help Them Develop Better Attitudes : An article from Robyn Jackson, author of Work Smarter, Not Harder, including some good tips about redos, retakes and instilling a growth mindset.

Three Simple Ways to Differentiate Instruction While differentiation might be the theme of the article, it really includes great instructional ideas that transcend beyond differentiation.

Four Ways to Turn Distracted Students into Engaged Learners

What the ‘thoughtless’ New York Government Just Did to Teachers : Be glad you’re not in NY, even though they pay well.