Sure, we non-math people laugh and exchange smug glances while the math people fume silently, which is always fun, but there's a core issue here of lacking real-world connections. We have to be ready for the inevitable hand-raising and the "Teacher! When are we gonna use this in real life?" and if we don't give the students satisfactory answers we get smug responses such as the one above. Of course, we can't expect our students to take "you'll use it, trust me", on pure faith alone...which is why I really liked Chapter 10!
Inquiries not only give students those desperately-needed real-life connections (there's nothing more saddening and real than trying to plan a budget), they give the students some flexible in their learning too. Inquiries also harken back to UbD--looking at those big ideas and big questions--only this time, it's the students deciding what makes a 'big' idea. I can get behind inquiries!
The only real question I had about Chapters 9&10 were what to do about shy/anxious/struggling readers, but upon flipping to Chapter 11, it looks like my question will be answered for me.
There's not much I can say regarding Chapter 9 except that I really want one in my own classroom now.
"The student playing the president's aide immediately improvised mixing cocktails, and all three clinked imaginary glasses in a comic tableau of old-boyism" (250).
I love it when students have a sense of humor about things.
I also like that Smokey and the Bandit continue to stress how important it is model behavior, by, well, modelling it for us. In this case, book clubs! The authors don't just tell you "yes, book clubs good", they show you how to model the behavior of the book club, how to divvy up tasks and monitor students, and how to get them engaged in their text without spoonfeeding them the answers. And that's something I really appreciate.
BOOKS.
Emily, what are your opinions on inquiries in the classroom? As in, what makes a successful inquiry and how would you personally hook a student into inquiring on into your lessons?
ReplyDeleteI share your concern on what to do about shy/anxious/struggling readers (and I thank you for sharing that tidbit about chapter 11). It serves as problematic (solely going off on Chapter 9 and 10) a strategy to implement with the quieter of the bunch in our classrooms. As a teacher I would try to place the more talkative students away from each other and together with the quieter student and then assign specific goal orientated roles to them to *make them engage with one another. That I see as a potential solution, but not a very "nice" or accommodating one.
Love your humor, love your summary. I think the students inhibit our humors as the year goes on, so I'm sure you'll be seeing reflections of you in your students.
#1 Best blog title in the class this semester
ReplyDelete#2 I like how you tied UbD to the inquiry projects. The, “Teacher! When are we gonna use this in real life?” question is one I always worry about. It’s not an easy question to answer for all math topics, and I’m determined to not use the, “you’ll use it, trust me” line. My hope is that inquiry projects will be a way to show students how mathematics can be useful, so I won’t have to answer that question as much. I probably won’t be able to incorporate every math topic into projects during a school year, but I hope that students will experience enough applications of math so that they won’t internalize the idea behind the image you posted.
Hi Emily!
ReplyDeleteLike you, I appreciate how "Smokey and the Bandit" ( <---love that) thoroughly explain how to organize and implement book clubs within different content-areas. It's one thing to declare that something is a great idea, but it's more meaningful when details are provided to persuade people to try it out. A lot of times, I feel as though teachers don't implement reading into their curriculum. Let's face it- it's more challenging to do when it's not necessarily an English class. However, it's quite important to keep students reading and thinking in all subjects.
Also, I love the image that you chose to conclude your post. I've never encountered this image before, but the humor and literal meaning are great! To explain, books are weapons, because they educate people on various levels. As informed individuals, students are destined for future success (academic, personal, etc.). It's wonderful to consider books as powerful resources, and I believe that all teachers (current and future) can improve their classrooms and their students' learning with interesting, fun readings to support the thinking process.
Hey Emily,
ReplyDeleteIn high school, I wasn’t motivated to learn because I didn’t see the point in learning most of what we were being taught. A lot of times I was told I had to know Shakespeare to be well rounded, and I have to study geometry because everything is a shape. Those answers are not satisfying. However, if I had to do more inquiry based assignments, I would have a much better idea for why I’m learning the information. I think that all students would benefit from these assignments. Also, it would be great for students to take charge of their own learning and get some power in what they learn. There’s a method of instruction in which students will pick an animal, say polar bears, and then every topic they learn in class, has to be applied to that animal. So, if they’re learning about food chains, they will need to show where the polar bears fit in their food chains. This is a powerful tool that gives meaning to their learning and motivates them to learn. Great thinking- I love it!