Implementation of UbD Lesson

I like the idea of teaching with the end in mind. Keeping this in mind
during my lessons on telling time is always helpful. This concept is
very abstract and hard for young children to master. The lesson went
well, however my students are going to continue to need a great deal of
re-inforcement. I haven't ever seen all second graders become whizzes
at telling time by November of the school year. Some still aren't in
June. UbD gives us a good framework to follow in order to keep the goals we are striving for clear to us.

Review of "Standards" Website

It is always interesting to visit this website. I especially like the
quote at the beginning of the site which states that "A high level of
shared education is essential to a free, democratic society and to the
fostering of a common culture." There are so many good things about
this website and then there are a number of areas that leave room for
improvement. I think that it is nice that members of the community can
get on this website to actually see what is expected for their children
to master. So often I hear comments like "I never had to do this kind
of thing in second grade." It is nice that parents and other family
members can visit the site and see that we aren't really crazy and that
students really do need to know this stuff.

I do wish that the site offered more suggestions as to how some of these skills can be taught to better achieve success. I always like to look in idea books and visit websites that offer some new ways to teach skills. It would be nice if this website
also offered some of these ideas to teachers. I think that is is good
that NJ has a set of standards that teachers are expected to follow. It
gives us a good framework. I only wish for a little more support
sometimes from those outside of the schools that are in positions of
influence.

An interesting site...

I have always found the Enchanted Learning website to be a helpful site to visit. There is a small membership fee that is available but there are many things that can be printed out for free. I have found mini books, craft ideas, worksheets and information about different science and social studies topics on this site. It is very good for elementary teachers, but upper grade teachers might find it interesting also.

Here it is:
http://www.enchantedlearning.com/Home.html/

What I have learned from this class...

I have learned a lot as a result of this class. There have been many
areas that we have discussed and researched that I have found
interesting. I am not sure if the opportunity to work in a supervisory
role will present itself to me in the future, but whatever the case may
be, I am leaving this class knowing more than I started out with and
that is the most important goal.

One of the areas that standsout in my mind comes from the reading that we did from Thomas Friedman’s, The World is Flat. I thought that there were many good ideas in this reading that I would like to apply in my classroom. I especially liked the ideas that had to do with good teachers being those who made learning fun and who instilled a feeling of being valued in their students. He describes it as teaching others to “learn how to learn.” I liked the ideas of G. Wayne Clough , president of Georgia Tech, who put an emphasis on not only intelligence, but also on individuals who brought other interests along with them noting them as more adaptable individuals. It makes a lot of sense that students should be exposed to all different types of learning experiences in order to bring some of these experiences into the rest of their lives.

In addition to these ideas, I also enjoyed reading Daniel Pink’s writings about “Symphony.” I am finding that as time is passing by in my life, I am becoming more methodical in the way that I approach things, just because it is what I am used to. The idea of continuing to develop the creative right hemisphere of my brain and to see things “out of the box” is something that is interesting to me as well as something that I think would be of value to my students.

The different ways that we used technology in this classroom is another area that I found very valuable. I was forced to do things on the computer that I had never done before and may not have motivated myself to do without this experience. I have more desire to research ways to incorporate technology into my classroom and I see the value in making it a priority to a district. This was especially interesting to me.

I have enjoyed being a part of this class and I really do feel like it
will benefit me in my own classroom. I am happy that I have continued
on with my education, if for nothing else than the value of learning
some new things to help me to grow as a teacher.

Orange Middle School

I found the article on Orange Middle School to be very interesting mostly because I often wonder what is done in poor, urban schools where passing state tests is a challenge. The ideas that they have come up with to help bring about greater achievement among students are good.

I especially like the idea of creating small learning communities within the school. This allows for more active learning and interaction among peers within each group. In addition, this allows for teachers to know students better and to provide more support. This kind of involvement is especially important in these lower socioeconomic areas such as Orange, where there is not much support from home many times and where students need the active guidance of positive adults in their lives.

The idea of students wearing uniforms to school, although a bold decision, is one that I think is beneficial. So much of students’ identity comes from what the up to date styles are and many times to keep up with this costs a great deal, monetarily and emotionally. Asking all students to wear a common uniform is an idea that removes this stress from the lives of especially middle school students who are very vulnerable when it comes to keeping up with the latest trends, many of which may be out of the reach of families living in poorer areas.

My recommendations to add to what is already being done, first would include some type of peer leadership program for older students to interact with younger students in positive ways. Students who are identified as positive examples, could in some way be involved with those other students in a leadership capacity. This could be done within the middle school itself, but could also involve students going to local elementary schools on occasion, to lead activities dealing with peer pressure, etc... In addition, I would recommend group/ individual counseling situations with trained guidance counselors in addition to the small group meetings that are already in place. These meetings could be with select students who may need even more support from the school. In this way, students would be allowed to discuss emotional issues that they may carry with them from their homes. So often, students who are carrying baggage from family situations, cannot focus their attention on academic tasks until they figure out ways to cope with these emotional issues. This is probably one of the reasons why poor, urban schools have so much difficulty passing state tests and producing high achieving students.

I give Orange Middle School a lot of credit for all of the efforts being made to create a better place for students. I hope that they find a lot of success in these changes and that students benefit from these attempts.

Curriculum Mapping

Curriculum mapping is a process which involves collecting and recording curriculum related data that identifies elements of instruction such as core skills, content taught, delivery of instruction and assessments used in specific subject areas and grade levels. Once a curriculum map is developed, it is then used as a tool that helps teachers keep track of and plan for instruction. Curriculum maps are a good way to hold teachers accountable for skills that should be taught and what actually takes place in the classroom.

The district in which I currently teach does not use curriculum mapping. I really do like this idea, however, and I think that my district could benefit from something like this. I understand that there would be a tremendous amount of work involved if we were to implement this idea correctly but I think it would be worth it. The district is very large and often times I feel an inequality among schools from one side of town to the other. Class sizes are much smaller in schools on one side as in comparison to the other. It also appears that resources differ as well. Some schools are strongly encouraged to use items such as the adopted reading series, and others do not follow it at all. To have some type of standard guidelines which all were following as well as to be provided equally with the resources to do so would be very beneficial. In addition to this benefit, it would also provide some guidelines for special teachers such as resource room and ESL teachers. It would be a way to keep everyone on the same page. I think the reason that we do not use curriculum mapping is because of the size of the district and the many other initiatives that seem to come up. Curriculum mapping seems to be one that would be worth spending some time on.

Curriculum mapping would definitely help move along the process of changing curriculum. So often we are provided with curriculum guides that only specify the goals needed to be reached instead of going into detail about how to reach those goals. It seems as if something like curriculum mapping might be able to provide the specifics for changing curriculum as well as ensuring that all teachers are kept on task for common goals.

Reflection on On-Line Learning

I have to be honest, on-line courses are a challenge for me. I did not have to do any of this kind of thing until I began my program in supervision last fall. I hate to say it, but as an undergraduate we stood “on-line” ( I mean a real line...) just to register for classes. Not even that was computerized yet. As a graduate student we had progressed to the telephone line for class registration. So, needless to say, when I began my courses for a supervisor’s certificate I was slightly lost when it came to using Blackboard, Blogs, etc...

In addition to this, I am not using the most advanced technology at home. Again, I would not want to shout this from the rooftops, but I am still using dial up internet. As a result of all of this, I have had to jump through some hoops to complete parts of the on-line work. Now, as I look back on what I have learned I can say that I really learned a lot from the challenge of this. If you asked me this on Columbus Day when I spent my day off bouncing back and forth from the town library computers and bugging my family and friends about a movie I had to make, you may have received a different answer. I realize how important it is to keep up with technology. I would really enjoy being able to incorporate more of it into my classroom. This has given me a bit more confidence to do so.

For the future, it might be a good idea to do some quick mini training sessions in class on the skills that are needed for the on-line classes. This would be helpful to those students who are technically challenged, such as myself :)

My Lesson--Telling Time Grade 2

Stage One- Desired Results

Goals: Student will be able to tell time to the hour, 1/2 hour and minute.
CCCS: 4.2.D.1 Directly compare and order objects according to measurable attributes.
4.2.D.3 Select and use appropriate standard and nonstandard units of measure and standard measurement tools to solve real-life problems.

Understandings: Students will understand :
* that there are different types of clocks on which to tell time.
* that the hands on a clock have different functions.
* that there are different ways to name times on a clock.
* how to count on by minutes and 5 minutes to tell time.

Essential Questions:
* Why do people use measurement?
* What is order?
* What is sequence?
* Why do we need to tell time?
* What would be hard to do without this skill?

Stage Two: Assessment Evidence:
Performance Tasks:
* Work with a partner and mini clocks. Be able to tell appropriate times.
* Play a time matching game and be able to match digital and analog times.
* Indicate appropriate times on large, felt floor clock.

Other Evidence:
* math practice book pages
* chapter review
* chapter test

Stage Three: Learning Plan
*pre-assessment to find out previous knowledge on telling time.
*show specific times on mini-demonstrate how to tell different units of
time.
*play “Telling Time” Bingo.
*play a time matching game.
*make a Time Journal indicating correct times for doing certain tasks.
*use giant, felt floor clock as kinesthetic practice with telling time.

Understanding by Design Reflection

I like the basic idea of backward design and the reasoning as to why teachers should use it. Teaching with the end in mind and beginning instruction with this goal at the forefront is a good thought. I actually like creating lessons in this format. It gives me the chance to really reflect on the lesson and the reasons why I am teaching it in the first place. So often we teach something because it is in the book or because the standards say to and not because we are actually thinking about what will be important for young learners to know when they are adults.

The only criticism I have of UbD is that it is very time consuming and I cannot imagine creating lessons in this format for everything that I teach. I think that it is good practice to think about your end results and what you want to accomplish before you begin, however, I do not think that it is realistic to imagine every lesson being planned in this manner down to the smallest details. The only question that I have is if there are districts that actually expect teachers to follow UbD strictly when planning lessons?

Results Now

Mike Schmoker's ideas in his "Results Now" book left me feeling very discouraged. It sounds like his opinions and thoughts are based on research so I guess that some of it is true, but it still left me with many questions. I have spent most of my life in the classroom, first as a student and for many years now as a teacher. Thinking back to my own education I have to say that I found many good teachers along the way who inspired me in my learning. Of course there were those who were not so good but overall, I was always pretty happy with my teachers. As a teacher myself, I have also encountered many other educators who have been inspirational to me in my own career. I have watched veteran teachers persevere and stay passionate about their work and I have also watched new teachers spend countless numbers of hours working at establishing themselves, all for the benefit of students. As with anything, there are always those who do fall into many of Schmoker's categories, however I would say that the majority do not.

I became a teacher because of a love for children, the desire to make a difference and to do something meaningful with my career. I believe those reasons have been the motivating factors for most who enter this profession. It makes me sad to think that we are viewed as slackers who are simply looking for an easy way out. I understand the importance of collaboration with others and I see all of the benfits of working as a team. But, I know for a fact that even if I was not working alongside my grade level partners, it would be my own conscience that would keep me on task in my classroom. The majority of the teachers I work with have this type of dedication as well. So from my own personal perspective, the excerpt from Schmoker's book is offensive. However, as I stated earlier, he seems to have some valid research in the article so I guess that some of it must be true. This is the type of stuff that gives teachers a bad name.

Did You Know?

I have very mixed emotions after viewing this video a number of times. I guess that I always have heard that countries such as China were very far ahead of the United States, especially in the areas of technology and math. Some of the statistics on the video, however, were quite disturbing to me. It is amazing how quickly our society and the values of our society are changing. It seems now that success in our world is based on what is fastest and most efficient. Our world is always moving toward how to get the most done with the least. I understand that it is important to continue to move ahead with the times and to be open to whatever this means in terms of technology and education but I have to admit, I feel that our values are being lost somewhere.

The statistics on this video seem so one sided to me. The focus is so heavily placed on technology and how this is the way of the future, that I am afraid that students are no longer going to see the value in other areas of learning. We have discussed before in this class how it is so difficult to get boys to become interested in literacy activities. It is easy to see why, however, when we look at what they are used to getting excited about. Video games and other activities related to technology seem to be where many of our young people place their focus, but especially young boys. Going up against this as an educator is a difficult challenge.

As I stated before, this is not to say that I do not see the value in moving forward in the area of technology with our schools. Obviously, this is where society is going. It is hard, however, for teachers who have been in the profession for quite a while to keep up with the ever changing pace. As the video stated, we are currently preparing students for jobs that do not currently exist and to face problems that we do not even know are problems yet. This is overwhelming to me, considering that my classroom just became connected to the internet 2 years ago and I have the use of one computer for a class of 25. How am I supposed to incorporate enough of what it appears students need when I do not have the capabilites to do so? In addition to this, I sometimes feel very inadequate when it comes to technology because I do not have enough training in this area. What I have learned, I have taught myself through trial and error or have had to find out from others. How then am I supposed to adequately prepare my students for this ever changing world?

If this is the direction in which we need to move as a country than someone of those who makes the decisions needs to fund some of what needs to be done in order for schools to have the technological equipment they need and for teachers to have the training required. Maybe if some of the decision makers in our own country would actually consult with teachers for some of what needs to be done, we would than all "know a bit more."

"Reading Don't Fix No Chevy's"

This article discusses the manner in which boys learn, what they are
passionate about and how activities that promote literacy do not rank
high in this area. Mihaly Csikszenmihalyi is the psychologist who
discusses the idea of "flow", or being totally involved in an activity
so much so that time passes by without notice. Reading and literacy
activities are not noted asactivities which promote "flow" in boys according to this article.

I tend to agree with this idea. I do believe that there is a difference
in the learning styles of boys and girls. However, I am not sure if I
want to make the generalization that all boys require this heightened
sense of involvement that is outside of literacy activities in order to
experience flow.

In my own teaching, I have encountered boys
who enjoy reading for pleasure and are actually happiest with their
nose in a book. At the same time, I have encountered girls who need a
lot more encouragement in the area of reading and find more enjoyment
in other areas. This is not to say that I disagree with the premise of
this article, which is that more frequently than not, boys need to be
encouraged with a variety of means in order to become students who
enjoy reading. Boys and girls are inherently different, so it is no
surprise that learning styles differ between the sexes. I guess that it
is the job of the teacher to figure out how to bring reading and
literacy activities to life for those students who would do not prefer
this type of thing.

180 Days

This idea was very interesting to think about. It is also a major
complaint that most teachers seem to have. It is often said there is
just not enough time in the day to cover all of the material that needs
to be taught as well as dealing with scheduling conflicts and students
coming and going in and out of the room all day for pull out programs.
It is probably true that we should subtract a large portion of our
teaching time for these occurrences.

The problem is that I am not sure if it would be possible to do away with all of this. I think that this situation will always present itself as a complaint for
teachers. Maybe we need to be sure that some of what takes us away from
instructional time is still an educational experience for our students.
For example, making an effort to be sure that assembly programs are
worthwhile and supportive of our curriculum is a very good idea. It is
frustrating but some things are out of our control. If the district is
supportive of birthday parties in the room, then it is difficult for
the classroom teacher to make this change alone. I wonder what people
in the business world would do if they were told that their employees
should cease working for extended periods of time each day to pass out
cupcakes and juice boxes to the entire office? I don't think this would
go over well. Our profession is very different than theirs in that we have the lives of children in our hands and some of these things do brighten the day of a child. The problem is that we as teachers must always be aware of our
first responsibility, which is to educate children. Many times, especially in the primary grades, we are viewed similarly to cruise directors. I am not sure of what the answer is to this, but I agree that this is a problem.

The Saber Tooth Curriculum

This little story was very interesting. The way that our own education
system in the US was compared to that of the cavemen learning how to
survive was very creative. I especially liked the way that the
character of New-Fist was described as a "doer and a thinker." Aren't
these also qualities that teachers who strive to make an impact should
hope to have?

In the beginning of the story it is New-Fist who figures out what it is that children need to learn in order to achieve good, safe living. As the story progresses, the changes in society negate New-Fist's thoughts and new and improved methods of survival need to be implemented. This is also true of our changing world and what
young people need to learn now in order to become productive citizens
as compared to long ago.

I especially liked the end of the story when the wise-old men stated "...that the essence of true education is timelessness." I think that this means that whether we are discussing the past, present or the future, what is timeless in education is
encouraging students to be the "thinkers and doers" who can adapt and have the motivation to be problem solvers at any point in time.

change response

Human nature appears to be resistant to change. Overall we like to stick with what we know and are comfortable with. It is difficult to step out of one's comfort zone in order to take a risk and make changes. This is true in the field of education as well. Teachers seem to be big offenders of sticking to what they know as tried and true. In order for change to take place, one needs to make a conscious effort knowing that the change may be beneficial.

I agree with the idea that in order for change to take place a moral purpose needs to be seen. If I know, as a teacher, that I am readjusting or changing to benefit my students, I am more open to whatever the change may be. According to Hunzicker(2004) permanently changing teacher behaviors is most likely to be successful when instructional leaders focus their efforts not on action but on changing teachers' beliefs. It appears that this is the most important element of instituting change. When people believe that change is worth the effort that may be needed, it happens more freely. Maybe the reason why change in American education happens so slowly is because not enough time is devoted to any one idea to truly allow it to change the tried and true beliefs of teachers. There are so many different ideas that seem to come and go in the American education system that I think those who are experienced teachers stick to what they know to work. In order for change to take place faster, maybe we need to consider focusing in on one area of reform and do it thoroughly.

Hunzicker, Jana. (2004).The Beliefs Behavior Connection: Leading Teachers Toward Change. Principal. 84(2).

Marc Prensky's Challenge

Marc Prensky's challenge, although interesting, is totally
idealistic and would be almost impossible to accomplish. As educators,
it is enough of a challenge to cover one year's worth of curriculum in
that year as we prepare for state testing, manage the different
abilities in our classroom and also provide the emotional support to
our students who sometimes need so much.

To say that we should use such incentives as i-pod programming and
meetings with cell phone makers as reason for students to do well in
school is utterly ridiculous. What about those students who do not
have access to some of these luxuries? Isn't this simply making it
worse for them? One should also consider that there may be individuals
who have no interest in such areas as nanotechnology and bioethics. I
wonder what motivated Mr.Prensky to do his best in school? Could it
have been as simple as an inspirational teacher or a parent who made
academics a priority? Possibly he should reflect on his own schooling
to discover what it is that really motivates students to learn.