Shake Up Semester Review

It's that time of year when most classrooms move into review mode, and I've seen or heard about some interesting approaches, including a review activity that merges Old Maid with prepositional phrases. If you are looking for a few ways to approach review in a new way, check out these ideas that I stole from my friend Chris.

Quiz-Quiz-Trade (No technology)
Write review questions & answers on notecards. Each student gets one notecard. Students get up, mingle, ask each other the quiz question, then trade their cards. They mix again, ask, trade...Continue until most students have asked and answered most questions. *BONUS: If the students write the review questions, they get double review in some ways AND have to process the information at a deeper level!

Partner Problems (No technology)Split a worksheet into 2 columns. (Typically this ends up being odds vs evens). Each pair of students gets one worksheet and one writing utensil. Fold the worksheet in half so only one set of questions shows. Partner A reads question 1 and explains the answer; Partner B agrees/disagrees and explains why; then, Partner A writes down the answer/work. Partner B takes the paper and pencil, flips the page and does the same with #2. Partners continue doing one problem at a time on their half of the paper, checking with the other student, and then writing down the answer until the entire worksheet is complete.

6 Slide Challenge (Technology)
Assign students different specific topics for review. Have them create a 6 slide Google presentation about their topic, and time each slide to last only 10 seconds. Students will present their slides to the class, but only have 60 seconds to explain the concept. (ex: literary terms, rhetorical devices, grammar concepts, etc.)

Socrative Space Race (Technology)
Lastly...Socrative, which I know many of you already use in some form.  Set up Space Race questions on Socrative.com. Students will login to your “room” that you set up, and compete to get their spaceship to the end of the track first. It’s like the carnival game where you shoot water in the clown’s mouth to move the thing up the pole… except that getting the correct answers is the water that moves your space ship. The first student or team that hits the end wins - or the team that gets the farthest, as you can’t get to the end unless all answers are correct.

Starting the New Semester...

It feels so strange to me that today officially marks the end of first semester and that we will all be off and running with second semester starting Monday. This new calendar is messing with my semester transition schema! As you look ahead to Monday and the start of the new semester, here are a few transition pieces for your perusal.


In 5 Tips for a Successful Second Semester, a teacher reflects upon a challenge he received after completing his first year of teaching: "How do you plan to improve next semester?" He shares five tips that helped him respond to that challenge.

Looking for a new way to set or review classroom expectations? Hang poster paper on the walls, each with a question important to how the classroom functions. (Examples: What does _____ look like? What rules help a classroom function more effectively?) At the start of the semester, arm students with sticky notes and have them add their responses to the poster paper. (This activity could easily be tweaked to fit other pieces throughout the semester, too! And, adding movement to the class period can positively impact student engagement and learning.)

In 7 Mid-School Year Reminders on Finishing Strong, an administrator shares (you guessed it!) seven helpful reminders for getting the second semester off to a better start and finishing the year well.

Chunk-Challenge-Chew-Chat-Check

You may be familiar with the concept of chunk-and-chew, where you break the content into chunks and allow the students time to chew (ie. process) the information.

It is time to take the chunking and chewing to the next level.

ASCD posted a Road Tested article​ that takes the concept further by adding a challenge, a chance to chat, and a quick check (formative assessment!). By expanding the traditional chunk-and-chew, teachers can walk away with a better understanding of the student learning going on (or not going on) in the classroom, and students can become more involved and engaged in the learning process. That's a win-win!

Turn It In Discussion Board

If you are a high school English teacher in our district, you are most likely already making good use of Turn It In and its many features, but did you hear about the newest feature?

Turn It In now offers an online discussion board!

I had the opportunity to view it in action this week with freshmen; I get to see it with juniors next week...and I am very excited about this new feature!

Why am I excited and using exclamation points? Don't we already have access to online discussions through Google Classroom?

Google Classroom does allow students to have discussions via questions the teacher posts to the stream. Turn It In takes it a few steps beyond the basics, however. Here's what you can do in Turn It In's discussion feature:

• Teachers post questions using a screen similar to posting an assignment. There is a spot for the question, a spot for additional instructions, and a due date.
• Teachers can have multiple questions posted at once, and they are easily viewed on the Discussion page.
• Teachers can chose to moderate posts or not.
• As students post responses and reply to posts, Turn It In visually tracks the thread and labels each response.
• 1 (or another single number) means the post is the beginning of a thread.
• 1.1, 1.2, etc means the posts are responses to the original post labeled 1.
• 1.1.1, 1.1.2, etc means the posts are responses to responses to the original post labeled 1.
• (I'm not sure how far down the path it goes, but I did see a 1.1.1.1 yesterday!)
• Teachers can manipulate how they view the posts. They can view the posts threaded (meaning the posts read like a conversation, in the order they were posted) or they can view the posts by student.
• When a teacher sorts the posts by student, the teacher can see both original posts and replies to classmates posts. The student's every contribution shows up. (In contrast, Google only shows a student's original post.)
• Students can post questions if the teacher allows. This could add an interesting dynamic to the conversation.

Thinking of giving it a go in your room? Please let me know how it goes!

John Green CrashCourse YouTube Videos

John Green, popular YA author of The Fault in Our Stars and Looking for Alaska, has a secret YouTube vlogging persona on the Crash Course YouTube channel!

Did you find him? I hope so because it really wasn't that secret...perhaps just relatively unknown, at least around here. (He has over 3.5 million followers!)

If you took a moment to visit his YouTube channel, you saw a sampling of Crash Course's almost 450 educational videos. Started by John and his brother Hank, the Crash Course channel offers free (and might I add, entertaining) 10-15 minute videos covering all sorts of content. Currently, 24 of those videos are specifically connected to commonly taught high school literature. The literature playlist starts with:

And then it moves on to:
Of Pentameter & Bear Baiting - R&J Part 1
Love or Lust? - R&J Part 2
Like Pale Gold - The Great Gatsby Part 1
Was Gatsby Great - The Great Gatsby Part 2
Language, Voice, and Holden Caulfield - The Catcher in the Rye Part 1
Holden, JD, and the Red Cap - The Catcher in the Rye Part 2
Before I Got My Eye Put Out - The Poetry of Emily Dickinson
A Long and Difficult Journey, or The Odyssey
Fate, Family, and Oedipus Rex
Ghosts, Murder, and More Murder - Hamlet Part 1
Ophelia, Gertrude, and Regicide - Hamlet Part 2
Don't Reanimate Corpses! - Frankenstein Part 1
Frankenstein Part 2
Reader, it's Jane Eyre
If One Finger Brought Oil - Things Fall Apart Part 1
Things Fall Apart Part 2
To Kill a Mockingbird Part 1
Race, Class, and Gender in To Kill a Mockingbird Part 2
Aliens, Time Travel, and Dresden - Slaughterhouse Five Part 1
PTSD and Alien Abduction - Slaughterhouse Five Part 2
Slavery, Ghosts, and Beloved
Langston Hughes & the Harlem Renaissance
The Poetry of Sylvia Plath

Beyond the literature playlist, however, are many other videos that could be connected to the literature in our classrooms. For example, the US History Playlist contains 48 videos that could help set the stage for texts studied in American Lit. There are also Psychology and World History Playlists that could connect. View all of the Crash Course playlists here.

While these videos were not originally intended for the classroom, the Green brothers are very encouraging of teachers using the videos. I could see the videos working in many classrooms, or as part of a Blendspace activity, or as an informational text/video to be analyzed, or...

Bringing Mirrors and Windows into the Classroom

The following excerpts come from "Mirrors, Windows, and Sliding Glass Doors" by Rudine Sims Bishop, and were referenced in our Curriculum Writing Meeting as we discussed diversifying the literature options in our curriculum.

“Books are sometimes windows, offering views of worlds that may be real or imagined, familiar or strange...When lighting conditions are just right, however, a window can also be a mirror. Literature transforms human experience and reflects it back to us, and in that reflection we can see our own lives and experiences as part of the larger human experience. Reading, then, becomes a means of self-affirmation, and readers often seek their mirrors in books...

When children cannot find themselves reflected in the books they read, or when the images they see are distorted, negative, or laughable, they learn a powerful lesson about how they are devalued in the society of which they are a part. Our classrooms need to be places where all the children from all the cultures that make up the salad bowl of American society can find their mirrors...

Children from dominant social groups have always found their mirrors in books, but they, too, have suffered from the lack of availability of books about others. They need the books as windows onto reality, not just on imaginary worlds. They need books that will help them understand the multicultural nature of the world they live in, and their place as a member of just one group, as well as their connections to all other humans."

Think on it.

Diversifying the Literature in our Curriculum - Starting the Conversation

Thank you to the Curriculum Writing Teams for the thoughts, ideas, questions, and concerns expressed last night at our curriculum writing meeting! For those of you not on a CWT this round, we started a conversation about diversifying the literature options in our curriculum. Maybe it would be better described as barely started, as it is a rather lengthy conversation to have!

Please remember that this conversation is NOT a cry to throw out all of the classic literature. It is, rather, a conversation to help us make choices regarding literature options that will best benefit student learning.

The "Challenge Yourself" image above came from the website The Educators' Spin on It, and one of their posts includes a tip about how to diversify the literature in your classroom with classics in mind:

"Do you have any books featuring diverse characters that are not primarily about race or prejudice? Consider your classic books, both fiction and nonfiction. Do any contain hurtful racial or ethnic stereotypes, or images? If so, how will you address those stereotypes with students? Have you included another book that provides a more accurate depiction of the same culture?"

When we look at the texts we want to teach, keep, or add as options, we need to be aware of the stereotypes involved. One small change we can make is to look at supplemental materials to pair with classics and Shakespearean plays. There are many ways to bring in the missing voices through background-building informational texts (like those found at KidsInBirmingham1963, for example) or a version of Romeo and Juliet from another culture.

We are all coming to this conversation from our individualized backgrounds, so the road ahead may not be an easy one. It is, however, an important journey as we look at what is best for our student population. Our students who are use to finding mirrors in literature need windows just as much as our students who are use to finding windows in literature need mirrors.

I'm looking forward to continuing this conversation as we revise our curriculum options!

FREE Google Education On Air Online Conference

This spring, Google is hosting a free two-day online conference called Education On Air. Join other educators from around the world, and participate in online Keynotes, panel discussions, and mini-sessions. It appears to be the sort of thing that you can jump in and out as your schedule allows, so if you are unsure of committing, register just in case! Remember, it is FREE!

Friday, May 8: Leading for the Future (9 am - 2 pm CST)

The Friday online Keynote and panel sessions are marketed towards those in leadership positions (anywhere from admin to a team leader to IT), but the posted topics sound applicable to classroom teachers as well. The full schedule will be released in April, but here are a few of the currently posted sessions:

*Creating Student Ownership

*Fostering Innovation in Schools

*Making Technology Work for Learning

*Communicating Change

Saturday, May 9: Shaping the Classroom Today

The Saturday online sessions are meant to be convenient and applicable to the classroom teacher. As Google puts it, "run by educators for educators, designed to be immediately useful to you." Sessions range from 15-45 minutes, and they are led by Google Certified Teachers, trainers, and general Googlers. Again, the full schedule is set to be released in April, but here are the posted teaser sessions:

*Supporting Literacy in Early Learners

*Fostering Collaboration with Google Docs

*Empowering Digital Citizens

Register Here!

The Power of Storytelling

"While facts and figures engage a small area of the brain, stories engage multiple brain regions that work together to build colorful, rich three-dimensional images and emotional responses. As we read stories, we quickly begin to feel as if what’s happening out there is actually happening in here. Each sensory image, sound, texture, color, sensation and emotion provides a hook for our brain as the story draws us in and maintains our attention effortlessly.

This is the power of a great story" (Melcrum).

Over the past 12 years, 99,649 people have shared their stories through 57,138 interviews recorded in the form of conversations by StoryCorps. These stories are broadcast via NPR's Morning Edition and StoryCorps' website, but their real focus is on preserving an oral history of a diverse representation of Americans as each conversation is preserved at the American Folklife Center at the Library of Congress.

These oral stories, however, can be more than just a way to preserve our American history and culture. Stories are one of the most powerful ways for us to learn. About people. About topics. About ourselves. They are also a way for us to learn about listening.

Through StoryCorps' website, we have access to hundreds of those stories to use in our classrooms. The topics range from family to history, romance to struggle to memory loss. Brain research tells us that the language of story telling helps information stick in the brain, specifically because it often connects information to emotion. (On the contrary, straight informational language tends to slip more easily from our brains.)

So why aren't we using more storytelling in our classrooms?

One way we can incorporate more stories into our classrooms is through sites like StoryCorps; those stories, however, are limited in topics and scope as there are only a finite amount available. Thankfully, StoryCorps recently launched a new website called StoryCorps.me, as well as Android and Apple apps. Their purpose? To provide "a way for individuals to connect in a meaningful way with those close to them, and to gain insight into the lives of others." What a fantastic way for students to tell their stories or make meaning of content through connections with their stories or the stories of those they know.

Once a student has access to the app, all they need to do is follow these steps:

1. Choose someone to interview
2. Select questions to ask (StoryCorps.me provides ideas)
3. Find a quiet place to record using the app
4. Record (and listen!)
5. Share the interview online via StoryCorps.me 

I can think of so many places this could work in the English classroom! Research topics could come to life. Students could explore themes from literature alive and well in the world around them. And through it all, they would be building dendrites while making all of those connections...and not even realizing it!

If you'd like to do some brainstorming on ways to use this in your classroom, please let me know! I'd love to toss around some ideas. And, if you can already see where you might use something like this, I'd love to either see it in action or hear about your results!

Happy storytelling!

Webb Leveling Questions

A colleague recently shared this document from the SD Department of Education website. The first two pages list the verbs that tend to be paired with each level and explore how to plan lessons that cover multiple levels. What I really like is the second half of the document. Pages three and four provide not only a more in-depth list of descriptors for each level, but also questions that correspond with each level. This is a great resource for thinking about what level of questions are being asked during the class period; it could also be helpful when writing a test to make sure questions are asking for higher level thinking.

Calling Mulligan

Oops! Calling Mulligan is actually nothing like calling the Culligan man.

As someone who is not a golfer, I did not fully understand the title of this article until I read the piece (and then looked up the origins of the term). In ASCD's "Education Update" newsletter, the last page features a "Road Tested" technique or strategy from an educator. February's road tested idea focuses on two discussion/questioning techniques as explained by Lisa Arter in "Calling Mulligan! Two Rules for Dynamic Discourse."

In this quick read, Arter, a former middle school teacher and current college assistant professor, explains her version of academically "calling Mulligan" and the 5 Rs of Academic Discourse that she utilizes within some of her large group discussions. In short, calling Mulligan allows students to retract statements that come out wrongly or are misinterpreted, while the 5 Rs (respond, repeat, restate, rebut, reinforce) help encourage students to think more critically about their classmates' responses. If you'd like to hear more about these two ideas in action, take a few minutes to read her article.

Research Paper Blendspace

Last spring, I put together this Research Project Blendspace for English IB students who needed to work more independently for various reasons. It is geared more towards the English I level in terms of introducing some of the concepts, but there may be pieces that can be spliced out for other classrooms, depending upon student needs.

If you'd like to use the Blendspace in its entirety, there is an accompanying Google document that provides students with places to record their learning, think critically about the content, and apply the information to their specific research topic.

Happy Blending!

Draw Names

Yes, this is technically a website created to simplify the secret Santa name-drawing process. I couldn't help but wonder, however, if there were some creative ways to use this in the classroom. I've only been able to come up with two so far. I'm sure there are many other ideas out there, though! If you have other ideas for classroom application, please add them in the comments. My creativity thanks you in advance!

*Randomize the peer editing process for either paper/pencil or Google Doc versions (Keep in mind that this would not partner students. It would randomly assign a reader to each paper.)

*Randomize peer feedback for presentations and speeches

Immerse Yourself

Dave Burgess, author of Teach Like a Pirate, writes that the I in PIRATE stands for immersion, and here's a snippet of what he has to say regarding it:

"If you are out on the pool deck and someone asks you to focus on the swimming pool, what does that mean? Would you go stand at the side and stare at it? Would you climb into the lifeguard tower and watch from above? Focus is, after all, supposed to be a powerful and effective strategy. Now compare the concept of focus with the next scenario that defines immersion. You're on the pool deck and someone tells you to immerse yourself in the swimming pool What would this look like? What is implied when someone asks you to immerse yourself in a pool? You're wet! You're in the water! You're either swimming or you're drowning. It's a qualitatively different experience.

I can walk by the open door of a classroom and tell you after a couple of minutes whether the teacher is a lifeguard or a swimmer. A lifeguard sits above the action and supervises the pool deck. Although he or she is focused, there is a distinct sense of separateness both physically and mentally. In contrast, a swimmer is out participating and an integral part of the action" (2012, pp. 14-15).

Burgess goes on to explain that there are times when both lifeguard and swimmer roles are practical in the classroom, however, he is quick to contend that it is vital for teachers to take on the swimmer role when dealing with new(er) material. The analogy he uses compares the role of a swim instructor with that of a swim coach. The most effective swim instructors for those learning to swim are in the water and actively engaged with the learner, modeling and even manipulating the learner's movements in order to help the learner grasp the concept of swimming. A swim coach, in contrast, takes on more of the lifeguard role with developed swimmers, observing and instructing verbally from the pool deck.

How often do you find yourself in the role of a lifeguard in your classroom? How about in the role of a swimmer?

Thinking about your average day, which role would likely be most effective in helping your students learn?

What do you need to do to get yourself into the water on the days when your students are approaching newer material? What do you need to do to get yourself out of the water once students are swimming on their own?

Burgess, D. (2012). Immersion. In Teach like a pirate: Increase student engagement, boost your creativity, and transform your life as an educator (pp. 13-18). San Diego, CA: Dave Burgess Consulting.

Accountable Talk Stems

Elizabeth Wiggs (@e_wiggy) shared this conversation bubble document via Twitter recently. It is intended to help students join in the conversation. She also shared her Google Document here so that others wouldn't have to recreate the wheel. (It is view only, so you will need to make a copy of it and save it to your Google Drive if you wish to manipulate it.)