Journal It… Start a Journal NOW!

For many years, I have found that writing has been the comfort in many phases of my life. As a teenager, I used it as a venting tool, the book that held all my secrets. It was the one that knew who I was crushing on and who I kissed for the first time. It was the one that knew my deepest thoughts and never judged me.

Today, I know that journaling has done so much more for me than just become a venting tool, or book of secrets. My journals (yes– journals, as in plural) have helped me organize my thoughts, goals, dreams, desires, and even my decisions. There is something about writing, it makes you stop and reconsider. Writing isn’t like talking, you really have to think about what you are going to write. When you don’t really think, then you re-read what you wrote and find yourself reflecting on it anyway. Truly, this is the main reason I became an English teacher. If there is at least one thing I can pass on to my students it will be the understanding of the power writing can have in our lives.

So, why journaling?

There are many reasons and benefits. Check out some of the health benefits of keeping a journal here.

The other day I was talking to my sister about my writing, and she asked me that infamous question, “But, what do you write?” You don’t have to be a writer to keep a journal, it doesn’t have to be some deep, poetic, memoir of your life.

You can write anything from lists, goals, quotes, favorite scriptures, funny thoughts, ideas, and the topics can go on.

Personally, my current journal holds prayers, a list of books (the goal is to finish  before the end of the year), uplifting scriptures, life daily lessons, and advise for my kiddos. Let’s face it, we don’t write just for ourselves. I truly believe that every writer composes with the hopes that someday one person may read their writings, it doesn’t matter when it happens. Thus, I write for my grown children because I’d like to believe that if I die, they will be curious enough to read what I wrote.

The Reality of Teaching Arguments

After reading the book Teaching Argument Writing by George Hillcocks, Jr. I have compiled certain information he provides (along with my own personal comments) which I think can be helpful in creating meaningful argument writing lessons for our students in Secondary English education.

1. If a student dares to ask the daunting question, “Why do we need to learn this?” there may be a huge problem in connections. We use arguments in some shape or form daily. We may not always participate in it as we instruct it, but it is there, “In science, in policy making, in courtrooms, and so forth” (xv).
2. Yes, pictures are considered text, and evidence can be drawn from an image.
3. In conducting arguments of policy, students should be engaged in some type of original research with students’ real concerns, and a real investigation. If this isn’t happening, students don’t learn to interpret data for themselves and thus never actually participate in inquiry driven arguments. They should be able to question research itself (68-69).
4. Write collaboratively with your students as part of a whole class discussion. It helps especially when, “Students are learning a genre that is relatively new to them” (96). While it may seem that these strategies take up too much time, take it from me, they are worth it in the end. Students need to be able to see it with you and know that you’ll work through the writing alongside with them.
5. Teach your students what sound arguments look like and provide criterion for certain writing topics so that students know how to define their evidence or reasoning (109).
6. “Definitions clearly provide the warrants and their backing for arguments […] Criteria developed in extended definitions are the warrants for arguments in nearly all fields of endeavor– medicine, law, literary criticism, philosophy. Ignoring definition is a serious mistake in teaching argument” (112). And again I state, arguments are used in the real world in many ways.
7. Want another example of how we use argument everyday? It is when we defend a set of criteria we use in making various decisions such as voting, purchases, granting admission to college, and granting scholarships (114).
8. They say instead of giving a man a fish, you should teach him how to fish. This saying is true in every aspect of teaching and the saying was brought back into my mind as I read chapter seven of this book when it regards the teaching of interpretation of literary works. We do not realize that it takes more than just teaching background knowledge of the piece, it takes teaching students how to look for clues within the text to make those inferences (178-79).
9. Overall, it appears that I thought the teaching of argument very different than what Mr. Hillcocks proposes it to be. So, I encourage every teacher that has not read this book, to do so, or at least research some of the points I’ve made.

Whodunit?: Engaging Students with Visuals

This post is inspired by the first four chapters of

Teaching Argument Writing by George Hillcocks, Jr.

The picture above demonstrates one activity that can be used in multiple ways to teach argument writing. As most of you know, I love the idea of making anything look good because I believe in it as part of engaging students. Thus, in the first chapter Hillcocks brings forth the idea of using forensic problems to teach arguments of fact. He explains how he used the “Slip or Trip” scenario to have students “solve” the crime scene using general rules (warrants) and evidence from the text to prove their claims.  Well, this was one activity I got to try with my own students.

Above you’ll note a case file with a case name “Slip or Trip” and the TOP SECRET label on top. The “Incident Report” was my version of a small scenario Hillcocks provides to go along with the image. I placed it in a report form to make it appear more like official detective business. Then I took that report, along with the image, and an evidence collection chart and placed it inside the file. I advised students they would be detectives for a day. I was their chief and they would need to use an Evidence Collection T-chart I provided with a similar template to the one pictured above. In the end, they were required to write a “Police Report” to their Chief (me), arguing their claim, and providing evidence with concrete reasoning.

Hillcock’s Tip:

Demonstrate how to do the task in a whole-class discussion before assigning small-group work on similar tasks (65).

Personally, this was one lesson I could honestly say 100% of the students engaged in. Thus, it made this activity a major highlight in the reading of this book (and this is only the beginning).

 

Use Infographics: Boot the Regular Slideshow

Interestingly enough, I have been working on an infographic to present to students the differences between Persuasive and Argumentative writing. As with any lesson, even the topics we may think students to consider boring can become very exciting when taught in a fun perspective. I think an infographic can do just that. It can be colorful and present information in various ways.

Piktochart is very user-friendly, it has ready-to-use templates in the case that you can’t get your creative juices flowing. But, if you feel up to it, then be ready to use the many selections available for backgrounds, graphics, and fonts.

WARNING: Piktochart can become addicting and take you hours to complete with all the amazing selections it has.

Click on the image or insert the link below to check out the infographic for Persuasive and Argumentative Writing.

https://magic.piktochart.com/output/8601128-persuasive-vs-argumentative

As another treat, here is another example I created, to use Piktochart to create a newsletter style communication to students and parents in your future classroom.

https://magic.piktochart.com/output/5167217-family-communication

Place your comments or ideas below!!!

#anchorcharts

Yes, cute classroom posters are great for decorating purposes and have great information on them (or at least I hope that’s what you have). But, let’s get serious, you are not going to find a poster that has the exact things that you need in your classroom and they can get expensive…

Bring out the anchor charts!

The first time I heard the term anchor charts, I thought it was some type of target my students needed to meet, so if you’ve never heard of the term, just remember me. I have learned these are amazing tools to helps students in your classroom. They can be made for year-round function or for units covered. Anchor charts can be used for recording content, strategies, processes or procedures, and guidelines. I’ll provide you with some examples so you can see what these look like.

THINK: Do you have a particular way you have students setup their bell-work? Or notebooks?

My recommendation is to keep an anchor chart mimicking exactly what you are expecting your students’ pages to look like. It is a perfect way to give the students something visual to refer to within the classroom.

Check out Mrs. Munich-Hall’s Bell-Work and Daily Exit Reflection anchor chart for her students’ notebook. Note, on the Daily Exit Reflections (DER) she uses letter coding, the codes (A, B, C, D, E) represent different sentence stems to help students reflect on the day’s lesson. For example, one stem is, “After today’s lesson I can now explain…” There are others for students to reflect on things they want to learn or have learned and in the end the students provide a summary of their learning. This is just to show how anchor charts can help students stay organized and keep you (teachers) from having to constantly repeat your expectations.

Mrs. Munich-Hall’s Bell-work and Daily Exit Reflections (Cornell Notes Style)

The best part about these? You don’t have to spend a lot of money (if any) to make them, they are personalized for your classroom and you can involve your students in the creating process.

The following anchor chart I made for an argumentative writing lesson focused on planning and writing body paragraphs. I wanted students to see how they could arrange their sentences and evidence within the paragraph and what the flow would look like. The chart also provides a simple reference to key terms they needed to understand in order to complete the writing.

Mrs. Diaz’s Argumentative Body Paragraph Anchor Chart

The possibilities are practically endless, check out some other examples of anchor charts below.

Now, it’s your turn! I challenge you to take a picture of an anchor chart or maybe find one you like and post a comment with your picture. Or just leave a comment with an idea for one in your future classroom.

Using Technology to Amplify Instruction

Today’s classroom is simply not as functional without the use of technology. In a small adventure through a Tech Trek I have come across some very important things to note on using technology in the classroom. Follow me…

First Stop!

When you think about technology…Are you a native, visitor, or resident? How do you live your tech life?
I think I just recently got my residency in technology. Personally, if it can get it done faster and effectively I am going to use it. I am the gal that spends a large amount of time researching ideas and inspiration from the web. It is one of the reasons I love Pinterest. Pinterest provides an easy way for me to research ideas, look at images for inspirations, get how-to’s, and just learn! I also love blogging, although I don’t tend to keep up with it as well as I should, it is one tool I would definitely use in the classroom, especially for parent and student to teacher communication.

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Next, Check Out…

Tech Tools to Enhance Student Learning

• Screen-Cast-O-Matic: Record Screen Shots
  • Don’t want to have to sit there and explain the same process of logging into a school or source website for 7 class periods?
    This will be your best friend. It is a great tool to create mini-lessons or instructions on how to log-into sites or to model for students how to use a site you’ve provided them with. If you have a class blog, class YouTube channel, or Edmodo, this is a great way to upload these instructions for students to follow at home. But, don’t just limit it for students, you can do the same with parents. This is especially great for those parents that may not be as tech-savvy.
  • http://www.screencast-o-matic.com/
• Slideshare: Post Your Presentations
  • A student was absent? You need an extended learning opportunity? Want to let parents know what students saw in the classroom?
    I would use this to upload all my important class note presentations so students can have access to it if they miss class or didn’t have time to finish the notes in class. I would also use it to provide support with mini lessons. Some these mini-lessons can be based on reviews your student’s need from previous grades (things that you just can’t take time out to cover in class).
  • http://www.slideshare.net
• VoiceThread: Respond to Images & Documents
  • Students love the opportunity to use technology in the classroom, even if it requires them to do something educational.
    I’d love to use this to start an online conversation piece on a art literary representation. Students can discuss their connections or interpretations of the art piece in connection to a text. As the teacher you can always start off the conversation.
  • http://voicethread.com/?#q.b409.i848804
• Kahoot!
  • Don’t know what to do with those cell phones? Use them as trigger buttons!
    Kahoot is one of my favorite tools because it provides a little bit of everything to check for student understanding and engage them. It is a game-like tool to create questions or surveys in order to check for understanding. Students love it because it gives them a reason to use their phone but it is also great for teachers because you can ask questions that include multimedia options (video, recording, images). It also provides a competitive component for those students that thrive on this aspect. But, most importantly, it gives you the data to assess students.
  • http://www.getkahoot.com

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Travel outside your PLC…or take them with you!

Professional Learning Networks (PLN)

Ask yourself, how do you keep learning about teaching after you leave school? What is your insight about virtual professional learning? What do you notice about virtual professional development?

Ok, so as for me, I think I’ve answered some of these already. My “go-to” application for learning after teaching is Pinterest. I have a designated Pinterest board titled “Pedagogy” and it is where I pin any resources I find for my future use. As mentioned before I love blogs, but not only for my own personal writing but also for professional learning. There are many teachers and professionals in the field that have blogs to inform teachers on the latest trends or just ideas for lessons. What I didn’t think about was the opportunity to use social networking sites as a professional learning tool or as a PLN.

I think virtual professional development is invaluable because not only can you collaborate with teachers in your own school community but it can be extended past your state and even globally. If I have the opportunity to create or join a PLN my choice would definitely be tied to social media. I think it is the quickest tool to get my attention and others. Facebook groups or even Twitter are right there in your phone just one notification and a new idea has emerged.

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Students? Of course! Bring them along…

Authentic Tasks for Students

It is important for you as a teacher to incorporate technology in the classroom. But, it is more than just using a word processor for final drafting. Students need authentic purposes for using technology in the academic environment. As I mentioned before, students love any moment they can get their hands on any piece of electronic device. They are excited to partake in and with the things they are most familiar with.

Of course, those are just some of the reasons and benefits of integrating technology with the tasks your students complete. In this digitally driven society, students need to be exposed to multiple ways of communications and practices using the devices they would normally use for leisure. Most students today can easily tell you how to search something on Google, how to check your Facebook, Twitter, or Snapchat, but they wouldn’t be able to show you how to use these tools academically. Teachers have the opportunity to provide different purposes for these sites and introduce new ones that will help students expand their digital literacies. I personally love the idea of using some of these sites as methods of publication for students to feel motivated to complete assignments.

The risk we take as teachers when using technology is losing some of the student’s opportunities to be fully engaged. There is always the possibility of having students in the classroom that do not have access to technology at home. Therefore, it can be hard to use some of these tools to their full potential if students can’t take advantage of them fully by extending the practice and resources.

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So, What Lies Ahead?

You’d be surprised how many tools teachers are using out there. It ranges from social media to complex e-learning software. After perusing Jane Hart’s Slideshare Top Tech Tools for Educators 2015 I realized the amount of technology resources available to educators is overwhelming. I know it is impossible to use every single program during our teaching career, especially because the list will grow over the years, but it is always a good idea to be informed and find those resources that work best for you and your practices.

Check out Hart’s List by following the link:

Top 100 Tools for Learning 2015 from Jane Hart

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Let’s take it back to integrating these digital literacies and what we should consider…

The Digital Bloom’s Taxonomy

As we plan to integrate any form of program, software, website, or any other digital use, we need to think of the cognitive level being impacted in our students. Remember that as teacher’s everything goes back to helping our students move from basic understanding to the applying and creating process. Think of the Bloom’s Taxonomy levels and when selecting what to use think what cognitive level will the tool assist for students. For example, if you are looking into having students work on evaluating concepts and how they are used in different venues, students can watch videos and use a scoring system to judge what they noted from the video.

Hmm…so, what will I try?

I found it rather interesting that Twitter made it to the number one spot for tech-tools educators use. I honestly would’ve never thought of using Twitter as an educational tool, but now that I see it has multidimensional uses, I am reconsidering.  Therefore, I want to incorporate a Twitter account for my classroom. My hopes are that as a class I can involve my students in creating hashtags for different assignments and comments on specific concepts learned. I would also link it to a class blog/website. I love the idea of having a one-stop page where parents and students can be updated as to what is happening in the classroom and I think a class blog/website accomplishes this. The Twitter account would be a collaborative place where students can share thoughts academically but also have access to extended learning opportunities.
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Looking Into Seating Arrangement

The first question I ask when I walk into observe a teacher’s classroom is:

What is your logic behind the seating arrangement in your classroom?

As Education Majors most of us can attest that we have been in a few different classrooms. My hopes are that you’ve gotten to observe at least a handful that have different styles of seating arrangement. In my case, I’ve come across some really interesting ones and a few of the more common styles like stadium seating, or group seating.

I wanted to share some of the crazy styles I’ve come across and was hoping you would share yours. So, comment below with the strangest classroom seating arrangement you’ve seen and let us know what was the teacher’s logic behind it, or share your ideal seating arrangement and the logic you have for it.

Here are two of the ones I’ve encountered that caught my eye in terms of uniqueness:

For image #1 I found this unique setup worked very well for the teacher to move around and for the student’s whole group interaction. This proved that her logic proved to work. But, I did find that she moved the desk arrangement every week based on what she felt worked and also based on the lesson needs.

#1-Logic: The teacher felt she can see all the students and the students can interact better as a whole group. This teacher in particular changed her room every week I went.

For image #2 I found that although the teacher claimed this to be stadium seating it was different in how the chairs were arranged. I found it peculiar that a whole slanted row was left alone on one side of the room while the other half looked completely different. I did not actually get to sit in for this classroom so I didn’t get to note how the teacher used the setup but she did state she found it easy to move around for partner or group activities.

#2-Logic: Stadium seating provides view of all students for monitoring and is considered a Marzano seating arrangement.

Your New Classroom: On a Budget

So, you’re going to be a teacher?

Aside from the certification tests and interviews you need to plan for, have you thought about the look of your future classroom? Well, as a believer that creating a cozy and fun looking learning area is important to student motivation, I have some ideas on how you can decorate your class and have supplies without completely hurting your pocket.

Some of these ideas I’ve stolen from teachers I’ve observed or assisted in the past.

P.S. I have a GIVEAWAY… Read further for details.

It’s never to early to start buying supplies for your future classroom. Research has shown teachers spend a good chunk of money on classroom materials because of limited funding so, don’t wait to spend a bulk all at once. Instead, find smart ways to get the supplies and spend less.

Check out this article in regard to the amounts Teacher’s Spend. <–

Classroom Materials on a Budget:

1. School supply lists and teacher wish lists

Very common way to get supplies but won’t necessarily get you enough guaranteed.

2. Start a loose-leaf writing paper bin from used notebooks

This one I got from the teacher I’m currently interning with. Her suggestion was ask students at the end of the year to open their notebooks and rip out any unused paper. The teacher has a bin where she saves these for the following year for students who don’t have paper. You can do the same with your current college notebooks.

3. Use your local thrift stores

If you’re looking for books for a classroom library, thrift stores can be your friend with books ranging from $0.99-$3.00. Oh and you’ll need Dictionaries so make sure to search for these as well, they are a great way to teach the students how to be a little less dependent on technology. Thrift stores are also great for classroom furniture, extra bookshelves, chairs, rugs, and much more. All you have to do is be patient and do a little searching.

4. Dollar stores or dollar sections

You can transform or use so many things that can easily be found at the dollar store. You’ll soon realize that a great way to organize your classroom supplies are bins or baskets. One tip I got from my supervising teacher is to use basket crates for storage that way at the end of the year anything that needs to be packed for moving is, essentially, already packed. Plus, many dollar stores and dollar sections have tin cup selections that are great for organizing pencils, pens, and markers for groups or student supply stations.

Dollar Tree bins and baskets selections (there are other branches that have more variety)

Many Dollar Tree stores also have a small Teacher’s Corner. You can find posters, poster letters, borders, and much more.

Check out the posters I got 2 for $1! Each pack has two different posters inside.

  
  

GIVEAWAY:
I accidently bought two of the same packet of posters so I am giving away one pack that comes with a Poetry Genres poster and a Literary Elements poster. Here’s what needs to happen, the first person to comment on this blog post AND specify they want the posters gets it. I will bring it to our next class meeting.

Poster Giveaway!