Instructor Gadget is Always on Duty!

Welcome! Instructor Gadget is a place where two teachers offer their favorite tools, ‘eh-hem, gadgets, to help solve the mysteries of teaching. The wordplay in Instructor Gadget is an obvious shout-out to the cartoon detective, Inspector Gadget. Although clumsy and clueless, the Inspector has a tool for every problem he encounters! Instructor Gadget equips teachers with tools to become more effective educators. A continual work-in-progress, Instructor Gadget contains proven ideas and suggestions that make teaching more manageable and fun.

Monday, May 2, 2011

Modifications That Promote Successful Learning

All students can learn.  Some students, however, require modifications in order to be successful learners.  As teachers, we need to figure out how to adapt our classroom practices in ways that help all children feel successful.  Last spring, Dr. Nielsen, our Special Needs professor, brought us to Parents Reaching Out (PRO), a non-profit organization that coordinates with families, caregivers, educators, and state and community agencies to promote a variety of positive experiences for families and children throughout New Mexico.  While visiting PRO, we were given a number of resources, including a booklet called Tips for Student Success.  Included in this booklet is a long list of modifications that promote successful learning in the classroom.  Listed below are a handful of the modifications from that list.  Take a look.  Maybe there’s something you’ll find useful for one or more of the students in your classroom.
Modifications that Promote Successful Learning
Test modifications
Extended time
Oral responses
Take test in another room at the school
Test read to student with oral response
Answer list for fill in the blanks
Answers dictated on essay tests
Provide a study guide

Grading Modifications
No penalty for spelling errors
No penalty for handwriting (use cursive, printing, or computer)
Extended time for major assignments
Reduced learning load (set number of key facts for each unit or chapter)

Classroom modifications
Preferred seating
Provide copy of teacher’s notes or another student’s notes
Tape record class lectures
Allow oral reports instead of written
Color code or underline important concepts
Students repeats directions to check for understanding
Provide student with alternative reading on a topic at an easier reading level

Homework modifications
Allow student to dictate answers to parents.  Parents write dictated work.
Allow student to type homework or use computer
Allow the student to write the word in the blank rather than write the entire sentence
Make sure the student has the assignment in writing

Sunday, May 1, 2011

Searching for Level VI

In our Classroom Management class, Tom Keyes introduced us to a distant colleague named  Rafe Esquith.  Rafe teaches fifth grade in South Central Los Angeles, and has written books about his experiences – There Are No Shortcuts and Teach Like Your Hair’s on Fire.

Reading about Rafe and his experiences is inspirational.  He’s one of those teachers who has amazing ideas about classroom management and innovative and interesting ways of running his classroom.  Fully expect that you will be intimidated and think you will never accomplish ½ of what he has in the classroom.  But, it’s okay to borrow just a teensy bit from him.

Rafe has two rules in his classroom:  Be Nice.  Work Hard. 

Guess who made her own “Be Nice.  Work Hard” posters?

In his second book, Teach Like Your Hair’s on Fire, Rafe discusses Lawrence Kohlberg’s Six Levels of Moral Development and applies them to the elementary school classroom.   He teaches the levels on the first day of school and he tells us that they are a road map and often require a lifetime of learning.  Our goal as human beings is to get to Level Six.  He says Level Six is the most difficult to attain and the way to teach it is to point it out when you see it in others.  It requires an individual to develop his own personal code and to follow it, regardless of what others say or think about it.  The example he uses about a student who achieved Level Six is a girl who helped a fellow student – when the fellow student’s mother came in to ask who had helped a student in order give credit and accolades, the girl refused to admit it was her – she helped but didn’t want credit.  That is Level Six.  Are we there?

Level One: I Don't Want to Get in Trouble

Most students enter school at this level.  They behave because they don’t want to get in trouble.  It is fear-based – instead, we want our students to behave because they know it is the right thing to do.

Level Two: I Want a Reward

Many teachers use this as a management method – if students exhibit good behavior, they are rewarded for it (homework parties, gold stars.)  But, we need to show students that proper behavior is expected and doesn’t need to be rewarded.  We need to continue to push our students to the next level.

Level Three: I Want to Please Somebody
Students want to please their teacher or their parents.  This is a good thing, but should not be why they act the way they do – again, they should exhibit good behavior because they have internalized that it is the right thing to do and they want to do what’s right, not to please someone else.  Again, nothing wrong with this level, but Rafe believes we can push our students to be better.
Level Four: I Follow the Rules
Getting students to follow rules is an important aspect of classroom management and Rafe talks about involving students in establishing the rules as a way to generate ownership.  This level is not a bad place to be.  However, Rafe cautions against staying in Level Four because there are times and places to question rules and that we want to inspire independent thinkers.  Tricky, yes?
Level Five: I Am Considerate of Other People
As Rafe says, Level Five is “rarefied air for both students and adults.”  If we can create a world of Level Five people, the world would be a more empathetic place.  He talks about teaching consideration and empathy for others is difficult.  Yet, as he leaves every level he says, “I think we can do better.”
Level Six: I Have a Personal Code of Behavior and I Follow It
This is the most difficult level to teach.  You can’t model it because it is about an internal code and requires humility.  Therefore, you can’t see, “See? This is how you act!”  Like the student in the example before, she quietly helped someone, not for any other reason than it was the right thing to do and she didn’t want any credit or kudos for it.  Even when pressed!  Level VI is the level that Rafe believes all people should strive to be in.  He admits that it is difficult, but he feels it is our responsibility to push our students to strive to be better.  Even as we push ourselves. Not to much to ask, right?
I highly recommend Rafe’s first two books – great insight about teaching and ideas for implementation in your classroom.  I am inspired.

Put 'Em to Work!

Classrooms are communities.   Everyone within the community can contribute to making the classroom operate smoothly.  One way of doing this is having classroom jobs.  While teachers have different ways and reasons for creating and assigning jobs, common examples of jobs include messenger, line leader, taking attendance, lunch count, and homework checker.  If you’re looking for ideas on jobs for your classroom, check out Maria Chang’s book, Classroom Management in Photographs, which has some unique and clever ideas for classroom jobs. 

Some teachers have students apply for classroom jobs, leading to either a year-long job, or a job that rotates infrequently, say every two to three weeks.  Below, you will find some clever 5th grade job descriptions and an example of a classroom job application, which Ree Chacon uses in her classroom.  Thanks, Ree!  Ree said her students get really creative with their job applications, which makes me think students are more likely to take ownership of their jobs.  Plus, since students apply for jobs at the beginning of the school year, it’s a quick way to learn more about students’ interests, beliefs about their abilities, and writing skills.  

I also like how some of Ree's jobs, like the Recycling Supervisor and Energy Patrol, support the school community in addition to the classroom community.  Notice too that the Shades Supervisor job is unique to Ree's classroom, which the sun beat down on every afternoon.  So, regardless of how you do it, be sure to delegate responsibility to students.  Model how jobs should be done and then trust that students are capable of taking care of the classroom. 

5th Grade Job Descriptions

Fire Chief: Leads the class anywhere we go, including during fire drills.

Administrative Assistant: Helps the teacher pass out papers and other materials.  At the end of the day, sharpens pencils from the unsharpened pencil tub and puts them in the sharpened pencil tub.

Sanitation Engineer: Helps clean up the room at the end of the day; dismisses groups with clean floors to get their backpacks.

Class Emissary: Takes messages; delivers lunch count to cafeteria.

Librarian: Makes sure the classroom library is neat and that books are where they belong at the end of the day.  Alphabetizes chapter books to be put away.

Board Hygienist: Erases the boards throughout the day and at the end of the day.  Cleans boards with cleaner on Friday.

Botanist: Makes sure all classroom plants are watered daily. 

Veterinarian: Feeds the classroom pets daily; FOLLOWS THE INSTRUCTIONS ON THE SHEETS TO MAKE SURE THIS IS DONE CORRECTLY

Substitute: Fills in for the job of anyone who is absent that day.

Shades Supervisor: Opens the window shades in the morning; closes the window shades after lunch. **An example of a classroom job that's really based on the classroom's specific needs.  The sun's hot in Albuquerque!

Recycling Supervisor: Responsible for taking classroom recycling to recycle dumpster.  On Fridays, takes office and workroom recycling too.  

Energy Patrol: Monitors the school’s energy use.  During recess, hands out red tickets to classrooms if lights are left on and green tickets to classrooms if lights are turned off. 


CLASSROOM JOB APPLICATION                                  NAME_________________________

Please list the 3 jobs you are most interested in applying for and give your qualifications for each:

1) Job:
Qualifications:



2) Job:
Qualifications:



3) Job:
Qualifications: