Blog Post #4-Genius Hour 2.0

For one of our fall assignments, I tried out Genius Hour within a current unit of study.  Since time was a factor, I had students write thick questions based on the unit we were currently working on, then complete research.  Students also recorded their new “I wonder” questions to add to the wonder wall.  I loved the excitement and enthusiasm, but hated that I did not have the time to devote to a “real” genius hour.

Over the last month, I have been working with our literacy coach to implement a “real” genius hour as part of a learning lab.  This learning lab will allow other teachers to come observe my class working on genius hour, and give a separate collaboration time for me to share the details, answer questions, and give support to all grade levels.  Since time was a factor last time, I have replaced my current morning work research time with genius hour as well as replaced my science time on Fridays.  This will allow students to have over an hour a week to work on what they are passionate about.

To start, I had students list all the things they were passionate about on a sheet of paper.  After that, they picked one and turned it into a thick question.  I was amazed at some of their questions, and I loved hearing the excitement of peers when they had the chance to share their questions. 

List of students thick questions:

As students are researching, they record their new learning in a genius hour folder and answer a weekly Padlet question.  I review their facts, write questions to help guide their learning, and make sure they are staying on track.  The Padlet is a great way for me to quickly see what the students need assistance with and find out their thoughts about this project. 

Sample of Padlet responses to the question-What do you need help with? (excuse all the spelling mistakes J )

As students research, I ask them to focus on what is important and determine the important information within a text.  I modeled how to do this using various text.  As students dug deeper into their research, they started to form other questions.  Students write these questions on a sticky note to place on our wonder wall.

In our most recent mini-lesson we co-constructed a rubric.  I have really enjoyed doing these and I am so glad my opinion of rubrics have changed. J

I have loved the excitement, motivation, and enthusiasm my students have showed during this project.  They often ask me, “Can we use our free time to work on genius hour?”  or “ Can I work on this from home?”  These questions are coming from students who struggle to complete daily assignments.  I am so excited to see how students use their research to create a presentation and present to parents and administrators.  I know that they are going to continue to blow me away.      

Jeneane Allgood-Blog Post #4--2nd PBL observation

In leiu of a 2nd observation, I asked Dawn to help me figure out a good way to have students individually upload pictures of their plants each week to chart their progress and hold them individually accountable. I was thinking I would use something like Dropbox or Google slides, but Dawn was able to offer me some other suggestions that she thought would work better and also allow for better collaboration and presentation. She showed me "emaze", and more specifically, demonstrated to me (one on one) how to use it. We discussed how students could use it and we felt like it would be a good idea to have each student make their own "photo album" in emaze (which kinda looks like a slide presentation). They could share it with their other group members and also share it with me.

We also realized that students needed more collaboration opportunities. So, today I introduced "emaze" to students and showed them how to use it, using a very basic example that I had created. I also typed up a direction sheet so that students could set up their emaze accounts at home and get started.  Students will be responsible for creating their own emaze. They are required to have a title slide, which details which factor they are investigating and which type of seed they are growing. They are also required to have an "experiment design" slide, where they will provide details about their experimental set-ups. Each week, they will post a weekly update with pictures and measurements of their plants (this will be due by Thursday morning). Thursday night, students will look at and write down comments and/or questions about their group members' weekly progress. Then, on Fridays, students will be given some time to meet with their group and troubleshoot any problems that they are having with their experiment.

I like that Dawn encouraged me to use emaze, a website that I was unfamiliar with. I believe most of my students are unfamiliar with it, too, but as I told them, "If I can figure out how to use it, so can you." I like that students are working on their own emaze (which we will later pull information from in order to make a group emaze). I am also trying to give them a lot of freedom on what their weekly update pages will look like, but I offered some suggestions on what it should include, like observations and measurements. I am excited to see what these emazes turn out like!

Helen Reed - Blog Post 3 - Soft Skills

Communication is key. I feel like you hear this constantly in society, whether it is related to relationships or the workplace, but it could really not be more true. If you are unable to communicate your thoughts through writing or speaking, others will not know your ideas and you will get frustrated for not being able to communicate to others. I have seen my students grow the most in their communication from the fall PBL project to the spring, and also in regards to other group projects we have done throughout the year.

By sitting and working in groups, my students have to communicate with each other all the time. While they are expert talkers, they are not always excellent listeners. When working on a project, I find that my students are better listeners, as they all have a purpose. When their group member is talking to them about what they are going to do for the project, their team members listen because otherwise, they will be left in the dark as to what is to come next, or what they are suppose to research/complete. While I feel that all people can continue to grow as listeners, I have really seen an improvement throughout the year. As I try to think about what specifically has helped my students grow the most, I think it just comes down to practice. By sitting in small groups and changing those groups up, students are forced to work with students whom they do not always like and are required to communicate with them in order to achieve their goal. While some groups have not been a success, I would say that most of my students have been able to overcome their dislike for another student and still work together.

Something that has been challenging for me is to not jump in and solve the student’s conflicts when they arise. Students will come to me and say that they cannot get along with Student X or that Student Y is not helping their group. It is so easy for me to jump in and tell them my thoughts, but I’ve really tried hard to take a step back and ask the student if they have communicated that to Student X or Y. Most of the time the answer is no. When it is a no, I tell the student that they need to talk it out with them, not me. While I will stand near the students when this conversation does take place, I have tried not to intervene. By having the students communicate their feelings to their group members they are taking that initiative and developing their student agency. These conversations do not always go well, but I still think they are important conversations that need to take place. Communication is not always easy, yet it is an essential skill that my students have made growth in.

Blog Post 3 - PBL Implementation – Learning to make better projects

So this is a bit more of a “What I used to think/what I know now” kind of topic, but two of my upper-level students are finishing up a PBL project that is a culmination of the last three semester of my program. Last year, Dawn had me make put together a video with cell-phone photos and videos that she had collected of the induction teachers I her class in order to put together a video for them. After looking at them, I knew we could raise the quality on the images this year. So, we talked about how to incorporate students into the mix. The idea finalized as a long-term project for a couple of my more advanced students.

The task was large: photograph 62 induction teachers spread out across most of the schools in the district, and provide Dawn with portraits and pictures of the induction teachers in action. This project is basically all authentic assessment in that they were to deliver a real product to a client in a set amount of time.

Prior to the start of the semester, I talked with our administration about treating my upper-level kids like Teacher Cadet students, in that I felt like they should be able to get real-world experience tackling projects on other campuses during class time. So, they were allowed to work on projects off campus. So far, that has been mainly this project, but also some other projects, like doing interviews in my video class with faculty involved in cool projects (e.g. Farm-to-School).

I worked with the students to help them divide up the list, based on geography and number of teachers to be photographed. The students were responsible for coming up with a schedule, notifying the teachers when they would be coming to take photos, rescheduling shoots if necessary,  actually taking the photos, editing them, and finally delivering them. They have until the end of this week (end of March), and they got started late February, so about a month, and I think they are about 90% done. I’ve helped them along the way with scheduling, coordinating with the teachers, how to go about getting the shots, editing, and delivering. Even though that sounds like a lot, it’s been pretty hands-off. The core of this PBL implementation comes from two points. One, they’re using skills they’ve developed over the past three semesters in terms of photographic and artistic technique, and two, they’re working on what is a pretty common style of assignment for photographers in the real world, go out and shoot this on a deadline. I’m not there with them to supervise at all; they’re doing this during class time. They’ve been responsible for coming in and picking up the appropriate gear, getting themselves there, and actually taking the pictures; I’ve had 0 to do with that. And I have to say, it’s tough. I have a tendency to micro-manage things, and I have a certain standard I feel like we should always been achieving, and they don’t always quite hit that mark. I see the pictures and I’ve helped them along the way with critique and advice, but I can’t be there to help them set up the shots and pose the subjects. They’re having to do all of that on the fly on their own. Of course there have been a few panicked calls during class (“Help, the flash isn’t working!” or “I don’t know how to get the light right in this room!”), but overall, they’ve had to work through the problems on their own and come back, good pictures in hand. I think it’s been a valuable learning experience for them (and me too, but I’ll get to that).

For one, they’ve learned how to really implement a lot of the techniques we’ve talked about in class. Many of the things I’ve stressed that might not have made an impact before are suddenly staring them in the face; they’ve had to reach into their photography “bag of tricks” in order to make the required shots happen. In terms of photography, they’re learned about timing (in terms of packing gear, travel, getting the shots, and editing/delivery) and they’ve learned that some of their time frames have been unrealistic. They’ve learned about working with strangers to get great portraits (one of the most challenging aspects of photography in general), and they’ve had to work with real people to get the shots…real people who have good days and bad days, are under stress, and are busy. Regardless of those factors, their job is to get the shot, and, for the most part, they have delivered. They have had to work under deadline, another requirement that is both authentic and difficult.

I’ve learned a lot from the project too. One, no matter how mature they are, they’re still kids, and I need to stay on them a little better about making sure things get done. It’s easy to forget they’re teenagers, especially the upper-level ones, who regularly produce good work and are pleasant to be around, but like anyone else, they forget, they procrastinate, and sometimes they panic and mess things up. I’ve also learned I need to break things up into smaller chunks. I think handing them a list of 31 people with email addresses and telling them to make it happen might have been a bit overwhelming, even though in the real world, that’s exactly the kind of thing an editor or project manager would do. I’ve also learned to let go a little. What I mean by that is in terms of the project. In my head, I have a very clear idea of what the pictures should look like and how they should be done, but, in reality, photography as much an art as it is a science. There’s not always a right and wrong way to do things, and sometimes they come up with ways to tackle things that I never would, because of their unique perspectives, abilities, and talents. Back when I first started really working towards a full-fledged PBL based classroom (back before I even knew the term PBL, actually), I had a tendency to be pretty heavy-handed in the final products the students were producing when they were for the school/district. That’s great for putting out absolutely top-quality stuff, and sometimes I still have to step in and make sure the quality is there, but for something like this, I think it’s okay to let them take a few pictures that, in a few months, they’ll look back and think “Oh God, what was I doing?!” I think that’s good for any artist, to look back and work and hate it. That means you’re progressing and growing as an artist, and that means you have a healthy level of self-awareness. I constantly stress to them that photography is something you can ALWAYS get better at, no matter what level you’re at. If, at any point, you think “that’s it, I’m done, I’m the best I can be,” then it’s time to find a new endeavor…or at least, step back and take a long, hard look at what you’re doing. All that being said, here’s the TL;DR version of what I’ve picked up from this first implementation of a long-term, complex, PBL implementation:

1)      Clearer goals/expectations

2)      Large goals broken into smaller chunks

3)      More frequent check-ins, critiques, etc.

4)      Clearer timelines

5)      A bit more up-front direction in terms of techniques/strategies/etc.

I’m including a few of the photos so that you get an idea of what they’re accomplished. 

Blog Post 2 - PBL Grading Tools

Thoughts on the search for an efficient PBL grading tool, and some thoughts on using LMS systems in a PBL classroom.

Rubric-based grading is hard. It’s especially hard when you’re grading 100’s to literally 1,000’s of items by a rubric. I’m still amazed at the lack of a tool that can do such a thing. Surely, I’m not the only person who could use this, but so far, my search has been fruitless to the point of me trying to build my own over the past few months.

There are plenty of gradebook programs out there. We have PowerSchool, which is pretty terrible by most people’s accounts. It’s inefficient, buggy, pretty much a pain to use. But gradebook programs are not what I’m looking for. I’m talking about an actual tool I can grade with. I’m talking about a customizable rubric you could literally use to grade assignments with. One of the difficulties I’ve found with PBL is the grading. In my classes in particular, I get absolutely buried under mountains of completed assignments, because basically 100% of their work results in deliverables. What if I could create a customized program with all of my criteria built into the program, and I could simply go through and check off what’s been achieved and what still needs work, then assign a grade, and then submit that grade plus meaningful feedback to the student? What if instead of having to use multiple programs and go through multiple steps, there was an all-in-one solution? Oh, and how about some PowerSchool integration? Few things I find more infuriating than have to use one program (or…more than one program) to grade with, only be stuck with data entry at the end. It complicates the process, slows it down, and opens up more opportunities for human error (think data entry).  

For me, this project has gotten me closer to the “holy grail” of grading for my projects, a GUI (graphical user interface), that will allow me to quickly grade my students’ work via a rubric. I grade their work via a rubric in my head all the time, but this allows me to give quicker, more focused feedback than on paper. One of the big downsides to this system is that for it to be efficient, two monitors are required. You can do it with one, but switching back and for between minimized windows slows me down. With two, I can have their pictures up on one (my color-calibrated monitor...so their pictures are more accurately displayed) and have the rubric on the other. After filling the rubric out, I take a screenshot of it (using the built-in Windows Snipping Tool), and use the snipping tool’s built-in highlighter to mark the areas where each image needs to be improved. Finally, I copy and paste that screenshot into an email I send the student through Google Classroom when returning their grade. The email also gives me a chance to give them more detailed feedback when required. Here’s an example.

The thing that’s baffling about all of this is that so far, I have been unable to find anything like it online, free or otherwise. To me, it seems like a great idea. Build a rubric, then actually use it (not use it in the sense that I look at it and grade from there), but really USE it to grade with. That seems like a no-brainer. Yet, there’s nothing. This is an area where grading could really be streamlined. Think about being able to give valuable feedback and do grades, all at the same time, with only a few clicks. One of the reasons I moved away from itsLearning was how it was creating more and more work for me, instead of simplifying my life (which is one of their selling points).

Speaking of learning management software, this semester I’ve moved from our paid itsLearning LMS to Google Classroom. After itsLearning put a mysterious cap on how much student work I could download at a time (that cap being somewhere between 50 and 100MB of data) for no apparent reason, and after having dealt with their customer support for a weeks, I finally decided to find a better way to “take up” their work digitally. Google Classroom allows me to download an entire class’s worth of work in a minute or two as opposed to 30-60 minutes (or sometimes more) for single class.

However, Google Classroom still has a lot of room for improvement. For example, if I want to divide students into groups, there’s no way for me to separate them (e.g. by block). I have to create a new “classroom” to do that. As far as I can tell, “on time” or “late” are the only indicators of when a student turned in an assignment. A time and date would be helpful. There’s no good way for me to create one assignment and then send it to multiple classes, and there’s no way for to modify the date on a single assignment shared between classes. Often times I will have small, quick assignments, which all levels of my classes have to do. I have to create that assignment 4 times, instead of only 1 and copying it (and updating any changes) to each class. These are simply changes to the program I think would go a long way in making is functionality much better, and hopefully Google actually looks at the feedback they get. 

Jeneane Allgood--Blog Post #3

"Inspiring students not to hate botany"

I had a student tell me this week that she thought she wouldn't like the plant unit (because let's face it---they're plants), but because I got so excited about the plant unit, she is excited about the plant unit and wants to go home and plant other things besides what she planted as part of her project. I've actually heard this from several students. One group wanted to grow lemon trees for their project, but then decided it would be too difficult, so one of the  group members is going to try to grow lemon trees on her own. I had soccer players who took "plant selfies" of primary succession and lichens while on a trip to Stone Mountain, Georgia and then couldn't wait to get back and show me. 

I really think that their new-found love of plants is due in large part to my PBL project for the spring. Instead of just taking notes on seed germination, they are getting to watch their seeds germinate. Instead of telling them, "You will plant this", they got to choose what they wanted to plant and which variables they wanted to investigate, so they are taking ownership over their experiments.  Most of what we are doing is being done at home, so it's not really taking that much time away from AP Bio, but it is teaching them SO much more than what I could have done with traditional learning styles. And, best of all, it is learning that will stick with them for a long time.  

With the support I have received from Dawn and from my classmates, I am no longer "afraid" of PBL. I have experienced the lessons that didn't go as well and lessons that went better than expected. I have received great feedback and suggestions from my peers, and that feedback has made my lessons stronger and more meaningful. So, in case I forget to say it later, THANK YOU!

Jonathan Terry Blog Post #3 - Collaboration and Conflict Resolution

As I've mentioned multiple times in class and in other blog posts, collaboration is always an area of concern with a PBL.  I was shocked at the beginning of the year with how little students actually knew about collaboration.  To my students, collaboration meant either time to chat with their friends or time to split up the work to complete it faster.  When I started my second PBL of the year, I really wanted to be proactive to make sure that true and effect collaboration was happening within each group.

I was already in the middle of my PBL when we visited J.L. Mann, so I decided not to introduce the group contracts.  In previous years, if significant conflict arose during a group activity, I would either switch the groups or allow students the opportunity to work by themselves.  With the second PBL, I made it a point to use conflict as a teachable moment with my students.  One such instance happened on day 3 of my PBL.  Even though groups had already split up the work, one student decided they didn't like their assignment and tried to take over the assignment of another student in the group.  When that student objected, it quickly moved (as it does so often with middle schoolers) to name calling.  By the time I intervened, both students wanted me to move the other student out of the group.  Since PBL is supposed to be real-world based, I decided to treat this moment as a real-world conflict.  I first let each student share their version of the story and what they thought should be done.  I then related this instance to a real job.  "Do you think that your boss is automatically going to fire someone over a small disagreement?"  "Do you think your boss is going to demote one person or promote one person to another job just because of a small disagreement?"  After this pep talk, the students began to see that they were responsible for their own interactions.

I did keep a close eye of this group for the remainder of the PBL.  I wanted to give them the chance to work through their own issues, but didn't want the conflict to escalate.  It wasn't a perfect situation, but it helped me see the importance of teaching students soft skills and collaboration within the classroom.  We cannot expect students to enter our rooms with all of the skills needed to be successful in the real-world.

Blog Post #3 (Barwick)

For this blog post, I thought I would reflect on the EdCamp I presented at yesterday in Greenville because so much of the day kept me thinking and talking about PBL.  PBL concepts were woven throughout so many of the sessions yesterday, and even though I wasn't able to attend many of them since we were presenting in a room all day, I noticed the language of the teachers we talked to.  

Here were the titles of the some of the sessions at EdCamp:  Flexible Seating, Guided Math, Flipped Classroom, 1 to 1 Technology, STEAM/PBL, Engaging Activities, Partnerships, Movement in the Classroom, Tactile Learning, Teacher Leadership, and Growth Mindset.

Even just looking at the titles of the sessions, I see a shift in the way that we are thinking about teaching and learning, leaning more toward a PBL mindset.  I thought about how flexible seating gives students more choice in the classroom, how guided math encourages groups and collaboration, and how flipped classrooms and 1 to 1 technology incorporates technology.  Several sessions (Movement, Tactile Learning, Engaging Activities) focused on learning that is student centered and not just sitting at desk, passively learning.  I thought about how the Partnerships session put an emphasis on how schools should be making connections outside of the classroom, which would include the authentic audience component of PBL, and there was even a session devoted to PBL and STEAM.  I was so excited to see one just on Growth Mindset, which is an essential element of PBL so that students understand that their learning should not just be measured on one outcome or on a single score, but how much they have grown and will continue to grow.

Our session was on Learning with Legos, which also includes engagement and creativity in the classroom.  Many teachers and pre-service candidates discussed PBL in their classroom and we talked about how Legos could be a component of a project, or as a PRBL lesson.  All in all, I felt that the day's classes were more focused on creativity, collaboration, and authentic engagement in the classroom, and I was heartened because these are all incorporated in PBL units.  After attending EdCamp, I felt great about the direction we are headed in education!

PBL Supports Hirable Resumes - #3

Shanna Pittman

Blogpost 3: Growth of Soft Skills in Kindergarten

                When I enrolled in our PBL class last summer, I was excited about offering my students a different and engaging way of learning. I had attended a writing conference the previous year and Project Based Learning was a big focus. The conference was the first time I had heard about Project Based Learning. I thought it would be a great way to engage students in learning, help them make connections with the world around them and a way to get them excited about school and learning from a young age. After taking this course, I have discovered that Project Based Learning is all of those things and much more. What I did not anticipate when I began this journey is that PBL has had a profound effect on the growth of my students’ soft skills!

                During my first PBL in the fall of this school year, my students (many of whom had never attended preschool) really struggled with taking turns and listening respectfully to one another. Some students also lacked the confidence to participate in conversations and contribute to their groups. However, after teaching both PBL units and applying PBL principals to other units throughout the year, I have noticed a drastic positive change in both their social and communication skills. Our class also has a community/family feel now.

                I also noticed throughout the course of my units this year that my students have developed confidence and a willingness to try new things without fear of being “wrong”. Throughout my years as a kindergarten teacher I have observed that most young children, beginning their school career have a fear of not being right. They want to copy what I do and they want me to tell them exactly what to do. The PBL units have given them freedom to try new ideas, self-direct their work and confidence because they get positive feedback from me, as well as their peers.

Class 3: Blog Post 3 - 1920s Program

For the past few months, my grade level has been working on a major project. Last year, our Technology Integration Specialist and Reading Coach approached our grade level about doing something a little different for our 5^th grade program. Instead of doing a simple musical performance like we have in the past, they wanted us to make the program a little more STEAM. They told us that our own students would write the program. When we originally discussed this, I thought there was no way this would be a successful event. I thought it would be a crazy amount of stress on the teachers.

Well, it’s almost one year later, and we had a very successful program last night. We decided to focus our program around the 1920s because this time period had a natural music connection. Our music teacher prepared three songs with our classes, but the rest of the program consisted of student-created performances … along with a student-created script. The program was followed by a museum exhibit in our cafeteria where each student was able to share his/her own final product based on his/her own 1920s research. Students created the program powerpoint, the program guide, and posters to guide guests. Students also created artwork to accompany their projects (in art class). These were hung along the main hallway that parents used to get to the auditorium and cafeteria.  The students were truly the stars of the show, and their parents and guests were thoroughly impressed.

When we began this project in the fall, I quickly realized that it fit the requirements of PBL, even though it was not the unit I created for our class.  We created an exciting entry event for students. We turned each 5^th grade classroom into a different 1920s museum exhibit. One room played a silent movie. Another had examples of radio shows. Another was filled with newspaper clippings, while another contained images of fashion and art. Students were able to travel from room to room to record their noticings and ask questions. We knew our final product would contain a museum, so we were excited for our unit to come full circle.

After students chose their topics and formed their own groups (voice and choice!), they developed questions that they would need to research. They had to decide what they would create for their final product to share with our audience. Some students chose to choreograph dances, some made artifacts like pinhole cameras, projectors, or a book that can hide contraband (like bootleggers). All students also created a presentation (prezzi, animoto, emaze) to share their information. As we worked, students had the opportunity to get feedback on their work by participating in a critical friends protocol with small groups.

I think one of the best elements of this project was the very public audience. Students knew that their parents would be coming to see what they had learned and created. This also meant that we had great attendance at our program (which was on a week night). Students WANTED their parents to come because they were excited to display their projects! It was so exciting to see how excited our students were about their work. I know they learned so much through their research because they were able to explain their projects and answer questions from their guests.  In the process of researching, many students became experts on multiple topics because they were constantly talking to their peers and investigating their peers’ projects.

We are excited to do something similar next year as we continue to implement PBL. Some other teachers who attended last night expressed interest in doing this with their own grade levels next year, so hopefully PBL will continue to spread throughout our school!  

Blog #3-Co-Constructed Rubrics

Confession…I hate rubrics… well until my coaching cycle changed everything…

Rubrics have never been an area of strength for me.  I do not mind using them or even writing them, but it is always something that I dread.  Therefore, the idea of co-constructed rubrics was something I could not wrap my head around.  I honestly had no clue where to start, what do, or how to guide them in creating something they could actually use.

I am so thankful to Dawn, who came in and provided such a wonderful lesson with my students.  This lesson allowed me to have a better understanding of co-constructed rubrics.  First, she displayed a three-column chart at the front of the classroom and invited my students to join her at the front.  Then, students told her about their projects and expectations.  She then explained what they were going to be doing, and they brainstormed three words to describe each of the different ratings.  Lastly, they discussed the elements that were important to be graded: answering the driving questions, teamwork, and presentation skills. The students discussed items they thought were important for each category and were added to the chart.  This 30-minute lesson had my students engaged, thinking and reflecting on their learning, and excited!  Watching Dawn teach this lesson allowed me to see that these are not something to dread, but embrace.  I am planning to co-construct a rubric with my students for their genius hour projects we are currently working on.  I’ll keep you posted on how it goes J !!   

Post #4 PBL at DFC

I have approached the principal at DFC about impelementing PBL on a broader basis than just each teacher completing one unit of PBL per semester.  We came up with an initial plan for students entering into DFC for the 2018-2019 school year.  He suggested for us to start small and to only have one or two classes of students total.  Here is a bried run through of some of the ideas we discussed.  We would like four teachers to be trained in the next cohort; one from each of the main disciplines.  Also, we are going to have this program in place for the lower level students and the students should be enrolled in Integrated Science, Foundations of Math, English I College Prep, and Civics.  Science and Math would be together one semester and English and Civics then next semester.  The teachers would have commong planning. The outline of the class would need to be completed before October 31 when the course guides went to print.  Finally, we mentioned having a recommendation process for the students that are interested in entering this program. I am meeting with Dawn in April to discuss further the plans at DFC.

Blog Post #2 (Barwick)

For this second blog post, I thought I would reflect on our trip to JL Mann.  Overall, it was a helpful professional development day, and I came away with some validation, things to try, and ways I can improve upon my own PBL units.

First, I realized I really liked high school, which was not an outcome I was expecting.  As an elementary school teacher, I always thought of high schoolers as more "adult," but they are still really kids, haha.  It was fun to talk to them and see the cool things they could do since they are older and more independent.  It made me want to teach high school English when I saw the projects they were doing in their classes.

The school offered validation to what we have been learning and trying in our classes this year.  It was great to see so many things we have tried to implement being expertly utilized in these high school classrooms, and it confirmed that PBL should really be a way of thinking, not just something to try every once in a while.  It was also nice to see that even though these teachers are experts in PBL, they are still working on kinks in their program as well, such as how to best teach AP classes.  There is always room for growth, no matter what level you are on!

There were several things I realized I could include and/or adapt to my fifth grade classroom from JL Mann.  For instance, I think we all liked their group contracts, and I will certainly modify theirs and use it in the future.  It was nice, too, that all the classes that we saw pretty much used the same contract, so the students were very familiar with it and knew how to use it effectively (or try to) in every class.  They didn't have to learn a new contract form in each class they went to.  This led me to think about how I could talk to my teaching partner in fifth grade about using the same contract anytime we did group work in either of our classes, even for a short term project.  Sometimes my students struggle to work together when they are in their other class, and this might help them stay on track if it was something used in both classes.

I also really liked the way each class had their project outline and driving questions on the front bulletin board.  This semester, I tried to be more purposeful about displaying our PBL unit artifacts in the classroom so that anyone could walk in and know exactly what we were doing.  Their boards were even more direct, and I have considered making one of my boards a permanent "PBL" board to explain clearly what we are doing.

Finally, I LOVED the idea of team teaching courses that integrate beautifully together, such as English and social studies.  One intimidating aspect of PBL is keeping up with all the individual and/or group projects and providing enough time to work with each group while keeping others on task.  With two teachers in the classroom, this is more feasible, and the kids get more help overall.  It would also alleviate some of the stress of planning units if you had a teacher to brainstorm with.  I would certainly be open to this in the future.

Even though I saw some wonderful things at JL Mann, I came away with some questions as well.  I asked one group of students if they ever felt overwhelmed with the number of projects they had to keep up with, and they said that sometimes they did.  I can imagine it would be difficult to keep up with many projects at one time, working with different people in each class with different work contracts, etc.  I also wonder about preparing them for college classes.  I know they try to phase them back into regular classes their senior year, but will they be ready to sit in lectures and take notes in college?  Most courses are still run this way, and it would be good to practice those skills ahead of time.

Overall, it was a very informative trip, and I'm grateful we were able to see PBL in action!

Blog Post 2- PBL Areas of Growth

Shanna Pittman

                After our summer course and implementation of our first PBL, I targeted several areas in which I wanted to grow. I think my planning of the Fall unit was solid (for a beginner in this endeavor). The time frame in which I planned the unit was a little off, however, I modified and adjusted. The academic rigor of the unit was appropriate to my grade level and challenged the students. I included all PBL learning strategies. I felt confident in the planning and implementation of the unit.

                When I began, the second unit there were several areas in which I knew I needed growth. I focused on these areas during my second unit, as much as was possible given that I was training and planning with my grade level colleagues. The first of these areas was critique and reflection. During the Fall unit I think this was a weak area in my unit. I believe I limited my student’s opportunities for critique and revision because I thought this was something they were too young to do (and I feared if the students were unable to do this, it would be my failure). Then, I had the opportunity to co-teach with Dawn this Spring and was happy to get help with Critical Friends Protocol! After we co-taught Critical Friends, I was amazed to see my students critiquing one another (mostly giving compliments) and giving each other suggestions. I was excited to see that they could participate in a modified version of Critical Friends. I also realized that although it did not look like it will in a few years when they are older, it is important to introduce these ideas now so that they can grow and develop as the children continue on their PBL journey.  

                The second area in which I wanted to focus was summative assessments. This is also difficult with young children, particularly when you are asking them to provide input in the assessment. I still have some growth in this area, however I was more willing to take risks this time and included my students in forming the assessment and allowed them to give input when I assessed each student. We discussed what they did, what they could improve upon, and what made them most excited during the unit. This was a totally new experience for me but it made the whole experience more meaningful for my students.

Class 3: Blog Post 2 - PBL Peer Presentation

This week, Helen and I had the opportunity to discuss PBL with our coworkers at our school’s literacy staff development meeting. Our meeting was structured in such a way that allowed our fellow teachers to choose a session to attend during the middle of the meeting. Helen and I created a session about PBL.

When thinking about what we wanted to present to our coworkers, we thought it might be helpful to share some of the resources that we were given during our summer course. We also knew that we wanted to provide our coworkers with resources and examples that they could use in creating their own PBL units. We decided to create a blendspace that identified the eight essentials of PBL. We included the checklist from BIE, and we embedded examples from our own instruction that matched each essential. We included rubrics, student-generated questions, examples of reflection/ critique and revision, and examples of student-created products. We used this blendspace to guide our discussion, but it is also a resource that our coworkers can continue reference if they want to know more about project based learning.

The teachers who attended our session seemed to be excited to learn more about PBL. They all already include many components of PBL in their instruction, so I think they will be likely to take the resources we have given them to modify and recreate some of their units. We told them that we are available if they ever want to learn more or talk through a possible unit with us. After our meeting, one 4^th grade teacher told me that she was thankful that I shared my benchmark checklist and examples of rubrics. She said that one of her concerns was that she wouldn’t be able to get enough grades from a project based unit. Now, she is more encouraged.

Blendspace: https://www.tes.com/lessons/NTvKZTdVRdWpVA/pbl-essentials

Helen Reed - Blog 2 - Peer Presentation

I (along with Brittany) gave my PBL peer presentation this week. We teamed up with our Literacy coach to be a 'work station' during our evidence-based literacy focus professional development. Before the meeting, we talked with our Literacy coach about what information she thought teachers wanted to learn about, related to PBL. Going off what she told us, we decided to go over the 8 Essentials of PBL and include examples of each component from our past projects. We created a Blendspace (https://www.tes.com/lessons/NTvKZTdVRdWpVA/pbl-essentials) so we could include links to resources, websites, pictures, and links to videos and documents we had created. We thought this information would allow teachers who were interested in learning more about PBL a basic overview. We also thought having access to specific resources, such as the BIE website, the PBL Essentials checklist, and examples of our rubrics/framework would be useful.

While only five teachers chose to attend our PBL work station, I thought it went well. Brittany and I were able to go through most of our Blendspace and talk about each component. I believe the teachers liked the resources and examples we were able to provide. Our Blendspace is available to the entire staff on our ItsLearning page, so everyone can access our resources, if they desire. We also let the teachers know that we would be happy to answer any questions they have or to even brainstorm with them something they currently do in their classroom that they want to turn into a PBL. At the end of the work station, teachers had to post on TodaysMeet something they took away from their chosen work station. It was great to see the comments teachers wrote and that they are willing to try PBL in their classrooms. https://todaysmeet.com/EBLiteracy

Allgood--Blog Post #2--PBL Implementation

So, this week I finally got to implement my spring PBL unit.  This one feels very different to me than the one I did in the fall. This one really feels like a true PBL to me. I have learned so much from my PBL in the fall and things that maybe didn't go quite as I had planned. This time around, I wanted to really make this as authentic of an inquiry as I possibly could, and I also wanted to make sure that each student was responsible for a decent part of the project (at least the implementation of it), such that they could be graded individually.

For this PBL, my students are working in groups of 3 or 4. They were tasked with choosing a seed that we could plant in cups and expose to different variables. Each student will set up their own set of potted plants to bring home that they are responsible for caring for and documenting their growth via photographs. As a group, students had to research seeds for fruits or vegetables that could grow well in this area at this time of year. They also tried to choose something that would germinate and grow in the next few months. As a group, they decided on a seed. Next, it was time to design their experiments. Each person in the group had to choose a different variable to investigate. Group members were encouraged to help each other during the experiment design process to ensure that their experiment had all necessary components. Then, we did a gallery walk where each student made their own mini gallery walk poster (instead of making one poster as a group). Each student got feedback in the form of "I like" and "I wonder" from at least 5 or 6 other students. I felt like this was a very good formative assessment and would give them an opportunity for reflection and revision.

The next step in our process is for students to actually plant their seeds on Monday and take their seedlings home to take care of.  Hopefully during the week before spring break, we can talk about phase II of this PBL (our cross-disciplinary component) in which students will develop a business plan to try to make a living off of selling their crop. Phase III will involve a 4-H type fair showcasing what they have done this spring.

I was amazed to see how engaged students were when researching which type of plant they should grow. I'm glad that I threw in the competitive aspect of, "What if your grade depended on being able to actually produce a fruit or vegetable from your plant that someone could eat?" and "What if their was extra credit for growing the largest fruit or vegetable?"  Those two prompts really seemed to motivate students. I think they also realized that this is just a different way of learning. While taking notes is essential in a class like AP Biology, it was nice to see them get so into the idea of growing plants. I keep telling them that I am trying to subconsciously make them plant nerds who look for the things we talk about in nature and take "plant selfies" with them.  As a side note, that actually worked---some of my girls soccer players took selfies with male and female pine cones as well as lichens on their trip to Stone Mountain, GA, so I guess I'm doing something right! :)

Implementation Observation - Darstein

This semester's PBL is a continuation of our garden unit from the Fall.
The driving question is "Can you design a theme-based tasting menu that features the product from The Bearcat Patch (the winning garden).  
I have used the problem statement to expand the Driving Question:   can you communicate nutritional information, budget, and marketing.
I loved the way the teachers at JL Mann created a space in their room to communicate the elements of the PBL and I have used that same concept for this PBL.   It keeps everything in one place easy for everyone to see.
The Knows, Need-to-Know, and Not Certain area of the bulletin board immediately became a place for questions that would be discussed at a later date.  This allowed my to facility more than being the keeper of all information.
The day Dawn visited was Day 3.  On the two previous days, we had had the Entry Event and theme brain-storming.
The Entry Event was a tasting party.  There are eight produce that will grow in the garden.  Students described the taste of each produce in a blind taste test.   It is interesting to me how different food tastes when you can't see it.
I was very proud of the students during Dawn's visit.  They didn't let her presence change their behavior.  
I really don't think I would change a thing if I had it to do over.
But the class has come up with a change.  They want to include more information about the actual restaurant their tasting menu will represent.   They are interested in the decor and set up and want to include that in the PBL.   We will be working on a rubric for that sharing.   I can't want to see their finished products.

Blog #2-PBL Implementation Observation

First PBL Implementation Observation

Project Background: UnBEElievable Insects was designed to bridge the gap between our standards based animal unit and next PLTW unit on seed dispersal.  With the PLTW pre-planned lessons only meeting our engineering standards, I wanted to create some lessons that would give students the necessary knowledge to complete the finial build in a fun, hands-on way.  In this project, students learned the importance of honeybees and why they are essential.  This lead into our PLTW unit perfectly when we talked about pollination and different ways seeds spread. 

Observation: Dawn came on the first day of this unit.  My entry event combined inferencing (an ELA skill my students struggle with), proving their thoughts with evidence and inquiry.  The first part of my lesson was a “crime scene” set up in the hallway with caution tape.  Students had to make observations about each piece of evidence and record in their science notebook.   We then returned to the classroom, where each group were presented a case file.  Each case file contained two to three different pieces of evidence and a recording sheet.  Students worked within their group to discuss each piece of evidence, write their thoughts on what the evidence was describing, and support their thinking with proof.  Some examples of evidence included newspaper articles, pictures, menus, and online articles.  After groups had completed their evidence sheet, we met on the rug to discuss each group’s evidence and create an anchor chart.  During this time, we also developed our driving questions. How are bees important?  Why should we save bees?

Reflection: I was so happy with how this lesson turned out…total top 10 teaching moment!  I have to admit I felt a little pressure teaching a bee lesson with Dawn observing me J…but everything turned out great.  I loved watching the videos and seeing all the kids so engaged and being active participates in discovering what we would be learning about next.  Listening to the students make connection to previous learning, and applying past skills to new learning, made my teacher heart sing.  I honestly did not think the kids would be able to come up with the driving question, but they proved me wrong.  I cannot wait to incorporate these strategies into future lessons. 

Class 3 - Blog #3

Dawn came for my final observation last Tuesday, 3/7. My students had completed the unit I designed for implementation during the fall - Friday Night Lights - and had created individual PPT presentations (collaboration was not happening at this point) for Dr. Smith, our principal,  proving their knowledge of basic chemistry by presenting him with information about fireworks in hopes he would approve a fireworks display after a sporting event. So, Dawn, Dr. Smith, and 2 of our assistant principals came to see students present. Long story short - these presentation were painful. So painful, every visitor, except Dawn, only stayed for a handful of presentations each. I believe they went and volunteered to donate a kidney to a stranger without anesthesia as that would have been less excruciating. I am exaggerating of course and mean no offense, but all but two presentations were terrible. And on top of that, they were horrible audience members. I was distraught. All I could think was everything I had planned and implemented and everything the kids had done over the previous 2.5 weeks were a waste. It was as if they had not learned any chemistry much less practiced presenting (which we did a lot of both of these). And then, I invited administrators to experience the lack of knowledge going on in room A112! I was a failure. That was plain. However, Dawn emailed and messaged me reminding me of the fact that this is possibly the first time these kids have ever been exposed to PBL and asked to do so much. Let's be honest, taking a test is easy compared to having to prove your knowledge in an oral presentation to your administrators (I remember senior seminar - it was scary and I was 20 something years old in college). So, after A LOT of reflection, I put my adult face on and actually showed up to work the next day! I revised the last 20 points of the project grade into a test (these were originally "respectful audience" points, but no one would have earned those). I then had the students add to a Padlet that I included below. From these responses about group work/collaboration, I have planned team building activities to complete at the end of class some days. We have done one or two so far and are hopefully learning to depend on each other and work with each other at least a little more than before. They asked me if I was mad at them the day after the presentations. I told them I was not, but I was disappointed as I was 100% sure they were capable of more than they had demonstrated the day before and I would never expect anything less. They agreed with me. We also agreed to work on this group work thing together so that when they leave my class in May, they will be armed with a few more skills than they entered my class with in January. Just maybe. And that, friends, is my new goal - giving them confidence to get out of their comfort zones - whether that be being an addition to a group instead of a hindrance, orally presenting in front of visitors, writing business letters, being more of a leader, working together with others instead of riding their coattails, etc.

Blog Post 1 - Implementation Observation
Shanna Pittman

     For my implementation observation, I chose to have Dawn co-teach one of the protocols we've used in class, Critical Friends. One of the biggest challenges as an early childhood educator implementing Project Based Learning, is the reflection and revision part of the process. I have searched several official Project Based Learning websites and Pinterest for ideas on making the reflection and revision piece meaningful for young children, with little success. I tried Critical Friends protocol during my first unit and did not feel good about how it turned out and was unsure if it was any benefit to my children at all. This spring when we were able to signed the coaching agreement and I was able to invite Dawn in to help me implement Critical Friends, I was very excited.
     Dawn knew ahead of time what my concerns were and what I wanted to see. The students had conducted extensive research using nonfiction books and websites about Arctic animals. They used the information they had learned to create a fictional animal that could survive in the Arctic based on the adaptive features they had studied. Students then put their ideas on paper, drew pictures, labeled parts and decided what their animal would look like, what features it would have and what they would call it. After completing this part of the PBL, Dawn came in to assist with Critical Friends.
     Dawn, my assistant and I each took 2 groups to separate parts of the room. Each group had a set amount of time to present their ideas to the other group. The group that listened then gave group 1 feedback. They shared what they liked and also what they wondered about the other group's animal. Then we switched and group 1 listened and gave group 2 feedback. The process was a great success!
      My first attempt at Critical Friends in kindergarten was not nearly as productive as with Dawn's help.  After my first attempt, I was worried about the guidance, teacher prompting and support I was having to provide my students. I had attempted to do it with the whole group. It was not as focused and students' attention wandered. Also, Dawn began by choosing a student to role play how to give and receive feedback. This was more successful than the mini-lesson I began with. I learned some new techniques to use by having Dawn come in and co-teach with me. I also got validation that it is necessary to give kindergartners a lot of support. I thought I had failed because my students were unable to critique and revise on their own. However, in kindergarten, Critical Friends does not look like it does with older students. As a matter of fact, we changed the name to Feedback Friends which I thought was very appropriate!

Post 1 - Course 3 - Implementation Observation Reflection

     One thing I would like to successfully implement is a back-channel chat. I've tried it 3 times now, once with Padlet, and twice with Slack. I like Slack...I like it a lot actually. But with high school students (especially those armed with cameras and editing software) it quickly devolves into sharing memes.

     I'm guessing 15-18 year olds are just not quite ready for something like that without being closely monitored, and, to be honest, the whole point of a "back" channel chat is that it's something I don't have devote a ton of time to, but I can check off-and-on to monitor comprehension and provide supplementary materials through, which is what I actually like most about it. It's a lot easier to throw a link up on Slack than it is to make a new blog post on Weebly and share it with everyone.

  I also agree I need to get better with rubrics. One of the reasons I don't have one posted in the room is that w'ere not allowed to "decorate." I'm evidently not even allowed to have a white board installed; I'm supposed to do everything on the Active Panel (which is what I do).

     Let me digress for a second, maybe someone can help me with this. The holy grail of rubrics for me would be either an website or an app that would let me build a rubric that would look something like this:

that I could simply look at what I'm grading and click on the correct color to quickly grade it and have it total everything up for me. If someone knows how to make something like that or a tool I could use, I'd be eternally grateful.

   

Implementing Contracts

After leaving JL Mann, I was so impressed with the students' engagement.  This year it seems like my students are struggling with collaboration.  So one of the best "take aways" I received from JL Mann was the group contracts.  Currently my students are working on their Project Lead the Way unit.  This unit requires tons of collaboration and compromise.  The students are always excited about building a robot and they all want to do it, but each group of 4 receives one kit and one ipad.  I expected the arguments and disagreements ahead of time.  In previous years, the students usually disagree about who holds and uses the ipad.  They also disagree about who can put the pieces together.  So after seeing the group contracts put in action at JL Mann I knew that it would be something that I would have to use during this unit.  I gave the students the job descriptions an prior to giving out the ipads and Vex IQ kits.  I let the students get together and discuss who they thought would be best at the job.  I also told the students that in their groups they could decide to keep the same jobs during the entire build or if they wanted to rotate the jobs at any time.  I gave the students voice and choice with their contracts.   My students seemed to do well with the contracts overall.  I would have to meet with groups periodically to make sure they stayed on task and not vary far from their contracts.  I really like the group contracts and plan to use them again during my PBL implementation.

Blog Post #1 (Barwick)

First PBL Implementation Observation

As a reminder, this project was our "21st Century Progressives" unit in which students learned about the Progressive Era from the early 20th century, then applied concepts and ideas to current world issues.   They were given research time from approved sites on a Symbaloo I created to learn more about world issues, then they chose an issue that was important to them to focus their project on.

The lesson that Dawn observed was one of the first days of actually planning their projects.  The students helped me to create a class rubric of elements they felt would be important to grade them on, and they were tasked with making a list of materials they would need (including anything I would need to procure for them), as well as outlining what their product would be and how they would accomplish it.  My biggest concern with a project like this is student engagement and autonomy, so I had asked Dawn to specifically help me observe this with my students.  Overall, they did seem to be engaged while discussing their materials and products with their groups.  From watching the video clips and my own observations of the room, I felt like most students stayed on task and were enjoying planning how they would implement their project ideas.

I facilitated the groups, although I did notice from the video that I spent a long time on one group and not as much on others.  Reflecting on this, the girls in the bullying group that I spent the most time on were not as animated as the other groups in getting their project going so I felt I needed to help them the most.  One of those students is a non-native speaker (she is from Africa), and while she has good ideas, she is not always bold in explaining them.  The other two girls are generally quiet as well, so I felt that I needed to help them the most.  However, if I had left them alone more, would they have ultimately been fine? (I also think I worked with them more because, as an avid reader, I was most excited about their idea of writing a book about bullying, and I wanted it to get off to a great start!  I need to remember to show that same enthusiasm for all projects.)

I also noticed from the video clip that, at least in one group, one student was able to explain who progressives were and their purpose, but not the other one.  That led me to wonder if more students were confused about the overarching idea of the project and who progressives were and are.  I spent more time from then on reinforcing who progressives were back then and making connections to our current projects in order to cement that content knowledge.

At the end of this particular lesson, students were able to explain what their product was going to be, how they were going to implement it, and what materials I needed to get for them in order for them to be successful.  I felt that we had made good progress, and I was pleased that the students seemed to be engaged and working independently for the majority of the lesson.  It gave me hope for future PBL work time!

(That being said, not everything was this smooth sailing....other blog posts forthcoming...)

Class 3: Blog Post 1 - J.L. Mann Visit

It was such a treat to have time to visit J.L. Mann and see how they implement PBL. I really enjoyed being able to sit in on a planning meeting with the teachers. Their use of the critical friends protocol to discuss ideas for new units was great, and I wish this was something that would be easy to implement with my own coworkers. I think it is helpful that they have someone to facilitate this protocol and to be a resource for them as they plan and implement PBL units.

One thing that I found very interesting was how they pair up classes. The pairings that we were able to see seemed to work really well together, at least for the specific projects students were working on at the time. I would imagine that it is very difficult for high school teachers to integrate and/or collaborate with teachers of other subjects. As an elementary school teacher who teaches all subjects, I value the use of integration, especially in the PBL units I have implemented and hope to implement in the future.  It is important for students to continue to see that most real-world tasks are cross-disciplinary, so it is important for them to have skills in multiple subject areas. Seeing this integration first hand made me realize that I can definitely be more intentional about making my PBL projects cross-disciplinary. With new legislation that is going to impact our reading instruction next year, I know that I will need to heavily integrate to continue to implement PBL next year as I may not have as much time to teach science and social studies (which usually provide the driving question for my PBL units).

I also liked how the teachers displayed their driving questions, problem statements, and other elements of their projects on their class project boards. This is something I have already implemented in my classroom so my students can easily refer back to the driving question for our current project. It is a practical, fuss/frill free way to make that information easily accessible to my students.

I am glad we got the chance to see PBL in action. I was worried that I would not be able to take away much because I didn’t know how the high school experience would relate to the elementary experience, but I definitely learned a lot. I would really love to see PBL in action at the elementary level at some point! 

The Caliber of this Cohort - Post #1 - Darstein

I just spoke to Dawn and really feel the need to write this to all "my PBL peeps" (as Mr Tedder would say).

The creativity and passion that I have witnessed all of you putting into your PBL units has set the bar for what I think a PBL should look like.  And that bar is HIGH!!!  
We have learned the 'basics' of a PBL and as I research projects I see those basic elements BUT I rarely see the creativity or feel the passion I see and feel in the projects that come from this cohort.   Someone put each of your names on the list for this class and those folks really nailed it.  I am encouraged that our children are able to experience each of you in the classroom.  My dream school is a school where every teacher has the commitment, creativity, and courage to teach at full speed like each of you have demonstrated.   

Thanks for all you have taught me - I am inspired and honored to have learned from some of District Six's BEST!

Scott Taylor - blog #3 - looking at the final product

As I reflect on the unit I was very impressed at how my students completed the press conferences.  Throughout the unit they did awesome in their research, with the guest speaker, and during the speed dating concept.  Then, a difficult observation happened.  It was our next to last day and the students were practicing for the final presenations the next day and I had the classroom set-up as if were the real thing.  The podium was out, the American flag was on the stand, and the blue curtain was hung.  I had invited two English teachers in to give some feedback to the students when each of practiced up at the podium.  Then, and individual popped in to observe me for my 5 year renewal and she asked, "I thought I was here to watch you teach science."

Class 3 - Blog #2

I don't know if you noticed, but this blog is being posted on the same day as my "Tears of Our Forefathers" blog #1. So, I just want to say, even though I'm really struggling with collaboration and a cooperative classroom atmosphere, at the same time, I believe I have grown and gotten better in three areas: students developing the Need 2 Knows, assessing concepts learned throughout the process and project, and providing feedback to students (not necessarily students giving the feedback - see previous post - but me giving the feedback).
Something that stood out to me at JL Mann is that one of the math teachers said they had their students take the same tests that students not in the NewTech program take. This proves to the students and other teachers that these students are learning at least the same concepts as are taught in traditional classrooms. I love this idea and feel very validated when my students, now, take a similar quiz or test that students in other classes take. They may not do better, but they are performing at least on the same level as other students. However, they actually learn a lot more - as we all know. This has been a revelation to me. It has been as if the heavens opened up, a holy light shone down on my classroom, and the angels broke into the hallelujah chorus. And then, the Lord said, "Karen, PBL is awesome. No validation needed, but just in case, you're kids are rocking it in this area." Thank you, Lord. Amen. (I hope these last statements are not misconstrued. I am a God-fearing woman, but I do believe He has a sense of humor - I mean He created us. Also, when I conduct my class in a PBL fashion, I believe I am working as if for the Lord. We all are.)

Scott Taylor Blog #2- JL Mann visit

I was very intrigued with the idea of a school within a school such as the one at JL Mann.  The visit was great as we could see how other schools are implementing PBL in the classrooms.  I have since talked with Dr. Smith and he is very excited about this idea at DFC for 18-19 school year.  We have started the process of getting more teachers trained through this PBL class starting this summer.  We brainstormed for about 20 minutes and now we have the ball rolling for training all next year.  We set a tentative date of the end of October to have the plan complete before the course booklet goes to print.  I am looking forward as we can have another avenue for students to be successful at DFC.

Class 3 - Blog #1

I was super excited after Dawn visited my class. I watched the videos and looked at all her pictures and thought, "Wow. My kids are working together better than I thought. There is evidence of collaboration!" However, my kids don't know Dawn very well - she was a visitor. And I believe this situation is much like the parent-child-outside person relationship. My biological kids have been known to be demons in the presence of just my husband and myself (not terrible as I do not put up with foolishness, but still), and experience a complete transformation to angels (halos and all) when they walk through a church or school classroom door. I know this is because they feel more comfortable with us, their parents. Just as my students feel more comfortable with just me, their teacher. They smiled and put their best foot forward, especially when being photographed or videoed by Dawn. I even had one group tell me, "We did you proud, Mrs. Crossley!" So, they were trying to impress Dawn themselves and for me. And I am really grateful for that, but I can't have visitors in my class every day so my students "play nice." I have students who have no problem telling anyone who will listen how much they hate another classmate. Is this my fault? Have I failed as their teacher in some way? Or, did this atmosphere come from previous experience and infect my classroom? If so, what is the antibiotic?
I was really interested, when we toured JL Mann, how collaboration is weaved into the grading. But, how do I do that? I was also interested in the games and activities they mentioned playing at the beginning of the year to promote collaboration. But, what are those games and can I do this mid-semester?
Today was not a good day in room A112. At least not in my view. Can you tell? Y'all please, my shame-o-meter is nonexistent right now. I need your help.

Blog Post #1: Oh Mann! It was SO good to see other teachers doing PBL.

No, that title is NOT a typo.  Our PBL cohort had the opportunity to travel to a high school in a neighboring county: J. L. Mann High School.  We have been developing our own PBL units without seeing it done (except what we could see from online videos).  There is something about actually being there and getting to look and ask questions about the things that are impactful to me that seemed especially helpful.

I stole some great ideas!  Well, I borrowed with permission (but stole just sounds so much more impactful).  Some I put into practice within days of that "field trip."

Group student generated social contracts was one of those.  Students in my classes often say that they hate group work because there is always one person who gets credit for their hard word when they don't do very much work.  This gives students a mechanism for enforcing behavior and for firing a student who isn't doing their fair share of the work.  A student who is fired will either earn a grade of zereo OR they will complete a project by themselves.  You should have heard the classroom gasp when I explained that part of the contract system to them!

Others ideas, I put into practice in the weeks that followed.  There was great bulletin board that a teacher had in her classroom about changing the way that students things about school work.  I adapted that for a bulletin board that went up in the hallway for the entire wing of my school (see image below).

Still others I have on my future implementation list.

The most important thing that I was able to observe, however, was just how teachers managed a classroom when the class was doing projects AND learning content.  It was good to see these management techniques in practice and these teachers monitor and adjust to class needs in real time.

This field trip has left me feeling a lot less stressed about making PBL work in my classroom.