Helen Reed - Blog Post 5 - Second Observed Visit

Blog Post 5: Second Observed Visit

Last week, Dawn came to observe my class doing Critical Friends for my second visit. In my last blog post I talked about how I used Critical Friends as part of a writing unit to help with editing and revision. Since that was successful, I knew my students would be ready to try Critical Friends again, only this time as part of our project critique. My students started a Genius Hour project back in the fall, yet due to everything that happens at school, it got pushed to the back burner. I knew that I wanted to bring it back before the end of the school year, so I knew if Dawn came for my Genius Hour, it would give me an excuse to pull it back out. So, we have restarted Genius Hour! My students were very excited when we began working on our projects again. The first day we pulled it back out we had to spend some time finding our notes again in our notebooks and just remembering what our projects were. I also gave each child a sticky note and asked them to tell me what their next steps were for their project.

For the visit, my students spent the first part of Genius Hour participating in Critical Friends. We reviewed the protocol and then M. got up and shared his PowerPoint he had finished on his project, Nerf Gun Modifications. He did a nice job sharing and then my students gave him feedback. Most students did a good job of staying on topic and mentioning things they liked about his project. I did have to model an example after one student said that he liked his haircut… My students also gave good wonderings. One student was a little confused about one type of nerf gun, so he asked if M. could add a picture of it. M. said that was a good idea and is going to search and try to find one to add to that slide. After M.’s presentation, I reviewed with the student’s their need to knows for the work time. Students still completing research would look for good sources to take notes from and record them in their notebooks. Students that said they needed help with Powtoon or Animoto, based on their sticky note from the other day, would come to the back to workshop Powtoon/Animoto with me. Students that had finished their research would begin working or continue working on their project.

Overall, I thought the lesson went well. Also, I am so glad that I’ve brought Genius Hour back. I think it is a great thing to end the year with. With testing coming up, I know that I can give students time after testing to work on their projects. I know they will be excited about it and probably won’t consider it to be work. My plan for their projects is to hold a Gallery Walk at the end of the year when I do my classroom awards day/party. I plan to invite their parents which will allow the students to share their projects with an audience, give us closure, and help us to celebrate the end of the school year.