While reflecting on this
experience, I was reminded of the Dr. Seuss book, Oh, the Places You’ll Go! In the middle of the first class there were moments where I was over whelmed, had no idea where I wanted my project to go, and eventually in the middle of the week decided to change my topic and completely start over. My head was spinning and I felt lost--
But, once I figured out what I was doing I was ready to fly. At the end of the week I felt like I had a new perspective on teaching, ideas to
enrichment my current unit of studies, and had a tool belt full of new tools to
help me succeed.
As I worked to implement the first PBL I thought through every detail of every lesson. I made sure to incorporate collaboration opportunities, hands on science lessons,sustained inquiry, real world examples and experiences, reflection time, and integration. While doing all of this, I felt like I had so many options and I needed to figure out what works for my students and myself. There were ideas shared in our class that I wanted to try but after reflecting on my students at that point in the year I knew these were "not-so-good streets" for me at the moment.
After the second class I set three goals for my next PBL-improve presentations (audience and variety of presentation tools), co-created rubric, and community involvement. I feel I conquered rubrics, made significant improvement in presentations, but community involvement is still a work in process. My presentations have consisted of peer groups, younger students, and adults through digital feedback. I also feel more comfortable using new digital tools and I am glad my students were exposed to multiple ways you can present content. While I had speakers come in to discuss our topic and parents will be coming for our Genius Hour presentations this will be a focus for me next year.
There are two words that would sum up my PBL experience in my classroom this year...VOICE and CHOICE!! I can honestly say my students have been in the driver seat of this process, and I have been the navigation system. By me navigating, I have directed them down the right roads, as bumpy as they were at times, to finally make it to our final destination. I have learned there is great power in choice. I have seen students who couldn't read, find information from various sources. I have seen students who were never engaged, come alive and flourish. And I have seen some of my brightest students challenge themselves. My second graders have proven to me that when you build firm relationships, learn how to work together, and provide opportunities for students to take control of their learning you are setting students up to succeed and move mountains!
I am looking forward to continuing my PBL journey next year and making new units and revising old units to make them better. I am ready for my next mountain!
I love your analogy of the navigation system. As the teacher and facilitator, you set the final destination but the driver (students) get to pick which route they take. There is also a lot of times where you might need to "recalculate" where you are so that the driver can get back on track.
ReplyDeleteI love the inclusion of Dr. Seuss in your reflection! You have done an awesome job this year, and I know the things we are still not confident in right now will get better over time. Congratulations!
ReplyDeleteHi Lindsey,
ReplyDeleteI really loved how you used "Oh the Places You'll Go!" as your theme for your final reflection. Just another example of your creativity and thoughtfulness. You summarized your experience in the cohort realistically and I've seen how your students have been successful with project based learning because you've approached it by filtering every suggestion and structure through the lens of what works best for you and your students. This has ensured that it's been developmentally appropriate for your second graders while also challenging for them. This has ensured that not only was it the "right" strategy but it was the "right time" for implementation. I can't wait to see where you are going to take them next.
Sincerely,
Dawn
"Oh the Places You'll Go" is such a great analogy for PBL. While there are many bumps and sometimes setbacks along the way, we still arrive at where we want to be. It may not be the route you had in mind (to go off of Jonathan), but it's the journey that matters.
ReplyDeleteI love your use of literature. I think this class help me figure out my twists, turns, and confusion about PBL. Through all of the struggles with planning, the end product is well worth it!
ReplyDelete