Managing Reading in an Active Learning Classroom! February 29, 2008
Posted by jmacaulay in : Active Learning, Classroom Management, Classroom Organisation, Resources , 6comments
At the workshop on Monday evening, some practitioners were looking for support in teaching reading in an active classroom. It was clear that no-one has yet found the ideal, but for many of us, the best way to inform our own practice is to share (and pinch) ideas which we can make our own. Please feel free to take anything from my experiences that you think might be useful, or use the comments section to share some of your own work. For most of us, all help is gratefully received!
Like every Infant Teacher, reading groups were the thorn in my side!
This is my story of how I have begun to find a way of managing reading in my classroom as I moved towards Active Learning. I appreciate that this is not a solution for all, and that the way I work won’t suit everyone’s context, but it might just stop someone out there banging their head against a brick wall!
With a class of 24 typically energetic and lively five year olds, I was finding it increasingly difficult to “do” two reading groups every day plus individuals. It’s a scenario I’m sure everyone is familiar with - the maths took a bit longer than I thought, it took us ten minutes to find the missing pair of trousers after gym, there are only fifteen minutes left until lunch - and I haven’t heard the Snails do their reading yet! Something has to give!
I began to think really hard about what I could do - this included pestering every teacher I know in the profession in the hope that someone out there had an answer - no such luck! However, one thing was very clear to me - I could not teach all the things I needed to about punctuation, vocabulary, keywords, comprehension, de-coding, tallying, recognition of sounds….you get the idea …..in the space of fifteen minutes. And there is a limit to how many times you can listen to “Kipper at School” without feeling slightly mad. Was I teaching the children or simply hearing them? (Meanwhile keeping an eye on who was at the toilet, how much glitter one girl could put on a cereal packet and if the child who found self- motivation a challenge had managed to do anything.) I knew in my heart that these children infront of me were not learning, merely performing.
Alongside my stress with reading, I had been experimenting with and developing formative assessment strategies as part of my work on the Learning Team with Shirley Clarke. My teaching had been turned on it’s head, and I was doing a lot more class teaching, with built in differentiation, so that I could find time within lessons to give quality feedback to the children about their work. Could I do this with reading too?
I realise that this will not be rocket science to a lot of you, but to me it was a revelation!
We had a Scholastic Book Fair in school at the time, and I just happened to find the catalogue. (My head teacher usually hides these things from me, for the same reasons that my partner confiscates the Next Directory.) Imagine my delight when I found a resource called “Shared Texts” - pieces of text which can be used with the whole class with, wait for it, ideas for teaching activities at the side!
Off I went! To keep myself right, I began to make notes on what I was going to teach - lesson plans. There was also another reason for this. In order to ensure that I was including Formative Assessment strategies into my teaching, I used the lessons plans to indicate the learning intention, success criteria, where I was going to use talking partners, what kind of questions I was going to ask and so forth. I won’t deny that this was a lot of work, but it was worth it. My teaching was focused, well planned and, crucially, it helped me to reflect on my teaching to identify next steps. It also ticked the box for the learning log that I had to keep for Shirley Clarke.
So what did a typical lesson look like?
I’m afraid you’ll need to wait for this bit because I have to go back to school and get my log, but I promise to finish this as soon as I can (after Trinny and Suzannah.)
So……
This is a lesson I used with a new P1 class this year on the 13th September - not long into the session. In fact, the second whole class reading lesson I’d done with them.
Rather than use a text from the Scholastic resource, I made up my own text about a soft toy fox we have in the classroom. Roger the Fox helps with a whole manner of things, from missing your mummy to a bump on the head. I found that the childrens’ experiences of reading were still fairly limited, and I needed to tailor the text to suit the sounds and keywords we’d covered so far.
Roger’s Party
It was Roger’s birthday. He was five. Roger was a very excited fox. He was going to have a party. Roger wanted all his friends to come. He wanted a cake and he wanted to play Pass the Parcel. There was a knock at the door. Roger went to see who it was. It was Billy Goat Gruff. Billy Goat Gruff had brought a present for Roger. It was a……
Lesson Plan
Share Learning Intention with the children:
We are learning to read a piece of text
Learning Activities
* Read through text with the children, encouraging them to join in with any words they knew. The text was up on the board and I used my finger to follow the text as we read.
* Flashcards for sets of keywords (ORT) stage 1 and some words from stage 2. I used the flashcards to look carefully at the words - “How do you know that word says and?”
* Played “Bingo” with keywords. The games were differentiated in the following way:
Children were put into their reading groups (arranged by ability)
Bingo cards matched the keywords that the groups were working on that week
* Read over text again. I read from the text on the board. The children sat with their Talking Partners to read from copies of the story which had already been glued into their reading jotters. The children took turn to use castanets to identify keywords they recognised as we read together while their partner looked on and helped.
* ADDED SUCCESS CRITERIA TO THE DISPLAY ON THE BOARD
Look for clues: * read the keywords you know
* Think and wink! (This is wait time or thinking time in our class. The children are invited to “have a think and give me a wink.” At the beginning of the term, I had to train the children not to put their hand up. We managed this with some success, but the children still wanted a way to signal to me that they were ready. I didn’t want a signal that would be distracting to children who were still thinking, so we came up with this idea. It is also very amusing watching children wink from my side!)
was - referred to the “silly sentence” we had used earlier in the week to help us remember how to build the word “was” - wolves are stinky. The children had made pictures to match their sentences which were displayed on the wall for the children to use as a reference.
” Think and wink” - how can we remember how to build this word?
Can you write this on your whiteboard? Talking partners checked and helped where necessary.
* CHALLENGE! - on your text, can you highlight 8 words that say “was“? (The children love this activity - great excitement when the highlighters come out!)
* ADDED SUCCESS CRITERIA TO THE DISPLAY ON THE BOARD
Look for clues: * read the keywords you know
*remember the silly sentence - wolves are stinky
* Modelling - a good and bad example
Roger was a fox
Roger saw a fox
With Talking Partners, which word says was ?- Prove it!
* Word building- use magnetic letters to build the word was, then saw. What did we notice?
* ADDED SUCCESS CRITERIA TO THE DISPLAY ON THE BOARD
Look for clues: * read the keywords you know
*remember the silly sentence - wolves are stinky
* look at the first sound in the word
In order to get the most out of the piece of text, I always make sure that I have some sentence work in the whole class reading lesson.
* Think and Wink - Why does Roger have a capital R at the beginning?
( In our class, we use a green pen to write a capital letter and a red pen to mark punctuation. The colour coding is great for highlighting punctuation and is very visual.)
* Children were then asked to find 3 words that said “Roger” in the text and give each one a green capital letter. (To keep thinks moving, as soon as the children are finished the task, they come to the board and take turns to repeat the activity on the class text. I have found that by the time this is completed, most children have finished and have joined us. It also helps the children who are unsure as they can check their work against the board. As well as this, “dead time” on the carpet is avoided.
* Talking Partners - “Tell me about these sentences:”
He was five
he was five.
He was five.
This activity helped to reinforce work we had already undertaken about a sentence and how we know it is a sentence.
* Use a green capital letter pen and red full stop pen to mark a sentence in the text. I modelled two sentences on the board before the children were sent off to do this. As the children worked, it was fairly easy to pick out the children who could do this independently and those who needed direction from the board. I was then able to challenge thinking by asking some children to find another sentence…and another!
* Put a pink circle around another sentence that begins with “He.”
* Keywords challenge! Children were given differentiated lists of keywords to find/highlight in their piece of text. To add a bit of excitement, we used a five minute timer. Again, the children were invited to find the words on the class text when they were finished.
Snails Bees Butterflies Ladybirds
wanted the and a
have It the and
went to to the
* Prediction - Think and wink - What do you think the present was? Shared ideas with Talking Partner, then Talking Partner reported idea back to the class, encouraging children to listen to each other. Five minutes to draw Roger’s present in their reading jotters. I then chose five children to tell me 2 things about their idea.
* Time to read! This was probably the most stressful part of the lesson and really put myself to the test! As the children were practising to read the text, I went around the children individually and identified a part of the text that I wanted them to be able to read. I used all the observations I noted during the lesson to help me decide what the children were capable of, as well as my knowlegdge of where the children were in terms of keywords and reading books. This is where it is crucial that you know your children! However, the more reading lessons like this that I’ve done, I get to know the children better. I used a “Special” reading pen ( pink highlighter that flashes!) to put a box around the text each child was to read. For some children, I simply highlighted a sentence or two. For others, I highlighted the whole text.
The children were then given time to share their reading with their Talking Partner, then I invited four children to read their passage to the class.
* Plenary
We went back to look at the Learning Intention, and the children were asked to select a “Tickled Pink Cube” or “Green for Growth Cube” from the basket to indicate “Did you achieve the Learning Intention?” The children then divided into groups and considered how this could be made easier or more challenging the next time.
” It could be longer.”
” It could just have tallying words”
“It could have all the words that I know”
This gave me something to think about for the next lesson!
This method of teaching has turned my practise upsidesdown, and it ticks all the boxes for Active Learning! One thing I have noticed is that although I often use texts from the Scholastic resource, I very rarely use the suggested activities because I have to tailor what we do to the needs and current interets of the children - but they’re great for ideas.
If you can take anything from my experience, please do - and don’t forget to leave a comment and let everyone know how you got on!
The Third Workshop February 27, 2008
Posted by jmacaulay in : Uncategorized, Workshop Ideas , 1 comment so farThe third and final workshop for this term took place on Monday evening, for practitioners in the Tranent and Haddington clusters. It was great to see such a good turnout.
The workshop itself followed the same format as in previous sessions. Presentations were given from Angela Paul, who spoke about moving observations from nursery into Primary 1, Jen Macaulay, who invited teachers to think about how their classroom is set up and organised, and Elise Sutherland, who took us through “A Day in the Life of Primary 1 at Gullane Primary.” Claire Lavelle then took the group through a workshop session, focusing on what has gone well for teachers in terms of Active Learning , and where people felt they would like more support.
From these discussions and from comments made on the evaluation forms, many teachers felt that they would like to find out more about reading and active learning. This is something that some members of the ASG have been developing in their own classrooms and hope to write about their experiences later in the week. These will be posted on the Teacher Support pages.
The workshop was well received and practitioners offered positive contributions to the discussions. Again, this meeting highlighted the value of being able to meet other teachers and discuss how people are developing their practice. There will be further drop-in sessions next term, so please look out for dates and times!
Thank you to all the teachers who have come along to share their ideas and the help make these workshops successful. Thanks too, to Haddington Infant School for hosting the event.
The second workshop February 22, 2008
Posted by Stephanie Gilhooly in : Active Learning, Blogroll, Workshop Ideas , add a commentThe second workshop was held in East Linton primary school on February the 19th from 4pm -6pm.
After fighting the fog and finally reaching our destination we could begin the Active Learning workshop! Again the presentation was given by volunteers of the ASG (Associated School Group) for Active Learning. Angela Paul (St. Gabriel’s Primary) talked about the observations and assessments that happen in the nursery and how they could be used in primary one to aid the development of the transition from nursery to P1. Elise Sutherland (Gullane Primary) and Stephanie Gilhooly (Loretto RC Primary) talked about a day in the life of their classroom focussing mainly on the management of active learning, assessments and observations. Claire Lavelle (St. Martin’s Primary) talked about 4 different examples of ways to set up and work within a classroom and the possible pitfalls of each model were explained.
The staff from East Linton that attended the workshop were pleased that they had this opportunity to share and discuss good practise. Some staff members highlighted the successes that they were experiencing with active learning, they found that in general the children were more responsive and motivated in their learning. A fantastic finding! Most of the teachers commented that they found the workshop session very supportive and helpful and enjoyed having the opportunity to discuss and share good practise with others.
Other very interesting comments that were made was that the active learning approach to learning and teaching could be more focussed from P4 upwards. If you have any suggestions that you are willing to share on what you are doing with your middle/upper class please drop us a line and we will publish ideas on this website so that teachers in the middle and upper stages can share their ideas.
In the discussion part of the workshop it was clear that some teachers liked parts of the planning formats that members of the ASG have been trailing. You can find some of these formats on this website in Teacher Support - planning page. It is important to state here that these formats have been created by class teachers that are trying out different ways of planning to find ones which best suit the needs of their class and the way in which they work, they are a work in progress. What works for one member of staff in one school may not work for another. If you would like to put your planning formats for others to view on this site please get in touch and we will be happy to do so.
I’ll take this opportunity to thank East Linton Primary school for their attendance and contributions.
Visit to West Dunbartonshire February 22, 2008
Posted by jmacaulay in : Active Learning, Classroom Organisation, Resources , add a commentMonday, 18th February - an early and chilly start for the members of the Early Years Strategy Group as we headed through to West Dunbartonshire for the day! The aim of the visit was to look at examples of good practise within the authority and to “pick the brains” of the people there who were involved in developing literacy packs for use in schools throughout West Dunbartonshire.
Our first stop was St Peter’s Nursery. It was interesting to see the way that this nursery was organised and how the staff there had resourced the three very different rooms. Because outdoor learning was limited, the first room was set up as a place for the children to move around and take part in creative activities. The second room was a busy place with spaces for imaginative play, construction, music and ICT. The snack tables and kitchen area were also located in this room. However, we were all impressed with the resourceful way that the third room had been transformed into a calm, quiet area. There were lots of textures, fabrics, natural resources and dens for the children to explore as well as a space for the children to come together. The staff were each allocated a group of children, which interestingly were a mix of three and four year olds - in West Dunbartonshire, both age groups are taught together, where there are opportunities for peer learning.
Next we went to join the Primary One class at St Peter’s Primary. The authority have invested in Early Intervention Teachers who are allocated to schools with the specific purpose of developing literacy. We observed a group of Primary one and two children having great fun building words in shaving foam with the EI Teacher, then followed them back into the classroom. It was reassuring to see that the set up and organisation of the class was similar to the model some of our own infant teachers in East Lothian are developing.
After lunch, we then heard from Linda Booth, a QI for the authority, about how the Listening and Talking, and writing packs were developed and rolled out onto schools. The main focus of these packs was on the delivery of the learning and teaching, ensuring active engagement, learning and attainment for all. This was particularly helpful, as this is the kind of thing the group has been working towards back in Haddington. West Dunbartonshire are currently in the process of developing a similar pack for reading.
With a lot to think about and even more to discuss, we headed back home.
Thanks to everyone in West Dunbartonshire who ferried us around, let us observe, chatted to us and made us feel very welcome!
The first workshop February 15, 2008
Posted by Stephanie Gilhooly in : Assessing Active Learning, Blogroll, Classroom Management, Classroom Organisation, Workshop Ideas , add a commentThe first follow up workshop to the drop in sessions that happened last term took place yesterday on the 14th of February at Campie Primary School.
The opportunity was given for teachers and nursery nurses in the early years to come along and listen to some volunteer members of the ASG talk about different aspects of Active Learning. Firstly, Angela Paul from St. Gabriel’s talked about her experience in implementing and managing observations and assessments in the nursery. Jen Macaulay from Yester Primary then gave a presentation which focused on discussing different ways in which a classroom can be set up. She then went on to look at four examples in detail emphasising the possible pitfalls of each model. Next Stephanie Gilhooly from Loretto RC Primary talked about the way in which she manages Active Learning within her classroom referring to both a P1 class and a P3 class. She talked through a typical maths lesson and how she planned for assessments and observations within it. Collaborative planning with groups and whole class were referred to next. Finally she talked about the planning formats that she has made and how she feels they are working. Elise Sutherland then gave a description of “A Day In The Life of P1 at Gullane Primary” which included how she organised her Numeracy and Literacy lessons, how she made best use of support and parent helpers and how she collaboratively plans with the children. This made up the presentation aspect of the workshop.
Next, the more active part! Claire Lavelle from St. Martin’s organised workshops in which the audience was split into two groups. They were given a list of questions to discuss which were then reported back to the group as a whole. The questions helped people reflect on their practice:
1.What did you focus on?
2.What did you try which was more active?
3.What worked and why?
4. What didn’t work and why?
5. Next steps?
The feedback session that the groups gave was very positive, both groups highlighted many aspects of their practice that were working well, things that they were trying out and things that they were having difficulty with:
*Working well
-collaborative planning -classroom organisation (group rotation) -formative assessment -planning formats -whole class approach to reading
*Ideas being tried out
-Learning logs (P1-P7) sent home to parents to discuss with child -classroom setup i.e setting introducing zones into the classroom -giving it all a go! -training the children to be able to work independently without adult support - management of timing children in areas
*Areas of Difficulty
-time to set up resources -not having enough support in the classroom
In regards to all the areas outlined above it is fair to say that individual teachers are finding different aspects of implementing Active Learning easier than others. What we have found to be important here is that each teacher and nursery nurse at this workshop was striving to implement Active Learning in their classroom with their children in mind so that it works for them in their own specific environment.
The workshop ended with a massive thank you to all that attended the workshop and a list of what Active Learning is and what it is not:
Active Learning is:
- Focused on learning
- Relevant to child’s experience
- Involves children making some decisions about their learning e.g. collaborative planning, choice of resources
- Enabling children to investigate and explore in learning contexts using a range of resources and spaces
- Working in pairs, trios and groups and as a whole class
- Enabling children to practise their learning and explain their learning to others
- Increasing independence in learning
- Increasing confidence in learning
- Using planning formats which focus on key learning intentions whilst remaining responsive to child-led contexts
- Increasingly using observations as one way of recording progress
- Fun and motivating for children and staff
- Increasing pace and challenge
- Challenge pupils thinking
Active Learning is not:
- Focused on simply setting up activities
- Having children moving around to keep them “active”
- All about having “choosing” areas
- Having lots of different resources out all of the time
- The “Integrated Day”
- Allowing children to “choose” all day
- Abandoning whole class teaching time
- Abandoning rigour and tracking
- Children playing (although there is still a place for learning through play and for being play-ful!)
The presentations, discussions and workshop activities all provided a great opportunity for people to share ideas on their practice and listen to the ideas of others which can inform the practice of individuals. There was a very positive atmosphere at this workshop and I would like to thank the teachers and nursery nurses again for attending and their valued input, especially considering the short notice!
Developing Literacy at Haddington Infants February 6, 2008
Posted by jmacaulay in : Assessing Active Learning, Planning for Active Learning, Workshop Ideas , add a commentYesterday, the Primary 1 staff at Haddington Infant School and the Early Years Strategy Group got together to plan an approach to teaching literacy.
The first question we asked ourselves was, “What would a literate child look like?” In pairs, we made mindmaps of our ideas, then went on to develop these further by adding the skills a child would need to have to become literate.
From this, we then went on to think about the key elements in literacy and how they could be tracked. The system the group came up with was relevant to Haddington Infants, as it took into account the shemes of work used and the resources available. The tracking grid was developed to include the milestones that a child would need to reach on their journey to literacy.
Obviously, the next step was to make the system legible!
Here is the tracking grid, although it is still work in progress! There are still a few things that need to be considered eg.which common words list will be used. Hopefully, when it’s all finalised it will enable the teachers to track where the children are and identify next steps for teaching and learning.
language-progressions-haddington-infant.doc
From the tracking grid, we were then able to put together a couple of possible long term planning formats. Again, these are work in progress, and will need to be tried and tested to make them relevant and manageable for the teachers and management in this school.
Language forward plans 1Language forward plans 1Active Learning workshops February 5, 2008
Posted by jmacaulay in : Active Learning, Events , add a commentWorkshop details are as follows:
Thursday, 14th February
For teachers in the Musselburgh and Prestonpans clusters to take place at Campie Primary School, 4:00 - 6:00
Tuesday, 19th February
For teachers in Dunbar and North Berwick clusters to take place at East Linton Primary School, 4:00 -6:00
Monday, 25th February
For teachers in Haddington and Tranent clusters to take place at Haddington Infant School, 4:00 - 6:00
