RESOURCES


SAP (Student Action Plan) My students use an organized tool that allows them to stay focused and on task as they complete each day's lessons for the week. Crystal Kirch inspired me by her SSS sheet, so I tweaked mine that would be a good fit for my 7th graders. This action plan is perfect for this age level because they are becoming responsible for their own learning and are trying to become independent learners and problem solvers.  I want my students to TAKE ACTION for their OWN learning. My students filled out a survey online on Google Docs and below are some comments regarding this tool. Click here for an example.

1.Please give me your thoughts on: SAP (Student Action Plan) sheets

Positives:

·“I like it. I think it makes everything easier.”

·“SAP helps me keep everything together and is very helpful.”

·“They are really helpful for remembering stuff.”

·“It is very helpful and I like how you could check the things off as you’re done.”

·“I think it is helpful it helps me keep track of my things.”

·“It is like a professional checklist, and indeed comes in handy.”

·“I think they are very helpful & it keeps us up to date on what we need to do & it can tell us what we did and did not do on a certain day.”

·“I like the SAP sheet because they show you what you have to turn in ahead of time!!”

·"It keeps me in order so I don't miss anything."

·“It helps me be organized.”

·“I like having the chance to get my work done on my own time and not having to worry about having it done at the end of the day.”

·“It helps us know what to do at all times and what we have to turn in.”

·“The SAP sheet is very helpful because it saves you time by not having to remind us what we have to do and when it's do every day and we can get ahead on our work.”

·“Sometimes it confuses me, but other than that I like it a lot. ”

·“I like the sap plan because I can work ahead if I want. ”

·“I love them. They allow me to know what to do and when to do it. I can stay on task. If I don't do something one night I make sure I have room for the next day. ”

·“They help me know what I have to do this week and what's coming up next week to prepare me for it to know I have to pay attention. ”

·“I love it. It lets me know what I have missed if I was absent. It also helps me know we hat we are doing and what I need out and when it’s due. ” :)

·“It helps us get stuff done and we get ahead of what we do in the class room and t helps us not lose our papers because we can just go back to our sap paper and look what we did not do.”

·“Pretty awesome.”

·“They give us more time to do things without, having to listen for the whole period.”

Negatives:

· “It helps me a little.”

· “They are sometimes hard and sometimes not as much.”

· “Too much!”

· “Didn't have time to do it.”

CNQR (Pronounced "Conquer")

With the inspiration from Crystal Kirch's model WSQ ("wisk"), I created CNQR. When my students watch my videos, view my notes (whether it's on a PowerPoint, whiteboard animation video I created, PowToons video, typed-written notes, student-created videos, etc.) or have to complete an activity online ready for class discussion, they must complete their CNQR sheet. The idea here is to encourage my students to conquer their goals when learning or reviewing a concept. Flipped learning is not just sending kids home to watch a video, take notes, and then come back and complete a worksheet. There is much more to it! Keep reading to find out more! I am planning on trying it online, for when I create my next concept video. We shall see how it goes. I will keep you posted.

C = CONNECT: My students have been learning how to make connections since they were in Elementary, and I want to enhance their learning by continuing to have them make connections in learning different concepts in ELAR. I want them to make connections while they are Thinking, Writing, Interacting with each other, Reading, Listening and Speaking to one another. Yes...another Crystal Kirch model...TWIRLS! I absolutely LOVE this acronym. It's something my classes do already, but we never really put it into an acronym like this. It's perfect! I plan to make a colored poster of this in my classroom for next year. (I just made a connection because I was a featured twirler in school!) : )

N = NOTES: My students will be taking notes while they are home viewing my instructional videos. They also need to write down my examples so that they may use these examples as well as my notes when they are collaborating with their classmates in class during discussions or while practicing some sample questions with their teams. How will they take notes? I am still working out the best system because my students tend to "lose" things or "leave it at home". It will just have to be something I will have to deal with when it happens. Not everything is going to be perfect! I am pondering the notion to have my students next year to purchase a 3-subject notebook to carry back and forth to and from home so everything is in a central location (notes, SAP sheet, etc. housed in the pockets) AND purchase a 3-ring classroom binder to leave in the classroom as we always have so they have a place to house things they want to keep at school. I surveyed my current students and they said a 3-subject notebook would suffice. Ideas anyone?

Q = QUESTION: Not only do my students have to take notes, but they must to create a HOT (Higher Order Thinking) question right after they watch a concept video. This is something I have researched from various Flipped websites. Kirch likes this acronym in which many teachers uses this term in their classrooms. I never have called it a HOT question before, which I plan to implement in my room. I teach my students the difference between a thin/thick question and we use question stems to show those differences. We also discuss how to create literal, interpretive, evaluative, and universal questions. It takes much practice in the classroom before they can master this. I like the idea that Kirch uses in her room where her students create their own question (guided or open) and possibly their own answer to have ready for her class discussion when they return the next day. This would be a great quiz to do orally to see if students indeed watched your videos or not, to see if they understood the material or are still confused or it could even become a quick participation grade. You will notice real quickly who watched and who didn't based on your observations in how they collaborate with you and with one another.

R = REVIEW: After my students make connections watching the video, take notes, and ask/answer questions, they will then review their material before coming to class. I don't want my students to mindlessly watch a video and just write words down without attempting to understand what they watched or had written. It is completely okay if a student does not feel that they have mastered understanding the material the first time through. If this is the case, this is where I come in when they arrive to class the next day (as their facilitator). If students take the time and review their notes, then they would feel confident and a little more prepared when they return to class making sure everything they had written down or created (questions) are complete. This will take some training, but it will be doable. I always ask my students to double and triple check all their answers/pages of an assignment. You would be amazed how many 12 year olds skip questions or even pages (because they didn't look on the back) accidentally or due to rushing through and not taking the time to slow down and look over their work. This is an on-going skill I battle all year!! So, it's something I want to implement during the note-taking process while students are viewing my concept videos.

FOREVER FOLDERS: Here's a neat concept a coworker told me-keep a folder of resources in one place-notes, reminders, examples, posters, etc. so that you won't have to make copies year after year. I used to have one flimsy binder that held everything in it, but there were so many posters, notes, and such that I would forget what I had in it. I color code everything in my room such as if you opened my filing cabinet, you would see everything I teach each six weeks. Green folders are grammar, yellow (lemons) are Literature, Poetry is purple, Writing is blue, red is Reading, etc. I purchased matching vinyl pocket folders and protective folders and now I keep the resource sheets in those. I have a class set and they are housed in their own milk crate inside hanging folders. When my students need to look something up, they go and grab and take care what they need. At the beginning, I taught my students to thumb through each resource folder so they can get an idea what's inside. I try to keep everything in order inside the folder as I teach it throughout the year.  

SEATING ARRANGEMENT: Click here to take a look at my new and improved seating arrangement. I plan to try this out this coming Thursday after my students complete their first round of state testing. I will keep you posted on the results. One of the neat things I have my students do as they walk in is to pick up their activity sheets (handouts) as they walk in the door. It save a TON of TIME! Some students will retrieve their binder if it gets too crowded around the pick-up table. They have to be seated before the bell rings and get ready for class. I will take photos and record my classroom this week to show you the improvements.

CONCEPT BOARD: Here is a photo of my concept board I have created and have kept all year long. We teachers love our colored printer that's housed in our LRC (Library Resource Center). I plan to add one more sheet for next year because those concept words listed in the current photo are not the entire concepts I teach. I ran out of room and this is the first year I left them up all year. I usually take them down each six weeks and put up the most current ones. However, I want my students and anyone who walks into our room to see all the amazing concepts my students have been exposed to. You've heard of Word Walls...well, this is as close as I am going to get and I do refer to it quite a bit. It's a great reminder for my students what all they have learned throughout the course of the year. Again, I color-coded the concept words.
















YOU'VE BEEN PINK SLIPPED!

This is something I've been using when my students do not watch a video. Click here for a sample copy. I got this idea from another teacher. My policy is that if you receive 3, you will be attending a silent lunch with me, and will have to make up the video notes anyway. I will attach each one to their behavior log for documentation purposes. We'll see how it goes.







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