A Fresh Start

In the next few weeks, I plan on really getting back to the kind of teaching that I think my students need. It's sad to say, but with my student teacher teaching, I feel like my classroom has gotten much more teacher directed and much less about letting the kids make choices in their learning. Again, in any kind of traditional school, kids can only make so many choices, but they've lost some of them.

All that being said, I think my student teacher will be a great teacher. She's miles ahead of where I was when I started teaching, at least in terms of theories of education and discipline. Once she has her own classroom, I'm sure she's going to do a great job.

Next for me, is really trying to help kids find their creativity. Now, how to do that...

Beyond Discipline

I bought Beyond Discipline by Alfie Kohn last weekend and have been reading all week (in my copious amounts of free time.) I don't know how you can possibly read what Alfie Kohn has to say and still believe that discipline programs work, or are even in the kids best interest. The quotes from these programs that Kohn uses are amazing.

I was talking to my AP and she said that she thought Kohn was operating in the ideal world. And I think that's true. It's hard to do what he talks about. It's hard not to revert back to trying to manipulate kids' behavior. I do it all the time. But I think it's an idea worth shooting for.

How to start a revolution

I'm ready for the revolution. I think working with Pepperdine this year has made me so aware of what real education should be. I think it's made me see that I don't get the luxury of sitting back and taking it easy. I know what's right, I know the best way to teach kids, and I think it's important that people who know what's right do it, and find a way to help others too.

I've been lazy lately. I've been going with the flow at school. Unfortunately, sometimes that means I haven't struck out to make change where change is necessary. I think I was really convicted about that last week when I was watching my student teacher teach. I had a really uncomfortable beginning of the week as I watched my reading class. My reading kids are unengaged. They are afraid to take risks. And their work lacks creativity.

It's my job to get them involved. It is late in the year, admittedly. And I have a student teacher who will be with me for another month. It doesn't matter. It's time for change. And if I need to, I'll take over parts of reading again. I still have to teach grammar in one way or another (blech), but it will be short. I am teaching creativity and hoping I can get that to spill over into everything else.

All this is to say, I am going to be thinking every week, probably every day about how to really let kids focus their learning on what they are interested in. I can't wait to see how it goes.

Accidentally on the right track

So, today, when it was time for social studies, I had a massive headache. I didn't have anything special planned to start our new lesson--just doing a KWL chart, vocabulary and then reading through the text. As I stood up in front of my kids, a different idea hit me. I decided to have my kids write what they knew about the topic by themselves. Then I passed out chart paper and had them share and discuss their ideas, and then write down the ideas that they agree on. After that, they shared them all with the class, and we discussed. The whole time, I resisted giving any information, opinions, etc.

Then, I passed out the packets of information on the topic (we don't have textbooks.) The conversations that ensued afterwards were amazing. The kids were flying through the packets, writing down as much information as they could. They were arguing over where Christopher Columbus was from, and why Italy wouldn't pay for his trip and whether or not people really believed the world was flat back then. They were engaged and they were learning and not because they knew something was going to be on a test, but because they had challenged themselves to find the answers and I, frankly, had almost nothing to do with it. It was awesome.

How kids learn

I've been taking a lot of pictures of my kids using Lego Mindstorms and paying attention to them while they are building and testing things out. I have this great picture of one of my kids, sprawled out on the floor, ready to test her lego car. It's so funny to me because even last year, I would have cringed when I saw the photo because that's not appropriate behavior in a classroom. It's so funny because there are all of these preconceived notions in my head about what's okay in a classroom.

I store all of these thoughts away, all the little thoughts where I start to tell a child they can't do something, ask myself why and realize that the only reason it isn't okay is because that's what I learned somewhere along the line. I've been trying to break myself of the habit of not allowing things just because that's the way it's been or that's what I learned once upon a time.

Changing the World

It's been a while since I've blogged, and I'm sure I have lots of different things to say, but I want to start with the one that this whole blog, this whole website is about, and that's changing the state of education. I watched a movie, Accepted, recently that helped put things in perspective for me. It's funny how I've spent time looking for ways to formulate my thoughts on education, and this one, seemingly cheesy movie was able to make things clear for me. My friends have already pointed out to me that they think I'm crazy based on this, but I urge you to see the movie.

I have a student teacher right now, so I'm spending some time watching instruction instead of actually providing it, and I feel for my kids. She's not bad, she's in fact pretty good but she's still been bought that a teacher's job is to lead and the students need to follow. I do the same thing during the times I'm in charge, so I'm not being critical. More and more I am being led to the idea that at some point, I will need to start my own school. I think I'm being dragged to that place kicking and screaming, but I also know what I want to accomplish can't be accomplised in the public education system.

Changing my name?

I wonder when it was that the teacher became the be all and end all voice that matters? What am I doing to the kids in my room that they have to have my opinion. They have to show me their work and know that I think it's okay before they can move on and finish creating whatever they are creating.

I mean, okay, it's flattering. 32 little people who want, or need your stamp of approval. And when one of them raises up the Hopi pot they are making and says, Miss Rivers, is this good? It's hard to not give that nod of approval.

It's not just that I'm exhausted after an hour spent constantly reassuring children that their work is good (or admonishing them to stop trailing flour across the floor) that I'm thinking about this. I would certainly be less tired if their peers opinions meant as much as mine. But I do think that part of being a student centered classroom is realizing that the teacher isn't the only one in the room with the "right" answers.

The same thing happened in math today. I was showing the students how to do something new and many of the students at the group tables understood. I encouraged them to help each other, but when it was time to do some independent work, I asked kids to come to the carpet if they wanted me to show them how to do it again. 10 of them came, despite the fact that they were sitting next to people who wanted to help them.

I need to work on fostering this environment in my room.