Monday, May 1

Today's Content:

• Tier 1 Priorities:  Questioning Strategies

•  Tier 1 Priorities:  Meaningful Review

• Shifting Culture: Falcon Way Update

Falcon Focus: Questioning Strategies

While this is technically a Tier 1 Priority in Math, good questioning strategies enhance learning for each and every student regardless of content area.  Effective questioning strategies include two key ingredients: first, how we call on students to make sure that all students are accountable for their learning; and second, how we question students to get them thinking about their answers, and, even better, think about that thinking (metacognition).  Together, these two pieces address both sides of the coin, giving you a more complete snapshot of what your students - all of them - know and don't know.

Ingredient #1: Equal-Opportunity Questioning

When you are leading a whole group discussion, it becomes very easy to fall into the "raise your hand" trap.  But the thing is, we already know little-Johnny-who-always-has-his-hand-raised knows the answer.  What about the rest of the students?  How can we make all students accountable for their learning?

Popsicle sticks in 7th grade math

There are countless ways to ensure that you are calling on all of your students.  There are numerous apps and online counters that can help you keep track of students you have called on.  (Check out the BISD Digital Learning Smore "Digital Questioning Strategies" for a list.)  And if you want to go old school, don't forget about good old-fashioned popsicle sticks.  A class set of popsicle sticks with students' names on them allow for random calling and ensure accountability.  Simply draw a stick, read the name, and then set it aside so you remember you've already called on that student.

Popsicle sticks in Mrs. Maupin's class

Truth be told, this used to scare me.  What if little Johnny gets nervous when I "single him out" to answer a question?  Well, here's what I've learned by going into some of your classrooms. If there are countless ways to ensure that you are calling on all of your students, there are even more ways to ensure that you are using the accountability to grow your students, not isolate them.  Differentiate your questioning strategies. For some of your students, you may want to try "echoing" - a strategy where students simply repeat the answer another student has already said.  ("So, Johnny, what answer did you hear from so-and-so?")  For other students, ask them to rephrase another student's response into their own words (paraphrase).  A third option could be to have students turn and talk to discuss their thoughts, and then call on individual students to answer questions.  This way, the unsure student get a confidence boost by having the opportunity to discuss the question with a peer first.  In all of these instances, students are still hearing and speaking the correct answers, even if the thought originated with a different student.

And if randomization is not what you need, there's an added bonus to the old-fashioned popsicle stick. Unlike an online randomizer that you project on the wall, the students can't actually read the names written on popsicle sticks; so if you want to target a student for some reason (you know they know the answer, you know they're not paying attention, etc.) then you can.  And the students are none the wiser.


Ingredient #2: Questioning for Depth

Once you've mastered the art of holding all of your students accountable, it's time to focus in on the depth of your questioning.  How much thinking are your students really doing?  This is where we think about Bloom's Taxonomy.  If everything your students have to answer is simply recall, then you're not digging deep enough.

Also we need to consider wait time.  How long do you really wait for a student to answer?  Do other kids jump in and provide answers in the original student's place?  If you're not sure, test yourself.  Wait time for basic comprehension questions should be at least 3 seconds.  For questions that require higher level thinking skills, wait time should be even longer.  Learn to be comfortable with that uncomfortable silence.  If you don't, you're not giving all of your students enough process time to get to the response they want to give.

Mrs. Harvell uses intentional questioning to help students think for themselves.

For more information on effective questioning strategies, check out the BISD Digital Tech Smore, "Digital Questioning Strategies".  There you will find links to several online randomizers, Kagan questioning strategies, and more.  You can also read "New Classroom Questioning Techniques for the Best Year Ever" from Edutopia.com, which offers several strategies to grow questioning depth.

Falcon Focus: Meaningful Reviews

Testing season is upon us and more than ever you can witness teachers supporting each other as we work together to support all of our students.  In 8th grade, math and reading teachers are working  with their departments to provide in-class remediation every day, giving up conferences and down time to help our kids do their very best on the retest.  In 7th grade writing, students are reinforcing their reading skills by practicing the close reading skills that will help them not only on their STAAR Reading test, but on all of them.  In science, a 7th grade teacher is sharing her time and technology resources to create task cards for 8th grade science review - and then co-teaching in 8th grade classes to help out even more.

There are games, new technology reviews, and reinforcement all around.  Need evidence that the Falcons are all of our kids?  Simply look around at the amazing collaboration going on, and you will know.

8th grade reading classes completed research over historically or scientifically significant people.

7th graders practice close reading skills in their writing classes.

Science review in partners...or individual focus on specific TEKs.

And of course, a little competition never hurt.

Falcon Focus: Falcon Way Update

In the Falcon Way meetings on Thursdays, faculty continuing to work through different thoughts and ideas, ways to grow our campus culture into the community we know is possible.  Below are the Padlet notes from the last two teacher meetings on 4/20 and 4/28.  So far, conversation has been focused more on identifying areas that require our attention.  The meeting this Wednesday, 5/4 will continue to be focused on that.

Starting next week, the group will be working on the actionable pieces of our plan.  If you would like to be a part of our campus culture shift, please feel free to attend a Falcon Way meeting on Thursdays, or to email your thoughts, questions, and concerns to Ann Newhouse, Laurie Istook, Kathryn Humer, or myself.

Click on the image above to go to the Padlet site.

If have any questions or would like some help implementing these or other strategies, please let me know.  And remember...

It's a great day to be a Falcon!