Today you will learn the most important thing that you will learn in your life

Write the first word that comes to your head when I say a word Blue Fish Game Hair Ring Wild Look at each of the words you wrote. Try to figure out why your brain made the connection it made to give you that word. Talk with your partner on your thoughts.

How does your brain learn?

Dog Four legs Fur Barks Licks Me Jumps up on me Example with a young child who has never seen a dog.

Four Legs Furry No, It’s a Cat!!!! Dog !!!!! Purrs, Only licks itself, basically ignores me

Everyone’s Brain is Lazy Our brain is wired to do things automatically when we have certain connections and have done them enough times (walking, talking, eating) You have read enough words, that often you don’t need to think too much-Your brain does it automatically, but that doesn’t mean you are learning anything new just by reading the words

How does your brain learn? Your brain makes a connection to something else you already know. Then it uses what it already knows to help it understand new information This is why we ask you to try and make connections to things as you learn. So…..The more you know, the easier it is for you to learn.

Metacognition Meta- means Self Cognitive-having to do with thinking

What’s 1+1=___ What’s = Even though you know how to add, your brain doesn’t do this problem automatically Our brain is wired to do things automatically when we have certain connections and have done them enough times (walking, talking, eating) You have read enough words, that often you don’t need to think too much-Your brain does it automatically, but that doesn’t mean you are learning anything new just by reading the words

What is Meta cognition? Taking the time to analyze what is going on in your brain as you learn Using different strategies to help you learn new ideas Figuring out what you know, what you don’t know, what you understand, what confuses you,and how you learn things best Meta refers to yourself Cognition refers to acquiring information and knowledge.

Meta cognitive strategies Predicting- Using what you know to decide what will happen next Visualizing-Make images in your head that help you see what you are thinking Questioning- Wonder why things are what they are,and why it is important to know Making Connections-you learn from comparing it things you already know Inferring- Using what you know and clues given to understand something Check back- Knowing there is something you don’t understand and trying to figure what to do Summarizing and Synthesizing- Determining what is important to know, and deciding how that affects what you think Which of these strategies do think you do already? Which do you think you need to practice more?

Meta cognitive strategies Predicting- Using what you know to decide what will happen next

Meta cognitive strategies Visualizing-Make images in your head that help you see what you are thinking Inside, the school smelled smartly of varnish and wood smoke from the potbellied stove. On gloomy days, not unknown in upstate New York in this region south of Lake Ontario and east of Lake Erie, the windows emitted a vague, gauzy light, not much reinforced by ceiling lights. Talk to your partner about the sights, sounds, smells, and mood this paragraph suggests.

Meta cognitive strategies Questioning- Wonder why things are what they are, and what else do we want/need to know The Twinkie defense- A man claimed that eating too many Twinkies made him kill someone. What do you wonder about with this situation? Why do we need to know that we are made up cells? Why would it be important to learn this?

Meta cognitive strategies Making Connections-you learn from comparing it things you already know: Things you have seen or heard (Text to World) Thing you have read (Text to Text) Things you have experienced in your life (Text to Self) Ebola is a highly contagious disease.

Meta cognitive strategies Inferring- Using what you know and clues given to understand something Taylor was talking to her friends at the beginning of class. They giggled until it was time for class to start. As her teacher stepped in front of the whiteboard, Taylor grabbed her pencil and began to take careful notes. She paid close attention to her teacher's instructions. Her teacher announced that they would be having a test over the new lesson. What can you infer about Taylor?

Meta cognitive strategies Identifying a problem/Check backs- Knowing there is something you don’t understand and try deciding what to do But wherefore do not you a mightier way Make war upon this bloody tyrant, Time? And fortify your self in your decay Which this, Time's pencil, or my pupil pen, Neither in inward worth nor outward fair, Can make you live your self in eyes of men What is the message the author is trying to share with you?

Meta cognitive strategies Summarizing and Synthesizing- Determining what is important to know, and deciding how that affects what you think The sky is not blue. When you see a blue sky you only see blue because all the other colors were absorbed in the air. The reason we see the sky as blue is because the molecules in the air scatter the light absorbing most wavelengths of light except for blue.blue sky What is the main idea of this paragraph and how does it change you thinking if you didn’t know this?

Your Learning-Making Your Brain Learn You have to practice these strategies to think about the connections you are making so your brain will do it automatically That’s why we always ask you to: make predictions, summarize and decide what is most important analyze what the author means, make connections to yourself, things you have read, seen, or heard about. Experienced learners do these things automatically.

Exit Slip Rank the cognitive strategies based on your opinion of importance with 1 being the one you think is most important and so on.