October 17, 2012

Warm up If your life in a multi-graded classroom were a TV show, which TV show would it be and why?

Your questions...  I chose this inservice in the hopes of gaining some insight into how to integrate special needs students working at various grade levels within an inclusive classroom.

 I would like ideas for integrating ELA 20 & ELA 30, ELA 9 & ELA 10, CHG 7 & 8 with common tasks / diff't themes. Basically ways to integrate some of the outcomes so it is not always teaching one group at a time.

 I am a first year teacher, and I have only had student-teaching experience in multi-level classrooms. So, anything we cover will be helpful and appreciated.

 I guess I would really like some help managing my 1/2 split. My grade ones need so much attention with learning letter sound and making words and some curriculums do not cross any content. Some of my grade two can not work independently and demand all of my time. How do I teach them independently when there is only one of me? I would like help planning units together that can be used for both

 I teach ELA, math, health, arts Ed 3/4. Just looking for ideas to match the curriculums up, anything really. Perhaps some time to plan on my own.

Keys to Success in a Multi-Graded Classroom  Curricular comfort  Assessment  Planning  Instruction  Inquiry  Classroom Management

Curricular Alignment

Think about how to structure your day – together, separate, together. How can you plan so your combined grades are together more than they are separate? What can “together” mean?

Thinks that make you go hmmm...  Is it possible that learning can be “together” and assessment can be separate?  Are there parts of assessment that can be “together”?  Can students be separate but working “together” on big ideas or essential questions?  Like a “regular” class, how can we increase independence so you can step back more often?

Assessment guides planning  When both you and your students know the destination (criteria), everyone becomes empowered to be responsible for the learning journey.  You no longer have to “hold all the cards” for successful learning. It becomes a shared responsibility. Your role is to consistently reinforce and expect the required understanding.  Remember, the premise of UbD is that all planning emerges from the criteria. It provides clarity for everyone.

 Examine criteria  Focus on the commonalities first  Determine the “why” of the outcomes (step back)  Determine the differences  Social Studies example  Physical Education example

 Moving from answering to asking  Moving from solving to seeking  Moving from definitive to open-ended

Encourage students to ask questions which lead to more questions. Write the questions down.

Provide access to multiple resources. Design classroom areas for stimulation, contemplation and idea generation.

Develop a culture of wonder in your classroom. Create situations in which wonder and questions can grow.

More Ideas…  Use a variety of texts to cultivate curiosity.  Connect to personal artifacts and experiences.  Take students beyond their “four walls.”  Offer language frames such as I wonder…, I think…, This is what I see…, This is what it tells me…  Encourage personal responses and personal connections.  Consider before, during and after strategies in every subject.

Curriculum Corner  Grade level supports  Multi-graded supports  Inquiry supports  Instructional tools  Websites (incl. FNMI)

Lunch break 12:00 – 12:45

What do you do to manage a multi-graded setting? How does learning look in this environment?

Conversations with students  Who are you as learners? (Similarities? Differences?)  Given the differences, how should I teach you?  If our classroom is going to work for all of us, what will it be like? (How will it need to function? What roles will each of us play?)  How can I learn more about your starting points, interests and strengths as learners?  If we have a responsive classroom, can it be fair? (What will fair mean to us in this room?)  What will success in this classroom look like? (How will both you and I know you are succeeding?) Adapted from Leading and Managing a Differentiated Classroom by Carol Ann Tomlinson

Predictable routines are essential in a multi- graded classroom.

Give your students as much responsibility for their learning as possible.

Promote on- task behavior by using multiple-ability tasks and identifying competence.

Organize your room for maximum independence.

Be sure students have a plan for getting help when you’re busy with another student or group.

Use anchor activities. Engage your students in talking about classroom procedures and group processes.

Teach students to rearrange furniture, determine roles and use flexible grouping through standing groups (clock, etc).

Provide instructions both auditory and visually.

Classroom Procedures and Routines  Determine them  Clarify the rationale for them  Develop them  Teach them  Apply them  Automatize them  Reflect on, revise, and review them

Multi-grade Opportunities  The teacher has the opportunity to get to know the students extremely well. The teacher, therefore, is in a position to plan for and monitor each student's learning and development in a continuous and more responsive fashion over a two or three year period.

 Students have the opportunity to experience and participate in a much wider range of educational experiences. Opportunities are there for students to encounter academic challenges that stretch their abilities and to review and revisit work that may not have been mastered.

 All students have the opportunity to experience a variety of roles and responsibilities as they progress from being the newest members of the class to being the more senior. Among the most important of these roles is assisting other students learn and modeling desirable attitudes and values.

 The class operates, in the first instance, not as separate grade groups but as a unified community of learners.

Parking Lot