“I didn’t realize how much I didn’t know until I started collaborating with others.”
-current student
I was so grateful I asked!
A moment is all it took.
An opportunity.
A lifetime of learning took place for me as his teacher.
It all started the day before when I was asked to teach a lesson for The Beaver County Innovation & Learning Consortium. The BCILC is a group of teachers made of three school districts in my county. The districts are collaborating to bring STEAM learning and Maker Education to children. We are currently working on an area of lesson study and I was about to teach a math lesson for my team.
Let me bring you in the loop… My team consists of a gifted educator, a learning support teacher, a superintendent, and myself, a 3rd grade teacher. We chose to have a full inclusion math lesson which included learners from the 9th percentile up to the 97th in the subject area of math.
This in itself created doubt in my head.
I have watched the dynamics of this vast ability range come as a detriment more than a benefit during my years as a full inclusion learning support teacher. I was worried that the lower ability level students would frustrate easily and the higher ones would check out.
I doubted my own impact on their learning up to this point.
THIS IS NOT TYPICAL OF ME!
I was trying to close the door on the experience and “protect” my children… all 27 of them! But the mere suggestion of having them all together pressed in my gut and I knew what was best… include all students!
I needed to stay focused on the goal. To observe students using the 4Cs (Collaboration, Communication, Creativity, and Critical Thinking) with their groups. There was no doubt this would be observed!
Typically my students have voice and choice when collaborating. They are incredible at choosing people they can thrive with and in turn push themselves to conquer the goal set. But on this day, the groups were picked for them. I was so nervous. I didn’t want them deflated before the lesson even began, but I went with it mainly because it made me nervous and I thrive outside my comfort zone.
I started the lesson with a hook first thing in the morning. A pirate bucket covered up with a sign reading DO NOT OPEN UNTIL MATH! Oh I had them, right where I wanted them. Then I started the lesson with a typical Mrs. Nan moment of craziness because my kiddos know crazy and fun go hand in hand with learning. There I was…putting my sweat band on with a jump rope ready to roll!
The chosen math problem was a poem about jumping rope that tied in fractions. Simple? Well, considering we are smack dab in the middle of a VOICE PBL and my students just wrote “Odes”, but have never learned fractions this was definitely a SMASH MIX UP of learning! Literally one student asked if this was math or reading class. I WAS LOVING THAT MOMENT TO THE CORE!
Groups were formed and off they went. This is when my keen observation skills went into hyper-mode! I just took it in. Some literally did not know where to begin, but were not giving up. My students are “raised” on T.R.U.E. G.R.I.T. in my class and this was a time for that to shine!
But here I was noticing what I felt was different. I noticed:
- Sketch noting… in math? What? Why?
- Numbers that weren’t even in the problem.
- Confusion for a higher level learner.
- Full engagement for most, but most is not enough for me!
- I was stuck… stuck on the learner that I though would get it, but “appears” to have checked out. He never checks out. What is going on?
- Jump ropes out. String being cut. Rulers being taped to the ground. Pure madness.
- One higher level learner “checked out”
The lesson came to an end. We debriefed and gained great insight to what they knew, what they felt they needed to know to complete the problem, and yes the 4Cs were fired up and easily noted.
The next day came. I questioned it all… Did this have impact? Did this opportunity pay forward? I couldn’t help but think about that one student who appeared “disengaged”.
SO I ASKED!
Me: So tell me about yesterday’s lesson… what did you think?
Student #1: It was cool. I liked it
M: What did you like?
S: I really liked how “Student #2” was sketchnoting
M: I saw that! I didn’t expect that in math… what are your thoughts?
S: I didn’t expect it either, but I was so happy he did it. It really helped me make sense out of the problem. I’m used to just looking at the numbers and figuring it out, but I couldn’t figure it out until I saw him sketch-noting. It distracted me at first because I’m not used to that way of thinking, but then it really helped me.
M: WOW! That is amazing! Was there anything that you didn’t like? Anything you would change?
S: No, not really. It was a great mix of people and ideas. I would definitely want to work with “Student #2” again because he thinks so different than me. The problem pushed me. I couldn’t figure it out. I am really happy that I have people to work with this year.
“I didn’t realize how much I didn’t know until I started collaborating with others.”
M: THANK YOU! THANK YOU! THANK YOU! Thank you for taking the time to talk with me and sharing your feedback. I thought you were checked out. Bored. I had no idea that was what unfolded for your group.
S: S-M-I-L-E
Note:
- Student #1 is 97th percentile in Math
- Student #2 is 9th percentile in Math
This teacher just learned another great lesson!
I was so grateful I asked!
A moment is all it took.
An opportunity.
A lifetime of learning took place for me as their teacher.
#collaboration
T.R.U.E. G.R.I.T. 