Enhancing Student Engagement with Seesaw

Keeping students engaged during virtual teaching has been a challenge! As a teacher, I am searching for ways to engage my students and check for understanding. One tool I have used from day one is the Seesaw app. While pencil and paper activities are important, they can be tough to monitor virtually. How do we know what students are writing? How can we truly know they have the skills if we cannot see them? The same goes for choral reading. Listening to a class choral read virtually is tough. We need to hear them read independently daily without having to assess them each individually. Seesaw has improved my student engagement by making tasks accessible to ALL learners; the benefits are fantastic.

Today I'm going to share an engagement resource with you that has made my life so much easier. 

Seesaw!

What is Seesaw?

Seesaw is a learning journal ideal for all students. It is an organized digital record of my students' learning. I use it as a tool for collecting evidence of the learning that occurs in my classroom. Parents can be given access to their child's account, receiving notifications every time their child posts a new item.  

Why Use Seesaw?

Seesaw is the perfect way to:

• document learning
• empower students to reflect
• teach digital citizenship and 21st-century skills
• build an organized record of student work
• create a community around learning
• involve families in real-time

Reading Fluency

MLK Statement

Students can:

• Use the photo and video function to:
• explain
• describe
• read fluently
• decode
• label
• defend an opinion and position
• investigate or experiment 
• demonstrate

Reading Fluency

• Use the drawing function:
• in place of paper/pencil
• record while they draw to explain thinking.
• sketch out a story idea
• label something
• show mathematical thinking
• use "think marks" while reading

Mathematical thinking

Showing work using paper/pencil

Showing work using the draw tool

Families can:

• view their child's work and leave comments and encouragement
• use Seesaw as a way to communicate and be up to date on the learning their child is doing in school
• read teachers' reports to help motivate their child to do better because they know their teachers will provide immediate feedback

Teachers can:

• use Seesaw as a hub for students to share their work, and specifically encourage individual reflection and feedback
• use Seesaw as a place not only where student work can be stored, but where teachers and peers can provide encouragement, constructive criticism, and suggestions for improvement
• comment to provide feedback that is constructive
• create formative and summative assessments
• create or use premade assignments
• send individual students differentiated assignments

Differentiated Assignment

Seesaw is an amazing digital tool to add to your tool belt! It has encouraged creativity for my students. It has given my students a place to display their work and showcase their successes during virtual learning. 

Positively Teaching,  

Randi Muehlen

Teaching Wonders Virtually

 Many of us who teach the McGraw Hill Wonders curriculum have probably all been in the same boat throughout this online learning journey.  How do I keep the students accountable for their own learning? How do I know they are actually thinking about the questions I ask? How do I get them to disuss and share with a partner?  These are all the things we do in the classroom to keep the kids engaged and accountable for their learning.  The struggle became very difficult when we went to online learning.  When you pose a question and ask the kids to type their answer into the chat, it often becomes the same 10 kids right? Even if you're using equity sticks or a random selector tool for names, it's difficult when they have not been able to discuss the ideas with their peers first.  Putting kids on the spot like that isn't the best teaching method, but at the same time we want to make sure we are reaching all kids. So what is the solution?

There are just a few things I have done with Wonders to try to bring back in that collaboration piece and student accountability.  It's nothing magical that I do, but it has helped to get the kids talking and working more efficiently.  They know I am going to call on them randomly after I have given them time to discuss in beakout rooms with peers, so most of them are engaged and working as they know my expectations.

Wonders Platform

The Your Turn Book pages, CRC pages, and digital stories are all available on the Wonders digital
platform.  You can assign the YourTurn Book Page digitally.  Then what I do, is I will share my screen and show them how to type on them and save/submit.  For instance, on Day 1 of Wonders instruction for the week, after I teach the vocab lesson, I will assign the vocab practice page.  I will then put the kids in breakout rooms with a partner to work together in creating their vocab sentences, while I'm popping in and out to assist and prod them along.  When we come back whole group then I use the Kagan random selector tool to have the kids share out what they wrote for each vocab sentence.  This is a much better way to go becaause I'm supporting my lower kiddos, EL kiddos, sped kids etc as they have now had the time to work together and talk together, with a partner to create their sentences.

Another option is to retype, or cut and paste, the Your Turn Book questions into a google doc and then assign it on google classroom.  I do this often with the reading comprehensions passage questions.  This way you can keep track of the assignment in google classroom.  In the video here, you can see the kids working to discuss and answer the comp passage questions in the Your Turn Book.  Here I assigned the page digitally.

Its also nice to assign the story you're reading so that struggling readers can play the story when they need to reread it to answer questions.

Anthology Discussion questions

Throughout the Teacher's Manual where you have the discussion questions throughout the story, this is where it becomes a struggle.  In the classroom, you'd stop, pose the question, have students discuss in table groups then randomly call on students to anwer (also incorporating various kagan strategies for discussion during this time).  So in the virtual setting, I type the question into the chat and read it aloud several times.  I tell them they all must respond their thoughts into the chat-they can send to everyone or to me privately.  This way they're not put on the spot answering outloud without having time to talk to a partner, but it also keeps them accountable for participating.  Once we are finished reading the story.  I then type up those questions from the TM into a google doc and put the students in breakout rooms with a partner to again discuss and answer the questions. Then once back together whole group I would use the random selector to have them share out, because they've now had the opportunity to think and discuss and type with a partner. Then they can turn in the assignment for credit.  Doing this really helps me see which students are with me and paying attention.  

Nearpod

I also use the collaborate board in Nearpod to facilitate discussion of the "Making Connections" questions that you see generally at the mid and end of the stories in Wonders.  The Making Connections questions at the end of the paired text ties in all 3 stories from the week and brings focus to the essential question.  Doing this one on Nearpod can help prepare them for doing a RACES writing on the essential question.  It can serve as a prewrite/brainstorm type of discussion.

I hope this gives you a few ideas of how you can incorporate the Wonders workbooks and discussion questions into your virtual lessons, while ensuring that all students are participating and accountable.

Virtually Learning,

Megan Brown

megan.brown@omsd.net

Forever in the Middle: Reading Novels Virtually

 

Reading Novels During Distance Learning

I love reading great novels with students and that is the biggest thing I miss from having students in the classroom. It also wasn't something I was willing to give up during distance learning. In the Spring, my classes were about 2/3 of the way through The Giver when schools shut down, and this school year, my classes have read one novel and started a second last week. Figuring out how best to do this has been a continuous challenge so here is a little insight into what did and didn't work for me.

A Shift in Focus

I use novels to reinforce and practice ELA standards in the classroom.  Since we are so much more limited on instructional minutes this school year, I have had to remind myself that if the students don't understand every single detail of the texts, it's okay as long as they can apply what skills they practiced to new texts or make connections to new material. 

The focus is not on the book itself, it is on the standards while using the book as a resource. 

What does this look like in my online environment? My seventh-grade class is using their novel as a supplement to the current unit where we look at the differences in the way people live in other parts of the world. My intervention class is using their novel as a way of identifying narrative techniques and practicing literature analysis as well as responses to literature: areas that they need extra practice with. Earlier this year, we focused on similar standards with the 8th grade ELA classes as we read The Outsiders.

Asynchronous Reading With EdPuzzle

My eighth-grade students read The Outsiders in the Fall and I was happy to find the chapters available on EdPuzzle. The benefit of using this was that I could see exactly who was completing the reading and I also was able to have them answer questions along the way and received instant feedback on their learning.  The challenge was that the students who really enjoyed reading did not enjoy having to listen to someone else read and the students who were not self-motivated did not complete the reading at all. However, I did like the idea of using EdPuzzle and the feedback I received from it. In the end, it was not the best choice for me.

Synchronous Reading During Zoom

My students last year finished The Giver over Zoom. Since we didn't have a set Zoom schedule like this school year, I scheduled "Reading time with Mrs. Valverde" for anyone who wanted to read the book along with me. Attendance was not mandatory and I had a group of around 10 very dedicated students attend each day. They even asked to extend the time past finishing the book to read the next novel in the series. 

This semester, I started reading Forged by Fire with my 8th-grade intervention students and The Bridge Home with my seventh grade Language Arts class. I am reading about 10 minutes at the beginning of the period with each of the classes and using the chat in Zoom to receive feedback. This has worked fairly well. Also, both of the texts are on Actively Learn, which allows me to assign chapters to students to read and even include questions for them to answer at the end of each chapter: another way to check for understanding and keep the students accountable to reading. I can start the day's reading with them and have them finish it asynchronously after our Zoom class is over. 

Virtual Literature Circles

In the Fall, my 8th Honors ELA class read through The Outsiders at a much faster pace than the other groups. This allowed us to run digital literature circles with the students. I had a shared document where they were responsible for specific roles as they would have in a traditional classroom. They then signed up as a group to meet with me over Zoom twice during the four-week session. During this reading club meeting, they were given time to discuss the book with each other in real-time. 

My only role in this was to provide them with the time over Zoom and to listen in on their conversation. I could easily tell who was reading the book by the connections they were making and discussions they had during this time. This worked for 7 of my 9 groups. Two of the groups struggled with members who didn't pull their weight but overall, it was a positive experience. 

Don't let reading a novel with your students virtually intimidate you. I do miss actually feeling their reactions to things that happen in the books we read, but reading something together with a class is too magical for me to give up, even if I miss out on some pieces of it. It all comes down to what you find the most value in for your students. Whatever you choose to do with your students over the next few months, don't feel limited by online learning, but instead view it as an opportunity to do things differently. Who knows? Maybe you'll end up finding a strategy you love and can continue doing when we return to school.

Keep the magic alive, 

Kandyce Valverde

Wiltsey Middle School
7th/8th Language Arts

It's All Fun and Games…

Photo by John Benitez on Unsplash

… but nobody has to get hurt! We are well into this year of remote teaching/ distance learning. I'm sure most of us have reflected endlessly on what we could do to engage our students more. Asking questions like: how can I make learning more enjoyable? Will today be the day that I spark some joy into my students' (as well as our own) lives? Most days, I turn off my computer, feeling like a failure. 

Over winter break, I allowed myself to not think about teaching in January, and I enjoyed my time with my family. We read books, I wrote, we baked -an insane amount of- cookies, we watched movies and shows, and we played a lot of games. My daughter is 3, so she's pretty easy to entertain with a simple game of Memory, but my son is 17 and not as easy to entertain. However, he even found our game time fun. We played dominos, cards, and board games almost daily. And even though I told myself not to think about teaching. I, of course, did. I wondered how I could foster this joy of playing games with my students in a virtual environment. 

At first, I thought about holding a Game Night with my students (which I still might do!). Then I thought this might be a way to fix a frustrating problem I have right now with my students: getting them to come and return to "class" on time. So that is what I have started, and so far, it seems to be working. I am using the first 5 minutes of each class's start (the start and after breaks) to play games with my students. We start playing right at the start time, and as kids join a bit late, they can choose if they want to participate in the game. The beauty is if they are a couple minutes late, they aren't missing anything academic. The great thing is I have more students logging on to our meetings on time, both at the beginning of class and after breaks. Not only is this working to my advantage, but I see some smiles here and there, which is 6th grade speak for "I'm having fun." 

*I found most of these resources on Teacher Pay Teacher already created by Golden State Classroom, which was nice and cut down on my prep load. 

Here is what I’m doing: 

Mondays: Word search/ collaborative puzzles: 

I love puzzles! On Mondays, I create and project a word search for students to work on. I've created word searching with vocabulary words, themes, book titles, and students' names. They use the chat on zoom to share the answers with the words they found. We only do this in 5-minute sittings. Therefore, they usually do not complete the puzzle even as a class, but I share the link with them to complete it if they want to. 

The collaborative puzzle is a site I just found, and I'm obsessed. To create and share a puzzle, you go on to the site, find puzzles, search for a piece of art that you are interested in, and select multiplayer. Finally, you share the link with your class. If students are interested in solving the puzzles, they click on the link and start moving the pieces around. So easy and so fun!

Tuesdays: Name the Gibberish 

This game is FUN! My 6th graders are so much better at it than I am. I found this resource of Teachers Pay Teachers (Golden State Teacher). You share the slide in presentation mode, and students raise their hands to guess the saying. We do about 3-4 right after the break, so I use the same slide deck a couple weeks. The example pictured on the right says, "Dog sledding." My students guessed that right away while I was still trying to figure the answer out. They love that they are better than their ELA teacher at this game. 

Wednesdays: Sixty Second drawings

Sixty second drawings (also from Golden State Teacher) is precisely that. You give your students sixty seconds to draw an object. Sounds easy, right? Well, after you get your students started with the easy level, you can move them up a level where they draw the object with their eyes closed. And when that level gets a too bit easy for your students, try the EXTREME level where students draw the item with the paper on top of their heads. If nothing else, this game is the most entertaining game to watch. 

Thursdays: Scattergories

Most of us have played some version of Scattergories before. To play this over zoom, you will want to create at least 20 lists (I use two a week depending on our schedule.).  Before I share the list, I ask a student to give me a letter. Then, I show the list of items and give the class two minutes to create their list with the given letter. After the time is up, students share out their answers. If someone has the same answer, they cross off their answer and they don’t get the point. When we have shared answers, they share their total points in the chat. I like this game because it helps students with word choice and being creative. 

Fridays (office day): 

Fridays are our office days, so we don’t have time for games. However, I do make sure to share some of the games that we played in Google Classroom. I do this so that students can continue playing on their own or with their families. 

I hope you can find some time in your schedule to play a couple of games with your students. I think it’s a nice way to remind my students that I care about their happiness and well-being.

Have a FUN week!

Jenni Merry   

Slides as Virtual Backgrounds in Zoom

 In the world of Zoom, there are still so many tricks to learn.  One feature I have been exploring lately is being able to use a PowerPoint presentation as a virtual background.  I can put myself into a story while my students see the illustrations behind me.  Plus, I can read the story right from my screen.

The best success I have had is to first find a story on YouTube.  I find one that has each page nice and clear.  I let the video play and as each page turns, I take a screenshot of it (shift-command-4 on a Mac; click here to see how to on a PC). It saves right to my desktop.  When I have all the pages I need, I then drag them into a new PowerPoint presentation one at a time.  Last, I save the PowerPoint presentation to my computer and I am ready to go.

While you are in Zoom and ready to read your story, click the "share screen"button. This screen will the pop up.  Click on the Advanced option at the top.

         👇

Next, you will see these options.  Choose "Slides in Virtual Background".  Click Share at the bottom.

                                                   👇

Your PowerPoint options will appear for you to choose.  Click on the one you want and click Share.  Your PowerPoint presentation will now be your virtual background.  Your live video will be layered on top of your presentation at the bottom of your screen.  You can then move and resize your video.  You will have to advance the slides manually.

Another way I have used this feature is during our alphabet chant at the beginning of our phonics lessons.  I can present the letter/picture behind me while the students see me do the motion associated with the picture.  I also spotlight my student helper leading the class so the students see me and the student helper at the same time as the picture.

Give this new feature a try and let me know how it goes in the comments!

Happy (virtual) Teaching!

Erin Grebel

Lights...Camera...Action!

Like everything else in 2020, Spotlight Teaching has been profoundly impacted by Covid. Whereas in the past, I would welcome teachers to my classroom, I am now posting weekly videos for them to watch on topics ranging from language arts to conducting small groups on Zoom.

To be honest, I really don't like watching myself on video. It's painful. Unlike Hollywood actors and actresses, I don't have a make-up artist, a hairdresser, a costume designer, someone to write the lines for my scene (lesson), etc. As an imperfect perfectionist, I am an expert at nitpicking as I have been practicing for nearly 55 years. Oh my goodness! Did I not fix my hair? Did I really just say that? Is that my cat in the background? Please tell me that the camera adds A LOT more than 10 pounds. 

As much as I dislike seeing myself on video, it's been a tremendous learning opportunity. When I review my videos, a.k.a. "the raw footage," I am able to pay attention to the details that aren't readily apparent when I am actually "in the moment" teaching. For instance, I can't believe how many times I say "okay," "'kay," or "m'kay." Note to self: Stop saying "Okay." 

I would encourage you to take advantage of this unprecedented time in which we find ourselves to begin recording yourself regularly on Zoom. It's a safe way to observe yourself in action. Make a list of "glows" and "grows" so that you can acknowledge areas of success and areas where you need to improve. 

How I Record Myself on Zoom

 1^st       Record video on Zoom to the cloud.

2^nd      Later, when you are ready to view the video, sign into Zoom.           

3^rd      Go to “Recordings.”

4^th      Find the recording.

If you're like me, you'll find this entire experience awkward, but tremendously insightful. It's akin to engaging in a coaching cycle with yourself. The best part is that you can delete the video immediately afterward. 

Still Zooming,

Lola E. Jollie

Listening Comprehension... The POWER of the Play Button!

Listening.... an action we ask students to participate in throughout their entire school day, especially now that we are 100% online. Between the verbal directions, educational songs, and weekly wonders stories- our students should be rocking it in listening, right? If only that were the case. After my first year, it dawned on me that my students scored higher in Research than Listening. I didn't understand why. Listening comprehension is being provided with an audio passage and then having to answer questions about it. I understand that it is a difficult task for even my auditory learners, but after having provided countless activities throughout the year- why were students still struggling? It was a simple realization that the problem wasn't what I was doing but how I presented it. With this simple tweak, I changed students mentality of how they perceived their listening abilities, but also helped them realize a very valuable test taking strategy. Here's how the power of the play button changed everything. 

Behind the Scenes:

When my grade level first introduced Listening Wednesdays -as we liked to call it- to students . We would play the weekly wonders audio passage for the students a few times through, take notes and then have students answer questions on the passage. It went great, but students weren't internalizing that it was necessary to replay the audio passage because as educators we had control of the play button. When students finally did get the chance they didn't know how. I realized my role in this had to be more a facilitator and allow students to take that play button power. 

1. Selecting a Passage & Questions 

When I think of selecting a passage- I always lean towards a passage that is grade level and that has questions that will assess a skill or strategy they have worked on, however, feel free to pick a passage that you think is best. For the first one, I pick something very simple and engaging. A good resource to utilize is the weekly Listening Comprehension story in the Wonders Curriculum since it connects to the skill and strategy being taught that week or even finding a passage on Readworks.org.  

2. Audio  File & Questions 

Voice Memos Ios App

Once you have a passage- you then want to think about the questions to ask and how it will be heard.  If you use the week Listening Comprehension story in Wonders- you will have to create your own questions. I like to frame them based on the comprehension skill, context clues, and or comprehension strategy. Due to time, I like majority of them to be multiple choice and then I may add in a short constructed response at the end depending on grade level. I make add these questions to a google form for easy grading. Even though the curriculum already has an audio file I like to read the story with my "Voice Memos" app on my phone and upload to the drive. I like this because students internalize the importance of expression and prosody when reading.  

If you use a passage from Readworks.org you can filter to find "Human Voice Audio" and select which comprehension questions you would like your students to answer. The only downside to using this option is you have to monitor students and teach them how to set it so they can see the audio file and questions side by side and not be tempted to go back in the text for the answer since it is listening. 

3. Introducing students to their Assignment

When I ask students to get ready to take a listening quiz I always go through the following steps:

•  Have students open up their notebooks and write the title of the passage on top to take notes
• Read each question and the answer options aloud. I ask for clarification  the questions. I will not define any vocabulary if it is eludes to the answer or define comprehension skill/strategies, but will allow students to use their anchor chart notes. 
• Play the audio file once time through without stopping. I ask students to not write anything down but visualize the story in their heads. Once it is done they can take notes on how much they remember. 
• I will revisit the questions again and ask students to look at their notes to determine if they have all the answers to the questions. This answer will 99.9% of the time be NO. This is important because it allows them to see that replaying is important. I will let them know they will be re-listening and trying to fill in any gaps of notes during the first round. 
• I play the audio file again and I pause approximately every 30ish seconds or at the start of new headings. During the pauses I ask students to take notes. I continue this until the entire audio passage has been played. 
• I remind students that their notes will be referenced and that when answering the questions their notes should match their answers. 

4. Assigning  the Listening Quiz

Once I have previewed the questions with students and I know that they have at least listened to the audio two times with me then I will post the assignment for them on google classroom with both the google form and audio file. This is so they can continue at their own pace. If they are using Readworks then I will post the link in google form. I wait until after we have gone over it together so I don't have students trying to rush through the activity. 

5. Monitor and Hold Students Accountable

Once I have released the assignments I open up Lanschool to see which students are choosing to revisit the audio file and/or who are using appropriate test taking strategies. I also ask that if students have questions that they chat me on zoom or on Lanschool as to not interfere with other students who are revisiting the audio file and to give them quiet time during the quiz.  To ensure students aren't just 

blindly answering I ask that students grab a highlighter and highlight their notes that support the answer they selected. I will either collect these notes if in class or ask students to submit on Class Dojo. 

                                                                 Lively Teaching,

                                                                  Jessica Magana

Challenging Math Problems for K - 8th (Open Middle)

 

As we approach the end of the semester tomorrow, I hope that you have found ways to give yourself grace during these unprecedented times.

I wanted to quickly share a resource that I have been using in the past and how it has been updated to help with Distance Learning during these past few months.

OpenMiddle is a website made up of challenging math problems from Kindergarten to High School.  The concept of OpenMiddle is to present the same problem to all students and allow for a variety of different solutions within the constraints of the problem.  I enjoy these problems because it challenges students at a DOK Level of 2 or 3 and encourages students to persevere in solving mathematical problems.

The updated version has all of their problems now accessible on Google Slides - which has saved me a great amount of time.  Students are asked to use the digits from 0 to 9 to solve a problem presented to them.  The Google Slide version allows students to click and drag these digits on the slide - very convenient for students.

First Grade Example:

Fifth Grade Example:

The one additional item I add to each slide is a place for students to explain to me how they solved the problem.

Eighth Grade Example that I used last week:

I also stumbled into a way of getting all students involved while using this example - I am still refining the protocol but here is how it went.  When two students solved the problem (they would send me a chat saying that got the answer), I would create a breakout room with those students and two students who had not gotten the answer yet.  Both students would share their slides in the breakout room and explain how they solved the problem.  After sharing, the group would try and come up with a third way of solving the problem and the two students who did not have answers yet would use this third method as their own.  As my main room became smaller and smaller, I was able to offer more guiding questions to the remaining students until everyone had an idea of how to actually solve the problem.  After a couple periods, I decided that breakout groups could 'copy' the slide and put new solutions on that slide - thus earning some extra credit points for the day.

Link to Open Middle Google Slides for Kindergarten through 8th grade:  Open Middle Google Slides

I realize that this is the end of the semester but I hope that you consider using this resource sometime during the second semester and find the new Google Slide version more student friendly than the old paper version.

Remember, give yourself grace, and be willing to give yourself more grace during these difficult times,

Kevin Stott                        

De Anza Middle School    

7th/8th/IM I Math              

Virtual Sprint Routine with Eureka Math

 If you're familiar with the Sprint Routine in the Eureka Math curriculum, then you know how valuable it is in supporting students' fact fluency.  Not to mention, that it's such an upbeat fun activity the kids truly love them.  Unfortunately, as with many other things in online learning, it's difficult to do with the same effect and energy.  

I work as a seasonal associate for Great Minds (parent company of Eureka Math) over the summers, and had the privilege of learnng how to deliver a sprint routine virtually.  I have since adapted and taught it to my kids this year and I truly think its alllllmost as fun as it is in the classroom! So if this is a key piece you've been missing from your Eureka Math lessons, I hope this helps!

The routine as follows:

1.  Have the students open their Sprint book to the desired lesson, Sprint A. You will explain to them that they must work down the columns and not skip around.  They are only to do the very best they can  in the 60 seconds and they are NOT intended to finish the sprint. Make sure they understand the directions for that particular sprint. (I usually display mine either under the doc cam or digitally by sharing my screen to ensure they are all on the right page)

2.  Ensure all their cameras are turned on and they are ready.  Ask them to hold their pencils in the air until you see everyone has done so.  Set the timer for 60 seconds and say "ready, set, go!"

3.  When the timer goes off I say "drop your pencil and put your hands in the air!" I'll quickly scan and call out the names of kiddos who hands aren't in the air.

4.  Then I'll ask them the draw a line under the last problem they completed and get ready to check their answers. When I go over the directions for how we will check them I say, "If you answered the problem and got it correct, chant 'YES!' and put a check mark next to that problem.  If you answered it but got it wrong, then silently circle it.  Here's the important part: As I'm calling out the answers, once you get to the one you LAST completed, turn your camera off."  Then you want to quickly and engergetically read off the answers.  I stop about every 10 or so remind them to turn their camera off once they get past the last problem they've completed.  Once all cameras are off, you can stop reading the answers.

5. Next I have them count their total # correct (subtracting any they got wrong ) and send it to me privately in the chat (they can send it private or public whatever they're comfortable with).  I watch their responses and then call out the student who answered the most correct and we then decide on a cheer to give that student. (e.g. cheese grater cheer, chili pepper cheer, truck driver cheer, etc.)

6.  I toggle back to the view of the sprint and facilitate a discussion analyzing the sprint.  I will point out a few patterns and then ask the kids to type into the chat "what patterns do you see?" "What parts were hard or easy?" "Which parts slowed you down?" etc.  Then after the dicussion (just a couple of minutes), I give them about 30 seconds more to continue practicing where they left off on the sprint.

7.  After that we take a quick movement break.  We will to 2 movement skip counting exercises, the first one fast-paced, the second one slow.  For instance, the first one you can have the kids skip count by 2's up to 20 and back down while moving their arms quickly like windshield wipers.  For the second exercise, skip counting by 3s up to 30 to the movement of slow shoulder rolls (see my video below).  The purpose of this is get them moving and also get their brains warmed up with the skip counting.

8. Now the kiddos are ready to complete part B of the sprint.  You will tell them that their ONLY goal is to simply get just ONE more correct than they did on side A.  Again the goal is not to complete the sprint. Have them turn to side B and again put their pencils in the air.  Once you see everyone ready, say "ready, set, go!" and start the timer for 60 seconds. When the timer goes off instuct them to put their pencils down and hands in the air.  Then repeat step #4 from above.

9. THIS TIME however, after they calculate their total # correct, they do not send it to you in the chat.  This time they will calculate their improvement score from side A to Side B.  Meaning how many more correct did they get on side B.  Then they send you that # via the chat (either public or private).  This time we celebrate the student who had the most improvement and we again choose a cheer for that student.  I will sometimes also celebrate if a student completed the sprint, or even sometimes I choose the students with the top 3 improvement scores.  The cheers are the best part- the kids love them! (see my previous blog post on cheers).

Below is a video of my students conducting this virtual sprint routine.  By NO MEANS is it perfect.. lol.. but hopefully it will give you a good idea of how you can also implement this into your virtual classroom!

CLICK HERE to see a virtual sprint routine lesson in my classroom!

Virtually Learning,

Megan Brown

megan.brown@omsd.net

Engagement in Kinderland

    Student engagement has been the most sought out strategy for all grade levels during online learning. How do we keep students engaged with online learning? Many teachers have discovered a variety of ways and resources to help students stay on task, stay engaged, and participate during lessons. Most students in grades first through eighth grade have had some experiences with technology and online resources. They have been in a classroom and understand classroom routines and procedures. Now, imagine being a kindergarten student with little to no prior knowledge of a classroom or technology. Many kindergarten teachers, myself included, have been trying to find ways to help these students. First, we had to teach our students as well as their parents how to get online and how to access online resources. Next, we had to gradually build our online stamina during lessons. Last, we had to find creative ways to keep them engaged. 

    As soon as I received my classroom roster, I had to immediately contact the parents and signed them up for ClassDojo. It is the quickest and fastest form of communication for parents and it translates languages. What I love about ClassDojo is that I can post instructions, photos, and videos for the parents. This is a great resource not only for parents to communicate, but for students to use if they are having technical difficulties. I can record step by step instructions on how to login to any app or program I want. I can record directly on ClassDojo and it saves the video on our Class Story and they stay posted all year long. This is a great tool for showing students and parents how to use the Clever app. I gave the students a QR code badge to login instead of typing in their username and password each time. On Clever I linked my zoom meeting to make logging into our zoom meetings easier for students. All they have to do is tap my link. No meeting ID or password to login. I have also linked Starfall and YouTube videos for students to easily access. These resources have helped make logging in so easy that the students are able to do it all by themselves. If we were in class, I could have shown students one-on-one and see what mistakes they are making in real-time and help as needed. Since they are new to online learning and working from home, there is a lot of communication and picture sharing done through ClassDojo. 

   

    Kindergarten students are normally in class for 180 minutes per day. Five and six-year-olds have a hard time staying focused for that long. In the first few weeks of in-person instruction, we gradually increased our instructional day. Students are given many breaks and transitions. They start with free play because many students come to school crying, upset, and have had little to no structure at home. We have to build upon this. It was a whole new ball game with online learning. I began the year with only one hour of instruction per day. This was agonizing because the students did not want to sit down that long on Zoom and the home environment can be very distracting. Many students were on cell phones because our iPads had not arrived yet. Each week, I added 20-30 minutes. I added classroom leadership roles; this gives them something to look forward to and stay online during the entire instructional block. I gave them many dance breaks. I needed to build their stamina. Now, we are at 180 minutes per day. They have one 10-minute break and one 20-minute break.  They can log off during breaks if they choose to. They are now able to log themselves back in on their own. I give Dojo points for students that actively participate and stay for the entire Zoom meeting. If students are having trouble focusing or coming back from breaks, I stop and do something fun with students or announce some fun activities for the day. I also make it a priority to stick to a consistent schedule daily.  I had my own learning curve on how to my students continually engaged.

 

  I learned that with online learning I had to shorten lessons and break them up. I had to give clear step-by-step instructions and come up with a plan if students did not have what they needed. At the start of the year, students received their curriculum materials as well as whiteboards, dry erase markers, crayons, glue, scissors, and notebook paper. Students can choose which materials to use during lessons. This helps students that leave materials at the babysitter's or the other parent's house not feel like they couldn't complete their work. We take many GoNoodle breaks to help students get up and move after prolonged sitting. I also added music breaks during math lessons. There are plenty of music and movement songs geared towards academics. Jack Hartmann is our favorite. He has many songs and chants geared to movement while learning concepts. Another break I give students is directed drawing. We love Art for Kids hub on YouTube. It's a family YouTube channel that was created to help young students learn the art of drawing. The students love these breaks and it gives them something to look forward to. I also do scavenger hunts with the students. They can look for something that starts with a letter, sound, a number, a color, measurement, weight, senses, and personal. The students are given explicit instructions on what the item can and cannot be. The students love it when I say, "On your mark, get set, GO!!" These ideas took time and I had to stop and listen to my students and their needs. I wouldn't have been able to do these kinds of scavenger hunts in the classroom. Students look forward to these hunts.

    At the end of the day, I always praise my students for working hard and staying the whole class time. I tell them how sad I am that class is over, but that I will be excited to see them the next day. I make sure that the students know how much I care for them and how excited I am to see them each day. I also remind them that I love to see their classwork and that it makes me happy to see their progress. I have the students hold up their work and I take a picture of them. I post it on ClassDojo for the parents to see. This gives students pride in showing the work they are doing in class. Now, by no means have I mastered engagement in kindergarten! What I have learned, however, is that every day is a new day... students change daily and that I will glean something new each time I spend with them simply by listening to their needs. My students' needs come first, especially during this pandemic. Students need to hear they are loved, cared for, and are important. 

Sincerely,

Marcy Mesa