Blog Challenge: Day #5

Give a tip for assessment.  What is an example of an assessment you give?  Share any tips for designing/giving/grading assessments.

One assessment that I give to my TAG (Talented and Gifted) class is a WordMasters-type test.  My school used to participate in the WordMasters Challenge, but we stopped about three years ago.  Since then, I continue to work on vocabulary (focusing on SAT prep words) with my “high” class.  At the end of each quarter, the students take a “WordMasters” test that I design.  Throughout the quarter, students complete six vocabulary lessons with twenty words each (I give them a sheet with all of the words and definitions, and they have to finish the worksheet).  At the end of the quarter, I pick thirty words from the 120 the students have seen, that the students will be tested on.  The test focuses on students using critical thinking and knowledge of specific vocabulary words to solve analogies.  So, the students not only have to memorize various words and their definitions, part of speech, etc., they also have to apply that knowledge to solve the analogies.

Ex.  Skydiver:  _______________________ ::  Explorer:  Adventurous

A.  Facetious     /     B.  Cautious     /    C.  Audacious     /     D.  Ethical     /    E.  Plebeian

I have my students first take the test on paper because many of them like to be able to physically cross out/eliminate answers.  When students have finished with the paper copy, I have them go to a link to a Google form that I have created.  Students then submit their answers through the Google form.  When all students are done with the test, I run the Flubaroo script to grade their tests against my answer key.  Once all of the tests are graded, I go back into the Flubaroo script and email students their results.  Students like taking the test through the form because as soon as everyone is finished, they can see their results.  It gives them almost instant feedback.

In terms of designing the assessment, I always make sure to take the test that I will give students.  I make sure that all questions and answer choices make sense, and they are not confusing.  I think it’s important to first consider what you want the test to show/what standards you are hoping to assess.  I really like using Google forms to have students take their tests, but in using Google forms, you can be somewhat limited to certain types of questions.  Forms does allow you to ask short answer and extended response questions, but I think grading those on the computer gets a little more difficult.  I would rather have students do those types of questions on paper because I find the grading easier.  

Blog Challenge: Day 4

Share a topic/idea from class this week.  What’s one thing you did with students this week that you will (or will not do) again?  Why?  

The idea that I am going to share from class this week is actually something that I do on a weekly basis, but I think it’s worth mentioning.  When I first started teaching, a mentor teacher introduced me to Jane Bell Kiester’s “Caught’Yas.”  I really liked the idea of having my students do them, but for some reason, I didn’t use them for the first nine years or so of my teaching.  I have, however, been using them for the past three years.  Two or three times a week, my students grab their Caught’Ya packets.  My two regular LA classes use “Tales of a Four-Eyed Weirdo,” and my TAG (Talented and Gifted Class) uses “Romeo and Juliet Revisited and Revised.”  

We focus on one sentence per day.  In my daily agenda, I tell my students how many of each type of correction they are looking for (ex. 5 capitalization, 3 commas, etc.).  Students then work through the Caught’Ya, making the proper corrections to the sentence.  When all students are finished, we go over the Caught’Ya together.  I use the AirSquirrels Reflector app I downloaded on my Mac to connect my iPad (via Airplay) to my computer (and to the projector).  I then use a great app called Notability (where I have imported the Caught’Ya sentences).  The students pass around the iPad, making the proper corrections to the sentence.  When a student gets the iPad and makes a correction, he or she has to tell the class what he or she corrected and why.  This activity is a great way to hit upon and talk about the different rules for sentence structure, dialogue, capitalization, punctuation, spelling (homophones, etc.), etc., and to hit upon the parts of speech.  Each sentence also includes a vocabulary word, and I have the students use their Chromebooks to find the part of speech and definition of the word.  Students enjoy passing the iPad around to make corrections, which helps to get them even more involved.  They actually fight over who gets to use the iPad first.  Something else that is nice about her activities is that Jane Bell Kiester has various Caught’Ya examples for different grade levels.  If you are a language arts teacher and want a fun and different way to teach grammar, I would definitely recommend investing in her books.

After doing various D.O.L.-type activities, sentence revisions, etc., I think using Caught’Yas has been perfect for my classroom.

Blog Challenge: Day #3

What is a website that you cannot live without?  Tell about your favorite features and how you use it in your teaching and learning.

One website that I really like and use fairly often is www.socrative.com.  Socrative allows you, the teacher, to create tests, quizzes, exit slips, etc.  If you create a quiz, for example, Socrative lets you include questions/answer choices such as Multiple Choice, True/False, and Short Answer.  It also allows you to include an image with your question if you choose to do so.

Socrative is great because it works with a number of different devices. For example, I have the app loaded on my iPhone and iPad.  Last year, I had a class set of Galaxy Android tablets, and the students accessed it through the app on the tablets.  It can also be accessed through the website, and my students this year have used their Chromebooks to get to the website.  In order for students to answer the questions to your quiz, students simply need to access the app or website and enter in the room number that you give to them.  You can choose to do Teacher Paced or Student Paced quizzes (each can have its perks, depending on what you are using it for).  Students are also shown if they got the question right or wrong as they go through the quiz.  At the end of the quiz, when you end the activity, you can choose to download the results or email them to yourself.  

I use Socrative a lot for pretests.  It works perfectly because all students are involved (even my students who are typically very quiet).  It also allows me to see where my students are struggling, need extra help, or really grasp a concept, etc.  I have used it often for final tests, and the plus there is that you (and students) get immediate feedback on how well students performed.

Although it’s not a website exactly, I have also been creating quizzes through Google Forms.  I set up the form by including a first and last name question, an email question, and then any other questions that I wish to ask my students.  Before giving my students the quiz/form, I go through and take the quiz.  In place of first and last name, I put “Answer Key.”  After that, go back into my form responses spreadsheet, and I insert a script called Flubaroo into my form responses spreadsheet.  When all of my students are done taking the quiz, I run the script, choose my form, “Answer Key,” as the answer key, and the script will grade all of my students’ responses off of my quiz.  Flubaroo then allows you to email grades back to your students (this is why you want to include email address as one of your questions).  It is pretty awesome for quick grading and quick feedback to students!  It works a lot like Socrative, so I thought I would also include this in my post.

Reading Workshop: Tuesday, January 14, 2014

After reading your book during Reading Workshop/SSR, please answer the following questions.  Click to type in a post. Make sure to answer your blog by typing in your blog number (Ex. M912).  Remember, this number will correspond with your LA class period and your Chromebook number.  Then, Comment as:  Anonymous.

What is the title of your book?  

Who is the author?  

Would you recommend this book to someone else?  Why or why not?

Tell me a little about the plot of your book.  If you had to write a quick summary of what has happened in your book so far, what would you write?

Blog Challenge: Day #2

Share an organizational tip from your classroom.  What is one thing that you do that works for you?

Two summers ago, a teacher on my seventh grade team told me that he was going to start using Edmodo in his classroom.  I decided to sign up, and once school started, I had all of my students sign up for it too (joined my class via a group code).  I have continued using Edmodo this year.  I think Edmodo is great for a number of reasons.  First, all of my students are connected and questions can be easily asked and answered.  I found last year that if any students had questions, they would message me on Edmodo (outside of school hours) to ask me a question, and I could quickly and easily message them back (because I received notifications through the Edmodo app on my phone).  Sometimes, other students even answer the questions, which is really awesome.  Second, at the end of every day, I post homework for all of my classes, so it also serves as a homework hotline.  Finally, (the same teacher gave me this idea), every day I create an agenda for each of my classes.  I post the agenda as an assignment in Edmodo, so students can log in and access the daily agenda.  By posting the agenda as an assignment, the agenda is then put into the calendar on Edmodo.  If a student is absent, he or she can go to the calendar, find the day he or she missed, and open the agenda for that day.

At my school, I was fortunate enough to get picked this year for a Chromebook 1:1 pilot, and all of my students have a Google account through the school district.  I have a Chromebook cart in my classroom, and each student is assigned a certain number Chromebook (corresponding with his or her place in the grade book).  The agenda is created through Google, and again, each day, I post the agenda as an assignment through Edmodo.  Students know to come into my classroom, grab the assigned Chromebook, log into the Chromebook, log into Edmodo, pull up the agenda for the day, and get started.  When I officially start class, students are ready.  In the agenda, I type Common Core objectives that we will cover for the day, the agenda we will follow, and at the bottom, I list any homework assignments that will be due.  The nice thing about using Google Docs for the agenda is that any links that students will need to access (other docs, various websites, flashcard sites, etc.) are listed on the agenda.  I have found that in itself to be a huge time saver since I don't have to write the URL on the board and wait for students to get to the site.  Students can simply click on the link on the agenda, and they are quickly taken to the site.

Agenda Example:


Also, since each teacher in our school has a Google account, I have found that I can really stay organized by uploading all of my documents into my Google Drive.  This way I can quickly and easily access documents, forms, etc.  I also have a Google Site that helps me to stay organized.

Now I know that it says to just tell about one organizational tip, but I want to share some other things that I have found useful in my classroom.

Remind 101
Hootsuite
Socrative

Blog Challenge: Day #1

After looking today at Richard Byrne's Free Technology For Teachers blog, I came across a post for Kelly Hines's 20 Day Blogging Challenge.  I want to be much better about writing blog entries, and the topics she has to write about (I feel) are right up my alley.  So, I am a little behind in starting the challenge, but I am going to jump in today and try to blog consistently for at least twenty days!

Blog Day #1:

Tell about a favorite book to share or teach.  Provide at least one example of a lesson or cross curricular lesson.


I teach language arts and reading at the seventh grade level, and I love reading YA books that I can recommend to my students.  Dystopians are especially my favorites.  Every Tuesday, we do "Book Talk Tuesday", and I discuss a new book with my students.  It has really surprised me how much the majority of the students love the book talks (even the reluctant readers).  The librarian at our school said that many students have come into the library asking for certain books that we have talked about in my class.  To get back on track, in terms of a favorite book, too many spring to my mind (The Hunger Games, Enclave, Under the Never Sky, The Fault in Our Stars, Legend, Across the Universe, Delirium, Spark, Matched, The Maze Runner, etc.).  Although I do not teach this book in class, one of the first books that popped in my head is Divergent by Veronica Roth.

After reading The Hunger Games series, I really wanted something to read that was in the same genre.  I think Barnes and Noble actually had a list that was something like "Books to read after reading The Hunger Games."  I found Divergent on that list.  I think it took me a day or two to read the book - it is so suspenseful that I couldn't put it down.  I loved it.  I think I almost loved it more than The Hunger Games (which is saying a lot).

Divergent is a dystopian, set in futuristic Chicago.  The story centers on a young girl named Beatrice Prior.  In Beatrice's time, people are broken up into five factions:  Abnegation (which she is in), Dauntless, Amity, Candor, and Erudite.  The people in each faction have a certain set of characteristics.  Abnegation are selfless, Dauntless are brave, Amity are peace loving, Candor are honest, and Erudite are intelligent.  On a specified day each year, all sixteen-year-olds must decide which faction they will stay in for the rest of their lives.  Beatrice has to decide if she wants to stay with her faction (and her family) or if she wants to truly be herself and pick the faction for which she feels she is really meant.  Tris's character shows a great deal of growth throughout the book, and as a dystopian, this book will not disappoint.  This book is a trilogy, so if you like series, this is a good series to get into.  Oh yeah, and even better...the movie for this book is coming out March 21, 2014!  Read the book first; books are always better than the movies!

As an English teacher, I can think of a lot of lesson ideas for this book, most of which involve writing.  Ex. A Venn Diagram comparing and contrasting Beatrice at the beginning of the book to Tris at the end of the book, focus on elements of fiction (plot, setting, characters, conflict, etc.) specific to the book, student blog entries, journal writing, etc.

Here are a few additional links that I have found useful for this book:

Veronica Roth's blog

Ten books to read after reading The Hunger Games trilogy

Teaching Divergent:  YA Lit Ideas and Research Projects

Divergent Fans Faction Quiz