Every Student Every Lesson

via GIPHY

How do ensure that all students are thinking or have access to the learning throughout a lesson?  What strategies lend well to ensuring that all students are exposed and at least have opportunities to learn the objectives of the lesson?  When we fail to have the expectations, high expectations, that all students should and can be accountable for thinking and learning then we leave learning the objective to chance and we hope that students learn rather than require all students to learn.  How do we know that all students are thinking or that all students are given the opportunity to think. 

One of the look fors in the shifts in the way we teach math with the move to more conceptual understanding of the math standards is to incorporate and use strategies to ensure every child is thinking of answers.  So lets look at some strategies that might do this. 

• Random calling on students rather than having students raise their hands.  When students know that this is how the class operates and the expectation  it requires every student to be prepared to answer questions and process new learning. 
• Think pair share requires all students to think of the answers.  It is a great strategy to time these pair shares and to do them frequently.  Give students 30 seconds, 1 minute to share answers or to process the new learning.  Another great scaffold to build students sharing skills is to have students use sentence stems when sharing.  
• Make learning or answers visible for every student.  Have students do a quick write to answer the question or process the new learning then have them share their writing.  This makes their learning visible to you as you check for understanding and requires all students to think. Not to mention it requires students to write which we know requires thinking.  
• Ask students to repeat what others answer, ask them if what others answered is correct or do they agree or disagree and why.  

These strategies can ensure that every student is thinking more often more of the time.  What strategies do you use to ensure that all students are thinking, processing new learning, know the objectives, can do the objectives?  Be sure to share your practices with others.  

Accolades @ Lincoln:  

Maddie Wohlfort and Bob Garrity I was able to visit both Maddie and Bob in action this past week.  During the visit both did an outstanding job of checking for understanding and using students interests to teach the concept of momentum and Newton's laws in their ICP classes.  Great work.  

Innovation Academy Humanities classes-  It was great to see students excited about narrative writing.  Students were sharing their writing and getting feedback from each other to improve their writing.  Several students even asked me to read their writing.  

Upcoming @ Lincoln 

Monday PD:  Tomorrow iPad PD-  All teachers should bring iPads and not computers.  No computers allowed. 

         Dec. 16th- Breakfast and New building tour-  We will start our building tour              at 7:30 on the 16th.  We will meet at door 3 at 7:30. 

         Jan. 6th- Red Room 8:00  Traveling Awards- A look ahead to second                     semester

Leadership Team Meeting- Tuesday Dec. 10th 7:00 Susan LaFree's room. 

Section 125- American Fidelity Appointments - This week

8th grade PHS visits- Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday this week. 

Staff Christmas Party- Friday Dec. 13th 6:30 Webster Center. 

Reminders: 

It is the expectation that all teachers continue to update their Powerschool grades at least one time pre week.  This is an immensely important task for teachers as it ensures basic feedback to students but also help others, parents and teachers, know where students are and what work they have done or need to do.  Please help us be Amazing by making this happen each week. 

Have an Amazing Week!