I like to allow students as much choice as possible. Please follow the links below to see examples: The Physics of Everyday StuffThe Good, Bad and Ugly of Canadian HistoryIndustrial Revolution Project
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I began a personalized Math program with my grade 10 students this year. It has not been easy. I've had to make several adjustments along the way. It worked well for the first semester in Foundations 10. However, I quickly learned that self-regulation skills are key to any personalized program and some of my students just weren't there. This is a goal and skill we will need to continue to develop next year. Below I've attached some samples of the personalized pages I created with the help of a co-worker. Please click the following links to be taken to the Foundations 10 and Foundations 20 pages to see the appropriate videos and resources.
A selection of sample year plans: Foundations 30 Typically Math classes all follow this standard formula for a year plan
Outline of Social 9 Units and Themes
Health Science 20
I use this website as a digital format for my Unit plans. Each class has its own section with assignments and videos. It is as much a tool for me as it is for my students. If anyone misses a day or needs to review they can come here to rewatch videos, reprint assignments, or receive a to do list of tasks. Below are some "teacher copies" of unit plans but the website gives more detail for day to day resources that are used. Click on the unit title to be taken to the appropriate section of the website
My Goal: Increase student engagement and achievement by using student learning profiles with every student to design lessons and assessments that address the different learners within my History/Social Studies and Science classes by providing choice of summative assessment at the end of each unit. 1. Was I successful in meeting my SMART goal? What were my outcomes? AND 2. What success did I experience? I would say that I was partially successful. I did not use these types of assessments as much as I thought I would but I offered choice as much as I could. I was most successful in Environmental Science 20. I ended each unit with a choice of project or test. No one ever chose to write a test. This class also had the most success with this type of assignment. I had a wide range of products handed in ranging from models, plays, posters, and even a song. The students in this class really enjoyed the options. Initially some were overwhelmed with the amount of choice but soon became engaged in the process when they realized they could show their learning in a way that made sense to them and was more enjoyable. 3. What were my struggles? I found it difficult to separate the need to cover certain content while still allowing complete choice. In History I made some compromises. For example, students needed to study a Revolution in history 10 but they had a choice as to which one they studied and presented. In History 20 students followed a specific country through the history of the war. They were allowed to choose from a list of countries but no two students could have the same one. In other assignments students had to research a certain event but were allowed to choose how they presented it or what type of product they created. Final projects for both History 10 and 20 will be very open but will need to focus on certain themes to cover course outcomes. I also struggle with motivating the students to try something different and to be motivated and self-driven. Again this was more successful in ES 20 perhaps due to the organization of the course or the students themselves. It is difficult for them to look beyond the PowerPoint and try something they haven’t done before. For ES 20 I did have a rule that students couldn’t produce the same type of product more than once. Perhaps I should instate this type of rule in other classes to get students creating a variety of products. 4. What goal will I set for next year? How can allow more choices in content heavy courses such as math and science? Perhaps even introducing a weekly problem-solving task in math for students to work collaboratively to solve a so-called “impossible” problem. Samples of Student WorkI like to make my classroom as welcoming as possible. It is colourful, open, functional and contains numerous resources to help students succeed. The front of the room is organized in a U-Shape almost like a large round table. This set-up allows for fluid class discussion and serves as a meeting place for students before they move around to work on their own projects. The back of the room contains groups of desks for small group work and or discussion. Students are allowed to move desks if they need to work alone or they are allowed to use the other study zones in our school. They are encouraged to choose the best learning environment for their personal learning style. One side of the room is dedicated to student organization. I have a large weekly calendar on the wall that shows what students can expect to happen in each class that week. There is a resource station with scissors, glue, pencils, rulers, etc in case a student forgot their own. On the far side a hand in bin is located where students hand in all work for any class. This way I can't misplace their assignments on my desk and they know exactly where their work is expected to be on due dates. The wall behind this section also includes information relevant to our school culture and goal. We are focusing on self-regulation skills, GRIT, and developing a Growth Mindset. The rest of the bulletin boards are subject specific. I teach a wide range of subjects in my room but each board contains a combination of student work and resource posters for students. The back history board contains posters on the Big 6 historical thinking skills and student work from Social Studies 8. The Science and Math boards share the Metric Staircase. The Science board contains student projects mostly from Environmental Science 20. Realistically Senior math doesn't have any student work to share other than tests; therefore, this board is dedicated to helpful math hints, common formulas and problems. Lastly, I have my own personal bulletin board. This one is mostly for me. It contains pictures of friends, family, past students, and other school memorabilia. It is a small space in my classroom that reminds me why I do what I do and that I have a support system out there even when the days become crazy busy and stressful.
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About the AuthorVanessa L. Warnock Archives
May 2018
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