Testing Blues

The time has arrived for the day we have all been waiting for, Testing Day! This is the part where I sigh and cross my finger for the time to fly by. But, this never comes true! Instead time passes by slowly and the clock hands seem to slow down. I also have to mentally prepare myself to stand up for a minimum of two hours. Yes, two hours even though it’s a 70 minute test.

As I am trying to pass my testing blue, I think about ways to fill the rest of the day with activities that are fun but yet the kids can gain some educational value as well. For the first day, I decided to make note cards of encouragement. I have paired up two students together to leave each other notes of encouragement before the test.

I feel that at times with the pressure of testing and doing their best, we forget how important is to slow down and feel encourage by others. I remember as a kid my parents would rotate each day of big exams such as these and write me little notes.  Some notes were just silly and full of happiness. Nevertheless, they shape my day and attitude for those pesky big tests.

Today, I encourage my students to the same. At the same time, I was able to do a quick review of parts of a letter and writing. The kids loved the idea and thought it was AWESOME ! They all can’t wait to come tomorrow to class and share their notes with each other. 

I will be sharing pictures of the note cards and delivery tomorrow. 

What are some ways you encourage kids to support each other in the classroom? 

Best Practices In The Classroom

Once I released responsibility to the kiddos yesterday, I decided to take a step back and analyze what can go better. I even caught on tape those moments of glory and moments of despair.  As I was watching the video, I started taking notes on their behaviors and anything that I thought was worth it.

 I quickly realized that many of the students thinking changed from one point of view to another. Before starting to teach the reciprocal strategies I gave a reading survey to analyze the students thinking and attitude towards reading strategies in general. In the pre- assessment I discovered that many of them were aware of strategies but did not really know how to use them. Another portion of the students felt that certain strategies were used for certain parts of the story only.    

As soon as I glanced back at my notes I realized that my students still need support. They were proficient in using the strategy when they had guidance on where to use them.  Eventually, my notes turned into a list of “myths” and teacher solution on how to break them.

One thing that I have to point out is that regardless of the outcome of yesterday their way of thinking has taken a turn. They understand that strategies are a game plan but for reading. This is how I explained it to them earlier in the year. One cannot read without having some sort of plan to understand the text. This is where reading strategies come into effect. To comprehend the text the reader must engage physically and mentally to accomplish this goals.

All reading strategies are successful when the reader becomes aware of when and how to use it. As teachers, we teach these strategies to facilitate comprehension and interaction with the text. Even though we have preference over certain strategies it’s always good for students to know an array of them in order to pick when necessary. The more the students know the better they are equipped to tackle whatever they are reading.

What other “myths” have you discover your students to have?