Response to Katie's Response

"Great overview of the chapter! I'm curious to know what strategies do you think you would use in your own classroom and why?"

Thank you for the awesome question! 

I think I would like to modify the Lectio Defina exercise. Christopher Uhl modifies it to be used in a group setting with a focused group of older students. I would use it for my oldest students - fifth graders. I would have the students choose a print or postcard of an artwork that "speaks" to them. I then would ask them to answer the following questions in writing, by themselves, to quietly hear themselves think:

1.If a crowd of people walked into an art museum and saw this artwork, what would they say the artwork is about?
2. Does this artwork remind you of an experience you have had in your own life?
3. If you had a question for the artist, what would it be?
4. If you could go into this artwork, what would you do?

I might use copies of allegorical work from a specific time period, to get the students thinking about metaphor in art. For example --







Two Shepherd Boys with Dogs Fighting by Thomas Gainsborough




 Wounded Angel by Hugo Simberg


 Gregory Crewdson

Gregory Crewdson

Gregory Crewdson

Week 10 Peer Responses

To Katie-

On how to modify the How Many of You......Icebreaker for elementary students..

I would use it on the first day of class as a community builder for third grade and up. "Welcome back to school, children. In order to get to know each other better, I want you to complete the answer on the board. Ask a question that you can share with the class, such as, 'How many of you like to play soccer?' I will read each question to the class. Each person will answer by raising their hands for 'yes, me' or leaving your hands down for 'not me.' "

I wouldn't expect deep and probing questions. But you would get them started with question based learning. A lot of textbooks about critical thinking strategies overlook younger elementary students. It might help to look at thinking skills books for younger students to get some ideas about appropriate phrasing and concept development.

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To Sheryl-

In response to "“Questions are catalyst for learning; they provoke movement; they yield change.”(p75) I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again, proponents of 21st Century Learning call for change, but school policies and standardized testing doesn’t readily facilitate the process. Makes me wonder what questions I need to be asking and to whom I should be listening…or, is the answer already there and I’m too afraid to see it? "

Baby, it's you! It only takes one good teacher to make an impact. My good teacher came my junior year in high school. Plant the seeds, and over time they will grow! You are the change you want to see, and all that jazz. Just remember...time...

Week 11 Lesson: Pre - think

Timeline of what we have done recently in kindergarten:
1. VTS Picasso's Gourmet 
 
2. Drew a picture: What would you make in your bowl?
3. Made: A pinch pot
4. Artist Study: Chihuly, and Macchia



5. Made: Coffee filter macchia
6. Meret Oppenheim?





We are doing materials exploration using the theme of a bowl. Clay and glass. Bowl as utlilitarian, bowl as sculpture. I can not resist showing them a picture of Object by Meret Oppenheim. I MUST do it.

We have just come off of an artist study about Dale Chihuly. This is my first year doing an artist study with kindergarten. I have not done artists studies with kindergarten in the past.To be truthful, I am still leery of presenting artist information to such young students. I feel that when students study an artist, they need to get to the big idea an artist works with, not just imitating a style of art making. How do I present an artist in a nutshell to such young children? How do I bridge gap between what I "know" and what is developmentally appropriate for the age group? Maybe question based learning is the answer.

So, for the question based lesson, I am going to display an image of the furry bowl. I am going to do a modification of 50 Questions with the students to assess their reading of the image and  their art vocabulary. In a whole class setting, will write down all their questions on moveable strips. I will then categorize their questions in front of them based on trends found in questioning. I will have them make a feather bowl and spoon. I will then ask the students if we have answered any of the questions by making the bowl.

Anybody else have different ideas?

Week 10: Reading and Reflection

Read and Reflect Chapter 3: Teaching as if life matters

Chapter 3 advocates for question-based learning. The author suggests inverting the power structure in the classroom, and teaching students strategies that help them guide their own learning. The way to engage students and create valid school experiences is to let their natural curiosity guide their intellectual development.

In the first part of the chapter, Christopher Uhl talks about overcoming the negative connotations of questioning. I have distinct memories of being reprimanded for questioning at school, home, and about church. I wonder about the triangle of childhood existence and question where the questioning an curiosity is allowed to flourish. A typical child's life revolves around church, home, and school. Are children encouraged to ask questions about their parents' faith and explore spirituality on their own terms? Do standardized tests gauge critical thinking ? How many parents can entertain their children's questioning by validating instead of going bonkers? In each of the institutions that children are engaged in, the power structure is top heavy. I guess I was fortunate that I had an "interior space" I could retreat to and let my mind wonder free as a child. In high school I had an English teacher that fostered a questioning spirit in her class. I felt like I had learned a secret skill in that I could observe and analyze things for how they really appeared to me.

A good portion of the remainder of chapter is spent outlining questioning strategies that can be used in the classroom. After explaining the crafting of questions, Christopher Uhl explains question based strategied. They are as follows:

1. How many of you______? ice breaker in which each student creates a question for the class. Other students respond with yes/no answers, and the teacher models asking follow up questions.
2. Fifty Questions. With this strategy, students generate questions based on sustained observation of some subject matter. Students then analyze and look for trends in the content of their questions. The teacher helps students revise questions so they are not ambiguous. Students then design research projects based on the questions.
3. Annoying Child.  Use the question of "Why" to systematically delve into deeper reflection and thinking.
4. PMI. Students brainstorm the Plus and Minus aspects of a topic. They also list aspects of a topic that aren't positive or negative, just Interesting.
5. Lectio Divina. This strategy for contemplatively reading the Bible can be modified into a questioning technique for secular texts read in a group setting. The original steps are paraphrased to glean the message of any author.                               
6.  Strategic Questioning. This strategy is used to help develop self-understanding and to bring about social change. First,  Background Questions are asked in the order of guiding focus, analysis, and feeling. Next, Strategic Questions are asked about visioning and action plans.

Week 9 Reflections

Dear Ginia -

I love the way you handled the situation with the student who talked down about herself. It was so simple and empowering. I have noticed some of my students talk themselves into meeting lower expectations, and instead of talking themselves up. You gave me an Idea - Modeling self-talk that is empowering can promote the development resilience in students who don't have it. Thank you!

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Katie - I apologize for butting in, but the correct phrase is "underachiever." Underachievers are so frustrating because you know they can do the work, and you spend so much of your time with just that student "motivating" them to do their work. There are interventions you can use. Sally M. Reis and her husband Joseph S. Renzulli have done a lot of research in this area. I am posting two links to resources, though you can find much more if you research "reversing underachievement."

http://www.gifted.uconn.edu/general/faculty/reis/Self-Regulated_Learning_Reverse_Underachievement.html

http://www.davidsongifted.org/db/Articles_id_10442.aspx

Weeek 9 Reflection

1. Consider the word “teacher.” We, as does the public, have many ideas surrounding this title. Imagine dropping the title “teacher”.... What lies beyond the title? 

My associations with the word teacher in part are tied to historical social restrictions placed on teaching females - can't wear red lipstick, be seen alone in the company of an adult male, etc. I am sensitive to the social restrictions still placed on teachers, like we still have to appear as as anesthetize versions of human beings even in our out of school lives, catering to the more conservative (religious) elements of the school system. Teachers are in part keepers of the culture, but it seems to be the keeping of the dominant culture in many cases.

Tied to that is the issue of restriction is the sense control teachers are supposed to have. Over themselves, the students, and the curriculum.

I also think of the deference to teachers of the holders of some unarguable absolute Platonic standards. That grading objectives are objective and point to some absolute truth in the realm of knowledge. That knowledge and learning can be defined in finite terms. 

Beyond the title of teacher, you have people who have a variety of

• organizational strategies
• levels of knowledge
• introverted vs. extroverted personalities
• cultural exposure
• levels of "people smarts"
• ages
• religious beliefs
• political leanings
• family structures
• cultural histories
• socioeconomic backgrounds
• educational training
• levels of fitness and health concerns
• motivations for being in the classroom
• motivations for lifetime learning
• traumas
• successes
• world views

The list is not exhaustive, but with all the differences in individuals who pursue teaching, there is a consensus to work within an educational system, and to work for the betterment of others. There is an acceptance of some givens, and to operate within those givens unless change can be brought about.

2. Contemplate deeply the idea of truth speaking. Reflect on your classrooms and your relationships with your students... How and where is truth speaking present? 

• When a class is getting too rowdy, and I stop and quietly watch the class. I tell the class the behaviors I am observing. I tell them my first impulse is to yell at them, but I have decided not to, because I do not want to give into negative energy and go home in a bad mood. I ask them how they are going to fix their behavior.
• When students are having trouble with scissors, with drawing, or using paint. I share with them my struggles with scissors, not being to draw what I saw in  my head, and not being to use paint without being messy when I was younger. I explain to them the developmental reasons certain things are hard for them. I assure them it will get better as they develop.
•  When a student asks "What is the point of this assignment?"
• When I said to a fourth grade class, "I didn't bring my A game last week. Let me reintroduce this lesson in a better way."
• When I say to my students, " I want to give you a warning, I have a serious case of the Mondays," and it is a Wednesday.
• When a student says they need help, instead of just goofing off.
• By acknowledging my mistakes in the moment and sharing how they make me feel.
• When students ask to do a certain project or technique that interests them.

3. Thinking back through all the reading and reflecting to date, write a personal classroom mission statement. Something you could put up in your room. After you come up with this statement, share it on your blog and talk (truth speak) a little bit about how you arrived at this statement.

Mission Statement: Question, Wonder, Listen, Make

Question: I want the students to think more analytically and to challenge what they are being taught. One of the most important questions , for me personally, is "Am I answering the right question?" Just because somebody in a position of authority poses a question or gives a task doesn't make it worthwhile. 

I also want students to be able to question themselves before they question me. To internally moderate their progress before going to an external judge.

Wonder: Once the students have a grasp on a material, technique, or concept, I want them to play with it and see how they can run with what they have been taught. I want them to bring up a variety of perspectives that I or the other students haven't vocalized. I also want them to get lost on working with a concept or in a conversation. I want them to ask 'Why?' so they have a better understanding about how things work. I want them to play with a fanciful idea they may know isn't reality, like arguing that mermaids exist.  

Listen: I want the students to know that listening is a two way street between teachers and students. They need to listen to me, and I want to listen to them. They also have to get quiet and listen to themselves. Sometimes problems are easier to solve if we pause and listen to our thoughts. They could also "solve" visual works of art on their own if they listen to their internal dialogue about what they look at. I also want them to listen to each other. A lot of interpersonal conflicts could be mediated by the students themselves if they could learn to calm themselves and look through another person's eyes.

Make: Sometimes it is the process, sometimes the product, and often together, when you make something you can see what you are capable of.  Making isn't passive. Making requires visualization and thinking. Good making is engaging.  Making something you are proud of is validating.

4. Reflect on some ways your consciousness about teaching has expanded since the start of this course and how does this relate to your goals? Do your goals need tweaking at this point? Restate them here (as they were or as they now are).

 Previously stated, my goals were:

1. Organization and Structure in the Classroom

• identify my currents patterns of organization and structure
• evaluate the reasons for these patterns and structure
• distinguish positive effects of my current system  from negative ones 
• evaluate the effects of my organization on the students, my classroom, and my efficacy
• create modifications to the organization and structure of my classroom
• evaluate the modifications to the organization and structure.

2. Fostering the habit of reflective thinking in students in grades 3-5 by addressing my weaknesses self-identified in the Maranzo Teacher's Scale

• Routinely providing students with rubrics
• Having students track their own progress
• Letting my classroom rules and procedures go lax mid-year
• Student review of new information in small groups
• Students verbally summarizing new learning
• Reviewing content consistently
• Explicitly using groups to support learning
• Asking students to verbalize their insight into how they revise knowledge
• Have the same expectations for low students as I do for the high ones

Revised Goals:

1. Organization and Structure in the Classroom

• identify student needs and teacher needs, physical and social
• identify my patterns of organization and structure
• evaluate the effects of organization and structure in meeting student and teacher needs
• create modifications to meet student and teacher needs.

 2. Fostering the habit of reflective thinking about creative processes in grades 3-5

• incorporate artist/bibliography studies about artists  - to study their creative processes and/or their thinking about their creative processes
• have students journal about their thought processes and decision making
• have students develop their own mission statements for learning in art class
• group students by similar mission statements 
• Have students verbalize their insights within the support of student groups. 
• Have students model positive self-talk  

Week 9 Reading Summary

Summary:
Prologue Teaching as if Life Matters
In the prologue, Christopher Uhl outlines using systems thinking to affect a better educational outcome for students touched by compulsory schooling. It is the author's position that we encourage intellectual development at the expense of affective development, creating wounds that prevent students from becoming self-actualized. Since teachers interact with such a large part of the population, teachers can transform how students think and help develop a society that is more reflective and smart about relationships big and small.

Chapter 5 Teaching as if Life Matters
In Chapter 5, Christopher Uhl posits that a lot of teacher/student conflicts center around fear and views of "otherness." He suggests instead that the teacher operate from the viewpoint that every human is interconnected. 

In the first part of the chapter the author outlines four concepts that we have been socially conditioned to accept as truth. The first is that reality is composed of opposites. The second is that the labels we give things limit our perceptions of them. The third is that in blaming and complaining we cause separation and give up personal responsibility for difficult situations. The fourth is that the social grouping subculture present in most schools reinforces the concepts of otherness and fear. To counter act the four mindsets listed above the author suggests that teachers shift to a mindset that accepts interconnectedness between all humans, re-evaluates labels and judgements, see the goodness in others, and create spaces where teachers and students can speak candidly and build relationships.

The second part of the chapter centers around changing language spoken in schools to change the culture to one based an relationships instead of fear. The author highlights another social conditioned truth that most Americans accept - that everyone is basically bad and selfish. Our language used because of our acceptance of this viewpoint creates separation. Chistopher Uhl outlines a model of speaking that helps build relationships. By using the Nonviolent Communication model, the speaker recognizes the needs of all parties involved and avoids using demands and negative language in order to get  personal needs met.

The third part of the chapter deals with cultivating relationships in the classroom. The author first urges the reader to evaluate how the physical layout of the classroom affects relationships. He then suggests enhancing the social culture of the classroom by creating a safe atmosphere for teachers and students to speak and listen from the heart. The third condition for cultivating relationships in the classroom is suspending personal judgement when dialogue is occurring. The fourth condition is not to be afraid of personal touch in the classroom, since touch can build relationships. The fifth condition is to co-create a set of shared commitments with students, in order to build an environment of shared responsibility to meeting a cultural mission.