Put a Nose on It

A two-year old had been working on drawing circles, so his grandma decided to amp it up a bit.  She said, “Can you put a nose on it?”  And he did.

With a smudge on his nose, he lifted his head with pride and accomplishment!

So, this is a cute, cute story.  It’s easy to appreciate this young child exploring the world and functioning without learned behaviors or expected outcomes.  In the same mind that plays these thoughts, other hypocritical thoughts contradict these beliefs.  Are we even aware?  Do we see possibilities in the “wrong” answers from our students and consider it to be neat?

If I were the grandma, I would have followed this “answer” with…”Can you show me another way to add a nose?”  This approach helps the child develop flexible thinking without destroying his own thinking mind or confidence.  He added a nose.  It just wasn’t the nose Grandma had in mind.

Why is it that the big people, a.k.a. teachers, become so trapped in own expectations or “correct answer” that we can’t see the  actual world around us?  The answers and ideas and possibilities.  Is it any surprise that our students don’t know how to think?  Maybe they’ve given up because all of their thoughts were “wrong.”  Maybe it’s because we don’t give opportunities to think, and they’ve learned they don’t have to think.  Maybe, just maybe, it’s simply because we haven’t thought about this…we haven’t thought about our own thinking.

Guess what?  That’s where it starts.  As a teacher, I must be thinking about the answers I hear and hold myself accountable for having flexible thinking, too.  Could there be a path to the answer that I haven’t considered?  How did they get that answer?  Why would the student answer in that way?  Why would he put his face on the paper?

That’s what makes this story cute.  We were intrigued by this two-year old’s response, and our inquiry and curiosity forced us to consider the thinking involved.  We can see why he put his face down.

It’s an awful day when the student is giving more than a teacher is asking, but the teacher is looking for “one” answer…and misses the amazing work being produced by the student.  Even worse, tells the student it isn’t correct or isn’t what she asked the student to do.  Keep the learning objective clear and think about the responses given by your students.  Respond to their thinking…not necessarily their answers.  Discussion is a reciprocal action.  

This weekend…as you plan for next week…prepare some thought-provoking questions.  Be ready to think about the thinking going on in your classroom.  Find moments like this one in your classroom.

So, get kids talking…and listen.  REALLY listen.  And don’t forget to ask YOURSELF to think, too.

The Pigeon…LEGOs???? Sign Me Up!!

The Pigeon builds a STORY CONTEST….how fun is that????  Even if this doesn’t interest you for your class, you can pass it on to your students.

Entry deadline is Oct. 31st.  Not long.  Check it out…

Contest Information

Writing prompt ideas:

• “How can I make myself a stronger reader and writer?”
• “What can I do to expand my vocabulary?”
• “How can I teach my classmates new words?”
• “How can I make my classmates better storytellers?”

What’s in it for you???

Grand prize: A two-foot Pigeon build, a LEGO Education StoryStarter classroom set, signed copies of Willems’ latest Pigeon book and a congratulatory video from Mr. Willems.

Making Meaning of Text

Yesterday, in a discussion about writing and finding evidence, the buzz words started to swirl in my mind.  Claim.  Evidence.  Warrant.  Interpretation.  What does all this mean?

What does all this mean?……More importantly, why does it matter?

It’s more than chopping a text into bits and finding evidence.  If our students can do this but can’t use the information to grow their intellectual reasoning skills…then we have once again, isolated a skill.  Finding evidence is more than an isolated skill.

Sure, finding evidence to support your answer is important and will serve our students well as they justify their choices on the test or write opinion paragraphs.  But I’m not satisfied.  How do I take the practice beyond “school” application?

I realize this is a HUGE can of worms, and honestly, not even sure if I know myself what on earth I mean.  But the thought is worth the reflection.

Check out this blog.  What deep thoughts swirl in your mind?  What’s the bigger picture for “finding evidence” and how do we make sure we are making the message clear to students?

Evidence/Claims

By the way, the author of this blog has an incredible book called, What Readers Really Do.  Fantastic read.  Does anyone own her grammar book?  I’d love to know more about it.

Harmless Holder…Get Your Attention?

Got mine.  Check out this idea for an engineering project if you are diving into STEAM.

Harmless Holder

By the way, if you do Pinterest, I have a small STEAM folder on my Pinterest.

Who’s Asking the Questions?

Take a moment and reflect…is there more teacher talk than student talk in your classroom? The problem with too much teacher talk (besides lack of engagement), is that if students are not talking, they are not thinking.

Last year I ran across a book called Make Just One Change. You can view more about it at this link:  rightquestion.org.  So of course when the article appeared in Educational Leadership this month, I couldn’t resist.  A blog entry was in the making.  Not only does the article and book discuss the concept, it provides a process to help you achieve the goal.  (article)

Perhaps we should get together and have a PD session in the future.  Powerful stuff.  These types of activities will transform your classroom into a “think tank.”

As for a blog entry, for the record, I have many entry ideas.  I just lose them before I get a chance to sit down and write them.  I write this wondering if anyone has even noticed my lack of entries since the school year started.  Are you wondering why this entry made it? (Probably not, but I’m telling you anyway.)  After a nice relaxing fall break, I sat down to catch up on a week’s worth of emails.  Sitting in my recliner, dog sleeping on my lap, calendar with PENCIL (dates will change as I work my way UP the emails), I ran across the article in my email.  This blog has been on my mind, and I decided there was no time like the present.

Perhaps if I had more comments from dedicated followers I would feel the pressure to deliver a plethora of entries.  Hint, hint.

Hope your fall break was relaxing, and you are rejuvenated!  You have little brains eager to return to your classroom. Okay, so maybe not so eager.  So my thinking returns back to my original question, who’s doing the talking/thinking in your classroom?