Should Children Be Allowed to Fail?

Several weeks ago, I read an article on CNN directed toward parents asking, Is It OK to Let Your Children Fail? The author shares the story of her daughter's school project and whether or not she did the right thing by "helping".  Then she pulls in a variety of other perspectives on the subject.

It's an interesting subject, one that certainly brings out strong opinions.  One of the reasons I assigned most projects to be done in class was so that the projects were really completed by students, not parents.  However, that's not always practical.

As we continue to teach our students about grit and having a growth mindset, it's important to reinforce "failure" as a learning experience.  And we have to make sure we teach parents the same lesson.

Goal-Setting for Students

My newest article is up at teachers.net.  It's on Goal-Setting for Students.  Take a look:

I’m not going to say to quit teaching concepts students need later. What I am going to suggest is that we frame learning and goal setting in terms students can understand, and hopefully, in a way they can use to set personal learning goals. We also have to recognize that, for some students, our goals are not their goals. We may want them to love reading or make good grades, but they may be focused on impressing you, or making Mom and Dad happy, or being a rap star. To some degree, we are looking for a balance of our goals for them and their own personal goals. Teaching goal setting can start with even the youngest children (lining up quietly, listening quietly to a story), and it builds as they get older. Good goals provide direction and may help students make good choices, rather than leaving them susceptible to peer pressure and following the crowd. 

For the full article, click here.  

Pairing with #Parents

My newest e-newsletter is out and this month's topic is how to pair with parents to positively impact student learning.  If you aren't receiving it, sign up using the link on the right--I'll resend it each day for about a week.  

What is Instructional #Rigor?

Great Source for Primary Source Information

Have you visited the Library of Congress online?  In addition to providing a wealth of lesson plans, there's a terrific section on primary sources.  You can search by topic, state, or most frequently taught themes.  If you are looking for some additional texts to use in your classroom, this is a great starting point.

 

#Rigor and Failing?

Just finished participating in a Twitter chat on rigor with teachers in Volusia County.  I had a great time, and the best line of the night came from mmmccoy1:  FAIL=first attempt in learning.  What a great concept to teach to students.  

Alternatives to Round Robin #Reading

When I was a student teacher, my supervising teacher used Round Robin Reading with our students.  Each student was assigned a paragraph, and they took turns reading.  It wasn't a big success--the students were so focused on their part, they didn't listen to anyone else.  Also, many of the students were embarrassed to be reading out loud, and they stumbled over the words.  In retrospect, we were
asking students to perform for their classmates, without having time to practice.

More recently, I visited a classroom where the teacher was using "waterfall reading".  It was round robin reading--only the students didn't know their parts in advance.  Although that solved part of the problem (students did listen better), they were still simply word calling when they read out loud--there was no comprehension.

So what are some alternatives?  Edutopia posted a great blog entry with 11 other options.  Here's the first two:

1. Choral Reading

The teacher and class read a passage aloud together, minimizing struggling readers' public exposure. In a 2011 study of over a hundred sixth graders (PDF, 232KB), David Paige found that 16 minutes of whole-class choral reading per week enhanced decoding and fluency. In another version, every time the instructor omits a word during her oral reading, students say the word all together.

2. Partner Reading

Two-person student teams alternate reading aloud, switching each time there is a new paragraph. Or they can read each section at the same time.