Monitoring My GAME Plan

 Putting a plan into action is easier said than done. Though it is easy to sit and brainstorm and consider, it is much more difficult to carry out that plan and do it well. As I begin to put my plan into action, there are some things that have gone well, perhaps even better than expected, and other areas that have not gone as planned.

 When I began to set goals for myself, the first part that I realized was that I needed to become more of an expert in choice boards and cross-curricular planning and projects. One of the resources that I have found for myself is a book called "Teaching Beyond the Test: Differentiated Project-Based Learning in a Standards-Based Age." Though I am still waiting for this resource to arrive, I feel slightly more confident knowing that I will have a research-based resource to help me if I need suggestions in either the process or product. I have spoken with a few other teachers about beginning a cross-curricular activity. The one that I am going to begin is with the math teacher. Coincidentally, and luckily, my students have been invited to participate in a program called "Sounds of Learning." This is a partnership between my school district and the Philadelphia Opera Company which is trying to make a connection between literacy and the arts. While we are preparing to go to this opera next month, there are several activities that we'll be completing to feel ready. One activity that we are going to do as a cross-curricular activity with math is plan our own opera. The company has provided us with estimates for the various components of an opera budget. The math teacher will be working on the budgeting portion, and I will be working on teaching about the importance of the various components. This way, students understand the decision to use an unknown singer will be more likely to decrease their profits, and so on. I feel rather confident currently that I am gaining all of the information and resources that I need. However, I am also paying attention to what might not be as easy in the future. For example, this cross-curricular project came at such a perfect time. If I plan on making this something I would like to do going forward, my team (other subjects) and I need to be more aware of each other's curricula. That way, we are able to communicate and create ideas together rather than crossing our fingers that it all works out.

 Another cross-curricular activity I might try after the opera is to have my eighth graders plan and execute a K-2 lesson. On Dr. Seuss' birthday, the reading curriculum coordinator had eighth grade students complete a prepared lesson in each of these classrooms. The eighth graders, essentially, became the teachers. While both sets of students loved it, I thought it would be wonderful if these same students were given the opportunity to choose their own lesson, create, plan, and execute it. Students would be assessed not on the lesson and its' success but more on the mastery of the content from my classroom (for example, understanding theme or main idea).

 Based on what I have learned so far, there are some small modifications that need to be made. One of the biggest problems that I am guilty of during these types of projects is not making the connection between my content objectives and the work we are doing (Cennamo, Ross, & Ertmer, 2009). Therefore, in order to keep my on track and check my students' understanding of this connection, I am going to have them complete a daily reflection or check-in at the end of the class period. This will simply involve a question about the objective or the day and how or if the student feels that objective was reached through the lesson and/or the product created. Furthermore, I need to make it an additional goal to create and maintain and fair and equitable scoring system. When using choices (we have not worked our way up to an entire Choice Board yet), I often feel as though certain products are more difficult than others and wind up being slightly more lenient with the scoring. I am struggling in two ways here: how do I determine whether all of the options are equal (or at least fair)? Secondly, I understand that I need a general rubric, but it also needs to remain fair and consistent. How do I make my brain take the product at face value?

 Some of the other realizations that I have come to is the old adage that time flies when you're having fun! I assumed planning would be simple and quick. Boy, was I wrong. I need to keep the math teacher up-to-date with what I am teaching so that he knows and understands the content as well as the students. He needs to do it for me as well. We also need to address the needs of any students who are going to struggle throughout the project. Since we both have infants to pick up at the end of the day (and mornings are a joke for me!), we have taken to using iChat once or twice a week as needed. We both have Macs, so it is amazing to be able to talk in real time to plan without having to be in school! This way, we can share an visual aids, and it goes by much quicker than emailing. Also, I am noticing that my students are extremely engaged. I am not sure whether it is because we are delving into this odd world of opera that they had never even considered, they finally have a say in what they are producing, or if they are amazed by this cross-curricular idea, but that are into it! It's nice to see students disappointed to leave your classroom.

 There are also some new questions that have arisen since beginning my GAME plan. It's interesting no matter how much you anticipate the details of something, things that you never consider come up. I have two major questions/concerns. The first one is regarding engagement and learning. My students are definitely becoming more engaged in the classroom, even though we are just beginning. However, just because they are more engaged, it does not mean that they are gaining the necessary knowledge. My question, which will be answered in time, is are students gaining the intended content and knowledge through these activities? My original GAME plan has checkpoints and assessments built in to check whether or not students are learning, but of course, whenever I do anything new in the classroom, I always question whether or not my intent is being understood. My second question is am I making the appropriate connection between the activities and project to the overall content? I know that I am weak in this area, which is why I have decided to create a daily check-in exit slip of sorts. I would appreciate any other suggestions in these areas though!

Caitlin

References:

Cennamo, K., Ross, J. & Ertmer, P. (2009). Technology integration for meaningful classroom use: A standards-based approach. (Laureate Education, Inc., Custom ed.). Belmont, CA: Wadsworth, Cengage Learning.