The first days of school that year found me in a panic. I had all
these great ideas and strategies, but most of my students couldn’t focus long
enough to listen, couldn’t follow directions, couldn’t understand when to stop
talking, or manage any of the basic learning skills I had come to expect in a
new class. After going home deflated and exhausted several days in a row, I
realized that there was no point in trying to teach content when the kids did
not have the basic skills needed to learn. Something had to happen.
That Something
That something was a strategy I learned in a BrainSMART
class. It was in the curriculum Thinking
for Reading by Dr. Donna Wilson and Marcus Conyers. I remember when I was
going through the class I thought the skills would help far beyond reading.
Fast-forward and I realized
NOW would be the perfect time to see how well the curriculum would work in an extreme setting. I frantically grabbed the curriculum set and held onto it as if it were my lifeline to sanity…which it did turn out to be. The curriculum came with a teacher’s manual, a class set of reproducibles, and a CD. I became quick friends with the copy machine (okay, it was really a love/hate relationship) and started making copies of the discussion pages. Just a note: this curriculum is for grades Pre-K through 3, however the concepts are valid for any age or grade.
NOW would be the perfect time to see how well the curriculum would work in an extreme setting. I frantically grabbed the curriculum set and held onto it as if it were my lifeline to sanity…which it did turn out to be. The curriculum came with a teacher’s manual, a class set of reproducibles, and a CD. I became quick friends with the copy machine (okay, it was really a love/hate relationship) and started making copies of the discussion pages. Just a note: this curriculum is for grades Pre-K through 3, however the concepts are valid for any age or grade.
Introducing the
Curriculum
I introduced the curriculum to a previous class by teaching
one skill a week for ten weeks. With this class, I ramped it up to two skills a
week for five weeks. There was no time to lose! The first week the kids learned
Practical Optimism with an adorable optimistic puppy. There is a recorded story
about the puppy that taught the importance of optimism, and a set of
corresponding coloring pages with discussion points. Listening to this story
was literally the first time I had seen the entire class quiet and focused!
After the story we discussed the importance of optimism and gave examples of
optimistic behavior. It is very important as a teacher to model optimism for
your students as well.
The Skills
This continued for five weeks. There is a story, discussion
points, and coloring pages for each skill. We learned:
Practical Optimism
Listening
Understanding Space
Understanding Time
Focus – Selective Attention
Working Memory
Systematic Search
Systematic Planning
Appropriate Courage
Making Comparisons
Reward
These concepts became part of our daily language and
discussion. I could see changes beginning slowly class wide. I was exceptionally
rewarded one day when I saw a student who had a particularly difficult time
keeping his hands and body to himself, stop himself from running into another
student. He just froze himself in place and said, “Understanding Space!” then
went on his own way leaving the other child alone. You would have to know the
child to understand what a big deal that was for him to do. I almost cried! Another
time a child started to yell out, then stopped and whispered, “Understanding
Time.” She then sat quietly with her hand raised.
Here is a video of my current students sharing the thinking skills and saying how these skills apply to both life and reading.
Here is a video of my current students sharing the thinking skills and saying how these skills apply to both life and reading.
Finally
These concepts are not internalized overnight, it is definitely
a process. However, the process is worthwhile and can have a positive lifelong
impact on a child. Teacher modeling and frequent discussion are essential. Once
these skills began to be internalized by students, things became much better in
class. I kept my sanity, learning took place, and we all survived!
(If you are interested in the curriculum I mentioned, it is
called Thinking for Reading by Dr.
Donna Wilson and Marcus Conyers. It is available on the BrainSMART website
here:
http://www.brainsmart.org/store/list.asp.
Scroll down to Thinking for Reading Primary Grades
(PreK - 3rd)).
I am enjoying your blog. Excellent work!
ReplyDeleteThanks for sharing. It looks like something worth checking out. I would love for my kids to learn all that skills on the list.
ReplyDeleteHey hi...i just go through your post.it's really awesome. i think here is the place where people can share their knowledge easily. Thank you for sharing such a nice Information.
ReplyDeleteinteresting
ReplyDeleteWonderful blog post as usual, Diane. Inspiring and filled with practical examples.
ReplyDeleteThank you for sharing!
So cool ! Thank you for working so hard with our students !
ReplyDeleteI really enjoyed this post and I agree that these are important skills for the children to learn. I love how you saw the need of basic learning skills in the classroom and took the initiative to step in and change it. You took what you had learned from others and applied it in the classroom. I feel it is very important for teachers to build a learning community and help each other to discover effective methods for teaching. This curriculum would be a tremendous asset for any class. It is clear from the video and the stories of your students' responses that it had a major impact on them.
ReplyDelete