Mr. Kaufmann MS Algebra I Warm-up from Ben Kaufmann on Vimeo.
- What strength(s) did
you notice in the teaching and learning process?
I really
like how the popsicle sticks not only allow me to make sure everybody gets
called on, but they also keep students engaged because they know that they
might be called on. The format of students doing the warm-up on the smart board
also works to my advantage by allowing me to roam the class and spot-check
while one student is up at the board.
- What evidence(s) of students'
learning did you observe?
The
original video clip was far too large but it showed how I had students compare
answers to the one on the smartboard.
- To what degree were all
learners engaged?
Like I
mentioned above, this method keeps all learners engaged by allowing me to walk
around and spot check while the warm up was being done on the smartboard. The
students also keep their warm-ups in a journal that I periodically collect, to
make sure they are doing the warm-ups and taking notes.
- What evidences of addressing varied
abilities did you observe?
It is not
obvious from the short video clip, but I often tailor my help to students
depending on their ability level. It is not an option to to say “I don’t
understand it” or “I didn’t do the warm-up” because I will always help students
at the smartboard if they need it.
- What was the your role in supporting
learning?
During
warm-ups I feel that my role is to make sure everybody is engaged in the
activity and to help students who need it.
- Describe one challenge you
observed.
One
challenge that is evident in a longer clip of the warm-up is that sometimes
students take a long time working the problem out on the whiteboard and it is
sometimes difficult to keep all students engaged while they are working on it.
- What did you learn or observe about your
students thinking (eg., what were their typical mistakes or
misconceptions?)
Typical
mistakes often center around a misplaced negative. One of the frequent mistakes
that surprises me is students will often turn an x into a y in the middle of
the problem!
- Based on the above responses, how might
you revise or tweak this instructional routine?
I think
the way that I do warm-ups in the classroom is solid. One of the changes I’d
like to make is to vary the warm-up method I use, so it is not always the same
routine. Lately, I have been throwing in group response or other methods, just
so the warm-up doesn’t take as long. It will also be interesting to view the
other videos to see if their methods would work for me.
So much happened in such a short amount of time. This would be an excellent clip to use in an interview or post as a link to your resume.
ReplyDeleteBy asking students "how many of you solved this ... by method ..." you were also opening up possibilities to all the students to consider, and emphasizing there is often multiple ways to solve a problem. Also appreciated your thorough reflection on the warm-ups, including a decision to vary the activities.
The strengths of your warm ups were that you included the students more than just having them answer a question. You brought them up to work on the problem in front of class and asked them a group question where they had to raise their hands to answer one way or the other. I didn't really observe what the students had learned because I couldn't see what was on the board. It was noticeable that the students had learned about the different ways to solve these problems and knew which one to use to solve the problem most effectively.
ReplyDeleteIt was hard to tell which students were engaged, but they all seemed to be paying attention and respectful. It was hard to tell who was engaged because I could only see the backs of their heads. One challenge that I observed was that students all answered the question the same way, it may have been effective to ask a student or two why they chose that strategy over another. That may give more clarity to you as far as their thought process because they may have seen others raise their hand and then raised their hand too so they wouldn't stand out. This is probably the one change I would make. I may also find a way to have multiple students up on the board working so that there are more students involved. I know you can't do that with a Smart Board though.