Responding to Reading: 3 Ways to See Improvements Instantly!

Hey hey hey! It's Kelli from Tales of a Tenacious Teacher! I'm sitting here enjoying my Spring Break. If you are too- congrats! You've made it this far! If yours has already past or still coming... hang in there and keep working it! You've got this! 

I'm here to share 3 ways to improve your students' responses to their reading. As I tell my students, we respond to our reading for a few reasons. 1) I'm not in their brains! I don't know what they are thinking, what's easy for them, what's hard... so we need to take time to respond to our reading. We respond to our reading both with the speaking and the writing domain so both are included here today. 2) As we learn to become better readers, we need to stop and check our thinking often. I always tell them that they won't do this for the rest of their reading lives the way we do it right now in 3rd grade... but the things we practice now will help it become automatic for us later so we spend time writing and sharing about our thinking often to help it become automatic. 

Usually with that, I have them buy into the importance as to why we do this. It's also a good talking piece with parents who sometimes think that because their child can read fast and accurately, they don't always fully comprehend their reading. So how do I get students to think deeply and completely about their reading? I've got 3 tips!

If you've been around here for a little while, you'll know that I love rubrics and language. Both are in this post. I'm guilty though of not always using rubrics to help both me and my students know what to expect. I've found that a simple rubric for each skill/focus is easiest for me to see what students know what to do and what they are missing to get to the next step.

These rubrics are based off of specific skills and focuses. The top is a 3-point rubric that focuses on 2 things: the reading focus and the language focus. The reading focus targets "how" the student is able to respond to their reading on a particular focus (such as character motivation). The language focus is usually a grammar focus to help them  communicate their idea more clearly. The bottom rubric targets "what" their work tells you as a teacher on their thinking level when it comes to that focus. 

Two ways to use this: 

1. Cut them in half and just give students the top half. Have them glue it into their reading notebooks to reference so when they are completing a jotting on that focus, they now what you are expecting. You can keep the bottom half as a talking point if you need to pull a strategy group. 
2. Have them glue the whole page into their notebook so that students know clearly what to work towards and what their work tells you of their thinking while reading.

I'm a big proponent of graphic organizers. I've found the most success when I give a graphic organizer and have students fill it out. Later, students draw it themselves and modify to make it work for them. I've given my students a blank page in their reading notebooks and have told them to just jot during their reading... all I get usually is a mess of thoughts and I struggle to identify what my students are even thinking during their reading. So graphic organizers help both my students think completely and help me notice what they rock at and where they have some gaps for me to help fill.

For our character units (we have a series unit, mystery unit, and biography unit that we can use all these organizers for), we pay attention to our characters... a lot. We think about their problem, but not just their problem- we think about how they react to it and what that tells us about them. We think about their actions and choices and how they impact relationships and problems. We think about character motivations and what is pushing them to do things. All of this helps us develop strong ideas and traits for our characters. I've found simple box graphic organizers with question prompts to be very helpful to get students to think deeper.

The last tip to is help them communicate their thinking clearly through language. This is a great time and way to integrate grammar into meaningful instruction. I've made little mini-charts that students glue right into their notebook to reference often. Even better, if you change the printing settings and scale down a bit, they fit perfectly into a composition notebook. These mini-charts are meant to provide language supports and expand vocabulary to help students get to a deeper level. I've used an adjective chart to help students recommend books, adverbs to describe how their character reacts to something to give a better picture of their characters intent, question matrixes to help them formulate stronger questions, and sentence frames to initiate conversations about books in book clubs. 

 

Sometimes I add the language cues right to my graphic organizers to help it become even more accessible. 

I've found that by implementing these 3 tips, my students are producing more quality work and it allows me to see where I need to put my efforts. 

Want to give it a try? Click on the image below try using it. If you find it helpful, you can check out the whole set of rubrics, graphic organizers, and mini-charts in my TpT store!

Creating a Culture of Problem Solvers

For the past few years, I've noticed that many of my 3rd graders start off the year with few to any problem solving skills. If they have a problem with a classmate, they come to me in hopes of a solution. If they've forgotten their pencil at home, they also come to me. If they are stuck on a math problem, rather than try various solutions, they raise their hand in frustration and are quick to share "I don't get it!"

Does any of this sound familiar? If so, then no worries... I'm here to share with you a few tips that can help you create a culture of problem solvers! Once you've established this culture within your class, gone are the days of a zillion questions. Students will begin turning to their peers or even themselves to solve problems. Your job will be to encourage them to take risks, solve problems, and work with partners to find solutions. Pretty amazing, huh?

Ok, so let's dive right into it...

The problem solving approach is a process in which students are encouraged to think for themselves and adapt to unfamiliar circumstances or situations. This method involves teaching students a series of steps that will help them solve problems. This aproach encourages flexibility, perseverance, resourcefulness, and common sense rather than relying on adults or others to tell them what to do. The main premise behind this approach is that students need to learn to figure out their problems, make hypothesis, test out their ideas, adjust their thinking, collaborate with others, and take risks. Does this sound familiar? 

(The words S-C-I-E-N-T-I-F-I-C  M-E-T-H-O-D comes to mind.) 

This is usually the most difficult step for students. It involves them being able to verbalize what the problem is in their own words. In the beginning I recommend having students work with a partner or in groups to write down their problem statement. It is important that this be clear and specific.
 How will I complete my homework on nights that I have baseball practice?

Students need to be able to describe what might be preventing them from reaching their goal. Identifying barriers now, will help them when they have to come up with possible solutions.
When I come home from baseball practice I have to shower and eat dinner. Then I'm too tired to do homework. Exhaustion and nightly routines might prevent me from completing homework at this time.

Students need to brainstorm possible solutions. Try to have them come up with as many solutions as possible with a minimum of 2-3. Having multiple solutions allows students to have a backup plan in case their initial ideas do not work. It might also be helpful to think about how others have solved similar problems. I like to encourage my students to accept every idea during a brainstorming session, even if it seems trivial... If you think it, write it down I say.
Brainstorm: Start my homework on the way home, work on hw on the way to baseball practice, ask the teacher for work in advance, wake up early in the morning to complete hw...

Students need to test their solutions and if their first idea doesn't work, they need to try something else. Remind them that mistakes are part of the learning process and that it is okay if they have to go through a few solutions in order to get to the one that works best. Perseverance is essential for success! Some of the best scientists test numerous theories over the course of many years before achieving the results they had been hoping for. (This is a step that students will struggle with. In the beginning you will see them throwing in the towel when their first idea does not succeed. This is your moment to encourage them, motivate them, and remind them that this is all part of the process.)

Once students have tested possible solutions it is time for them to reflect on the results. Are they satisfied with what they have achieved? If not, then they need to consider what they might have done differently. Do NOT skip this step or rush through it! This is where much of the learning will take place.

If you'd like a FREE copy of my problem solving posters simply click on the images below.  I've also included a recording sheet where students can record their responses.

Now that we understand the problem solving approach a little bit better, let's talk about some tips that I've learned along the way...

Teach problem solving skills in ALL areas! This skill can be applied in math, science, reading, social situations, etc... Let your students see this and understand that problem solving is a life long skill. It is something that they will continue to use in the classroom, at home, in college, in the workforce, and in their adult lives. Do not be afraid to share stories with them about how you've been able to solve a few of your own dilemmas. Another neat idea is to have students help you come up with possible solutions to a problem you may be currently facing.

Model... Model... Model! Problem solving is not an easy task. It is challenging, can be time consuming, requires students to be flexible and to persevere. {It is not for the faint of heart... LOL} In your daily classroom routines show your students that you can be patient when solving problems. Share your thinking aloud with them so that they are able to make connections between your actions and each of the 5 steps previously mentioned.

Help students verbalize and record their problems in a journal or on a sheet of paper. Make sure that their ideas are clear and concise and that they have listed some sort of goal that they have in mind. In order for students to be able to solve problems, they first must be able to identify what the problem is. And although this sounds easy, it is actually a difficult task. I recommend that in situations where 2 or more students are having issues with one another, that you use this opportunity to have them think about what their problem is. You can begin by asking students "What?" and "Why?" questions. Have THEM work through their own problem and come up with possible solutions. Encouraging students to take an active role in the decision making process can be quite empowering.

Take your time! This is not something that will happen overnight! Students are going to need ample time to think, collaborate, come up with and test solutions, correct mistakes, and reflect. Begin whole class through group discussions where you model each of the 5 steps along the way. Then you can move on to small groups, peers, and eventually independent problem solving.  Don't give up! Start small... 

Ask questions and make suggestions, but be careful NOT TO TAKE CONTROL! Whenever a student comes up to you with a problem don't give them the answer. (Trust me this is going to be hard at first! Instead try "What do you think?", "Do you have any suggestions?", "Tell me about this...") Try encouraging them to ASK 3 BEFORE ME. Have students ask their peers when they have a question. This will promote collaboration and problem solving. 

Our role as teacher is to support our students and to encourage questioning and deep thinking. We must demonstrate to our kids that it is okay to make mistakes and that we believe that mistakes are a natural part of the learning process.  Mistakes are useful and should not be discouraged! We should also aim to create a culture in our classroom in which everyone's ideas are valued and respected. We are to foster collaboration and open discussions in which students feel comfortable enough to share their ideas and opinions freely.

Now it's time to put all of this into practice...

Saving Sam

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The Orange Game

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Marshmallow Challenge

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It's your turn... I'd love to hear your thoughts on problem solving in the classroom. Do you currently promote problem solving with your students? Comment below with some of your experiences.