Students in a Bubble

Never spoiled Sushi Plate

Who cares about math talk during the presidential debate?  Evidently, I did, maybe all day long.  Earlier today, I met the district reading coach and Special Education director.  Our topics shifted from identifying struggling students from the Measurement of  Academic Progress to brainstorming to the possible differentiation, instructions, strategies, grouping, and possible materials.  In our examination, it was clear to identify which kid have difficulties in each or linked areas of five reading components, phonemic awareness, phonics, fluency, vocabulary, and comprehension.  There are some programs that we are currently using (STAR, Accelerated Readers, and Read Live Naturally) fit in the progress monitoring.  Three of us and my intern were quite ecstatic of how well we have been managing our students with adequate instructional grouping and models.   We were very hopeful.

Then, afternoon came.  I couldn't stop thinking about another meeting with the district math coach.  My anxiety level was getting higher as if I had already known it would not be going to be the same as the reading talk.    While analyzing data from the MAP math test, we easily found out the population that is called "in the bubble".  Students in the bubble are on or slightly below the grade level boarder line.  I asked, "I wonder if there is some progress monitoring tool for math.  As you know, Reading has a few."  The coach Lisa sighed, "I know."  We both knew there was a hard brick wall in front of us.   Unlike Reading, Math is tricky because there are way more learning targets than five components that students are required to master before the next grade level.  Specificity in the current state standards and upcoming Common Core State Standards are surely helpful to focus on mathematical skills.  But when you think about monitoring learning (mastering) progress on "bubble students", it is extremely overwhelming for teachers. 

Our discussion focus moved forward to what kind of tools, schedule, and human resources are possibly available.  Well, the teachers' plate is already full of good stuff, almost spilling out of it.  Think about it.  If you spill the food on the floor, sadly it is a waste.  How essential to keep only adequate amount of quality items on the plate!  Teachers must feed them all before the food is spoiled.  In that regard, I don't think I need more or new materials for now.  I would like to chew and taste each of food items.  Then my vision expanded the scene of the party that people enjoy.  This is when the collaboration chimes in.  Invite a team of teachers to discuss about food (instructional materials) we have.  Party is always fun.  Collaboration must work.

Controlled Chaos

I had longed for creativity and freedom while teaching in Tokyo.  The elementary school was by the worldly famous fisherman's market and (therefore) several hidden Sushi bars were available nearby. All students wore the navy blue uniform.  All classrooms line the students' desks in rows with no exceptions.  Four or five students move their desks together during the collaborative group assignment, of course, under the teacher's instruction.  Students seem to be very engaged.  But each group's assignment is always the same because teachers want to conclude the day's concept by comparing and reflecting each others' activity report/result.  Although this approach is beneficial to the students' learning, as a freshman teacher, I questioned in my mind, "Why does every group have to do the same activities all the time?"  I have never shared my question.  Why?  Because that is what most teachers have been doing.  No one, especially then younger ones, stand up and ask about the instructional system that is currently working without any major problems. 

So I was stunned what I saw during my internship in early 90s in a little town of Idaho.  The second grade classroom was in chaos right in front of my very own eyes.   Students were scattered randomly  at their desks, at the big table, and on the floor.  On the floor?????  I couldn't believe my eyes.  There were different activities going on simultaneously, which, I have never done or seen in Japan.  Observing a little closer, I realized this chaos was well under control.  Except for one student rolling on the floor during the entire lesson, every student seemed to know what they had to do.  My host teacher wisely whispered, "Welcome to America, this is called center activities."  Nice to meet you, Center Activities!

To this day, the centers enable to differentiate my teaching instructions.  Today's 3rd grade reading centers went well.  Groups are divided based on the correct words per minute and previous year's MAP (Measurement of Academic Progress) test scores.  Perhaps most teachers would call it the guided reading group, but manageable centers are my motto while students were on their own.  Basically, I don't believe in "Read to Self" for students whose reading level is more than one grade level below.   Individual working options today were: 1. Dictionary...To be familiar with dictionary  by simply copying guided words and all entry words.  2. Cursive Handwriting Practice...Individual students work on their own without interruption.  I let two students at a time (from the same group) play with Leap Frog's Talking Globe for the geography connection.  Students quickly and quietly take turns.  3.  E-Word Games on Computer...Individual student on the station with a headphone, reviewing vocabulary words that we had just learned in Tier one.  4. Guided Reading Group:  Assign books at the groups level.  Depending on the reading level, students read aloud with me, without me, or read quietly.  Each page, we discuss about the focus reading strategy of the week.  I transition from prediction to summary to the middle group.   During discussion, I dictated their summary as a model.  My timer rings every 15 minutes, so all groups can rotate to every center in an hour.  I felt accomplished.  So did my students.  One student suggested, "Mrs. Hallinan, YOU have to put our celebration marble in the jar for you and us!" 

Children with different hair colors engage in the different centers in such an orderly manner that almost reminds me of my Japanese students.  Today, I feel like I answered my own question from a quarter century ago.

The Explicit Instruction

I just finished reading the article, The Writing Revolution by Peg Tyre in the October issue of Atlantic magazine.  It made me think again that what we have been ignoring for a long time, "explicit instruction".  Good news is the grade level standards will be clear in upcoming Common Core State Standards.  So explicit instructions must exist in many ways in our classrooms.  Needles to say, there are so many companies spending a lot of time and money to create the lesson plans in writing. 

While my mother-in-law shared her schooling experiences in the highly honored Catholic High School in 50s, my impression was the Catholic schooling sounded really like Japanese schools.  Teacher (nun) taps a ruler on their palms and walks between isles of desks.  If they find the inappropriate postured student at her desk, there is no mercy.  Bum!  The ruler smashes the skin.  My kindergarten teacher walked around with 50 cm ruler to insert it between shirt and neck when my back was not straight.  The bamboo ruler's texture froze my spine.  In these similar circumstances, similar expectations were on the table beyond the cultural differences. 

The writing models that were used in Catholic school in 1950s were "explicit".  My mother-in-law keeps telling me the sentence structure lessons she has learned endlessly.  One the contrast, Japanese writing is not a separated subject from reading.  The writing model is inserted accordingly between reading stories.  In each writing session, the text books show the model (sample) writing piece.  A teacher teaches the concept in that lesson, the class analyzes how it's used in the anchor paper, then, all students try to use that strategy in their own writing piece.  For example, there is the story grabber (interesting beginning that invites readers immediately).  "Ring, ring, ring!  I darted to the telephone.  I know who was calling."  The grabber is obviously the telephone noise so that students think about their original onomatopoeia to start their entries.

"Explicit" is the word that I first heard in 2002 in the Reading First School.  The whole school treated the word with revolutionary enthusiasm.  But, at that time, I didn't realize that I grew up in the explicit instructions at the other side of Pacific Ocean.   Good system should be found and implemented.  I am honored to be a part of teaching team that gets to involved in the explicit instruction with "live" experiences.