#6thchat Archive
#6thchat is used to chat, collaborate, and grow with other sixth grade educators from around the globe. Each session we discuss a topic voted on by #6thchat participants. It's a great way to help grow your PLN and share ideas with others.
Tuesday April 26, 2016
Welcome to ! Please introduce yourself! Share who you are, where you’re from & what you teach. Be sure to include hashtag:
Welcome to ! Please introduce yourself! Share who you are, where you’re from & what you teach. Be sure to include hashtag:
I am Kristin Kochheiser & a 6th grade ELA & SS teacher in Lansing, Michigan. I'm helping out tonight & guest hosting our
Hello , I'm Philip Herzing from Dayton OH, a pre-service English Teacher currently working with some 6th graders in Pennsylvania
Hi Kristin! Thanks for hosting tonight! I'm Angela from Alberta. I teach LA, Math, Sci, SS, Leadership & Geniushour
I'm Colton Twiggs, a college student from Alabama researching how teachers use twitter. I'm only observing and will not interrupt
Hola, I'm Brenda Valencia from Southern California. I teach 6th grade ELA/ELD & Math.
Welcome Philip! How are you enjoying it?!
Happy Tuesday! Phil, 5th grade teacher from NJ.
Glad you could make it to share! How was your presentation today?
You won't be interrupting at all! Join in if you feel so inclined, we'd love to hear your thoughts😊
Jump in if you have any ideas or thoughts!
We use the Q1, A1 format, but feel free to add questions, insights as you think of them. Our chat will join ’s archive.
Michelle from Indiana. I teach 6th gr LA & SS.
Happy Tuesday Phillip! Thanks for joining
The EdCamp was great! My session was pretty good & I've come back with some good ideas😊
Energy is their code word for sure!
A1) I think qualities often depend on task but believe persistence (grit), attitude, innovative & the ability to work w/others
A1: People who persist after the first failures. People who have a good idea but are still willing to tweak it and think about it.
A1 creative and effective problem solvers persist. They seek more than one solution & are willing to collaborate.
I agree--persistence is key--I think it supports and works with most of the other qualities
A1: Generally speaking: Persistence, thinking independently & in groups, flexibility in thinking, attitude, being open to ideas.
A1 Effective problem solver is one who persists, and engages in critical assessment of other works in their field (literature, art)
A1: They are willing to try a wide range of things, take risks, persevere, collaborate, listen to others & build on what they hear
A1: perseverance, inquisitiveness, patience.
I agree--being able to work with others--there are not many workplaces that act like "islands" and attitude is crucial
A1b: I think they are able to handle criticism & self-reflect better than the average person too!
Unfortunately I feel like I don't do a good job of promoting this as my Ss still tend to give up rather than push on
Great point about the critical assessment piece...help Ss be critical thinkers & not necessarily opinionated is impt
I have Ss who can solve problems on own, but struggle in Groups. Lots of collaboration this year to foster skill.
Patience....something I have to practice as I am not naturally gifted here
A2) I taught many through Classroom Habitudes book; ; Choice in seating/projects; read alouds
I think this is where our other talks on "gaming" come into play, too.
I feel like we do this as a society. Nobody wants the kids to work too hard. Everybody wins attitude https://t.co/wd8EirzRmp
Unfortunately I feel like I don't do a good job of promoting this as my Ss still tend to give up rather than push on
Yes! Many times criticism is taken as, "I'm not good at this. Otherwise there would be nothing to change." https://t.co/3z7KNZligM
A1b: I think they are able to handle criticism & self-reflect better than the average person too!
I understand and feel that way too; we have to practice persistence as much as our Ss do!
Great connection! Ss learn both in these "gaming situations"
A2: I do a lot of not answering their questions right away. Letting them reflect on skills they possess and strategies they know.
A2 , flexible seating, and circle time help my class grow. I seek more ways to effectively add to my toolbox.
A2: Offer lots of opportunity to problem-solve, empower Ss to find solutions, promote & give time for & offer timely feedback
I find more reasons why to use and to help teach the habits of mind
I think debriefing after an activity or lesson and going back to revise helps & reflecting on what we did & where we're going
I find it hard to "wait" to answer questions and find it helps me "practice" the virtue of patience
A2 I like to provide positive rolemodels, and encourage them to find there own. Nothing like a real-life hero to inspire creativity
A2: We use and to collaborate and problem solve.
Consider the 16 Habits of Mind (Costa/Kallick): Why is it important to intentionally teach these to Ss? https://t.co/FymUUIhaek
A2 this 3rd trimester I've shifted the grading in my classes to from points to rubric language, needs improvement to mastery levels
Problems solving seems to speak to many habits of mind--timely feedback (stress "timely") https://t.co/0g5HSnp1mo
A2: Offer lots of opportunity to problem-solve, empower Ss to find solutions, promote & give time for & offer timely feedback
it's tough to accept & apply criticism but it pushes Ss towards their truly best work, which is worth it😊
A3) Helping Ss internalize these qualities is important for success in jobs (often called soft skills), college, future paths
Have you used badges at all to replace grades?
Great idea! It makes things even more relevant & personal for Ss as well!
A3: They are all life skills and will be beneficial to students in any aspects of life.
A3 we definitely need to intentionally teach our Ss. We cannot expect them to automatically know what to do when challenges arise.
A3: Jobs, college, relationships...you name it. The habits of the mind help students confront challenges in life!
We came up with a list at the beginning of the year of real & fiction superheros who exemplify each habit https://t.co/DEWxgajmJ7
A2 I like to provide positive rolemodels, and encourage them to find there own. Nothing like a real-life hero to inspire creativity
I always let them practice on my work 1st through the ELMO. Talk about what's helpful feedback. Plus, improves my work.
A3: Intentionally teaching them helps make them priorities for Ss. They're NEEDED for life, but aren't usually innate!
Great idea! What kinds of examples did they give?
As I reflect on my days as younger student, I did not understand all of these; even now I practice many https://t.co/mD0a17l2b4
A3 we definitely need to intentionally teach our Ss. We cannot expect them to automatically know what to do when challenges arise.
A3 teaching those habits will give the students a set of principles to go to when they are in a jam
Hit the nail on the head Angela! well said.
That is so cool, Kristin! I'm sure Ss refer to them often😊
A4) Genius hour lends itself to learning these habits & practicing them, but also planned lessons for Ss to learn them
Family, teachers, presidents, sports figures, celebrities, musicians--they matched a trait w each one https://t.co/qfPBCnIuoz
Great idea! What kinds of examples did they give?
Nice! They probably like correcting you😜
It's been great. We continue to discuss; as we read a book we identify traits characters express
Beautifully said! https://t.co/tYQh9XnJpA
A3: Intentionally teaching them helps make them priorities for Ss. They're NEEDED for life, but aren't usually innate!
Jams come in all shapes and sizes and you are right; they will definitely help them!
A4 create a safe place to make mistakes to learn from, fresh starts expected, no grudges, transparent talk.
I found a site today that could work for you
A4: Classroom meetings, using strategies to empower Ss more often, , leadership opps, collaborative learning
A4 encouraging students to be creative in their writing, which in turn helps develop those skills (humor, wonder, flexibility)
A4: classroom. Student-Edcamps. activities!
Having students explore the HOM through writing and reflection is ideal
I've got to check this out! Thank you
Q5: Choose one of the habits & share: what do you hope to see Ss doing or saying when they practice these? https://t.co/h6iVjNF2QF
😊 I'm not surprised at all! You are practising exactly what you are asking them to do & THAT is so awesome!
A5) Managing impulsivity: hope to see Ss self-monitoring, using planned strategies not excuses, maintaining positive attitude
Thank you, thank you, THANK YOU for sharing these Lee!😊
Habits of Mind and are inevitably intertwined
You are very welcome, Angela. I'm so glad you find them useful! :-)
A5 # 13 taking responsible risks, willing to step out pride their comfort zone, not be afraid to fail.
I think discussing the barriers to Habits of Mind such as pride are important so Ss can the force against them
A5: Think interdependently: Ss sitting where they can help others, help do jobs that aren't just theirs, choosing kind
A5 Remain open 2 continuing learning, I want my Ss 2b inspired 2 learn more thru my lessons, instead of being satisfied w/ my word
Could not have said this better myself. These are all traits that I ATTEMPT to follow myself. https://t.co/R9B44CXAFL
A5) Managing impulsivity: hope to see Ss self-monitoring, using planned strategies not excuses, maintaining positive attitude
Q6: Which habits do you think are more challenging to teach? What are some ideas you have to overcome this? https://t.co/5NO0RFZX0r
A6) Teaching Ss "responsible risks" is challenging; Ss weren't sure what it meant; talked about the two words & examples of these
I love it when Ss remind each other "first attempt in learning" & encourage each other to try again
A6 Getting Ss to be accurate with their Qs & As. :) They know a vague answer will put them on the right track
Yes! This also pushes away the "is it good enough" and moves toward "can I learn more, make it better?" https://t.co/gCjKGo7cbw
A5 Remain open 2 continuing learning, I want my Ss 2b inspired 2 learn more thru my lessons, instead of being satisfied w/ my word
I understand this; being specific and giving examples to back up thinking requires more risk
A6: Empathy & persistence! Great read-aloud books, class meetings & reflections help. Allowing Ss to struggle helps too!
A7) Think alouds, writing, team/collaborative work, PBL; must purposefully focus on HOM and "name" the habits while Ss work on them
I need to do the student edcamps. It's on my to do list...
A6b: Encouraging acts of service & volunteerism, mentoring younger Ss/spending time with elders have also helped promote empathy
Terrific examples; we read Pay it Forward this year in the fall, first read-aloud.
A7: Cultivating a class culture that is s-led held promote many of the habits at once. Interconnectedness is important!
A7 Using graphic organizers can be a great way to get Ss thinking with all of their senses
True--the more voice and choice, the more ownership as a group.
Q8: As you close out the year & plan for next, what ideas do you have to purposefully integrate the HOM? https://t.co/xirYkkp0Ba
And great for writing--helps Ss become better writers when they consciously think of the sense and include them
It's on my list too😊 June is going to be AWESOME!
A8) Looking forward to gamifying many of these HOM; having Ss earn badges; making sure I circle back to them throughout the year.
I'd appreciate any tips on making them successful!
Ooooo, great idea Kristin! The kids will love this!
It would be fun to present the badges ceremonially😊
I think so too! I have , and the and folks to thank for these ideas
We were talking about an article where employers were lamenting younger employees not having these--thought of it then
A8: Next year, I'll intentionally be using Habits of Mind. I haven't introduced many of these to my Ss but I will next yr for sure!
Any final thoughts? Thanks so much for participating! I appreciate all of you making the so terrific while I guest moderated!
Thanks for having me help you out tonight! Lots of fun!
book called Classroom Habitudes has wonderful lessons to use for many of the habits
Thanks for sharing! I appreciated your ideas and thoughts!
It's very true! We ALL will benefit from Ss practising these habits!
Have a great night So glad you could make it tonight!
