#4thchat is a hashtag for teachers or anyone to talk about educational issues relating to 4th grade. Using #4thchat will create a network of 4th grade teachers or teachers working with 9-10 year olds across the world. We welcome anyone who 1. teaches 4th grade 2 .Works with 4th grade students and or 4th grade teachers 3. Likes 4th grade teachers (Groupies are encouraged).
Hi, Nancy. Paula here from New Orleans ready to discuss "Student Centered Approach to Learning". Had a very productive Monday. The warm weather has returned. #4thchat
Warm weather for us is in the 50s this time of year. Today we were lucky enough to have a tornado warning the first I can remember on Cape Cod. #4thChat
I am the Director of Instructional Tech for my district so I get to teach in all grades. I always learn something from your chat...usually after the fact that I can share with the teachers I work with. #4thchat
A1; Student-centered learning has been defined most
simply as an approach to learning in which learners
choose not only what to study but also how and why
that topic might be of interest (Rogers, 1983). #4thchat
A1: When I think of a "Student Centered Approach" I think of @PaulSolarz He has worked hard to help make the students own their learning and their environment by making them active participants. #4thchat
A1: Student Centered Learning should be the basis for how an elementary classroom should be structured. Students are at the center! @SVVSDdts#SVVSDTechBingo#4thchat
A2: Student Centered Approach Pros-students are in charge of learning, feel ownership, and learn at their pace. Cons-some students don't have the confidence or drive...yet! #4thchat
A2: Ss learn important communicative and collaborative skills through group work; learn to direct their own learning, ask questions, and complete tasks independently; are more interested in learning activities as they interact with one another and participate actively. #4thchat
A2: Pro: High student engagement with student choice and interest-based learning.
Con: teacher pressure to get thru curriculum and standards can be a blocker. #4thchat
I'd like to say I have a blog but I haven't jumped in yet. It has been my goal but ugh I have to find that push. Thanks for asking @JennRegruth maybe it will get me to start writing! #4thchat
A2: Some cons are -
Because students are talking, classrooms may often be noisy or chaotic.
Teachers may have to attempt to manage all students’ activities at once, which can be difficult when students are working on different stages of the same project. #4thchat
This is so important - even if they have smaller choices - it is meaningful! #4thchat I would give a choice of homework - this or that - it seemed to make a small difference. #4thchat
A2: Some other cons may be - the teacher doesn’t always deliver instruction to all students at once, some students may miss important facts.
Some students prefer to work alone, so group work can become problematic. #4thchat
I think the key to starting, & maintaining the momentum, is to use an app to write when you get an idea. Then you can start to curate a bunch of entries that you can polish at a later time. At least, this is working for me. #4thchat
I'm truly LOVING being a 4th grade teacher this year! I have the world's most awesome students & love seeing how fast they improve and what great leaders they can be! #4thchat
Pacing is important and can be tricky...but incorporating technology can help with that as Ex: students can review material (videos/directions) more than once. #4thchat
A2 Ss learn to collaborate and advocate for their learning. They learn skills beyond the curriculum. They own their learning. Some students can't manage the control and confidence required to self advocate for their learning #4thchat
What's awesome too is that you KNOW where they are headed & what they need to know in 5th! I really think 4th grade is a special learning year for kids! #4thchat
A2 There are so many things we have to teach that student centered learning is sometimes put on the back burner. I love the collaboration and communication that goes on and most of the time the chaos. #4thchat
A3: Sometimes the hand off of responsibility takes off right away and sometimes, it needs some weaning. I let those who are ready go. The others I give partners-sometimes stronger/sometimes not. Reassure them and encourage. In the end, they all seek responsibility. #4thchat
A4: @Seesaw is my favorite tech for a student centered classroom. They can record their thinking and learning in so many ways and comment on each other's posts. Another way of gaining confidence. #4thchat
It takes baby steps with some students, but once they realize you are for real, they start to take their learning into their own hands and be more intentional about it, too. #4thchat
Both of these are so true @magbmelany So many teachers want to work towards this approach but the pressure of state testing & making the standards gets in the way. #4thchat
A2: Pro: High student engagement with student choice and interest-based learning.
Con: teacher pressure to get thru curriculum and standards can be a blocker. #4thchat
Using a LMS (learning mangement system) like @Edmodo can make differentiation of assignments and tasks easier. Send Ss individually what they need to work on. #4thchat
Often you can tell the difference between the 'noisy' classroom and the classroom that is noisy because they are working collaboratively...IMHO :) #4thchat@plnaugle
A2: Some cons are -
Because students are talking, classrooms may often be noisy or chaotic.
Teachers may have to attempt to manage all students’ activities at once, which can be difficult when students are working on different stages of the same project. #4thchat
A4: Having Ss set up a Google Hangout or Skpe call with an expert from the field of study they are learning about is powerful in a student-centered environment. #4thchat
A4 Tech can help differentiation without the rest of the class knowing who is doing what at what level this can help kids feel safe to learn at their pace. #4thchat
True! Yet, I think it’s important for kids to have some quiet times to think, as well. So we’ll have bursts of silent work times interspersed w/the noisy times. The quiet times usually get extended by the Ss themselves. #4thchat
A4: @Seesaw is my favorite tech for a student centered classroom. They can record their thinking and learning in so many ways and comment on each other's posts. Another way of gaining confidence. #4thchat
A5: I allow students willing to take the lead on anything do it as soon as possible. We then check in together often to watch and celebrate progress! #4thchat
A5: From the opening bell - taking attendance, getting the lunch count, collecting HW to the closing bell - putting everything in its place, picking up stray items and finding owner, to stacking chairs - Ss should be involved in every part of the day. #4thchat
#4thchat A5 I think Ss taking a lead can start small where Ss ask for help when struggling, help when needing a challenge, and when sharing stategies S to S is valued in the classroom. If the S has shared short and long term goals school has a purpose.
A3: It takes time to help Ss build up to taking responsibility for their own learning.After all, most likely they have not been in that type of classroom https://t.co/AhcT5qsoOw clear guidelines, consistency and lots of opportunities to take advantage of this may help. #4thchat
A5: My students used my interactive whiteboard more than I do. I love the "Hands off Vanna" approach to using an IWB in a classroom. It's a tool the Ss should be using. #4thchat
#4thchat Takes some experimenting, curious any tips for getting Ss to revise Seesaws and Flipgrids after feedback? Once posted even if T comments fewer Ss want to revise. Similar to nontech feedback too. Assume feedback is timely of course.
A5 Ss can take lead when they are sharing their learning with their classmates whether with the use of a presentation tool, teaching classmates about their topic or sharing their knowledge with teachers. It is important to give Ss the chance to share their learning #4thchat
Students LOVE using @Seesaw to share their learning. They love seeing the work of their classmates. Having an authentic audience can help build responsibility. #4thchat
A4: @Seesaw is my favorite tech for a student centered classroom. They can record their thinking and learning in so many ways and comment on each other's posts. Another way of gaining confidence. #4thchat
#4thchat Digital portfolio posts are stronger for me as formative assessments, however would like Ss to revisit, revise, and improve Seesaw and Flipgrid posts. Ideas?
It takes baby steps with some students, but once they realize you are for real, they start to take their learning into their own hands and be more intentional about it, too. #4thchat
A6: I so think there still much be benchmark or standard assessments to know where kids stand. Allowing them to choose HOW to show what they know tells so much about that student. #4thchat
Mark, you raise a great question. I think we can have kids work w/peers to help check each other’s work. I also will not approve a post that has obviously not been revised and edited before hitting the submit button. We can also model how we do this in our own writing. #4thchat
A6: "One key way to create a more student-centered classroom is by assessing students for their passions and interests. All of our students come with powerful experiences that have driven their lives, such as family stories, favorite books, hobbies, and trips." (1 of 2) #4thchat
A6: "We can use a variety of assessment tools like one-on-one conversations, journals, and graphic organizers to learn more about our students and what drives them to learn." (2 of 2) #4thchat
A6 Mostly formative assessments or assessments for and as learning. It’s all about process and learning to improve using student created goals w/T support. #4thchat
A5 Assessments don't have to be tests to show Ss understand the information. A Ss-T conversation, final project, Ss to Ss conversation all can be ways we can assess what a Ss knows #4thchat
A4: Using Google Classroom is a great tool to help facilitate a student centered approach as it can be used to provide differentiation, immediate feedback as well as a place for conversation among classmates/teacher. #4thchat
A7: Allowing students to come up with choices is a beautiful thing. Encouraging them to work collaboratively and efficiently is as important as the standard. #4thchat
#4thchat Are you correcting and giving feedback as comments on S work within a Google doc or other file, or do you correct it with scoring or a rubric, etc?
I've been working with teachers and suggesting they start with providing feedback in the private comments. (mostly because you can see those more easily).For longer writing assignments I suggest using the commenting feature in the docs & some assign. have rubrics. #4thchat
Correcting with feedback within a Google Doc will often use @Screencastify and @texthelp to add audio comments into the paper. Adding grades and clicking through each student is so much easier. The add on orange slice is a Gr8 tool for rubrics #4thchat
#4thchat Are you correcting and giving feedback as comments on S work within a Google doc or other file, or do you correct it with scoring or a rubric, etc?
Students are becoming more and more comfortable explaining their thinking in front of their peers (which means it's part of their regular routine) - Student centered for sure! #4thchat
#4thchat A nontech origin that still matters for tech, if you want Ss to post on digital portfolios, need to model: What is Interactive Modeling? | Responsive Classroom https://t.co/9kJYmjSsDj
Yes! Although, I think there are times when comments directly in the doc are more helpful. Some of the teachers are trying out the "comment bank" but haven't heard any feedback on that yet. #4thchat
Hey @Seesaw and Ts who ❤️ Seesaw! What are some of the best “sound reducing” tools or tricks you use in the classroom? I have seen telephone 📞 headsets. Do they work well to block out sound? Thanks for any suggestions! #4thChat#seesawchat
Hadn't really ever thought about student revising work in Seesaw. Revising work is something that must be practiced again & again. That's a great question!!! #4thchat
Read & Write with Google is owned by Text Help. It will let you drop in an audio comment into a doc. Read & Write is the best Chrome Extension to support every learner including digital correcting. https://t.co/FLPWlDqTF8 Free for Ts #4thchat
In reply to
@MarkNechanicky, @Screencastify, @texthelp
Sending home formative work done on Seesaw I feel needs some feedback, but it feels more like I am letting Ps know what was correct or not rather than helping Ss to revise. #4thchat
Does it place it into a the "live" Google Doc, or does it place the audio comment into the document version it was created in. Will have to investigate this. Thanks! #4thchat
In reply to
@cterrillteach, @Screencastify, @texthelp
Thank you, #4thchat friends, for another wonderful discussion. Thanks to @ncarroll24 for compiling the questions and to @plnaugle for leading the discussion tonight! GO team!
A big shout-out to co-moderators @ncarroll24 and @JennRegruth, and to everyone who joined in on the discussion tonight. See you next week. Go forth and be awesome this week. #4thchat
