1. What is your reaction to the admonition "Stop telling kids to pay attention; they already do!"? What is one or two new ways in which you can try to build sustained student focus this school year?
2. Some teachers sort and group students by their cognitive capacity. Do you see capacity as fairly fixed or highly flexible? What does the evidence tell us?
3. Which higher-order thinking skills do you think are most important for you to build in your class: attention, problem solving, critical thinking, working memory, processing speed, or self-control (deferred gratification)? How would you go about building these skills in students?
I have to state that I wish we had this book study at the beginning of the year. I have gotten some great ideas from this chapter and hope to review if prior to the 2015-16 school year. I was great to know it's not to late in the development of early childhood to begin learning behaviors as late as kinder...
ReplyDeleteDear G,
DeleteIt is great to know it's not too late... However, that doesn't answer questions 1-3 for this blog... :P
I think students are paying attention... of course it's what they want to pay attention to mostly but I can't blame them as I feel I'm that way too! I think I could start building sustained focus by allowing my students to pick more of the things we do in class. Also, I could do more hands on activities and less talking /using the text books. Students like to feel they can make choices and I think that between them picking and getting to be more active, I could hold their attention better.
ReplyDeleteI think that capacity is flexible because it depends on how we are judging their capacity. As we all have seen, some students have the capacity but are not willing to do the task at hand. Would we be measuring their "learning capacity" or their "willingness to work" capacity? Sometimes, if we group them with others of different level capacities, they may get more motivated and try harder.
I think working on critical thinking is pretty important. I feel like this is one of those skills that no matter what you do in life, you need it! I think we have lots of opportunities as teachers to work on critical thinking skills with our students. Whether its thinking critically about a story we just read or a problem that just arose in our classroom, we can start "training" our students brains to think outside of the box. Many times critical thinking can come from just turning a question around on a student and having them think about what would happen in the scenario.
I build critical thinking in the older students by having them write about how their artwork expresses them. This really gets them thinking. I also have them use art vocabulary to describe their art. Younger students can benefit from this also. I have them do it verbally. They love to tell me why they are adding something or what their work is about.
DeleteI agree with Valerie that students are paying attention to something, just not always what they should. Variety, hands-on opportunities, movement, interest level.... Many variables are involved as to why a student is or is not paying attention to a lesson. That is true for adults too. (think of those workshops where they lose you, it doesn't interest you, or it doesn't relate to you directly, or you are thinking of what you could be doing at school instead of being there). I believe teachers have a challenge to cover required materials and being able to make it "dynamic" all the time. They do a great job trying at ISES as far as I can tell. I do try to pick subjects of interest or have the students relate in some way to what I teach during media class. I believe grouping students according to cognitive ability can help students as well as times mixing up the ability levels. It depends on the lesson and activity.
ReplyDeleteI do find the focus on memory skills is interesting because the trend has been moving away from memorization activities. I personally think the memory activities are a great way to review and help with memory skills and I plan in incorporating these memory activities into some lessons. I think problem solving is a very important skill, even though the others listed are all important, too. Like he says in the book, many students are not learning these skills at home, so teachers must fill that gap.
It's true that students are paying attention to something in the classroom and it might not be me, I try to find fun ways to engage the students. One thing I love doing is whispering and closing the door to tell them that I don't want anyone to hear what I'm about to tell you. I've also used "don't tell anyone I taught you this because you will not learn it until 4th grade" It gets them every time :)
ReplyDeleteIn my reading groups they are paired with the same students in their level. In other subjects I do my best to pair them up with someone who is higher or lower so they can motivate each other. I like to think that it is highly flexible. I believe if the students work well together and get their work completed, then that shows me that they works well together.
I would like to work on critical thinking skills with my students. I think all of the solutions that the book gave are great to try. I do like the competition one the best. If I make it into a game the students are more likely to respond positively. I need to ask more questions from my students as well.
I agree that lower level students are motivated by higher level students. I also think at the higher level students enjoy helping the others. In your class, Brittany, I think your students do a great job of this. They encourage each other and want each other to succeed.
DeleteI agree. Problem solving and critical thinking are areas that I want to improve on. I like the solutions that you could use to improve this. Most students enjoy competition.
DeleteWhen I find that my students are not paying attention to me, I turn on a GoNoodle to give them a “brain break” or have the students stand up and do a quick exercise. I tell them that physical exercise helps their brain think and helps them learn. I also tell my students that this is information I did with my fifth graders or this is an activity I learned in college! They are amazed and think they are learning something secretive. It really helps the kids stayed focused.
ReplyDeleteI sort my kids based on their levels depending on the activity. I create groups once I see what skills students are struggling with or doing well on. These groups may not be exactly true to what my cognitive capacity assessments show. In my seating arrangement, I like to have a mixture of cognitive capacities because I think students always have room for growth and improvement. Working with students on different levels allows all students to have goals to work towards. I like to think that capacity is more flexible than fixed because there are always areas of improvement.
In my classroom, I think critical thinking is a higher-order thinking skill that I could work on. I like to have students determine why, what if, and can you type of answers. This is something that I try to work on when creating the way I ask questions and the way I assess students. I like to implement critical thinking through hands-on activities and then pose a higher-order thinking question and have students create a written response. Over the year, asking and creating higher-order critical thinking questions have become easier for me, and this is something I look forward to continue working on next year.
Sarah,
DeleteI like the way you use your college experience and let the kids know that what you have them do is actual college work! That makes them feel so smart!!!
Sarah,
DeleteI like the way you use your college experience and let the kids know that what you have them do is actual college work! That makes them feel so smart!!!
1. In some ways I agree that students are always paying attention. However, they are not always paying attention to what I am saying. In the classroom you have to constantly reinvent the wheel because what works with some students does not work with others. With the Smart Board it is much easier to use Buy-In solutions. I can easily find art videos that are short and easy for the kids to understand. I can make it loud or I can pause if I need them to look at something more closely. I love this technology for buy-in. Pause and chunk is another good one to try for art. Since I have the students for such a short time, I normally talk for 5 to 10 minutes, then start with the hands-on activity.
ReplyDelete2. In my classes, I always mix my kids up. The lower level students do better when seated with higher level students. I believe they learn a lot for their peers.
3. Definitely critical thinking skills and problem solving in art. We focus on these constantly. For example, students can learn a great deal through visual literacy. Looking at art, thinking about it and commenting or writing about it builds critical thinking skills. Students are given projects where they must figure out solutions to achieve their goals. Students are amazed when they mix colors and create something new. They love to experiment with new materials and they learn what works and what doesn't.
Yes, Students are paying attention to something somewhere when they should be focused on the lesson, I agree. I also agree that not just students, but all of us, learn from each other.
DeleteI think that mixing new colors and trying something new is also a little lesson in risk taking. Often kids want to play it safe and go with what they already know. That's a great way to incorporate problem solving into art!
DeleteI like mixing the kids up as well, lower level with higher level. I think they learn well from each other, sometimes the kids can explain to other kids better than we can.
DeleteI think that is a great way to build writing, vocabulary and thinking skills. It gets them to express their emotions and what they were thinking when they created the artwork. Also , the younger children love to tell you stories about their pictures and in the process I often learn more about their though processes while they are talking.
Delete1. What is your reaction to the admonition "Stop telling kids to pay attention; they already do!"? What is one or two new ways in which you can try to build sustained student focus this school year?
ReplyDeleteI will try the game Red Light , Purple light to gain a better grasp on my students’ attention. This game will also reinforce some basic concepts we are working on such as shapes and colors.
2. Some teachers sort and group students by their cognitive capacity. Do you see capacity as fairly fixed or highly flexible? What does the evidence tell us?
With my current class, the cognitive levels are from 18 month – 9 years of age, so grouping by cognitive level is next to impossible. I group as best I can and go from there.
Often times I see my lower functioning children teaching the higher functioning students a thing or two!
3. Which higher-order thinking skills do you think are most important for you to build in your class: attention, problem solving, critical thinking, working memory, processing speed, or self-control (deferred gratification)? How would you go about building these skills in students?
I feel problem solving is important for my students because this lends to greater independence. I plan on continuing to provide them with support by modeling and scaffolding the process.
There are times when kids are truly not paying attention and need to be refocused.If this occurs more frequently then there is a problem to be addressed with parents and the student. There needs to be buy in and a reason for kids to engage...a hook as it were to answer the nagging questions of : why should I care? what does it matter?
ReplyDeleteCognitive capacity is not fixed it is flexible and changes with experience. Teaching thinking skills contributes to the development of neural pathways in the brain. The more we experience and practice the greater the number of neurons created and the better our ability to reason and solve problems in new situations.
I would have to say working memory and processing speed are the two most important areas that I work on with my students. These are necessary for increasing listening skills to develop auditory feedback loop as well as for ability to summarize, analyze and make predictions from oral or written discourse.
I think sometimes when we think the students are not paying attention they really are. I think about church or workshops when you zone out, but get the point that is being presented. Some children have such short attention spans to deal with. I have tried this year to play more games with material that is being presented. Students can stand if they need to. I have also tried to model note taking skills to help keep attention. Short breaks in between tasks also helps.
ReplyDeleteI agree! I tend to zone out during long meetings so I can't expect my students to tune in for any longer than I can! I try to put myself in their shoes and think about whether or not I would be able to focus for as long as I am asking them to.
DeleteI think working in groups of any kind is a great idea. I like to use the flexible groups because I think that is important for individuals to learn to work together no matter what the ability level might be. I also think that it is good to ability group sometimes when you are working on a certain standard. Teachers have to be very creative to continue to keep students engaged.
ReplyDeleteWorking in groups is very important in my classroom, but I agree with you Lisa the groups need to be flexible. There are ties students need to work in mixed ability groups to scaffold each other and there are times when students need to work with peers of the same ability level. The trick is to know when to use what group.
DeleteInteresting thought. How many times have I told a kid to pay attention when they actually were already doing it. but they were paying attention to something else? I really never thought about it being something you have to teach students to do. I like the buy in strategy and a little bit of healthy competition. AIG kids are used to being the quickest, and it's good when they have others to push them a little. Makes them up their game.
ReplyDeleteI would say that cognitive capacity is kind of fluid. No one is a master of everything, so it's good for kids to be grouped differently from time to time. Evidence tells us that positive experiences can increase cognitive capacity, and making sure we change things up enough to allow everyone to have their chance to shine is important.
Teaching self control is probably the most important skill for my classes, and here's why.AIG students often tend to blurt out and answer for other kids. It is often very difficult for them to not answer a question when they are already so confident in their abilities and think what they have to say is more important than what others have to say. I'd love to use the marshmallow experiment to introduce this concept to my students. Persistence when the going gets tough is also hard for gifted kids because they are accustomed to everything being easy for them. Having to wait to answer, or my withholding help while they struggle is also a way to improve and help them practice self control.
I absolutely agree with your comments on self control. This is particularly challenging in my classroom with those 9 you serve and the other 13, who sometimes feel that they can't get a word in edge-wise. I have some students who would never say anything, if it wasn't required of them, because those "self-assured" students would answer every time. I use popsicle sticks with names to draw out, to give everyone a fair shot at being called on, not just the kids who put their hands up.
DeleteThe effect of positive experiences on building capacity is something I always have to remember, and not underestimate.
DeleteWhen I feel students are not paying attention, I often scream louder. Just kidding.....I find having them participate physically helps. They need to stand up during question and answer time, or thumbs up, thumbs down, I do a "ticket out the door", where they fill out a sticky note with a comment or a question they still have about today's lesson. I feel the more they can break and move, the better.
ReplyDeleteCognitive capacity is constantly changing. I agree that students need to be grouped differently from time to time, but I also think when grouped at the same cognitive levels, students can push each other to work harder on that level. The more positive we can be with them and as they work in groups, the better the outcome.
Problem Solving is critical in my classroom academically and socially. These kids are hormonal and don't always understand where their emotions are coming from. We see a lot of change from August until June as these kids start to become young adults and how they deal with their friends, emotions, and academics can be challenging for some of them.
Oh..I thought that was Deebai.. :) (Love you, Deebai!)
DeleteI try to plan ahead and schedule "break" times for students to sit and talk or listen to music as a preemptive way to meet their "tuning out" head on. I have trouble doing one thing quietly for long periods of time so I too need a break every now and then to keep me focused. I get them.
ReplyDeleteI have found that brain breaks work very well for that. We normally do at least 4 or 5 a day.
DeleteWe have to use so many ways to keep kids paying attention, we try to change it up, from thumbs up thumbs down, get out white boards, share your answer with your neighbor, and working in groups to get answers. What ever works, and some days it takes something different all day long. I like to have my kids grouped various ways, I think the kids and learn from each other as well as motivate each other. Problem solving, problem solving - it is of course in all academic areas to important. Also as we are getting them ready for middle school, they are going to be lost if they can not begin solving some things on their own.
ReplyDeleteI allow my students to have breaks after every lesson or activity. Sometimes we just talk with friends, do a GoNoodle activity or run outside for a couple minutes. This allows them to release their energy and talk with their friends so that they can focus during activities. Also, I tend to keep my classroom as activity-based as possible so that the kids have their hands doing things and can move around the room to different stations, This also allow them the opportunity to have choices which can majorly help with focus.
ReplyDeleteI have different ways of grouping students depending upon the subject or activity. My reading groups are based on their reading abilities so that those around them are reading the same books and can support each other without getting bored from listening to someone read a book that is far above their understanding. During math and science games/activities I will allow the students to choose their own groups/partners. Secretly I have narrowed down their choices because each student is either assigned 'peanut butter' or 'jelly' and they choose a partner who is opposite of themselves. I put those students who would not work well together in the peanut butter group so that no matter which jelly they choose for a partner they'll be able to get along with them (for the most part of course). The grouping in my room is very flexible.
Problem solving and critical thinking are skills that I try to work on in my classroom. Learning to solve problems in both acedemic subjects as well as life in general is a huge skill for first graders. I tell my kids all the time to attempt to solve their problems before turning to me to say "he passed me" or "I lost my pencil." It's also important to teach them how to solve their problems the right way; I have had a few kids who thought violence was the way to solving a problem they were having with a friend. First grade is a great age to teach those life skills that allow them to understand the proper ways to finding a solution to the situations they are encountering.
It is good that Teachers are teaching these skills at a young age because Problem solving and critical thinking are skills that take time to develop, not just by learning them but through brain development and maturity. Kids are concrete thinkers and abstract thinking comes about through learning skills and through puberty as well as the brain goes through chemical changes. Many times we forget that some kids are never taught these strategies at home.
Delete1. I believe all kids pay attention most of the time but all kids also don't pay attention every now and then and I think that is normal because we all do it based on what is going on around us or what is happening in our lives that day. For me, this is the first chapter where I find my class has already incorporated much of these strategies, in that we are physically active and moving, we do a lot of hands on activity and group activity, we perform a bunch of cooperative learning and problem solving games, engage in memory required activity, introduce skills and practice them over and over, etc.
ReplyDelete2. I see it as highly flexible. I think if the activity or lesson engages the student or they are interested in the subject then they will see marked improvement. Also, what is going on in their lives at that time or what is happening around them, a stimulus either positive or negative, will have an affect on this as well.
3. In my class, it is probably self-control. PE offers a different atmosphere for students than the regular classroom in that we are moving constantly and some students associate PE with recess, free time or social hour. Couple those with activities that may involve competition and following a strict set of rules or guidelines, you will see a lot more things such as horseplay and inappropriate communication amongst the students. Based on the examples in the book, it was hard for me to use any of those to develop self- control. I try to use the None Core Values of the first Tee as a way to teach Self-Control and have the students that are demonstrating those values be the ones that get to go first, be the team leader or get called on to answer a question. I also use them as a basis for consequence when self- control is not demonstrated.
1. I agree that they are paying attention to "something." My small groups are based around specific needs. They know why they are there. If I can use games and humor, it keeps their attention on what's impt., but also eases some of the stress involved in addressing difficult issues.
ReplyDelete2. I use mixed groups a lot because of the nature of what I teach. Diversity, tolerance, appreciating and respecting differences, treating others with dignity, and conflict resolution all naturally lend themselves to mixed groups.
3. Self control and problem solving are the two most important in the type of work I do with our kids.
Well, my first reaction to "Stop telling kids to pay attention was probably to roll my eyes, but after reading the chapter I think I see what the author is talking about. Telling a student to pay attention will not help the student, but teaching them how to pay attention will. I loved the clapping game idea and have actually used it in my classroom. I just never realized the research behind it. We just thought it was fun. I would love to try the review suggestions on page 63-64.
ReplyDeleteI do not think cognitive capacity is fixed. I have yet too meet the child that is only one thing all the time. We just have to actively seek out when a child's cognitive capacity is higher.
Finally, critical thinking and problem solving are most critical in my classroom. I rely heavily on thinking maps to help students with these skills.
I think you are right about teaching them "how" to pay attention. That is a great point and one that would be very beneficial to take the time to teach.
DeleteOne way to build sustained focus is to use hands on learning and get them moving around during learning. Our Smart Boards are a super way to engage our learners and allow many fun options for learning. Plugging information and learning outcomes into a game board on the Smart Board is a sure thing with students. Another way to keep them focused is to “switch it up” often. For example, going from whole group to small group to an individual activity can make a longer lesson seem manageable to young learners.
ReplyDeleteThe Title I reading groups that I teach are grouped by ability simply because that helps me to focus my instruction. But even within a similar group, there are different levels of engagement and ability and that makes for some healthy competition. I endeavor to reward all efforts with praise and a reinforce hard work while leading them toward understanding of a concept. It is evident that some students are having to work harder than others but all have the capacity to learn and improve their reading skills while reading in group.
The higher order thinking skills that are most important in my groups are attention and problem solving. In order for them to learn to read, they must pay attention to the sounds for letters, digraphs, combinations, and other phonics skills. Following the internalization of these phonics rules, students must attend to each part of a word to sound it out or break it down for reading. As readers progress, we begin to work on processing speed as they are working to build fluency and word recognition.
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ReplyDelete1. I think that children do pay attention to our actions if they are engaging. However, I do think that there are exceptions. I think that saying those words probably have a negative connotation in the children’s minds though. Next year, I could try to gain there attention by finding a different phrase to use or by trying to relate what Im talking about to a subject they are interested in.
ReplyDelete2. I think I remember reading that the evidence says cognitive capacity is not fixed. That is also how I see it. I do think that we need to be focused on how much each individual student is growing cognitively.
3. I think that problem solving and self-control are very important in my class. Self control can be built by learning to control impulses while learning music. Something that I would like to work on is having the students understand that learning music correctly takes self control because you cant just attempt to play it right away like you want to. You need to break it down. I also think that I could help the children with problem solving by giving them projects that foster creativity such as composing or by giving thoughts towards a production.
I had never really thought about teaching students how to pay focused attention until reading this chapter. The example actions mentioned will be good to keep in mind moving forward with a new group next year to model from the beginning. I thought the mention of quick writes was interesting! I agree with the research that cognitive capacity is flexible and can be expanded if the student receives positive, engaging learning experiences. I have to say self-control is most important to me followed closely by problem solving. My students probably hear me say self-control more than any other word. :) I like the idea of using "calendar delays" for those students who lack impulse control and say the first thing that comes to mind.
ReplyDeleteI thought the part about stop telling students to pay attention made complete since. I remember how in class or in other situations if something moved in the corner of my eyes, I would completely loose focus. I had to teach myself how to really focus on the things I needed. This seemed to go very well with teaching the students self-control. That was an issue I had a lot with my students this year and could never really find a good way to help them understand what I was talking about. I really like the the two solutions of reverse active cues and calendar delay. Also, I do not feel that a students cognitive capacity is fixed. I observed in my students how they have moved from different groups as their capacity has changed throughout the year.
ReplyDelete