Testing in PJ-s

It looked like grade 3 students had come straight out of beds to the MAP testing. I believe this is the first time in ISE history when  MAP testing and spirit week are at the same time. First thing this morning we went to a temporary computer lab. Sitting in their PJ-s, the students read the questions on their laptops and clicked on the answers. I hope that being in comfy clothes made them less stressed about the situation.
MAP stands for Measure of Academic Progress. It's a computer based test that adapts the difficulty of the questions based on the answers the student has chosen. If the student chooses correctly, a harder question will appear. When the answer is wrong, an easier question will pop up. During the test they may see questions that are way below their ability level and some questions that may be from fourth or fifth grade material. The students don't get all the same questions. We don't see which questions they answered correctly and where they made the mistakes.
It is good to keep in mind that MAP is just one assessment. I give assessments in class and I observe the students informally. Usually all three give a similar picture. Sometimes the results may differ, and then it is my job to figure out what may have caused the discrepancy.  
We discussed in class how reading for a test has a completely different purpose and audience than reading for fun. Test-taking is a skill that one has to learn and practice. The teacher needs to read the results and analyze data.
I will get results for a whole class:

I will also get an individual report for each child. It has words and numbers and graphs.

I was looking for a graph that would show smooth and predictable results, but I couldn't find any. Quite often the student's results (dark blue line) differ from the norm group average (light blue line). (The norm group so far has been US students, but I believe we are switching to an international norm group this year.) The orange line should represent our school, but we don't have enough students to make this statistically valid.
here is a graph for an English language learner who is slowly catching up with the norm group.

Here is a picture of a student who seems to have forgotten a lot over the summer.

Without knowing the student and his/her background the next graph makes no sense at all:

Of course we all hope that when we test again in spring all the scores will go up. From my experience I can say that it is not always so. Then it is time to triangulate the data (MAP, classroom assessments and teacher observations) again.
MAP test is best to be looked at over a long period of time. Then, no matter how big the lows and highs are, one can see that the student has grown over many years.

Meeting an author

Grade 3 had a wonderful opportunity to meet an author and hear about her writing life and about the whole writing process from an idea to a published book. Mrs. Sigal Ehrlich came, spoke, explained, showed her notebook and helpful tools, answered questions, and wrote together with children. Here are some of the ideas from the meeting.

It is a journey to write a book.

There are many ways to get ideas and different ways to get started with writing, but to get any writing done, you have to sit down and write for hours and hours and hours to pour your ideas on paper.

When you have finished writing, that's when the work begins. You reread, revise, edit, editor rereads, revises, edits, you reread, revise, and edit and so several times.

Publishing and marketing a book requires a whole new set of skills and strategies.

When readers are happy because they read a book, that makes the writer happy and wanting to write more.

The best way to learn is to read and read and read.

Writers can play with words.

We played a writing game "Five Words." Everybody thought of five random words and then passed the paper to the next person. Then we had to write a short paragraph using all five words.

We left the meeting inspired and energized.

Thank you, Sigal!

When it is a short week

It's so easy to plan a full week. It's possible to get so much done. During a short week or when days don't follow the usual schedule and routine, eg. we have visitors or a PYP Assembly, I have to make choices what to leave out. This week it feels that we have mostly done UOI, finishing the human body system part and inquiring into the aspects of health. On weeks and days like that we try to sneak in reading and math whenever we can. We have a moment before the lesson starts, practice math on IXL. You have finished practicing presenting your UOI text, grab a book and read. We finished snack and read aloud, write ten minutes in your journal. I hope that the students learn that even if we do not have 45 minute math lesson or a reading workshop, the small moments also matter.

Which voice do you use when you talk to yourself?

Ms. Lucia came today to speak to us about mental and emotional health. 

For a start she asked us what the difference between "being healthy" and "health" was.

Health is a noun, an idea that pops in our heads, it is or is not.

She explained that when we think about being healthy, we think about something that can change and we can actually do something about it every day.

One of the important things that helps us to be healthy is having relationships with people, who support us, listen to us and help when needed.

Another important thing is to treat ourselves well. Any time we think, we talk to ourselves. It is important how we talk to ourselves in our minds.Sometimes when we are a bit down or when we have made a mistake, it really helps to use a soothing voice to reassure that it's ok to make mistakes, be calm, everything is going to be fine.

She reminded us that what we think affects how we feel, and how we feel affect our whole body.

Mind maps

When we started the unit about human body and health, the students created mind maps to show what they knew already about the different body systems. Today they created new mind maps to show what they know now. Tomorrow they get to compare the two mind maps and reflect on how their knowledge and understanding has grown.

Almost ready

For three weeks now we have been gathering and organizing information for our Human Body Systems book. We are almost ready. Today we used the pictures and text to figure out the layout of the pages. Then we practiced sharing our texts.

I.A.L.A.C

As part of our UOI we are learning about different aspects of health  - physical, mental, emotional, social, and spiritual. On Monday we thought of the five different areas and thought of possible ways to keep ourselves healthy. We also decided to invite knowledgeable people to speak to us.

This morning we had a visitor. Ms. Dee came to speak about I.A.L.A.C sign we are all born with.

The letters stand for I Am Lovable And Capable. Ms. Dee showed us that we ourselves or other people may rip pieces from our sign with their actions and words. We also have to mind what we say or do to not rip someone else's sign.

Even when pieces are put back, the sign would not be the same as in the morning. The good thing is that each day is a new start.

Then we spoke about ways to help to keep or mend the sign

Invite someone to play

Offer help

Notice if someone is lonely

How can we deal with situations without ripping each others' signs?

You can have your idea and the other person's idea and make something out of those two - combine ideas.

Look for other possibilities - a third idea.

You can agree to disagree.

Watch how you talk to a person, sometimes it is the tone not the words that hurt.

In conflict situation hear both sides.

Don't keep your anger.

Speak to the other person and let her/him know hoe you feel.

Don't think that you know what the other person thought or meant, ask them. 

Quick write

Every Friday we will choose a word and write about it for 5 minutes. We write down whatever comes to our mind in relation to this word. This way we gather little seeds of ideas that may or may not get used later.
This week's word: Small

Math posters

It took some time, but they turned out well. You are welcome to enter the classroom to take a closer look.

Sharing

Sharing pictures and initial ideas about imaginary monsters. 

One of my favorite lessons

I love Literature Circles. I think calling them a lesson is a bit unfair. They are so much more than that. On Tuesday grades 3-5 got together and talked about the purpose, procedures, expectations and benefits of Literature Circles.
Here is a list we came up with:

o   Literature Circles are groups of students choosing, reading and discussing the same book together.

o   Books choose the groups. It means that once you have chosen a book you will find out who else was interested in that book and then the group is formed.

o   You don’t always get the book you want, because maybe there is no one else who wants to read this book or there are not enough books for a larger group.

o   For a good group everyone needs to read what was agreed.

o   For a great group everyone shares their ideas. 

o   You may have different ideas and that is actually interesting.

o   Sometimes you start with a small idea and people add to it and it grows bigger.

o   Different groups can work at different levels.  English language learners may be just practicing reading, beginner readers may talk about characters and plot, and other groups may dig deeper into the texts.

o   In Literature Circle you get to practice your thinking skills.

o   You also get to practice your conversations skills. This means, sharing, listening, elaborating ideas, and politely disagreeing. You help each other and encourage everyone to share.

o   In Literature you can be a risk taker and choose books you usually wouldn’t choose.

o   Try your best and hopefully you will enjoy both reading and discussing the stories.

 

Today we chose books. In case you have wondered why there are several large wooden cupboards in the hallway, I'll let you see what's behind the doors. Books, books, books. Literature Circle books.

Assessing large number knowlege

When I went to school, we had many tests to find out what we knew and could do. A test is just one way to assess knowledge and skills. In a small class (like current grade 3) I have the luxury of having individual meetings with kids to assess them. It may take time, but I get a rather detailed picture of what they understand, how much, in what areas they feel confident and where they need more guidance or practice.

While I speak to individual students, others have worked on math posters for large numbers, rounding and comparing.

Feedback

Our UOI writing is in the part of the writing process where the authors are ready for feedback. Together as a class we read the texts about the body systems, gave compliments to what was well, and suggested some ways to improve. I believe that the writers felt good when their classmates commented on their catchy beginning, interesting facts, scientific yet child friendly text, colorful descriptions, and how well the texts sounded. The suggestions will hopefully make the good texts even better.

Once the texts are through the revision process, we can edit, add the visuals, and publish the texts.

Reading journals

Readers read.

Readers do more than that. They think about what they read and respond to the texts in many different ways. This year we will inquire into different reading strategies. We will practice how to respond to texts orally and in writing. 

Readers can choose a part that they find interesting, draw a scene, and explain why they chose that part.

Readers can think about a character and give an opinion about that character.

Readers can choose a part that made them react emotionally and describe what they felt and why.

Readers can question and wonder.

Readers can decide what  events and ideas were most important in their reading.

This week we looked at 5 possible ways to respond. 

For a start these responses may be short, but over the year I hope to see the responses grow both in length and depth.

Writing from imagination

This is our third week to learn about gathering ideas. This weeks focus is on using our imagination for writing.

Yesterday we used our fantasy to create lists ( we love lists) of magical creatures, actions, and unusual places. I can tell you that as a whole class we have ideas for more than twenty books. It was pure fun listening to all the ideas the children had recorded.

Today's idea in a mini-lesson was: " Writers get inspiration from pictures and use their imagination to tell the story behind the picture."

The students chose a picture, created little mind-maps for pre-writing and then wrote their first draft. 

We had some guiding questions to help the writers get started.

Where does the story take place?

Who are the characters?

What are they like?

What happens?

What do the characters do?

What do they say?

What do they think?

What do they feel?

Wouldn't it be interesting to peek into the heads of the writers when they come up with ideas? The facial expressions changed a lot during the writing session in class.

Almost ready

Two weeks ago the students created lists to name the different things they do with their hands. In the mornings and spare moments we have been turning these writings into an art project. A wee bit more, and we are ready to present our creations. Here's just a sneak peek.

Revision

We are almost ready to finish our UOI texts about human body systems. This week we will revise and edit. Next week we will add visuals and put our first class book together.

Yesterday the students reread their texts and looked for places where they could help their reader to visualize better. Adding color pr size, comparing the  organs or systems to everyday things, writing in slow motion, adding details - all of these can hel the reader to get a beeter picture in their mind.

Today we focused on how to hoom the reader from the very first sentence. We looked at some mentor texts.

We made a list ofossibilities. Writers can start a non fiction text with:

a fact

a question

a story

an idea

a description

a feeling

The students experimented with different possibilities.

Tomorrow we will look at the voice and choice of words.

On Thursday we will take one more look at the organization and conventions, and the the texts should be ready for the final editing. Fingers crossed.

Friday's closing circle

On Fridays, right before going home, we sit in a circle and each child pulls a little wooden figure with a classmate's name on it. Then they take turns sharing what they noticed the classmate doing well during the week. It can be about getting along with others, putting effort in learning, demonstrating knowledge, showing positive attitude, or creating something. It's pleasant to finish a week with the room filled with positive comments. 

Showing mathematical knowledge

Students have been using an app called Educreations to show how they understand place value. Today I sat individually with each one and we talked about what was well and what they could make better. In the whole process I had probably the greatest lesson. I have to make my instructions for the assignments more detailed and clear. I hope that with clearer instructions and more practice it becomes easier to use the app.

Teaching each other

When it comes to new technology I am often a learner myself and don't necessarily have all the answers. I love it when students figure out their own solutions and then teach each other. Today during UOI several students wanted to add pictures to their texts on Google Drive. Some of them experimented a bit and figured it out. They also discovered how to make their texts colorful. Then they were ready to instruct others, patiently and step by step. Then they all shared their drafts with me.

My job now is to add questions and comments to help them to improve their writing. 

Morning circle lessons

This week I shared Amy VanDerwater's poem First Flight and three quotes during the morning circles.

" Your teacher can open the door, but you must enter by yourself." Chinese proverb

"You'r braver than you believe, and stronger than you seem, and smarter than you think." by Christopher Robin ( Winnie the Pooh)

"Start where you are, use what you have, do what you can." Unknown

Today I asked what ideas the students had collected from this week's morning circles.

Here is their collective wisdom to take along.

Your teacher can help you learn but you must learn yourself.

It 's good to be brave and try.

When you get new work, try ar least.

A crocodile game

When I gave a small math assessment before the large number unit, I saw many misconceptions in using symbols to compare large nu,bers.

I invited a toy crocodile to our class to help to teach about comparing numbers.

She showed how she likes to always eat the bigger thing.

As I found out, the students had already met this crocodile's relative last year, and during test they simply had not remebered. Today their brains were mathematically active and they easily compared numbers turning the crocodile mouth into a mathematical symbol

Since we didn't have to spend time on learning this topic, the crocodile taught them a corcodile game instead.

Watch again

We watched many different videos about human body systems last week. Now that students know what body system they will write about, they decided to watch the related videos again, pause and take notes.

Place value questions

What is the biggest number you can make using the following digits: 6, 3, 8, 1?

What place is the digit 5 in  9524?

What is the value of digit 2 in 2758?

How do you read 45,672?

How do you write 3614 in extended form?

What number is represented on the picture?

Non-fiction text

Did you figure out the answer to the apples and oranges question?

Reading fiction is like eating apples. You start and read all the way to the core.

Reading non- fiction is like eating oranges. You can eat just some slices and not necessarily in order. (Though often it is useful to start from the beginning and to work your way through)

Today's question is:

What else besides the text helps a reader to understand a topic on a non-fiction book page?

How to...

This week in our writing workshop we gather topics from our knowledge. Sometimes when writers know how to do something very well, they can write instructions to others.

Writers in grade 3 made lists of what they could write about. There were many possibilities and I hope that I will read about many of them.

Wouldn't you want to know

How to take care of a hamster

How to feed a cat

How to pick the best plants and flowers

How to open presents ( three different ways)

How to be quiet

How to dive into snow

How to doodle

How to play minecraft

?

Maybe you would also want to learn how to use bugs to scare your sister?

Learning can happen anywhere

learning about the digestive system (UOI)

A windowsill in our class is a popular place for reading and learning.

Who are you as a reader?

For today the students had a following homework assignment:

Homework posted on Showbie

We watched their slideshows today. (Three still need to submit their work)

Here are three slides from different readers.

What do you like to read about?

Why do you read?

Where do you read?

I have learned a lot about the readers in my class. I have observed them, listened when they read to me, asked questions about their choices and thoughts, read their answers to the reading surveys, and watched these slide shows.

Reading

Can you figure out what do apples and oranges have to do with reading narrative (story) and expository (informational) texts?

Writing about human body systems

We know that writers write about things that they know well.

We know that informational writing is different from story writing.

We know some things about human body systems.

We also know that we don't know enough yet to be able to write to others about it.

We know that in a week it is impossible to write well about each body system.

Putting all of this together we decided to share the body systems between the students, we plan to learn more, collect information, and organize it into a child-friendly text.

For each body system we will answer the following questions:

What is the system made of?

What is its purpose?

How does it work?

How does it help other body systems?

What could go wrong and how?

Estonian Culture field trip

I wish you could have been with us today. A warm sunny weather, clean forest smell, soft nature trail, berry and mushroom picking, serene lakes, a plank path in a bog, games in teams, interesting information told by a guide - all of these made today's field trip to Paunküla Nature Park a perfect way to spend a day.