Wow, did this chapter really hit me in the face in reflection of my
teaching last year. Last year was my first year in 6th grade, and
coming from 4th grade I had a lot of students that I had 2 years
earlier. I had these expectations that they would be able to jump into
Daily 5. They had done it in 5th grade as well. At the beginning I did
a lot of trust without really working on the procedures and
expectations and building the correct stamina. By the middle of the
year, I was frustrated, irritated, and not trusting at all. I realized
that my expectations in Daily 5 may not look like or sound like the
teacher previous. Community - well they have been together for years, I
shouldn't need to develop that (WRONG), I have realized that I must
rebuild that community in each class, teaching respect for one another.
Learning how to react before the big hormones start is definitely a must
in 6th grade.
So for next year I really have to build, build,
build the expectations and practice them before I let go, but also trust
that these students can be responsible enough to take ownership of
their learning. Heck isn't that what we want in the long run, students
to become life long learners? With that TRUST I have to give Choice
(ugh - this is hard, I'm not sure I like this), and stay out of the way.
I once had a cousin of mine who home schools say, you know I
get some much more done with my son when we study what he is interested
in. We have periods when he is really into reading, and he soars.
However, if I try to force reading on him when he doesn't want to read,
it is like beating down a brick wall.
Okay - I know we can't do
this, but if we allow the students to do the Daily 5 in their own order
then just maybe their sense of urgency will be their and their stamina
will be stronger. Just a thought. I can't wait to continue this book
study and ponder on more things I need to focus on a little better.
If you are interested in seeing others thoughts hop on over to We Blog, We Read, We Teach and see what others are saying.
Till Chapter 3 - Nicole
No comments:
Post a Comment