Personal Reflection:
Overall Planning:
Students delve into the Colonial Unit in much the same way as any other unit. There are distinct and clear steps based on Brain Based Research and case study that assist them in establishing prior knowledge, connecting new information with that knowledge, synthesizing the two, and then creating and evaluating their work in a culminating experience.In Social Studies and Literature students begin with an introduction to the material/topic. Often this is kicked off with exercises and activities designed to activate prior knowledge and establish a foundation on which to grow. I always share plans with the students. I tell them where I expect to be and when in a general way (which units and novels during which months) as well as more specifically: "here’s where we’ll be in the following days and weeks." Of course, things don’t always go to plan, but I don’t shy away from admitting that it just didn't work out as planned.
Before
beginning the unit, I shared the plans to have a witch trial
in the classroom, a movie about Salem, and I briefly explained the life of the
Puritan and Colonist during the 17th Century.
Exposure and Immersion:
Students are immersed in the colonial experience. They are exposed to several different media forms: a discovery channel documentary on Jamestown, a simulation of Colonial life in Social Studies, and the class novel: The Witch of Blackbird Pond. Reading
is at a fast pace (15 pages per day) with required Study Guide Questions,
Vocabulary, and Journaling. New skills are utilized in order to understand terms in vocabulary study. This links directly with the work being completed in Language Arts and the type of Standardized testing they will have over the next many years: they are given a text designed to be at their anticipated reading level then asked to infer, summarize, and make connections. Additionally, the practice at decoding new vocabulary based on root word recognition and context clues prepares them for other components of ERB, ICEE, and SAT testing to come.
To assess their skills and knowledge, students are quizzed every three chapters on summarizing and inference making skills directly related to guided reading questions. These become the basis for class discussion that replaces the individualized virtual discussion that was unable to be utilized this year. At the end of the novel, a cumulative exam is given including elements of all the above and an essay question that is known and prepared for in advance.
Culmination (The end of the pupal stage of learning and the practice of higher order thinking):
Students watch a movie by PBS depicting the witch trials of Salem using actual court records to create dialogue and recreate hearings and trials. They are inspired to make connections with their reading and their colonies (from the Social Studies Simulation). Members of each colony are assigned specific roles: Accused Witch, Prosecutor, or Defender. Using supplied fact sheets, students generate arguments either for or against the accused in an attempt to convince a jury of their peers (members of the other colonies). There may be tests or examinations performed by the teams in order to convict or acquit. After carefully taking notes and weighing the facts, the jury makes its decision -keeping in mind that they must do their best to mimic the thought processes of the 17th Century, Puritan Colonist on whom they are now expert (in past years there were controlled deliberations; due to snow days, this year the majority is all that was needed).
Final Thoughts:
I believe strongly in this type of unit that departs slightly from the more independent reading performed in preparation for the Explorer Project. I find it very predictive of future success and ERB scores than most other methods. The Reading Workshop Model can be as equally predictive, but its full effect cannot be utilized in the shorter time period of the middle school schedule taking into account all the other subjects competing for time both in school and at home. After the completion of this unit, scores on homework, quizzes, and the final test are highly illustrative of areas in need of attention. A high quiz score with a low test score indicates issues committing information to long term memory, most likely caused by a failure to prepare adequately or an ignorance of preparation strategies that adults take for granted but that children may need to be directly taught. A low homework average is indicative of an inability to keep up with daily work as it involves effort only and not precision in the answer. Failure to plan or the inability to utilize organizational strategies are the most common causal factors. A low quiz grade suggests one of three problems: 1- Inability to read and digest the basics of given literature at grade level. 2- Failure to perform reading on a regular basis. 3- A reading fluency rate (basic words per minute) that prohibits the reading and comprehension of grade level material on a time-dependent basis. As these are important skills in every classroom (regardless of subject matter); discovering them now presents a great opportunity for intervention and practice.
Those following the fifth grade classroom closely may have seen that I have devised a hybrid curriculum that molds pieces of reading and writing workshop model education with the more traditional components of a novel study based approach highlighted by Project Based Initiatives to serve in a reinforcing and assessing role. Independent reading and sharing is constantly encouraged: students are required to read and present on at least three novels over the year, connecting these with elements taught in mini-lesson format and supported by frequent assessments to ensure mastery. In accordance with this hybrid model, students will embark on our study of poetry. Multiple poems will be studied and different linguistic devices and techniques learned to further their knowledge of literature. Each will begin to choose a poem that connects personally, study it in depth, break it down into a script, and then perform it as if it were a short one act play. Our Poetry Parade is just weeks away!
