5 Strategies for Project-Based Learning

One might ask themselves, what is Project-Based Learning? This is my favorite methods for learning in the classroom! Project-Based learning allows students to gain a deeper understanding of content through hands-on activities that allow them to ask questions, be more engaged, solve a problem and be challenged. Listed below are 5 strategies that I use when creating Project-Based learning activities in my classroom.

1. The teacher guides the students, while the students take the lead in their education.
In Project-Based Learning, I like to act as a navigator for my students. I guide students by asking them questions to get their ideas started or for ideas on what they might want to think about. I also provide examples for how they may want to solve a problem. Students may receive some guidance, however, they will be the ones actually in charge of their project and how they want to solve the problem.

For Example: How to catch a leprechaun writing activity turned to stem project. 
In a first grade classroom, students were writing a how to catch a leprechaun piece. In order to get the ideas for their steps of catching a leprechaun, students made leprechaun traps with shoe boxes, straws, cups, plates, pipe cleaners, gold nuggets, glitter, etc. Once they made their traps, students wrote the steps of how to catch a leprechaun in their journals. This was challenging, engaging, and allowed students to take the lead in how they would complete the problem and create their steps for catching a leprechaun.

2. Reflection builds appreciation for the progress that students have made on their projects. They may also want to set goals after their reflection of their project. 
It is important that students take moments to think about how their project is going. Is there a way they may be able to change something to make it better? Can they create a new goal for their activity based on the way their project is progressing? I encourage my students to take moments, reflect on their projects, ask questions, and set new goals if necessary.

For Example: How to make a paper airplane writing activity turned into a stem project that required reflection on their progress.
Students followed steps on a YouTube video for making a paper airplane. One the paper airplanes were made, students wrote the steps for how to make a paper airplane in their journals. We then took the paper airplanes outside and tested them out. Students watched their airplanes fly through the air. Then we came back into the classroom. Students were asked to reflect on their paper airplanes and think about how they could make modifications, or changes, to their airplanes to make them fly farther. Students made their modifications, or changes, and then we went back outside to see if the paper airplanes would fly farther. This reflection allowed students to think outside of the box and evaluate their current progress on their project. They also changed their goal from getting their airplane to fly to getting their airplane to fly farther. Students had a great time with this project and their writing was very detailed in their journal because they were writing on a topic of interest.

3. Challenge students to promote critical thinking and engagement. 
I believe students should be challenged through critical thinking during their projects. Students should create their own questions and try to solve them by themselves, with a partner, or in a small group. The teacher should not be providing students with all of the answers. Students need to get to some of the answers on their own. When students are responsible for asking their own questions and finding their own answers, they are more engaged and excited about the activity they are completing.

For Example: Making Weather Tools
In this activity, students made their own weather tools with a partner out of paper plates, cups, pipe cleaners, paper, straws, pencils, pins, etc. They were able to make a weather tool that already existed, a weather tool that measured more than one type of weather, or a weather tool that had not been invented yet. Students had to ask themselves questions in order to make their weather tools. Some questions students thought about were: what is the weather tool going to measure, why it is important to measure that type of weather, what supplies do they need, and what should their weather tool look like? Students were excited, engaged, and retained a deeper understanding of weather tools through this hands on learning activity.

4. Collaboration: students create and learn together to reach a common goal.
Students collaborate and communicate ideas, strategies, and solutions to problems in partners or small group projects. By discussing ideas together, students are able to learn from each other. For example, struggling students are guided by the higher achieving students through discussions, while, the higher achieving students are gaining a deeper understanding of content through the ability to teach another student. Collaboration is a win for students of all levels of abilities.

For Example: Making a Gold Course
Students in a fourth grade classroom made a golf course hole while working in partners. They had to select a person from California's history, research them, write a paragraph on their selected person, make angles with a protractor, measure and draw the openings on the board of wood for the golf ball, paint the wood for their hole based on the person they selected, and work as a team to discuss the information on the person they selected with students from the school that played their golf hole. This project took about two weeks. Students were passionate about this acidity because they were researching someone that they found interesting. They also learned to work as a team and collaborate with another person to complete the project. This is a skill that will be crucial for their future careers.

5. Provide students with a choice and a voice. 
I like to provide my students with a choice, or options, in how they may show their understanding of content. I do not believe that students must show their understanding of material in the same way. When students may select their project, they are more motivated and engaged in the activity. They are passionate and excited about completing their work and putting forth a great deal of effort in their project.

For Example: Students show their understanding for how California changed due to the Gold Rush.
In a fourth grade classroom we were studying how California changed due to the Gold Rush. I wanted students to express specific details of how California was before the Gold Rush and how those details changed due to the Gold Rush. I allowed students to select how they wanted to express this to me. They could make a Powtoon, IMovie, Prezi, poster, create a song, act things out in a skit, etc. I had told students that all they needed to do was get their project approved by me before starting. Students were extremely excited about completing a project of their choice. They stayed focused during their work time and were highly motivated to complete their project with their best work.

* I hope these strategies and examples for Project-Based learning inspire you to use Project-Based Learning activities in your classroom. You will truly see a positive change in your students!

Strategies For Improving Reading Comprehension

Ever wonder how to improve your students' reading comprehension? I have seen improvement in my students' reading comprehension through implementing these 4 strategies in my classroom.

1. The following two websites offer reading comprehension questions after the student reads a story or book. Students needs to retain and process the information from the story, or book, in order to be able to correctly answer questions from theses websites. Answering reading comprehension questions from these websites assist students to look for the main characters, setting, main events, problem, solution, and any other details within the story. Raz Kids offers stories and books on its website that students may read. It also has quizzes with reading comprehension questions already made for students to take after reading. Reading Counts from scholastic has quizzes with reading comprehension questions for multiple books and stories. Students may take a Reading Counts quiz on their Chromebooks based on a book that the whole class read together, an article or story from our reading textbook, or even books that they read during independent reading time. During independent reading time, when students complete their book, they quietly get a Chromebook and take a Reading Counts quiz. To find a quiz on Reading Counts, you just type in the title or author and the quiz with appear. I have seen my students' Lexile reading levels increase every semester through the use of Raz Kids and especially Reading Counts. Our class tends to use Reading Counts more because you may just search for a quiz on a book of your choice, whereas Raz Kids you read one of their stories before taking the quiz.

Reading Counts Information Page

Reading Counts Website

Raz Kids Login






2. Being able to identify the following story elements during a re-telling of a book, or story, will assist students to improve their reading comprehension: setting, main characters, main events in proper sequence, problem, solution, etc. After reading a story, or book, I ask students to write a summary, or re-tell, the story in their journals. Students would include a description of the story elements in their journal entry. Students may also include an explanation of the author's purpose and state their opinion on the story. These journal entries assist students process and gain a deeper understanding of the story, which will improve their reading comprehension skills. I have also seen students improve their Lexile reading levels through our journal entries including a summary, state the author's purpose, and express their opinions on the story.

3. Annotated notes is another excellent strategy for improving students' reading comprehension. I like to read Scholastic News or Time Magazine for Kids and have students make annotated notes next to the paragraphs. The annotated notes assist them in looking for the main idea and details within the article. The notes also prepare the students to answers questions on their articles. I also have students make annotated notes while we read short stories, in their social studies packets, and during science. Having these notes also assist them with their responses to the text in persuasive papers, informational writing, and any other types of written responses to their text. Annotated notes assist students to look for and identify main ideas and details in an article, book, or short story, etc. It also helps them to process the information from their reading before putting the information into their writing. I have seen students improve their reading comprehension skills through the use of annotated notes.

4. In upper grades, I love having reading clubs. Each reading club group will consist of 4-6 students. Groups will be able to select a book to read from a list that I provide them. One to Two chapters are read every evening at home. Students then come back to class reading to discuss with their groups the chapters they read the night before. I provide each group with a list of questions they may discuss to get their conversation started. Students may also discuss anything of their choice that is going on in the book. Some of the sample questions I will provide the students may include:

• What did you notice in the book?
• Does the book remind you of anything?
• What were you wondering while you were reading?
• What was your favorite part? Why?
• Was there a part of the book that surprised you? Why?
• What reason is there for the character to…?
• What was the motive behind…?
• What do you suppose the character was thinking when…?
• Predict what the character will do next.
• Can you predict what the outcome will be if…?
• Analyze how the character's feelings changed in the book.
• Whats is the relationship between the two characters?
• How would you compare these two characters?
• What was the turning point in the story?
• What is a different way to solve the problem?
• How would you have solved the problem?

I have found students to improve their reading comprehension skills through these reading clubs. Students have these questions in mind when they are reading the story. They also have the opportunity to learn from their classmates while listening to them during the discussions. 

5. Lastly, I have improved my students' reading comprehension skills through the use of  story maps. After reading a story or book, I have students recognize story structure through the use of story maps. The story maps consist of students describing the main characters, setting, problem, solution, main events in sequences, or story elements on a graphic organizer, or story map. We might complete the story map as a whole class during guided practice, or, students may complete the story map independent, in partners, or in a small group. These story maps have improved students' reading comprehension because they have students analyzing and processing all parts of the story. The story maps are also a great strategy for students to use as a method of brainstorming prior to writing about a story or book. 

I hope these strategies assist you in improving reading comprehension in your classroom. I have already had great success with all five of these strategies in my classroom and I look forward to using them again next year. 

Curricular Resources/Vocabulary Activities

Introduction

It's been a little while since I posted on my blog, so I wanted to re-introduce myself by explaining the purpose of my bog, my beliefs on academic vocabulary development, my philosophy on education and provide sources/vocabulary activities that I use in the classroom.

The purpose of my blog is for me to share successful instructional strategies, activities/lessons, and links to resources that I use with students in the classroom. I just completed my student teaching in 1st and 4th grade. During my student teaching, I developed my current philosophy on education.

Philosophy on Education

My personal goal for my future classroom is to challenge students and assist them to reach their full potential. I want to meet each individual student’s needs by differentiating instructions, content, and assessments as needed. I also value forming a sense of community within the classroom. Therefore, group work is key in developing a community within the classroom. Group work allows students to support and learn from one another while also transforming the atmosphere of the entire class.

In my classroom, I want students to freely express their ideas and be creative. Students will express their interests, dislikes, and gain an understanding of their strengths and areas of improvement. After I have identified this information on each student, I will develop the curriculum to meet each student’s learning styles, needs, and abilities.

I strongly believe in a classroom management that has an emphasis on reinforcing positive behavior. I have had great success when I provide students with lots of praise and focus on the desired behavior rather than undesired behavior.

When presenting new content, I use direct and explicit instructions, while also providing students with room to expand on the content independently. I believe students should create their own questions and try to find the answers independently. This will help students to gain information through a variety ways. I also believe in integrating technology throughout my lessons and curriculum. For example, I frequently have students use Powtoons, Prezi, IMovie, Kahoot, and much more.

As an educator, I believe my philosophy on education and teaching styles may change throughout my teaching career. I want to remain receptive to new ideas, open to suggestions, and motivated to grow and improve my teaching skills.

During my student teaching, I was also able to create my ideas, or theory, for general academic vocabulary development. 

My Academic Vocabulary Development Theory 

During my student teaching in 1st and 4th grade, I found a few successful strategies for academic vocabulary development for my students. The first strategy I used was to have my students read independently everyday to improve their vocabulary during morning reads. I also encouraged my students to pick books from different genres. When reading about vocabulary online, research said that the more a student reads independently at their independent reading level, the more they will increase their vocabulary. Another strategy I used for increasing students' vocabulary is through direct instruction. For example, I used direct instruction for vocabulary when I do a read aloud with the class. I make a PowerPoint presentation where each slide consists of the unfamiliar terms in the book, their definitions, and pictures to further explain the terms. I pre-teach the unfamiliar vocabulary terms prior to reading the book so that students may increase their vocabulary and have a better understanding of the book. While I read books aloud to the class, I also provide instructions and model how to use context clues to figure out the meaning of an unfamiliar term in a book or story. To improve students' academic vocabulary, I also provide students with weekly spelling lists that students must also learn the terms' definitions and use the terms in sentences. I have found that using these strategies have improved my students' academic vocabulary development. During my career in education, I will continue to research for new strategies to improve my students' academic vocabulary development. 

Curricular Resources and Vocabulary Activities That I Use in the Classroom:

Lexia Reading Core 5

Lexia Reading Core 5 is a website students can use on their chromebooks, or an app that students may use on their IPADS. This website offers a personalized learning path based on students' individual levels of abilities. Lexia Reading Core 5 also offers students support in phonological awareness, phonics, structural analysis, automaticity/fluency, vocabulary, and comprehension. Students will complete independent application of their understanding of vocabulary terms and demonstrate mastery of the selected vocabulary. If students do not show mastery of the selected vocabulary, the website will provide guided practice, or scaffolding support. If students are still not understanding the meaning of the selected vocabulary terms, the website will provide direct, and explicit, instructions and resources for teacher-led instruction if needed. This is a wonderful tool for students to use at their own pace and independent levels of abilities within the areas that this website supports, for example, vocabulary development. 

Spelling City

Spelling City is also a website that students may use on their chromebooks, or an app that they may use on their IPADS. This website offers students practice and an opportunity to develop their vocabulary and spelling abilities. Teachers are able to upload their own spelling and vocabulary lists to the website. Spelling city then offers students fun, game-like, activities to practice their spelling list and develop their vocabulary lists that were uploaded by the teacher. This website also allows students to move at their own pace on each activity.  

This is a book that you may purchase from Amazon, Scholastic, Barnes and Noble, and many more places for all grades. 

I like to have one of the pages from this book copied and set on students' desks before they enter the room. Students come into the room and begin this vocabulary development worksheet as a daily warm up while I take attendance. The worksheet will provide one word on the bottom. Students will then read the clue, or definition, for the words in the box above and write the word in the box. Students will start on the bottom box and climb their way up the ladder, or boxes, to the top of the page. This a fun and engaging strategy for students to develop vocabulary and a great way to start the morning. 

Student Login to Game

Teacher Sign In

Kahoot is a fun, engaging, and quick assessment strategy that I use for multiple subjects. One subject that I use it for is vocabulary. I use Kahoot to pre-assess my students before beginning our new vocabulary for the week to see which words some students already know. I also use Kahoot to assess students' vocabulary development throughout the week to see which students are mastering their vocabulary lists.  I am able to make my own quizzes on Kahoot. One vocabulary quiz may provide the word and students must select the correct definition from four choices. I may also provide students with the definition and they must select the correct word from four choices. After each question, I am able to see how many students selected each choice for the answer of the question. If needed, I am able to re-explain the vocabulary term to the class in that moment before moving on to the next question.

I have made a packet for students consisting of the Greek and Latin roots, definitions, and example words for my 4th graders. 

During my student teaching in 4th grade,  I gave my students at least 5 Greek or Latin roots on their weekly spelling lists. I began by explaining the Greek or Latin roots on their spelling lists at the beginning of the week. I reviewed the definition, example words, and showed how the words can be broken down to smaller parts, where the definition of the words will become clear. We practice our Greek and Latin words for the week daily. We practiced by myself saying the root and the class responded by saying the definition. We also played around the world with the Greek and Latin words. One student would stand next to another student sitting down. I would state the Greek or Latin root and the students responded by saying the definition. The first student to say the correct definition moved on to the next student in the class and so the game would continue. The goal is to get all around the room getting each definition correct. I may also switch around the world by myself saying the definition and the students say the Greek or Latin root. I have found that when students have a mastery of Greek and latin roots, they also have a better understanding of vocabulary in the English language. I have found this to be true because much of our English language, or vocabulary, comes from Greek and Latin.