Literacy Strategies & NCSS Conference, Denver

I had a great experience at the NCSS conference in Denver. I had the opportunity to network with other teacher leaders from across the United States. I was delighted to discover that many social studies curriculum specialists are embracing literacy strategies that focus on before, during, and after reading, as well as gradual release of responsibility (I, we, you). I'm curious, what are your favorite strategies to use before, during, and after reading?

NCSS & CUFA Conference, Denver, CO 11.11.10

I arrived in Denver, the mile high city, t0 attend the NCSS conference (it's snowing and very cold). I was delighted to see the line up of presentations devoted to literacy and historical thinking skills. I'm seeing so many excellent ideas for our classrooms. One of the presentations addressed using blogging as a way to allow students to build their confidence with content. My presentation is scheduled for Friday, and my topic addresses teachers' experiences with historical thinking skills. This is turning into a hot topic for social studies educators. If you are not using resources from NCSS, you may want to visit the website and consider becoming a member of this professional organization. Check it out: www.socialstudies.org or for CUFA (College and University Faculty Assembly) www.ncsscufa.org. One of the main researchers who started researching historical thinking skills is Dr. Sam Wineburg, and he is one of the main speakers at NCSS this year. I had the great fortune of working with him a few years ago when I began my dissertation research. He has some wonderful ideas. You would probably enjoy reading his studies and books. Happy searching!

3-2-1 Biography Poem

I utilized the 3-2-1 Biography Poem this week as a way of building community in the classroom. The students really seemed to enjoy it and they learned a lot from the activity. I learned a lot as well and will be creating lessons based on the interest and learning style. I am anxious to see how it goes. Ill keep everybody posted! Take Care!

Making Connections today and in the past - Pakistan

A recent article in the local newspaper addressed the problems associated with severe flooding in Pakistan. This article would be a great way to allow students to read about current issues and connect the issues back to Ancient India. Recall that the Ancient Indus Valley actually developed in what is now Pakistan, and flooding may have caused the downfall of this great civilization. What a cool way to connect the present day with the ancient world! You could use a T-Chart for a reading activity associated with the news article.

Compare and Contrast Chinese Dynasties

I started a new unit today, Ancient China. I decided to use Venn diagrams as we compared and contrasted the land that each dynasty possessed. We started with the Shang Dynasty. Students listed geographical descriptions of the land. Then we added the land owned by the Zhou Dynasty. Next we looked at similaries. We continued with the comparisons for the Qin and Han Dynasties, just comparing the territories by referring to the atlas and web-based maps. We created summary statements in groups. Each group created statements that described how the territory expanded or changed over the course of the four dynasties. This activity allowed the students to start the unit with a foundation in geography and an awareness of how humans adapt to the environment. My students actually generated several higher level thinking questions about humans and the environment. Here's some questions that my students noted:
1. Why did certain territorties remain unclaimed?
2. Why did rulers avoid moving into a specific region?
3. Why did they build the Great Wall near the Gobi Desert?
4. Did they think about connecting the rivers?
5. How did they know to travel so far west to trade silk?
This simple lesson ended up generating a plethora of questions that continued to open to more questions that my students tried to solve. It resulted in a high interest lesson that sparked their curiosity.

Even Dozen with modifications

As I drifted off to sleep last night, I had visions of a way to modify Even Dozen. I know, I must be a sick puppy! I really love these literacy strategies, though. Here's my idea that I tried in class today (it worked very well as a wrap up activity for Ancient India):
1. After processing material, issue 3 post-it notes to each student.
2. Instruct each student to write one important detail or conclusion about the material that was read/processed on each note.
3. Then assign students to diverse groups of 4, and remind them to take their post-it notes with them.
4. Provide each group with a large sheet of paper, and ask the group to divide it into 12 segments.
5. Ask each student in the group to place his/her post-it notes on the segments.
6. Then ask groups to discuss the items and add details, if needed. If several students listed the same detail on a post-it note, the notes should be moved to one segment. This will allow space to add new ideas.
7. After all 12 segments are filled, ask the groups to prioritize the 12 important details.
8. Discuss findings and post large paper around the room.
9. One final optional step could include having each group or each student write a five sentence summary.

Okay, this is what my dreams involve. My little secret is out! Happy learning =)

November 22 = due date for final lesson plan

After a review of the SURN expectations, I wanted to share with you an upcoming due date. The third and final draft of your plan is due on November 22. I look forward to reading your works of art!

Venn Diagrams

As we explored Ancient India, my students noticed how often we worked with comparisons. So as a group we decided that our focus for November will be comparing and contrasting. I was impressed that my students produced this idea and discovered the patterns. Together we designed a modified Venn Diagram that incorporated a three-fold piece of paper. The beauty of this is that the students designed it with very little assistance--authentic learning. They noticed a processing need, and identified a workable strategy. They made foldable Venn diagrams to compare the following items:
1. Indus Valley Civilization and Aryan Civilization
2. Maurya Dynasty and Gupta Dynasty
3. Hinduism and Buddhism

Second Review

Thank you for sharing your plans for round two of the review process. I thoroughly enjoyed reading your ideas. One idea that really stood out was using marking the text and even dozen in the lesson. These two ideas fit nicely and move students toward a higher level of processing.

Tried something new!

I used Frayer Models for the first time in my classes. I was impressed at how well the students did with them. It pushed the higher level students into creating complex definitions of their own and my less motivated students could use the clues to also come up with definitions. Has anyone else had success with this? I am thinking about doing them more often! I also made graffiti walls with my students to review my last unit before moving on. They had a ton of fun making them and they also had good conversations with each other to review the content!