Slowing Down to Go Faster: Building a Solid Foundation

In a time of constant change, it seems as if we can never really keep up. As we rush to keep up, the haste to move forward can create systems that haven’t had the opportunity to solidify a foundation. In a time where things are so hurried, it might be time to think about slowing down. Slow down and build your solid foundation.  Slow down to get procedures in place in your classroom. Slow down to deepen your understanding of your learning targets and create clarity in what it means to be proficient in your standards.  This slow down will pay back in dividends.

Because by now we all know I struggle with brevity, this will be another two part blog post. I decided to first address what you could reflect on in your classroom today; focusing on procedures, structures, and planning.  Next month, I will follow up and offer some ideas and suggestions about ways to deepen your understanding of your learning targets and creating clarity on proficiency.

 

Paradox of Planning for Personalized Learning

On the Kane County Institute Day, I was able to present on planning for personalized learning.  I started my presentation talking about how planning for personalized learning is a paradox. A paradox is a contradictory statement that when explained displays a truth.  (An example of a paradox would be something like “it is the beginning of the end” or “I know one thing; that I know nothing.”)

Personalized learning often gives us the feeling that we need to hand over the reins to the students and let them experiment and create for themselves. Personalization feels like it should be a free flow of ideas based off of what the student wants and needs, which means it would be near impossible to plan or create structures for all the students we see each day. Yet, as we start exploring personalized learning with students, I believe we are starting to understand how incredibly vital good procedures, structures, and planning are in order to create an environment that allows students to personalize their learning.

 

Procedures and Structures

Procedures are the routines in the classroom and structures are the organizational elements that need to be understood for there to be a safe and productive environment.  These guiding elements give students stability and create a room where learning can be varied and yet still organized. Procedures and structures are often times focused on at the start of the year, but begin to slip as the year goes on.  Have you re-calibrated your classroom lately?

Kaneland adopted the CHAMPS model to assist in creating a common language about behaviors and expectations for procedures and structures.  Did you take the time to train your students on all elements in CHAMPS? When was the last time you revisited the expectations for behaviors or procedures?  Does it seem to take forever to get students to truly understand and follow through on the expectations? Go slow.  Make sure students have full understanding.  By taking the time to solidify procedures and structures, less time will be lost at the end of the day when students are moving independently. It is one of those situations in the classroom where you need to go slow to go fast.

If you are setting up your classroom for personalization, do your students know and understand:

  • Conversation levels?
  • How to request Help from the teacher or a peer?  What a student can/should do while waiting for help?
  • Expectations of an Activity?  How to move through the task?  Where the materials are to complete the activity?  Where to find a new activity or where to turn in something that has been completed?
  • Movement in the classroom?  When should they be moving around?  When they should select traditional seating versus when alternate seating?
  • What appropriate Participation looks and sounds like? Do they know how to conference with peers? Do they know when it is best to work with a partner or group or when it is best to work independently?
  • The rules and expectations of your room?

 

Planning

Planning is a structure that helps teachers and students gain clarity before a unit begins.  As a new teacher, you were trained on how to create a traditional lesson plan. You knew your objectives, activities, resources, and ways that you were going to differentiate for a variety of learners.  How many of you still use this form? I know at the start of my career I was intentional about my planning. I used that form. My planning began to shift in year two when I purchased the traditional lesson planning book and just jotted down my activities for the unit.  By year five, I was sometimes using my planner and other times would go back afterwards and plug in what we did. As I gained experience I relied a lot less on that planning book.

Personalized learning is a new way of doing things for those that are first year teachers, as well as veteran teachers. We are shifting our standards into “I can” statements to create learning targets that are student friendly.  Do you have lesson plans with these on them? Do you have a map of how your learning targets build together versus live in isolation of one another? When you do a culminating activity or project do you and your students fully understand all the targets that were building blocks?  

It is time to go back to lesson planning.  To create a unit takes time. It can slow you down. This slow down is needed to prepare yourself as a teacher for the clarity it takes to be able to guide students through personalization.  As you are planning for personalization:

  • Start with your end in mind.  
    • What does proficiency look like for your standard? (We will take a deep dive into this next month)
    • What foundational skills do students need to be successful at the end?
    • What are a few different options for students to display what proficiency looks like?
  • Backtrack and scaffold foundational targets.  
    • What information/skills will be new to all of your students?  These ideas/concepts/knowledge often times require a full group instruction, often times referred to as legacy or seminar instruction in personalization.
    • What information/skills will lend themselves to small group instruction? What targeted instruction will you provide? How are you differentiating for a variety of learners and coaching students?
    • What new information/skills can be built as a student team without much teacher assistance?  Where will you strategically use flex grouping to allow students to have academic discourse?
    • How will you allow students the ability to personalize as they are gaining these foundational targets?
  • Create formative assessments.
    • Do you have formative check in points scheduled?
    • Do your formative assessments focus on knowledge and skills?
    • Does your formative assessment actually evaluate the knowledge or skill that is identified in your learning target or standard? (If you have an “I can” statement about finding the capital on a map, does your formative assessment have a map or are you asking students to list the capitals of certain cities?)
  • Identify resources.
    • What materials will you have available to students?
    • Do you have a variety of resources (print, online, community, etc)?
  • Allot time for student planning and reflecting.
    • When will students be able to set goals or create learning plans?
    • How will students learn about the learning targets and see models of what it is like to hit the learning target?
    • Where is reflection imbedded in the daily routine?
  • Plan for a variety of student ability and rate of completion.
    • What are some ways you could modify for those struggling?
    • What can be done for those that move quickly to proficiency?

If you are looking for a new template to do your personalized learning lesson planning on here are two versions from Edina Public Schools:                                Version A                     Version B

 

Wrap Up 

Please remember that personalized learning doesn’t say that you should not help students make academic decisions. Students need structures, guidance, options, and coaching in order to help them grow as learners. Personalized learning allows students to have a voice and choice in how and what they are learning as they become co-creators in their education.  A teacher needs to have the ability to give students clear examples of proficiency, suggest appropriate activities and resources for learning, and a way to provide formative feedback to learners. Personalized learning is not about setting students free to fend for themselves. Thoughtful and thorough planning is crucial for teachers offering personalized learning experiences.

 

*Link to Presentation: Planning for Personalized Learning

 

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