So, what happens when you put 33 kids together with 4 hot ovens, knives, spoons, cheese graters, a whack of baking supplies, and a learning goal? Magic. You get learning happening at lightening quick speeds and engagement like you wouldn't believe.
Over the past two weeks a colleague and I decided we wanted to do some team teaching and have our classes work on a project together. The unique thing about this is that I teach Grade 3 and she teaches Grade 10. Before I go on, if you ever have the opportunity to teach in a K-12 school, take it. There is a huge range of opportunities that are available to students and teachers alike. I have had really positive experiences with teachers wanting to share with one another and work together in my building. It is great when you work in an environment like this...it just calls everyone to be better, all the time. It helps you see other ways of doing things that you may not of thought of.
My colleague and I met before we had our students start any tasks. We asked each other, "What do we really want them to know?" We planned starting with the end in mind and worked back to the beginning. We came up with our goals based on the curriculum and away we went! We had the students learn about Canada's Food Guide prior to meeting and each group of students was given a task to create a game of their choice with questions about the food groups. My class wanted to create a Jeopardy game for the Grade 10s together and the Grade 10s made separate board games for my students. Our classes got together for the first time and it was like watching a well-oiled machine. My colleague and I really became guides...stepping back and letting the students take control of their learning. We were there to answer questions if they needed and there were not many.
The trivia questions were a huge success and we went on to our big final piece of the project. The students needed to cook a muffin recipe that used all four food groups. While they were preparing their recipe, the Grade 10s and 3s recorded what they used to make the muffins and what food group each item belonged to. If there is something you need to know about me, it is that I am an observer. I love watching student's learning in action. This is what I saw:
1. Grade 10 students being incredibly responsible and safe in the kitchens and modeling it for young students. One Grade 10 student said to a Grade 3 students, "When you shred carrots using a grater you need to be safe. I'll show you how to do it and then you try it."
2. Students being respectful and patient with students who really haven't done alot of baking before. One thing that was said to another student was, "You'll get it. Just try again."
3. I saw students working in a classroom on their own , using teachers as facilitators/guides. The students had clear learning objectives and instructions and this made a world of a difference. They didn't need us. We gave them the tools and they paved their own path to the goal.
4. Everyone was smiling, old and young. I think it is great experience for teenagers to work with young students. There is something to be said about helping. I think that inside, every student has a huge desire to help and feel helpful. Everyone is a good at something and it is so powerful for students to learn from other students.
Not only did the students learn something through their collaboration with each other, but I learned alot as an observer. My big take-away was that we need to give more opportunities for students to be leaders for other students. We need to make sure that students feel/see how they can impact the lives of a young person. I think in school our focus is on teachers alot of the time. What can teachers do to help young people see their potential? But maybe we are asking the wrong question. Maybe we need to be asking, "How can we provide more opportunities for students to see themselves as leaders so they can help other students see their potential?
Over the past two weeks a colleague and I decided we wanted to do some team teaching and have our classes work on a project together. The unique thing about this is that I teach Grade 3 and she teaches Grade 10. Before I go on, if you ever have the opportunity to teach in a K-12 school, take it. There is a huge range of opportunities that are available to students and teachers alike. I have had really positive experiences with teachers wanting to share with one another and work together in my building. It is great when you work in an environment like this...it just calls everyone to be better, all the time. It helps you see other ways of doing things that you may not of thought of.
My colleague and I met before we had our students start any tasks. We asked each other, "What do we really want them to know?" We planned starting with the end in mind and worked back to the beginning. We came up with our goals based on the curriculum and away we went! We had the students learn about Canada's Food Guide prior to meeting and each group of students was given a task to create a game of their choice with questions about the food groups. My class wanted to create a Jeopardy game for the Grade 10s together and the Grade 10s made separate board games for my students. Our classes got together for the first time and it was like watching a well-oiled machine. My colleague and I really became guides...stepping back and letting the students take control of their learning. We were there to answer questions if they needed and there were not many.
The trivia questions were a huge success and we went on to our big final piece of the project. The students needed to cook a muffin recipe that used all four food groups. While they were preparing their recipe, the Grade 10s and 3s recorded what they used to make the muffins and what food group each item belonged to. If there is something you need to know about me, it is that I am an observer. I love watching student's learning in action. This is what I saw:
1. Grade 10 students being incredibly responsible and safe in the kitchens and modeling it for young students. One Grade 10 student said to a Grade 3 students, "When you shred carrots using a grater you need to be safe. I'll show you how to do it and then you try it."
2. Students being respectful and patient with students who really haven't done alot of baking before. One thing that was said to another student was, "You'll get it. Just try again."
3. I saw students working in a classroom on their own , using teachers as facilitators/guides. The students had clear learning objectives and instructions and this made a world of a difference. They didn't need us. We gave them the tools and they paved their own path to the goal.
4. Everyone was smiling, old and young. I think it is great experience for teenagers to work with young students. There is something to be said about helping. I think that inside, every student has a huge desire to help and feel helpful. Everyone is a good at something and it is so powerful for students to learn from other students.
Not only did the students learn something through their collaboration with each other, but I learned alot as an observer. My big take-away was that we need to give more opportunities for students to be leaders for other students. We need to make sure that students feel/see how they can impact the lives of a young person. I think in school our focus is on teachers alot of the time. What can teachers do to help young people see their potential? But maybe we are asking the wrong question. Maybe we need to be asking, "How can we provide more opportunities for students to see themselves as leaders so they can help other students see their potential?