Guest Blog on Project Middle Grade Mayhem

Very excited to announce that I have a guest blog up at Project Middle Grade Mayhem, concerning authentic writing in Middle School classrooms.  Please check it out today!

Also, a big thanks to Eden Unger Bowditch, author of The Atomic Weight of Secrets: The Arrival of the Mysterious Men in Black, for a very kind introduction.

Here's the link:

http://project-middle-grade-mayhem.blogspot.com/2012/12/the-voice-of-mg-teacher.html

Writer's Workshop Conferencing Tips

My class workshop/studio focuses on 3 major "Process" papers, with additional supplementary papers that emphasize full student choice.  The following are tips for conferencing with students during the supplementary paper process, but they have direct applications for conferencing in general with students as well.

The supplemental papers can cover a very wide range of genre, lengths, and subjects.  Frequent conferencing, particularly on the front-end of the paper, is key to student success.  The following is a brief overview of the path students might take through the supplemental paper process.

I.               Topic/Genre Generation

a.     The main issue at the beginning of the process is helping students to face the “white page.”  This can often be a daunting task, especially for students who may not consider themselves writers.  The most important question to ask the students during conferences at this point, is whether their topic or genre interests them.  Failure to attach themselves to a topic of importance will doom the product to failure, as it will neither engage the students, nor make their writing exciting and valid.

b.     “But it’s Hard!”: Allow students to flounder here.  There is no rush to find a topic, and it may take students time to make a decision.  This is the best time to give students a chance to explore their desires, wants, and interests.  Do not confuse a student struggling at this point with a student “not doing,” give them the time they need to find something worth saying.

II.             Outline/Planning

a.     This step will be different according to genre and topic (as well as the student’s level).  Remember to gauge the steps in a way that is authentic and meaningful, not simply arbitrary.

b.     Start Small, Go Big:  Remember that planning is the act of creating a paper’s skeleton.  We will add the muscle and skin later, but now we need a strong foundation.  The outline and planning provides this.  Allow students to create plans that help them to look at the document as a whole, and help them to see all of the moving parts, before we ask them to compose.

c.     No One Way:  Use your knowledge of the individual students to determine what steps you’d like them to consider in their plan.  Make sure that they also have authorship in these plans, and that they understand each step, and why they are doing them. Without the buy-in, the paper will end up being for you, and not for them.

III.           Text Generation

a.     The Simplest Step:  Get out of their way and let them write.  Let them write for extended periods of time, and stress the need for getting everything down, not simply the bare minimum.

b.     The More the Better:  Writing is sculpture, we start with a large chunk of rock, and we will eventually cut away from it and shape it to our desires.  Text generation is building the rock.  There must be enough to cut away from when we’re done, so urge students to write as much as possible.

c.     No Arbitrary Rules:  Don’t tell the students that paragraph must be a certain length.  It isn’t true.  Don’t tell them that a persuasive essay is five paragraphs.  It isn’t true.  Don’t tell them that you must provide a counter-point in every argument.  It isn’t true.  Avoid any type of arbitrary rule that is not indicative of authentic writing, and certainly don’t tell them that there are writing rules, which are in fact designed by you to guarantee certain types of outcomes.

IV.           Drafting/Editing

a.     Once the student has generated the requisite amount of text, they should begin a typed draft.  Students should be cognizant of self-editing during this process, but understand that this is not relegated to getting rid of the red and green “squigglies.” Before they begin a formal, “hard edit” they should print the document, which will force them to look at the paper in a different way.

b.     Don’t Overwhelm:  When editing a printed piece, resist the urge to correct every mistake.  Odds are that this will result in a paper filled with red marks.  Rather, read the piece looking for a pattern of errors.  Once you recognize the pattern, stop reading the document, bring the pattern to the student’s attention, and teach a mini-lesson if necessary.  Ask the student to go forward through the remainder of the document and find other examples of this mistake, and have them corrected when they bring it back to you.  If the student is recognizing the mistake, great!  If not, re-teach accordingly.  Try not to mark for more than three areas of improvement per draft, as this will allow the student to manage the drafting and editing process.

V.             Publishing/Performance

a.     Make sure students know that they are not simply writing for their teacher.  By requiring the students to either publish or perform their work, it forces them to take pride in their endeavors, and to write for themselves. The added pressure of “getting it right” falls on them, and placing the writing in the public arena is a powerful motivator.

Things to Remember:  these  papers are about creating buy-in, and opening up students to a writing life, where self-expression is sought and encouraged.  As teachers, we can provide individualized instruction that is student-directed, and still cover the curriculum requirements we are responsible for.  For formal, class-wide pieces, we can still have process-driven papers, but supplementary papers can allow additional opportunities for individual growth.

Talking about Poetry with Middle School Students

  As my classroom begins to roll over into full workshop for the rest of the year, I know that many of my students will be attempting poetry, many for the first time.  It's important as teachers that we have authentic discussions with students surrounding our expectations.  Middle school students generally come into poetry with similar misconceptions or issues.  Here is a list of the most common:

-       -Poetry has “No Rules”

-       -Poetry must rhyme

-       -Poetry must be short

-       -Poems must be on a serious topic

-       -Poetry should be difficult to understand or vague

-       -Poetry only needs to make sense to the writer

None of these things are true, and helping writers through these assumptions is key to getting them to write poetry well.  There are a few general ways you can attack these conceptions, and create a more meaningful and authentic experience for children.

1.     Poetry is not Anarchy:  As with any other piece of prose, poetry must be created with intent behind it.  This intent can be shown through many different ways, but unless the student is writing poetry that purposefully assaults the conventions of Standard English, poetry should be grammatically and conventionally sound.  This is the most common mistake kids make when starting middle school poetics.  To address this, have he students redraft their work in paragraph form, or ask them to compose in this manner.   This will allow them to make sure that the poem follows standard conventions without confusing them in terms of line breaks.

2.     Poetry is written for Performance:  Poetry has historically been a spoken art form.  As such, the use of commas and periods in the poem must be used with intent, directing the reader as to how the poem should sound when read aloud.  This is also an opportunity to teach mini-lessons around the use of Alliteration, Assonance, Metrics, and Rhyme (although these are higher level concepts).

3.     Poetry is not from Concentrate:  A poem is as long as it “needs” to be.  In some cases, this is predetermined, as in Sonnets or Villanelles.  Other poems have their length determined by subject alone.  In either situation, the economy and functionality of words is paramount.  There should not be any words or phrases that amount to excess baggage, and students should be able to justify why things are included on the page.

4.     Poetry is not all Dirges:  Neruda wrote about fruit and salt, Whitman and Ginsberg wrote about their bodies, and Bukowski wrote about his own depravity.  There are no “set” topics for poetry, the desire to write alone is the key, the need to capture, to “Name the World.”  If the student wants to create a Haiku, make sure they research the form, understand the subtleties it provides, and not focus on the fact that it is only 3 lines. Choosing a topic is important, but not limited to what we would typically define as “momentous” or life altering events.  A good poem adds grace to the mundane, meaning to normalcy.

  This post is as yet unfinished, what would you add to it?  What issues do you see when students attempt poetry?

The Thick of It

I always found popular culture intriguing because it represents what is relevant RIGHT NOW.  I think many students share this sentiment but often find popular culture and current events quite distant from what goes on in their classrooms.  With the recent super storm, Hurricane Sandy, students in Morristown, New Jersey were in the thick of what was on the news and flooding social media networks.  I thought this was a great time to capitalize on their interest with what was going on RIGHT NOW.  When we returned from our seven days off from the storm, I immediately presented the students with “The Hurricane Sandy Relief Project.”  The project has two components, a short term (individual), and a long term (group).  The short term project involves donations, interviews with the those involved, and immediate relief for victims.  Often in our society, donating time and money is seen as the endgame.  I disagree.  While donations are essential and necessary, they do not change an infrastructure in a way that creates long term improvements for the community.  Therefore, students are spending more time on the long term aspect of the project.  Students are required to focus on one issue related to the Hurricane.  Some of their topics include the gas crisis, the electric grid, price gauging, and Morristown preparations, etc.  They are required to research how this issue unfolded during Hurricane Sandy.  Then, they will write a business proposal to the appropriate person with a plan of how to improve on their topic of choice.  They will include a statement of need, a budget, and an overview of their creative suggestion.  Lastly, they have to “sell” their idea to their classmates.  The goal is to eventually send off the best proposals/presentations to local government officials, power companies, or local community members, whomever the relevant recipient may be. 

                We are halfway through the project and students are collaborating effectively with Google Docs, sharing ideas at any time of the day via their computer, phone, or tablets, which allows me to immediately see any changes they make to the document and to keep track of their pacing.  Google Docs is a teacher’s dream as I don't feel the need to hover over them in class, I can keep track of who is doing what from anywhere.  It is a phenomenal monitoring system.  The greatest thing I have noticed is how invested students are in this project.  Because they feel an intimate connection to the Hurricane, they care immensely about the success of their proposals.  I (the teacher) am not the final viewer of their product, in fact, I am the first of many.  Their product will be judged by their classmates and ultimately their community.  The stakes are high for this assignment, students refuse to stay married to their product, they see it as adaptive and ever-changing.  They don’t want to continue with a “bad” idea, as many of them do with their traditional assignments.  Once they start a traditional assignment, they are hesitant to revise and change it, because they know that their perhaps sub-par idea will receive an acceptable grade.  This assignment is about more than grades, thus they are willing to revisit, revise, and reflect.

                From an educational standpoint, this project allowed for genuine, meaningful research, collaboration, and communication.  They are learning a variety of skills such as persuasive and informative writing, public speaking, and prototyping.  They are also beginning to think about important marketing questions; what presentation will impact their classmates the most?  What is the best method to capture the attention of an audience?  How will our classmates connect emotionally to our product or idea? I love that students are beginning to understand the process; discussion, research, discussion, dividing of tasks, writing the proposal, and  bringing the proposal to life with a presentation.  Ordering is difficult for many students, as they are quick to jump around and find it perplexing to follow a pattern.   This project guides them in how thinking should be sequenced for the best possible product.  I look forward to sharing their presentations and proposals in the coming weeks.

               

Portal Flash Learning: Part 2

Portal Flash Learning: Part 2

After the initial class, with it’s focus on “Learning” as its theme, the next two classes focused on “Collaboration” and “Communication”.  The class continued to use the free Flash version of Portal to accomplish this.

For the day on “Collaboration” the students were asked to find a partner and log in to their computers.  The game requires the your left hand operates the keyboard, which controls player movements, while the right hand controls the mouse, which is used to place portals in the testing room.

It is physically impossible to negotiate any of the puzzles without using both hands.

With their partner, students were instructed that only one partner could control one device.  One player could operate the keyboard, and the other could operate the mouse.  This task was also buttressed by three of our class rules, which they were asked to reflect on when they began playing.

The rules were as follows:

1.     My Words Matter

2.     I have a Voice, I will Use it

3.     We can’t do it Alone.

As expected, this caused a great deal of frustration, but eventually, they began to figure out a series of commands that they could use to accomplish their goals.  We ended with another discussion around the parallels between this activity, and the group work they are usually assigned in school.

The third and final day focused on “Communication”.  The students were asked to find a different partner from the previous class, and again log in to the game.  When they began however, I told them that they would not be allowed to talk or write directions to one another.

After 30 minutes of this, I began to allow them to write or draw as a way of communicating, and at the end of class, I allowed them to begin speaking.

Many of the students felt that this was extremely beneficial, as the silence in the room, and the need for forced listening that non-verbal communication created, actually made things easier.

We are currently starting a paper that will begin to address the overall experience and its efficacy.

Here is the prompt:

The Portal Flash Unit

Did you find this unit to be of value? Is it something that should be taught again in the future?

Think about the three themes:

1.     Day One: Learning

2.     Day Two: Collaboration

3.     Day Three: Communication

You will write a paragraph/section on each of these themes.  Each paragraph/section should answer and discuss the following questions:

·      How did the game address this theme?

·      Was it effective in teaching you about the theme as it relates to you?

·      Why should it be taught again next year, or why should it not be taught?

Portal Flash Learning Lesson

Now that the first few setup lessons have been completed, we are moving into some of the experiential learning that will shape the class.  Since the main thrust of the class is to break students out of their typical assumptions about what “school” can be, I wanted to provide an initial experience that was seemingly as far from these assumptions as possible.

The students were asked to log into their computers and run a Google search on “Portal Flash”.  This should bring up multiple accessible links to the game, Portal: The Flash Version.  The Flash version of the popular game Portal was not made by the developer, Valve, and is free on various Flash sites on the internet.  Unlike the console and PC version, the Flash version offers physics based puzzles in a 2-dimensional environment.  The puzzle require “portals” to be placed to allow the player to find a pathway to an exit.  As the game progresses, the puzzles get more difficult, and start introducing variables that affect the player’s ability to easily pass through the game.

When we began playing, I set up a few rules.  Students were told that their goal was to get to the highest level that they could, but that they could not ask me questions about the game, or I would simply reply with a question.  I told them that they could use the tools available to them such as Youtube or Wiki’s, to help them through.

Then I sat back and observed the chaos.

Invariably, even the most accomplished gamers in the class hit a wall, a point where they could no longer breeze through the levels without pausing to think, or ask questions of their classmates.  Here was where the game began to provide gold.

Kids became frustrated, agitated, excited.  They clicked the mouse too hard, or squirmed in their seat as the character fell into a pit or was incinerated on a laser floor.  They were animated, began asking questions of one another, furiously searched Youtube for the best walkthrough videos.

They were engaged in the truest sense of the word, despite the difficulty.

The students continued to play through to the lunch break, and when they returned, we started talking.  I asked the following 4 questions, giving them time to write their responses prior to sharing.

1.     What were the difficulties you faced during the game?

2.     How did you deal with these difficulties?

3.     How was this experience different from your idea of what “school” is supposed to be?

4.     What have you learned about learning, or how you learn best?

The discussion went well, with most of the students explaining the benefit of doing it themselves, and of not being given answers.  They said that there was a sense of accomplishment when they finished a level on their own.  Simply saying these things to my students would have paled in comparison to having them complete the activity first.  They need the experience of learning outside of what they have been conditioned to believe it is.

I was struck by some of the student responses in other avenues.  When a lecture is occurring, or they are being asked to participate in activities that “feel” like “school”, my students are constantly asking to get a drink or go to the bathroom.  During the 80 minute block, over 2 different classes, not a single student asked to leave for any reason.  I’m not surprised by this at all.

We need to think about how we can demonstrate LEARNING in our classrooms, not simply explain to our student’s why it is important.    The more we can begin to understand that learning is something that is happening within these children AT ALL TIMES, the more we need to be cognizant of the worthiness of the tasks we ask them to do.  Is it simply busy work?  Are we just padding a grade book? Justifying our own existence?

Take some time to try the game yourself.  What emotions does it elicit in you?  How do you deal with frustration and failure?  How do you manage a lack of ability or control in something as simple as a two-dimensional computer game?

What can you learn about your student’s educational lives from it?  

Log on, and get uncomfortable.

Fast Food Education Nation

“Education is being strangled persistently by the culture of standardized testing.  The irony is that these tests are not raising standards except in some very particular areas and at the expense of most of what really matters in education.

    To get a perspective on this, compare the processes of quality assurance in education with those in an entirely different field- catering.  In the restaurant business, there are two distinct models of quality assurance.  The first is the fast-food model.  In this model, the quality of the food is guaranteed, because it is all standardized.  The fast-food chains specify exactly what should be on the menu in all their outlets.  They specify what should be on the burgers or nuggets, the oil in which they should be fried, the exact bun in which they should be served, how the fries should be made, what should be in the drinks, and exactly how they should be served.  They specify how the room should be decorated and what the staff should wear.  Everything is standardized.  It's often dreadful and bad for you.  Some forms of fast food are contributing to the massive explosion of obesity and diabetes across the world.  But at least the quality is guaranteed.

   The other model of quality assurance in catering is the Michelin guide.  In this model, the guides establish specific criteria for excellence, but they do not say how the particular restaurants should meet these criteria. They don't say what should be on the menu, what the staff should wear, or how the rooms should be decorated.  All of that is at the discretion of the individual restaurant.  The guides simply establish criteria, and it is up to every restaurant to meet them in whatever way they see best.  They are then judged not to some impersonal standard, but by assessments of experts who know what they are looking for and what a great restaurant is actually like.  The result is that every Michelin restaurant is terrific.  And they are all unique and different from each other.

  One of the essential problems for education is that most countries subject their schools to the fast-food model of quality assurance when they should be adopting the Michelin model instead.  The future in education is not in standardizing but in customizing; not in promoting groupthink and "deindividuation" but in cultivating the real depth and dynamism of human abilities of every sort.”

-From “The Element: How Finding Your Passion Changes Everything”, by Sir Ken Robinson

I’m thinking about the balancing act that teachers are being forced to play these days, especially the good ones.  It seems we’ve moved into an era where we need to go underground.  The attacks on the profession have created a false accountability that is more political than effective.  Good teachers are forced to whisper about the progressive individualization they employ in their classes, or face possible public scrutiny.  Bad teachers embrace the calls for standardization because it is easier to implement, and is in their eyes, more easily defended.

As the stakes become higher, and pressure is mounted, we see a desire to return to more draconian practices in the classrooms.  The need to pass standardized tests as a district, by its very definition, robs the individual of his or her rights as a learner.  We need more analogies like Robinson’s.  We need to get the information out there that our students DESERVE a personalized education. 

It is not frivolity, it is not a pipe dream, it is not a lofty goal to be attained.  It is their RIGHT. 

Everything we do to posture and squirm around this fundamental truth will only delay the inevitable.  We can change the system to make it work for our students, or we can allow outside forces to declare our regressive system a failure, and shape it to their interests, whatever those may be.  As teachers, I believe that we are the protectors of our students; we got into this to make a difference in their lives.  What better difference could we make than to hand them a system that they deserve?

There is a change coming, and it’s up to us to get in front of it before the cynics among us unintentionally damage it beyond repair.  That greasy burger is not good for you, even though it’s cheap and fast.  Try not to choke on it.

Sol Lewitt Mid-Week

Day 2 of Sol Lewitt Project: Calm to Chaos, Collaboration to Cooperation, Communication to Coordination, and of course, creativity. 
My apologies for all of the alliteration but I am an English teacher at heart.  The past two days have been the best I have known as an educator.  It is unbelievable to me what children are capable of when we let them think outside of the box.  I almost feel guilty taking credit for any of their success because they are so self-directed in the tasks of the past two days that it must be their inherent will to collaborate or their amazing middle school teachers.  If you insist, I will take credit for the structures of this assignment, and the risk-taking it entailed.

            Before we began this journey of constructing an 8x40 foot mural which will be displayed at Morristown High School, in the Morris Museum of Art, and then around Morristown, I was apprehensive, nervous, unsure, and anxiety-ridden.  I didn’t know where this journey would take the freshman.  Think about it…here I am asking them to read directions critically (directions that require reading, math, and logic skills), prototype a design, agree on the best design, and execute that design on an 8x8 panel.  After that, I am asking them to blog about their role for the day, which rotates through the experience.  Each day students will either be prototyping/drawing, filming, or analyzing some aspect of the process.  This request is a tall order for students who are used to sitting in their desks and taking notes.

            I don’t want to become overly optimistic, but I can’t help it.  The past two days have shown me students who want to work together, who can overcome adversity, and who can challenge themselves and their classmates with respect and poise.  The first two days of this project saw students  measuring, talking, focused, engaged, and IN THE MOMENT.  What a concept: in the moment, working hard, observing others, and seeing the results of their productivity on something that won’t be thrown out or never referenced again after its due date.  It didn’t end there, students were blogging about the dynamics of their group, the divisions of the class, the leaders, the connections to academia, and their progress as a class.

            I cannot wait to see if the remaining weeks of this project are as epic as I’ve imagined them, I have no reason to believe otherwise. 

Introduction to the Moby Dick Lectio

You may have noticed a new page on the blog in the top right portion of the page.  You may have wondered what the "Moby Dick Lectio" was, but were too scared to stray away from The Educational Arsonist proper.

Fear not!  The "Moby Dick Lectio" is simply an experiment/exercise I will be doing over the course of this school year.  The term Lectio come from Divino Lectio, a process of reading sacred texts, usually the Bible, where the goal is not necessarily aimed at discerning "Truth" from a passage, but simply taking some time to meditate and contemplate around a small sampling of writing.

For my purposes, I dropped the "Divino" part (although some would treat Moby Dick as a sacred text) and will be reading a chapter each day.  The link hosts a document that I will update each day as well, with the goal being to keep a record of my observations and connections to the text in real time.

The basic idea come from a book by Nicholson Baker, "A Box of Matches."  It chronicles the day to day life of a man who spends a small amount of time each morning making a cup of coffee without the use of any modern electrical technology.  He simply lights the burner on his stove with a match, performs this ritual, and thinks about his day before it starts.

I hope that this ritual becomes a calming, meditative part of my day as well, and that my students can also observe that as I ask them to reflect on their reading according to Probst's Reader Response, that I am actively engaged in the same process.

I've invited my good friend and colleague John Madden to jump in when he can, as he represents the biggest Melville fan that I know, and have left a column open for him on the document as well.  If you are interested in reading along, or attempting your own "Lectio", please let me know about it, and I'd be happy to promote or link to it.

Thanks!

Setting The Stage For a Year of Freedom

Please join me in welcoming our newest author to The Educational Arsonist, Danielle Firavanti.  Ms. Firavanti is a Progressive High School Language Arts Teacher in New Jersey.  She will be blogging about her experiences in her classes this year.  Enjoy!

The status quo is out the window for my freshman who are (hopefully) on their way to become the school's best collaborators and thinkers.  Before we learned names, decided on class rules, explored norms, or even assigned seats, we created blogs.  Creating blogs sounds like a pretty simple task, but for students who are are quite unfamiliar with the interface of Google, this was a task that was well worth our time.  Currently, of five freshman English classes (approximately 120 students), we are at about 92% functionality with log-ins, e-mailing, and blogs.  My future self is thanking me for taking this time to set-up technology needs early.  

An influx of questions have been coming my way, most commonly, "What do we need for class?  Where is our supply list?"  In an attempt to create independence, I tell the class they need something with which to write, somewhere to write, and somewhere to keep papers.  Their expressions of confusion blow me away as they are conditioned to hearing what to buy, how to keep their notebook, and how their dividers should be labeled. Instead of rejoicing in the freedoms, they seemed unsure of themselves. I informed them that my students can keep their work however they see fit and that I will not disrupt this flow unless a problem emerges.  My past experience tells me that 90% will not have a problem, so why should they be coddled?  I would rather differentiate the structure for the 10% that may need it.  

I began the year with an exploration of Bruce Mau's "Incomplete Manifesto for Growth"http://www.brucemaudesign.com/4817/112450/work/incomplete-manifesto-for-growth.  Mau provides a list of tips for how to construct new ideas, forge connections, and spark creativity. Some examples include, “Work the Metaphor,” “Don’t clean your desk”, and “Go Deep.”  I was a tad apprehensive about giving this to my students on the first day, but they RAN with it.  I was impressed with their methodology in first selecting 5 important tips, then coming to consensus on 4 tips for the class, and finally blogging about the 1 tip they plan on implementing for themselves.  Most responses have been thorough, reflective, and forward-thinking.  All of this is being done in preparation for The Sol Lewitt Project, an 8x40 foot wall mural that will be completed using interdisciplinary skills.

The first days of school can be seem tedious and daunting, but putting in the logistical forces out of the gate ensures time for creative and innovative endeavors in the future.  I would be lying if I said the students didn’t seem nervous and uncomfortable about not being told what to do, but the gold is what follows this uneasiness.  Students attacked this  “outside-the-box” assignment with intensity and great interest.  They were engaged fully with the text in front of them, and reflected on it afterwards.  As an English teacher, what more can I ask for?  
Although I am sacrificing my progress in what some may call a "traditional curriculum," the students are gaining priceless metacognitive skills which will stay with them throughout the year.  After reflecting on a few more of their posts tonight, it is safe to say I am stunned by their responses.  That's the thing about kids, if you let them, they will pleasantly surprise you.