Finale

      A few months ago on the first day of the semester, I sat in front of my computer for my social studies course feeling extremely nervous and anxious about what was in store for me.  Now, being just a few days away from officially completing the class, I can look back in pure amazement at all I have accomplished in this short time.
       Prior to this course, I had a wealth of experience in small group and one-on-one instruction, but none in whole-class.  I was nervous to teach an entire class, but also so excited to finally have the chance to be a teacher to more than a few students at once.  I learned how to plan and implement direct, inquiry, and cooperative lessons.  I realized how important collaboration is when planning. I learned that being flexible is a necessity. Most importantly, I learned that I CAN do this.  Teaching whole class and receiving the positive and constructive feedback of my classmates and professor helped me better my teaching abilities and build my self-esteem.  I felt comfortable the second I started my first lesson, but making it through my fieldwork week and receiving the support I did built my confidence in extreme ways.  Thanks to this course, I am confident in my teaching.
        Planning the three different lesson types and using them with the second graders also helped me recognize the pros and cons of each, and when they are most appropriate.  For example, a cooperative lesson should not be done before a direct lesson on the topic with young children.  They need an introduction.  Using these lessons demonstrated how critical it is to allow students to apply and create their own knowledge.  Giving them chances to work with minimal support and with a group created meaningful contexts that can never be created with purely direct lessons.  Using cooperative approaches also reinforces the knowledge learned from lectures, etc.
          Thanks to this course and the wealth of resources I have learned about from it, I can honestly say that my social studies classroom will be based around collaboration and experience with a wide range of activities.  Students must be given the chance to work together and build upon their own ideas.  By doing so, they learn to connect knowledge, while also developing social skills.  I will certainly implement a current events lesson weekly.  Students will know that social studies is more than just dates and facts of history.  It encompasses our entire world and its cultures, people, etc. of the past, present, and future.
       Throughout the rest of my blog, you will find reflections on lessons I saw and taught and activities I completed.  I certainly gained a wealth of knowledge and accomplished a lot this past semester!

What I am most thankful for though, are the friendships I developed with my classmates.  I know they will all go on to become amazing teachers!

From Students to Citizens: My Teaching Philosophy

                Throughout my own schooling, social studies was a subject that never received the attention it deserved.  We learned all about history by listening to lectures and then answering the questions at the end of our textbook.  It was dry and, quite frankly, boring.  This negative attitude developed towards the subject due to the teaching methods associated with it lasted with me until I entered my social studies methods course as a twenty-two year old college student.  From the very beginning of this class, I learned that social studies must be taught in a meaningful, integrative, challenging, active, and value-based way.  Teachers must build upon their students’ prior experiences in order to create challenging learning experiences that allow them to “make meaningful connections and expand their experiences and viewpoints”(Sunal, 2011, p. 8).  It is a teacher’s responsibility to carefully select and plan lessons that challenge students and create meaningful contexts.  We must provide appropriate support and take the lead when necessary, but students must be given chances at “leadership in investigating ideas and issues”(Sunal, 2011, p. 8).  Making students active and engaged in a lesson is critical in providing adequate social studies instruction.

            When teaching social studies, an overarching goal should be helping students to develop the skills and traits necessary to be successful in school and life.  According to Sunal (2011), social studies is about more than teaching students about history, current events, and how it all connects to the present; it “is committed to fostering human and civil behaviors and active, responsible participation in the communities in which people live and work”(p. 204).  Due to my agreement with this viewpoint, I am adamant about using cooperative learning in my social studies lessons.  Cooperative learning helps students develop these democratic skills by bringing them together for repeated face-to-face interactions with a diverse range of peers.  By following the PIGS elements of cooperative learning, they learn how to support each other, share ideas, actively listen, and work together to achieve a common goal.  Children learn to “pull their weight” by fulfilling the given responsibilities, especially because cooperative learning makes each group member individually accountable.  They become responsible for not only their own learning, but the rest of their group’s.  Working collaboratively also helps them to develop effective communication skills, methods to resolve conflicts, and appreciation for others.  Not only do they recognize the positives of their members, but they also are able to reflect on what each person did not perform as well on.  Using this approach to learning fosters the growth of students as citizens, while also allowing them to construct their own knowledge through experience in meaningful contexts. 

            As previously stated, social studies should be taught by building on students’ prior experiences.  Due to my agreement with this, I believe in taking a constructivist approach to teaching and learning.  Constructivism argues that we develop knowledge and meaning through interactions between experiences and ideas.  As Sunal (2011) states, “meaningful social studies learning is a process of integrating and building various social studies ideas by adding, modifying, and connecting relationships to ideas.  Making relationships also includes the abilities to explain, predict, and apply social studies information to many events.  Learning social studies depends on the prior knowledge the learner brings to a situation, whether the learner’s attention is focused on the ideas being represented, and the mental and physical actions of learners as they interact with events, people, and objects during instruction”(p. 31). It is critical to follow this approach in the classroom, instead of the traditional strategies that are focused on memorization and recall.  Students shouldn’t just be able to spew out random facts; they should be able to connect ideas and explain relationships.  Constructing one’s own knowledge and developing the skills social studies is meant to teach will enable them to decide “how to be involved with social events in ways that are consistent with their values and culture” (Sunal, 2011, p. 31).   Social studies isn’t just something we need to get through school, therefore it is critical to provide students with opportunities for learning how to build upon prior knowledge and experiences.  Social studies learning can be generalized across all areas of life.

            In order to create powerful, meaning-based learning experiences, I believe that students must be assessed in ways other than the traditional methods.  In my future classrooms, students will be given the opportunity to demonstrate their knowledge by creating a variety of projects.  Students can reenact various parts of history, or even a current event, by creating skits with small groups.  They can write simulated letters, create journals from the viewpoint of important figures, write poetry, build portfolios, or give oral presentations.  While tests are necessary, they will hold a small portion of my assessment techniques.  Allowing students to construct their own knowledge and display it in their own ways enables them to increase their understanding of the topic.  If I am providing a meaningful learning context, it is necessary that they demonstrate their learning through meaningful methods as well.  As students work their way through the various lessons, I will of course check that students are constructing the ideas and skills stated in my objectives.  I would use quality circles as a way to have students evaluate their learning both during and after the lesson.  Students will be encouraged to take an active role in not only constructing their own learning, but helping others to do the same. 

            Overall, I believe that social studies must be connected to the larger picture of life.  Students must be given the opportunity to build upon prior knowledge and generalize it to situations outside of the classroom.  In my future classroom, I will constantly create meaningful learning situations that are most suited to the needs of my students.  I will be fostering the growth of my class as not just students, but citizens. 

 

Preparing for the Future with Mock Interviews

                  Hello again loyal followers! It is finally that time of the semester....finals!  Instead of having your typical paper-and-pencil final, my social studies class demonstrated our knowledge of course content by holding mock interviews.   Three other students and I volunteered to be “administrators” for the interview experience, so we came into class this past Wednesday prepared to lead an interview with our fellow classmates.  In order to prepare for the experience, the four of us wrote personal stories and created interview questions on various topics: direct instruction, inquiry learning, cooperative learning, and the concepts, generalizations, and elements of social studies.  I was given the last topic and prepared my interview as follows:

                Hello.  Welcome to Citizen Elementary!  I’m Miss Perrone and I have been the principal here for the past eight years.  Prior to becoming an administrator, I taught second grade for five years.  During that time, I received my Master’s in Literacy, as well as a Master’s in administration.  I have been dedicated to my students, faculty, and staff, and take pride in the success of this school.  Our goal here is to work together, constantly creating new, engaging ways to teach our students to become global citizens.  Lessons should be meaningful and powerful. During their years here, students not only learn the basic academics, but also develop the life skills and build the foundations they need to be successful in the real world.  We are creating responsible citizens who hold the democratic values and principles that our great nation is built on.  They learn how to work together and respect diversity.  I look for teachers that appreciate a constructivist approach to learning and who set high expectations for their students.  Each member of our community must be committed to helping students become self-directed, lifelong learners who contribute to their society and lead passionate, purposeful lives.  We are not just teaching the basic subjects; we are instilling values that create overall successful citizens. 

Now, it’s time to learn all about you!  Good luck!

Warm-up:    What adjectives come to mind when you think about teaching?

1.       Which type of lesson design would you use to help students construct meaning and learn generalizations?  Why would you use this type? (should reply with inquiry!)

 

2.       Once a generalization (big idea) is formed, it can be used to make predictions of actions and events.  Why is it important to teach students about generalizing and predicting events and actions in their own lives?

3.       There are multiple ways to define social studies.  How would you define this discipline and why is it important for students to learn?

4.     At Citizen Elementary, we believe social studies is a subject area that should be taught in meaningful, value-based ways that allow students to work on social skills while delving into hands-on experiences with social sciences (history).  Give an example of a lesson topic and the format you would use in the classroom to help students learn about the founding of America.

Ending Question:  In three sentences or less, sum up your own personal philosophy. on teaching social studies.

                 Each administrator interviewed our classmates and asked the questions we created.  We assessed each hiring prospect based on their answers, personality, and overall mannerisms throughout the interviews.  I was impressed with many of the answers I received and happy to report that all of my classmates who were asked to define social studies replied with something along the lines of “social studies isn’t just about the past.  It’s about the present and the future, and knowing about our history in order to help us in the future.  It’s also about the people, cultures, and world around us.”  The interviewees also impressed me with their teaching philosophies.  Most of us agree that students must be given the chance to construct their own knowledge and have hands-on, meaningful experiences.  Despite a majority of my classmates receiving high marks on my assessment, the four administrators decided to “hire” Susan and Julia. 

                 Overall, this experience was great to have!  It allowed us to review the course content while getting real-life practice for future job interviews.  We were able to prepare ourselves and practice being in professional situations.  Having this hands-on experience in a setting as comfortable as our class and among our peers was a great first step in building the confidence we need to be successful in future interviews. 

(Pictures, courtesy of Dr. Smirnova, coming soon!)

Also, check out this short video on interview etiquette!

 

 

Current Events in The Modern Classroom

History can be defined as “a chronological study that interprets and gives meaning to events and applies systematic methods to discover the truth”(Sunal, 2011, p. 333). This “truth” is found by interpreting evidence from sources left behind by people, events, and so on.  Learning about history and the way we interpret it is especially important for students because it helps “prepare [them] for ‘responsible citizenship, further learning, and productive employment in our modern economy”(Sunal, 2011, p. 333).  Despite the incredible impact learning about social studies has on students, it is a topic that does not receive the attention it deserves in education.  Most teachers simply lecture out of a textbook, spewing off a stream of facts with no value or meaning to students other than that they have to know it for a test.  Deep connections between people, events, and time periods are never made.  This needs to change! There are so many ways to create meaningful learning experiences in social studies, teachers just need to implement them.  It is time to modernize our teaching and a great way to do this is by incorporating current events into the classroom.

Throughout my years of schooling, current events were never a significant part of the curriculum.  Sure, we'd find a newspaper article every now and then and write a brief summary.  Teachers sometimes asked if we heard about an event on the news.  But other than these rare instances, current events did not have a place in my learning and that, loyal blog followers, is mind blowing.  Even more mind blowing is that only recently, as a college student, I have finally learned that current events can be taught and experienced in a way other than finding an article and summarizing it.  There are so many creative ways to have a current events lesson that makes it meaningful, integrative, value-based, challenging, and active/engaging.  I recently created a current events lesson with two peers, Jessica and Julie, that involved taking a foreign perspective.  This approach has become one of my favorites and it is certainly a way to get students thinking critically and deeply. 

My group and I found the foreign viewpoint approach on a website provided to us by Dr. Smirnova. It had a wealth of ideas for teaching current events, such as: Tech Talk, What’s It to You?, You Be The Editor, Fact or Opinion, Create a Historical Newspaper, etc.  All of the ideas listed get students involved and active in the task and allows them to show their creativity.  We tossed around a few ideas listed on the site, but ultimately chose the foreign viewpoint, which was described as follows:

                                                            Foreign View
"Have students imagine they live in a distant country and their only source of information about America is your newspaper.  What impressions so they get of teen life?  What roles do teens have?  How do they look, act and dress?"

We loved this idea because it would require students to think about our country with a viewpoint different than their own.  It requires deeper thinking and is more of a challenge than simply reading the articles and stating what it is about.  Students must also put aside their knowledge of American values and think about the situation with an unbiased mind.  How would this look to people who do not live in America? 

            After briefly reviewing what a current is and sharing the word cloud Jess made of topics, I modelled the upcoming task.  Upon reading the article “Celebrity A-List Backlash Against Abercrombie and Fitch Continues to Grow,” I shared what a foreign viewpoint of the article could be:  

We believe that some people, especially those in business, think there is a “perfect image” of an American person.  Anyone that doesn’t fit the ideal image of vanity faces discrimination.  But, many celebrities spoke out against Abercrombie & Fitch and are boycotting the company.  This shows that the true American spirit is still alive and diversity of all types is beautiful!

Once I completed the modelling, Julie introduced the task to the class as the following prompt was displayed on the SmartBoard:

Imagine you are a sixth-grade student in a foreign country.   You are social media friends with a student in America, who you message every day. Your friend has just sent you some news articles about current events in America.  What do you think you can learn/infer about American culture from these articles?

                The class was divided into three groups with each group receiving a different article about physical fitness, junk food, and high-speed internet. Students were then given a few minutes to read the articles with their group and discuss what foreigners may think about America if they had read this article.  Each group was then asked to present their responses.  My favorite part of this lesson was the discussion each presentation facilitated.  After hearing about the article on obesity, Susan made a great statement about a viewpoint that not only Americans, but many outsiders most likely have.  She stated how America will tell people that they can’t wear certain clothes if they are above a size ten (A&F article reference), yet a majority of the food provided in this country is junk!  Susan stated how this is hypocritical of our country.  This statement reinforced how powerful social studies lessons can be.  Approaching these articles with a different viewpoint facilitated great conversation and allowed students to make connections to their own lives, etc.  By choosing topics that students can relate to, we engage them and provide an opportunity to experience meaningful, powerful social studies.  Also, working in groups provides more chances to develop social skills.

 

            This lesson was designed for sixth graders.  If we were going to use this foreign view approach in the first grade, I would do it as whole-class instruction to begin.  There would be one article and I would read it aloud to the students as they followed along, pausing every now and then to check for understanding and discuss what was said.  Then, students would be divided into groups and would discuss what they would think if they lived in a foreign country that did not have as much money as America.  I would give details about the “foreign country” so that students had a basis of why the viewpoint would be different.  By thinking aloud with the students in a more specific way than I did in the actual lesson, they will be better able to understand the meaning of the article and create a viewpoint. 

            My group and I also got to experience other groups’ current events lessons.  It is great to see everyone’s own unique take on the topic, yet still see similarities.  One group discussed cubing, and it was extremely interactive and engaging.  The group connected the article they used back to various aspects of our own lives as well, which created a meaningful learning context.  Overall, it is important to carefully plan lessons in order to meet all five of the important elements.  Meeting each one can only make your lesson the best it can be.

           In my future classroom, I will strive to incorporate current events into each week.  I believe it is critical that students understand what is going on in the world and their own backyard.  It will not be a topic that gets pushed to the side week after week.  I will certainly approach the topic with various creative ideas.  One idea that I have thought of and like is creating a current events journal.  Students can find a current event article every week and write about it, whether it be what they think of it, how it makes them feel, etc.  They could even respond with a picture (depending on the grade) or with a poem or song.  Also, students that hear a story on the news can record themselves responding to it and make a video journal. The assignment each week would not consume more than a few minutes of time, and we could schedule days to share our work. 

Check out our presentation!

 Need ideas for incorporating current events into your classroom? Watch this brief video!

Sixth Grade Standards that Relate to Our Lesson

Comprehension and Collaboration:

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.SL.6.1.c
Pose and respond to specific questions with elaboration and detail by making comments that contribute to the topic, text, or issue under discussion.

Presentation of Knowledge and Ideas:

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.SL.6.4
Present claims and findings, sequencing ideas logically and using pertinent descriptions, facts, and details to accentuate main ideas or themes; use appropriate eye contact, adequate volume, and clear pronunciation.

Craft and Structure

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RH.6-8.6
Identify aspects of a text that reveal an author's point of view or purpose (e.g., loaded language, inclusion or avoidance of particular facts).

Lesson Sources:

Current Events. (n.d.). Current Events. Retrieved April 25, 2014, from   http://www.ncwiseowl.org/ss/Current/activities/default.htm

Scott Foresman Social Studies. (2014, January 1). Scott Foresman Social Studies. Retrieved April 25, 2014, from http://www.sfsocialstudies.com/index2.html

Sunal, C. S. (2011). Social studies for the elementary and middle grades: A constructivist approach. (4th ed.). Pearson.

Read closely.Think critically.Be worldly. (2014). Newsela. Retrieved March 25, 2014, from https://www.newsela.com/pages/about-newsela/

**A great resource listed above for current events is the Scott Foresman textbook. You can find a variety of current events activities and also find current events from past years!  Everyone should check it out!

 

 

Researching New Programs

           Hey everyone!  One of our most recent assignments was to work with our fieldwork groups and research Bizworld and the various programs it has to offer.  I was thrilled to get to work with my group on another task because they are truly the BEST group mates I have ever had the experience of working with.  We collaborate extremely well and are able to share our opinions without any worry about members getting upset, etc.
          We were given the specific task of researching the foundation of BizWorld, meaning its history, mission statement, programs offered, social media sites, etc.  We gathered our information from the website itself and were able to create an awesome interview script using the information we found.  A quick overview of the organization is as follows:
           BizWorld was founded in 1997 by Tim Draper, who wanted to inspire entrepreneurship in children.  His organization now includes three innovative programs: BizWorld, BizMovie, and BizWiz.  They are distributed across more than 80 countries for grade levels 3-8 and are available for all age levels, abilities and backgrounds. Bizworld hopes for “Children around the world[to] be prepared for bright futures that support global economic growth and vibrancy. Engaging them in entrepreneurship education will inspire and set the stage for future leaders.” Children of all ethnicities, cultures, socioeconomic background and multiple other backgrounds should be knowledgeable of 21^st century skills and learn to work together in a real world context. They discover their talents, develop critical skills for success, and increase their self-confidence.” All children deserve this chance to foster their talents and build up their arsenal for success.  The organization's mission statement also focuses on providing kids with hands-on experience that help them develop leadership and collaboration skills.  Overall, this organization aims to prepare students for success in life.

           In order to share this information, we were asked to create a video using GoAnimate.  Due to some technical difficulties, my group taught our class simply by reading our script in person, but we recently created the thirty second introduction video we made with GoAnimate!  This program allows you to choose from various background themes, characters, props, and methods of recording your information.  It's an awesome way to grab students' attention and discuss topics in a unique way.  It is simple to use and even offers a tutorial for new users!  Now that we made the introduction, my group is going to record ourselves again in an "interview" about Bizworld.  Stay tuned for the update, but in the meantime...

Check out our GoAnimate!

Also, check out the BizWorld website!

 

NAT Project

          

Opportunities to engage in cooperative learning group work are critical for students of all ages.  According to Sunal (2011), cooperative learning can be defined as “an approach and a set of strategies specifically designed to encourage student cooperation in learning”(p. 204). Rather than simply being placed in groups, students actually have to work together towards a common goal that cannot be reached unless each member of the group does his or her part.   This kind of approach has been proven to help students better learn than traditional competitive and individual learning strategies.   Cooperative learning encourages positive interdependence, individual accountability, group processing, social skills, and face-to-face interaction.  Students learn not just about the topic, but develop their social skills along with “a positive self-image and an improved attitude toward, and acceptance of, classmates”(Sunal, 2011, p. 204). The skills developed during cooperative learning are especially well-suited for the teaching of social studies because these social skills are “essential to democratic attitudes and beliefs”(Sunal, 2011, p.204).  The Native American cooperative learning project assigned to our college class proves that this approach to learning has a positive impact and belongs in classrooms of every grade.    
 This project reinforced the importance of using cooperative learning all throughout schooling, regardless of age.  While I am a college student, I still grow every time I work with a group.  The NAT project allowed me to research a tribe and teach my class, while also allowing me to work with a classmate that I have not worked with as much as some others.  I finished the assignment with no complaints about my group and would love to work with them again.  Projects such as these help us develop more respect for our classmates and the work they put in.
Attached is the link to the presentation my group and I created and taught to our class.  We each contributed information to the slides and gave a successful lesson to our class.  I learned not only about our topic, but also further developed my social and interactive skills. 
Check out our presentation on the Lakota Tribe!
 

Connecting the Clues: Artifact Bags

          This past Wednesday, our class was divided back into our fieldwork groups.  Each group was given an artifact bag by Dr. Smirnova and was told to go through the items in the bags, do some research, and determine what the bag represented.  My group's bag held Russian nesting dolls, an intricately painted lacquer box holding an American flag pin, and a picture of Dr. Smirnova's grandmother.  After some searching and Dr. Smirnova's sharing of some personal stories regarding the items, we determined that our bag represented Dr. Smirnova herself and how she is a member of both the Russian and American cultures.  This activity was great not only for learning about our professor and her culture, but also for helping us in creating our own artifact bags on our lesson plan topics.  Modeling is key in the classroom!
          My fieldwork group had taught the topic of Lewis and Clark and the expansion westward.  Therefore, I decided to take a slightly different approach than my colleagues (who created awesome bags on Sacagawea and Lewis and Clark!) and create a bag with the following clues:

I also chose to show the cover of the book Steam Train, Dream Train and ask my peers what they felt the book could represent. 

         Once we had adequate time to teach and explore my bag, my group was able to come to the conclusion that the artifacts represented the beginning of western settlement, specifically the settlers.  I used the picture of the map and routes to show the progression from Lewis and Clark's journey to the building of the Transcontinental RR.  I included pictures of a steam locomotive and many passengers getting on the train to represent the way this mode of transportation could carry more people to settlements out west.  I also included a piece of RR track as a huge clue to the importance of the RR and where it led during this time.  Steam Train, Dream Train also was chosen because the story shows how passengers fill the train and stock it with supplies, which was also a critical part to developing this mode of transportation. The title also represents the dream many families had of owning their own land out west.  Overall, railroads allowed the West to become settled more quickly and helped the settlers receive supplies. 

         I love this activity because it allows students to have a concrete experience with a part of history!  Instead of just being a name or concept in a textbook, artifact bags bring them to life.  By allowing students to explore and actually touch the clues, you create a meaningful learning situation.  Students can now visualize the word or person much better than simply hearing about it from the text. 

***Here is my presentation that goes along with my artifact bag: https://docs.google.com/a/my.msmc.edu/presentation/d/1zpFB14RvXix80bjApYWEvWUr7PgKQaK0SZE_CbT6D2Q/edit?usp=sharing ***