As a French teacher, I have many students who have no interest in taking French beyond the required Grade 9 course. This video provides some reasons why they may want to consider continuing with French.
John McWhorter
4 reasons to learn a new language
How Can We Help our Students to Succeed?
The three TED talks below all address factors that contribute to student success. All three speakers discuss the idea that mistakes are necessary, and the way that we (and our students) react to mistakes can have a huge impact on student success.
Carol Dweck
The power of believing that you can improve
Angela Lee Duckworth
Grit: The power of passion and perseverance
Diana Laufenberg
How to learn? From mistakes
Carol Dweck
The power of believing that you can improve
Angela Lee Duckworth
Grit: The power of passion and perseverance
Diana Laufenberg
How to learn? From mistakes
Google Forms
Google Forms make it really easy to record observations about students. This videos shows how I use a Google Form when students are presenting math solutions to the class.
Plickers
I've been using Plickers in my math class as a way to check student understanding. Every day, when students enter the classroom, they pick up their Plicker folder (a folder with their Plicker card stapled inside - each folder is numbered so students know which one belongs to them).
At the end of the lesson, I ask "How well do you understand what we learned today?" If they think they understand completely, they use their Plicker card to answer "A". If they think they understand pretty well, but they still have some questions, they answer "B". If they don't understand at all, they answer "C".
I use my iPad to collect the answers, but I don't display the results. This way, I'm the only one who knows what each person answered. Students feel safe to answer honestly, as none of the students will ever know what anyone else said.
If the majority of students answer "B" or "C", I know that I need to spend more time on the concept (and try to find a way to teach it in a different way). If there are only a few students with questions, I can approach them individually and try to help them.
At the end of the lesson, I ask "How well do you understand what we learned today?" If they think they understand completely, they use their Plicker card to answer "A". If they think they understand pretty well, but they still have some questions, they answer "B". If they don't understand at all, they answer "C".
I use my iPad to collect the answers, but I don't display the results. This way, I'm the only one who knows what each person answered. Students feel safe to answer honestly, as none of the students will ever know what anyone else said.
If the majority of students answer "B" or "C", I know that I need to spend more time on the concept (and try to find a way to teach it in a different way). If there are only a few students with questions, I can approach them individually and try to help them.
Google Classroom
Here are some of my favourite features in Google Classroom (and one that isn't a favourite, but it's important to know):
"Schedule" and "Save Draft"
Often, when I create an assignment, I don't want to post it right away (because I've created the assignment a day or two before I want students to work on it, or because I want to talk to students about the assignment before it shows up in their Classroom stream). In this case, I can use the "Schedule" feature (see screenshot below). It allows me to choose the date and time when the new assignment (or announcement) will show up in the Classroom stream. If I'm not sure when I want the assignment to appear in the stream, I can use the "Save draft" feature (below "Schedule").
"Make a copy for each student"
When I'm assigning a task where I want each student (or group of students) to hand in their own copy, I use the "Make a copy for each student" feature (see screenshot below). This feature provides each student with their own copy of the attachment, so they can open it and start working in it. When they're done, they submit their work. This feature also allows me, as the teacher, to check on students' progress BEFORE they submit their work. When I click on the assignment, I have access to all of the students' individual copies, so I can see what how much they've done.
"See history"
For any assignment with a due date, I can view the history to see exactly what time the student submitted the assignment. If the student unsubmitted and resubmitted the assignment, that information is displayed, as well. To see the history, I click on the name of an assignment, and then click on the student's name in the panel on the left side of the screen. On the left side of the screen, I see this window:
"Reuse Post"
This feature is great if you're teaching multiple sections of the same subject. If I've created a post in one Classroom, and I want to use the same announcement or assignment in another Classroom, I just click "Reuse Post" and then select the post I want to reuse.
"Return"
This is the feature that isn't one of my favourites, but it's important to understand how it works. If you have inserted comments into students' work, they will not be able to see the comments until you return their assignments to them (by selecting individual students' names or "All students" and then clicking the "Return" button). Students are also not able to make any corrections to their work until you return it (unless they unsubmit the assignment).
"Schedule" and "Save Draft"
Often, when I create an assignment, I don't want to post it right away (because I've created the assignment a day or two before I want students to work on it, or because I want to talk to students about the assignment before it shows up in their Classroom stream). In this case, I can use the "Schedule" feature (see screenshot below). It allows me to choose the date and time when the new assignment (or announcement) will show up in the Classroom stream. If I'm not sure when I want the assignment to appear in the stream, I can use the "Save draft" feature (below "Schedule").
"Make a copy for each student"
When I'm assigning a task where I want each student (or group of students) to hand in their own copy, I use the "Make a copy for each student" feature (see screenshot below). This feature provides each student with their own copy of the attachment, so they can open it and start working in it. When they're done, they submit their work. This feature also allows me, as the teacher, to check on students' progress BEFORE they submit their work. When I click on the assignment, I have access to all of the students' individual copies, so I can see what how much they've done.
"See history"
For any assignment with a due date, I can view the history to see exactly what time the student submitted the assignment. If the student unsubmitted and resubmitted the assignment, that information is displayed, as well. To see the history, I click on the name of an assignment, and then click on the student's name in the panel on the left side of the screen. On the left side of the screen, I see this window:
When I click "See history", this window appears:
"Reuse Post"
This feature is great if you're teaching multiple sections of the same subject. If I've created a post in one Classroom, and I want to use the same announcement or assignment in another Classroom, I just click "Reuse Post" and then select the post I want to reuse.
"Return"
This is the feature that isn't one of my favourites, but it's important to understand how it works. If you have inserted comments into students' work, they will not be able to see the comments until you return their assignments to them (by selecting individual students' names or "All students" and then clicking the "Return" button). Students are also not able to make any corrections to their work until you return it (unless they unsubmit the assignment).
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