Rigor at every level

What do you do when kids don't get it?

What do you do when kids get it, and need challenge?

Two questions I'm giving a lot of thought to.

The Secret to Being Observed

Being observed is part and parcel to your first 3-5 years of teaching. In year 4, I have 3 formal observations. I also signed up to help pilot teacher learning walks so I have teachers coming into my room (to give feedback) on another occasion (today, Wednesday, in fact).

Observations are a good thing. They I've you information about your practice. They should also give you a chance to be more reflective- not that you aren't, but let's not kid about the realistic time constraints of teaching.

But there is a secret: act like no one is there. Do the things you'd normally do, and get on with teaching the way you know how. No one wants to see a song and dance. If you are concerned about how effective your lesson might be- so something else (a different one) or rethink what you want to accomplish. Otherwise you create more work for yourself.

Gone 'til November

Around conference time I feel off the map. Yes I was still teaching, but blogging took a back seat. Between conferences, marathon training, an observation, challenge course, and Halloween I simply didn't feel like I had the time. It dropped down the priority list.

Where am I at?
We just finished our unit on Government. Our end tasks were to write a persuasive piece to get someone to vote for a candidate. We used information from CNN, and focused on writing with reasons and examples. The net result? Really impressive writing.

Where are we going?
Next is Geography and American Indians. Typically this comes first, but I moved government forward due tote election (timeliness and relevance). Beyond that I need to get back to blogging more regularly. I'm aiming for a weekly posting set into my Outlook calendar. I've found blogging to be an integral part of thinking lessons through and considering how they went. I need to return to it.

Until Friday.