10 A Day Challenge

I don't particular enjoy marking. There, I said it. Maybe it's the sheer volume of words or the repetition of answers. Whatever it is I do often dread sitting down, going through pupils' books, reading and correcting and providing truly meaningful feedback. And, if I'm going to be very honest, I often find myself getting distracted by other things, namely, Twitter, Premiership Fantasy Football and Spotify. This means that I am often falling behind with pupils' exercise books. It usually gets to the point where I will need to put aside three days of a holiday to catch up. This is no fun. Surely there must be another way? Welcome to the 10 A Day Challenge.......

The 'challenge' is to mark 10 books a day, everyday, Monday - Saturday (I try not to work on a Sunday - day of rest and all that). A grand total of 60 books per week. Now, using my rather limited mathematical brain, if i teach 200 pupils (which I do) that means their books will be marked, on average, every 3 weeks. This seems quite reasonable when coupled with the ongoing verbal feedback the pupils get during lessons. Also, the feedback will be more meaningful and constructive as I won't become bored and start to drift off (I hope). Anyhow, I now need to go and consume one of my 10 a day.....

Ps - I drafted this post about a week ago. I then read a blog post by @kenradical re: the new curriculum. Whilst reading I noticed he had written a post entitled '10 A Day - making marking manageable and achievable'. You can read it here. It's actually more succinct than my tentative ramblings but 'great' minds and all that..........

Behaviour Management with ClassDojo

ClassDojo is a brilliant behaviour management tool for educators. If you unaware of what it is and what it can do then you could start by watching this pupil friendly video (I show this to all of my pupils before we start using it): 

ClassDojo works exceptionally well when trying to engage the reluctant learner and also those presenting challenging behaviours. I've been using ClassDojo for months now and absolutely love it. As do my pupils. Here are my top four reasons for recommending this wonderful FREE software:

Customisable behaviours

ClassDojo comes with pre-programmed behaviours which you can use to reward pupils for their positive behaviours and deduct points for making the wrong choices. Here are mine:

Positive Behaviours

Negative Behaviours

Random Name Generator

A great way to embed AfL in you classroom. Not only can you randomly select pupils to answer questions but you can also reward them points for their answers. Also, pupils love watching the avatars changing until it lands on the selected pupil.

Pupil Accounts

Pupils can create their own accounts once they receive their teacher generated codes (very easy to do). This is great as they can track their own progress and see what they need to do to improve. They can also create their own avatars which they seem to love doing regardless of their age!

There's an App for that

ClassDojo has now developed their own iOS and Android apps which are brilliant for awarding points as you circulate the classroom. Also, it keeps pupils on their toes as they hear the sounds after positive or negative points are given.

So, what do all of these points actually amount to? Well, as a department we have invested in some history related prizes which you can see here and here. These are awarded to the top three pupils in each class at the end of each half term. Thereafter the points are reset to zero and the process starts again. 

Overview of Learning Sheets

MKI

Since I began teaching five years ago I have used Overview of Learning Sheets to help pupils (a) understand their learning journey and (b) assess their progress as we move through the Schemes of Learning. I have found these sheets to be invaluable tools when marking pupils' books as they highlight gaps in their understanding. The Overview of Learning sheets (an example of which can be downloaded here) requires the pupils to assess their understanding of key questions by ticking either green (fully understand), amber (partially understand) and red (do not understand) as we are learning about a given topic.  Whilst I appreciate that it would be easy for pupils to tick the green box, regardless of whether or not they have understood the key question being addressed, I find it is useful to question pupils on their self assessment whilst circulating the classroom. If pupils know that they will be be asked to justify why they have ticked a particular box they are more likely to provide an honest reflection. 

For each Overview Sheet there is an overriding question , for example, 'why were the trenches described as hell on earth?". This question is then broken down into smaller questions as I am a firm advocate of Enquiry Driven Learning as I believe that having lessons which are driven by a question not only provides challenge but also engagement from the onset of the lesson. 

MKII (incorporating SOLO) 

As from next term I will be introducing SOLO Taxonomy into my classroom. I won't pay SOLO a diservice by writing a long post about what it is and why it is having such a positive impact on learning. If you would like to know more I suggest reading The Learning Spy's blog or maybe this post by Darren Mead. You could also use the brilliant Hooked website for further information and resources.

With this in mind it feels only right that I create the Overview of Learning Sheet MKII to include SOLO levels of understanding: 

You can download the first example here. As this is a work in progress I would very much appreciate any observations/ feedback....... 

TeachEat

Having just moderated an #addcym session on Twitter this evening, looking at how TeachMeets impact on Teaching and Learning, it only seems fitting that I share how a group of my amazing colleagues have taken the format (called it TeachEat) and used it to improve teaching and learning within our school. So....

What are they?

TeachEat meetings are informal get togethers where colleagues share ideas about teaching and learning.

When do they occur?


Every Wednesday lunchtime for 40 minutes. 

How does it work?

Sometimes we have a focus (plenaries, feedback, questioning) and sometimes it is more open ended. We informally decide the 'agenda' the week before and anyone can share anything they think others will benefit from knowing. The length of presentations depends very much on what we are covering, for example, next week every attendee has two minutes to share a lesson which they are really proud of.

We also have a group on Edmodo (which we covered in a TeachEat session) where we can share additional ideas/ resources. 

Who attends?

Anyone interested in becoming a better educator. So far there are about twelve regular attendees, however, word is spreading and interest is growing. 

What impact have they had?

Quite a substantial one, I would argue. Personally, I have taken lots of great ideas from our TeachEat sessions. Everything from 'effective questioning' to 'brilliant hooks' have been covered and duly embedded into my classroom. Furthermore, the TeachEat sessions have really inspired me to become a better educator - something I am really passionate about as I have previously written about here.

Finally, it is because of these TeachEat meetings that I want to take the next step and organise a TeachMeet for my LA. And thereafter? Who knows.......

Animoto

I've been using Animoto for about five years now, however, after sharing it with some colleagues (who were very positive - as they always are) at a recent TeachEat session it only seems fitting that I write a short post about it.  Also, I can honestly say it is one of my favourite tools for engaging pupils at the start of a lesson. 

So, what is Animoto? In their words 'Animoto is a video creation service (online and mobile) that makes it easy and fun for anyone to create and share extraordinary videos using their own pictures, video clips, words and music'. Easy, fun and extraordinary. I would have to agree with all of those points. Here is an example of a video which I made within 10 minutes:

The only thing that takes any time is actually sourcing the pictures or video clips. Customising the video is very very easy. 

As previously mentioned Animoto videos can be used to introduce a lesson or a topic. Also, they are great to use for revision purposes. Oh, and best of all, Animoto is FREE for educators. Indeed, click here for our free educators account (they last 6 months but the admin team will renew your account if you get in touch with them). 

When using these videos the pupils will often say 'did you really make that, Sir?'. Yes, technically I did....

Five Easy Pieces (or steps to becoming a better educator)

When I was a teenager I had somewhat of an obsession with Jack Nicholson films. I made it my goal to collect and watch all of his films and acquire a Mastermind-esque knowledge of JC's cinematic history. Why? Well, i suppose it can be partly attributed to my family's predisposition for OCD and partly to the fact that he was, and still is, an amazing actor. Anyhow, since the Nicholson phase I have gone through various obsessions, trying as I did to fulfil an insatiable appetite for learning. For the past couple of years I have become increasingly obsessed with becoming the best educator I can possibly be within the boundaries of my own capabilities. To that end I have devised my own five easy pieces...or five six easy steps to becoming a better educator:

1. Engage. With your peers. I ensure, where possible, that I contribute to at least one PLN each week. We have a weekly T&L meeting in school (TeachEat). I also contribute to most weekly #addcym meetings on Twitter. It is all about learning from my peers, sharing ideas and becoming a better educator. 
2. Create. At least one brand new spanking lesson each week. I'm forever tweaking my lessons but I also ensure that at least one lesson a week is something completely new. This is not a case of baby-out-with-the-bathwater but rather keeping myself fresh and becoming a better educator. 
3. Share. At least one lesson per week. I borrow many many ideas from other teachers, it is only right that I give something back.  Also, I think long and hard about the resources I am going to share (usually on TES) and adapt them accordingly. Hopefully, with this, I am becoming a better educator. 
4. Blog. I try and write one new blog post per week. If I'm writing then I am reflecting. If I am reflecting than hopefully I am becoming a better educator. 
5. Consume. I make sure that I read, continuously, about education. I tend to have two or three books on the go at any given time, dipping in and out of them as time allows. I also read lots of brilliant blogs by educators who really inspire me to becoming a better educator.  
6. Listen. Especially to your pupils. I am constantly getting feedback on lessons or SoL. I use this feedback to inform my planning and shape future learning. This, again, is helping me to become a better educator and thus improve the learning experiences of the pupils which I teach. 

Finally, if you've not had the pleasure of watching Five Easy Pieces, then you should, it might not improve you as an educator but it is rather brilliant.......

The Battle of Hastings (Recreated)

Looking for ways to get your pupils really enthused about the Battle of Hastings? Want your pupils to show off their creativity? Need your pupils to enhance their communication skills and their ability to work with others? Then please read on........

A work of art - I think they are horses at the bottom :)

I can't take full creative ownership of this Year 7 lesson on the Battle of Hastings as it was introduced to me by Stacey McCabe at a Dragonfly Inset a few years ago. I can, however, offer my version of the lesson and ultimately how it has helped my pupils to consolidate their understanding of the battle and communicate this understanding to their peers. 

Prior Learning:

Before recreating the battle the pupils spend a few lessons covering the key events by, amongst other things, watching sections of Peter & Dan Snow's Battlefield Britain, acting out the battle and creating a storyboard (homework task). 

Resources:

• You will need a number of tubs containing various small items. I use cotton wool, Play-Doh, pipe cleaner, beads etc. 
• You can find a copy of the PP and peer assessment sheet here: http://tinyurl.com/cmcn4x2 which is all quite self-explanatory.
• You will also need some sort of device to take pictures of the models. I use an iPad as this can be easily connected to my digital projector and the pupils can hold it during the presentations. If we had more than one iPad I would love the pupils to use Skitch or Explain Everything to annotate their work.....

The lesson:

Firstly, pupils are given 10 minutes in their groups to recreate the battle using the items in their tubs. They are able to use their storyboards as a reminder of the key details of the battle.

Secondly, pupils are given five minutes to prepare their presentations. Everyone in the group MUST say something during the presentation. This also gives me time to walk around and take pictures of the models. 

Finally, pupils present their work whilst the rest of the class completes the peer assessment sheets. After the presentations I randomly select pupils to give oral feedback about the presentations. Instant peer feedback reinforces the importance of the task and makes pupils feel great about their work. 

The Impact

This lesson really helps pupils to understand the key points of the battle and, more importantly, develop their communication skills and tap into their creativity. Even more importantly, they love it. I have just finished reading my Year 7 pupil blogs where they summarised what they have been learning about, many pupils wrote about this lesson as one of their highlights. 

I've also done the same lesson with my GCSE pupils for the Battle of Little Big Horn. Their engagement would suggest that you're never too old for Play-Doh........