Lessons worth applauding!

The secondary English teachers at Meyna School have really taken the professional development workshops I presented to heart.

Here Anil, made some of my instructional strategies his own.

Anil took the little boats I'd brought from Thailand, and rather than using the numbers I'd placed on the back, he put the student's names.

In the classroom, Anil learned to first ask the question, pause, and then pull one of the boats.  This process keeps all the students on the toes.... not knowing who might be called on to answer the question.

"You've got 30 seconds!" 

 Use of the timer, one I brought along from the States, too is a great way to keep the lesson moving and the students engaged.

The "Starter Activity" was a series of true of false statements.  Anil randomly called on students to state whether a statement was true or false.  Student stand, when answering a question.

Rather than just leaving it at asking one student, Anil would randomly call on additional students, to see if they agreed with what the first student had said.

In this case.... three students said the statement was true, before the fourth student answered correctly.... the statement was false.  "Why is it false?"  asked Anil.... again a great extension of the lesson... so that the student now had to give details to support what they'd said.

As soon as Anil passed out this reading assignment, the students, on their own, numbered the paragraphs, and drew a box around the title.  Another instructional strategy straight from my workshop!

New vocabulary.... randomly calling on students to identify key new vocabulary words, paragraph by paragraph.

Writing the definitions of the new words on the board, for the students to copy.

I'm seeing this throughout the English classes, where the teachers have taken what I taught them during the professional development sessons, and have begun incorporating these new strategies into their daily lesson plans.

Tangoes to practice English while having fun!

Tangoes is a challenging puzzle game for adults as well as students.  It can provide an opportunity to practice one's English, while solving the problem.

I introduced the game to Nahidha, Deputy Principal of Meynaa School, and her son. 

It did not take long before the boy was working on his own, solving the puzzle.  Since he seems to prefer speaking English over his first language of Dhivehi, we had a fun time working together to solve some of these rather difficult puzzle combinations.

Checking student work

The joy of teaching..... when student work indicates real learning has taken place.

A couple weeks of demonstration or model lessons by Mr. T



Following the two weeks of professional development workshops I provided the teachers at Meynaa School, the administration asked if I would conduct some model classes.  The idea being for me demonstrate, in a classroom environment, the instructional strategies I'd taught and for the teachers to observe me teaching.



After providing new information through direct instruction, students, in pairs, participate in the "Think-Pair-Share" activity where they reteach each other the lesson I just taught. 

While students are busy teaching each other, I can move around the classroom and check for understanding to see if they got what I taught.



Sometimes, a little proximity by the teacher helps keeps students focused and on task.




As I taught the model lesson, the English teachers (back far left) observed my teaching.  Then after each model lesson, we'd meet and reflect on the lesson.



Let's tell a story..... using Story Cubes!

Here's a fun educational game I brought with me from California.  Story Cubes!  Inside are 12 cubes with figures on each side.

It's one of the educational tools which is kinesthetic, visual and auditory.  Great for kids of any age.

First a student in the group, rolls the cubes.  Here's where the story begins...... with "Once upon a time ......" and the student uses one of the cubes. 

"Once upon a time there was a big tree."  The next student then adds to the story by using a different cube.  Each subsequent student continues the story, using a different cube until all the cubes have been used.  The students might roll the cubes again and start a new story, or continue the one they are on.

In small groups during the primary school workshops, I had the teachers practice telling stories using the cubes.

A fun, creative exercise, with some challenging elements when you are the student who must continue the story using the last..... perhaps difficult cube picture!

Sharing what I've learned

As a mentor teacher with Rialto Unified School District in California, I attended many very productive seminars that taught me dynamic, productive, engaging research based instructional strategies.

Given my mentor position, I spent my days observing the learning going on in classrooms and holding reflective conversations with the teacher immediately afterwards.  The goal .... to help the teachers reflect on their practice so as to improve their teaching.

Through all this, I was able to learn the theory and observe the practice of many highly effective instructional strategies.  While volunteering in Thailand, I've been able to practice these strategies so I have first hand practice using them.

Now that I am retired,  I am able to share all I have learned, observed and practiced,  with the teachers at Meynaa School in the Maldives! 

Thank you Rialto Unified School District!

Teacher teaches 1/3rd of the time and Students teach 2/3rds of the time - Listening and Comprehension Strategies

Mini Power Lessons have the teacher teaching for a short period of time (1/3rd) and then the students teach and reteach each other for 2/3rds of the time.  I teach, then with the timer running..... Student A teaches Student B what I just taught.. followed by Student B, again the timer is running, teaching Student A what was taught.

Students hear the information two times and teach it one time.  This is an excellent way for students to process information.  When checking for understanding while using this strategy, the teacher finds that student comprehension of the lesson is usually 100%.

To model this instructional strategy, I tell students about my life growing up on a farm in Minnesota.  The part of the story the students find most fascinating is that there was no running water on the farm, no bathroom, and no hot water.

When I tell them that all seven family members took a bath only once a week, and that we all bathed in the same water.... my mother first, then my sisters, then me, then my older brothers, and last my dad..... Neeless to say, by the time my dad took his bath, the water was pretty dirty!  The teachers in the workshop could not believe it! 

Here on the island, people take three baths per day!

On stage for English teacher workshop

Today I conducted my first workshop for English teachers at Meynaa School on instructional strategies related to teaching reading comprehension.  The workshop addressed the needs of those students who need extra help with English. 

The instructional strategy I introduced was one where the teacher guides the students through the written text using the three main modalities of visual, auditory and kinesthetic.  So, for example, the teacher firsts has the students number each paragraph in the text.  Next students draw a double box around the title of the text.  The teacher asks questions about the title, to link the text to students' background knowledge.



Now the students are ready to begin reading the text.  Students are asked to underline the "who" or subject of the text; next draw a box around the "what" in the text.  Cirle the word that tells them "where."  A star next to the word that indicates "when."

Once students have identified these words, the teacher can then guide them on how to put the words together to form a summary of the text.



I also introduced "Graphic Organizers" to the English teachers, again explaining that these forms provide a structure for students to organize information.

The workshop went by so quickly..... I forgot to take any pictures!