Meet Me in the Middle Chapter 15: Parents as Partners in 21st Century Learning Synthesis and Analysis

This chapter was a great continuation of Chapter 9 in Turning Points 2000. Involving parents in the classwork is important, and the author felt that the internet was one of the greatest tools out there. Teachers can use such programs as MyClass.net, Schoolnotes.com, Funbrain.com, and Blackboard.com. These are great ways for parents to keep up with where their students are in school. However, not all parents are able to use the internet, either because they do not have the access, or do not understand how to use it. For those parents who do not use the internet, using a personal touch always helps. Sending a postcard home talking about where the student is or sending an index card home with a student with a question that you want the parent to answer can be extremely helpful for students and teachers. Something that the author suggested that I would not emphasize was going to the home of some students to get to know the students better. I feel that this would be invading the personal space of the student and wouldn't be a good way to get to know the student.

Turning Points Chaper 9: Involving Parents and Communities Synthesis

I can't count the number of times when I have talked about how important it is to get parents involved in the students classwork. This chapter was a great resource for us because it gave a lot of examples on how to get parents and the community into the class. I really liked when the authors talked about getting parents that were ELL into the classroom by making the environment a safer one for them. I could ask parents of different backgrounds to come in and talk with my students about what they have learned and relate it to what we are learning. I know as a science teacher, I want to get as many professionals as I can to come in and talk with my students. If I can get people to come in and talk about how chemistry is important in their job, students will see how applicable the material we are learning is to the world outside of school.

Boys and Girls Learn Differently

I really enjoyed to first activity we did because it brought students together and working with a task. It was great or seeing who were the leaders and who could follow leaders. However, the results didn't always go as was predicted, I guess that shouldn't be that big of a surprise. Kyle and Sarah had really good topics that related well to our classrooms and the students. I particularity liked the sports activity because we can see the differences between different people. People with different backgrounds are going to have differing views on sports and extracurricular activities. Splitting up classes by sex is an interesting idea and is sure to help students learn the material easier. However, this can also hinder learning of how to deal with the opposite sex, especially with the idea of sex equality that is being fought by women. I also have no idea what I would have done if we were required to wear uniforms. It may have helped students who had trouble getting ready in the morning, but it inhibits individualism and creativity.

Turning Points Chapter 9: Involving Parents and Communities Synthesis

Abstract:
In our education classes, we have heard over and over again how we need to get parents and the community involved in the classroom and with the students lives. This chapter talks about how we can incorporate parents and the community into our schools. In order to bring parents into the school and their childrens' academics, the authors gave four key ideas: 1. Establishing continuity between home and school. 2. Monitoring students' school work and their school "careers". 3. Creating opportunities outside the school for safe, engaging exploration. 4. Improving the school through on-site parental involvement. Using these four steps, teachers and parents can begin to have the discussions necessary for students success in the classroom and the world. Parents of all back grounds will be encouraged to come in and help with their special skills.

Synthesis:
As a whole, we have decided that involving parents into the classroom and into their childrens' academic lives can help students' progress through school. Not only will they do better in their classes, but they're more willing to go to class and find the material more interesting. Yet there were some concerns when it came to parents who had opposite philosophies of the teachers and administration. When we have parents and community members who want the school to change in a different direction, it can be more of a problem than a solution. There is a balancing act that we as teachers and administrators have to walk, because we want parents to become part of their childrens' academic life, but we don't want them to slow it down either.

Becoming a Wiz at Brain Based Learning Response

I really enjoyed this presentation because there was a lot of interesting things going on at every station. It was immediately clear that you guys really understood your book well and you nailed it!

EMOTIONS: Susanna, that was a really interesting game where we learned a lot of really interesting information while you explained some of the less clear ideas. I thought that the use of the game was a good way for us to learn the material because it caught my interest and I was able to really get into the game and the information that was told. It was fun and interesting so I was able to stick with what you were doing.

ENVIRONMENT: The environment is very important for students because it can either help or hinder students learning. Keeping the room filled with natural light and having fun and interesting things around the room can keep students attention. I really liked the idea of having us write quotes on the wall so that we had ownership over a part of the classroom. These quotes were also motivating and helpful with the learning process. I really enjoyed how you decorated the room, you went all out! That was a great way to show us what you meant by creating an environment for certain occasions.

MEMORY: Lyzz, you did an awesome job with the game, there were definitely a lot of really interesting facts that we learned by doing the game. The part that I really enjoyed the most was that you were explaining the concept of memory and the important ideas associated with memory while giving a great test for all of the new information with the game. As I went through the game I started to use the tips and facts on the cards to improve my memory in the game. Not to mentioned my natural competitiveness drove me to really test my skills with memory!

ASSESSMENT: Josh, you did an awesome job with the black jack and relating it to assessment. As we walked around the room, I couldn't wait to get to that station, I never would have imagined that it had to do with portfolios and standardized tests. Though as you explained the connections, it made perfect sense and I really enjoyed how you tied the two concepts together. The idea of a portfolio is something that I want to do more research in to use in my class, it seems like a great way to give students ownership over their work and pride in showing off what they have achieved throughout the year. I especially liked the cards!

Turning Points Chapter 8: A Safe and Healthy School Environment

As we have moved through the semester, I have heard time and time again, how important it is to keep the classroom and the school a safe environment for kids to express the emotions in middle school. Emotions guide students at the middle school level and it is extremely important to make sure that the classroom is a safe place for them. Another important factor in students learning is whether they are healthy and happy. It is important to have students moving around and and doing things that will keep them healthy, including physical and health education and maybe some "controversial" school ideas such as meditation. This is a really interesting chapter and one that I would like to use to help students academically by taking care of their emotional health and their physical help.

Turning Points Chapter 4: Designing Instruction to Improve Teaching and Learing

This chapter seemed like a review of practicum which was definitely a nice review. The WHERETOS and how to teach to the whole class. This is a good reference chapter to use when I'm discussing how to teach to the whole class and it is important to do the backward design. One of the most interesting parts of the chapter was the idea of tracking. I can't count the number of times that we have talked about tracking and why it is bad. Of course I agree with that it is bad because it can quickly segregate the school based on race and social economic status. This was a nice find because we have talked about why tracking is bad, but here is a nice reference in writing.

Meet Me in the Middle Chapter 8: Effective Assessment

This chapter of Meet Me in the Middle is important because it addresses the problems of assessment. Make assessment rigorous yet at the same time motivating. Giving the students some identity with the assessments help the students feel as if they have more ownership over the products and assessments. When students are being assessed, they should have the ability to use different medias and methods. The students should never have to take a boring test or essay. However, the assessments that the students complete should be easy to grade; teachers shouldn't make it any harder for themselves than they have to. Students will enjoy learning and assessments more if they have the ability to decide some of the aspects for that lesson or assessment.

Meet Me in the Middle Chapter 7: Differentiated Instruction- Fitting the Lesson to the Learner

Differentiated instruction is important because it can help students of any level. Taking risks is essential to good teaching because if you don't change your instruction and try different techniques, you aren't helping your students. Sometimes there will be lessons that flop and times when they will exceed. With every success and every failure, teachers should take a mental note of how those techniques excelled or failed and why. Teachers shouldn't be nervous to try different things such as having students read a fiction book and explain the different aspects of science throughout the book. This can be more interesting for students and can increase their literacy in science.

Meet Me in the Middle Chapter 6: Accountability for High Standards

Holding the students and the teachers accountable for high achievement is the focus of chapter 6. The first part of the chapter talked a lot about how we as teachers can help students become more accountable for their own work. By giving the students more accountability, the students will feel as though they need to put effort and thought into what they are making or doing. The teacher also has to take the responsibility for teaching students how to learn instead of what they should know for the test. This is an important skill that many students are missing because of the standardized tests. As teachers, we should support each other to teach how to learn not what to learn. If we work together we can make a huge difference in the world of learning for all of those who walk through our school.

Meet Me in the Middle Chapter 3: Brain Research Applied to Middle School

This chapter was a lot like the book that we read for our book talk, A Whole New Mind. The author did a really good job showing some different ways to help students with their memory. The idea of the triad question really stuck out to me. I like that the students will have to pay attention even through the answer a student is giving because they may be called upon to answer on the answer. This also reinforces the habit of having a discussion about the topic instead of simply spitting out an answer. This is a handy tool that will help with students memory. Another neat idea was the inclusion of emotion in learning. Students, especially at the middle level respond well to emotional cues and tend to learn better when emotion is used in a question.

Student Oriented Curriculum

This book was really good because it brought up a lot of really interesting ideas for teaching a class. I liked all of the ideas for learning who the students are in the classroom. It is really important to bring a group closer together in the beginning of the year so they can work together and create a strong bond. Building the schedule was powerful because it demanded me to look at how I wanted to set up my schedule to benefit my learning the most. One of the strongest things I found about the book was the idea that the students didn't take any tests or quizzes. The students were accountable for their learning and the progress that they made. This type of teaching gives power to the students and builds students learning abilities.

Meet Me in the Middle Chapter 13: Outdoor Activities

This chapter was another chapter that really caught my interest because there are so many ways that i can bring my class outdoors. Science is the study of the environment and how the environment reacts with outside and inside forces. By bringing my class outside and giving examples of what I am teaching, I can relate the material to the students lives. This chapter talked a lot about bringing students on camping trips and some activities that you can use to manage a large group of kids and keep it relevant to school. I really liked the idea of taking the kids out and showing them that school is not only relevant in the classroom, but in the world around us.

Meet Me in the Middle Chapter 4: Active Learning

I was really excited when they started talking about active learning because that is where we lose a lot of students. I love having hands on activities which are easy to incorporate in science. However, active learning can occur in any subject, there were a ton of really good ideas provided by the author. With an abstract subject such as chemistry, using hands on approaches can make a huge difference for students attempting to learn the material. A class should not consist of all lectures, there are times when physical manipulation with the subject can be the best method for explaining to students what you are trying to get across.

"Waiting for Superman" Post

The documentary was really interesting in the way that the director portrays education and what is wrong with education. The emotional struggle for the students in the urban environment was hard to watch because the students had to go through a long and drawn out process. I know that I was waiting and praying that each of the students would get in. I also liked the part about the passing the lemons. I still can't believe that teachers can earn tenure and then never be fired. This seems counter-productive for teachers. We tell our students that we are going to grade and assess them, not to mention keep them responsible for their work. Yet we can earn tenure and then do nothing in class because we know that we can't be fired. This is terrible!

Turn Points Chapter 3: Curriculum and Assessment to Improve Teaching and Learning

Chapter 3 was focused on the standards, backwards design model and assessment and how they interact to make a better learning environment. The backwards design model is important because you can tailor your lesson to the specific standard that you have in mind. Using the standards as a starting point can be good for teachers to incorporate the standards and devising good lessons. Assessment can be easily intertwined into the backwards design model and also the standards. The three of these are important for teachers at any level because it gives a good frame work for putting the essentials into the lessons. I definitely want to use all three ideas, standards, backwards design model and assessment to make my lessons as powerful as I can.

Meet Me in the MIddle Chapter 9: Planning for Block Scheduling

This chapter talked about the advantages to block scheduling. I always thought that this was a better way for classes to be built because it gives the teachers more time to work with students and answer questions before they head off to the next class. The classes do seem too long at times, considering the period is no longer 40 minutes but 80. This can be a long time for some students sit and listen and learn. I can remember days where I wanted to get up out of my chair and move around, which is nice with only 40 minute periods. However, if teachers make sure to help those students by allowing students t move around during the class period, the longer periods won't effect the students as badly. I like the idea of block scheduling because there are a lot of labs and activities that take longer than 40 minutes. This way students can do all of their work in one day instead of spreading out through a couple of days.

Turning Points Chapter 6: Organizing Relationships for Learning

This chapter talked about the structures of middle schools and the teams that make up the middle school. One idea that caught my interest was the idea of breaking large schools up so they are more attuned to the students and not the masses. The size of the teams is also a very important for optimal interaction between the students and the teachers. One method which makes a lot of sense to be, is the idea of looping, so the students will have teachers for a longer period of time than just one year. This can really help the students get to know the teacher and open up to them. When a student is forced to work with new teachers every year, it can really effect how the student interacts with the teachers.

Meet Me in the Middle Chapter 12: Teacher Advisories-A Proposal for Change

In high school, we had advisers that the students would keep all through their four years of high school. I wish that we did this mentor-ship in middle school, because it helps a lot with the emotional aspect of middle school life. Advisers can either do a quick daily check in, or they can even take students out on an excursion. These types of trips allow the students to bond with the teacher and also the other kids in the group. I remember be really good friends with everyone in my group. The longer the teachers have with the students, the more progress can be made for both the teacher and the student. Taking a day and doing some project is a good idea, especially as Freshmen in highschool, because students are given the opportunity to work together and meet new people. I hope that more middle schools pick up on the idea of advisers.

Meet Me in the Middle Chapter 11: Teaming

One of the greatest things about middle school, is the idea of teachers teaming together. This helps the students see the importance in the connections between subject areas. I can't count the number of times I have talked to fellow class mates about the importance of English and mathematics in science. One thing that really stuck out to me at the end of the reading, was the idea of teacher interaction. Teachers need to have conversations about ways in which to help students learn and to make it fair for everyone in the team. One person should not be leading the team, week after week. Instead, take turns talking about what needs to be done and keeping the group on task. To an extent, I can see how groups of teachers from different content areas could help one another tie all of the contents together to enrich the students exposure to the interconnectedness of all the subjects.