You came.
You listened.
You asked.
And I promised to do my best to answer every question
that I could to help you have the best conference ever.
So let’s get to them.
Let’s answer all those Conference Questions Answered.
This class tour was filmed in 2013.
My class has looked pretty much the same for many, many years.
And yes I have LOTS and LOTS of stuff.
QR Scan & Learns are a fantastic way to use technology to help promote learning.
I use QR Codes for everything.
And I do mean EVERYTHING.
Check out this post on QR Codes and how I use them to help students LEARN.
Here is a blog post to detail more about how I use QR Codes,
especially QR Scan & Learn.
{And it really goes into more details about QR Codes in general.}
I do not have to use recording sheets during center time.
I am so blessed to say that I am not required to
nor do I feel it is needed to show work, effort, or job completion.
What do I do instead?
During my open choice center time…
{Yes you read that right… OPEN CHOICE with no time limitations or changing signals}
I check off students as they complete each center.
How?
I keep a class list in each basket.
I write the color of the table on each list so they don’t get mixed up.
When a student completes a work center, they must SIT and RAISE THEIR HAND.
Pretty simple.
{Most students do not sit to complete work
The work while standing around a table.
They can sit, but sitting is optional.
And no, standing while working doesn’t bother me in the least.}
I come over to the student who is sitting and has their hand raised to check their work.
If they completed the activity correctly, I check them off.
If they need a little prompting or support, I help them with that.
If they are lost, I make a note on the cross off class list and send them on their way.
Each student is asked to complete 2 work centers a day
for Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday.
The goal is for each student to be completing their work by Thursday
so I can help those who need a little more support.
I can help each student easily because as my worker bees finish their work centers,
they get to go PLAY. By Thursday most of my students are playing.
Which is good…
healthy, and developmentally appropriate.
By Friday… ALL my students have the full center time as play time.
And I take my cross off name sheets, label which standard was covered at that center,
date it, and use that sheet to check my performance standards and if my students could complete them. What am I saying?
I use their performance at centers to assess their standards.
It is natural for my students to show what they know in tasks.
And my data is very accurate.
Two birds, one stone.
This is a hard pill to swallow.
It hurts.
I know it does.
I remember the feeling I had to control rotations and centers too.
Then I tried this and I will not go back.
All my stations, centers, literacy blocks, everything remain OPEN CHOICE.
I give my students to ability to move from station to station,
center to center,
table to table,
without setting a time limit, rotation choice, or anything on them.
There is a management plan and structure.
It isn’t crazy or out of control.
It is the opposite.
It is STUDENT controlled.
I don’t manage their choices.
They manage their choices.
I teach them how to travel and how to complete their activities.
I expect them to do so timely and wisely.
I reward them when they do. I remind them when they need help.
I back up my actions.
Yes, I usually have to help one or two students more than the others.
That is kindergarten.
But that also means I am not overly supporting
the remainder of my students who do not need it.
After all, prek always allows open choice in my state.
Why do I doubt their ability to do open choice now?
And how do I cover so many sight words in a year.
I didn’t know teaching the 220 Dolch sight words was a lot for K.
Our county requires retention of a minimum of 100 sight words for promotion.
We know that 150 is ideal.
So we teach all 220.
In a class of 20, for example,
8 will typically learn all 220 and then move on to Fry lists.
8 more will learn 220 or very close to 200.
2 will teeter between 100 and 150.
and 2 will barely know 100 or less sight words.
How?
Check out this blog post.
And here is a link to those amazing Snap Words!
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