Trying to get 9th graders (especially boys) to keep up with notes and actually use them is a battle that I knew I was going to have to fight when I found out that I would be teaching Alg. 1 this year. I had already been looking into the idea of doing a sort of interactive notebook and decided that it was worth a shot. Like everything else I do with my kids, I had to take in information from a lot of different places, decide what would work for me, and make it my own. This means that my take on the Interactive Notebook idea is different that what a lot of people do, but so far it is working for me. One major difference is that I decided not to try to include practice work, daily/HW assignments, graded work, etc. Our notebooks are for notes, resources, and informational handouts. I told my kids that we are 'making our own textbook'. One of the reasons I set it up this way is that I want them to use their notebooks as a reference, therefore the information in it needs to be correct. By limiting the content to notes we complete together I am able to get as close to making sure the information in it is correct as possible. Also, we do a lot of activities and daily assignments in my class. If everything went into the notebook it would, quite honestly, just be too many pages and too much pasting. Another is that I decided to use spiral notebooks rather than composition notebooks. I listened to the arguments on both sides, but eventually decided that the spiral notebooks would serve my purposes better than the composition books.
So far I am LOVING these notebooks in Alg. 1. Win #1 - My kids have them every day. Seriously - they bring their notebooks to class every day. We're not talking honors students here. Most of my babies struggled significantly in 8th grade and have been identified as needing extra support to be successful in Alg. 1. These are not the students who are typically able to put their hands on notes from the day before with any level of consistency. The fact that the notebooks are traveling with them to class has been nothing less than amazing to me. Win #2 - My kids use them in class. Yes, you read that right. When we are practicing or working on a class activity their notebooks are out and turned to the page with that information on it. Win #3 - There aren't loose notes in their bookbags, binders, folders, pockets, or any of the other places they like to stash things. It drives me crazy when a kid unzips their bag and out falls 278 random papers from all 7 of their classes and they spend the next 20 minutes trying to put their hands on the 1 page they need from yesterday. Since all our notes are pasted into the notebooks this has become a non-issue (not that the information from their other classes is organized, but at least they can find what they need for my class). Win #4 - My kids like them. I've asked every one of my Alg. 1 classes what they think of the notebooks and they all have responded that the notebooks are helpful and worth the time it takes to make sure everything goes in them correctly. The kids have bought in. This, in my opinion, is the most important thing.
I will admit, that occasionally the cutting and pasting gets a little old. We have had to have multiple discussions about the importance of closing the tops on the glue, that too much glue makes the paper wet and then you can't write on it, and that scissors should not be spun around on your fingers. Overall though, my kids have done really well and at this point I would say that the notebooks are worth the time and effort.
My next post will be pictures of how I set up the notebooks and some of the pages inside them.
Showing posts with label organization. Show all posts
Showing posts with label organization. Show all posts
Monday, August 28, 2017
Tuesday, July 19, 2016
Summer Project and New Classroom Arrangement
I've really enjoyed this summer. Between vacation, helping my sister move, and spending time with family I've barely been home long enough to even start on my summer to-do list. What little time I have been home seems to have been taken up with the never-ending project that I decided was necessary.
I need to totally reconfigure my classroom this year, and I needed a shelf much deeper than a bookshelf to hold graded papers and make-up work for students who have been absent. Unfortunately shelving deep enough to fit my needs wasn't going to be found in the "random extra furniture" location on campus so off to the thrift stores I went. I walked in thinking "I have no idea what I need, but I'll know it when I see it." I had no luck at the first two places, but luckily the third place I walked in had exactly what I was looking for. After calling a friend to make sure I wasn't any crazier than normal (and to talk her into helping me transport my find since it wasn't going to fit into my car -I measured) I paid $30 for a cabinet that, while a little worse for the wear, was exactly the size I needed.
After taking off the doors, taking out the drawers, adding in a plywood shelf where the drawers were, and a coat of "pool" chalk paint this was the result.
Of course then I decided that I couldn't waste the doors so I got the grand idea to turn them into mini-chalkboards. I googled "magnetic chalkboard paint" and the first two blogs I pulled up said it doesn't work. The chemicals in the chalkboard paint counteract the magnetizing properties of the magnetic paint. Basically you can do one or the other, but if you try to do both it doesn't work. So much for my grand idea. Thank goodness one of them gave an alternative. Buy a cheap piece of sheet metal and spray paint it with chalkboard paint. Brilliant. Sheet metal is relatively cheap and I didn't need a lot so I decided to go for it.
The final product turned out great. I now have two magnetic mini chalkboards. One will hold no-name papers (you would think that Sophomores would have learned to write their name on their work but apparently that's not the case) and the other will go over the cabinet with directions on claiming graded work and getting make up work.
With the help of the same friend who helped me transport the cabinet to my garage for its make-over I was able to get it all into my classroom. The final product was EXACTLY what I needed.
There are 3 orange crates that will house all graded work. Each student will have a folder with his/her name on it. As work is graded it gets filed in these folders. It is the students' responsibility to pick up their own work. I tried this last year with half of my classes and it worked great. No more wasting time in class passing back work and no more papers left on my floor from kids who didn't want their work. Perfect! It takes a little bit of time to file the papers, but once you get a system it's not bad at all.
The purple crates (and there will be 3 of them also) will house any handouts/notes/work that needs to be claimed by absent students and the binders above the purple crates have details about exactly what was done in class each day so students know exactly what to look for and what they should turn in.
I've finally admitted that summer is almost over (I got my pre-planning agenda in the mail today so it's official) and I need to get back to work. My classroom is almost done, there are just a few finishing touches that I need to add and it will be ready. Maybe during pre-planning I'll actually get to do some planning.
Here are a few pics of my classroom in its current state. I love the cubicles. They house all my markers, colored pencils, rulers, and classroom supplies. They are easy to access but not visible. Not cheap, but definitely worth it in my opinion. The pink basket on top of the shelf holds tape, a hole punch, and a stapler. These are the things the students are allowed to use. If it's on my desk DON'T TOUCH IT. The blue baskets to the left of the pink one are my turn in baskets. There is one for each class period and that is the ONLY place that work gets turned in I've had these baskets about 5 years and they are worth 10 times their weight in gold.
Yes, my desk and the table in front of it are covered in contact paper and edged with turquoise duct tape. When the top of your desk and table start peeling off you get creative.
This is the back of the room, and no the desks aren't arranged yet. The closet in the back is the only storage built into the classroom, hence the cubicles on the other side of the room that I use to store supplies. In the back by the closet was the best location I could find for my new shelving. It's well inside the room so students getting their work should not cause a traffic jam at the door, it's away from my desk so I won't have students crowding around my desk looking for things, and it's not taking up space I would be using for desks anyway. Hopefully it will work well. I guess we will see in about two weeks.
I need to totally reconfigure my classroom this year, and I needed a shelf much deeper than a bookshelf to hold graded papers and make-up work for students who have been absent. Unfortunately shelving deep enough to fit my needs wasn't going to be found in the "random extra furniture" location on campus so off to the thrift stores I went. I walked in thinking "I have no idea what I need, but I'll know it when I see it." I had no luck at the first two places, but luckily the third place I walked in had exactly what I was looking for. After calling a friend to make sure I wasn't any crazier than normal (and to talk her into helping me transport my find since it wasn't going to fit into my car -I measured) I paid $30 for a cabinet that, while a little worse for the wear, was exactly the size I needed.
After taking off the doors, taking out the drawers, adding in a plywood shelf where the drawers were, and a coat of "pool" chalk paint this was the result.
Of course then I decided that I couldn't waste the doors so I got the grand idea to turn them into mini-chalkboards. I googled "magnetic chalkboard paint" and the first two blogs I pulled up said it doesn't work. The chemicals in the chalkboard paint counteract the magnetizing properties of the magnetic paint. Basically you can do one or the other, but if you try to do both it doesn't work. So much for my grand idea. Thank goodness one of them gave an alternative. Buy a cheap piece of sheet metal and spray paint it with chalkboard paint. Brilliant. Sheet metal is relatively cheap and I didn't need a lot so I decided to go for it.
 |
| Doors from the original cabinet chalk painted in "celery". |
 |
| Sheet metal spray painted with chalkboard paint. |
 |
| Magnetic Mini Chalkboard |
The final product turned out great. I now have two magnetic mini chalkboards. One will hold no-name papers (you would think that Sophomores would have learned to write their name on their work but apparently that's not the case) and the other will go over the cabinet with directions on claiming graded work and getting make up work.
With the help of the same friend who helped me transport the cabinet to my garage for its make-over I was able to get it all into my classroom. The final product was EXACTLY what I needed.
 |
| Finished shelving |
The purple crates (and there will be 3 of them also) will house any handouts/notes/work that needs to be claimed by absent students and the binders above the purple crates have details about exactly what was done in class each day so students know exactly what to look for and what they should turn in.
I've finally admitted that summer is almost over (I got my pre-planning agenda in the mail today so it's official) and I need to get back to work. My classroom is almost done, there are just a few finishing touches that I need to add and it will be ready. Maybe during pre-planning I'll actually get to do some planning.
Here are a few pics of my classroom in its current state. I love the cubicles. They house all my markers, colored pencils, rulers, and classroom supplies. They are easy to access but not visible. Not cheap, but definitely worth it in my opinion. The pink basket on top of the shelf holds tape, a hole punch, and a stapler. These are the things the students are allowed to use. If it's on my desk DON'T TOUCH IT. The blue baskets to the left of the pink one are my turn in baskets. There is one for each class period and that is the ONLY place that work gets turned in I've had these baskets about 5 years and they are worth 10 times their weight in gold.
Yes, my desk and the table in front of it are covered in contact paper and edged with turquoise duct tape. When the top of your desk and table start peeling off you get creative.
This is the back of the room, and no the desks aren't arranged yet. The closet in the back is the only storage built into the classroom, hence the cubicles on the other side of the room that I use to store supplies. In the back by the closet was the best location I could find for my new shelving. It's well inside the room so students getting their work should not cause a traffic jam at the door, it's away from my desk so I won't have students crowding around my desk looking for things, and it's not taking up space I would be using for desks anyway. Hopefully it will work well. I guess we will see in about two weeks.
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