From "Management" to "Principled Habits "
Hi everyone! This is Stephanie from 3rd Grade Thoughts.
I am so excited to share Chapter 2: From "Management" to "Principled Habits"-- I am a big-picture person and this chapter really helps set up the overarching principles of a successful Daily 5 in your room. Enjoy and remember to post your thoughts in the comments below!
Posts
79 comments:
Creating a respectful Community in your classroom is very important. I love to see my students encouraging each other, respecting differences, and listening to each other's opinions. It takes several weeks to really establish the rules and procedures that make this work. Things like, looking at the face of the person who is talking, not interrupting when someone is talking....are lessons that most students this age need. Many students need to be shown proper ways to greet people! Handshakes are required as you enter my classroom. Students must greet all adults they meet within the school hallways. I learned a lot from Ron Clark and his academy in Atlanta. The Essential 55 and his newest book, No More Molasses Classes, give great advice to teachers for establishing a sense of community and respect for all. Some suggestions: Students are taught to applaud the accomplishments of others in the classroom, they are taught to give all students "wait time" to respond--if I call on a student to answer and they hesitate, no other student is allowed to raise their hand or yell out answers--they are allowed to encourage that one student, or after a time, they are allowed to give hints that may help that student to find the answer. We develop study buddies and reading partners and we share our accomplishments both in and out of the classroom on a "Bravo" bulletin board.
I would love to know what other teachers do to encourage community in their rooms. I think at the intermediate level, students are experiencing so many rapid physical/emotional changes, that to have a supportive community in school is very beneficial.
There were many things I have tried in my classroom and some things that I really want to work on. I was thinking about condensing the anchor lessons that teach classroom routines and procedures because I felt that my 2nd grade students "should" know this after 2 years of school. I wanted to focus more on building a community of learners. After reading this chapter, I plan to devote a greater deal of time to planning, teaching, practicing, and revisiting/embedding procedure and routines, while working to build a classroom community. I am very comfortable trusting my students. I enjoy working in small groups and my students must be trusted to work independently while I am not monitoring their behavior. I had success using a BINGO literacy center sheet (student chose 4 activitie to complete each day) with a K/1 classroom. It didn't work as well with my 3rd and 4th grade classes. I think the reason was I didn't set a great foundation- I didn't help them build STAMINA. I plan to really work on building a safe and nurturing community of learners that set goals and are motivated to exceed them. I belive this will be key in freeing up my time to meet with and reach all students.
HAPPY INDEPENDENCE DAY!
Wow, did this chapter really hit me in the face in reflection of my teaching last year. Last year was my first year in 6th grade, and coming from 4th grade I had a lot of students that I had 2 years earlier. I had these expectations that they would be able to jump into Daily 5. They had done it in 5th grade as well. At the beginning I did a lot of trust without really working on the procedures and expectations and building the correct stamina. By the middle of the year, I was frustrated, irritated, and not trusting at all. I realized that my expectations in Daily 5 may not look like or sound like the teacher previous. Community - well they have been together for years, I shouldn't need to develop that (WRONG), I have realized that I must rebuild that community in each class, teaching respect for one another. Learning how to react before the big hormones start is definitely a must in 6th grade.
So for next year I really have to build, build, build the expectations and practice them before I let go, but also trust that these students can be responsible enough to take ownership of their learning. Heck isn't that what we want in the long run, students to become life long learners? With that TRUST I have to give Choice (ugh - this is hard, I'm not sure I like this), and stay out of the way.
I once had a cousin of mine who home schools say, you know I get some much more done with my son when we study what he is interested in. We have periods when he is really into reading, and he soars. However, if I try to force reading on him when he doesn't want to read, it is like beating down a brick wall.
Okay - I know we can't do this, but if we allow the students to do the Daily 5 in their own order then just maybe their sense of urgency will be their and their stamina will be stronger. Just a thought. I can't wait to continue this book study and ponder on more things I need to focus on a little better.
Till Chapter 3 - Nicole
I will be teaching at the middle school level (6th-8th grade reading) after 16 years of teaching at the elementary level. This will be a whole new adventure where I will be changing classes every 50 minutes. Establishing classroom community is going to be my first priority along with establishing procedures/rules. Time constraints will be my biggest factor in establishing the Daily 5.
Tammy - You may have to do a Daily 2, I have had to do that before. Daily 5 is very flexible.
I begin my year establishing community using Tribes. My students enjoy the energizers and learn to work together. I found this most helpful to work into Daily 5 in my 100 minute literacy block. We speak about building stamina all the time. Once the kids have learned the routines, usually things go smoothly. My issue this year is that the group coming to me is needy and I worry about meeting all of their needs!
Jen B Niagara Falls, Ontario
My Thoughts:
~I love that the sisters want you to make the program your own. This is so important
~Great guidelines about how to make the Daily 5 work and run smoothly
~How can we trust 'difficult' students?
Please check out my website for my summary of the chapter http://classroomcollective.tumblr.com/post/26491445127/daily5-chapter2
The quote that really stuck with me from this chapter is in the Trust section: "Trust makes the Daily 5 work. [and it shifts] the management of behavior from the teacher to the individual students."
I have always done 2 minute writings in my class, but never done more with it. I like the idea of building stamina - adding minutes a little at a time.
I'm still a bit skeptical about using this in my class this year; I may just ease into it and add a component here and there to guided reading I already use.
I love the big picture given here. It helps me keep in mind why it's so important to invest the time in the beginning of the year. I feel the pressure to get going on the standards because our time really is so short. The sisters have reminded me that taking the time in the beginning will optimize the time spent on standards during the Daily 5.
In answering the questions...
How set up community? I was trained in Tribes and it does work. I also have been using the Bucket Filler idea that I continue on throughout the year. After the beginning of the year I try to do at least one thing a month that specifically is tribes. Maybe I should do more?
Comfortable with trust? I think this area will be my big thing this year. Last year when I started D5 it was Nov so I already really knew the kids. The routines of D5 are perfect to do at the beginning of the year, but I won't really know the kids right away... I guess that's why it's important to take the time to launch it correctly, so there is time to really learn and trust the kids before it's time to give the choices.
Types of Choice? I think I'm good about types of choice. Before D5 I was used to doing the workshop from OCR. I think I'm more "worried" about what choices looks like to any visitors to my classroom. I'm supposed to be observed this coming year and I don't want to be marked down because the kids aren't doing the same thing as each other, that if I'm staying out of the way that I'm not "checking for understanding". I love the idea of Daily 5, but if I'm the only teacher doing it at my school then it might look to my principal that the kids aren't having direct whole class reading instruction from me - especially if they come into my classroom when it's not a focus lesson or I'm working with a small group.
Staying out of the way? I want to believe that I do. I think I got a lot better at this last year. In the past I'm the teacher that is wandering around complimenting the kids on doing a good job. I check for comprehension as I wander. I saw last year how great the kids did (especially with Read to Self) when I just stayed out of the way. They got into their books without the interruptions.
My question is for the people that have done this during an observation - how did it go over? Did you have to explain everything to your principal?
Thanks!
Emily - I think if you can have a Pre-Conference with your principal before hand and explain what is going on, they will be okay with it. That is what I would do. Also, if your observations are like ours in Texas, it is at least 45 minutes, which means at some point that whole group lesson will happen, even if it isn't at the beginning of the observation. Hope this helps.
Nicole
I ALWAYS begin the school year with the best of intentions and an amazing plan. I literally script the first day to help me feel more organized. There are many subtle and not-so-subtle routines, procedures and classroom management techniques that I want to introduce my students to in order to ensure that everything runs smoothly. But...I always run myself and my students into a brick wall at one point! I realize that I tend to throw the routines and procedures at them in one gulp and steamroller them by not allowing ourselves adequate practice and the building of stamina. I'm afraid of being monotonous and I wrongly assume that by grade 5 my students will quickly catch on. I think that the sisters hit the nail on the head in this chapter by outlining and reminding us of the importance of taking our time to introduce and practice not only the Daily 5 but EVERY element of our classroom management plan from day 1. It's crucial that we patiently take the time at the beginning of the year to s-l-o-w-l-y instill these elements until they become routine behaviours.
First of all I teach a combined 5/6 class. I just stumbled across Daily 5 this summer and I'm so excited to implement it.
As far as your observation goes, the first thing I would do up front is tell your principal what you are doing and how exciting it is and why. I have already talked to mine about it and she is excited and wants me to tell the other teachers about it on one of our work days before school starts.
Also, with the combined class I have already done a lot of similar things in math. My principal observed me on a day where I was giving instruction to my 6th graders and my 5th were broken in groups playing a learning game. She was very impressed and working with small groups is a great thing! Hope thisbhelped ease your mind.
This was such a great chapter. I am loving this book. Next year I will be working with teachers as a a Teaching and Learning Coach. In this position I will be an instructional resource to teachers. I am excited to share all the information I am learning from this book.
Chapter 2, to me, is the meat and potatoes of Daily 5. Trust and building community are essential to success in a classroom no matter what structure you use. We all have struggling students who don't want to look "dumb" in front of their peers. Building trust and community are great ways to eliminate those types of feelings. I had an IEP kiddo last year who had severe language issues. Her effort was off the scale, but anything other than memorization was difficult for her. I used popsicle sticks to randomly call on students. When I would draw her name, there was always concern on my part. I would ask her if she felt comfortable answering the problem (she was seldom in my room due to her IEP services). She always did and I always had to help her step-by-step. Every time she finished, my students would clap for her and you would hear random ones congratulating her. Those are treasured moments. I also feel this component takes care of the problem of students reading lower level books. Everyone knows the importance of reading books on their level, so there is no question why one student has a Magic Tree House book and another has Tuck Everlasting. I have always felt that if there is a sense of community and trust in the classroom, there will be less behavior issues, but also less complaints from parents.
In the section on Choice, I loved the opening statement of "children love structure and routine. This is so true. I also loved the equation "purpose + choice = motivation. It's the ability to choose that makes the learning relevant to the students. I feel I have always given them choice in the books they read as well as in other areas, but a new concept to me is letting them choose which component they are working on each session. An aha moment for me was the part where they said, "Students plan their days in our classroom with a few important questions in mind..." I love that they plan their day and not me. Just like adults, "When you have some say in the matter, you are much more motivated to complete the task."
I completely cracked up on the part where the little girl told the principals to take the conversations outside so she could learn. How wonderful that students feel that passionate about what they are doing. The why is so important because it leads to the relevance piece. When I was in high school, I despised history. I remember thinking, "Why do we have to learn about dead people?" If only my teachers had told me "why", I might have remembered some of that important information they were teaching me. lol I love history now because I am aware of the impact it has had on my life today and what it could have on my future.
Finally, I loved their comparison to exercise and soccer with stamina. Once again, it is things like those that make the purpose more relevant to the students therefore increasing their motivation to learn.
I am thoroughly enjoying this book study! Thank you so much for putting it together for us. :)
Antoinette
I forgot to add in that my friend and I are posting reflections, based on this book study, on our blog also. Check us out at 4321teach@blogspot.com. Chapter 2 isn't posted yet, but will be soon. :)
This is a great chapter and a reminder that we must always teach procedures no matter what grade. Students need reminders and expectations each year. They need practice and building stamina is key to success. I look forward to implementing my version of what will work for my group next year.
Chapter 2 highlights the fact that students need to be self-motivated to learn. I think that we too often lead our students along and force-feed them things in an effort to meet state standards and assessment expectations. We are always aware that the BIG TEST is coming and we rush around trying to pour as much as we can into our students' little minds before the big day.
Establishing routines and procedures during those first weeks of school and taking the time to build stamina, trust, and community sets the tone for the whole year. Students want and need to know what to expect each day, so they can relax and learn in a safe and supportive environment.
I know that when someone tells me I have to do something, my first thought is WHY. �� If we want our students to be motivated to learn, we have to tell them why, provide them with the skills and tools to manage the task, and then get out of their way and trust them to do a good job. Daily 5 lays the foundation for this.
Looking forward to Chapter 3 ~ Happy Independence Day!
I agree with Stephanie!
I implemented the Daily 5 at the beginning of the second semester. I think I went through the processes and organizational structure too quickly, thinking that the expectations were so straight forward and easy, that they would catch right on.
Next year, I plan on spending more time building stamina and establishing routines, so that I can give my students more trust and choice, and STAY OUT OF THEIR WAY. lol.
Chapter Two is so essential to implementing the Daily Five correctly. I love reading everyone's comments and thoughts.
I just started blogging. Come and help me get started!
Jillian
LittleMissWhimsical.Blogspot.com
I teach 5th grade LA & SS. Last year was my 1st in 5th after 1 year in 6th and 14 in the primary. I really felt like I floundered around last year learning curriculum and didn't do a good job with any of these things. Previously I have had a very close classroom community with lots of trust, but the shorter time periods (2 hours a day)and trying to get through new curriculum did not foster this. I am super excited to use the Daily 5 (or 3) this year.
For Trust and Community I will pull out my Tribes manual and get that started right away. I think I will try to get at least 3-4 activities in a week the first few weeks and then 2 activities a month after that. I also love the idea Lisa F. shared above about teaching good social skills and I think I will make those repeated mini-lessons with good and poor examples to model. I think I should also get a copy of the books by Ron Clark, thanks again Lisa! One last thing that I Do do daily with my kids is a question of the day for attendance. This can be anything from; "If you were a bird, what bird would you be?" to, "Would you rather drink Pepsi or Coke?" These questions help kids get to know one another and create great classroom discussions.
I think that trust it important in all aspects of teaching...as well as staying out of their way! :) I'm hoping to implement something like the Daily 5 in my new district next year, but we have a scripted basal program, so I'll have to see how to work it in.
Come check out my thoughts!
:) Kaitlyn
Smiles and Sunshine
I think I was initially distrustful of giving me kids so much freedom. So I did it step by step. I would do whole class rotations for a week and then let them have one choice for a week. I would increase the choices until they were picking and choosing on their own. After the winter and spring breaks, we had to remind ourselves how to choose activities, but they caught on much faster then!
Lilian
me teach good
Last year I developed community in my self contained Special Needs class of 6th and 7th graders through Morning Meeting on Mondays along with Silly-Brations ( check out Teacher Tipster on You-Tube). If someone had an accomplishment they shared or did,one of my students would mention a Silly-Bration and we all did it together. The smiles on their faces were priceless! I gave a copy of all the Silly-Brations to my students the first day of school and we even viewed Teacher Tipster on line. Social Skills at any age are a must! Someone from the Child Study team came in weekly for 30minutes...by the end of the year students did improve and they were helping each other out.
I am going to make an Anchor Chart based on pg. 20 regarding important questions student's should keep in mind before they start Daily 5.
Thank you for all the great insight to this book. Happy 4th.
What is Tribes?
I loved chapter two. As has been said before it really made me reflect on all the things that were not working in my classroom last year. I think I'm going to set up a daily four this year, I teach 4th grade and in Texas so my writing will be taught separately through the writing workshop. I love the fact that this is a philosophy and/or a framework rather than a reading program. It really sets teachers up to make it their own and therefore to meet the needs of their students.
I do have one concern as we move on into the chapter three, what do your lesson plans look like? My school has us turn in copies of our plan books each week and we have to have the standards listed and an objective and the activity the students will be engaged in, how do you write it up to meet the expectations of the administration? That will be my biggest challenge but luckily I have a little over a month to figure ti out.
This Chapter really put to rest a few of my insecurities, and really reinforced WHY we do what we do! I am loving how the sisters are really putting all of the pieces together, and showing you step by step what is needed to effectively implement The Daily 5. Even WITHOUT The Daily 5 these are such crucial necessities in the classroom! Thank you Stephanie for the wonderful video you made! I am so so excited for Chapter 3.
msgingrade3.blogspot.com
What I learned from building stamina and trust was that in the beginning the routines of Daily 5 had to be reviewed everyday. A mistake I made this year was thinking that after practicing for 6 weeks and building our stamina for students to be able to work independently for 20 minutes, I didn't go back and review the expected behaviors enough throughout the remainder of the year. I ran into problems with students not being engaged and able to work on their own in the second half of the year. I will certainly be reteaching and practicing the behaviors every so often so students are continuously reminded what is expected of them.
Building a community through shared experiences is a key step in creating a learning environment. I do think this takes all year. My read alouds are part of building community. I find this to be an essential part of my teaching. I need to work on letting the students do more of 'my work. I tried D5 several years ago but things crowded it out before I had built the routine. My goal is to build the routines this year. Thanks to all for your inspiration. Independence in learning is where we are going and today is Independence Day!
mrsdbuechi - For lesson plans, I would detail the goals and skills that you are planning to teach in your whole class focus lessons. Then for the Independent work time, write something like "Students will choose from (insert D5 options) while I conference with (insert specific students/groups).
Debbie - TRIBES is a program for building classroom community. Here is the website that explains it much better than I can. http://tribes.com/about/?doing_wp_cron=1341432312.7551488876342773437500 It was originally created for elementary but has been adapted to middle school and high school. You can see their books on the site above.
Thanks for all of the ideas everyone. I'm still struggling with how to fit this into my very whacko schedule, but hopefully I can wrap my brain around it!
I think building a community is so important at the intermediate level because valuing others and their ideas is a lifelong skill. It's so easy to put others and their ideas down...some think it makes them look cool. By intentionally building a sense of community and reinforcing it throughout the year, students learn to appreciate others and look at things from a new perspective. I saw several mentions of Tribes...I want to know more.
I agree that everyone wants to know "why" they have to do things. I am the same way...If I can see value in what I'm asked to do, I will gladly give it a try.
I really like the idea of students making choices for their activities of the day. When I first read the list of choices, I thought about assiging them each day to groups. After more thought...maybe a student is in the middle of a great piece of writing...a book he/she can't put down. If I choose something different for them, that doesn't fan the flame of learning.
Staying out of the way will be the hardest for me. I've been teaching for 30 years and feel the need to be in constant control...but, it's time to let go:)
Have a wonderful Independence Day! God bless our troops!
Thanks, Julie. I googled but couldn't find anything.
Trust: For most of my students trust is an essential issue in their lives. Whether parents have abandoned them, the "system", or some other relationship, students often arrive jaded in some fashion. Students hear about trust from me immediately, but it isn't until they witness it does it make a difference.
Community: We do not complete a lot of cutesy activities building community. My approach with the inner-city students I teach is to have community emerge as the year develops. It most definitely is reliant upon trust, which is a major component in their lives. As students come to trust their teacher, the community of our classroom takes shape.
Choice: I am still reserved regarding student choice. All sounds well presented in this chapter, but I need to have a more full understanding of Daily 5 to know if this is going to work for me.
I tend to have a structured routine. I can see having choice within that routine. Part of it is that we are regimented as to what needs to be taught when by our administrators. Even so, I can envision student choice in that, but I suspect it will be limited to fewer areas.
Unlike many of the commenters, what I know about D5 stops at the end of chapter 2. :)
Stay Out of the Way: Well, sure; students need time to work with skills. I like the description of students needing time to read without interruption. Building stamina is important. While I can appreciate the gym reference, I use running a marathon analogy with my students. I think that is something they are more likely to relate to.
Thanks. I have mentioned it to her in the past, though I don't think she really knows what it means. :) more time to chat...
Thank you. We do have pre conferences so I'll try. I was asked to present at back to school for an Inservice but I think I'm supposed to be presenting on technology instead of D5. Thanks again. Ill try not to stress.
I love reading everyone's thoughts, practices, and worries! Thank you all for participating!
On observations: After my principal saw Daily 5 and Cafe Reading in action at another school, she asked if I would try this framework in an upper grade classroom. I had my doubts...I implemented Cafe' Reading in January and had MANY observations. The teachers and principals from around the county that visited were very concerned about what Daily 5 (I do a Daily 3) and Cafe' would look like in an upper grade class. (I teach self contained 5th grade). The response was always incredibly positive. Anytime an administrator walked into the reading portion of my classroom time, every student was engaged--every student could tell the administrator what and why they were working on something-no child was off task--I may be teaching whole group, sitting with a small group, or meeting with a single student. I LOVED the way my classroom worked using the Daily 5 and Cafe Reading frameworks. I hope you will too!
Me again - I'm sorry that my replys posted at the end of the thread - I was on my phone and it looked like it was posting directly after the people that had responded to my concerns. I appreciate everything. =)
Building a solid community of learners first isn't a new idea as we all know. I have always spent a great deal of time modeling and practicing routines and getting to know the kids. Releasing control to students will be my most difficult hurdle, as I am very organized and precise. This book study is helping me understand how to do this effectively. Thank you everyone for your insight and ideas!
I am starting my first year of teaching in August, 5th grade, dual language ESL. I will primarily be ELA and science with a bit of math/ss. I have been reading D5 and feel kind of overwhelmed. I keep thinking, 5th graders already know how to read, how does "teach to self" work, when they already read. I keep worrying they are to mature for all this! But I am learning as I read this blog...that is NOT always the case. My vision of D5 is kinda coming into focus. That routines are essential, take it slow, build the stamina and 5th graders need this as much as anyone. I am also studying Whole Brain Teaching and want to integrate them somehow. Finally, I do have a question: Are the D5 routines ONLY for teaching literacy? Or do you use them in general?
I have done reading workshop for about 15 years, and I have done it using the CAFE/Daily 5 ideas for 3 years. I believe that the biggest differences are the students being allowed choice and the teaching/enforcing of expectations. We really work to build our stamina, and constantly review our expectations through the first trimester. The kids become so engrained to it that it is hard for new students to slip in to our classroom routines unnoticed.
We build our community by constantly talking and sharing about books. I have students share every day. We also have a classroom area where we post books we recommend. Using Kidblog in our classroom last year also really strengthened our community.
I agree that the key to using D5 and CAFE are taking the core concepts and making them work for you. Certainly, I don't believe that others rooms should look like mine even though I love how it all works for me!
Jen
Lifelong Learning
The one section that seemed the most …. let’s say, new was creating the sense of urgency. I know I haven’t done the best job of always explaining why we do the lessons or activities that we do. “We believe that when people understand the reason for a task, it establishes motivation and becomes a force that keeps them persevering” (p.22). I can absolutely relate to that! I’m in graduate school, and this past semester I did not see the reason for this one paper I had to write. I thought it was pointless busywork, and therefore, I put very little effort into it (so not like me). Compare that to the lesson and unit plans I also had to write. I worked so much harder on those assignments, because I understood their purpose, and therefore, found them important. So, if as an adult, I fall into that motivational trap, how can I expect more of my 4th graders? I’m definitely going to try to explicitly explain why the students will be doing the D5 activities.
This chapter really helped me understand the foundation of D5 and now I’m even more excited to read more and learn about the practicality side of it! Check out the rest of my thoughts on the chapter at my blog, Bee Teaches
I agree, Chapter 2 gives an excellent overview of D5. I think if students know you trust them to meet classroom expectations, it can become a self-fulfilling prophecy. But the expectations must be clear and consistent from the very beginning. I can't wait to introduce D5 to my 3rd graders this year.
Thank you for taking apart Chapter 2 for us! I had highlighted some of the points you addressed in your discussion for me to think about for my classroom. I've worried that the concept was more for a K-2 classroom; I see now that I can still make it work in my 3rd grade classroom.
Hello again :)
To answer the questions, Community choice and trust, to me I based in the same principle "Love and Logic"
From day one I work very hard to stablish a relationship with my kids to where we can work the best way possible, where they feel safe and part of a safe environment. Also, if we work on the principles of Love and Logic is all about choices and trust. I think Love and Logic is going to help me to implement Daily 5.
Gabby
Hi. I already read the book. I loved this strategy but I have to confess that I feel lost in some areas. I hope that you and your friends help to understand much better. I'm a teacher in Puerto Rico, here this strategy is all new. Since now, I dont know anyone that used. I began to used in past February. But I feel exited to begin in August. I loved your blog. DBY!
NOTE: Sorry for my bad english. I try to do my best. See ya!
Lisa,
I
Which book would you recommend to read first from Ron Clark? Do you think one has more building community ideas than the other? Thanks!
I am going to jump head first into this for the first time this year-- my only concern is that as I spend so much time building community and stamina the first month of school -- our school tends to have a high student turn over. How do other teachers deal with this?
I teach 3rd grade, and I used Daily 5/cafe in my classroom this past year. The kids loved the choice aspect. I had a Smartboard chart that I found on the sisters website, where the kids came in the room and made their choices for the daily 3 (couldn't fit in 5;( They really took to building stamina and WHY they needed to read more. I saw every student grow by leaps and bounds in their reading. The biggest hurdle I had was not redirecting those behaviorally challenged students. I didn't want those students to distract others, and it did cause some power struggles..next year I look forward to really focusing on those students so they can be internally motivated to become better readers rather than be dependent on me to control their behavior, :-)
Just read redheadteacher 24's post and I could not agree more. I moved to 4th Grade two years ago. Year one is always learning year, year two I focused on improving writing instruction. I had a fantastic class and they made amazing progress. However, I had 3-4 children with some very challenging behaviors. I felt I was constantly in the role of policeman and that was unfair, unpleasant for the other 26 children who sincerely wanted to work. We also had the added distraction of implementing a pilot program with 1:1 iPads in the classroom.
Reading "the sisters" has really helped me to realize I need to return to my kindergarten roots and explicitly teach routines for the first few weeks. I'm currently working on scope and sequence for our grade level ELA block and I'm feeling so inspired by many of the ideas I found by following links-to-blogs on Pinterest. Feel free to follow me. Specifically, one for classroom and another for anchor charts. So many great ideas for anchor charts to teach mini-lessons on comprehension.
Good Luck Everyone!
I will be a first year teacher teaching 2nd grade this coming school year. I am very excited to use the Daily 5 in my classroom, but am worried about how the team of teachers I am working with will react.. it seems that I will be the only teacher in the school using Daily 5. Is this acceptable for a first year teacher? My principal told me that "she chose me because I had something unique to offer to the school and that I should get in there and do what I was born to do and teach in the best way possible for my students. Not to try to be like everyone else." To me, this is the go ahead to use the Daily 5 and doing something different with my literacy program.
For the teachers who have used Daily 5 in a lower elementary class, how have you taught students how to make their choices? I am concerned that I will constantly have to go behind students to make sure that they aren't doing the same thing over and over, or that they aren't doing partner reading just so they can be with a buddy. How can I teach this procedure so that they will make good choices on their own?
Also, as for stamina.. I really enjoyed this section because it fits perfectly with my teaching philsophy. I will always meet a child where they are at so that they can be successful in their own way. I would love to hear how other teachers help their students build stamina for reading.
What a great chapter! I am loving this book study!
Ashley (Mrs. P)
www.secondgradeparadise.blogspot.com
I think one of the best things about being part of a book club like this is finding so many similarities between each of us. So many times the things I do in the classroom, whether done well or not, I feel like I am kind of alone in them. I was frustrated with myself last year for not building the procedures, community and trust that is so important. I am thankful to see that I am not the only one. I want the hum of learning to embody my classroom and that will only come from really digging deep into building community, trust and procedures.
This chapter is a big one! Management of anything is essential to success.
Choice, community, and stamina are all big concept ideas.
Check out our blog post to read more of our thoughts!
http://4321teach.blogspot.com/2012/07/daily-5-book-study-chapter-2-thank-you.html
Antoinette and Emily
4th grade regular ed teacher here reading the Daily 5 book for the first time. I'm trying not the read the whole book in one sitting, but that's hard. Chp. 2 reiterated points that my principal drives home every year. We must spend those first several weeks teaching routines and expectations. Yes, it takes up time, but it also gets them prepared for hard work the rest of the year. If we spend time on the front end of the year building those expectations, the rest of the year should be more smooth. Daily 5 is no different as far as routines. At this point all my questions are connected to things I think I will read in the upcoming weeks. My principal and I have already talked about implementing this in my classroom and she is on board. Another teacher in my building will be doing this in her classroom as well. We are pioneers with Daily 5 in our building!
This chapter really got me thinking about how I want to build my classroom community this year. Thanks to all of you that posted different things you do in your room. I can attest to how very important using the first few weeks building a respectful community is. The year before last, I taught third grade and I really taught being respectful and working on establishing our routines the first month of school. It worked!!! We had a new student in the middle of the year, and he wasn't the greatest student. My kids quickly let him know in no uncertain terms that they didn't act like that in Mrs. Hicks' class! He quickly got on board. :-) However, this last year I taught first and while I was working on setting up my classroom I became very sick. I was in the hospital for 11 days and I missed the first 2 1/2 weeks of school. It was awful!!!! I didn't get the chance to really build the sense of community that I had established the year before. Let's just say, I couldn't wait for summer to get here so that I could have a do over. I did try very hard to find that great community that we had when I taught third grade, but it never did click. I am going back to third grade this year, and I am super excited to introduce Daily 5 and establish the community I know students can have. Plus, this is an area that is a major part of our teacher evaluation now!!
I love how D5 is structured to allow students to have responsibility in their own learning. I really appreciate how clear the guidelines and instructions in the book were to help set up D5 successfully in the classroom. This year, my reading/writing instruction has some interruptions (not as cohesive as other years), so I am looking forward to adapting D5 to my schedule to allow my students to benefit from this program. As always, the most important part of making this work for me (whether I can do D5 or just D3) are the routines and expectations we practice as a class and put in place from Day 1.
I am teaching 4th grade science and social studies and want to have something similar to Daily 5 in my class but I am not quite sure what it would look like. Up until now I have always taught a self contained class. Any suggestions?
Mellissa,
Essential 55 explains Ron Clark's 55 rules, how they work in a classroom, why they are there and how that helps build a classroom that supports each other and works together.
The End of Molasses Classes focuses on how he built the Ron Clark Academy--and the expectations, motivations, and planning that goes into the entire school community--from parents to teachers to administration. This book contains great recommendations for teachers, principals, and parents that can be accomplished in a public school system.
Either book will give you great ideas. I would start with the Essential 55 though, if you are building a community in the classroom. I cut his 55 rules down to 30--and had a lot of fun with them.
I hope that helped!
This is my third time to read this book, and I learn new things every time I read it. When I first read it three years ago, I tried to implement it in my class. I was the only person in the world I knew who was doing it, and I felt like I was stranded on a deserted island, all alone. Last year my school did a book study with plans to implement D5 schoolwide this year. I am excited to be a part of that community of teachers. Because of these experiences, I understand how community in the classroom can make or break a student's ability to learn.
I also learned more about the sense of urgency, and helping the students to take charge of their learning. I have heard for years about the teacher being more of a facilitator, but have never really known what that looked like in action. I will make an anchor chart for how to plan their day, as well as putting the why on top of the anchor charts as we discuss how to do the different parts of D5.
I think the hardest parts for me are really trusting the students and staying out of their way! I know that this is essential for Daily 5 to really work the right way, so it is definitely something I am working on.
I LOVE the idea of incorporating the stamina graphing into math!
WOW! So much wisdom! this is my second time reading the book and I hope to implement this year. Still curious about the student choice and how to "follow up" with accountability pieces.
I did parts of D5 the last two years in 4th grade. One of the biggest freedoms I felt was when I finally released my students, giving them the trust they had earned and allowing them the choice of what to work on during rotations. When I finally got out of the way, they truly began to thrive and really grow as readers. This year, I will focus a great deal of really building up the procedures and practicing over and over again until they have it - and then continue to review again frequently throughout the year. I have already gained a wide variety of ideas through reading the book again this summer and reading through all the comments here as well. Thanks to those who are posting their thoughts and sharing their wisdom here!
It is so comforting to read the posts of teachers who have tried the Daily 5 before and ran into some of the same behavior problems I did. Reflecting on my teaching, I don't think I spend enough time on procedures and practicing reading stamina.
To encourage community in my class this year, I plan to focus on the sharing of great books and I was also thinking about implementing a few of Ron Clark's ideas from Essential 55, if not all :)
Speaking of routines and procedures, has anyone read Doug Lemov's Teach Like a Champion? I loved it because it has amazing teaching practices such as 100%, No Opt Out and Do it Again that I plan on using when I teach my procedures this year. Tons of ideas that apply to other areas as well. I recommend it!
http://teachmomrun.blogspot.com
I have tried to implement cafe in the past and ended up abandoning it for various reasons. However, I'm very hopeful that this year it will be a success. Our district already has a "read to self" component in 100 Book Challenge and the students have been a part of this since kindergarten. We are all involved in small guided reading groups so the students are used to the teacher working with students while they are independent. And in my particular school, we are being trained in the Leader in Me program which focuses on community building. It's based on the 7 habits of highly effective people. I feel all the components are there for me this year and I just need to put them all together!!! Wish me luck!
My biggest concern in this chapter is building a sense of community. Although I know what a difference it makes, as a first year teacher, the idea of building my own community - and not stepping into one that has been pre-made by my mentor teacher - concerns me. I read the Essential 55 a year or so ago and honestly thought Ron Clark was kind of a pompous jerk. But I'll never forget his rule about not pushing your plate back and pre-bussing the table at a restaurant. I need to reread the book to see if I can get anything out of it now. I also want to look into the tribes program many of you mentioned.
I just want to reiterate again how glad I am to have found this book study. I have only worked in a fifth grade classroom as a special education aide and mostly only in science and math. Getting a job as a fifth grade language arts teacher has been a little overwhelming, but this is really helping me figure out how I want to run my classroom!!
Developing trust makes sense, but I keep picturing students from my past that would have been difficult to trust. Hopefully I can utilize this program to develop trust with all of my students. I do agree that the choice opportunity will be advantageous for most students. I like the idea of establishing a community and having them support one another. I’m anxious to learn more about establishing a sense of urgency. I think it might be difficult to do. Stamina for most 5th graders should be much longer than it was for those kindergarteners, but beginning in August, it would be good to develop it after not reading as much over the summer.
This chapter reminded me why I believe creating a community in the classroom is so critical for success in the classroom. So many things have cut into our teaching time, but I have held on to our class meeting time. We have a quick greeting, share some news, and if time a game. We learn to share, laugh and take risks together (modeled after Responsive Classroom). It only takes about 10 minutes, but sets the tone and keeps us connected as a class. It also is a great opportunity to teach social skills or reinforce if we need to review a behavior or expectation. This year I am thinking about how to integrate it into the beginning of my first mini-lesson, somehow sharing as a community of readers.
I think creating a classroom community is such an important part of going back to school! It's so important to get to know your students and to let them get to know you! I have a heart mapping freebie that I use at the beginning of the year as a getting to know you activity and all year long for writing ideas! Pick up a freebie for building stamina at home while you're there! You can go to this post to download your own freebies and see my heart map!
Jackie
Third Grade's A Charm
I am really enjoying this book, with each word I get even more excited to return to the classroom this fall.
Building trust in the classroom is so important, and often scares me just a bit. It is sometimes dauntig to think about how to make important, meaningful connections with each new student. I am really looking forward to this challenging and rewarding time of the year.
I also enjoyed reading the importance of giving children time to read, often our reading time is filled with so many other things that children are not reading.
I am going to say it again, I am really excited for the fall!
I teach 4th grade and for me, the hardest part of my 2 1/2 Reading/Writing/ELA block was the routine. I could never find a consistent schedule for my students to rely on. I feel like Daily 5 is going to give me that routine. It will allow me to continue with the workshop model imbedded into America's Choice (which my school follows) but it breaks them time into more manageable chunks for 4th graders. I also love the concept of the students having free choice of their activities. For the students I teach, that little bit of control within the day will help them to learn to take more responsibility for their learning.
I teach 4th grade and for me, the hardest part of my 2 1/2 Reading/Writing/ELA block was the routine. I could never find a consistent schedule for my students to rely on. I feel like Daily 5 is going to give me that routine. It will allow me to continue with the workshop model imbedded into America's Choice (which my school follows) but it breaks them time into more manageable chunks for 4th graders. I also love the concept of the students having free choice of their activities. For the students I teach, that little bit of control within the day will help them to learn to take more responsibility for their learning.
This will be my first year in 4th grade,as I'm looping with my students from last year. I'm very excited and nervous to be implementing Daily 5/CAFE into my classroom for the first time this year as I'm the only teacher at my school that will be doing the program. With the group of students that I have, it's going to be imperative that I focus on the procedures, routines and make those meaningful connections so that the students will want to participate instead of doing their own thing. I'm hoping with the choice board, this will help.
I am also a 4th grade regular ed. teacher. My strength as a teacher has always been in establishing a community built upon respect. So, that would be the easiest part for me. I simply lay down a lot of rules about what is acceptable and unacceptable with interacting with one another. I also lead by example! I have used class meetings, but not on a regular basis. Also like a prior post I use my read alouds to help build community. Two of my favorites are - Joey Pigza swallowed a Key by Jack Gantos and Thank You Mr. Falker by Patricia Polacco.
What I am excited to implement is the sense of urgency and stamina. I have never built stamina, but know that it is the reason so many of my students struggle with reading. I am excited to work on building this with my students. I have recently started running and wanted to run a 5k. I plan on using that experience to explain the concept. Also I have never explained why my students had to complete a specific reading assignmnent. Possibly because I didn't really have a good reason.
I am excited to implement this framework, but I am worried and even a little overwhelmed because I am the only one in my building using it. I don't know if any one else in my building has even heard of it. Luckily I do have a very supportive principal.
I have implemented some concepts of the D5 program that made positive impacts in my 3rd grade classroom. Stamina. The students love that word and use it frequently. After recess I didn't even need to remind them to get reading, they just did it quietly with everyone on task! Building stamina at the beginning of the year is also important because our state test is in October and by then they know the routine of staying in their seat, not bothering others, etc. The other major thing for me was staying out of the way. Students do get dependent on your constant reinforcement if you make that your standard. I have read the D5 book twice and am really enjoying this book study for summer.
This was a really great chapter. I don't know which I'll have a harder time with--trust or staying out of their way. I trust my students but I need to make sure that they are doing what they are supposed to be doing. In the past, this has not always been the case. I guess that's where the teaching of procedures is so vital. If this is done well, then I won't have to be constantly checking on them and can meet with small groups.
I love the scenario the Sisters gave in the book about the shy girl who went up to the vice principal and told him to hush because he was too loud and was drowning out the thoughts in her head. I want my students to want to be responsible for their own learning and not look to me for what they need. The Daily 5 looks like it is a great program for helping me help my students get there.
I teach 4th grade, and last year I was able to successfully implement centers for the first time. Yay! It was probably about April when a friend introduced me to D5, and I have been excited ever since to adjust my centers to more of a D5 format. I can't wait! I have also found out that there will be a first, second, and third grade teacher also using the Daily 5 this year, so, I will have building support as well.
One thing that I do all year long to help build and maintain community in my classroom is to let the kids ask each other for help. Sometimes I will use sticks, or randomly call on someone to answer a question, and most of the time they know the answer, but after some wait time, they can tell me they need to ask for help. Usually hands shoot up around the room, and they can ask a friend for help. I want them to use their resources, and know that they can count on their classmates when they need help with something. Everyone has information to share, they don't have to come to me for help every time.
I LOVED this chapter. It really highlighted *why* I am reading this book with plans to implement it in my classroom this year.
I haven't gotten around to posting anything on my blog yet, but I wanted to pop in and say something about community.
I'm honestly a little shocked that no one has mentioned class meetings. The counselor at my previous school insisted on helping every teacher set up some form of this, and I have found no better way to build classroom community.
For those who have never seen it before, it is very similar to a morning meeting, but only takes place weekly and its specific purpose is solving social issues. The kids bring their own conflicts (at home or school) to the class to get everyone's help in solving it.
It gets its power because the kids are the ones tasked with asking questions to understand the problem and then come up with solutions. I've had classic 'problem' kids' behavior completely turn around when we sat down as a class to collectively come up with ways to help him/her get along with everyone.
Not only does the class start to see the 'troublemaker' as a real person with feelings, but the 'troublemaker' can see that others actually care.
With ground rules and effective facilitation from a teacher, class meetings are a *powerful* community-building tool. I've used it for the last 3 years with 4th graders with amazing results.
I forgot to add: Does anyone who uses the Daily 5 put up posters for the kids for each of the core foundations in this chapter? I obviously see lots of posters on the normal choices/activities (read to self, etc.), but I thought it could be a good things to remind the kids visually of stamina, and the trust they have earned, not to mention remind them of their purpose. Thoughts?
Nicole Roberts, posters about stamina and trust are a good idea. I do have one poster that I really like that says "It is okay not to know, but not okay not to try." Sums up the behavior of a few of my students last year who were fully capable but not used to putting forth true effort.
I didn't take weeks to establish the routines and work on stamina in my 4th grade class last year. I think it was because the students that I had were very competitive and wanted to outdo their class best each time. We did review the objectives and goals periodically though. The best part of D5 to me is the ability to tweak it to work in your own environment taking into consideration the students, district required curricula, and allocation of time periods. I found a few years ago that I tended to get in the way when students were reading. It was amazing. They would be quietly engaged in reading and working and I would bust in with questions. I started really focusing on my OWN stamina then, just didn't realize that was what I was doing. I shared this story with my kiddos last year and they really appreciated what I said. They had experienced it before. So as a community we worked on helping each other accomplish our goals. We are also into positive classroom discipline and weekly the students give each other compliments such as I like the way you really tried your best in reading the class story..." I hope my students in the fall and I can mesh as well as last year's group and just as quickly!
I teach 5th grade in CA. I started D5 three years ago when I first taught 2nd. Last year I only did work on writing b/c I was so overwhelmed with getting to know the 5th grade curriculum and teaching a new grade level. This year I want to embrace Daily 5.
I have never had a problem with trust and staying out of their way. I feel like I do a thorough job teaching, modeling, and practicing the expected behaviors. My problem has always been...once their stamina is up and they are independent, NOW WHAT?? Helping them set individual goals and moving them along is my weakness. I hope to get some great ideas to set me on the right track :)
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