Findings
Gabe
"Science is a way of thinking much more than it is a body of knowledge. " Carl Sagan
His eyes are still in a book even though I asked students to look up because it’s time to go to lunch. “Gabe, please stop reading.” His charming smile makes it impossible to do anything but give him a wink, reader to reader, and signal him to close the book. Non-fiction books are his passion and any science topic is worth exploring. I’ve learned that Gabe is talkative, and even when I think he is off task, he comes back to his work and shows that he is learning. He learns best when he is bouncing ideas off his peers and checking for understanding.
I began teaching about the rainforest by asking students to list their questions. I wanted them to work alone so they would have their own questions to answer. After twenty minutes I noticed that Gabe had a blank sheet of paper in front of him. I wondered what was going on because I knew he liked science. "Gabe, what's up? You don't have any questions on this paper." He has a sudden interest in his shoes. "Well, I couldn't think of anything to write." My stomach jumps a little. If I couldn't get him started, how would any of my students learn. No, I will not panic. It's just the beginning. "OK, I think when you learn a little more about the rainforest you will find some things you want to know more about." In the afternoon I read a non-fiction book about the rainforest, and taught a focus lesson on the text features. Students browsed through books I checked out from the library about the rainforest and there is a lot of chatter. I worry that there is too much noise.
The next day, we were on our way to music and Gabe wondered why we are learning about the rainforest. "Why do you think we are learning about this?" "Cause it is important to save it so we can all have air to breathe." "Yes! That's a very important reason." I made a note about that because I can see he is thinking about these things after the read aloud has ended. He needed time to process what he was learning and talk to his peers.
I began teaching about the rainforest by asking students to list their questions. I wanted them to work alone so they would have their own questions to answer. After twenty minutes I noticed that Gabe had a blank sheet of paper in front of him. I wondered what was going on because I knew he liked science. "Gabe, what's up? You don't have any questions on this paper." He has a sudden interest in his shoes. "Well, I couldn't think of anything to write." My stomach jumps a little. If I couldn't get him started, how would any of my students learn. No, I will not panic. It's just the beginning. "OK, I think when you learn a little more about the rainforest you will find some things you want to know more about." In the afternoon I read a non-fiction book about the rainforest, and taught a focus lesson on the text features. Students browsed through books I checked out from the library about the rainforest and there is a lot of chatter. I worry that there is too much noise.
The next day, we were on our way to music and Gabe wondered why we are learning about the rainforest. "Why do you think we are learning about this?" "Cause it is important to save it so we can all have air to breathe." "Yes! That's a very important reason." I made a note about that because I can see he is thinking about these things after the read aloud has ended. He needed time to process what he was learning and talk to his peers.
Figure 1
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Gabe's questions continued as he learned more about the rainforest. Students spent time in the media center and used web-sites and databases to answer the questions they had in the beginning of the study. Figure 1 shows Gabe reading from the World Book on-line and writing information he learned in a graphic organizer. He is building his background knowledge. Neuman, Kaefer, & Pinkham (2014) state that multimedia is a powerful tool for building background knowledge. It can introduce children to important words and concepts in a highly motivating way and build a shared knowledge base. This is definitely helpful in promoting high level thinking across disciplines.
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Gabe answered the questions he asked in detail. This was noteworthy because the writing he had done in class was limited. His answers show me that he reads and understands non-fiction text and that he writes more when he has a specific focus.
When we returned to the classroom that day I sat with Gabe and his peers as they wrote. I listened carefully.
Gabe: If we know that cutting down the rainforest is bad, then why do people do it?
Student: They need the land.
Gabe: Yeah, but the land isn't good land. It becomes bad after the trees are gone and then it goes to waste.
Lily: And the rainforest gives us oxygen. People shouldn't cut it down. The animals don't have their homes when it's gone.
Gabe: There's a lot of bad stuff that happens when people cut it down.
I noted in my journal that the students began to think more deeply and ask each other questions as they wrote. I had not seen that type of interaction before.
Gabe: If we know that cutting down the rainforest is bad, then why do people do it?
Student: They need the land.
Gabe: Yeah, but the land isn't good land. It becomes bad after the trees are gone and then it goes to waste.
Lily: And the rainforest gives us oxygen. People shouldn't cut it down. The animals don't have their homes when it's gone.
Gabe: There's a lot of bad stuff that happens when people cut it down.
I noted in my journal that the students began to think more deeply and ask each other questions as they wrote. I had not seen that type of interaction before.
When our study of the rainforest concluded I began the next exploration in the same way. Gabe started out with nothing on his paper, and I wondered what my next steps would be. I thought about how social he is and realized that it would be beneficial if he looked at books and talked to his classmates as he composed questions. I sat with his group of classmates and listened as they discussed the solar system. Figure 2 shows Gabe's questions about the solar system. His first question was about how they came up with the planets. I was interested in the way he wrote the question about going to the sun, and then Neptune. I made a note in my research journal to ask why his trip included two places. His questions reveal that he is learning both the content and how to ask questions. He definitely benefited from learning about open-ended and close-ended questions (see Lily's page for more details about what we did.) His last question is one for people far wiser than I am. What is life? Figure 2
Collaboration
Teachers know that most students are social beings and enjoy working together. That's an understatement for this group! Video 1 shows Gabe, Lily and Adrielle using I-pads to answer some of their questions about the rainforest. Gabe searches Google for his question, "How do animals get to the rainforest?" At the 24 second mark, he wonders why he is getting so many weird answers. He shares this with Lily and Adrielle and they listen to the search results that appear. I noted in my research journal that Gabe likes to talk things out, and this is one example of how he is processing what's happening as he searches.
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Video 1
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At the end of the clip, Lily bursts into laughter and Adrielle asks her what is so funny. Lily can't answer, and Adrielle and Gabe start giggling too. Gambrell, Hughes, Calvert, Malloy, & Igo (2011) write about the importance of authentic learning. "Authentic literacy tasks acknowledge and play into students' needs and desires to do things that are 'real life'"(p. 235). Video 1 is an example of how people truly interact when they research and come up with something amusing. My classroom is definitely a place where students feel comfortable and laughter is welcome.
Figure 3
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The students in my class sit in clusters of desks which facilitates conversation. Gabe frequently interacts with his peers when he needs an idea or when he needs to talk about what he is thinking. Figure 3 shows Gabe with Harper. They are looking at a book about rainforests and have turned to the back to check out the map. I sat with their group for a few minutes as they talked about South America, asked when lunch was coming, wondered where Jacksonville was on the map, and why the rainforest gets so much rain. I wrote about their conversation in my research journal because I've been thinking about my concern about whether students are talking about the
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things they are learning about, or if they are talking about things that aren't related to school. In this instance, they were mostly on task, though that might have been because I was sitting with them. I am wondering if it's realistic to think that young students won't get "off track" when they work together. How much does that affect their learning, or is it actually beneficial to have conversations? Ketch (2005) helped me set my worries aside. "Conversation brings meaning to
life as students seek to contemplate and understand our complex world. Conversation is the comprehension connection" (p. 12). I have seen this with all my students and am already making plans to change my instruction.
life as students seek to contemplate and understand our complex world. Conversation is the comprehension connection" (p. 12). I have seen this with all my students and am already making plans to change my instruction.
Gabe's Final Product
Gabe chose to study piranhas for his project. He gathered information from a variety of sources and was very focused during his time in the media center. He waited patiently when he needed assistance, and offered to help others when they asked. He was proud of his book and excited to share it on his blog.
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Video 2
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Figure 4
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I included figure 4, which is a photo of his reflection about this project. I smiled as I read that the thing he liked the best about this project was that he got to pick his own animal to study. He affirmed all the research I read and my observations that choice is essential for student engagement.
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