tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5337555368793819627.post1047143561554851776..comments2023-06-07T09:04:36.390-04:00Comments on More Grumbine Science: LearningRobert Grumbinehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10783453972811796911noreply@blogger.comBlogger3125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5337555368793819627.post-35769867983318066142014-05-19T17:42:11.556-04:002014-05-19T17:42:11.556-04:00My (and anonymous's) grandmother was another o...My (and anonymous's) grandmother was another of those dragons Eli. She was nominally a 'phonics' teacher, but your comment and anon's, and anon's 11 years (really? I was sure you'd been teaching longer than that!) point to a different issue -- only cartoon rigid teachers use pure X methods. Whether it was see and say, or phonics, or new math, or [insert more recent buzz phrase] <b>good</b> teachers use a mix of methods to support the goal of students learning more stuff. It is the learning more stuff, more skills, advancing ability to question and learn on their own, that is the target. Any particular method is good, to a good teacher, only to the extent it supports the real goal.<br /><br /><br />Robert Grumbinehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10783453972811796911noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5337555368793819627.post-42350014520691681752014-05-15T22:34:34.665-04:002014-05-15T22:34:34.665-04:00I was passing by the blogging neighborhood and tho...I was passing by the blogging neighborhood and thought I’d stop in for some ruminating. Thoughtful post. I giggle to remember that I’m in the family biz. It doesn’t often feel that way, though it’s certainly true. I think that teachers are continuous learners. We have to be. We get so excited about this fact or that expression (mathematical, metaphorical, doesn’t matter) that we feel compelled to share the enthusiasm with whoever will halfway listen and even with those who don’t. Fortunately, we have students, our captive audience of potential lifelong learners themselves. I tend to think of my students as my apprentices. They’re learning and using the questioning strategies that will help them as they get older. <br /> The mandates passed along at the national, state, and local level don’t change the fact that kids are great sponges. True teachers, as opposed to those caricatures featured on TV shows, adapt their lessons to meet the kiddos where they are and propel, yank, plead, beg, bribe, and motivate them forward. Good teachers nod at the standards (we need to know what to put in our reports, after all), but then we get all down in there and teach. Teaching is an art form; there is no cookie-cutter way to “get” kids to learn – and this is where many people get concerned about common core and other such initiatives. I am mindful of our national averages, and use that information as a point to ponder, not necessarily as the entire educational roadmap. <br /> The best teaching, theoretical and applied, occurs when the kiddos are presented with some problem (insert subject area here) and then given the tools to work on a solution of their own design. Your brick/mortar example is apt. Questions that extend thinking beyond “what can I barf up at a moment’s notice” are exactly the questions we focus on (the extending, not the barfing). Teachers have to ensure their kiddos know the building blocks before we set them free, and that’s what small learning groups are for. Everyone, though, practices the higher order thinking skills that end up generating Wonderful Ideas. I capitalize this on purpose. <br />Do we do this daily? Yep. Do we spend a lot of time barfing up basics? Yep. We also generate and test hypotheses in all our classes. That’s pretty cool. Or, maybe I’m just lucky to work where I do. Either way, as your Tweet pointed out, the best way to teach our kids is to give them the tools they need and then let them go fishing. Of course, we supervise for safety and ask deepening questions along the way. At first, we choose the pond, and then gradually let them choose their own. <br /> P.S. I’ve only been teaching for 11 years and still consider myself a newbie.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5337555368793819627.post-10218755781301797312014-05-10T09:06:37.255-04:002014-05-10T09:06:37.255-04:00Eli had the pleasure of doing demonstrations at th...Eli had the pleasure of doing demonstrations at the Science and Engineering festival in DC two weeks ago. It was a delight because of the kids.<br /><br />In most cases the bunny got to interact with the kids and got to watch them think about and extend the demonstration in unexpected (to Eli) ways, but there was one kid who was particularly troubling, not the kid, but his dad who was literally oppressing his son (as in you are stupid kid). That was sad, but there was little to be done.<br /><br />Yes, children are natural learners. Sometimes you have to slow them down to correct wrong directions, but mostly you learn with them.<br /><br />Oh yeah, see and say. Eli;s mom was the last of the first grade dragons, she could and did teach rocks to read. See and say works for the large majority of students, but there are some who just don't get it. Those you have to use phonics with. The problem with command control in schools is that this does not let teachers modify their teaching to meet such needs.EliRabetthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07957002964638398767noreply@blogger.com