My Fascinating Class!!

First of all, I want to apologize for my sporadic blogging spurts. I've noticed a slight theme in the way I blog- nothing for forever, and then 18 things all at once :) I just have to get into the mood and ... I've been in the writing mood slash have some material to write about :)

This time, I want to write about my latest class assignment. In my science class, Unit 3 was called "Our Fascinating Earth!" (If you have a sixth grade Abeca book sitting around, you can check it out :)) The different sections dealt with the plates of the Earth, volcanoes, earthquakes, fiery rocks, hidden treasures (like gems and petroleum), magnets, and caves.They were all topics that I thought my sixth graders would really enjoy learning about; unfortunately I didn't have the time to do them all in detail. So, instead I did the first section of plates by creating a booklet and presenting important material, and then I divided the class up into six groups and had them do the same with the rest of the unit.

The requirements:
~ Complete a booklet that is
-informative
-gives all the vocabulary words I gave the group
-written in a way that is easy to understand (words your classmates will know)
~ Be the expert on your section- YOU WILL BE THE TEACHERS!
~ Discuss how you will present as a group- Will you have written everything into the
booklet or will the students need to copy from the board? Will they look up
anything on their own, or will have all the answers available?
~ Do you need copies of the book pictures or diagrams you've created?
~ You must have some sort of visual aid- an experiment, examples, pictures
~ Everyone in the group must participate and be able to answer questions

So, that was the assignment. We had a week and a half to work on it, and the kids actually did a really awesome job and enjoyed it. My favorite part of this 'experiment' though was actually watching the kids teach. I kind of gave them complete reign of the classroom. I became a student and sat in the desks, and they were in charge of making sure everyone had all the information, understood the concepts, paid attention, and that we finished on time. It was quite the experience. :) I think it not only gave my students a taste of how difficult it can be to try and keep everyone's attention and still teach something, but it also gave me a taste of being a student- that I as the teacher need to have lessons that will hold their interest and I need to have control of my classroom so everyone is able to learn and benefit from the classroom time. I found myself definitely drifting during the presentations, sitting and waiting a lot, being bored... and yes, I must admit, I felt like causing problems just for the attention of it. I got annoyed with the kids talking, but then I got in trouble for talking several times! - and it wasn't even always to 'help' another student (which could be a legitimate excuse for talking, I've realized). I was a little bit embarassed about the getting in trouble thing though. :) It reminded me of a class I had in college when the professor sent an email to my friend (a guy friend, a very cute, charming guy friend...) saying that him and I needed to stop talking in class and paying attention! GAH so embarassing. but anyway :) It was funny to see my kids in the 'discipline' role- I told them they could do what they needed to to keep order (within reason of course) It was funny to see them taking my discipline tools and using them- and those tools working! The group in charge was 'completely' in charge. For example, one member wanted a drink; he was shocked at the power I allowed him by saying he was in charge if he wanted to get a drink. :) But it's true- I never give bathroom breaks, but there have been two times this year that I had to go so bad that I "gave" a bathroom break as a "reward" :) Power of the teacher. :)

Another thing I noticed a lot more being in the student's seat was how much my sixth graders enjoy answering questions. As far as I can tell, there is no reward for answering questions, and still they're fighting to particpate. I saw several kids get upset when they didn't get called on, and one boy even teared up a little and hid his face! What is that? ;) I'm sure some of it is just a desire to show everyone how smart you are that you know the answer, but at some point, knowing the answers and being smart isn't cool anymore. I hope it takes my kids a little longer to realize that part of school. :)

I have some pictures of the various projects, but I took them with my phone since I'm without a working camera and I'm not quite sure how to move them from my phone to my computer yet so.... you'll have to take a raincheck. :) I'll let you know if more delightful learning experiences come up!