#flipclass 2012-2013 Week 5b Reflections: Highs and Lows

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Week 6 is over, and what a week it's been.  Lots of highs and lows, for sure.  I just realized that in our school calendar, this was really "week 5", since the first half-week doesn't really count.  So I'm going to call this "week 5b" :)

From being out in meetings all day Monday, to benchmarks and tests in all my classes, to a webinar with Bill Nye during 4th period, to the devastating news of a student's death on Friday...this week has just been mentally, physically, and emotionally exhausting...

This also marks the coming of the first "report cards" on Friday, so I will be doing my first formal "evaluation" survey with my students. I sent it out today and it is due on Friday.  I'll be sure to blog about that next weekend or the following week. :)



Random fun stuff:

• I have another webinar coming up through Sophia.org on Tuesday, October 9th at 4pm PST.  It will be a different presentation than my other webinars and focus more on the different ways I use the WSQ to organize my class, help my students to process material, hold my students accountable, and promote discussion.  You can register here.  Sign up now, as "seating" is limited!
• On Wednesday, I got to be a special guest on a Bill Nye Skype Webinar hosted by Sophia.org and Capella University.  My portion is from about 5 minutes until 15 minutes into the webinar.  Check it out here. 

algebra 1.


Using videos for productivity with subs. I was out of my classroom on Monday for a leadership meeting, so I used that time to have my students put together their "flipbook" for Chapter 2b.  I really don't think it is that hard of a task, but getting 40 students to fold, cut, and glue things in the right place at the same time is much harder than you would think.  The students were supposed to view the video over the weekend (only a few did), and then they watched it together in class.  It was only a ten minute instruction video, but most of the kids didn't finish putting it together in class because it took them so long to cut and glue.

Anyways, I think it was a good use of a time when I was out for the students to accomplish a task I needed them to get done in a day I wasn't there.

"Ticket to the test" update. In other news, my "ticket to the test" policy is coming along... okay...  Students had their FOURTH opportunity to take Chapter 1 yesterday, and I still have (I think) 9 students out of my 75 Algebra 1 students who haven't taken it.  This is with reminders, student conferences, and parent phone calls.  I'm not sure what else to do.  I have several students in each of my classes who have literally done nothing all year.  I call home and talk with the parents and the parents say, "Okay, we will do it all this weekend and I'll make sure he's caught up on Monday." Then the kid shows up Monday with absolutely nothing done.  What do I do in that case? I've enlisted all the help I can, and still nothing.  The few students left will be going up to the office next week to talk with counselors and admin, but I fear they are so far behind at this point and so lowly motivated I'm not sure what the next step should be.  This only applies to a few students in each class, but still...

Student meetings. I have been having individual meetings with all my students who got D's or F's on the Chapter 1 test for Algebra 1.  I only have a few left to meet with (besides the 9 that haven't even taken the darn test!).  I hope what we talked about in the meetings stick with the kids.  Most of all, I hope they realize that I care about them and their success, and I am here to support them.  Sometimes that's what students need to know - that school is a place they can come where they can trust people and get support.  I'm hoping this relationship building goes a long way come the end of the year.

I had a meeting with three of my Algebra 1 students yesterday after they came in to (finally) take the Chapter 1 test.  I knew that none of them were ready, but they showed me all their "work" and said they had it all done, even though it was obvious to me they didn't really understand what they were doing and all their practice answers were wrong.  But, at this point, I realized that no more of my talking was going to matter until they had personal experience.  So, when they were done I sat down with them and their Chapter 1 tests, looking at the last 5 questions on the distributive property/combining like terms.  All three of them made the same mistakes (if they got -2b-5 as their answer, they would write -7 because they thought they could combine them together).  We opened up to their PQ problems in their notebook and... wa-la... they had done the same mistake in all their PQ's, but didn't care they had gotten the answer wrong.  We had a nice discussion about how to get help BEFORE the test and why it's important.  I gave them the analogy that they had a really bad habit of just "being okay with sucking at math" because they are used to failing and getting moved on, which is what happens in intermediate school.  I told them it was like having a habit of not brushing their teeth.  That's a habit that needs to be broken, because brushing your teeth is something you need to do.  Showing up confused, not asking questions, not checking answers to PQ problems, being okay with just being wrong over and over again and not putting forth the effort to get help... that's a bad habit that must be broken.  It really seemed to click with them, but we'll see if it spurs them to any action...

Chapter 2a Test Results. The Chapter 2a test came with interesting results.  For Chapter 1, I had about 26 period 1 students and 13 period 2 students not ready for the test on the first day.  For Chapter 2, I had only 5 period 1 students but 18 period 2 students not prepared on Thursday.  I was very happy with the period 1 results... not so happy with period 2.  I have a lot of concerns with that class.  First, they are already a "lower" class in terms of ability, they have been my "behavior problem" class (even though with the seating change that has improved greatly), and I seem to have a lot of students in the boat of "oh yeah, I get it" when they really need a lot of help.   I have really tried to focus with them in small groups, but when it comes down to it, I think it is a huge motivation issue.  I currently have no A's, 3-4 B's, 3-4 C's, a couple D's, and the rest F's... and most of those F's are because the students haven't taken either the Chapter 1 or Chapter 2a test... so they just don't have any scores in the gradebook!  Report cards go home on Friday and I hope those numbers change greatly by then since this week there are still more makeups... but I have a feeling they won't...

Update on the week based on my plans and goals I wrote in Week 5

I'm keeping the same four goals in Algebra 1 for a while, because I feel like they are points of focus for the entire year.  Sometimes in this class I get so overwhelmed by the management of it all.  I have students at all different levels, students that literally need babysitting to even get a pencil out, and students who are ready to be about 3 weeks ahead of the class if only I was ready.  I would say that is my biggest struggle with teaching Algebra 1, but it is made easier with the flipped classroom because I am able to differentiate better.

1. Make intentional time to "interview" and talk with every group about the math.
2. Actually look through my students' work in their notebooks. Ask them questions. Have them work out the problems in front of me.
3. Ask students to solve problems on their mini-whiteboards more often for me to look at.
4. Make intentional time for "small group" instruction on whatever concepts I feel need the most focus.  

algebra 1. My plans and goals for this next week:

I feel like the four goals I have listed above are ones I want to keep for a while, until they are accomplished or become such routine and habit that I am doing them without even thinking about it.

1. Make intentional time to "interview" and talk with every group about the math.
2. Actually look through my students' work in their notebooks. Ask them questions. Have them work out the problems in front of me.
3. Ask students to solve problems on their mini-whiteboards more often for me to look at.
4. Make intentional time for "small group" instruction on whatever concepts I feel need the most focus.  

algebra 1. My continued focus for improvement: 

1. I still haven't really done anything with the HOT questions in class, besides ask the students if they got them answered.
2. WSQ resubmissions are coming along and many students are "figuring it out", but there are just as many who haven't.  I don't know if their writing skills are that poor or if they don't understand the expectations.  Either way, still need to grow here!



math analysis.

Inquiry bust on Monday.  I tried something new on Monday. It completely busted.  Part of it was because I wasn't there.  Part of it is because my students are still used to being spoonfed.  But, it was a learning experience.  

I had planned this activity for a while before I knew it would fall on a day I was going to be out, but I thought I would give it a try anyways.  For the first lesson of Unit G, I had my students watch a video that just laid the framework for the unit.  It gave them the basic vocabulary and told them a little bit about each part (rational functions).  However, I did NOT tell them how to put the pieces together and how to graph them functions.  

For three days before I was going to be out, I warned my students about the "new activity" they would be doing on Monday.  I tried to explain what I expected from them.  Let's just say it wasn't a good thing to try for the first time when I wasn't there to support, encourage, and guide them.

Some students did fine.  Most of the class, however, said "this is too hard", "she didn't teach us", "how can she expect us to know how to do this", "I don't get this".  Those are the same responses I am sure they would have said to me if I was there.  And I would have guided them along or prompted them to use their resources (notes, extra videos, textbooks, each other).  However, for the most part, that didn't happen.  Needless to say, they got a very bad report from the sub because most of them just chose to sit there pouting the whole period.  That led to a nice little conversation the next day...

I might try this again... but I will definitely be there in class the day that I do!

Blog posts as the "S" in the WSQ. For Unit G, instead of typing their full WSQ into the Google Form, I had them do the "S" portion as a blog post.  If you go to my student site, you can see the blogroll on the right hand side and read what some of the kids wrote.  Some are great, some are good, some have to be re-done.  However, I like that the "bar of quality" was raised a bit because they were publishing it, and I did actually read every single post and make comments on what needed to be fixed. I liked that students could add a little creativity to their answers by utilizing the bold, italics, underline, color, highlighting, font size, etc... all things they don't have with the google form.  I also required them to include an image, although some of them didn't necessarily choose images that went well with paragraph.

In all, the students had to do ten "blog posts", each that were a paragraph and is the same amount of work that would be done in a normal WSQ, just separated out and published elsewhere.  However, there are a few takeaways from this experience. 
1. Don't do as many posts in one chapter.  Maybe just choose one or two summary questions I really want them to publish.  Even though I hope the caliber of writing and focus is "blog-post good" in the google form, I know it's not and my students spent a lot more time trying for "perfection" on the posts.
2.  Start including peer-reading the next time.  Blogs are still being set up, and I don't want to overwhelm the students with reading others and commenting as a requirement yet.  But it's definitely something I want to do.
3. Better instructions at the beginning.  My instructions were not that clear (you can see the post on the home page of the class blog that talks them through what to do, but that was posted AFTER a lot of students had already started writing).

RSS readers are glorious for keeping track of this :)

Student-created videos.  Unit F saw the first student created video.  You can see the very basic instructions I've put together for my students here.  Like always, there are some great ones and some crappy ones.  Some students are having a hard time explaining themselves clearly and precisely.  But, we'll get better :)  These are also posted on student blogs if you want to check them out.  They have a page called "Student Videos". 

Complaints without suggestions. This week marked the tipping point for some of my "complainers".  I finally put a stop to it on Wednesday and told them that my classroom is flipped and will be flipped and no complaints are going to stop it or make it change.  I basically told them that the complaints need to stop and I'm not going to put up with them anymore. (a little cheer inside for me right now!).  I told them that if they have a "complaint" with a solution/suggestion for another way to do something, to please bring it to me.  But the complaints for the sake of complaints because they just feel like it are done, over, and I'm not dealing with them anymore.

On Thursday, I had (for the first time!) a few kids come up and tell me how much they really love the flipped classroom and how good it is for them.  I was really grateful after a long week that they took the time to do that.

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/68/Bloom_taxonomy.jpg

Why are we flipping? With that conversation, I also spent a little time going over with my students some of the reasons WHY I flip my class and WHY I have them do all the different activities like writing their own problems, recording their own videos, blogging, etc.  This led to an explanation of Bloom's Taxonomy and how so many classes are focused on the bottom two levels of remembering and understanding, but I am trying to provide opportunities for them to apply, analyze, evaluate, and create.  I told them that all classrooms are starting to focus more on the higher levels, but I am just someone who is willing to put my "neck on the line" and do it first, when students are still uncomfortable with it.  The pyramid visual really helped a lot of my students (from what they told me) to have a purpose behind what we are doing.  I definitely need to introduce it sooner in the year next year.

"Ticket to the test" update. After the Unit E catastrophe with a ton of students (1/3) not coming prepared, Unit F was better.  I only had 8, 10, and 2 students not ready for the test. (In classes of 28, 38, and 28).  And... EVERY STUDENT WHO TOOK THE TEST ON THE FIRST "CLASS" DAY GOT A "C" OR HIGHER ON THE TEST! That has NEVER happened before!  I hope my remaining 20 students can pull through as well (2nd chance is on Wednesday morning), but how exciting is that!

Update on the week based on my plans and goals I wrote in Week 5

1. Meetings with students who did not succeed on Unit E test.  Look at their PQs, SSS packets, study habits, work habits in class, time management, etc... all to help them get on the right track. 

• Only 1 happened this week. I was focused on the algebra 1 kids...

2. Hold students more accountable for getting a few things signed of EVERY DAY on their WSQ chart, including quizzes.  A little hand holding might go a long way in helping them learn time management.

• I've tried to do a better job with this, but it still needs to be emphasized.

3. Students will be blogging the summary part of the WSQ this week... it will be interesting to see how it goes!

• see comments above

math analysis. My plans and goals for this next week:

1. Meetings with students who did not succeed on Unit E test.  Look at their PQs, SSS packets, study habits, work habits in class, time management, etc... all to help them get on the right track. 

2. Hold students more accountable for getting a few things signed of EVERY DAY on their WSQ chart, including quizzes.  A little hand holding might go a long way in helping them learn time management.

math analysis. My continued focus for improvement: 

1. Challenging the students that need challenging and working with the struggling students (I already know exactly who they are).

2. Continuing to do small group teaching at the U every day as needed.

#flipclass 2012-2013 Week 5 Reflections: loving the changes!

<---- 
amazing 
room 
setup! 





Week 5 - Check!

The school year is in full swing and I feel like some things are finally starting to become routine.  Here are the highlights:

• Four new visitors
• The other two Algebra 1 teachers and then two teachers from another school site came on Tuesday to see what was happening in my flipped class.  All of them were really impressed with what they saw - again, with the students interacting with each other and the way they were able to work together.
• The other two Algebra 1 teachers at my site will be beginning to flip their classes soon, and this gave them a great visual perspective of what the flipped classroom actually looks like, and it allowed them to see that it is more than the videos.   They stayed all day so were able to see both Algebra 1 and Math Analysis (two different worlds!). I'm excited to work with them and continue to give them ideas as they make the transition
• Loved the new classroom setup
• U-Shaped small group is amazing. Well worth the hard work of moving those super-heavy tables!
• Algebra 1 students making videos
• First sub day = amazing
• I am out once a week for the next 7 weeks and about 20 times total all year.  I will be having one of my friends sub for me every time and it was wonderful to find out that the first day went AMAZING... even with my freshmen! It gives me so much more confidence when leaving my classes this year that the days will go well :)

• Other Posts this week:
• none. This week was crazy. I'm hoping to breathe a little this weekend

algebra 1.

seating change. It was time to change seats in Algebra 1, so on Monday they got a new seating chart now that I know their names and a little more about them.  So far, it has been really great this week and I haven't had some of the issues I had in weeks past.  

new room arrangement. In addition to new groups, I also utilized the "u-shaped" small group area I showed in last week's reflection and it was really really really awesome!  I looked at the online WSQ responses and recorded how many of the "secret questions" the students got correct.  The students that got 0 or 1 correct I asked to come to the middle table once the WSQ chat was over.  We worked through the PQ problems together.  It was actually really neat! (I know I've already said that a lot, but seriously it went so well!).  I would go over one with them "normal teaching style" with them helping me.  Then, I would have them try one with the people around them while I did a quick walk around the room.  Then, we would go over one again together but with them telling me the steps. Sometimes, I would have the students do it on the whiteboard.  It was just awesome to feel like I was able to reach the needs of the struggling learners, help them feel confident, and pull them out of the "normal group setting" where they might be afraid to ask questions and get help.

Some students felt they understood it (even though the missed the questions the previous night), so I did make them stay for a couple examples and then they could go back to their group if they felt confident.

student created videos. Thursday and Friday my students made their first "teaching" videos for Chapter 1a Concept 3. They had to write their own equation, solve it with a partner, and then record the videos.  These are far from ideal, but they are better than I expected :).

The instructions I gave them were:
1. Work out the problem on paper first to make sure you are doing it correctly.
2. Both partners must talk through the problem at some point.

Structure for the video:
1. "Hi, this is _____ and _____ from period ___. Today we are going to be doing a Chapter ____ Concept ___ problem."
2. State the problem
3. Solve it step by step
4. "Thank you for watching"

Areas for improvement
1. Some groups still solved the problem wrong!
2. Some groups talked so quietly it was hard to hear them
3. Some groups recorded in the middle of the classroom where the background noise was really loud rather than going to the corner, to the back room, or right outside.

Plans for next time:
1. Students will have to watch their own video and write at least two positives and two places for improvement.
2. Students will have to watch at least one other group (maybe 2) and do the same thing
3. Class discussion on making better videos

See the Algebra 1 videos below :)

Create your own Playlist on MentorMob!

Chapter 1 Test results.  My students did very well overall, although I am still waiting for about 10-12 students to take the test (that's another story, they will have opportunity #4 coming up next Friday after yet ANOTHER phone conversation with the parents).  Once I get all the test results I'll post the data but overall I am very impressed. I can't really compare this to last year because I don't know if the kids are comparable yet (I guess I could look at CST scores?).  We'll see, once I have time to sift through it.
Update on the week based on my plans and goals I wrote in Week 4

1. Make intentional time to "interview" and talk with every group about the math.

• I feel like I am getting time in every day to talk with every student, but I still want to improve the quality of the conversation and focus it less on "how are you doing, what did you get done" to actually "quizzing them" about the math and having them explain things to me.

2. Actually look through my students' work in their notebooks. Ask them questions. Have them work out the problems in front of me.

• I checked through a lot more this week.  The student-created videos are also a very eye-opening tool

3. Ask students to solve problems on their mini-whiteboards more often for me to look at.

4. Make intentional time for "small group" instruction on whatever concepts I feel need the most focus.  

• Yay for my new seating arrangement! This makes it so much easier!

algebra 1. My plans and goals for this next week:

I feel like the four goals I have listed above are ones I want to keep for a while, until they are accomplished or become such routine and habit that I am doing them without even thinking about it.

1. Make intentional time to "interview" and talk with every group about the math.
2. Actually look through my students' work in their notebooks. Ask them questions. Have them work out the problems in front of me.
3. Ask students to solve problems on their mini-whiteboards more often for me to look at.
4. Make intentional time for "small group" instruction on whatever concepts I feel need the most focus.  

algebra 1. My continued focus for improvement: 

1. I still haven't really done anything with the HOT questions in class, besides ask the students if they got them answered.
2. WSQ resubmissions are coming along and many students are "figuring it out", but there are just as many who haven't.  I don't know if their writing skills are that poor or if they don't understand the expectations.  Either way, still need to grow here!

math analysis.

It's been a good, but long, week.  Monday was the Unit E Test and I had 1/3 of my students NOT come prepared.  They got a nice "friendly" conversation before calling home and telling their parents they weren't allowed to take the test until the make-up day of Friday.  The students were disappointed, frustrated, and mad at themselves.

So, of course I expected wonderful things Friday morning.

Instead, students saunter in when they wanted to (7am sharp was the test time), didn't have their WSQ charts signed off yet and expected me to look through all their work that morning, or didn't even have the assignments complete still.

Needless to say, they got another "talk" and it wasn't a friendly one.  And I personally called the parents. (still have a few more to get to). 

So, the big question I am asking myself is: "Is this 'stress' going to be worth it once students figure it out?".  My answer right now is YES. I can't give up on my "policy" of requiring students to be ready to take the test by having all assignments completed just because 1/3 of the students struggled with taking responsibility and managing their time the first time around.  I expect much fewer students to be in that group on Thursday for the Unit F Test.  The next opportunity to make up Unit E is Friday, so they have a busy week.

Students have created their blogs for the most part and will start posting on it this week.  For Unit G, instead of typing their Guided summary answers on the google form, they will be posting them on their blog.  The main purpose in this is to get used to using the blog for simple posting, working with the text tools, and adding images.  They are also learning how to embed videos and MentorMob playlists into their blog posts and pages.

In other news, let's see:

• Did small group teaching at the U once this week and it was really helpful for the students who needed it
• Students are taking more initiative in taking quizzes in class (although if it's a retake they really should be doing it on their own time).
• Students are working hard and are self-directed and focused for the majority of the class period.

Update on the week based on my plans and goals I wrote in Week 4

1. Meetings with students who did not succeed on Unit E test.  Look at their PQs, SSS packets, study habits, work habits in class, time management, etc... all to help them get on the right track. 

• These will be happening next week since I had so many students not take the test.

2. Hold students more accountable for getting a few things signed of EVERY DAY on their WSQ chart, including quizzes.  A little hand holding might go a long way in helping them learn time management.

• I've tried to do a better job with this, but it still needs to be emphasized.

math analysis. My plans and goals for this next week:

1. Meetings with students who did not succeed on Unit E test.  Look at their PQs, SSS packets, study habits, work habits in class, time management, etc... all to help them get on the right track. 

2. Hold students more accountable for getting a few things signed of EVERY DAY on their WSQ chart, including quizzes.  A little hand holding might go a long way in helping them learn time management.

3. Students will be blogging the summary part of the WSQ this week... it will be interesting to see how it goes!

math analysis. My continued focus for improvement: 

1. Challenging the students that need challenging and working with the struggling students (I already know exactly who they are).

2. Continuing to do small group teaching at the U every day as needed.

#flipclass 2012-2013 Week 4 Reflections: long week, but still some progress!

Hard to believe we finished the fourth week of school!  Honestly, this week was a blur.  Starting with finding out Monday morning that my class was broken into over the weekend and two laptops stolen, to having summer exam make-ups for my Math Analysis students Tues/Wed both before and after school (craziness ensues, but at least it was on my timetable and not on theirs), to a pep rally assembly on Friday for the big rivalry game... I honestly am having trouble trying to remember this week!

This week I tried to focus on the use of "flex time" (Thanks Graham and Carolyn!) as well as remind my students what our goals were in a flipped classroom. 

In addition, I had some visitors on Thursday who really loved what they saw, specifically in the interactions students were having in class and how they were working together to clarify questions.

I also rearranged my furniture on Friday afternoon, creating a u-shaped "small group" area in the middle of my classroom.  So, now I have table groups around the edge, quizzing rows on the right side, and a small group focus area in the middle.  We'll see how I like it this week, I may rearrange on Friday :)

• Other Posts this week:
• We had a live G+ Hangout for our weekly #flipclass chat this week.  I was honored to be a live guest and chat with 9 other amazing educators about norms in our flipped classrooms.  Watch the hour-long video archive here. 
• I ran into three former students in the last week.  Read their encouraging comments here.
• See the progression of my Math Analysis students in asking questions (HOT ones!) and what I had them do with them in a two-part post here and here.
• The three things I hope my students can clearly see are our goals and purposes of our flipped classroom...I sent these out on Edmodo, talked about them in class, and blogged about them here.

algebra 1.

My Algebra 1 kids are showing improvement. I remember writing that last year every week as well, and I think that is just fine... as long as we continue to progress.

I had to remind my students of two important things this week:

1. Communication and Responsibility.  I had 3-5 students in each period this week not watch the video before class and not communicate with me.  I want them to know that I understand if something comes up and they can't do it at home once every so often (NOT if it becomes a habit though!!), but I do expect them to communicate with me BEFORE HAND (I have a GVoice number they can call or text if they can't email or Edmodo me).  My freshmen students are having a lot of trouble understanding that point.  I spoke with the students who that applied to individually outside and the next day, it was better.  There are still a couple who I just don't know what to do with because they don't get it - and parent phone calls home don't help!

2. Three important parts of succeeding in the flipped classroom

• You MUST take notes in your SSS!
• I have some students who still watch the video and write zero notes down.  One in particular came in for tutoring on Wednesday morning and needed help so I asked him to get out his SSS packet... which was empty for that concept!  He said that he watched the video, but took ZERO notes.
• I probably need to do a better job of being "anal" in checking their notes the first few weeks of school next year.  I didn't do that this year and I hope it's not something I regret. Students aren't used to this freedom and responsibility.
• You MUST answer the "Secret Questions" to the best of your ability!
• This only applies to a few, but I have some students who write their answers as "Idk" or "this was tricky" instead of actually giving me an answer.  I tell them that even if it is wrong, they need to give me their answer because it helps me find out where they are stuck and if several students have similar wrong answers I know what misconceptions to address.
• One random note, I find it "funny" when a student answers the last question on every WSQ like this... "The part I'm most confused about is... nothing, this was easy". And then proceeds to get all the "secret questions" wrong.  Metacognition and self-awareness training needed!
• You MUST check your answers to your PQ's
• Students will still lie to my face about checking their answers.  They will call me over to sign off their PQ and I will ask them, "Did you check your answers?".  They will say yes to my face, and I will glance at a couple problems which are glaringly wrong... I'm not sure what my next move is here.  I have gone over this daily, gone over the importance of it, why we do it, had them discuss in groups and come up with reasons for checking... but still DAILY I have multiple students in every period lie to me that I catch, and I know multiple more that I don't catch.  I'm wondering if a consequence would help alleviate it, like if I catch you lying about checking your answers you will get 15 minutes of detention?  I hate using punishment like that but I am not sure what else to try...
• The reasons WHY I want students to check their answers (which we discussed in class) are:
• To make sure they are doing them correctly
• If they aren't doing them correctly, to know that they are doing them wrong so they can ask questions
• To get help when they need it, which sometimes they don't know until they see a wrong answer.

In other news, students took their Chapter 1 test this week.  Well, some of them did.  In period 1, 13 of 38 students took the test and in period 2, 23 of 36 took it.  I warned them that if they did not have all their WSQ assignments signed of (or completed ready to be signed off) by test day on Wednesday, they would not be able to take the test.  This included online WSQs, HOT questions, PQs, song/chant recitation, quizzes (at least taken, preferably passed), and any other activities (they did a "write your own word problem" poster this chapter).

I don't think they really took me seriously, to be honest.  Out of the students who weren't able to take the test, about half of them are "really good kids" who were just missing one or two things.  Others really haven't done much.
(I have had more parent calls and counselor meetings in these first three weeks than any year in the past, but part of that is my effort to try to support the needy students EARLY with the hope they will not struggle as much if we can figure it out now instead of once report cards go home).

To not make this crazy for myself, while half the class was taking the test, the other half was calling home informing their parents of the situation and the make-up date.  Students have to come in at 7am on Tuesday to make it up.  All in one day, so I don't have to make more separate versions and make my life crazier.

Now... I am prepared to have students in one of three camps on Tuesday:
1. Students who finished all assignments and show up ready to take the test.
2. Students who haven't finished all assignments but still show up Tuesday to take the test (and won't be able to)
3. Students who don't or "forget" to show up.

Ideally, all my students would be in camp #1.  But, I am not going to be idealistic and believe that to be true.  So, the question is... what am I going to do with students in Camp #2 and #3?

I have already given them the "support card", so I can't give them another one because it is for the same set of assignments.  I could call home again. I could send them to the office on a referral.  I don't know what would work for some of these lowly motivated students.

I have considered saying, "Well, you can't start Chapter 2 until you finish Chapter 1 assignments", but honestly right now, that is creating more stress and craziness for my life than I need with students who are not mature or ready for that freedom.  I would then have to monitor how much they are actually getting done to catch up with the class and consistently bug them to get caught up, and then in reality, how are they ever going to catch up?  I know in an asynchronous, mastery-based classroom that is how it happens, but in a class of poor-performing, low-motivated, freshmen students who have already failed Algebra 1 at least once... it doesn't work that way.


For the students that took the Chapter 1 test, all but 5 got a C or higher.  Students who get a D or an F will have an individual meeting with me so we can look at their notes, their PQs, etc and talk about how to better prepare themselves, how to track their progress, how to ask questions, etc.

Lastly, Chapter 2a starts the first chapter I am requiring my students to resubmit their online WSQs if they did a really crappy job the first time.  My students are not reading the questions or answering them fully. So, we went over it on Friday, and for Concepts 1 and 2 they either got "approved" or "must resubmit".  These resubmissions are due via Edmodo by Monday, so we will see how they go. 

Update on the week based on my plans and goals I wrote in Week 3

1. Make intentional time to "interview" and talk with every group about the math.

• I did a good job of this one or two days this week. It's still on my goal list for this next week.  Period 2 still has some major immaturity (and thus classroom management) issues that I find myself having to do more management and "stay on task" than actually engaging with the students.  I'm hoping our seating change on Monday will help a little with that.

2. Actually look through my students' work in their notebooks. Ask them questions. Have them work out the problems in front of me.

• Did a better job of this, but still not satisfied with the progress my students are making. Why do I encounter students like this every year?  Ones that are so well-trained to just lie to themselves... act like they have the work done but don't understand it but won't ask questions?!?!  Where does that come from? When does it begin? How can we stop it?

3. Ask students to solve problems on their mini-whiteboards more often for me to look at.

• I did this every day this week.  It also holds them accountable to actually doing what I ask them to do.

4. Make intentional time for "small group" instruction on whatever concepts I feel need the most focus.  I am doing this in Math Analysis at the  :30 of every hour and I think that may work in Algebra 1 as well. 

• I was only able to do this on Thursday.

algebra 1. My plans and goals for this next week:

I feel like the four goals I have listed above are ones I want to keep for a while, until they are accomplished or become such routine and habit that I am doing them without even thinking about it.

1. Make intentional time to "interview" and talk with every group about the math.

2. Actually look through my students' work in their notebooks. Ask them questions. Have them work out the problems in front of me.
3. Ask students to solve problems on their mini-whiteboards more often for me to look at.

4. Make intentional time for "small group" instruction on whatever concepts I feel need the most focus.  

algebra 1. My continued focus for improvement: 


1. Student responses to the online WSQ questions. I'd like to do some more critiquing of their writing (in a positive way) and show students what great, good, poor, and bad responses look like and how to improve them.

• We'll see how the resubmissions go this weekend. I hope to see improvement with the WSQs they will be submitting this week.

math analysis.

Math Analysis is still going well. I am actually very happy with the progress we are making.  Students have seemed to adjust well to the routine.

There are just a few areas of concern:

1. Students must complete all their WSQ chart assignments before the test.  However, I am not strictly enforcing daily deadlines, just suggested pacing as they work through this.  I'm hoping that students learn from experience and learn to manage their time for THEMSELVES, not because a teacher is forcing them to.  We just finished Unit E on Tuesday, and they are taking the test in class on Monday.  I had many students who had taken NO Unit E quizzes until after Tuesday (when they are supposed to be taking them daily), and even more who showed up Friday wanting to take them on the last day.  They can only take each quiz once per day, so they are causing stress for themselves and me.

Right now, they just have to have "taken" the quiz to be approved for the test, but I am considering implementing that they must have "passed" the quiz to be approved for the test (which makes sense...).  My only concern with that is I think many more students would not take the test on the class day, causing more make-up/re-takes to happen later on.  Would implementing that "rule" encourage students to make sure to start the quizzes earlier, since if they didn't pass them they won't be able to take the test on time, and would also receive a "support card"?

2. I am dealing with a little bit of resistance from some students who are struggling with the flipped classroom.  I have had individual conversations with these students and I hope that their attitude improves.  I feel like a lot of it is coming from the fact that they feel they can be resistant because it is a change, but they don't necessarily realize that these changes are fully supported by the admin, counselors, and my colleagues...I am just the first one to be trying them.  We'll see how this improves as time goes on (oh I hope!)


Update on the week based on my plans and goals I wrote in Week 3

1. Mix it up - WSQ chat variations and  2. More uses for the questions they come up with.

• I really like what I did with the HOT questions this week. (see posts above)
• Having students write answers on the whiteboards holds them accountable, so that even if I'm working with another group, I can see what the others groups have been doing.

math analysis. My plans and goals for this next week:

1. Meetings with students who did not succeed on Unit E test.  Look at their PQs, SSS packets, study habits, work habits in class, time management, etc... all to help them get on the right track. 

2. Hold students more accountable for getting a few things signed of EVERY DAY on their WSQ chart, including quizzes.  A little hand holding might go a long way in helping them learn time management.

math analysis. My continued focus for improvement: (same as last week)

1. Challenging the students that need challenging and working with the struggling students (I already know exactly who they are).

2. Continuing to do small group teaching every day on the :30

3 comments that have kept me going...

I've run in to 3 of my former students in the last 4 days, and it's comments like these that keep me going through all the ups and downs of teaching...

1. Friday night - student at football game.  Currently a freshman in college, had him 2 years ago when he was a junior.

"Mrs. Kirch! You won't believe it!  I'm taking Calc I again in college and I'm in the class with a bunch of juniors and seniors, but I'm the smartest one in there.  Everything you taught me in your class is helping me so much!"

2. This afternoon - student came up after school.  Currently a senior in high school, had her last year.  This student openly disliked the flipped classroom at the end of the year.

Me: "So do you miss the flipped classroom yet?"
Student: "Yeah, kind of.  Calculus is so hard!  But, everything you made us do is really helping me.  I feel much more prepared than some of the other students."

3. This afternoon - student came up after school.  Currently a freshman in college, had her last year as a senior.  This was my biggest complainer all year (she had the same math teacher for three years in a row before me, so that was an adjustment in itself... then the whole flipped classroom just sent her for a loop!).

Student: "Whenever my friends need help in math I send them straight to your videos"
Me: "So does that mean you've changed your mind about the flipped classroom?"
Student: "No, I would still rather be taught traditionally.  But, your videos are really helpful. 

Working with WSQ questions in class

I tried a new activity with Math Analysis today and I think it worked fairly well.  There are definitely some tweaks for next time, but for the first round I'm happy.

Yesterday I had my students go through the whole unit so far (Concepts 1-7) and pick their top 3 questions as a group to put on the whiteboard. I posted those pictures yesterday, but here they are again:

Today for their WSQ chat, instead of doing the normal discussion, I had them pick these questions to answer.  I learned as the class periods went on to make the directions better.

Period 4: "Choose as a group 3 questions to discuss. Write them on your whiteboard and answer them together."

Period 5: "Choose as a group 3 questions you don't know the answer to yet.  Write them on your whiteboard and answer them together."

Period 6: "Each one of you needs to pick one question that you don't know the answer to yet and write it on a whiteboard.  Bring it to your small group (3 students) and you will discuss the answers together."

Hopefully you can see the progression.  What happened in 4th period is the students just picked the first question they saw or the question they thought was the easiest (not realizing the point).  Period 5 did better, but it allowed some students to participate where others just sat back and didn't do much.  Once I got to period 6, I figured out that if everyone had to get up and pick 1, that helped.

So, what I learned from this activity:

1. It allows students to review the whole chapter, reading questions and thinking about if they know them.

2. It provides structured time for students to be able to talk about things from the chapter that they still don't understand. 

3. It opens the doors for great discussion when multiple groups pick the same questions.

There were a couple of questions multiple groups picked throughout the day:

1. What happens if there is a multiplicity of more than 3?

2. How can you graph the imaginary zeroes of a quadratic?

We were able to discuss them, explore on our calculators, talk about what is coming in the future... and then after I explained it to a couple of groups and got the question again from someone else, I told them to go back to that first group to get the answer.

I think I'll add this one to my "do again" list :)

A note to my students...

 Inspired by the #flipclass chat tonight, I sent this note out to my students on Edmodo tonight.

Just some thoughts for you as we are in our third week of the flipped classroom... 

With all your work, it's less about "getting it done" and more about "proving to me that you've mastered it".  Keep that in mind as you continue to transition to our new way of teaching and learning through the Flipped Classroom.  You have all been doing a pretty good job so far.  Remember...

1. The responsibility for learning is now "flipped" to you.  You have to manage your time to make sure to get the assignments done.  You should be working hard in my class from bell to bell - if not, you are probably falling behind and not doing what you are supposed to.  There should be no "free time" in class, although there is a lot of "flex time" - time for you to get done what you need to get done. 

2. The focus of class time is now "flipped" to you instead of me. Class time is for YOU to get YOUR questions answered rather than just listening to me.  Make sure you are doing that!  You should come to class with questions to be answered, and leave class with those questions answered fully and deeply.  Don't settle for anything less!

3. The focus of our work and conversations is "flipped" to higher-level thinking rather than simple "answers" and "worksheets".  It is important that you are able to show your work, explain your work, and really connect the concepts together.  While you may have never had discussions in your math class before, they are incredibly important to developing a deeper understanding of the math and not just "going through the motions" like you are used to. 

Questions, Questions, Questions... getting HOTter!

My Math Analysis students are really coming along pretty well in terms of what I want for the WSQ chats in class. I don't feel I have had to train too much... mainly just re-focus and tweak as things go along.  What I am really happy about this year is I'm not hearing the complaining every day of:

"I didn't have a question."
"I hate asking questions."
"Why do we have to ask a question?"

My students actually seem to really enjoy the WSQ discussions, collaborating with their classmates, and asking their questions.

Today, we did a little review of the whole unit at the end of their WSQ chat and I asked them in their large groups to each look through their seven individual questions and pick THREE that were their "favorite".  I described a "favorite" as one that they had a really good discussion about, one that is really important to understand, or ones they think their classmates should discuss.

They wrote them on the whiteboards.

Tomorrow, for our last day on Unit E, these questions will serve the basis of their WSQ chats.  I'm excited :)

Live #flipclass chat Monday 9/10/12

Check out the archive of the live #flipclass chat (done via Google Hangout) below!