Unit Plan - Ngāti Kahu histories
My teaching as inquiry focus has shifted slightly from student agency and project based, integrated learning to Taonga o te Taiao and how I/we can embrace a more culturally responsive pedagogy which enhances and sustains the school culture of teaching and learning. This sit comfortably within the Kahui Ako work that is ongoing within our cluster.
Last year’s project on bike park started our journey around pūrākau
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1XIiUARvg2zH6TG9tHItmp8iTN1XT6O50ukQzfk82_60/edit
https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/1ocbbMEsXxW8opo2tvKd3Rhns8iYbv8-MbzfY5T1YQX8/edit#slide=id.g1f34d8c18f1_0_6
Students can now click on the question to see how to answer the question as well as goal setting. Students love it!
This week, after talking with Becca from Cognition I asked students for their thoughts on what was memorable so far in term 1, why it was memorable and what makes learning memorable? What really stands out for me is the relationships here e.g. working together, working with people outside of school, relationships with environment, connections and relationships to relevant learning experiences.
Next I need to formally define integrated learning.
Just some thoughts:
Capture a baseline – What was memorable about learning so far for kids? Why was it memorable? What makes learning memorable?
Key question perhaps – does an integrated curriculum make for a richer, memorable learning experience?
.
Before I start define integrated curriculum and define rich learning experience (use research to help with this)
Begin the integrated curriculum and capture evidence that matches how you have defined rich. Memorable learning experience.
Kids might make a personal diary to capture their learning (digital or paper).
Think about measurable progress both summative and formative?
Another tool I can use to collect student voice is this free Learner Voice Tool on Becca's website https://www.
It will allow me to establish if they are engaged and if they know what they are learning. The way I collect data can be aggregated to show progress over time too. Might be worth a look. Scroll down to the learning part 3 and click on learner voice tool.
Our next steps from the Enviroschool's Green/Gold reflection day were to engage in more community based projects outside of the school environment and to embrace te reo in all aspects of our learning. All teachers are now signed up to take part in pd to improve our te reo next year.
We have been approached by a number of organisations in Taupo Bay to run a student led project to research, cultivate and restore the sand dunes with native grasses starting in 2022. I have had early discussions with Jon Urlich and Troy from the Doteeril protection group about how this may look. I have also spoken to Morag at Enviro schools about funding opprtunities.
The scale of this project means a shift in thinking around how we approach it from an enviro group perspective. I hink that we have gone as far as we can with fortnightly activity days. While these will still continue I feel to do the sand dune restoration project properly we need to think about a student led inquiry that has a greater emphasis on curriculum integration.
We explored how to make teacher judgements today using the PaCT tool. Reviewing what we have already covered reminded us that we need to remember to look at what we are taking away from each lesson.
Take aways:
It is important to view the illustrations provided to get a really good idea of what the big ideas really mean for each set/ signpost.
If you think a student(s) is displaying evidence at one signpost then read the descriptions above and below to double check the level of sophistication fits.
The illustrations are also really great ideas for teaching a big idea.
You don’t need to review each student for each set. You would group students to think about where they are to decide your deliberate acts of teaching for the next steps, one aspect at a time.
We will rotate our specific focus each term on reading this year as we familiarise ourselves with these learning progressions. It would be impossible to be thinking about all the aspects for R, W and M constantly!
As always we would use OTJ from a number of evidence sources to decide where students are.
The focus should be less about where students are in terms of giving them a ‘level’ and more about “What do I need to teach, and them to learn next”.
We took a sample of students work and then looked at each aspect and used the blurb and the illustrations to help us place a student on a sign post.
A good discussion happened at the end of the hui regarding E-asttle v's PACT tool for end of year assessments. Below are some of the things we took away from this lesson.
We have noticed ...
...with practice I will get faster at this and more confident with making judgements
…need to change year levels of some students, classes have been set up with names to use now, look at notifications
… writing LPF is good to use. Want to use instead of asstle this year as doubling up. Maybe can for yr1-2??
...… would be really valuable to go to experts on staff to moderate with my tricky judgements
… PaCT tool - taken lots away. Talking with others about what our kids are doing at different levels, useful to collaborate
… Feel confident with it and I want to finish putting them in
… just get it in! You know more than you think you do with your first sense. Calm the farm a bit - you can’t teach it all
… after so long thinking about it, procrastinating and not doing it. Getting stuff in has been beneficial. SO many opportunities to double check and triple check, so it’s robust and thorough.
Tuesday 10th August, 2021
Working with Su Arrowsmith on learning how to break down the aspects and sets on the PACT tool. was a really informative workshop that got us preparing a mini lesson plan for reading.
Focus on WALT's and Success criteria. and explanation as to why we are doing what we are doing. We also addressed having questions prepared prior to lessons.
Example:
Learning Intention: Kei te ako matou ki te….
Why? TIB it helps us to understand what a text is about and to quickly see if it has the information we need to find for research or for pleasure, or to find exactly where the information is, saving us time when reading.
Success criteria: WILF
I can find sentences or words that talk about things:
in the past
In the present
In the future
I can find dates that help me to work out when things happened
I can place events in the correct order
TASKS:
Round Robin - words that give us clues to things happening in the past; present; future
Pairs - read and highlight
Reciprocal reading (a - dates, b - past words, c - present words, d - future words)
Timeline (draw pics/ dates and words/ poem)
Individual practise
Peer assessment and feedback
Tulevai and the sea
Which things do you know will be happening in the future and how do you know this?
On page 4 what word tells you that the sea wants to do something to Tulevai in the future?
On page 12 how many words are there that show things happening in the past?
Rob Coaching notes Oruaiti
2020
Wednesday 19 February
Teaching a new class, new year group, very different to yr4-5-6 set up (enthusiastic, young, but some independance)
Finding I’m explaining stuff several times and not getting it and I’m getting grumpy.
So maybe quick turn around session.
Reporting
Managing syndicates
PaCT tool and overarching inquiry and making into examples and exemplars learning goals for kids.
Diane needs to tell us what is being reported on - levels/ stages/ aspects. I think that it’s not worth using leves as they are not student speak. Use the language in the levels so students know the skills they are working on. Teachers know the number, but students and parents don’t need to know these.
Still looking at last years inquiry. Currently still focusing on levels that are up from last year. My hunch is that it’s too hard for the students to use efectively. Scanning is giving broad overview to whanau and students - moving from this column to this column, working through all this stuff to get there.
Breaking down each goal/ criteria/ aspect in each of the stages, starting early, making it easy, giving them the answers. It is much easier for them to use the strategy and show their thinking/ working out. Then the exemplar is in their folder, not just on the wall. Makes it easier to describe their thinking. Then they have written their specific walt for them. So my hunch is they are getting it. Because they have differentiated learning goals, they are goal setting from day one, from a choice of three, so they are learning this from day one.
Focusing on converting the exemplars into problem based imagery so that the students can see it a bit clearer. More illustrated/ pictorial than typed, as the kids are not reading it. Needs to be the best way for them to decode it. And using their work.
ON WALL:
Written
Pictorial - from LPG/ PaCT book
Pictures instead of numbers - materials focused
Problems - reading problems
Less info - just stage 4 to 6
Their examples
WHY? Because students are writting their own reports this year, so they need to know what they are doing now, where there next step is and how to get there. To get greater student agency in terms of self-assessment. They can reflect on their work and articulate next steps.
Evidence - the students will be able to write their own reports.
TODO:
Trial all of the above with one espect of maths first with whanau kauri and get feedback on what works best. MONDAY 24 Feb
Feedback - Tell me if it works for them, how it could work better,
Start with counting on, and they co-construct the display and take a photo to go home with so it’s a clear display of what they are working on.
I’m breaking up terms into aspects from LPF.
T1 - Add-sub
T2 - Mut-Div
T3 - Fractions
T4 - Measurement & Stats
By next week I will have created a scaled down pictorial version of the PaCT aspects so that my students and whanau are able to see more clearly where they are at and what their next steps are
DATE: 14 May 2019
GOAL: How to get the students to articulate and explain what they are learning, why they are learning it and how they know they have been successful
To have visible exemplars on the walls for students next steps for R, W, M
WHY? Data from RBL has shown that when we ask a cross section of students they aren’t able to answer that. In order for learning to be fully embedded they need to be able to articulate their answers and thinking. If they can do this then they can apply their knowledge and understanding to new situations. Building the motivation and skills for life-long learning and problem solving
REALITY:
At the moment they are reading it off the board
Can’t necessarily apply it to a new situation
Not transferring skills to Gloss test
Want on the back wall:
ADD/ SUB example of a problem the strategy the next steps all in a line across the wall.
E.g.
Stage 6 I have 112 sheep in a field, I add 126 sheep. How many sheep do I have altogether
Making tens
Making tidy numbers
Place value partitioning
Stage 7 Add/ subtract four digit numbers
So that after a test they can go to the wall and point to where they are at and therefore what their next steps are.
OPTIONS:
Change the task section on board to a why
Change ‘success criteria’ to ‘How’
Look for ideas for wall displays on pinterest to help students identify their next steps.
WHAT NEXT:
By the end of week four I will have researched different examples of classroom exemplars so that I can modify them to fit our school.
DATE: Friday 30 August 2019
GOAL:To improve my RBL with Arlo, Cooper and Lyric
WHY? They are all very disruptive, at different times, Arlo most of the time, and I feel like I have reverted back to just negative behaviour management.
REALITY:
I just need to get back to using positive reinforcement with all these guys and spending time with them in a positive way.
Meg is going to have Arlo, Peter, Xavier. and Cooper next year, as well as maybe Ngatoki,
I’m worried about how difficult this will be so want to put something in place soon regarding transition to get them behaving appropriately before they go to Megs class in conjunction with Meg.
What is the normal transition process at Oruaiti? (What, when, who, how, etc?)
Towards the end of Term Four
Previous reports are read by the new teachers if they choose to do so
Chats with current teacher about target students
IEP with new teacher and student if necessary
OPTIONS/ WHAT NEXT:
Talk to - Diane about the transition process regarding - timing
- information sharing (what and how)
- making the process as positively focused as possible
- including students and whanau for all transitions
- Angela about transitioning difficult students
When? By Monday week 8
Rob - “We need a review of everything that has happened this year to make sure we reflect in time to change and improve it all for next year”
(Susan shared that this is something that came up in Meg’s coaching conversation too and that Susan said she would discuss this with Diane, so Rob will do this on their behalf in the first instance.)
Things that need reviewing:
Transitioning students
What is the best way to do this and when should we start?
Learning together/ Passion Fridays
Review attendance data
Do people value Learning Together?
How could we change it next year? Student could opt in to something they pursue as a project through PBL
We should survey staff, students and whanau to find out what their perceptions are of LT.
Teaching as Inquiry
Kahui Ako focus
Whanau Thursdays (Rob to share with Staff and BoT)
Market day, pet day, art day
What are the benefits to student outcomes?
Do we need isolated days to do the things we achieve through these days?
Are they promoting effective, research based pedagogy, for example, getting students to produce six identical art pieces,
Business studies and enterprise learning should be woven throughout the whole year, not just on one day.
Assemblies
Why do we have them?
What are the student outcomes being improved by assemblies? More than then being in class/ doing physical activity together, for example.
Do they reinforce the behaviour we want to see?
Do we need two/ week?
School Council
Why have we not had one this year? There are some great leaders not being given this opportunity to grow their leadership skills
4-day weeks
What have been the advantages and disadvantages?
Who wants to do this next year and can we make it work?
What needs to change? Do we need to be more creative with how we use people coming in on the fifth day? E.g. Petrina when Kaiya back?
Creatively keeping Petrina
Technology @ Oruaiti
What is the benefit to our students of sending them on a 40 minute journey to do ‘technology’ at KI?
What would be the benefit of doing it at Oruaiti?
Could we talk to Mangonui, Peria, Kaingaroa, Taipa about doing tech at Taipa to support Taipa trying to grow their role? Parents want to send kids there, so would help if they’d already had a good experience there. Could set up a meeting to discuss with Dave, Ari, Cathy, Doreen
Could have each year level 6-8 going on different days from each school, so the kids are mixing with other local kids in the same year group
What are they gaining by going to KI? Teachers are terrible and pick on students. Technology they do is really old fashioned and not future focused or relevant to the kids. It is taking about 2 hours out of their day just for the travelling component, so that’s a lot of lost learning time.
PB4L
Manaaiakalani
Lesson Study
Te Reo
Elwyn Richardson legacy
Bees
Wetlands
Ducks
Outdoor learning spaces
OPTIONS/ WHAT NEXT:
Send a survey out to teachers with a list of these things up for review and ask what they think about each - get opinions before discussing and then can determine which ones should have priority at the TOD?
Survey whanau and students prior to TOD to get their input too.
Susan could facilitate these surveys if you want?
Susan could run the session in Sept-Oct holidays during ToD - could potentially take all day….
Invite Jenny and Michelle so they can be part of the discussion and hear how some historical practises are perhaps not serving the needs of our students now.
Talk to Dave about Tech at Taipa if DIane OK
