Now that fall parent/teacher/student conferences are over, we are ready to launch into Daily 5. Jennifer and I are beyond excited that we have so many fellow educators eager to be part of a learning community that focuses on literacy. Those that introduced themselves in the first blog post all shared the desire to implement Daily 5 in a way that is effective and meets the unique needs of students.
We honor the fact that each of you is teaching part or full time and that you have lives outside of your school. As such, we have tried to make the book study and Daily 5/CAFE implementation manageable. As a participant, we ask that you read (or re-read) the chapter for the week. As we progress in our PLC, there will be times that Jennifer and/or I may observe, provide feedback, model, and co-teach portions of Daily 5/CAFE. The goal is to provide support for you as you implement or refine your implementation of Daily 5.
For Monday, October 27th through Friday, November 7, we ask that you read chapters 1 & 2 of The Daily 5, Our Core Beliefs: The Foundations of the Daily 5.
For those of you with access to The Daily CAFE website, here are links from the website to deepen your understanding and reflection.
The Power of Choice https://www.thedailycafe.com/articles/the-power-of-choice
Brain and Body Breaks https://www.thedailycafe.com/articles/brain-and-body-breaks
Respond to the prompts in the comment section of the blog post. Feel free to start your own string or you may build upon another member's response. Remember that you need to log into your district Google account in order to post a comment. Please post comments by November 7, 2014.
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You may use your participation in the PLC as evidence of professional practice as defined by Charlotte Danielson's Framework for Teaching. This week's participation is evidence of
Domain 4: Professional Responsibilities -
- 4a: Reflecting on Teaching - Use in future teaching
- 4d: Participating in a Professional Community - Relationships with colleagues & Involvement in culture of professional inquiry
- 4e: Growing and Developing Professionally - Enhancement of content knowledge and pedagogical skill
Chapter 1 Prompt: What sets Daily Five apart from other management/literacy structure models?
ReplyDeleteThe biggest difference that sets Daily Five apart from other models is that the focus is on students practicing they skills they are being taught. In my internship experience students went to "walk to read" similar to our challenge block. Students spent the majority of the time listening to the teacher teach directly from Scott Foresman. One day a student made a comment to the teacher this is "walk to read' but "we never get to read." He was exactly right, how is he supposed to improve in reading if he wasn't given the chance to read?
DeleteI think other thing that sets it apart is getting student to take charge of their own learning through teaching independence and student choice. This part is what I struggle with but have found this addition to provide a difference perspective that gives me a better starting point for teaching this model in a primary classroom.
On of the biggest differences I see in the Daily 5 is the emphasis on independent and meaningful reading practice. Students are able to build stamina and engage in reading that is self-motivated. Students should learn because they are motivated to, not because I ask them to. Students choose, which is a powerful tool for motivating and improving learning.
DeleteDaily 5 allows students to have ownership in their learning, but also have accountability in their reading. They are able to make the choice in how they learn which is huge to me. Being able to have a choice is crucial in development. This model stands apart, in the fact that, it not only nourishes student literacy, but student independence. It is an exciting moment when I can look around the room and see all of my students working on a Daily 5 choice. I am looking forward to now implementing more meaningful activities tied with my content.
DeleteI like the daily 5 model for the purpose of student independence. It is important that students learn to love reading and that it gives them meaning. Daily 5 helps teachers set up their literacy blocks strictly to give students choice. Additionally, the point of building stamina and that students will recognize their stamina increase will serve them throughout their education.
DeleteOne of the major differences I see in the Daily 5 model that sets the model apart from others is the continual movement and flow of everyone in the classroom. The students move from one activity to another, and are expected to follow the rules and transitions during Daily 5. It holds students and teachers accountable for their participation during the reading block and provides everyone with a responsibility. The ability for the students to have choice in the activity they participate in brings a sense of ownership to the students and builds independence.
Delete@Linda Parker: I agree with you. During my tenure in Lincoln County, I've taught in a school where the way we did business was to teach from a scripted program. My students did not develop a love of reading, were not passionate learners, and did not have the achievement that was expected when the school embarked on the scripted program in every classroom. It was a one size fits all model that did not fit. I felt powerless and was distressed at what I was doing to my students. I LOVE that the structure of Daily 5 provides for student choice and that it is designed to support teachers meeting students' needs/where each student is at. :o)
DeleteWhat I like about Daily 5 is the student choice. I know that there are ways that I learn skills better than others, so offering them several ways to learn a skill respects their learning style and puts them in the drivers seat. I also feel like there are less behavior issues when they are working on task that they have chosen as opposed to a task assigned to them.
DeleteI love the emphasis on the shorter focus lessons that sets Daily 5 apart from other programs that expect students to sit still and listen for 40 minutes as is the case in many of the other programs. I also like the ownership that the students get to take in their own learning as they choose good fit books and partners to read with.
DeleteI think what sets the Daily 5 structure apart from other reading structures or models is that it gives students a choice in their learning. It helps students be able to begin to self monitor and take charge of their learning. It also includes short whole group instruction and the opportunities to practice the reading strategies right away. It also allows both students and teacher to have a job or responsibility. Students are accountable for their own learning and teachers have time to meet the needs of small groups or individual students.
DeleteDaily 5 is one of the first programs I have actually worked with that has a great set up for student learning and success. I really enjoy how students can build independence and make choices when it comes to their own learning. It's also a wonderful way to incorporate some whole group instruction, along with the opportunity for small group instruction or working with individuals as well. I have really enjoyed using this program this year!
DeleteI agree with others that some of the best things about the Daily 5 model are student choice and the focus on independence and intrinsic motivation. I also like that the model acknowledges that students need many opportunities to practice expected behaviors. I think I get ahead of myself sometimes in thinking that students "just know" how they should behave, or will remember after being reminded a few times. I like that this model creates literacy habits for our students and acknowledges that to create those habits, that foster a love of reading, students need to practice. With strong literacy habits in place, students see themselves as readers and writers, increasing intrinsic motivation and fostering growth. Pretty cool.
DeleteThe biggest take away for Daily 5 for me that sets it apart from other programs is the way the Sisters reinforce that we are "creating instructional routines with students through focused teaching, students modeling and practice. Daily 5 also helps students build stamina, develop independence and make successful choices." (p 20) We are teaching kids how to be readers and writers. I really like how the Sisters talk about how important it is to help students build stamina and that the number of rounds done during core depends on how much stamina your students have with reading and writing. (p 14)
DeleteChapter 2 Prompts: Choose ONE to respond to or feel free to build upon another member's response.
ReplyDelete1. What beliefs influence the decisions you make in your classroom. Chapter 2 dives into the core foundations of Daily Five. Do they coincide with your beliefs?
2. Reflect on your classroom expectations. Are they clear to students? Do you teacher expectations and trust that students will follow them? Daily 5 provides students with clear expectations and allows students to truly focus on what is being taught. Aside from your literacy block, what other blocks of your schedule would benefit from explicit instruction of expectations?
3. Establishing a sense of urgency is essential in motivating children to persevere with a give task. Think of the five tasks of Daily 5. what will motivate your children to keep going? What will be their driving force (sense of urgency) for each task? What is YOUR sense of urgency to implement Daily 5?
While reading chapter two I had many "aha" moments as to why my implementation of Daily Five has not been as successful as I want it to be. I realized that I need to work on the clear focus of my lessons, teach the behavior and refer to it often, and then pull the group back to reflect. I plan to reteach using the updated I chart model they suggest in chapter 3, have student model the good/bad/good examples, and make sure to come back to it. I also need to be clear with how the transition from carpet to desk, or from desk to carpet etc. should look, sound, and feel like.
DeleteI also realized the biggest thing I need to work on at the emotional level is to trust my students. I need to trust that if I am explicit in my expectations that they will succeed, and if we need to come back and reteach it is ok.
While reading through Ch. 2, I had the exact "aha" moments you did Linda. I realized that although I go over my basic "whisper to each other" and "track your jobs" etc. I never went through explicitly every job and what it looked like. I have them posted, but I never showed them to all my students more than a pointing to them every once and a while. Starting next week, I am going to create I-charts and really have my students dive into the focus of each lesson.
DeleteThe trust thing is so huge. I feel I hyper focus on my usual "trouble makers" and interrupt so many on task students to redirect those not as focused students. Because of this realization, I will start doing checkins with my students who may not know what they are choosing. I want my students too look forward to ELA time, not dread it and hope they don't get in trouble for being too loud.
Chapter 2 discusses the core beliefs, particularly community. I felt a connection to that section as it so closely resembles TRIBES. In our class, we are working together as one tribe, one community and we are continuously sharing our thoughts, feeling, successes and reflecting each day. This matches so closely with Daily 5. Page 24 says, " our shared experiences and knowledge, bind us together." I can see this taking shape in class. Students of differing abilities helping one another without judgement. Respectfully learning and discussing ideas and thoughts. I believe daily 5 and TRIBES work well together.
DeleteI had the same "aha" moment as Rachel and Linda. I created a rubric for Daily 5 where my students are responsible for tracking what job they participate in and reflect on their learning. We read through the rubric, but I did not explicitly teach what each score would look like with every job. I need to revisit our rubric and maybe have some students act out what each score would look like.
DeleteCurrently, my students are slowly transitioning into the structure of the Daily 5. I am nervous to have them all doing different activities while I work with a small group of students. I need to have more trust in them so that I can truly implement the Daily 5 model.
I feel the core beliefs of the Daily 5 coincide with my own beliefs. Having the trust and respect with students is huge. I think a lot of behavior problems stem from not having these in place right away. Having a sense of community is also a big one. Students need to feel safe and comfortable to take chances or make mistakes. Giving students a choice is also very important. I feel like in my own classroom, I am working up to trusting my students to let them choose their Daily 5 activities and teach them to manage their own behavior. The direct instruction and modeling from the very beginning seems to be the key to success.
Delete1. What beliefs influence the decisions you make in your classroom. Chapter 2 dives into the core foundations of Daily Five. Do they coincide with your beliefs?
ReplyDeleteI think that a lot of the core beliefs do coincide with my own beliefs. I came in to the year with a goal of creating a learning community where students felt empowered to learn and took responsibility for their own learning. I believe that every student is able to learn all subjects. One of my biggest pet peeves is when a parent says something like "well I was never a math person so..." because that influences how their child thinks about math, or reading, or writing etc. Students just need to support and the encouragement that they can learn and grow. I think that the trust that we will help them get there is they choose to make it a priority to reach their goal is very important. I believe that the classroom should be a safe place where students can learn no matter what their level is and will feel encouraged to try their hardest. This is why I want to use the Daily 5, because I have seen that result from several classes at my school last year.
Hey Nick!
DeleteI think as a parent we all fall into some sort of validation trap for our children. Just yesterday I told my daughter, "it's ok. You're only 4." Not quite the same as what you shared with "not being good at math" but some flavor. There's something about children struggling, maybe even struggling the way we did in school, that makes us want to ease their tension instead of looking for ways to help them develop perserverence.
I'm with you-every classroom should be a safe place where students feel safe - including safe enough to take risks. I, for one, hate to fail or to look like I don't know what I am doing. Perhaps, I need to become more like what we want for our students and have the mindset that I can do this even if I can't do it the first time I try. :o)
3. Establishing a sense of urgency is essential in motivating children to persevere with a give task. Think of the five tasks of Daily 5. what will motivate your children to keep going? What will be their driving force (sense of urgency) for each task? What is YOUR sense of urgency to implement Daily 5?
ReplyDeleteI have engaged in several conversations about what a kindergartener is developmentally ready to handle. Establishing a sense of urgency has been included, many have felt that pressure will stunt them and hold them back. I am on the fence about this. I think that it depends on the child. I am a huge believer that we learn from our mistakes, if we aren't shown or if we don't discover what we need to change or improve on, then we will never know what to work on. I do believe that there are some students that need to have smaller items identified to work on because they will crack under pressure, but the best part about Daily 5 is that it is a framework that can be designed for all learners. I have found that establishing a sense of urgency at the beginning of a lesson offers the students an end expectation to focus on. They are able to determine what the product looks like as long as the expectations established at the beginning are met. This allows students to make mistakes and learn from them instead of make mistakes and breaking down when it is brought to their attention. Through check-ins with my students, they love to analyze and acknowledge their growth and areas to work on. This is one of the reasons I want to better implement Daily 5 into my Kindergarten classroom, I have many students that are constantly telling me "I can't do it", I want them to change their mind set.
I appreciate the fact that you have addressed mindset. With my own child I hear, "I can't read", when she CAN in fact "read" the pictures and she recognizes letters and some sounds. She is child from a highly literate home and she has this mindset. I cannot help but feel urgency for our students who don't come from homes like ours.
DeleteLike you, though, I am have a lot of wonders about the developmental readiness of kindergarteners - I can certainly appreciate the fact that you recognize that it's up to the child. Gone are the days where we teach every student the same reading lesson at the same time - they all come to us with such vast experiences and abilities. It really is up to us to employ a structure that allows us to meet every student's needs at the place where they are at. :o)
My students sense of urgency comes from the desire to learn how to read. We have class discussions about why it important to learn our letters, work on our writing, and learn to sound out and recognize words. During these discussions they tell me that they want to learn to read so that they can read books, drive a car, go to the older grades like their siblings, and get a job. Their responses put a smile on my face. I also have the same drive, I want them to learn to read so they can continue to learn and grow, and I want them to learn to write so they can express themselves and communicate their ideas to others. This desire to learn to read and write seems to be the driving force for them during Daily 5.
ReplyDeleteThis is my first year implementing the Daily 5 and I know I have much growing to do ahead of me. I feel that I explain my expectations thoroughly to the students, however, I know there are always areas where I can make improvement. Currently, we are working on noise levels to use with each task or during transitions, in order for all students to be able to stay on task. I agree with what you said Rachel about using "checkins" for those who are either off task or distracting others. Checking in with them individually will lessen the disruption of other students who are working diligently. I also love the idea of creating the I-charts for the students to use for each lesson. This will be something I will want to start creating next week for my students.
DeleteI love it that kinders are so in tune with the reasons why they need to learn to read and write. I have often thought that we need to figure out how to harness the educational buy-in that they have now and refresh them with it in the older graders. I cannot help but wonder what it is that "we" do to squash their enthusiasm once they get out of kindergarten.
DeleteOne thing that I appreciate about the Daily 5 structure is that it allows for student choice in what they read along with providing the framework for direct instruction. My concern with literacy is that we become so focused on teaching standards that we forget (or at least I have in the past) to foster a passion for reading. One way of fostering the passion is giving students choice in what they read. I guess I am in the constant search of the developing the urgency for why we read - not just for life skills but because reading is like breathing. :o)
I agree with Kristin that sometimes we get too bogged down in teaching the standards that we forget to focus on the love of reading. I have fallen into this trap many times through out the years. My favorite reading research leader, Richard Allington, says the number one reading intervention is volume reading. Students reading tons and tones of books at their level. When students are reading lots of books, then everything else (CCSS) is suppose to fall into place.
DeleteI mentioned the forming of literacy habits in my last post, I find this concept really exciting. Thinking about expectations, I'm realizing that I don't do enough to support my students. If I want my students to have success with independent learning, I need to make sure that I am explicitly teaching and providing continuous opportunities to practice independent learning habits. I agree with Rachel, I can't just point to a poster a couple of times and expect students to internalize, or value the expectations. I need to continue to check-in with students about the expectations and tie those expectations directly to each student's growth so the student can see that the expectations have purpose, and their purpose is to support the student's success.
ReplyDeleteI LOVE how Beth and Heather are tying their thinking back to what Rachel shared. THIS is what I love about these types of communities. Everyone here ROCKS!
DeleteBeth, it is so true what you shared about the supports being more than just pointing back at a poster and expecting students to internalize. One of the things that I appreciate about The Sisters is how they remind us to gauge student behavior needs based on what they are showing us. If they are off task, then we need to listen to their behavior and assume that they need something from us. It has been a shift in thinking for me that the misbehavior is the fault of the student but instead is the fault of me not having the right structures in place to ensure their success. I guess it's comforting to know that some of the very people that I value and respect are in the same boat. :o)