Exploring The Daily 5 - Chapter 2

Our Core Beliefs: The Foundations of the Daily 5

I love the quote on the front page of this chapter.

"Respected adults engage in respect-full interactions in which respectful students can bloom." Marie-Nathalie Beaudoin

The Daily 5 is built on a foundation of seven core beliefs. These are:

• Trust and Respect
• Community
• Choice
• Accountability
• Brain Research
• Transitions as Brain and Body Breaks
• 10 Steps to Independence.

This chapter discusses the first six, while the whole of chapter 3 is devoted to the 10 steps to independence. So what did I find out about these core beliefs and how does that relate to me, teaching 4th grade at EWIS.

Trust and Respect

"Each child is worthy of trust and respect." (p.22)
"Trust is believing the best of others, even if actions and behaviours seem incongruent." (p.23)

In order for trust to be effective, it needs to be in the context of extended instruction and practice of the skills necessary for students to be authentically independent. There will be times when stamina falters, but that simply provides opportunity for reteaching and then extending trust again. By respectfully refocusing students, they know they can try again.

At EWIS, respect is an important part of our school culture, so there's certainly no conflict with The Daily 5 from that perspective. After reading this section, I can see how The Daily 5 structure will help me to be more respectful of my students each and every day.

Community

Building on trust and respect comes a caring and learning environment. EWIS is a community and shared experiences bind classes together. As each new year begins, classes change, students leave, new students come, and classes are mixed to form new class groups. Through the development of community, the children will help each other to "do the right thing", without the need for "authority" to step in. The example in this section highlights how students can help and teach each other, enabling all students to know they are valued members of the community and can be successful.

Choice

This is going to be a challenging area for me in some ways, because hand-in-hand with giving children choice is a release, by the teacher, of "control". We all like to feel that we are in control of our situation. Why should children desire that any less than adults. I think what is going to make it possible for me to relinquish some "control" is the way The Daily 5 teaches students to be independent. After a process of learning and developing stamina, the children will eventually get to choose not only what they will read and write, but when and where they do it, within the boundaries of the Daily 5 structure. With those choices will also come:

Accountability

"With the Daily 5, we needed to be accountable to our students by thoroughly teaching them what it looks like, feels like, and sounds like to participate in these productive tasks." (p.27)

Some of the things children become accountable for are choosing locations where they can work independently and maintain stamina, noise levels, and choosing "good-fit" books to read.

"Meaningful independence is the ultimate in student accountability." (p.28)

Brain Research

Our principal regularly gives us tips and hints based on her reading on brain research, so I know she'll like this bit. A key point in this section is the need to keep direct instruction to no more minutes than our students' age. This is going to be a challenge, but I'm already trying to do this to some extent with this year's class. Another important idea is to turn the 80/20 rule into a 20/80 rule, whereby 20% of class time is spent on direct instruction, and 80% is spent on meaningful practice, with focused, just-in-time coaching of individuals or small groups as needed. The third point in this section is that time spent reading is usually directly reflected in reading achievement. Short direct instruction time will give more time for reading!

Transitions as Brain Breaks

I'm sure most people reading this know how hard it is to sit in one position for extended periods of time. For me, a great example is the long haul flight from Australia to South East Asia (be that Thailand, Malaysia or Singapore). I have learnt to request an aisle seat because I just cannot sit for 8 hours without getting restless, and the aisle seat allows me to get up and move around without disturbing other passengers. Children also need to move, and the Daily 5 structure uses transitions to give children these opportunities to move. Daily 5 transitions provide:

• A physical break from independent work
• The movement children's bodies need
• A brain break to help refocus
• A natural timing for 10 minute focus lessons.

I particularly noticed that teaching children how to transition well is part of the 10 steps to Independence which are the focus of the next chapter so I'm looking forward to that.

For more of my reflections on "The Daily 5", check out these posts
Chapter 1: That Was Then, This is Now: How the Daily 5 Evolved.
Chapter 3: The 10 Steps to Teaching and Learning Independence
Chapter 4: What do you need to begin?
Chapter 5: Launching Read to Self - The First Daily 5
Chapter 6: Foundation Lessons
Chapter 7: When to Launch the Next Daily 5

Exploring Daily 5 - Chapter 1

One of the daily challenges of a primary school teacher is getting students to read, and to progress in their reading. One part of the solution is ensuring that students have access to enough books at a variety of levels and from a variety of genres. I'm happy to say that I've definitely made progress in this area from when I first started at my current school. I have a classroom library of about 700 titles. I wish it had more non-fiction but that's a whole extra challenge. Another part of the challenge is that rarely are two students at exactly the same place in their reading development, even within a single fourth grade class. This year I started the year with students reading at beginning first grade level, through to fourth grade level. This is no-one's fault, it's just the way it is. Another challenge is getting kids to actually read whole books, and another is to get them to sit still and read for extended periods (like 15 minutes at a time). Yes, I know some kids will read quite happily for an hour or more, but many of my students don't have that stamina.

I've struggled with all of these challenges,and others, and after posting in a Facebook group, I kept getting recommendations to look at The Daily 5. When I discovered a new edition was due out in February I delayed purchasing until the new edition came out, and I am very happy that I did. The new edition is 8 years further on in development than the first edition, published in 2006. When I first received the book I read it in 3 days. 188 pages in 3 days. Fortunately I got it on a Friday afternoon, and yes, I still managed to get my prep and marking done that weekend. It was such a great read that I found it hard to put down. That's all very well, but it's going to take more than one reading to implement changes in my classroom, so I decided that I need to reread the book, and this time I'm going to take notes and reflect as I go. That's what this post is about. There will be a series of these posts appearing in the next couple of weeks. I process stuff by writing, and so I'm going to do it here, which will also help me be more accountable to finishing the process.

Chapter 1: That Was Then, This is Now: How the Daily 5 Evolved.

1. Children flourish through choice (p.3)
2. Application of brain research
3. Embraces individual needs - Barometer kids
4. Structure not content.

In the Beginning
As I read the author's descriptions of their early days of teaching I was able to relate, and I yearn for what they describe as their more recent experiences.

What Changed.
They created routines and procedures that fostered independent literacy behaviours in a way that those behaviours become habits. Children are trusted to make thoughtful choices during sustained independent work periods.

Management: Evolution
I love what I see in the Daily 5 column of the chart showing how their classroom management evolved, and I especially can see how it fits in perfectly with our school-wide goals. The Daily 5 Evolved through the emergence of five tasks: Read to Self, Read to Someone, Work on Writing, Listen to Reading, and Spelling/Word Study.

What Sets Daily 5 Apart
This section asked me to think about what I'm currently doing, which is The English Workbook, Novel Studies, Independent Reading Log & Task, and Write Rights. It then proposes that Daily 5 will result in meaningful and authentic reading and writing for extended periods of time, while allowing the teacher to conduct individual conferences and work with small groups. Daily 5 involves a mixture of whole-class focus lessons, small group instruction, and one-on-one conferences.

Overview of Daily 5
Read to Self comes first, using the Ten Steps to Independence to build stamina for this task. The other Daily 5 choices are added slowly, until eventually all are taught. At this point students have short sessions of all Daily 5 choices every day. The number of choices each day gradually reduces as stamina for independent work time increases. Read to Self and Work on Writing must happen every day, but children can choose the timing. Read to Someone is important for auditory learners (I'm going to have to work on that one) while other students (usually more advanced readers) may not actually need to do this. Word Work (Spelling) eventually becomes a small part of a Work on Writing session.

Daily  5 goes hand in hand with something called CAFE (Comprehension, Accuracy, Fluency, and Expanding Vocabulary). It provides productive work time for students not meeting with a teacher. Daily 5 is flexible enough to work with whatever classroom schedule you have, even if literacy time is broken into more than one block. Daily 5 is not content. Content is based on individual assessments and CAFE (a whole other book) helps with ways of teaching and assessing within the Daily 5.

So that's Chapter One. I'm excited and seriously thinking about how I might use Daily 5 in my classroom next year. Stay tuned for Chapter Two: Core Beliefs.

For more of my reflections on "The Daily 5", check out these posts
Chapter 2: Our Core Beliefs: The Foundations of the Daily 5
Chapter 3: The 10 Steps to Teaching and Learning Independence
Chapter 4: What do you need to begin?
Chapter 5: Launching Read to Self - The First Daily 5
Chapter 6: Foundation Lessons
Chapter 7: When to Launch the Next Daily 5

When is a trapezium not a trapezium?

Why, when it's a trapezoid of course.

There are some days when the English language is soooooo frustrating. What version should I use? Standard Australian English (SAE)? American English? British English? Living as I do in a land of many expats, from various corners of the world, I've had to learn some extra words and meanings.

Earlier this week a colleague commented to me about this topic and then e-mailed me some further information about it. The problem arose when he was teaching his students about 2-D shapes, using his personal knowledge of 50+ years, to teach them the names of various quadrilaterals. Now this learned gentleman comes from the USA, so he naturally used the US terminology, just as I would naturally use the Australian terminology. Not a problem you might say. Well, for most shapes, you are correct. There is no problem because there is no difference in the shape names. A triangle is a triangle, a square is still a square, a rectangle is definitely a rectangle (although a few might also call it an oblong), a parallelogram is still a parallelogram (or maybe it's a rhomboid), a rhombus is still a rhombus, and a kite is still a kite, no matter which side of the ocean you might be on.

But what do you call a quadrilateral with exactly one pair of parallel sides? That's where the problem comes in. If you are from the USA, then you will call it a trapezoid, but if you're an Aussie (or using an Aussie mathematics curriculum), then it is a trapezium! OK, that doesn't seem like a big issue. The problem comes in when you discover that the folk from the USA consider a trapezium to be a quadrilateral with no parallel sides. We Aussies would just call that an irregular quadrilateral!

So, I just did a search trying to find out how this anomaly came about, and found this interesting article. It seems like this problem has been around since 1795, and a resolution has yet to be determined. For those of you who like pictures, here's one I found, this one summarises the quadrilateral family quite neatly.

Oh the joys of the English language! I guess it's yet another situation where we have to think carefully about our audience, and then say, "it's not wrong, it's just different", unless you're preparing students for an exam which specifically uses one definition or the other, in which case you'd better make sure you know which one is considered correct by the examiners.

So what are we teaching our students? In the interests of consistency across the grades from K to 5, we'll call it a trapezium, but it the kids ask the question, then I'm happy to say that I will now be able to enlighten them, thanks to my learned colleague from the USA, and some Internet research.

Thinking about church

During the past day or two I've had the opportunity to read two magazines put out by the denomination of my home church. The first is a national missions magazine which you can read here, and the second is a state magazine which you can read here. The first article (on pages 6 & 7 of The QB) is written by the principal of Malyon (previously the Queensland Baptist Theological College) and looks at the issue of church attendance. This was very interesting and I was able relate to a number of points which he made.

When I was growing up, church on Sunday mornings was basically not negotiable. It was what you did. It wasn't a chore, it was an important part of being a committed Christian. We also attended Sunday School which was usually before the service. To the best of my recollections Sunday School went for an hour, then there was a short break (maybe half an hour) and then we went to church. The whole family attended the whole service together (except for babies & toddlers who went to nursery / creche). Services rarely went longer than an hour, unless there was communion, in which case it might go for an extra 15 minutes. Up to the end of primary school we were allowed to read a book during the sermon (or colour in when we were smaller) but after that we were expected to listen to the sermon. The rest of the service we were expected to join in with. Consequently I grew up learning many hymns. When I reached my teens, Scripture Choruses were becoming popular and so the music began changing. Over the years I've seen so much change in church services. Some of those changes I enjoy, but others I find a struggle. I distinctly remember that once we went into the sanctuary we were required to be quiet. Usually the organ would be playing quietly for 5-10 minutes before the service started and people took time to be quiet and prepare for worship. That's something I really miss.

Getting back to the article, the focus was on the changing regularity of attendance. It was noted that many folk often attend fortnightly (every two weeks) these days, and that is even stretching out to every third week. The writer reflects on a number of reasons for this changing attendance trend, varying from the busyness of our lives, through to pure laziness and rebellion. I know that for me personally I find it hard to attend every week, and I sometimes wonder if attending church on Saturday instead of Sunday would be a good option for me. One of the reasons for that is that I find I'm really ready for a "down day" or "Sabbath" on Saturday, and Sunday is the day when I'm more productive in preparing for the week ahead. Unfortunately teaching is not the 8 - 5 job that I had for the first 20+ years of my working life. When you work in a job which doesn't require additional hours of planning, preparation, and marking, it's somewhat easier to be committed to attending church every Sunday. Regardless of whether I'm attending every Sunday or not, it's important to have a local church where I feel connected, both to the Lord in worship and to fellow believers.

The other article (on pages 8 & 9 of Resonate) talks about the purpose of church, discussing churches as being selling or sending churches. Selling churches are about delivering goods (meeting the needs of the members of the congregation), while sending churches are about equipping members to reach out to the community. I think there needs to be a balance of both. It's important to meet the spiritual needs of the congregation, to encourage and build them up so that they can effectively reach out and serve. What do you think?

Yep, I'm human

This post is prompted by this one, shared by a good friend and fellow blogger.

In sharing the post, she used this quote from the original article:

When we tell only of our achievements, we do harm in two ways.
First, we imply we're above failure and therefore better or more mature than they are. Second, we imply that they're inferior because they struggle over issues that don't trouble us.  (Cec Murphy, 20 December 2013)

She followed her quote with this comment:

Ouch! Advice for writers, but it applies not just to professional writers, but those of us on FB as well as missionaries who write news/prayer letters! (W Marshall 2013)

As I read it, I thought of the e-mails that I get addressed to me as a "hero" and I thought how so often I share the positive things that happen, but share little of the negatives. Now, I'm not saying that I shouldn't share the good things that happen, but by only writing about and sharing the good things, I'm painting myself in an unrealistic light. Let me tell you now, I'm human.

So, humour me, and keep reading as I share some of the things I struggle with.

People often tell me I'm a great teacher, and that's encouraging. Trouble is, I know the darker side to my teaching. I struggle daily with the need to be "in control". Now, at first you might think being "in control" is a good thing. It can be. We all need a hefty dose of self-control, especially where kids are concerned. Where the problem comes is when I "over-control" and fail to allow the students the freedom to learn in their own ways. Over the years I've learned to relinquish some of that control, and to allow my students more freedom, but I also know there are days when I blow it. This need to be "in control" has been part of the cause of a tough first semester this year. If you read this and pray for me, then please pray that I'll be able to relax that "control" a little in the coming semester.

Another thing I struggle with is "reacting". When things go wrong, and kids do things I'd rather they didn't, I react. Again, I've made some progress in this area, but I admit that this year there have been more "reactions", and particularly loud voiced reactions, than I'd like. I'm ashamed of this, but I also know that God knows me, and understands me, and as I confess this, He forgives me. If I was to put this in a prayer point, I'd ask you to pray that I would be more like Jesus in my reactions. He was gentle and loving in all His corrections.

Well, that's enough for one post. I'm human, but I won't bore you with any more struggles. I thank God for a caring, thoughtful, compassionate principal who has greatly helped me recognise these faults, and who patiently helps me to overcome them. I also thank God for his loving forgiveness in my struggles. Most of all, I thank Him that He loves me just as I am, that love is so great that it wants to help me change. Thanks Lord.

My new buddy

I just discovered it's three months since I posted anything here! Oops. Sorry folks. Life's been hectic. This year's grade 4K is really challenging me. Looking at some strategies to implement after the Christmas break to see if we can turn things in the right direction. I feel a bit sorry for the kids who have been doing the right thing week after week, because they haven't been able to have the fun that my previous classes have earned, so I'm also working on something to fix that.

Meanwhile I was feeling so discouraged today, and just plain tired, as well as frustrated with intermittent internet problems that I went for a walk down to the local phone shop, got a new sim for 3G internet and then treated myself to something fun.

Meet my new buddy. I haven't got a name for her yet, but I think she's pretty cute. In addition to being cute, she also has the responsibility of protecting my phone on the odd occasion that it slips out of my hand and hits the ground.

I also decided that the bright pink would make my phone easier to find in the depths of my handbag! Having spent the huge amount of 10,000 riel (less than $3) at the phone shop, I decided to also treat myself to a "Mango Chiller". An icy cold drink on a cool day (everything's relative here) was just what I needed.

So, what do you think I should call my new buddy?

First Day Fun

Just a quick post to let everyone know I survived the first day of school today. I have 22 students on my roll, of whom 20 were in attendance today. It's going to be a great year, and I'm looking forward to seeing this group of students show just how great they can be. They just loved the fact that I gave them a test on the first day of school (kidding), and also handed out homework on the first day. I'm such a mean teacher, but with only 7 full weeks in the first 16 weeks of the school year I have to make every day count. Looking forward to a good night's sleep (I've earned it), and another day of fun and learning tomorrow.