Which of the five talk moves stood out to you, why to you think this is?
Talk move #5 was the move that stood out the most to me. This is a move that involves waiting for your students and giving them enough think when asked a question. There is nothing that gives me more anxiety then by feeling rushed to come up with an answer to a math problem or find the main point of a question. I need time to process the question and take time to thoroughly think of my answer. When I feel rushed I do not do my best work and sometimes skip important skills. Wait time is very beneficial to my classroom because we have a lot of quiet students. They will let the more talkative students answer the questions. Many times I observe that those quiet students don't even raise their hand, even though I know they have the correct answer.
Having silence in the classroom is daunting but I have been trying to work towards that. I think that the students pick up on the students that will always have an answer or raise their hand, and so they do not even try to figure out the answer. By waiting and not calling on the first student that raises their hand, gives the other students the confidence to try and answer the question. I remember being a student who was not super confident; having the time to think to yourself was very helpful.
One thing that my mentor does is has sticks with the children’s names on them. When we are checking homework or reading, she pulls a stick. She allows wait time for students to get their answer, but also gives the quiet students a chance to be involved in the discussion or checking of homework/warm up worksheets. It is a helpful tool because it gives all students an opportunity and you aren't constantly calling on the same children.
The combination of the talk move and other techniques have helped to create a good dynamic in my classroom. Students feel comfortable in sharing their work. It is a talk move that I will continue to work on and use in my classroom. Knowing that I like time to process things, I can understand that my students might feel the same way. It is important to understand the way you like things and how it can be similar or different to your students, as well as to different techniques you can use within your classroom.
Shannon-
ReplyDeleteI really enjoyed reading your blog, because it described your classroom experience, which was quite different than the experience I had in my placement last year. I totally agree with you about the fact that sometimes it really is hard to spit out an answer right after you hear the question. Knowing how kids are, there are many times that their hands shoot up before they have even given the question that you have asked any thought. It really is important to give your students ample time to process the question, and then come up with an answer with some sort of substance. I think the problem only arises in classrooms that haven't been constructed in a manner that promotes students sharing their thoughts comfortably. If classroom discussions are a constant part of your classroom from day one, and guidelines about how to interact respectfully in a discussion setting are set and enforced, I believe that students will undoubtedly become comfortable with each other and want to share more. If discussions aren't held early and often it becomes exponentially more difficult to start using them regularly later in the year.