- Reading Meeting is a good thing. Tons of learning happens during these regularly scheduled, small group meetings. Most of this year's focus has been on informational text (central idea, facts vs opinions, authors views, evaluating evidence, text features, and text structures). We got off to a clunky start because I made the groups too small. This resulted in limited conversations and (for me) too many meetings. Regrouping into fours from what had been twos and threes was a good move. This will definitely need to be a part of next year's program.
- Writing Workshop is improving. In recent years, I have tried to implement an overly customized writing approach, and it simply hasn't worked. This year, I have taken more of a teacher directed writing workshop approach in conjunction with MPCL formatted lesson structures. The results have been positive, with significant gains being made in student writing. While I have been at odds at times with the MPCL, this is one area where I am joining their ranks wholeheartedly. Over the summer, I'll also need to consider how to best differentiate within this approach, using what I have discovered about learning customization.
- MPCL-style mini lessons are proving more effective than I had expected. I've not been a huge fan of whole class, direct instruction in the middle school classroom as it seems to rail against what we know about the young adolescent population. However, I've been experimenting with targeted poetry as a kick off to our independent study/LT times, and this has been well received by students. By using poetry as a focus, I've been able to keep the lessons concise and focused. We've also developed the routine of "gathering round the smartboard" almost like it's a campfire. The key has been to let the poetry be the medium for delivering content rather than "doing a poetry mini lesson." This will need to be a regular feature of next year's plan.
- The Independent LTs strategy needs tweaking, but it's worth keeping. This has been the hallmark of the customized approach, and students seem to love it. Students each have their own bank of independent tasks that are assigned to them based on their readiness and needs. A bonus of this part of the program is that students are learning to manage their time. Plans for the future, which starts during next month's classes in this case, include more use of novels related to our social studies content. I find it interesting that this approach is very similar to the "stations" approach being used by MMS teachers more directly connected with the MPCL instructional framework. The idea that students learning independently frees the teacher for targeted teaching remains a good one.
Looks like I have even more to think about as I wrap up this year and plan next year's approach. This has been perhaps the busiest year that I have had since my early days of teaching. (Note the decreased number of blog entries this year.) I don't recall ever being so mentally and physically depleted, and I've paid a physical price as well. However, I think I'm finding my way toward the balance between customized learning and the MPCL framework. After a couple more months of putting a bow on this year, I'm eager for a summer of reflection and preparation for what may be the best year yet!
